The Obsidian Wars
Part 2: The Star of Rosskarn
By AndrewK9000
Chapter 1: Switching Schools
"Whoa, hold on, Frankie!" exclaimed Cupid, "what emergency!"
"Valentine's back!" said Frankie, "he's kidnapped and brainwashed Draculaura into loving him and hating Clawd and everyone else, and now they're planning on destroying the world! You've gotta come back and help set things right!"
At that Cupid looked angry enough to punch a hole in the wall, "that heartbreaking playboy of a vamp thinks he can turn Draculaura against her friends and loved ones?! Not on my watch!" she then looked at Tobias, Raven, Apple and the others, "come on, everyone! We're going to Monster High!"
"Whoa, hold it!" said Raven as she walked over, followed by Apple, Briar, Avery, Dexter and Maddie, "mind telling us who your friend is, Cupid?"
"Huh? Oh! Sorry," said Cupid, "everyone, this is Frankie Stein, one of my friends from my old school. Frankie, these are my friends from my new school, mostly."
"Oh, that's right," said Frankie, "you did transfer. You can tell me and the others about it later, we have to go now before the portal closes up."
"You opened a portal?" Dorothea asked as she examined the portal, "looks stable to me." But then the portal began to shrink by a few millimeters, "oh, right, my mistake."
"Apparently time is of the essence," said Tobias, "so, are we going or not?"
"Of course we're going," said Cupid, "Oh, Frankie? This is Tobias, he's my special someone."
"You've got a boyfriend now?" Frankie asked as she smiled happily, "that's so voltagious, but we really need to get going or I'll be stuck here for a few days."
"That portal is definitely closing," said Madison as she examined the shrinking opening in time and space.
"Then let's go already!" said Frankie as her neck bolts sparked with urgency. She then hurried back to the portal and stepped through, followed by Cupid and Tobias.
"What now?" Apple asked.
"Go after them, of course," said Raven confidently as she started towards the portal.
"What?! NO!" shouted Dexter, "Raven, you can't!"
"You're still recovering from all the stress from battling Obsidian," said Apple, "Dr. Anderson specifically told you to take it easy."
"I am taking it easy," said Raven, "I'm going to help one of my friends help another friend in trouble. It's not like I'll be battling Cuthbert all over again, right?" With that she stepped through the portal.
"Is it me or has everything that's happened made Raven a bit more reckless?" Cerise asked.
"There's the understatement of the macrosecond," said Maddie, "wait up, Raven! Peas and Crackers! You can't go on an adventure without me! Who'll pour the tea!?" with that she rushed into the portal.
"Those two are pretty much inseparable," said Apple as she walked towards the portal.
"Whoa! Negative! Negative!" shouted Madison as she, Ashlynn, Hunter, Briar, Daring and Cerise, stepped forward, ready to rush in and pull Apple away from the portal, "no way are you going! Not after the hell we've all been through to keep you alive."
"You're still pretty much at the top of Obsidian's hit list, Apple," said Briar.
"Ophelia's still alive somewhere," said Lucian, "and who knows how many more proxy allies she has with Obsidian?"
"Someone's gotta take care of her," said Lilia as she mimed aiming and pulling the trigger of a gun.
"I thought you two were gonna go wherever the wind takes you," said Ashlynn.
"Yes, but upon careful consideration," said Lilia, "my brother and I decided not to leave that particular lose end untied."
"We'd love to sit and discuss our future plans," said Lucian, "but I believe some of you still have a portal to catch."
"Oh man!" exclaimed Dexter as he saw that the portal was only seconds away from closing up. "Hold on, Raven! I'm coming!" with that he ran into the portal.
"Well, go on already," said Daring to Apple and Avery, "someone's gotta keep Dexter and the others out of trouble."
"More like Apple's keeping them out of trouble and Avery keeps Apple out of trouble," said Lizzie, "while all of you, be careful. We won the battle, but the war is far from over."
"We know," said Avery.
"Briar," said Apple, "until we get back, you, Hunter and Ashlynn are in charge."
"Who made you the leader?" Madison teased, "and what am I? Chopped liver?"
"We'll be fine, Apple," said Briar, "go have fun."
"Just be careful!" said Cedar
"And don't do anything I wouldn't do," teased Kitty.
"We'll keep that in mind," said Avery. He then looked at Apple, "you ready?'
"For an adventure? Yes," said a warmly smiling Apple. With that she and Avery stepped through the portal hand in hand, just as it closed up.
"We're never gonna have normal lives again, aren't we," sighed Hunter.
"Since when have our lives been at all normal?" Ashlynn asked.
"Normal or not," said Blondie, "our lives are just right."
"I just hope we can keep them that way," said Briar, "and…" but then Briar stooped talking and remained still, her eyes unfocused, a distant look on her face.
"Uh…Briar?" asked Ashlynn as she waved her hand in front of Briar's face, "Briar?"
"Dude, I think she's broken," said Humphrey Dumpty.
"She's not broken," said Duchess, "she's just pulling our feathers. Well, it's not funny, Briar!" She then walked up to Briar and snapped her fingers in front of her eyes, "okay, joke's, over, Briar! Stop it!"
"She's not faking it," said Dorothea, "she's having her epiphany.
"What epiphany?" Sparrow asked.
"The one with Alabaster," said Madison, "my friends, I believe a new Rider is being chosen.
Emerging from the Portal, Apple and Avery found themselves in an enormous underground chamber filled with technological devices that would fit right in with the works of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne.
"Either we've arrived in a steam punk's dream come true," said Avery, "or…"
"Or you're in the workshop of one Hexiciah Steam, my father," said Robecca Steam as she walked towards Avery and Apple, "welcome to Monster High."
"Uh…thank you," said Apple in a slightly nervous tone as she shook Robecca's hand, "you…you're…"
"Not human, no," said Robecca as she smiled in an understanding manner.
