RAF TAS: Novelized

[Horsefan1023 (Seal)]

Ugh, I stayed up too late working on this...

So, in light of Blue's announcement at the untimely demise of RAF: The Animated Series, I vowed that I would novelize his project.  So I did!  And believe me, the weirdness of having a show entitled "The Animated Series" novelized is not lost on me.   It'll be a little while until I actually get to the point where I'm giving new stuff to you guys.  I've talked with Blue and gotten his plans for the rest of the season, so it will follow the plot he was intending.  I will be taking a little creative license with this--changing a few lines of dialogue, adding them, or maybe editing fight scenes, but it will be pretty much the same.  RAF TAS is not owned by me!  Now that those disclaimers are out of the way...enjoy the first "episode," everyone!


Episode One

The now-completed planet glowed bright and blue.  It was a very small planet, comparatively, dotted among others in the space of the Internet.  That planted represented a website, and only the greatest website of them all.

Richard’s Animorphs Forum.

RAF, as the forum was called, was loved by all the members, called RAFians.  They adored their home—a home of insanity, friendship, understanding, and excitement, to say the least.  Whenever the forum was down, they were devastated.  Many a RAFians would often say how RAFing when they got home would brighten their day considerably, just showing how special the forum was.

Just above the glowing website, a man in a full black cloak with a hood shadowing his entire face appeared, bobbing up and down slightly as he floated.  He surveyed the planet, nodding with satisfaction.  A platform came rushing up to meet him.  On it sat a Goomba.

“Hey, Goom,” the cloaked man said.  “How are things looking down there?”

“Things are going great!” Goom said excitedly.  “In fact, if we hurry, we may be able to get RAF back online by tomorrow morning!”

“Excellent!” said the cloaked man, Richard.  He was the creator of the forum, fondly referred to by the RAFians as the Father of RAF.  Goom was one of his trusted moderators, who had been overseeing the renovation of the website.  “You think the others are going to like it?”  Richard asked.

Goom would have smiled if it were physically possible for a Goomba to do so.  “They’re gonna love it!”

***

Down on the planet, a glowing blue ball of light appeared.  It was in a tangled, overgrown forest, hovering just above a pathway of logs roped together to make a bridge among the trees.  The light paused for a moment, then expanded and turned white.

When it had faded, a person was standing in its place.  The person was in light blue, robotic armor with darker blue details on it.

“WOAH!” Blue exclaimed.  Blue was a RAFian, one of the first to appear.  He looked around in awe at the forum.  “So THIS is what they’ve been up to all these weeks!”  Weeks where RAF was down…horrible, he added with an internal shudder.  “Major RAFupgrade!”  He completed his thought out loud, then muttered as an afterthought, “I wonder if anyone else is on right now…”

He crouched, then leaped, flying through the forest.  Every now and then he would land and jump again, his jumps carrying him impossibly long.  He paused as the path ended, going inside of a large hollow tree.  “Huh,” Blue said, looking around again.  “Guess I’m the only one on right now.”

Blue heard a noise above him, and looked up.  Two balls of light were descending, one blue, one white.  They slid downwards until they hovered at about eye-level, then, with a whoosh noise, expanded.  The blue one turned white, and then they faded.  Standing there, blinking and a little dazed, was a little Spheal and a block of ice.

Blue, who had been a little startled by the sudden appearance, blinked behind his helmet.  “Blocky?” he stammered.  “Sealie?”

The RAFians in front of him got over their surprise enough to say “Hi, Blue,” in unison.  The Spheal was Horsefan1023, otherwise known as Seal, and the ice block was Blocky97.  They were known RAF’s youngest members, both around twelve when they joined.  Though now that some time had passed, they often resented the teasing jibes made against their age.

Seal looked around, staring in awe.  “This new RAF is awesome!”  She exclaimed.

Blue nodded almost reverently.  “It’s more than awesome…it’s perfect!  Richard has created the very first virtual forum!”

For that indeed was what had happened.  RAFians were now able to enter their computer and become new species, literally.  Goom, Richard, and the others working on the project hadn’t told anyone what they were doing, however, so it was a complete shock.

