Memoirs of a RAFian

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCII (1,392): "Water Power" -- The birth of Aquatyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY:
Broken Blade

Her name was Tara Eterna Nolan.

She was born to nihilist parents, Cyrus (or "Cy") and Minerva (or "Minnie"). They were young and unequipped for such a responsibility. Her father got sent off to jail on some accusation from some person he had gotten on the wrong side of, and it escalated, though the specifics weren't known to his wife or the public.

Minnie was not yet twenty when she had Tara. She was stressed being a single mother -- she never heard back from Cy after he went to prison, and he wouldn't visit with her or Tara. She then loses Tara, who was too young to remember any of this, at some sort of carnival event. When she saw that the police had her kid, she thought about it, in a more selfish frame of mind. She convinced herself that it would be completely okay to abandon this young child and leave her with the police, telling herself that they would be able to find her a better home. She never allowed herself to admit what she was really doing -- abandoning her daughter.

And she didn't get a better home. She was sent to the Goodness Orphanage, which was just a front for this cult. She became as indoctrinated and brainwashed as any other child there. And, as she was a girl, she wasn't forced to do menial and janitorial duties. She excelled in this type of environment, and she quickly rose through the ranks, to become the callous piece of work today.

"That wasn't necessary," Terenia had scolded.

"But it was," she said in that overly masculine voice. "Failure is unforgivable, tarnishing the plan and whim of the great 'Granny'. We all have a duty to serve her, and we are all obligated to follow that service."

"And if they choose otherwise?" Terenia said, knowing full well what the context of the Sorcer's rebuttal (if you could call it that) would entail.

"Choice is an illusion," the Sorcerer answered, as the two stood not more than ten to fifteen feet away from each other, but well within earshot of one another. "And, therefore, choice is irrelevant."

"And thought the xenophobic zealotry of the Knights was bad," was Terenia's reply. "This is a whole new ball of wax."

"Nonbelievers may delude themselves in thinking that the grand vision of 'Granny' isn't all-encompassing, that all her pronouncements are without flaws, all her whims are for the best interests of everyone, true believers and nonbelievers alike." the Sorcerer said, grandly, as if she were sharing the secrets of the universe with Terenia, who was -- unsurprisingly -- less than impressed.

"Uh huh," Terenia said with almost condescending disinterest. "And you . . . just never questioned any of that schlock?"

"No one questions 'Granny'," the Sorcerer said, severely.

"Really?" Terenia said. "And if she's wrong?"

"'Granny' is never wrong," the Sorcerer said, as if this was obvious. Perhaps it was, just not in the manner she thought it was.

"Of course she isn't," Terenia said, before the Sorcerer could finish. She rolled her eyes and facepalmed, still holding her Ruler of Death ready. "Let me guess, you don't have a single thought that this 'granny' doesn't give you, do you?"

"It's my honor and duty to --" the Sorcerer began.

"Okay, enough," Terenia said, like a teacher who had enough of a student who clearly had slapped together a project overnight and wasn't very subtle about it. She was rubbing her head, clearly suffering from a headache of such a magnitude that Rita Repulsa could commiserate. "I have heard of this propaganda to make me sick. And you actually believe that it's true?"

"It is true."

"Sorry (not sorry) to burst your bubble," Terenia said, with a snap in her voice that exuded authority. "But this 'Granny' is clearly using you to obtain that which she desires. She clearly cares nothing for you, or the people that you hurt!"

Instead of a response, the Sorcerer resorted to violence. Terenia was suddenly in a dark dome, with what appeared to be the beams of lightsabers (without the hilts). Thousands of them. And Terenia wasn't daunted. When the beams fired at her, she managed to dissipate it with her Ruler of Death. The beams did not return where they were in this domed area of darkness and nothingness. It seemed forever until all of these laser blades were dealt with and the void dome thing vanished.

The Sorcerer seemed furious that she survived. She seemed to completely forget to use magic or sorcery of any sort. She was too busy grappling with the very thought that she had failed. She had only attacked once . . . but then she grabbed her Ethereal Blade, and charged Terenia.

Terenia saw it coming. She saw the Sorcerer's attack as being obviously telegraphed. Her time and training as a RAFian, and she easily dodged, blocked, and disarmed the Sorcerer. The blade embedded itself into the ground, and, as the Sorcerer hastily and frantically went to retrieve her blade, she snapped the blade cleanly in two due to her hurried, rushed state. She was horrified by this, and was now powerless.