"You're gonna find that a lot of my friends here aren't human," said Cupid.
"Uh…" said Apple as she looked at Cupid, who's appearance had drastically changed, "are you alright, Cupid?"
"At least you didn't think you've lost your mind," said Raven.
"Or found yours," said Maddie.
"So, this is your true from?" Tobias asked as he looked Cupid.
"Yep, this is what I look like here," said Cupid, "I know, I'm a freak, right?"
"I never said anything of the sort!" exclaimed Tobias, "I was just…startled that you can change your appearance so easily."
"It's way complicated," said Cupid, "but trust me, I'm still me."
"Do all demigods change appearances when they cross realms?" Tobias asked.
"Who cares what demigods can do?" Dexter asked as he looked around at the various devices in the workshop, "I'm afraid to touch anything here."
"We still don't know what half of my father's inventions do," said Robecca, "but he left a lot of notes and journals, and we've had only a few accidents, and none of them fatal."
"That's not very assuring," said Apple.
"We've learned not to let any of the more troublesome students into the lab," said Robecca Steam, "But that's another gear in the works altogether. Cupid, I believe there's more than a few Monsters here whom wish to welcome you home."
"And a few new friends to introduce to the old," said Cupid, "Apple, Raven, Dexter, Maddie, Tobias, Avery, these are The Ghoulfriends."
One by one Cupid introduced her friends from both schools to each other. Raven and the others met with Clawdeen Wolf, Lagoona Blue, Cleo de Nile, Abbey Bominable and Ghoulia Yelps, with promises to meet up with more later.
Yet closer inspection revealed that these Monsters had been through rough times lately. Clawdeen had both her hands bandaged and her fingers in splints. Cleo's right forearm was in a cast, while Lagoona had a black eye and Abbey's left leg was in a walking cast.
"I can't believe my eyes," said an astonished Cleo as she looked at Apple, "are you truly Snow White?"
"I am," said Apple confidently, "the newest one anyway. But a lot has happened lately, so in a way, I am and am not Snow White. I'm my own character now; free to be the best princess and future queen I can be, while also following my ambition to become a doctor."
"By the Nile itself!" said Cleo, "imagine, a fairytale princess as a doctor? Wouldn't that be a rather…messy occupation?"
"Oh, don't you worry your pretty little highlighted head about dear old Apple," said Maddie as she sat down in one of several nearby chairs and pulled out her faithful teapot from her hat, "a little blood, guts and gore wouldn't frighten her."
"And we've seen more than our fair share of blood in the past few weeks," said Dexter.
At that Ghoulia moaned something in the form of a question.
"She wants to know whose story do you belong to," said Cleo.
"Uh…that's complicated," said a slightly nervous Dexter.
"He's his own character," said Raven boldly as she stood next to Dexter and leaned on his shoulder, "he's his own hero and my boyfriend, and before you ask, I was supposed to be The Evil Queen, but that script was flipped a long time ago."
"No way," said Lagoona, "no way such a fantastic dame such as yourself is evil."
"But evil is in the blood," said Abbey, "you come from long line of evildoers but you fight it. You make yourself good and therefore is good."
"Uh…yeah," said Raven.
"But what story do you two interesting Normies belong to?" Cleo asked as she looked at Avery and Tobias.
"The story that's being written as we speak," said Tobias, "the story of life."
"Our background can wait," said Avery.
"Well, there's no guessing which story you come from," said Clawdeen as she looked at Maddie, "you're from Wonderland."
"Born, bread and buttered!" said Maddie happily as she pulled out several cups from her hat, "now, why don't we all sit down over tea while we get up to speed on what's going on here?"
"How'd you know I was about to explain what's going on?" Frankie asked.
"Oh, my friend the narrator told me," said Maddie offhandedly, "isn't that right, Mr. AndrewK9000?"
Oh, no! Not again! Please, we just got started!
"But I am right, right?" Maddie asked.
"Uh…is she okay?" a worried Lagoona asked.
"Don't worry about Maddie," said Raven, "she does that sometimes. Now, why did you want Cupid to come back so quickly?"
"Well, aside from the major emergency of Draculaura turning to the dark side and the coming apocalypse she and Valentine want to bring about," said Frankie, "no rush there…"
"She means that the device we used to open the portal to Ever After," said Robecca.
"Oh, yeah, I knew that," said Frankie as she laughed it off, "okay, about that, the portal machine requires an enormous amount of voltage. Seriously, it takes three days to charge up enough electricity to open the portal and keep it open for like three minutes."
"Wait, does that mean we're stuck here for three days?" Dexter asked as he looked at the machine that brought him, Raven and the others across worlds. Said device was in fact two electrical pylons spaced several paces apart on a metal platform, connected via wires and cables to a massive generator-type construct that was wired to a modern laptop.
"More or less," said Robecca, "Ghoulia, Jackson and I are still fine tuning the systems and may be able to open it sooner. Remember, everything you see in this workshop," she indicated the devices created by Hexiciah Steam, "were all put on the drawing board decades before your grandparents were born."
"That old, huh?" Avery asked as he walked closer to a device that had a large focusing mirror set into it.
"NOT THAT ONE!" exclaimed Frankie as she and Robecca pulled Avery away from the device, "believe me, we've had more than enough trouble from that one."
"Trust me, you don't want to know how much trouble a time portal generator can cause," said Robecca.
"You've got a dimensional portal and a time portal?" an intrigued Dexter asked.
"Yes, and we're staying away from the time portal," said Clawdeen, "Frankie almost died because of that thing."
"You what?!" exclaimed Cupid.
"Long story," said a modestly embarrassed Frankie, "now about Draculaura."
"Yeah, what about her?" an impatient Cupid asked, "What in the name of Olympus, Tarturus and all realms between did Valentine do to Draculaura to make her fall for him?"
