Memoirs of a RAFian

[Cloak]

Maybe just one more.

CHAPTER ELEVEN:
Where's The Fun?

Cloak arrived at RAF again . . . only remember that there wasn't a RAF anymore.  He saw Cathy the clown talking rather heatedly to Queen, as Malice was attempted to talk to her, while the Banned dismissed her.  Cloak realizing what was going on after hearing the conversation and the referencing of fairy godparents . . .
 
"No!"
 
"You're too late, Cloak," Malice hissed.
 
Suddenly, unknown to everyone assembled, a rather subdued MP3 monster appeared atop Aquilai's TARDIS, causing the sky to go green again as music started up.  Cloaky sang, plantively to Cathy:

"Hey, Cathy,
Can’t you see what they’ve done?
They needed a pawn.
And clearly you were the one.
They took away your cool clothes.
Your assortment of shoes,
And button nose.
Just look around . . .
How can you call this fun?
Since you’ve been here,
They’ve decided your fate!
From the style of your goofing,
To the food you ate!
I know it seems that they gave a lot,
But I’m telling you, it’s part of a plot,
A plot that you can stop!
Stop it, before it’s too late!"

Then the other two shoved Cloak out of the way as they rapped:

"Hey, Cathy girl,
You hear what he be spreadin’?
The lies he be tellin’?
I can tell where this is headin’.
It was you, Cathy,
Yeah, you were the one,
That we protected,
And respected,
As though you were our sun.
You’re right here in the middle,
You can fiddle
With this riddle,
That your wishes will be done!"

Cloaky shoved the two aside as well, and sang:

"Where is the fun?"

Cathy, looking thoroughly nonplussed:

"Who should I turn to?"

Malice and Abomination intoned:

"Where is the fun?"

Cathy sang:

"How can I learn how –"

Cloaky asked:

"Who is the one?"

Cathy finished:

"-- The one who I can trust to tell me what’s fun?"

Cloaky asked again:

"Where’s the fun?"

Cathy eyed Cloak suspiciously:

"Why should I trust you?"

The other two Realm Walkers sang accusatorily:

"He was the one!"

Cathy, rather wrongly and accusatorily, sang:

"You were the one
Who wanted to shun
Everything that I thought fun!"

Cloaky sang, in a valiant attempt to appeal to her:

"But, Cathy,
Can you see in your heart?
There’s a role you play,
And, guy, this just isn’t the right part!
I know my actions weren’t ideal.
But how would your comedian parents feel
About the path you chose,
Whether or not it was smart!
Where is the fun?"

Cathy, now thoroughly perplexed:

"Who should I turn to?"

Malice and Abomination intoned:

"Where is the fun?"

Cathy asked again:

"How can learn how –"

Cloaky inquired:

"Who is the one?"

Cathy cried out:

"The one I can trust to tell me what’s fun."

Cloaky asked again:

"Where is the fun?"

Cathy stated in song:

"I’m so conflicted."

Malice and Abomination sang accusatorily:

"He was the one!"

Cathy sang, glowering at the tiger Realm Walker:

"The one who restricted –"

Nodding, Malice and Abomination added:

"Your mission of fun."

Cathy declared:

"Just give me a pen,
I’ll sign by Item One."

Cloaky shouted, "No!"

Cathy continued, thoughtfully:

"Maybe you’re right –
This could be a giant mistake.
But changing my life is not a risk
I’m willing to make!
This nose, hat and shoes,
They’re all my past,
And so now I chose
To make a world,
A world for my views,
A world where I am safe."

The other Realm Walkers -- brandishing Queen's fairy staff, while forcing her away -- declared, "It’s over Cloak, you lose!"

The Cloak fell, bound by tylee chains again, as he roared defiance.

[Cloak]

New page.

• Book XXVI: Outage Outrage

The RAFians find themselves losing their powers.

• Book XXVII: Infinity and Eternity

The Infinity Gems and the Eternity Stones make themselves known.

• Book XXVIII: The Virus Rings

The RAFians are attacked by foes they never thought they'd see again.

• Book XXIX: Soul-Suckers

The RAFians are attacked by Dementors, which have a rather large effect on Cloak.

• Book XXX: Mayhem of the Music Miser

Cloak recalls the RAFians' previous confrontation with the Music Miser three years ago.

• Book XXXI: The Metal-Maker

The RAFians must save their own from a Roboticizer.

• Book XXXII: Richard is Missing

The RAFians must cope without Richard.

• Book XXXIII: Emotional Food

The RAFians must confront a different kind of vampire.

• Book XXXIV: Transformation Confrontation

The RAFians must confront some strange machines.

• Book XXXV: Richard's Horn

The RAFians must get Richard's Horn, a mystical musical instrument, back from Malice, who received it from a RAFian traitor.

• Book XXXVI: Feral Scream

A Wildwethel-centric book, he must deal with his feral side.

• Book XXXVII: Predators and Prey

The RAFians are being preyed upon by some sentient predators.

• Book XXXVIII: A Protean Problem

The RAFians must deal with a powerful snot-nosed kid who, quite literally, can do whatever he wants.

• Book XXXIX: The Horsemen

Four RAFians are captured and converted into four Horsemen of the ancient, rogue Realm Walker Cataclysm.

• Book XL: Sizeable Pain in the Necks

The RAFians must deal with Heinlein aliens.

• Book XLI: RAF's Nightmare

The RAFians must survive their own nightmares.

• Book XLII: Unlucky Charms

The RAFians must contend with a rather bloodthirsty leprechaun.

• Book XLIII: The Piper

The RAFians must contend with a pied piper.