Terenia left her with this crisis, knowing that there was nothing that she could do to help her. You can't force someone to get help -- they have to want to get help, if it is to have any effect.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCIII (1,393): "Thunder Power" -- The birth of Electrotyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE:
Running the Gauntlet

The three Realm Walker ran forward, Shadow's scent not getting old or stale -- they were on the right track. All three had an unspoken goal -- they would reclaim Shadow, and make the person behind her kidnapping pay for this audacity. They would make this perpetrator regret the gall, their presumption.

The first person in this gauntlet was a heavy-set girl about fourteen who was holding a pink shield. Cloak roared his tiger roar, which terrified this girl (she had her name stripped from her, so she was an Anonymous One). She was paralyzed with fear, and the trio ignored her when she fell into the fetal position. She didn't exactly have the heart of a lion, but she was still a kid. The bypassed her and moved onward.

Then three Anonymous Ones came from unseen doorways. One with a whip who was short and stout with long, wild hair. One with a spear who was tall and thin. One with gauntlet fists who was unusually curvy. Cloak smashed the gauntlets and nearly broke the womans hands. Merriment hit the one with a whip in the chest, causing her to drop the whip. Faith delivered a swift kick to the forehead of the one with a spear. This incapacitated all three and the trio of Realm Walkers pushed onward.

Then a tall woman with an opalescent bow appeared, cloaked as her brethren, and takes aim at the Realm Walker family. Merriment strikes her in the chest as Faith strikes her in the forehead, rendering her fundamentally incapacitated. Then the trio moved onward, prepared to do anything to get Shadow back.

Then a large, muscular woman with a massive flail appeared before them. Cloak crushed her hands -- no lasting damage, just to incapacitate her -- while Merriment struck her chest, taking her out of the equation. The trio continued onward, roughly towards nine o'clock.

Then a large, svelte woman with a large warhammer appeared before the three. Cloak disabled her hands while Faith struck her head, knocking her out. They were getting close. All three felt this to be true. They navigated the interior of this building as if they lived there.

Then they were accosted by a short, stout woman with a cat-o'-nine-tails, a tall, thin woman with a trident, and a curvy woman with knuckle dusters. They didn't last long against the trio, who tossed them aside as they continued to storm the stronghold, virtually unopposed.

They sidelined a girl who one might have considered chunky, who attacked them with a yo-yo. Yes, a yo-yo. The trio didn't really take her all that seriously, as they moved onward. They knew that they must not be deterred -- they were closing in on Shadow, and her kidnappers.

Then they dealt with a short woman with a chisel-like dagger, and they basically brushed her aside, as they dealt with a rigid, pompous woman with an electrically-charged whip. Cloak snaps the whip and pushes this woman aside. They would not be stopped.

Then they came upon a large, beefy woman with some weapon that looked like a q-tip. Cloak, his sister, and her husband pushed her away with simultaneous energy blasts, snapping her weapon in two. The trio just pressed onward, their singular goal dominating every aspect of their mind.

Then they were up against a youthful woman with a parasol as a weapon, a large woman with cymbals as a weapon, and a giant woman with a large, double-edged sword. The trio knocked all three around, rendering all three unconscious before Cloak gave a roar as they approached a large ornate door that had to have Shadow and her captor behind it.

They were close.

[Cloak]

Posting this now because I won't be able to tomorrow. It will be a very busy day for me.

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCIV (1,394): "Plant Power" -- The birth of Floratyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO:
Open Up Your Eyes!

Shadow was thrown unceremoniously into a cage, whose bars looked like a haphazard mess of silver and gold. The cage was essentially a birdcage in design, with a big cartoonish lock on the side facing the center of this rather bare, sparsely decorated room. The lighting was dim and dreary, almost for aesthetic, atmospheric purposes.

Shadow took this in -- her uncle had always told her when she was little to use her head and think, and the strongest asset anyone had is their mind. She looked around at the lock and the metal bars. Metal.

She tried to manipulate the metal, but it didn't work all that well. She deduced that these bars must be some sort of alloy between tylee metal and some me common metal. She could manipulate that part just fine, but there also seemed to be some sort power suppressing resin applied to the cage. Someone did their homework.