"Well, it's a long story," sighed Frankie, "so you'd all better get comfortable, 'cause it's a dozy."
"Before you start, Frankie, I have to ask," said Cleo as she and the others sat down. She then looked at Avery and Tobias, "by any chance are you two Riders?"
"What makes you believe that?" Avery asked suspiciously.
"Call it woman's intuition," said Cleo, "call it divine inspiration, call it what you will, but I am right."
"Indeed you are," said Avery as Kabuto Zecter appeared from a small portal and landed on his shoulder, while Sasword Zecter scurried up to Tobias.
"I'm a Rider too," said Dexter as Gatack Zecter appeared on his right shoulder, "but how do you know about Riders?"
"We've got Riders working with us to try and save Draculaura and stop Valentine," said Lagoona, "but so far those blokes and the rest of us, we're barely holding our own against Obsidian."
"Obsidian, I should have known," said an annoyed Raven, "okay, so, what is it this time?"
"Well," said Frankie, "it's a long story, and it all started the day I bought my first car a few weeks back."
"You've got a car now?" Cupid asked in an intrigued tone, "fangtastic! What kind of car?"
"The best," said Frankie, she then eyed her friends in an annoyed manner, "though clearly some people, whom shall remain nameless, don't know a voltagious thing when they see it."
"Oh my Ra! Here we go again," sighed an exasperated Cleo, while Clawdeen and the other Ghoulfriends looks equally frustrated.
"How many ways must we say that car is no good, Frankie?" asked Abbey.
"That jalopy of yours is a lost cause, Frankie," said Lagoona.
"Just because you don't believe in Hector, doesn't mean I have to give up on him!" said Frankie irately. "And Hector's running perfectly fine now."
"Yeah, but for how long?" asked Lagoona.
"Who's Hector?" Cupid asked, "I thought you and Andy Beast were a thing."
"We're still good friends, Andy and I," said Frankie, "but that's not important right now."
"Nope, she's now crushing on Neightan," said Clawdeen in a teasing manner.
"Who?" Cupid asked.
At that Ghoulia moaned something in an impatient tone.
"Ghoulia's right, we're overloading Cupid with too much info," said Lagoona.
"We'll introduce you to all the new students at MH later, Cupid," said Cleo, "but first things first. Frankie, please start at the beginning."
"Alright," said Frankie, "like I said, it all started the day I bought my first car. While I was at the dealership, a chain of events had started in Monster High that would lead all of us to the sticky situation we're all in."
"Valentine showed up at school and brainwashed Draculaura?" Cupid asked.
"No, that happens later," said Frankie, "you see, while I was buying my car, Operetta asked everyone to meet with her privately in an empty classroom. Everything was okay, except that Draculaura was wearing a new necklace. And it's that necklace that really started this whole mess…"
…Monster High…A Few Weeks Ago…
"Oh My Ra, Draculaura! Where did you get that necklace?!" exclaimed Cleo as she, Ghoulia, Draculaura, Clawdeen, Lagoona, Abbey and Robecca, met up in an empty classroom. Also with them was Rochelle Goyle, Venus McFlytrap, Jackson Jeckyl, Deuce Gorgon, Gil Webber, Clawd and Howleen Wolf.
"Do you like it?" Draculaura asked as she held up said necklace, a multi-colored array of gems set into gold links, with a marble-sized diamond as the center piece.
"'Do I like it?' Of course I like it!" said Cleo, "you must tell me where you got it!"
"I'll betcha Clawd bought it," said Lagoona to Gil.
"Are you kidding me?" Gil asked, "that thing must have cost a fortune."
"He probably dug it up somewhere," said Venus, "maybe out of some crypt or tomb or something."
"Not an Egyptian tomb I hope!" said a dramatically offended Cleo, "he would never had made it out of the old county if he was inflicted by The Pharaoh's Curse."
"As much as my big brother would like to take credit for the necklace," said Howleen, "he didn't give it to Draculaura."
"I found it!" said Draculaura cheerfully.
"She did," said Clawd.
"Oh really?" Abbey asked, "where? At Maul discount sale?"
"Actually, I found it in the woods," said Draculaura, "Clawd and I were playing fetch. I lost the ball and fell down a sinkhole."
"You didn't!" exclaimed Lagoona.
"Why didn't you call one of us, for Gaia's sake!?" exclaimed Venus.
"Because I pulled her right out," said Clawd.
"I sincerely hope you did," said Clawdeen in an accusing manner.
"I'm fine, everyone, seriously," said Draculaura, "anyway, Clawd pulled me out, but then something caught my eye in the moonlight. Clawd lowered me back down," she then fingered her necklace, "and then I found this."
"That's some lucky find," said Jackson as Draculaura held the necklace up for everyone to get a closer look, "it must be beyond priceless."
"I already said it was worth a fortune," said Gil.
"But where did it come from?" Rochelle asked.
"And how'd it get buried out in the woods?" Robecca asked.
"It ain't Greek, I can tell you that," said Deuce.
"And it's not Egyptian," said Cleo, "in fact…" she then pulled out a jeweler's loop from her purse and used it to examine the gems on the necklace, "in fact, I have no idea where this came from, and I can identify the origin of most jewelry in the world."
"Well, wherever it came from," said Draculaura, "I'm glad I found it. You know what, call me crazy, but the more I think about it, the more I feel like I was drawn to it, that I was destined to find this necklace. Crazy, right?"
"More like just plain darn lucky," said Operetta as she walked into the classroom, "where's Frankie?"
"Good question," said Clawdeen as she pulled out her iCoffin and sent Frankie a text. She got a response a few seconds later, "she says she's got a surprise for all of us and should be back here in an hour or so."