Blocky was a little less awed.  “Yeah, it’s cool and all…but how does it work?  Where are the boards?”

Seal frowned slightly at him.  “Didn’t you get Richard’s message?”  She asked.

Blocky shrugged (don’t ask how he did that as a block of ice) and said, “I dunno, let me check my inbox.”  He pulled a small handheld device from hammerspace and unlocked the touch-screen.  He then tapped the Personal Messages box on it, where a little [1] was hovering, signaling that he had one message.  He did all this with no arms, so it just sort of floated in front of him.

He waited…and waited…and waited…”FOUND IT!”  The block of ice shouted as it finally loaded. 

“Well, don’t just stand there,” Blue said impatiently.  “Open it!”

The screen turned black.  “I broke it,” Blocky said dully, before Richard faded into view on the screen.

“Hello, my fellow RAFian.”  The Father of RAF said.  “Let me be the first to welcome you to NEW new RAF” RAF had undergone a major renovation earlier, moving the forum to a different host.  The pre-move RAF was called RAFclassic, and to those who had been on RAFclassic, the post-move RAF was new RAF.

“Before you explore this wondrous new world,” Richard continued, “Let’s look at all the new features so you don’t get lost or confused.”  The image of Richard faded away, and it was replaced with where Blocky, Horsie, and Blue were now, in the forest section.

“This is part of the new RAFchat,” Richard’s voice said as the video message panned across the area.  “Where you can hang out with your fellow RAFians and…chat.  This is also the lobby, so every time you log in you come here.  The actual forum is right above the chat.”

The camera panned back over to the hollowed-out tree.  Blocky glanced to his right—the very same tree was right there.  “Just take the elevator.”  Richard said.  The screen faded to black again, and an image of higher up on the tree appeared.  There was a hole leading out of it and a platform right outside of the hole.  Ten brightly colored portals were hovering beyond the platform. 

“Each one of these portals will take you to a different part of the forum,” Richard explained.  “The blue portal is the Animorphs Forum.  The Animorphs book and TV series discussions are posted here.  The lime green portal is the General Board.  Discuss other topics here.  The red portal is the Fanfiction Corner.  You can read fanfictions to your fellow RAFians here, Animorphs and non-Animorphs related.  The yellow portal is the Bored Board.  Bored?  Post anything here, including forum games.  The pink portal is the Media Area.  Music, movies, television shows, and games are all discussed here.  The orange portal is the Roleplaying Section.  Animorphs and non-Animorphs related Roleplays are posted here.  The Other Books Hall is the silver portal, where you can discuss books and series that are not Animorphs.  The Social Board is found in the golden portal, where you can introduce yourself, or have your profile thread.  The dark green portal is the RAFprojects Site, where any RAF-related projects are posted.  The brown portal is to the Suggestions, Feedback and Issues Board is.  Post any suggestions you have for improving the forum, reports of any issues, or updates for the forum are posted.”

There was a pause as Richard caught his breath after that mouthful.  “But now that you’re reacquainted with the old boards, let’s venture to a new one.  Into the Bored Board we go!”

The view faded, replaced by a comfortable looking room.  The walls were yellow, and several plush chairs were placed in front of a TV, currently paused on the Animorphs TV show.  There was a stereo system, and various Animorphs posters hung on the walls.  “Welcome to the Bored Board,” Richard’s voice said.  “This is the lounge, where RAFians just kick back and relax.”

“But that’s not why we’re here.”  The camera panned across to two doors in the wall.  “These two doors lead to sub-boards inside the Bored Board.  Door one leads to the Game Room, where your typical Bored Board games are played.  Door two leads to our newest feature…”

There was a dramatic pause, and all three RAFians couldn’t help leaning in closer to the screen, even Seal, who had already seen it.  “The BattleDome!”  Richard’s voice declared.  “Inside the BattleDome, you can challenge your friends to all out, no holds barred, fights to the death.”

There was another pause, and Blue and Blocky glanced at each other.

