WARNING: What ain’t mine, still ain’t mine. The “Other Earth” and Cloverbud, David, April, Lorraine, Harold, Redswish, Blacknose, and so on belong to Cloverbud Warsong. Annara, who I may be spelling wrongly, and Ceron, both belong to Showstopper. Katherine and Genifa are based on actual people who belong to themselves!

Two Earths?

Chapter 4 – Hope and Secrets?

The Fader Room

“Soon,” announced the Amir, “the Prophet shall be like us. She will be Purified!”

“Leave her alone,” screamed Lorraine.

“You are a Seer. I have unscrambled information about our weaponry systems and am broadcasting at your frequency. This will illustrate the futility of resistance. She will be assimilated, she shall be like us!”

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On the Viaduct

“There are multiple signatures from the building that we are about to pass through,” told infin-8.

“Then let’s make a detour to the right. This will be our stop, and theirs…whoever they are!”

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The Fader Room

“You are all inferior,” said the Amir, looking at all of those who were restrained. “you cling on to your inferior bodies, live by inferior thoughts, let emotion be your triumph over reason. Your speech of love, and truth, and justice, is all meaningless. In an ordered society these will be irrelevant. You will lose all your weaknesses. You will be like us.”

“I don’t call those weaknesses at all,” retorted the Enagi.

“Your opinion is irrelevant. Your free mind is a hindrance. Your emotions are a hindrance.”

“Not always. Hope is a good emotion.” She heard something. “And here it comes!”

That something that the Enagi heard was the sound of two loud motors. The Ragemobile and R.I.D.E. crashed through the wall.

“You depend too much on my armor,” commented R.I.D.E. The doors of R.I.D.E and the Ragemobile sprung open, and the occupants sprung out. Smashdown, Infin-8, Aveolela, and Vartan were holding guns. Sunstorm just assumed a kung-fu pose, and Sparkle had her wings fully spread, and her hands tented in front of her, as did Mirunesa.

“Ok you tin-cans, FREEZE!” shouted Smashdown. Those with guns aimed them at different Purified. The triggers were squeezed, and plasma energy surged forth, overloading the Purified, shorting their circuits, and causing sparks to cascade. Sunstorm, Mirunesa and Sparkle focused, and blasted streams of energy at the Amir. After shrieking incoherently and vomiting sparks in all directions, its head exploded, and the body slumped onto the ground.

“Smashdown! Sparkle! Sunstorm! Mirunesa! Vartan! Infin-8! Aveolela!” exclaimed Enagi. “You’re a pleasant surprise. Could you please release us?”

“Energy nets? Hardly a problem,” replied Infin-8. He flipped some switches and dials on his gun, and aimed it. “You won’t feel anything!” He fired a fine beam, and the energy net dissipated. “We’ll have to hurry, as soon as you kill one Blessed, they download the personality into another and upgrade him!”

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The Train, Lower Shed

Cloverbud was slowly led down the hall. “You will turn to your right,” ordered the Purified without the ears, as her two captors forced her to face a waiting Purification chamber, with a green light above the entrance. Ahead of her were clear sheets, and the sound of electric motors revving up. The rabbit-eared one let go without any warning.

“WARNING: STATUS OF BLESSED AMIR-87 EQUALS OFFLINE AND UNNACOUNTED FOR, AUXILLARY WARNING: BACKUP SYSTEMS ALSO NON-FUNCTIONAL, CONCLUSION: ALIF-87 PRESUMED DESTROYED!”

“Running Blessed determination algorithm protocol!” announced the other Purified, who also let go. Cloverbud rushed, but stayed a short distance away.

“OBSERVATION,” began the rabbit-eared Purified, “SEQUENCE HAS SELECTED PURIFIED OF DESIGNATION FAH-23.” He faced his comrade. “DIRECTIVE: FAH-23 IS TO DOWNLOAD SHARED FILES!”

“I OBEY!” replied the other Purified, as he pressed his hand against the chest-plate on Rabbit Ears’ armor. Strange noises came from both of them, and their eyes flashed. “Activate Chamber Nine for upgrading, I shall be Blessed!”

“DIRECTIVE: I OBEY!”