She decided to try a few energy blast to discover the bars were electrified as well. Yep, someone wanted to be sure that she didn't leave. She supposed that she could always just Walked away, but the cage was a bit cramped -- if she held out her hands the bars would have been about a couple of inches away, and the ceiling was low, she would have bumped her head if she stood fully erect.

There appeared to be no way out of this cage, other than Walking, and she didn't want to try that -- as she was sure that her parents and uncle were after her. She knew that they would never abandon her.

Then she heard a heavy door open somewhere (she was suspended in the air, metalsight or Earthsight wasn't really an option), and shut. She saw a brief glimpse of bright light. Then she heard heavy footsteps walking down the steps. The footsteps were slowly paced, as if the person whom they belonged was taking their sweet time getting here.

Shadow wasn't like her uncle -- her eyes couldn't cut through the gloom with superior night vision. She was simian and not feline. She couldn't echolocate like her father. So, without access to Earthsight or Metalsight, she couldn't make out this person until they stopped right in front of her, allowing themselves to be illuminated under what appeared to be a studio spotlight.

She appeared to have the head and face of Phyllis Diller but the body of a female Ed Asner. She wore a cloak over tarnished gold armor that looked very worn, as if she had been through battle after battle, and won them all.

She chuckled maliciously, as she paced around the cage, eyeing her prize. This prompted Shadiw into speech, "Why are you doing this?"

To which, this person, this granny, ****ed her head to the side with a jerk and laughed. When she spoke, it sounded as if someone bled Phyllis Diller's voice with that of Ed Asner's. "Why? Because I can. And I'm more than you'll ever be."

"It's gonna be a song, isn't it?" Shadow asked. Then the music began and began to build up. "Yep, it's a song."

This person sang as she circled Shadow's cage, and Shadow was thinking of a means to unlock this cage unnoticed.

"It's time you learned a lesson.
It's time that you understand.
Don't ever count on anybody else
In this or any other land.
I once hoped for friendship,
To find a place among my kind.
But those were the foolish wishes
Of someone who was blind."

At this point, while she was sining the last five lines, she turned her back to Shadow. The young Realm Walker was not at all impressed or moved by these mindless theatrics. Someone might have found it effective, but not for her.

Then this person stamped her foot and turned to face Shadow, declaring through her song:

"Open up your eyes!
See the world from where I stand!
Me, the absolute, the mighty.
You, caged at my command!
Open up your eyes!
Give up your sweet fantasyland!
It's time to grow up and get wise.
Come now, little one.
Open up your eyes."

Then she turned away melodramatically, and continued to sing, while Shadow found a discarded hair clip and proceeded to try and pick the lock, despite not knowing how to do so. She never learned such a skill. Her captor never appeared to notice this, or, if she did, she ignored it to continue her song.

"We all start out the same,
With simple naive trust.
Shielded from the many ways
That life's not fair or just.
But then there comes a moment.
A simple truth that you must face.
If you depend on others . . .
You'll never find your place.
And as you take that first step,
Upon a path that's all your own,
You see it all so clearly.
The best way to survive is all alone!"

Shadow continued to pick the lock as this person continued to sing her little song. Shadow had long since stopped paying attention to it, and was more focused on getting out of the cage. She refused to give up -- stubbornness tended to run through her family, as proven many, many times by her uncle.

"Open up your eyes!
And see the world from where I stand!
Me, the absolute, the mighty!
You, caged at my command!
Open up your eyes,
And behold the fading light!
It's time to grow up and get wise.
Come now, little one,
Open up your eyes!
Open up your eyes!!"

Shadow continued to ignore her, until she heard the roar. She heard it, and smiled deeply. She looked at her captor dead in the eye, and said, "Oh, now you're in for it."

SOURCE SONG: https://youtube.com/watch?v=8x4P_PnX9kQ

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCV (1,395): "Psychic Power" -- The birth of Psychotyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE:
The Confrontation

The heavy-set, thick, ornate metal doors were pushed in with enough force to pull them from their heavy-duty hinges. This only proved that the person behind such force was not a person to trifle with. Three figures were silhouetted in the bright light.

"You're so screwed," Shadow said, smugly.

"Don't be so sure, dearie," this person snapped, in her own smug manner.

Cloak, Faith, and Merriment strolled into the room, with a commanding presence. When Faith and Merriment saw their daughter, they abandoned the impressive, intimidating pretense and rushed to her cage, struggling to remove the lock.