"Well, that's just dandy," said an annoyed Operetta, "here I am, arranging a big sit down with ya'll to discuss something big and Frankie's off doing who knows what? Well, Frankie's just going to have to miss out on it, that's what."
"Now hold on, Operetta," said Lagoona, "you can't just brush Frankie off like raindrops on your shoulder. She's as much a part of…whatever you're planning, as we are."
"Just what are you planning?" Deuce asked.
"And will it be fun?" Toralei asked as she leaned against the doorway with her arms crossed, "I won't be involved if it's going to be boring."
"Who invited you to this little cadre?" an annoyed Cleo asked as she, Draculaura and the others looked at Toralei with suspicious eyes.
"I did," said Operetta, "and before ya'll get your eyes crossed and all that, Toralei's supposed to play a big part in my 'lil enterprise, just as ya'll will. Now come on in and I'll get things started."
"This had better be good, Operetta," said Clawdeen, "because if you expect me to work together with Toralei, then…"
"Hey, I'm not looking forward to working with you either," said Toralei as she sat down in one of the chairs, "so let's just hear Operetta out already so we can get on with our lives."
"For once we are in agreement, Toralei," said Cleo as she and Deuce sat down, followed by Clawd, Draculaura and the others, with only Clawdeen still standing.
"Alright," said Clawdeen as she finally sat down, "but I'm keeping an eye on you, Toralei."
"Likewise," said Toralei as she licked her paw and then wiped a stray lock of her hair into place.
"Alright, then," said Operetta, "let's get down to the nitty gritty! I'm sure ya'll wondering why I asked you to meet me here during a free period on a Friday, right?"
"It did cross our minds, mate," said Lagoona.
"Just what are you up to, Operetta?" Howleen asked.
"Something's that's gonna rock Monster High down to the core and back," said Operetta as she grinned, as if she was just about ready to reveal an enormous secret yet wanted to hold on to it just a little bit longer, "any of you familiar with Normie musicals? Specifically those of Andrew Lloyd Webber? No relation to our Gil, of course."
"Uh…no," said Clawdeen, while Lagoona, Cleo and the others all shook their heads or made noises of disagreement.
"Are you kidding?" Jackson asked, "Andrew Lloyd Webber's one of Broadway's greatest! 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,' 'Jesus Christ Superstar,' 'Evita,' 'Phantom of the Opera' for crying out loud!"
"Oh, that guy!" said Clawdeen, while Draculaura and the others nodded their heads and made noises of acknowledgement.
"Wait, are you implying that you wish to put on a Normie musical at Monster High?" Cleo asked.
"You bet your eye shadow I mean it," said Operetta, "got a problem with it?"
"No, no, I'm just surprised, that's all," said Cleo, "I honestly didn't know you liked Normie musicals."
"I like all music," said Operetta, "and this particular musical is one that really touched me, here," she then held her hands over her heart.
"'Phantom?'" asked Jackson, "or is it the sequel, 'Love Never Dies.'"
"If it's not 'Cats,' I'm walking out here and now," said Toralei. She then glared at Jackson, "and how do you know so much about Broadway musicals?"
"How come you know?" Clawdeen asked in a suspiciously teasing manner.
"I've got my hobbies, thank you very much," said Toralei.
"So do I," said Jackson, "there's certain kinds of music that I can listen to without bringing out Holt. I wouldn't be able to concentrate on my homework without it."
"I can only imagine what Holt would do if he got his hands on your homework," said Howleen, "so which musical is it, Operetta?"
"'Starlight Express,'" said a warmly smiling Operetta.
"Goodbye," said Toralei abruptly as she stood up and sauntered towards the door.
"Get your troublesome tail back here and sit down!" snapped Operetta as she stood up, her voice resonating with anger at such a frequency that sent the chairs and a lot of lose objects in the room vibrating.
"Or what?!" asked Toralei as she turned around and glared at Operetta, the hackles on the back of her neck rising as her claws bared, "you'll use your voice to shatter my eardrums? No one tells me what to do!"
At that Clawdeen and the others tensed up. A lot of the Ghoulfriends and the boys wanted to stop the ensuing fight before it really started, but the tension between Toralei and Operetta was so enthralling, they couldn't move for fear of missing whatever happened next.
But what Operetta did next was took everyone completely by surprise, "actually, I was about to offer you a major role in the production." This caused Toralei and everyone else to nearly lose balance and fall over.
"Are you out of your Rockabilly mind?!" exclaimed Clawdeen as she and the others recovered, "you want Toralei to be in your play?!"
"She'll either ruin it for fun or be such a prima donna," said Cleo, "none of us will be able to get anything done."
"She won't be that big a pain, I promise you that," said Operetta, "but the actual casting can wait a bit. Now, here's a lil' exposition for those who don't know what Starlight Express is all about."
At that Operetta went on, explaining how Andrew Lloyd Webber originally wanted to produce a stage adaptation of 'Thomas the Tank Engine,' but was denied the rights by the owners of the franchise. Instead, Webber came up with a 'Cinderella' story with toy trains as the characters, with all the actors on roller skates and a wide variety of music for the score.
"Well, we don't have to worry about the roller skating," said Lagoona.
"Not after all the SCREAM we've been doing," said Deuce, at which he and Clawd high-fived.
"You'd be surprised how hard a production Starlight Express is," said Jackson, "don't get me wrong, I've seen you all at Skulltimate Roller Maze and you guys are great, but can you dance on roller skates? And can you sing while roller skating?"
"Uh…no," said Clawd, while Deuce and the others shook their heads.
"It's harder than you can imagine," said Operetta, "but once you've got the choreography and lyrics down, it all fits together."
"Sounds like a load of hairballs," said Toralei offhandedly, "I mean, seriously, what kind of show has toy trains on roller skates?"
"The kind that became the longest running production at West End and did pretty well on Broadway," said Operetta, "this is something that'll be beautiful, artistic and overall clawsome if we can pull it off. I already talked with Headmistress Bloodgood; if I can get the cast and crew together, she can arrange the production costs."