Cloverbud slowly backed out, as the two cyborgs walked the other way, and a yellow light appeared above one of the chambers. She turned around and headed for the door. When she left the train, she was approached by another Purified. “You may not leave, you have not been Purified!”

“I will leave!”

“You will not leave, you will be Purified!”

“No,” she said as she took her amulet off her neck, and held it in front of her, “YOU will be purified!” She jabbed the bauble against the cyborg, and green lightning arced between the two. The Purified twitched and convulsed, and started to smoke, before collapsing on the ground. She made her way out of the train and up the stairs.

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The Inferno Zone

“Somebody is approaching,” warned Ceron. “The Inheritor and I shall investigate. The Spheres shall watch over this chamber, and the prisoners are not to escape! FOR SATAN!” His followers did salutes and echoed him. A door opened, and Ceron and his steed passed through it. The Spheres gathered at it before anyone else could leave, and the rock-men all grunted loudly, informing the prisoners of their presence.

“One move, and they’ll be over us,” warned Payback. “We have to wait.”

“I HATE waiting!” said April.

“Hush, we don’t want them angry,” warned David.

“And they’re always angry,” added Abori.

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Ceron rode the Inheritor through the halls and outside, coming to the tracks. Ceron chanted a few syllables. “You may now walk with impunity upon the electrified rails,” he informed. They crossed the bridge from Satan’s Island to Cricitor. They noticed several boulders just before the bridge, lying between those tracks, and a track that turned and continued on Cricitor. There was also a platform, and a sign that noted “Satan’s Beach”, along with a THEM logo. He looked up, and saw several figures land on a forested cliff above. He smiled.

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The Cliff

Allison had assumed her Annara form to fly, but turned back when she landed. “flying takes a lot out of you,” she panted.

“Speak for yourself,” said Ryuafi, who had airlifted Kuwapundamilia. “I’m ready to boot some heads!”

“Just a moment,” she caught her breath. “I felt something as Annara. I will see what is here.” She pulled out a tracking device, and the needle swung wildly, with a loud audible beep. She spun around, and then pointed down. “There is something…HIM!” She pointed at Ceron.

“They’re going down!”

“Be careful, my dearest,” warned Kuwapundamilia. The three rushed down a winding path, and landed next to the tracks.

“You are unwelcome,” stated Ceron.

“If you are enemies of Satan, your demise has arrived,” put in the Inheritor.

“You’re dangerous, and you opened a Rift,” informed Allison.

“That is of no consequence,” retorted Ceron.

“We have to stop you.”

“Stop? STOP? Never have I heard such arrogance, such disrespect!”

Allison held up her hands, and transformed into the Annara state. “You are playing a dangerous game.”

“You’re the one to speak, woman!” He held his hands up, and pointed at a boulder. It morphed into a large rock-man. The creature rushed at Annara, but she dodged it. Kuwapundamilia and Ryuafi focused on Ceron and the Inheritor. “Meet my new pet, Helica!”

Lightning crackled between part of the positive and negative rails on one of the tracks, and the rails bent and broke free from their restraints, and rose up, and arched forward. The two rails twisted around each other, and electricity surged. In a blinding flash of light, Ceron and the Inheritor were gone.

“Great, we’ve got both hard rock AND heavy metal,” complained Ryuafi.

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Orangewall Two

Noveo, Harold and Mousey found a rail platform, with a parked train at it. The doors were all open, including the access to the driver’s cabs. They entered the train in the back, or the end that was facing a pair of buffers at this end of the line. They walked through the cars, and noticed nothing unusual. “There’s no animal to pull this thing,” said Harold.

“It runs by itself,” explained Noveo, as they continued along.

“Magic?”

“No, electricity! 900 Volts.” The door to the cab was open. In addition to two seats, there was also a Purified, but he was motionless. “We’re ready for you.” No response.

“Maybe he’s sleeping.” Harold poked it with his gun. “Nothing’s happening.”

“Maybe it’s dead, or deactivated, or broken,” squeaked Mousey. She tapped on it, and nothing happened. She looked up above, and saw something attached to the ceiling that was moving. “There’s a camera, or some motion detector up here.” A light blinked several times. The passenger doors all slid shut. A display at the controls read “Automatic drive sequence initiated.” A strange buzzing noise filled the train, and it slowly started moving. “They know we’re here.”