• Book XLIV: Starlight Desire

The RAFians race Malice, Abomination, and the Banned to a wishing star (no, not Estelore).

• Book XLV: A War of Armor

Parker is outraged to see knockoffs of his rather unique armor and what they're being used for.

• Book XLVI: The Worst Plague

The RAFians must weather the worst plague to ever existed -- the Hate Plague.

• Book XLVII: Little Alien Napoleons

The RAFians are caught in the middle of a war between Helmacrons and Fmeks.

• Book XLVIII: Go Away!

The RAFians must deal with the paparazzi who are all of a sudden interested in them.

• Book XLIX: RAFian Tales

RAFians tell various RAFian-themed stories across a lunch table.

• Book L: Maul

The RAFians must deal with the result of one of Demos's experiments.

• Book LI: Erised Orbs

The RAFians must face their greatest desires.

• Book LII: RAFians Alive!

Read the "Mummies Alive" parody in the RAFize songs thread.

• Book LIII: The Pain Reliever

The RAFians must deal with an elderly Vulcan styling himself the "Pain Reliever".

• Book LIV: Beyond the Veils

Aquilai and Aila must confront old foes while the other RAFians must put up with a Czarinian bounty hunter.

• Book LV: Dangerous Deals

Demos meets up with his half-brother, Shenecron, who has a perchant for making deals.

• Book LVI: Of One Mind

Malice seeks out the Unimind.

• Book LVII: The End of Time

The RAFians must contend with two Kryptonians (who think they're Time Lords) and prevent them from ending time altogether.

• Book LVIII: Hematomimic

The RAFians must capture a Plasmavore and put up with it's rather stupid Judoon jailer.

• Book LIX: Sins of Youth

Estelore, Richard, Parker, and Cloak must survive when the entire city and forum have been reduced to two-year-olds.

• Book LX: The Replacements

The RAFians must contend with the fame-feeding Eidolon Consciousness.

• Book LXI: Arachnoids

The RAFians must contend with the Arachnoids and finding a cure for one of their own that was poisoned before it's too late.

• Book LXII: Personal Tissues

The RAFians must contend with some one misusing Bibliophaetos's discarded book shell.

• Book LXIII: Memory Today, Gone Tomorrow

The RAFians lose their memory and must find a way to regain it.

• Book LXIV: Appliance Armageddon

A superintelligent computer controls all electronics, and the RAFians must stop it.

• Book LXV: Prodigy and Composite

Some RAFians are merged into two separate entities.

• Book LXVI: The Merging

The Universes begin colliding and merging.

• Book LXVII: Be A Doll

The RAFians are confronted by a Super Chucky.

• Book LXVIII: They're Such Cards

The RAFians are sealed into cards, which end up trapped in an ancient leather-bound book, and it's up to three kids to free them.  An out-of-continuity book.

• Book LXIX: Dinosaur Island

Everyone, except those that bear a Mark, begin turning saurian.

• Book LXX: Corrupted

The RAFians must deal with the son of Cataclysm, Corruptor.

• Book LXXI: Artificial Skins

The RAFians must deal with symbiotes.

• Book LXXII: Separation Anxiety

The RAFians must contend with an ethereal virus.

• Book LXXIII: A Thing About RAFians

The RAFians must contend with Seekers, which home in onto their Marks.

• Book LXXIV: A Planted Idea

The RAFians must contend with a floramaniac.

• Book LXXV: Vacation Photos

The RAFians are sucked into a Polarisoid camera.

• Book LXXVI: A Personal Gremlin

The RAFians must contend with gremlins.

• Book LXXVII: The Rust is Silence

The Rafians must deal with an oxidation ray wielded by a criminal.

• Book LXXVIII: The Toyman Cometh

The RAFians deal with a Toyman-esque character.

• Book LXXIX: RAFian Idol

Yes, just another excuse to put in more of the (as of writing) nearly 800 parodies.

• Book LXXX: Savage Heart

Cloak battles an ancient being called Garrotik.

• Book LXXXI: Slave Islands and Juggernauts

Three RAFians are taken prisoners by the Knights and sold into the slavery of New Genoshia, while the others deal with a juggernaut.

• Book LXXXII: Shredding a King

The RAFians deal with a demonic Shredder-like ghost called Regiphaetos.

• Book LXXXIII: RAF -- The TV Show

The RAFians are forcibly recruited to Mojo's programs.

• Book LXXXIV: The Drinker

The RAFians must contend with a Spirit-Drinker.

• Book LXXXV: The Last Laugh

The RAFians must face Joker Gas.

• Book LXXXVI: It's A Mad, Mad, Mad Villain

The RAFians must contend with mind control cards which are ineffective on them.

• Book LXXXVII: Sight Unseen

Six RAFians are rendered functionally blind, optically-speaking.

• Book LXXXVIII: Don't Let It Snow

The RAFians must face a second Ice Age caused by a Diznee Ice Ifrit.

• Book LXXXIX: The Rachel Toxin

The RAFians must find a cure to a toxin that increases the fearlessness, hostility and aggressiveness induced in people which the Mark cannot protect the RAFians from.

• Book XC: Virus Alert!

The RAFians face a dangerous virus seeking a host.

• Book XCI: A Youthful Thief

The RAFians face a creature that siphons off the youth in its victims, provided they're younger than him.

• Book XCII: Calendar Creep

The RAFians face the Calendar Creep, a criminal whose crimes are holiday themed.

• Book XCIII: The Branding

Faerie fights a witch-boy named Salem (and his magical black cat, Saberhagen) for a magical branding iron in Faerie's possession.