"So to make this happen, we need to decide who does what in the play?" Howleen asked.
"I call costume management!" said Clawdeen eagerly.
"Assistant costume manager!" said Draculaura eagerly as she stood up and waved her hand, "and I can handle the makeup department! Oh! We can get Viperine to help too!"
"I figured you two'd want that," said Operetta, "and I meant to call Viperine. Moving on, Robecca, you can be the skating and choreographic coach, while Ghoulia can handle the technical and visual effects."
"On it," said Robecca, while Ghoulia moaned affirmatively and gave the thumbs up.
"What does that make you, Operetta?" Cleo asked, "let me guess, you're the director."
"And music supervisor," said Operetta, "this is my production, after all. As for the actual cast, I've got a few ideas on the tip of my tongue. Deuce…"
"Uh…no thanks," said Deuce, "this dude here, he ain't going on stage, not unless I can wear my shades."
"Yeah, it'd be really embarrassing if he were to petrify someone as soon as the curtain goes up," said Cleo.
"There's no curtain in this play," said Operetta, "and he can keep his sunglasses on, most of the time, we'll figure it out. Anyway, Deuce, I believe you're just perfect to play Greaseball; the diesel locomotive and reigning champion who'll do anything to stay the champion, even so far as cheating and breaking up with his girlfriend.
"Speaking of which, I think that with a little effort and a lot of training, Cleo would be perfect to play Dinah, the dining car."
"Are you sure?" Lagoona asked as she looked up from her iCoffin, having researched the synopsis for Starlight Express online, "that character isn't a role I can picture Cleo in."
"And you're not exactly the best singer in school, Cleo," said Venus, "no offense."
"And you're not the best skater either," said Rochelle, "no offense."
"I can learn how to sing better," said Cleo, "and dance on roller skates."
"Yeah, but Dinah is supposed to be sweet, loving and has a Southern accent," said Draculaura as she looked up from reading the play synopsis online, "and sings a country-western ballad in the second act."
"Can you sing a country-western ballad?" Clawdeen asked.
"Umm…not now, but I can with the right training," said Cleo in a confident tone as she stood up, "I mean, how hard can it be?" she then sang several bars heavily off key, causing everyone in the room to wince.
"Yeah, you're gonna need a lot of work," said Operetta.
"Better get Catty Noir to pinch hit on this," said Lagoona.
"And Casta Fierce just to be safe," said Venus.
"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, ghoul friends," said an annoyed Cleo as she sat down and crossed her arms, "everyone's a critic."
"We're just saying you shouldn't be disappointed if it doesn't work out," said Lagoona, "so you don't get your heart all wrought out."
"Oh, let her go on," said Toralei, "let her be herself on stage. It'll turn the musical into a comedy."
"Just for that I'll be sure to introduce you to one of my family's more interesting cursed items," said Cleo, "Ghoulia, make a note."
At that Ghoulia moaned in affirmation and wrote a reminder in her phone.
"Moving on," said Operetta, "Clawd…"
"Uh-uh, no way!" said Clawd, "I ain't doing it!"
"I haven't even told you what role I have in mind," said Operetta, "you'll be Electra, the electric locomotive and superstar challenger to the race."
"No thanks," said Clawd stubbornly, "I don't sing."
"Oh, don't be silly, Clawd," said Draculaura, "you sing beautifully."
"Trust me, he's a werewolf version of Bobby Brown," said Howleen.
"But only in the shower," said Clawdeen, "or when he thinks nobody else is listening."
"Oh, you've got stage fright," said Toralei with mischievous glee, "how purrfectly delightful."
"Now we definitely need Catty and Casta's help," said Clawdeen, "if anyone can help Clawd overcome stage fright, it's them."
"Elissabat's been dealing with stage fright since she arrived in Hauntlywood," said Draculaura, "just give me five minutes on the phone and she'll come help."
"No one's coming to help 'cause I'm not doing it!" said Clawd stubbornly.
"Why not?" Gil asked, "are you really that scared of being on stage?"
"Dude, the things I've seen you do would make even the gutsiest Normie back down," said Deuce, "at least read the script when we get it, okay?"
"Would you at least try?" Draculaura asked as she smiled warmly at Clawd, "try? for me?"
"Oh…alright," said Clawd as he relaxed and smiled back, "for you, I'll try."
"Great, can we get on with this already?" a bored Toralei asked.
…Hexiciah Steam's Workshop …Present Day…
"Yes, can we get on with it already?" Cupid asked.
"This is important, Cupid," said Frankie.
"How do you know? You weren't even there," said Raven.
"We told her what happened after she showed up," said Clawdeen.
"Trust me; it's all important," said Frankie, "anyway, where was I?"
"Operetta was about to tell Toralei what her role was going to be," said Maddie.
"How'd you know that?" Lagoona asked.
"A friend told me," said Maddie.
I did not, I haven't even gotten there yet.
"But you will," said Maddie, "you will."
…Monster High…A Few Weeks Ago…
"So, what role will you cast me as?" Toralei asked sarcastically, "second codpiece?"
At that Jackson laughed so hard he nearly fell out of his chair.
"What's that about?" Clawdeen asked.
"Sorry," said Jackson as he calmed down, "just, I didn't know you watched Blackadder, Toralei."
"There's a lot about me you don't know," said Toralei, "stuff that I didn't tell Spectra in her exposé on me. Now, if there's no real reason for me to be here, I've got other things to do. Laters!" with that she started for the doorway again.
"Take one more step and you're out of the production!" snapped Operetta, "and you'll never get to be C.B., the Red Caboose."
"What's this now?" an intrigued Toralei asked as she turned around and walked back towards the group.