“I don’t know how much I like electricity,” mused Harold.

“I’ll just disable it,” said Noveo. He used his shield to saw at a metal plate. He made a sawing motion to cut through, but had to keep his legs in the right position for balance, as the train picked up speed. It creaked and screeched as it rounded a corner. Mousey and Harold tightly held the backs of the two chairs, they could not sit, as they had to make room for Noveo to cut the plate.

“This is a THEM train,” announced a soft female voice. “This train will run express to The Rift.”

“We don’t want that,” said Noveo, “we want to go where Lorraine is. Where my sister is.” The plate was finally sliced off. Bells rang, accompanied by several beeps. Unbeknownst to them, behind them, a light flashed behind the Purified, and its eyes flashed as well. Mousey turned around.

“Noveo, Harold, it moved, it moved.”

“It’s just the..” he stumbled, trying to remember the correct English word. “Inertia. He’s deactivated.”

“But he’s moving his hand up.”

“That’s impossible…” He turned around, and saw the Purified raise his hand. He put his shield in front of him, just as the cyborg kicked.

“You will all perish, under maximal purge. Purge, purge, PURGE!”

Blades appeared on the left wrist of the Purified. He plunged at Noveo, but missed, and severed multiple wires. He shook as he touched a live wire, and collapsed onto the ground.

“There will be no more interruptions,” announced Noveo.

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Orangewall One

Infin-8 hacked into the computers. Everyone else was with him. “Let’s see what this does…train cameras.” It cycled through a few images, including the train that Noveo was now driving. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

“Yeah man, it is,” added Smashdown. He looked at the monitor. “Mousey?” he asked. “I wonder what brings her here?”

“I told you to not worry about her,” reminded Sunstorm.

“You don’t get it. She was the first girl since Amelia…”

“Please don’t remind me of my dead sister…”

“SORRY, but she’s the first who I have feelings for.”

“You can try winning her heart again once we’ve gotten this mess fixed. Don’t you remember she said look for someone else. But right now, we should look for who’s controlling the Purified!”

“Right. Those tin cans. We’ll turn them into ****ING SCRAP METAL!”

“There’s more here,” said Lorraine. “I can feel them.”

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Attewa-Kilmeara, Zyga, Pavonia

A door opened. This door led to a bedroom. In walked a Pavonian female in her late teens, with dark brown hair, and pink, orange and yellow feathers. She had her tail closed, and her head focused on an object she kept on a special stand by a chair. It was an Enagi staff. This staff, however, had a metal shaft, instead of the wood of Katherine’s staff. It had a long cylindrical shaft. At the base was four bulbs attached to each other, almost like a representation of musical notes. These bulbs were made of metal. Further up the staff, there were decorations of Pavonian musical notation. Higher up still, was a crossbar with holes in it, attached to it were two wing-shaped metal pieces that were against the staff. Near the top, were several round bells. At the top was an ornament in the shape of a treble clef. Attached to the treble clef was a glowing red jewel, and a slightly smaller one that was green. She took the staff. She felt something in her head, making her korona tingle.

She shook the staff, and spread her kula open, while stating “Through the Spirit of the Enagi, I AM THE ENAGI-KHIOLE, ENAGI OF THE MELODY!” Bright lights surrounded her. When it died down, she looked no different, except that there were red patterns on her arms, and a red symbol suggesting eighth notes with their tails joined in a circle on her forehead. Her clothing, however, had also changed. She was wearing a yellow dress with a serrated hemline, and the “Ene” symbol on the lower part, and over it, a shorter red layer with long sleeves and a v-neck. She also had a strap with a pouch. Sticking out from the pouch was a handle. It was the handle of something that resembled a saw. “I shall come, Katherine,” she said. “Hana, VENI!” A large black and white dog ran to her.

Her parents and her younger brother were both out. She wrote a note and left it near the front door. She was thankful her mother taught her how to “Open the Bridge.” She and Hannah were about to “cross” a Bridge, destination unknown, going only by her sense for her sister.

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The Inferno Zone

A strange sphere-like object, vaguely resembling a Sphere of Sphyla, was taken out of Satan’s Gift. It had four ring-shaped handles. The Spheres connected to it with hooks. Ceron and the Inheritor returned.