“Of course, they won’t really die,” Richard assured, as if reading their minds.  “It’s just an expression.  One unique aspect of the BattleDome is that you can challenge a moderator for his or her position on the staff.”

The boys gasped, and Seal shushed them as Richard went on.  “But be warned, the mods are no pushovers.  If you loose to one of them, you will be suspended from RAF for a week, and from the BattleDome…” there was another dramatic pause, “For a year!”

“A year?!”  Blue complained.  “Consider yourself warned!”  Richard told them.  “Losing a battle to any other RAFian, however, will not result in any penalties, so feel free to fight as much as you want.”

“Lovely,” Seal said dryly.  “I imagine some newbs will have a great time battling as much as they want with the veterans.”

“Hahaha, it would serve them right,” Blue laughed.  “Treat us with respect!”

“Shhh,” Blocky said as the video went on.  “This little tutorial is almost over, so just bear with me a little while longer.”  Richard said as the screen faded to black again and he reappeared.  “Now let’s go over some rules on how you should act on the forum.”

Richard’s tone became more serious.  “Just like any other forum, you must treat your RAFians with the same kind of respect that you would want from them.  Spamming or any type of excessive website promotion is strictly prohibited.  Graphic sexual posts, threads, or usernames are also prohibited.  Lastly, no harassment of any type or form towards any member of RAF will be tolerated.  This includes posts that are disparaging towards any religion, race, nation, gender, or sexual orientation.  The breaking of any of these rules will result in warnings, suspensions, and then bans.”

Richard took a breath.  “I’d also like to announce,” he said, somewhat slowly.  “That all banned RAFians now have permission to return to the forum.”  Blocky and Blue each gave a muted gasp.  They didn’t think that would happen, especially now that the forum was virtual, and the banned people might be worse face-to-face.  But you never knew.

“I’m giving you a second,” Richard said, then paused.  “And in some cases fourth,” he added with an exasperated sigh, “chance.  So don’t screw it up!”

“And now that all this serious stuff is out of the way,” Richard said, bobbing a little higher on the screen.  “I’d like to thank you for the donations you’ve made to the forum which is how we bought this upgrade.  And now…without further ado…I once again welcome you to NEW new RAF.”

If they could see Richard’s face beneath his hood, the RAFians would know he was smiling.  Blocky returned the device to hammerspace.  They all stood for a moment, digesting the information.

“…wow.”  Blue eventually said, a bit of an understatement. 

“Woah!”  Blocky exclaimed, grinning.  “We have video messages now?”

“It’s official,” Blue announced.  “NEW new RAF is awesome.”

“Let’s go check out that BattleDome!”  Seal said excitedly. 

“YAY!”  Blue and Blocky shouted together.  “BATTLEDOME!!!!”

All three of them headed for the elevator, stepping into the hollow trunk one at a time.  The lift was like something out of Animorphs—there was no platform, but they just sort of floated upwards.  The RAFians excitedly sought out the Bored Board.

***

“Well, here we are.”  Blue said.  They were indeed standing in front of the nondescript door that was the BattleDome.

“TOO EXCITED TO MOVE.”  Seal said in her usual goofiness. 

“I’ll help you!”  Blocky shouted.  Suddenly dashing forward, he slammed into Seal, sending her crashing straight into the door.  It was luckily not shut all the way, and so flew open upon Seal’s impact.  She disappeared in the darkness behind the door.

Blocky turned to Blue.  “Would you like some help getting in too?”  He asked cheerfully.

Blue stared at where his WonderTwin had previously been standing.  “Err….no….I’m good…” he stammered.

“Awww…” Blocky said dejectedly, shuffling into the door.  Blue cautiously followed, shutting the door behind him.  It was pitch black, and as he stumbled forwards, he suddenly found himself falling.  Hearing giggles below, Blue realized it must be okay, so held back his initial scream.  In his downward tumbles, Blue saw a light.  He managed to right himself in midair so he landed on his feet. 