"Oh, this character is right up your inlet," said an eager Lagoona as she read more of the synopsis, "you get to play a two-faced psycho who delights in causing disasters wherever he goes, or where she goes in this case."
"Now that's more like it," said Toralei as she sat down smiling, "tell me more!"
"You get your own solo number in the first act," said Operetta, "can you sing by the way?"
"Can I sing?" Toralei asked. She then sang a few bars so horribly, it nearly shattered glass.
"Yeah, we're gonna need a lot of help on this," said Clawdeen.
"Well, I think we're off to a good start," said Venus, "but who's going to play Pearl? And what about Rusty; the underdog steam engine."
"That I'm having trouble with," said Operetta, "and I was hoping ya'll had some suggestions for the rest of the cast. But we've got time to figure things out while Headmistress Bloodgood arranges the rights to the play and the funding."
"You know, I just don't know about this, everyone," said Clawd, "I mean, whoever heard of Monsters putting on a Normie musical?"
"Yeah, that has been bothering me a bit, Operetta," said Jackson, "why put on a Normie musical in the first place?"
"Because it's never been done before, that's why," said Operetta, "this is the perfect opportunity to do something beautiful and artistic, and show everyone at Monster High just what we can do."
"We can do this," said Lagoona optimistically, "we can make this happen."
"Well then," said Cleo, "if we're going to make it happen, we've a lot of hard work to do."
Just then Cleo's phone rang with an incoming text, "it's Frankie; she's outside with her surprise."
With that they all hurried outside the school's front doors, yet stopped in their tracks on the front steps as they saw Frankie, eagerly smiling as she leaned against the right side of a green and white convertible that has seen better days.
"Well?" Frankie asked as she waved her hands over her car in a showing off manner, "what do you all think?"
"Uh…think of what, Frankie?" Clawdeen asked as she and the others blinked in confusion.
"Did…did you buy that…that car, Frankie?" Venus asked cautiously as she and the others walked down the steps towards their friend.
"I sure did," said Frankie, "it's a 1971 Cadillac Eldorado, and it's all mine. Well, what do you think?"
At that Cleo, Draculaura, Clawdeen and the others were at a loss for words for several seconds, that is, until Toralei burst out laughing and nearly fell over.
"What?" Frankie asked in a confused and not mildly insulted tone, "what's wrong?"
"Uh…well," said Draculaura hesitantly, "it's just…well…"
"Just…where did you get your…car, Frankie?" Clawd asked.
"If you can call it a car," muttered Deuce.
"At a used car dealership," said Frankie, "it's been sitting in the lot for years. They were about to send him to the junkyard to be recycled. Can you believe it? They were actually about to scrap him."
"'Him?'" Cleo asked.
"Hector," said Frankie as she lovingly patted the hood of the car, "I know, naming a car sounds crazy, but as soon as I saw him, it's the first thing that popped into my mind."
"And how much did you pay for…for Hector?" Clawdeen asked.
"Two thousand dollars," said Frankie, "I would have paid more but the dealer insisted that Hector wasn't worth that much," she laughed, "as if he knew anything about cars."
"Frankie, dear," said Lagoona, "I don't know how to tell you this, but…"
"But you've been taken," said Toralei as she finally got back up, "you bought a lemon."
"What?" Frankie asked irately, her neck bolts sparking with her annoyance, "no, I didn't buy a lemon, I bought a car," she then frowned at Toralei, "and a great car at that, thank you very much."
"I'm sorry to say it, but it's a piece of junk," said Robecca, "and coming from me, that's serious."
"I think we should go back to the dealership and get your money back, Frankie," said Draculaura, "hopefully before that con artist of a dealer runs away with your money."
"No!" said Frankie in an outraged tone, "it was a fair deal and I for one don't appreciate you trying to make me give up my car!"
"Frankie, we're trying to help you!" said Cleo, "you can't honestly expect us to believe that you're happy with this…this…thing!"
"I am happy with Hector!" said Frankie, "and you should be happy with my decision too, Cleo."
"I wouldn't be caught dead or alive in it," said Cleo coldly, "it looks like someone's nightmare!"
"This thing's a freaking death trap, Frankie," said Clawd as he walked around the car, "the headlights are broken, the tires are all but gone, the hood is barely attached, I don't even want to look at the engine and brakes. And the paint job sucks too, by the way."
"I think that's actually lead-based paint," said Jackson, "this thing's a case of lead poisoning waiting to happen!"
"We'll call a tow truck and take it back to the dealership, Frankie," said Lagonna in a comforting manner, "we'll get you a refund, go to a real dealership and get you a real car."
"If you want a muscle car so much," said Deuce, "We'll go get you a Mustang, or a Porsche or a GTO."
"I know a friend of a friend who has a Firebird for sale," said Draculaura.
"Trans AM Firebird?" Jackson asked, "like from 'Smokey and the Bandit?'"
"Complete with black paint and the screaming chicken on the hood," said Draculaura.
"Wouldn't you rather have that than this hunk of junk, Frankie?" Clawdeen asked as she pointed at the derelict Cadillac.
At that Frankie's neck bolts sparked as her expression turned to that of outright angst, "I don't want a screaming chicken!" she then pointed at her car, "I want Hector! Honestly, you ghouls! I thought you'd be more supportive!"
"We are supportive, Frankie!" said Draculaura, "we just don't want to see you get hurt, that's all."
"And we don't want you to waste any more money," said Clawd, "and time. It'll take forever to get this hunk of junk working again."
"Actually," said Robecca as she looked under the car, "it may not take that long at all."
"I think you're right," said Jackson as he too looked under the car, then popped the hood, "The undercarriage doesn't look too bad. The brakes need work, as does the engine, but it's not hopeless."
"I knew you'd be on my side, Jackson," said a warmly smiling Frankie as she hugged him, then Robecca, "you too!"