• Book XCIV: The Void Zone

Nothing like a "Subspace Emissary" parody.  Sorry.

• Book XCV: An Epic Yarn

The RAFians' world is turned into yarn and fabric.

• Book XCVI: RAFian Gladiators

RAFians are kidnapped by Gamesmaster, another rogue Realm Walker, and force to participate in gladiatorial games.

• Book XCVII: The Box

The RAFians must cage thirteen Revenants released from Pandora's Box -- each representing and amplifying a particular feeling (i.e. hatred), while looking for the perfect host.

• Book XCVIII: From the Shadows

The RAFians must save their shadows and the shadows of everyone else from being absorbed (eaten) by the Umbraraptors, but not everything is what it seems.

• Book XCIX: Grimm Prospects

The RAFians discover Malice controlling several "wesen" with control collars akin to April's in "Catwoman from Channel Six" and get stuck in one-on-one battles to the death with them.  One will die.

• Book C: Loop-De-Loop

Everyone's trapped in a temporal loop, but the only ones that realize it are Cloak, Aila, and Aquilai.

• Book CI: Get 'Em, Shaw

The RAFians face a creature native to the planet Gossamer, who's under the control of Malice.

• Book CII: Threadfall

The RAFians must exterminate an epidemic of Thread.

• Book CIII: Siren's Song

The RAFians must deal with a siren and her alluring song.

• Book CIV: Resistance is Futile

The RAFians must deal with a hybridization of the Borg and the Hive chips (Ben 10: Alien Swarm) -- which the Mark cannot protect them from, nor the Unity energy can destroy.

• Book CV: The Titan

The RAFians must contend with the Titan serum and its effects.

• Book CVI: A Stony Glare

The RAFians must deal with a hungry Stone-Biter and a petrifying venom of a Diznee Stone Ifrit.

• Book CVII: Spritely Pests

The RAFians must deal with irritating sprites, which Faerie has had some rather tenuous experiences with.

• Book CVIII: Destroy All . . . What?

The RAFians must contend with a Furon incursion, and it turns out the Nyacs have knowledge of Furons. . . .

• Book CIX: Going Backwards

A grievious malfunction in Aquilai's TARDIS causes time to reverse its flow and flow backwards.

• Book CX: Death Takes A Holiday

The RAFians must convince Death to take up his role again.  A RAFian will die in this book, and it is within the continuity.

• Book CXI: High Price Stakes

Shanker and Gaz must flee and elude Daphne, the vampire hunter.

• Book CXII: A Killer Housing Market

The RAFians must survive and either destroy or escape a killer house.

• Book CXIII: A Silenced World

The RAFians must cope with a world that has become muted and a young sorceress, Melissa Spellman.

• Book CXIV: The Bureau

The RAFians must save their own from the insideous Bureau of Lost.

• Book CXV: To Tell the Truth

Broken's apprentice, Melissa, accidentally casts a spell forcing everyone to tell the truth.

• Book CXVI: Skin Crawlers

The RAFians, repulsed and revolted, must contend with Hundred (who eventually becomes Thousand, then becomes Million, then Billion, and then, finally, Trillion).

• Book CXVII: School of Stepford Lies

The RAFians must save the children from a school that turns them into Stepford students at Terenia's school.

• Book CXVIII: Ol' Salty

The RAFians must deal with the Salt Man.

• Book CXIX: The Great Race

The RAFians hold a race that Aloth cons himself into.  Who will win?

• Book CXX: Ape Escape

The RAFians must help super intelligent apes -- Caesar the chimp, Brutus the gorilla, and Maestro the orangutan -- reconcil their misanthropy.

• Book CXXI: A Different Kind of Unity

The RAFians must contend with a parasitic "unity".

• Book CXXII: The Great Brain Robery

Someone is stealing brains for an unknown purpose.

• Book CXXIII: The Bounty Hunter

The Knights, in their hypocricy, hire a Tsul'Kalu bounty hunter to collect select RAFians (to taxidermy).

• Book CXXIV: New Controllers

The RAFians confront Zirconians.

• Book CXXV: Creeping Crystal

A wave of crystallizing energy is sweeping the land. . . .

• Book CXXVI: The Element Feeder

The RAFians deal with a creature who feeds on a specific element and matures to a different element each time as it matures. . . .

• Book CXXVII: The Rider and the Walker

The RAFians come up against the Ghost Rider.

• Book CXXVIII: Headhunters

What will happen when RAFians lose their heads?  Seriously.

• Book CXXIX: The Color Purple, Man!

The RAFians confront the Purple Man, who manages to turn the entire government against them . . .

• Book CXXX: The Nemetrix Beetle

The RAFians confront the Black Beetle with Nemetrix properties.

• Book CXXXI: It's Tought to Be A Mod

The members of a primitive forum declare Demos and Blue to be mods. . . .

• Book CXXXII: Who-Zilla?

An energy reaction begins turning RAFians into monstrous creatures in 3XXX.  Out-of-continuity book.

• Book CXXXIII: Well, Techadon-ally . . .

The RAFians confront Techadons who assign them qualitive quatilities, and refuse to acknowledge any defeats.

• Book CXXXIV: The Mind's Eye

The RAFians face Spellbinder and his realistic illusions.

• Book CXXXV: Bas-ic Instincts

Bas awakens and attempts to take control of Cloak and other felines.

• Book CXXXVI: Midas Duck

The RAFians must contend with a very strange golden idol and a greedy sneak-thief.

• Book CXXXVII: War with the Warworlds

The RAFians must defeat two heavily-armed Warworlds.