“What is the status of Pandora’s Casket?” asked Ceron.

“It sleeps,” replied Orbitor.

“It is silent, yes, silent,” added Jelphor.

“But Fooz assures that it is INTACT!” added Fooz.

“Satan celebrates beyond imaginations, but not yet, yet soon, yet not now!” added the blue-light sphere. “Yet hark, and herken and hence, strangest vibrations permeate, others wish to arrive!”

“If they are Satan’s enemy, Volriy, then they shall PERISH! SATAN ETERNAL!” proclaimed the Inheritor. All of the followers responded.

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Satan’s Beach

Helica struck at Ryuafi, and knocked him down with a discharge of intense electric energy. “I’m in pain,” he said. Kuwapundamilia lunged at the base of the rail-snake, but was given a similar jolt.

“It’s electric!”

“Yeah, I figured as much!”

“What doesn’t conduct electricity?” she asked, as she rolled out of the way to avoid another strike.

“Rock!”

“ROCK!” she said. She spun around to see Annara having problems with the large golem. “ROCK!” She faced Helica, and shouted insults in Seminole, wondering if the creature would understand. It did, and the enchanted third and fourth rails followed her. She shouted an insult at the Golem, who spun around and struck with its massive fists. It struck Helica instead. The creatures started to fight. Annara reverted back to Allison.

“Before they realize we’re tricking them, this way!” She put on a pair of goggles. “Tracking goggles. Searching for energy signs….this way!” They walked on a small steel walkway beneath the rail-bridge to Satan’s island. They found a locked metal door.

“Allow me,” suggested RyuAfi.

“It may be alarmed,” warned Allison. “I have a few tools for this!” She saw a padlock, which she cut with a small diamond electric saw. “Tough enough to cut through stone,” she said with pride. She checked for a magnetic lock, and demagnetized it, and used several other tools before opening it. “They shouldn’t be on full alert.”

Above them, a small yellow light flashed.

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A Dark Room

“What is this?” demanded a voice, “Open mic night? PURIFIED!”

Under a spotlight, a trio of Purified stood. “Yes, Shepherd,” replied the three in unison.

“Get a security detail to the lower areas of the Inferno zone. Do not engage the cultists unless needed, but everyone else is fair game!”

“WE OBEY!”

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Orangewall One

“You’re troubled,” said Lorraine to Smashdown, “I can feel it.”

“What are you, some kind of psychic?”

“Actually, that is what I am,” she replied.

“Just peachy!”

“Let’s just find those tin-cans and stop them,” suggested Aveolela.

“They aren’t the only problem here,” reminded Katherine.

“Not the only problem?” asked Sunstar.

“There’s some group called the New Inferno, and they have several enchanted Spheres of Sphyla with them!”

“No way, is Sosefina involved?” asked Sparkle.

“I don’t think so.”

“We’d need more people, and my husband is coming,” said Lorraine. “I can feel it!”

“Anybody know where to catch a train?” asked Vartan.

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Inferno Zone, Lower Passage

“We must be close,” said Allison, “WAIT, WE ARE CLOSE!” Her detector emitted loud beeping noises, and LEDs flashed erratically. A small holographic projector shone a faint green circle. “STAND BACK!”

A rift opened up where the circle was, revealing a multi-colored wormhole. A path of light came out of it, and connected to the floor.

“BE CAREFUL!” shouted Allison, as she produced a small gun, and aimed it. “If there’s anything…”

Enagi-Khiole (the transformed state of Genifa) came through, riding on her dog. Hana wore a saddle, with an attached rack for the staff, and flashing lights that could be activated in an emergency.

“Genifa?” asked Ryu-Afi. “What are you doing here?”

“My sister,” she replied, “she called me! Is there a problem here?”

“More than you’d like to know!”

“There’s a multi-sided battle here,” answered Kuwapundamilia. “It’s us against a few other sides, including the New Inferno, who ever that is, and the Purified.”

“I thought the Enega-Warriors stopped them when they defeated Al-Harb,” responded the Enagi of the Melody, quite surprised.

“Not all of them were found when Al-Harb was stopped,” explained Allison. “And many of them went through a rift, or ‘Bridge’, into this world, which is also called Earth.”