"It definitely needs new paint," said Heath as he walked over and looked inside the car, "and the seats need new coverings, and don't get me started on the smell."
"Oh, yeah, about that," said Frankie, "apparently some raccoons have been living in Hector for a while."
"Oh my Ra," said Cleo as she lowered her head and leaned her forehead against her palm.
"It's not hopeless," said Clawd in a thoughtful, "there's a chance we can get this car back in shape again."
"Just as there's a chance that my pet project could work too?" Operetta asked.
"Okay, you got me on that," said Clawd.
"What project?" Frankie asked, "did I miss something while I was out buying Hector?"
"Oh, nothing much," said Toralei offhandedly, "just that we're all going to put on a world famous musical and you're not in it. You could have, but you just had to go buy a car, and a lemon of a car at that."
"It's not too late to cast someone else, you know," said an annoyed Clawdeen.
"I wonder if we can get Heath to play C.B.?" Draculaura asked.
"Some dreams are just impossible," said Cleo.
"You know, I actually think this car could be a real winner," said Howleen as she brushed some dirt off of the rear fender, only it to partly fall off and clang on the ground. "Or maybe not."
Howleen then noticed that Spectra was looking at the car oddly, "what's wrong?" Howleen asked.
"Oh, nothing," said Spectra, "it's just, for a moment…no, it's nothing never mind." she then took several pictures of the car with her phone, "now this will make the perfect beginning of my latest expose: 'Frankie Stein's Creation.' I've got the Before pictures, now all I have to do is wait until the car's finished to take the After pictures."
"Just don't jump to any conclusions before the car's actually done," said Twyla, "and…" but then Twyla paused as if in thought, looking off into the distance.
"What's wrong?" Howleen asked.
"I thought I sensed something watching us," said Twyla, "something from the shadows."
…Hexiciah Steam's Workshop…Present Day…
"That's when we should have realized that something was frighteningly wrong," said Frankie, "Twyla's the daughter of The Boogie Man; she's all about the shadows; if she sensed something watching all of us from the shadows, she was right."
"And boy was she right," said Clawdeen.
"Was that when Valentine got Draculaura and brainwashed her?" Cupid asked.
"That's still later," said Frankie, "anyway, turned out that Hector was in better shape than we thought."
"She wouldn't have been able to drive the darn thing off the car lot if it wasn't," said Lagoona.
"Let alone make it to school and to the garage," said Robecca.
"Whatever," said Frankie, "point is, the only major things wrong with Hector was that he needed some bodywork, a new paint job and replace some worn parts. But then we discovered there was a lot more to his engine, way more."
"There were parts in that engine block that no one could figure out," said Robecca, "and buttons on the dashboard that shouldn't have been there."
"What kind of buttons?" Avery asked.
"Really mysterious buttons," said Lagoona, "the kind that needed more power than that acid-dripping piece of scrap of a car battery could provide."
"We got a new battery at a store at The Maul that specializes in classic cars," said Frankie, "and asked the owner if he could tell us anything about the strange parts and buttons, when…"
…The Maul…a few weeks ago…
"I told you we wouldn't find out anything here," said Clawdeen as she, Frankie, Draculaura, Lagoona, Cleo and Ghoulia walked out of the automotive store.
"How hard can it be to figure out some weird parts in a '71 Cadillac Eldorado?" Frankie asked.
At that Ghoulia moaned something as she found a fact online via her phone.
"They made less than thirty thousand?" Frankie asked.
"It's not just that there isn't a lot of parts for that make and model of car left, Frankie," said Cleo, "you heard what Deuce and the boys said about some people and classic cars."
"There's a lot of Normies out there who do strange things to their automobiles," said Lagoona, "Jackson said that whoever worked on that car was either stark raving mad or a certified genius. If we can get Hector up and running again, we could very well have something amazing."
"That's assuming we can figure out whatever was done to it," said Clawdeen
"All those buttons we found on the dashboard," said Draculaura, "what do you think they're all for?"
"I don't know," said Frankie, "but if they special features like on The Mach 5 from Speed Racer, I know I've died and gone to heaven!"
Just then the Ghoulfriends were accosted by a seemingly ordinary Normie wearing a gray suit and tie with a gray trench coat. The man glared at Frankie and the others, as if assessing them for some nefarious reason.
"Uh…can we help you with something?" an annoyed Clawdeen asked.
"Draculaura? Daughter of Dracula?" the man asked as he pulled out a piece of paper with Draculaura's picture on it, "is this you? This is you, right?"
"Uh…yes?" said Draculaura hesitantly.
"Good, the last thing I need is to get the wrong vampire," said the man as he pocketed the paper, the pulled out another one, only this one had a picture of Draculaura's necklace, "now that we've established you're the one I'm after, hand over the necklace."
"What? You want my necklace?" Draculaura asked as her hand went up to said jewelry item, "why do you want it?"
"Maybe he's the rightful owner," said Lagoona.
"If so," said Cleo as she eyed the gray-clad man suspiciously, "then he should have the proper documentation proving that the necklace is his."
"Oh, it's not mine," said the man, "but the ones I work for, they're the ones who want it, and they'll go to any lengths to get it, even so far as authorizing me and my comrades to obtain it with extreme prejudice."
"What does that mean?" Frankie asked in a worried tone.
"It means our dully clad friend is trying to rob our dear Draculaura!" said an outraged Cleo as she speed-dialed Deuce on her phone, "and when my boyfriend gets here, you're going to wish you never even heard of the necklace, you horrible Normie!"
"Only after my brother's done with him!" said Clawdeen as she speed-dialed Clawd on her phone.
At that Ghoulia moaned something.
"You're right, 'or we could just call the police,'" said Frankie as she pulled out her phone and prepared to dial 911.
"No, I can handle this," said Draculaura in a determined tone.