He was standing on a replica of the Pokémon stadium from Super Smash Bros.  It had two small platforms floating above it, one of which Blue was standing on.  The whole thing was in what looked like a purple void, complete with stars.  Blocky and Seal were below him.

“So this is the BattleDome,” said Blue tentatively, rather underwhelmed. 

“But why is it called a dome?”  Seal wondered.

“Yeah,” Blocky agreed.  “It’s more of a battle…stadium…”

“The stadium is just an illusion,” a mysterious voice announced from above.  “One of the BattleDome’s many popular holograms.”

“Who was that?”  Seal wondered, looking around.  When she glanced up, she noticed a nondescript completely black version of Shadow the Hedgehog, Sonic the Hedgehog’s evil counterpart.  The creepy, dark vibes he gave off immediately altered the others to who he was.

“Demos!” exclaimed Horse.  “When did you get here?”

Demos666 grinned.  “I’ve been on all day.  And the day before that.  And the day before that.”  At the others’ looks of confusion, he elaborated.  “I’m the forum’s Beta tester.”

“That’s awesome!” Blocky exclaimed, looking at the BattleDome with newfound admiration.

“I’ve been pretty bored lately,” Demos yawned.  “Anyone wanna battle?”

Blue perked up.  “I—” he began.

“I DO!” Blocky shouted, cutting him off.

Blue shot him a skeptical look.  “Uh, Blocky, I think—”

“NO!” Blocky cut him off again.  “I fight first!  You two go back and watch it from the Bored Board TV.”

“But—” Blue tried one more time.

“LEAVE DAMMIT!!!!”  The block of ice shouted, interrupting him one more time.

“Okay, okay,” Blue relented with a sigh.  “Come on, Horsie.”

“Good luck Blocky!” Horsie said cheerfully.  “We’ll be rooting for you!”

The two, using newfound abilities, vanished.  Demos chuckled, and the…well…demonic laughter sent a shiver down Blocky’s spine.  “I’m not gonna go easy on you,” the demon warned.

“Ditto,” said Blocky firmly.

“BattleDome challenge initiated!”  A computer said.

Back on the Bored Board TV, Seal blinked as the Animorphs TV show vanished, replaced by a picture of Blocky and a picture of Demos.

BLOCKY VS DEMOS

The screen said in large font.

“This’ll end well,” Blue said dryly.

[warren_bearclaw]

...woo!

[radgeek]

RAF = the only place a Animated is part of a name of a novel...

[SuperBlue]

*hugs Sealie* Thank you soooo much

[RAFrukh]

YAY! 

[Horsefan1023 (Seal)]

And now to watch TAS over...and over....and over to write the fight scene in Episode Two.  XD

[Blazing Angel]

Its really good.

[SuperBlue]

And now to watch TAS over...and over....and over to write the fight scene in Episode Two.  XD

You don't have to do a frame by frame novelization of the the fight scenes...especially since you can't rewind them

[Horsefan1023 (Seal)]

The whole thing.

I HAD THE WHOLE GOD DAMMED CHAPTER WRITTEN OUT

AND I JUST HAD TO CLOSE IT WITHOUT SAVING IT DIDN'T I

*drowns myself*

[Blazing Angel]

probly difficult. Being a seal and all.

[DinosaurNothlit]

Seal, I feel your pain.  I hate it when I lose stuff like that. 

[warren_bearclaw]

awww, bummer. Hopefully you don't have to watch and rewatch and rerewatch all over again though...

[SuperBlue]

Awww that sucks Sealie. And remember, it doesn't have to be a exact play by play novelization of TAS. You do have complete creative control.

[A ghost you know]

Aww, I'm sorry to see the end of TAS. I'm glad the story won't die with Blue's HD (*glares at said HD*), though! ^_^

EDIT: how I managed to miss the last half-dozen posts, I may never know.
I'm really sorry to hear that, Seal. Maybe you can turn on auto-save for the future? (In case you're not familiar with it, auto-save basically saves a backup copy of your work every X minutes, where X is a number you can set. I believe auto-save even backs up unsaved documents)

[Grace]

You lost the whole thing? Wow. that's sad.