“Two Earths?”

“We’re confused as you are,” noted Kuwapundamilia.

In the distance, they heard the heavy clanging noise of Purified walking

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Somewhere in Orangewall One

Cloverbud was half out of breath. No matter how many times she had to run, she never got used to it. She remembered the days when she had to run from the army of Redswish. At least she knew her enemies and what they wanted. The Purified were strange. And they wanted her for something. A door swung open, and out came a pair of Purified.

“You are the Prophet, you will be Purified, you will be like us,” told one of them.

“Prophet, what Prophet?” feigned Cloverbud.

“You are wearing an identical pendant to her,” replied one of them.

“Then I guess I am her,” she said, as she took off her pendant and held it. “And if this is the pendant, you should be afraid!”

“Attempt to intimidate proven futile,” announced the other, as small guns came out of his wrists.

“I have to be kept alive, remember? That’s what Amir Alif 87 said.”

“You are correct, firearm aimed at you is intended for subduing. You will be Purified. You will be like us!” They both aimed their weapons at her. “You belong to us!”

“Oh no you don’t,” uttered a woman’s voice from behind them.

“You will cease your AAAAAAA!” Lights flashes on the Purified, and it slumped. Soon the other one also collapsed, with smoke rising from it. Behind them was Rapunzel, holding a heavy gun with her hands and her hair. Several men in army fatigues and black berets with THEM logos followed her in. Cloverbud quickly put her amulet back on. Her hands were trembling.

“Don’t worry. You’re not under arrest. Right now, we have to stick together, because the Purified think as one.”

“Your leader, Mother Goose, is dead.”

“Dead?”

“She threw herself into the chamber, and the light of death, and the metal…” Cloverbud wished she knew the names of the various implements inside the Purification chamber. “She was purified.”

“How did you escape?”

She explained what happened with the Purified, who were all but ready to Purify her.

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Upstairs

“LORRAINE! I’m happy!” Harold rushed up to Lorraine, and hugged her tightly. “Look, I has a new gun!” He aimed the gun at the ceiling, and squeezed. The barrels started to spin. “Oops, I pressed the wrong…” The spinning-gun parts came to life, spraying gunfire into the ceiling, and knocking him down. “I didn’t think that would happen!”

“Recoil,” said Ingi. “It can sometimes hurt you, if you’re not prepared. You know how many bullets you just fired?”

“Many?”

“Good guess…what’s your name?” jumped in Smashdown. The Rage, Aveolela and the Enega Warriors in the room introduced themselves to the newcomer.

“Harold’s also my husband,” added Lorraine. “And he’s relieved that I am safe, and loves the sound of my voice. He also has a pinecone.”

“I still can’t believe it,” said Sparkle. “You can read minds?”

“Yes, I can, and many of you would call it passive mental probing.”

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Inferno Zone

“Pandora’s Casket is sealed,” said Ceron.

“That is a problem, yes, problem,” added Jelphor.

“Yet among those who would speak ill of Satan, who are within this very chamber, there lies the answer,” added Volriy.

“Fooz asks if you’re crazy, bats wihin your bricks,” snided Fooz.

“How shall this gift be opened?” asked the Inheritor.

“Volriy is right,” pronounced Ceron. “the answer is here. The ancient seal can only be opened by the touch of the ‘pure of heart and innocent’, as the Holy Spirit worshippers would say.”

“So the answer is here, yes here,” announced Jelphor, as it hovered over to the hostages, and slowly turned to face April. A forboding sense of coldness filled her. David sensed this, and he tightly held his daughter. “You know what will be done, protecting your daughter is futile, yes futile, she will help us, yes us!” April was visibly shuddering. The various followers of Satan stared and smiled, sensing that all was going to occur according to plan, the plans of Satan.

“SATAN ETERNAL!” shouted the Inheritor. As usual, all of his followers echoed. “Today, little girl, you will help us! The dream of Redswish and Blacknose will be realized, and what Cloverbud did shall unravel!”

The followers, the Spheres, and the rock-men all moved towards April.

To be continued…

Notes: Been some time, but here it is. So, what exactly is in Pandora’s Casket, anyways? You’ll find out soon enough.