• Book CXXXVIII: Solar Sucks

The RAFians must save Estelore from a device able to suck out her stellar substance and lifeforce.

• Book CXXXIX: Hounded

The RAFians are attacked by hellhounds that only Demos can see, although Cloak can "see" them via Earthsight.

• Book CXL: Politics

The RAFians, much to Cloak's chagrin and irritation, get caught up in the middle of Realm Walker politics.

• Book CXLI: Buggy Afternoon

A Bug is after Parker's blood, to "avenge" their brother slain by the SPARTAN.

• Book CXLII: Cloak's Nightmare

Cloak has an exceedingly vivid nightmare of the Great RAFian Purge. . . .

• Book CXLIII: Cloak and the Olympians

Cloak confronts and defies the Olympians.

• *Book CXLIV: Down to Earth

The RAFians have gravity-related problems.

• *Book CXLV: Hittin' the Dino-Sauce

The RAFians learn the dangers of Dino-Sauce.

[Cloak]

Maybe just one more.

CHAPTER TWELVE:
Unfundamentals

While Cloak was bound to a rock, thoroughly wrapped in the tylee chains, a radical change was occuring above ground.  Everything was padded, everything was Rated G, everything was without points, sharp edges, and rough textures.  Everything seemed to be bubble-wrapped.

Cathy, Malice and Abomination were immune to this effect.  They laughed as saw what they wrought, while every Dweller was miserable, though they were forced to be smiling -- except the underaged, it would seem.  RAF was not immune to this, though the RAFians kept their minds in tact.  This was horrible torture for them.

The MP3 monster appeared on Aquilai's TARDIS -- suddenly wrapped in bubble wrap -- and the sky turned green.

Brad sang:

"This used to be a fun place,
But now we wear a sad face,
Since those guys have all replaced
The way things are done."

Faerie lamented:

"No more doing as we wishes,
They make us eat year-old knishes,
Now, pipe down and do the dishes.
Come on, now, everyone!"

All the RAFians cried out:

"They are the unfundamentals,
For us RAFian confer-entials,
Who are now devoid of joy and mirth.
We are certifiably demental.
Cause these unfundamentals
Keep makin’ this place as fun as giving birth!"

Cathy, surveying all that came to be, sang in an aside:

"All the boards close a three.
All the threads are bouncy-free.
And there’s a pad over every knee.
Everything’s fine, as far as I can see.
But I can’t help but think out loud,
The things that guy had said somehow.
My mom and dad would NOT be proud
Of the path I’ve taken in life!
Have I been wrong?
Have I been used?
Should I embrace my nose and shoes?
Accept these gifts I once refused?"

Her background dancers began:

"I’m Happy Peppy –"

Until Cathy roared, "NOT NOW!!"

Demos sang, dully and in monotone:

"Our heads must be protected,
Our bodies, disinfected.
This is just as I suspected.
If this world was ruled by –"

And then the other RAFians joined in:

"-- By unfundamentals!
Surely, you over-parentals
Must see how fun this really is!"

Then Laura and Mallory Black, real role models of overbearing, drill sergeant/helicopter parenting, sang:

"But all these unfundamentals
Seem quite instrumental
To keep you rowdy RAFians in line!
If you need us, we’ll be playing the back nine!"

The misery was thick as smog in the air, but the skies turned back to the muddy black as the MP3 monster, reluctantly and resignedly vanished with Aquilai's TARDIS, like a stone skipping a pond. . . .

[Gaz]

I'm enjoying this!

[Cloak]

Dunno how many chapters I can have up today -- maybe just the one . . . and it doesn't have any songs in it, so it may be rather short.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN:
Manipulated No More

Doubts swirled around Cathy's head.  She seriously was reconsidering her assertions, her assumptions, her beliefs.  Everything was safe now -- why was everyone else so miserable?  Why weren't they happy that the world was free of danger?  Why did safety bring about such misery and hatred instead elation and joy?  It did not make any sense.
 
Meanwhile, Malice and Abomination were being rather careless with where they had a plot-unraveling discussion, as they were within earshot of Cathy.
 
"My darling," Abomination's rather coarse, throaty voice said, "it worked."
 
"Yes, I can see that." Malice said, and once again, Abomination confused the tone of contempt with love, whether deliberately or not.  Malice persisted in the ruse that she loved him, as it was so useful to have a brutish lackey.  It was pitiful, but it was Abomination's choice.  No one could force his eyes open, if he didn't want them opened.
 
"And all we had to do was --" Abomination began.
 
"Tricking a Dweller is nothing to brag about," Malice said, rather hypocritically.
 
Cathy started at this, but still was unheard by the two, who continued their conversation with Abomination apologizing and pontificating Malice, which allowed her to stroke her ego, which was a prodigious enough size as is.
 
"Won't the Council attempt to revert this?" Abomination asked, worriedly,  "Or Cloak and his little band of misfits?"
 
"Cloak is currently bound by the tylee chains in the dungeon chambers below," Malice said scornfully (the tone of which Abomination ignored rather stubbornly), "and the Council have their hands full at the moment with that fool Monger.  He never had very much sense, or very much brain."

Abomination chose to take this as a implication that his sense and brain were superior, when Malice hadn't meant anything of the sort.  She was aware of this deliberate misinterpretation and allowed it to happen.

"All we have to do now is continue to string along the stupid little Dweller girl," Malice said, arms folded imperiously across her chest, "and we'll continue to perpetrate this."

"But Dwellers have such limited lifespans," Abomination pointed out, "what will we do to maintain this world like this when she dies?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we burn it," Malice said, waving away this legitimate concern.