"Stand aside," Cloak said, golden scarlet blades made from his energy on the back of his clenched fists. When they did, Cloak dashed forward and sliced through the padlock with one strike. He was trying to control his emotions -- his rage at Shadow's captor, his relief that she appeared to be unharmed, his concern about losing control --and he found it as difficult as he did before his training (for want of a better term) with Aniyu. He would reconcile it. He would have to.

He turned away from his older sister, her husband, and Shadow, and faced the woman. He narrowed his eyes at her, and his suspicions confirmed in his eyes. Shadow's eyes widened as she realized who her captor was and she felt a bit ashamed of it. Cloak's glared holes into this person before him.

"You?" Cloak growled. Golden scarlet energy crackled around his fists.

"You were expecting Voldemort?" she said, puffing out her chest, looking rather ridiculous and, yet, strangely imposing at the same time. "I am everywhere."

"Spare me the religious, cultic rhetoric," Cloak said, his eyes becoming golden scarlet suns. "I know who you are. I know that you're not this 'Granny' person that you're pretending to be."

"Oh, very astute, dearie," she said with a laugh.

"You stole children," Cloak said, inexplicably knowing all this. His anger became more manageable now that he was venting some of it. "Robbed them of their identities, their very names. Those that you deigned to give new names were not real names at all, as all of them had a requisite 'the' before them. And for what? So they could worship you as a deity? So they can be so indoctrinated into this ludicrous idea that you are without flaw, that your will is absolute, and your word is unbreakable law?"

"Because it is," she said, with a smile like venomous honey. "'Granny' sees all, 'Granny' knows all. This is the underlying truth to the world. If I say that it round, then it is round. If I deem it flat, then so it is."

Cloak said nothing, as she did not wait for him to utter something to interrupt her ludicrous spiel.

"When I desire something, it is up to others to secure that which I desire for me," she said, sound very disingenuous and dishonest. Not a person to look up to. "It is a great source of honor to follow my every order, obey my every discretion, and --"

"Enough," Cloak's voice was quiet, but it nevertheless rung in the silenced room. "I know that not even you believe this ludicrous rhetoric. It's just a means to get people -- those that you've stripped everything from at a young age, those that you so meticulously indoctrinate and brainwash from an age as young as you can get --to do what you want, to have undying loyalty and fealty to you and whatever cause you prop up. You founded this whole messianic cult based off nothing but abject servitude by fear of death for perceived failure at any point. You silence people who would dare question or challenge these beliefs, all the while feigning omnipotence."

"I'm the most important, influential, powerful person in the world, and you can't do anything to stop me," she snarled.

"It really should come as no surprise to me that you think so highly of yourself," Cloak growled, "Malice."

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCVI (1,396): "Toxic Power" -- The birth of Toxityrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR:
Facade Thrown

"What are you talking about?" she said, feigning ignorance. Not very convincingly, either. "I am the benevolent god. The god loves her flock. I look out for them, know what's in the best interests, provided that they don't ever fail me. i know everything, my will is absolute. I love --"

"Power," Cloak supplied, his tone stabbing her like a dull knife. "Give up this broken facade. You do not fool me."

"Why, I don't know what you mean, dearie." she replied.

At this Cloak allowed himself a small smile, "And, yet, you proclaim to know everything."

This actually took her off guard. She didn't anticipate how quick this response came, nor its context. She spluttered an incoherent, disjointed response. This was hardly an effective rebuttal.

"Your pretended omniscience is a farce," Cloak said. "All cons are eventually come unravelled. Maybe not in the conman's generation, or lifetime, but eventually all cons' threads fray and the truth comes into light. You facade doesn't fool me or anyone else in this room."

"Very well, then," she said, her entire demeanor changing. She reached up, and pulled off an unseen domino mask. An ID mask. The appearance of a human with the head of Phyllis Diller and the body of Ed Asner vanished, replaced with the smaller, and moee familiar form of an octogenarian, anthropomorphized Tasmanian devil in a dark cloak. "You won't allow an old woman her fun."

"Fun?" Cloak said, tone suddenly caustic again. "You use the people, you poison their minds to obtain that which youd desire! You care nothing nfor them, or the people they hurt!"

"Well, duh," Malice said, flippantly, "that's kind of my whole shtick for this scheme. I admit, I had forgotten about this orphanage cult scam until recently. But Dwellers are so incredibly stupid. You just spin them some story about some messiah, and they don't even bother questioning it, believing it wholecloth."