"You sure about that?" Lagoona asked, "I don't know what it is, but there's something about this bloke that makes my scales crawl."
"I've got this," said Draculaura, "I've lost count how many times I've been mugged in my life, or at least, how many times a Normie has tried to mug me." She then walked up to the gray-clad man with defiant eyes, "if you really want to try and rob this 1,600-year-old vampire, you'll find that I'm more trouble than I'm worth."
"I could care less what you're worth," said the man, "it's that necklace that's worth anything. I didn't want to do this, I was hoping to settle this without exposing myself," it was then that lines of energy in the shape of a jackal appeared on his face, "but it seems I have little choice!"
With a flash of energy, the man morphed into a gray creature with armor-like skin with features of a jackal.
The sudden transformation left Draculaura, Frankie and the others momentarily stunned, while every other Monster in the general area was terrified to the point where they ran away screaming, while also snapping the Ghoulfriends back to their senses.
"Whoa! What are you?!" Clawdeen asked as she and the others backed away from the creature.
It was then that from the creature's shadow emerged a hazy image of the man that spoke, "one of many that will bring about a new evolution for humanity! Now give me that necklace!"
The image vanished from the creature's shadow as it rushed at Draculaura. Clawdeen and Frankie got in front of Draculaura, only for Clawdeen to be shoved aside as if she were a minor obstruction, then backhanded Frankie into a store's window display.
"Frankie! Clawdeen!" exclaimed Draculaura as she tried to, only for her to be grabbed by Lagoona and Ghoulia, while Cleo rummaged through her purse.
"We've got to get out of here, D!" said Lagoona, "that thing's wicked strong!"
"I don't care, we've got to help them!" shouted Draculaura.
Ghoulia moaned something as she struggled to hold onto Draculaura.
"She's right, we have to get out of here!" said Cleo as she continued to search her purse, "where's that teleportation amulet!?"
The creature then rushed up and grabbed Cleo's right arm and wrenched it back hard, earning a scream of pain from the mummy princess as her bones broke.
"Get away from my friend, you creep!" shouted Clawdeen as she got back up, her yellow eyes glaring with rage. She rushed at the creature and shoved her shoulder against it, forcing it to release Cleo, whom almost fainted to the floor, only to be caught by Lagoona and Draculaura.
"Lagoona, get Cleo and Draculaura out of here!" shouted Clawdeen as she threw a punch at the creature, which it easily dodged. It then sidestepped another punch, causing Clawdeen to overbalance. It grabbed Clawdeen and threw her to the ground.
"HEY!" shouted Frankie as she stood up and extricated herself from the broken glass and destroyed displays, her neck bolts sparking furiously as she caught the creature's attention.
"Don't mess with a ghoul with voltage!" said Frankie as her electricity flowed from her neck bolts, down her arms and built up in her fingertips, which she aimed at the creature. A double jolt of electricity hit the creature with enough force to knock it down.
"Come on, we've got to go!" shouted Frankie as she helped Clawdeen back up, while Lagoona, Ghoulia and Draculaura helped Cleo. As the six Ghoulfriends ran for the nearest exit, Frankie glanced back to see the creature slowly but surely get back up, apparently no worse for wear.
"Go ahead and run, little Monsters!" shouted the man's image from the creature's shadow, "run and hide! I found you once, I'll find you again! I will have that piece of The Star of Rosskarn! And if I don't get it, another of my kind will!"
Frankie was then distracted by the sound of approaching police sirens. Yet she and the others out the door, Frankie looked back again and saw no trace of the creature.
…Hexiciah Steam's Workshop…Present Day…
"We got Cleo to the hospital and had her bones set," said Frankie.
"And for bones that are over three thousand years old," said a teasing Lagoona, "they're in pretty good shape."
"Oh shut up," said Cleo as she held her cast with her left hand. "You're lucky to have gotten away with a black eye."
"Not all of us were as lucky as both of you," said Clawdeen as she held up her bandaged hands.
"When did those happen?" Apple asked.
"A lot later," said Lagoona, "anyway, we talked to the police but there was no trace of the creature."
"Not as if it would have mattered much," said Cleo, "Draculaura shut herself in her room and wouldn't come out. It took us hours to get her to calm down enough to let us in."
"We did convince her to go outside again," said Frankie, "after we assured her that that thing wasn't right out her front door, waiting to steal her necklace."
"What was that creature?" Cupid asked, "and why did it want that necklace?"
"It was no Monster," said Abbey, "no civilized Monster anyway."
"How would you know? You weren't even there at the Maul," said Lagoona, "actually, I think that bloke was rather polite, until he tried to kill us anyway."
"That was no Monster," said Avery grimly, "that was a Kaijin."
"We know it wasn't a Monster," said Clawdeen, "not like us that is."
"We ran into others like it," said Frankie, "and another kind of evil Monster, and Orphnoch."
"A whatnow?" asked Raven.
"Another tribe of Kaijin," said Tobias, "similar to Worms in their ability to masquerade as humans. Apparently, and this is extremely rare, if a human suffers a violent, traumatic death, he or she can come back to life, only now as a shape-shifting creature of incredibly vicious strengths and abilities."
"The Alabaster Council told us about other types of Kaijin and their goals," said Avery, "with Orphnochs, their goal is to create even more Orphnochs by attacking humans, stinging and infecting their hearts with a poison that will either transform the victim into another Orphnoch or crumble the poor soul into dust."
"What do they want? What is this Star of Rosskarn they're after?" Raven asked.
"We didn't know at the time," said Lagoona, "but since those mangy dingoes wanted it so badly, we knew it wasn't good."
"And they would have gotten Draculaura's piece that much sooner, if it weren't for Faiz and Kiva," said Frankie.
"So you do have Riders on your world," said Apple.
"Yep," said Frankie, "and I'll tell you all about them."
…The End Is Just The Beginning…