Cathy left, and the two were not even aware of her presence.  It was shameful, really.  But, then again, neither of the two could Earthsight.

***

"I'm sorry for what I've done," Cathy was saying, as she used bolt cutters to snap a metal chain serving as an anchor.

Suddenly, a large mass plummeted to the ground, but the chains loosed, and a burst of energy forced them away.  Then Cloak landed rather daintily, crouched, tail straight out for balance.

"Glad you've decided to see reason, Miss Cathy," Cloak said respectfully.

"What do we do now?" she asked.

"Oh, I think I've got something planned," Cloak said, enigmatically.

[Cloak]

One more. . . . Really, Gmail?  "FOURTEEN" is not a word?

CHAPTER FOURTEEN:
Reprise Rhapsody

It took some time to gather the RAFians again, but after six or seven hours, they were all assembled.  Of course, the MP3 monster and its TARDIS steed chose to reappear and cast their singing light over everyone again.  As such, music started playing . . .
 
Cloaky sang:

"Hey, Cathy,
Can’t you see what they’ve done?"

Cathy declared:

"It might reek now,
But it can all be undone!"

Cloaky added to the RAFians:

"So grab your death-kites and stupid guns!"

Slushie Man declared as he strode it:

"My motorbike!"

Demos claimed without thinking:

"My clones!"

Then he added, realizing what he said and what it would mean because he was barred from cloning experiments, "Er, I mean, NOT my clones!  Wait –"

Horse caught a pastry that was easily as large as her head, and she sang:

"This big sticky bun!"

Cloaky sang with full voice:

"It’s not a crime
To have some time
In the sun!"

The condescending Laura, Mallory and their ilk sang:

"RAFians just being RAFians.
Acting up and eating dirt!"

RAFians roared "WE DON’T EAT DIRT!" and sang:

"RAFians just being RAFians."

Laura, Mallory and their companions sang:

"They could all get hurt."

As if that was their true concern.  Then the RAFians retorted:

"RAFians just being RAFians."

Cloaky commanded:

"To keep those goons off all of our butts.
We’ll get this town out of all its ruts,
By RAFians just being RAFians."

***

Meanwhile, Malice and Abomination took notice of this, and began rapping:

"We’re sickies,
We’re sickies,
We finally rule all the trickies.
The time has come,
The deal has gone through.
Just stay there,
We’ll come to you!
We’re sickies,
We’re sickies,
This is how we get our kicksies.
Our plan has worked,
And they have lost.
Let’s Walk on down,
And show them who’s the boss.
Go sickies,
Go sickies,
Go sickies!"

***

Cloaky pointed to Block and Shock:

"You two roar real loudly."

Cathy turned to Dino:

"It’s your turn now to roar!"

Cloaky pointed to Parker:

"You get to parade real proudly,
With the skills you purport!"

He then pointed to Sakki.

"You find the rest of the RAFians and rile them,
I’ll give ‘em what they need!"

Cathy asked, "How?"

Cloaky snapped, "Internet?"

Cathy observed:

"With this much fun,
Those cloakheads will be here at breakneck speed."

Cloaky sang in an aside:

"Malice ruins everything.
That’s what I’ve always thought."

Cathy acknowledged:

"You RAFians ruin everything,
That’s the lie I bought."

Then Cloaky and Cathy sang:

"But someone else was pulling strings,
As far as we could tell."

Cathy remarked:

"But you and me
Can set us free."

Then the two sang:

"Everything ends well!"

"DOES it now?" cried Malice's rather gruff, yet shrill voice.

[Underseen]

I laughed when Cloak used the FoP classic internet joke because RAF is actually on the internet.

[Cloak]

I laughed when Cloak used the FoP classic internet joke because RAF is actually on the internet.

Which was my intent, although I wondered if anyone would get it.  It pleases me that someone did.

Anyway, I only have about fifteen minutes time right now, so probably no new chapters today.  Sorry.

EDIT: Okay, disregard that.  I got a call and my appointment was pushed back to one.

Newish chapter.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN:
Reprises and Realizations

"'Bout time," Cloak said, more blythely than the occasion warranted, as Faerie smashed Malice's fairy staff, saying, "Faerie, smash!"

Cloak, with a heavy-lidded look as the world reverted back to the norm, addressed Malice again, "You're getting slow in your old age, Malice."
 
"You dare to speak to me in such away?" Malice said indignant.
 
Cloak gave her such a look as if to say, You're kidding, right?, which Malice took even more offense towards.  Cloak could not believe just the amount of ego this one being possessed.  "Malice, you know what would happen if you challenged me openly and directly."
 
Malice pulled her face into a snarl, but couldn't coming up with anything scathing to say.  Cloak felt no fear, as Malice was hardly a threat without the staff.

Suddenly, the MP3 monster appeared, unbeknowst to the group at large.  The sky went green, and the MP3 monster quickly disentangled itself from Aquilai's TARDIS rather huffily.  Then the music started:
 
Abomination whined:

"My ears!"

Malice lamented:

"My heart!
They tore my whole plan and world apart."

Broken sang:

"Have wish –"

Faerie finished:

"– Will grant."

Both sang:

"There’s nothing boring that we can’t enchant!"

Queen cried out some distance away:

"My legs!  We should have known.
They made us pedal all the way home."

Shorty, ever the spry RAFian, sang and danced:

"We can do the things that the Banned forbid.
Summer’s not a bummer
If we’re just –"

Then the other RAFians joined in:

"RAFians being RAFians.
RAFians just being RAFians.
Running wild, running free!
RAFians just being RAFians.
I think we can all agree.
RAFians just being RAFians!
Close your eyes can count to three."