"You don't give them a choice," Cloak said.

"So what?" Malice said, airily dismissing the criticism. " What does it matter to me if they do not want to follow my edicts? The foolishly, blindly loyal ones will put them in their place for me, so I needn't soil my hands with any disciplinary measures -- unless it's going to be really enjoyable. It's so easy -- all you need to do is sprinkle some empty platitudes, some misleading hocus pocus, some insincere rhetoric that they 'feel' is genuine despite the vagueness. They interpret what they want to interpret, and they either fear me, as I will harm them -- slowly -- if they get out of line, or they revere me as a goddess, which means they will be unflinchingly loyal -- which is why I give them horrible facsimiles of names, as I force them to cast aside all that I don't give them myself."

"You're a monster," Cloak said.

"True. What's your point?" Malice said, with that condescending, dismissive tone. Then she mocked him further with an overacting, theatrical gasp, "Oh, no -- you're not gonna kill me, are you?"

 She assumed that Cloak wouldn't, and that he wouldn't have a reason not to. She was wrong.

"That would be too easy," Cloak replied, considering his next words.

"That's it?" Malice said, with a malicious cackle. "If it was so easy, then why haven't you done it yet? Because of some sanctimonious morality, perhaps? Or maybe it's righteous ineptitude?"

"It would be too easy on you," Cloak clarified. "You would no longer be able to be held responsible and accountable for heinous acts against the people of this Realm, of this world. In death, you'd get off scott-free. No. You're going to be held accountable."

"You sound like those Council stooges," Malice sneered. "We all know how that turned out. They sentenced me to the Gate, and I eventually escaped, like many others. And you just want to repeat that?"

"They believe you to be dead, remember," Cloak interjected. "Showing up with you in chains will prove that they were wrong, and they will be forced to admit that their assessment was wrong."

Malice laughed, "You think that would be enough to convince them? You are such a naive child. They have already assumed that they know what happened, and nothing -- you hear me, child? -- NOTHING will dissuade them from that conclusion."

"Perhaps not those Councillors," Cloak countered, as Faith, Merriment, and Shadow were getting to their feet, unnoticed by the two. "But they switch Councillors more often than this planet rotates on its axis. The new batch might be more receptive, since those other ones have probably been put out to pasture by now."

"But you assume that I won't resist," Malice said, reapplying the ID mask, projecting the form of ' Granny' over her, once more. "You forget that I have amassed an army of blindly loyal Dwellers who would die for me."

"Are they still blindly loyal to you?" Cloak said, his hand at his side, as if to check to see if a cellphone was vibrating in his pocket.

"Of course!" Malice snarled, with the voice of 'Granny'. "What the Veil makes you think otherwise?"

"Two words," Cloak said, with a toothy grin, before roaring them loudly enough for everyone two miles away to be able to hear, "RAFians, ASSEMBLE!"

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCVII (1,397): "Fire Power" -- The birth of Pyrotyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE:
Assembled

Cloak did not have to turn around to know that they were all there, filling up the wide, dimly lit room. The only person who did not come in was Dino -- as the doorway was too small and narrow to accommodate her, even in her compact form. So consented to stand guard outside -- after all, whoever would mess with a full-grown ankylotyrannus unless they had a very pervasive deathwish?

Cloak also heard Saffa smack GH, and say, "GH, stop dabbing!"

"You revel in being alone, in not trusting others in anyway," Cloak said. "I must confess -- I was much the same way, believing that the only path I could walk would be one that must be travelled alone. But that path is a lonely, unwieldy path to tread so unwisely. Friend and allies make the burden of traversing through life, even one as long as our kind can live, much easier and much less stressful."

"You're not only a child, but a fool," Malice said, with scorn, seemingly unaware of the chains that were slowly and soundlessly starting to coil towards her. " Lesser beings are not useful at anything but being tools to higher beings, such as myself. Dwellers aren't meant for you to get attached to and bond with. They're nothing but insects to crush under your heel if they get out of line. Might makes right."

 "'Might makes . . . ', ugh," Cloak said, disgusted by this poor excuse, by this insufficient justification, for such crimes. "No, Malice, you have it wrong. Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should. To bear such powers, such as my own, you must remember to exercise them responsibly and without harm to others. But you don't care about anything but you own neck."

"Duh." Malice said, with indifference. "Your little pets may have gotten through my army somehow, but they are still loyal to me. They will even die at my merest suggestion!"

"Will they now?" Cloak said. "Even now that they know how you lied to them, how mistreated and mislead them? Even when they know what you really said about them, and just how little you care about their wellbeing?"

"They don't know any of that," Malice said, smugly, with a scoff, "and they will not believe anything you tell them. Dwellers are so easy to manipulate. The indoctrination was all-encompassing. They don't know any of that."

"Don't they?" Cloak said, suppressing a smile.

"No, they don't!" Malice exclaimed, actually annoyed.

"Boys?" Cloak prompted, finding it harder to suppress a smile.

"We managed to break through their security," Aquilai said, then addressing Malice directly, "a reverse Fibonacci number sequence interlaced with a Fibonacci word sequence? Please."

"We live streamed every word she said," Xeno piped up, "and sent it into every communication device and replaced every indoctrination video with what she just said."

Malice was clearly taken aback by this, and Cloak took this opportunity to try to chain her, but she managed to wiggle her way away and immediately Walked away. Cloak cursed a Realm Walker vulgarity that didn't translate into English, as he considered how he mishandled the whole situation.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCVIII (1,398): "Earth Power" -- The birth of Geotyrannus.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX:
Training Day

Cloak was still mulling over his obvious mishandling and misreading of the situation of the Orphanage -- some of its members were too entrenched to fully reassimilate with the populace again, though some did try (with varying levels of success), and others -- the ones who stuck around out of fear or against their will -- immediately abandoned the cult and did their absolute best to pretend as if it had never happened.

But Malice still got away. And it was Cloak's fault once again. All the deaths she would cause -- and has caused already -- were on him. His hands were not clean, and he knew it. Perhaps it was not fair for him to inherit Sage's main antagonist, but he hadn't a choice in this matter.

Meanwhile, while Cloak was grousing, he stood on a hill overlooking the training grounds of some prospective RAFians-to-be. Just by the look of them, Cloak highly doubted their chances as Esplin decided to crack down on the qualifiers to be a RAFian. (Three guess why he did that, and they're all Kane.)

The prospective candidates were Kerry "Dice" Cornelius Bennet, Bartemus "Barty" Marshall Donaldson, Otis Timothy Carey, Tatiana "Tiana" Venus DeMilo, Thomas "Tom" Daniel Coyne, Opal Deborah Plowman, Olaf Joshua Jones, Franklin "Frankie" Lee Rosenbaum, Theresa Andrea Jackson, Filbert Yancey Adynata, and Iggy Elenchus.

Iggy Elenchus was, to be frank, an oblivious idiot. He always tended to miss the points offered to him, and he behaved in a rather obnoxious manner. He never shut up, he always had to have the last word, and he was ALWAYS late for everything. He never could tell when he was annoying someone or if his rhetoric was, frankly, offensive. No one was sure why he wanted to be a RAFian -- not even Iggy himself.

Teresa Jackson was meek, weak-willed, and easily manipulated. She blew on the wind ever since leaving high school (which was basically the last thing she ever really finished), showing poor judgement in -- unknowingly -- getting involved with pyramid scheme after pyramid scheme. She had these great aspirations, but never wanted to put in the work to get them. She just happened into wanting to be a RAFian, thinking it would be easy, no-risk, no-effort work. (Naturally, she was quite mistaken.)

Olaf Jones was power-hungry and sycophantic, willing to align himself with whichever side seems like the winner. He wouldn't hesitate to switch sides if circumstances were such that the other side got a considerable upperhand. He had no concept of loyalty. The only reason he wanted to be a RAFian was because they were the "biggest guy on the playground" and their PR was still relatively good at this time, but he would have no qualms about selling them out to their enemies if the opportunity arose.

Tom Coyne was exceptionally greedy. He was always out to make a buck, or profit off of something. As such, when he was younger, he hatched a number of get-rich schemes that could have filled various seasons on a Nickelodeon sitcom. He never did anything that he didn't see anything in it for him, or a way he could turn a profit from it. That's the reason he wanted to be a RAFian, to find a way to profit from it.

Otis Carey was very "by-the-book". He had an exceedingly hard time deviating from a set and established procedure, even when the situation at hand demands it. He was a very rigid and rule-oriented person, with no room for flexibility and improvisation. He wanted to be a RAFian purely for the structure he believed them to have.