Laura, Mallory and their like-minded grunts sang, though no one paid them any mind anymore:

"They’re all out of control as they can be!"

The RAFians continued:

"RAF is the place to be,
With forum friends and family definitely.
As . . .
RAFians being RAFians!"

"NO!" Malice wailed, as the green light pulsed away.

"Oh, give it up," Cloak snarled.  "You lost.  Now, get lost or I'll do what I probably should have done twenty or so books ago."

"What?" Underseen asked.

"Never mind."

Then the group became aware of the MP3 monster who was looking thoughly angry and willing to lash out at anyone.

"This could be a problem," Gaz said.

Aquilai, however, was oblivious as he was hugging his tipped-over TARDIS.  Cloak looked away, not wishing to know whether or not he was actually kissing it. . . .

[Underseen]

While I was rereading chapter 8 I started to wonder about the lizard with the mark on it. The book may be coming towards an end, so it might be explained later on or I didn't notice it being explained when it was.

[Cloak]

I thought it was obvious, Underseen.

The lizard was you, a shape you assumed.  I probably should have been clearer on that point.  And I probably shouldn't have forgotten it.

Anyway, I'm experiencing some strange lag and slowdown on the forum -- I don't know if I'll be able to get a new chapter up with the time constraints I'm saddled with. . . .

EDIT: First chapter of the day -- perhaps the only one as well.  Gonna be short -- this computer has a wonky shift key. . . .

CHAPTER SIXTEEN:
The Monster Lives

"Uh, guys?" Horse said.  "I think we should pay attention to the monster!"
 
The MP3 monster then swooped low, and, due to her inherent small size, Horse was spared easily from the attack.  But that did not prevent the beast from continually attempting to divebomb the little seal.
 
"Why does every single monster pick on ME?!" Horse lamented, as it came in for the third divebomb, and, by the time of the sixth divebomb, she roared to the other RAFians, "WILL YOU STOP STANDING THERE GAPING AND HELP ME?!?!"
 
"Oh, right," Parker said a bit abashed.
 
"Not me, I'm outta here." Cathy said, and she promptly left the scene.  The monster apparently had no interest in her, but continued to harass the seal.
 
"Thanks, random throwaway character," Cloak muttered very quietly beneath his breath.  As far as he knew, they would never see her again.
 
"GUYS!!  A LITTLE HELP?!?!" Horse screamed.  "Oh, leave me alone, you -- monster . . . music player . . . thingy!!"
 
Cloak launched himself in the at the beast, only for it to mimic a crocodilian's death roll, forcing him to plummet back down to earth with a rather sizable dust cloud.  He said, as he stood back up, "Ooookay . . . not one of my better ideas."
 
"You think?" Sakki.
 
"Don't start with me, Sakki." Cloak snarled.  "Besides, you have any better ideas?"
 
Sakki, in response, unfolded her jaws to allow them to be as large and gaping as an Exploud's maw.  Suddenly, a powerful wave of sound burst from her expanded mouth.  It hit the monster mid-dive and seemed to disturb the creature.
 
"'Sakki used Hyper Voice.'" Cloak said, with mock enthusiasm.  Then he calmly observed the MP3 monster's reaction, and added, "'It's super effective.'"
 
"Oh, shut up," Sakki said, mouth folded up neatly again, so she looked rather indistinguishable from a human with a slightly too-lustrous hide.

"'MP3 Monster ran away.'" Underseen piped up, following Cloak's joke.

"Very funny, Under--" Dino started, then looked around.  "Oh, lovely."

"Wait -- where'd Malice and her deluded would-be lover get to?" Cloak said, suddenly aware.

"I thought you told them to get lost," Underseen pointed out.

"I didn't think that they'd actually listen." Cloak admitted.

Little did they know that Malice and Abomination had not fled, not truly.

***

The two Realm Walkers remained within the Prime Universe.  Abomination was confused, but still a little fearful at voicing it.  It would have been funny, considering just how much larger Abomination was to Malice, but, in truth, it was a very sad story.  One that Abomination, despite having the power to change his lot in life, could not bear to undo.

The two stood in a rather damp cave, lit with a green glow.  Not the glow that makes everyone under its influence sing, though, but a natural (although somewhat radioactive-looking) glow.  The cave also appeared to have green-tinged rivers and creeks, and random chasms large enough to throw Optimus Prime into, and have him unable to climb out.

"Um . . ." Abomination said, when he plucked up the nerve an hour or two later, ". . . um . . ."

"Spit it out." Malice said, testily.

"Well -- darling -- why are we here?"

"Use that brain of yours!  It's obvious why we're here!" she snapped, before turning to a certain opening that was empty, except for a large expanse of dry land.  Malice eyed it intensely, while Abomination was still flummoxed.

[Cloak]

Just one more.  Maybe.  Short chapter.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN:
Brand New Plan

"But . . ."

"Silence!" Malice said, without looking back.  She was gazing at the arrival of the new occupant of the flat expanse -- the MP3 monster, who curlled it's eye stalks (the earbuds and the wire) around it's body with its eyes lying atop it.  The green light filled the air and Malice found herself singing:

"I love this aberration,
An unforeseen complication,
Cause for celebration.
I thnk from where I stand
There is a strong demand
To play my role,
To seize control . . .
This calls for a new plan!
In my most malicious dreams,
My parade of noble schemes,
Swimming fast to extremes,
But I never thought of this.
An unexpected twist,
It simply cannot be missed.
I have to take this stand,
A fate is oh so grand!
To win the day . . .
My power play . . .
It's up to me to step in . . .
And to me this superweapon
And the RAFians
Don't even have a clue!
That they'll be blasted to kalamazoo!
It's big and bold,
The new plan!
And cruel and cold,
My new plan!
This ultimate, crowning, supreme debut
Of my latest, greatest, solidest status.
Brand new plan!"

Abomination looked taken aback by this, as the green energy surge faded.  He hesitated some more before voicing a concern of his with a rather timid tone, "Are you sure that plan is the best, my darling?"

"Of course it is," Malice said waspishly.  "I know what I am doing."

Abomination, however, was given cause to wonder, even though he did not voice it outright, even as Malice began to approach the resting beast, tired from its time skipping.

[Cloak]

Another one, perchance?  Sorry for the brevity of it.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN:
Malicious Power Ballad

Slowly, cautiously, Malice approached the creature.  It knew she was there, as it eyed her wearily, like a coiled serpent.  It unleashed a green puls which prompted Malice into singing, while Abomination became silent.

"Only I, Malice know
How to tame this beast, and so . . .
Won't you listen to my power ballad solo?
My solo . . .
In a world of mediocre minds
Where genius is disssed by ignoramus Walker kinds.
Prepare to be, heh, pleasantly astounded!
Astounded, ohh . . .
I wanna control you.
Want to control you.
I . . . I wanna make you mine.
I wanna conjole you.
Want to conjole you.
An offer that I hop you shan't decline!
I've got an ocean of devotion.
And you're the one for me.
A mutant disaster!
I'll be your master!
And together we'll be
In wonderful wicked harmony!
Like a beautiful, noble destiny!
Livin' large,
In absolute charge
Of RAF and the world, you see!
I've got an ocean of devotion.
And you're the one for me . . .
And you're the one . . .
For me . . . "

The creature blinked, ****ing it's eye stalks in such a way that it appeared to be considering Malice with polite interest.  Abomination began to sincerely doubt this plan, but said nothing, too afraid of being dumped.  Still pityingly unaware of Malice romantic disinterest in him.

Malice began to approach the monster . . . closer . . . closer . . . and it seemed to allow her to span the distance. . . .

[Underseen]

That's what I thought, but it didn't really make much sense towards the plot besides stating the fact that I wasn't with Cathy. It is a small detail that is easy to forget when writing, so I can't blame you.

[Cloak]

Right, Underseen. First one today.  If I've time, I'll probably finish off this book today.  This chapter may feel a little rushed.

CHAPTER NINETEEN:
An Unified Assault

The RAFians seemed to have gone one with life for a few hours, although on edge.  They knew the MP3 monster was still there, and knew that it had gotten away.  Cloak passed the time, by benignly praticing the elements, still favoring Earth.  He realized he shouldn't be playing favorites with the elements, but he just felt the closest connection with that element, and the furtherest connection with Fire.
 
Cloak pondered things idly whilst he did this.  He was sure that Malice wasn't done, not while the monster still lived.  She would see that as a source of power, and she lusted over power.  Abomination seemed unaware of this dark tendacy in his chosen mate, but his unfortunate (and spectatively deliberate) obliviousness stemmed into many areas.  Cloak continually found himself unable to hate Abomination for becoming what he has, as the emnity between the two had somehow transformed into pity on Cloak's part.  He knew firsthand what it was like -- being constantly cut down, manipulated, belittled, marginalized . . .
 
No! Cloak scolded himself, as he abruptly stopped his practicing, You mustn't dwell on those unpleasant memories.  No good would come from it.  I am free from her malignant ministrations, her nettling comments, her asperations on my intelli . . . Gah!  I'm doing again!
 
But there was something in the sky that took Cloak's mind off of this horribly negative experiences in his past.  Malice had arrived, riding atop the MP3 monster.  Abomination was there too, though he sat while Malice stood.  Cloak looked at it unsurprised, before alerting the other RAFians, using an aerokinetic pulse to rattle their windows for a few seconds.  He knew they would come out to see what caused such a thing.
 
Malice laughed raucously, and crowed, "Time to die, little RAFian maggots!"
 
Cloak noticed that she wasn't singing -- so clearly she either disabled that function permanently, or had some control over it herself.  But now wasn't the time for idle discussion or musings.
 
"DIE!"
 
The RAFians scattered as the thing fired the green pulse from it's eyes, only Cloak stayed put.  He redirected the shot back at the monster.
 
"DIE!" Malice yelled.
 
"You missed!!" Parker yelled, as Cerulean attempted to wrest Malice away, but Abomination punched him off the monster.  "How could you miss?!  He was fifteen feet in front of you!!"
 
"DIE!" Malice offered.
 
"I wasn't aiming for the monster, Parker." Cloak said, indignant.  Faerie, Gaz, Laserbeak, and Blocky had just failed in their individual aerial attacks and were all shot down -- literally.
 
"DIE!" Malice suggested ever so helpfully.
 
"You first!" Cloak roared, and the roar of a tiger intermingled with his words, as he blasted a jet of his own golden scarlet energy.  Which missed as well.
 
"Hahahahahaha!  DIE!!"
 
Cloak mimicked the movements for a Hadouken, only with a sphere of wind, and Malice barrel-rolled to evade it.  This caused Abomination to fall off the monster and plummet to the ground.  He Walked away mid-air.
 
"DIE!" Malice screamed, beginning to sound more annoying than Flame Hynard.
 
"WILL YOU SHUT THE VEIL UP?!?!" Cloak roared, holding his hands an inch apart, and making a slashing motion down left.  Between his palms a mass of golden scarlet energy amassed, and was flung forward in a large crescent.  Malice managed to upend the monster enough that it passed by harmlessly, with mere inches to spare.  "GATE BURST!!"
 
"DIE!!!" Malice yelled, full voice, filled with eagerness and delight.
 
<Wait,> Noelle said, standing as if she was pushed to her current spot (which she was, given the momentum of her attack, <what if we use the Unity Blast?>
 
"That would seriously deplete our energies," Phoenix pointed out, launching volley after volley of fireballs.
 
"Got any better ideas?" Goom said, a little miffed as there was really nothing a goomba could do in this fight.
 
Phoenix didn't answer, but just sighed heavily.
 
"Do it," Cloak said.  "Just do it and shut her the Veil up!"
 
The RAFians all took their stances, and pointed their Marks at the beast.  They had easily encircled it.
 
"Together, now!" Richard said, as the pulsing white of the Unity Energy bubbled and frothed from his own Mark.  The others followed suit.
 
"You think your little light show scares me?" Malice said, and Cloak was secretly glad that she hadn't just said . . . then she said, "DIE!"

"FIRE!" Richard commanded.

[Cloak]

Last one of this book.  No more singing . . . for the rest of this book, anyway.

CHAPTER TWENTY:
Interpret and Regret

Many of the beams of Unity Energy lanced from the Marks the RAFians possessed.  From palms -- and from their foreheads for those that did not possess palms, flippers, or whatnot, or if those were rather insubstantial, in Dino's case.
 
Anyway, the beams of Unity Energy blasted forward, merged upon contact with the MP3 monster, striking it completely.  It was too slow to move upward or downward to dodge, and Malice herself never considered this.  She was so certain in this beast's indestructibility, that she laughed at the attack.
 
She stopped when she felt the lurch from her platform, her monster.  The creature let out a rather piteous moan, as the light began to disappate.  About 37% of its body was destroyed, and the light that lit it from within, that was gone.  The creature began to plummet to the ground.  Not straight down, however, but a forty-five degree angle, until it dragged it's belly along the ground, and friction made it stop, leaving about a sixteen foot or so trail behind it.
 
"NO!" Malice roared with fury.  "You cannot be dead!  Get up!"
 
The creature did not comply.  The creature could not comply.
 
"I know you hear me!  Get up!  Obey me, beast!!"
 
Nothing but silence from the motionless creature.
 
"OBEY ME!!!  RISE UP!!!" Malice said, and their was a rather panicky note in her voice.  "I said, 'RISE UP'!!!!!"
 
Cloak strode from the circle the RAFians had made, his cloak swishing in an almost mincing way with each step.  He stopped mere feet away from Malice, who was still trying to order the monster to rise up.  Cloak did not miss the halfhearted tone that her voice began to take on.
 
"It is over, Malice," Cloak said, and his voice was like a sharpened knife to her.  "It's time for you to face your punishments for your misdeeds."
 
"On whose authority?  Yours?" Malice snapped, glaring and glowering at Cloak.
 
"I shall escort you to the Council." Cloak said, with narrowed eyes.
 
Malice glared at him for a moment more, and Cloak seemed to realize what she was planning a second before she act.  He reached for in a snappy movement, but too late.  She already Walked away.
 
"Gate burst!" Cloak cursed loudly.
 

***

Malice had met up with Abomination, who looked thoroughly miffed.
 
"You left me to die," Abomination.
 
"Honey, you know that fall wouldn't have killed you," Malice said, with a simpering, Dolores Umbridge-type of voice.  Abomination looked on with a surly, pouty face.  "Oh, come on, dearest, I would not have left you there.  You know this, right?"
 
Suddenly, Abomination's conviction seemed to falter.  It was all Malice needed.
 
"You see, don't you?  I was under the monster's influence.  I really didn't realize that you'd had gone.  I really do love, you know that right?  I can't live without you . . ."
 
Abomination's conviction seemed to diminish and dwindle with every successive word Malice uttered in that simpering tone, which she subtly changed to a seductive one.  Eventually, Malice conjoled Abomination back into his servile role, without him even being aware of it.  But one must wonder -- how much longer can Malice get away with this without slipping up?
 

***

Cloak sat upon an earthen spire that he constructed himself.  He sat there pondering, and second-guessing his decisions.  Why did he tell Malice what he would do?  Why didn't he just grab her and take her to the Council, to prove that she's still alive?  Why didn't he just . . . do what Avatar did to Boss?

"Cloak?" came a gentle voice.

Cloak ignored it.

"Cloak, don't ignore me, please."

Still Cloak didn't move or speak.  He was feeling rather moody right now, regretting his actions.  Suddenly, he saw a large eye pass in front of his face, which shocked him out of his stupor, that he fell and his spire toppled over.

"I'm sorry I had to do that to you, Cloak," Dino said, shifting back into her more compact form.  Once again, Cloak wondered idly if Dino had some Vaxasaurian DNA.  "But I think you and I must have a talk."

"Why?" Cloak said rather more hostilely than he had intended, but made no real effort to correct this.

"Cloak, you must second-guess yourself like this," Dino said, evenly and calmly.  "You seem to expect yourself to be infalliable, which you are not.  And striving for that is foolishness -- you've said this many times yourself."

"I should have done --"

"No," Dino said, shaking her head slightly.  "No 'should've'-ing.  You did what you did.  You cannot change it."

"Yeah, and thanks to that indecision, Malice lives to blight our lives evermore."

"Cloak," Dino said, "do you think you really have it in you to kill someone?"

Cloak folded his arms against his chest, and did not answer, as he knew the answer.  And he feared that answer made him weak.