Dice Bennet was incurably cowardly. He looked out to save his own skin, no matter who he had to sacrifice to do so. The reason that he wanted to be a RAFian was so he could have the "biggest men on campus", so to speak, protect him, despite him being willing to sell them out at moment's notice to save his skin.

Barty Donaldson was completely bloodthirsty and prone to outbursts of violence. He was easily drawn to the most combative and aggressive ways to do things. He had a severe tendency to escalate conflict unnecessarily, treat anyone (allies and foes alike) in an exceedingly hostile manner, and laugh at the misfortune of others. He just wanted to be a RAFian to satiate his bloodlust.

Tiana DeMilo was incredibly vain and self-focused. She had high standards, and she was very entitled in both her behavior and mannerisms. She didn't take rejection well, usually twisting it around to show her in either a better light or making her look like the victim -- no matter the absolute ludicrousness of her assertions were. She wanted to be a RAFian simply because she thought she was owed a Mark.

Opal Plowman was an intimidating bully. She loved to get into positions where she could throw her weight around. She loved to belittle people who she thought below her, and she loved to stir up drama where ever she could. She planned to do this as a RAFian, and was excited at the prospect of using this status in this objectionable manner.

Frankie Rosenbaum was a quiet, subtle manipulator. He was a conman, through and through. He was a small-scale conman, though, at the moment. He wanted more higher-scale marks, so he wanted to be a RAFian to get access to such marks, or so he believed.

Filbert Adynata was a complete defeatist and obligate pessimist. He never looked on the bright side, and always saw the bad side of every good thing. He had led a fairly privileged life to this point, until he met with momentary snag after momentary snag. Instead of perservering and overcoming these obstacles, he just gave up. He always looked for the easiest ways out of things, and was unwilling to do things that challenged him in even the remotest ways. He clearly didn't know what being a RAFian was like, and nor knew what he was in for, trying to join.

Esplin sang his usual introductory song:

<Let's get down to business, to defeat the Banned.
Did they send me lurkers, when we asked for RAFians?
You're the saddest bunch I ever met.>

Esplin got into Opal's face, after she screwed up a training exercise. He made his threat clear through the song.

<But you can bet before we're through.
Missy, I'll make a RAFian out of you.>

Then Esplin turned to the next set of exercises as he sang:

<Tranquil as a forest, but on fire within.
Once you find your center, you are sure to win!>

Disappointed with the lack of any positive progression in the group, he sang:

<You're a spineless, pale, pathetic lot,
And you haven't got a clue.
Somehow, I'll make a RAFian out of you.>

"I'm never gonna catch my breath!" Tiana huffed.

"Say goodbye to those who knew me!" Dice whined.

"Boy, was I a fool in school for cutting gym!" Olaf complained.

"Esplin's got 'em scared to death," Cloak noticed, almost amused.

"Now I really wish that I knew how to swim!" Otis lamented.

Then Esplin continued the training song:

<You must be swift as the coursing river.
With all the force of a great typhoon.
With all the strength of a raging fire.
Mysterious as the dark side of the moon.
Time is racing toward us till the Banned arrive.
Heed my every order and you might survive!>

But, in the end, Esplin had enough of them all. He sang, as he dismissed the entire lot of them:

<You're unsuited for the rage of war
So, pack up, go home, you're through.
How could I make a RAFian out of you?>

The whole lot of them were dumped outside RAF's gate -- dismissed, rejected, and turned away.

SOURCE SONG: https://youtube.com/watch?v=TVcLIfSC4OE

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCCCXCIX (1,399): "Contemelia's Suggestion" -- A willing sacrifice is made.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN:
Blast You!

Cloak, deciding to get his mind off his mistake (and other shortcomings) decided to deal with a fiend running amok. It was in a combo of a condemned amusement park and disused movie studio. Cloak thought there were a lot of these sorts abandoned sites in this Realm. Was the economy bad or something? Or did some economic bubble burst that he didn't know about?

No matter. That wasn't any of his concern at the moment.

The main building structure was basically cavernous rooms and tight hallways. And the average-sized offices, which looked eeriely bare, but as if they were reluctant to remove any personal affects from these offices. Clear indication that the studio area went under, rather than abandoned and forgotten. Cloak couldn't tell if the very fetid air reeked of sadness or desperation. But everything had the natural deterioration of age on it.

But thing was that the fiend left a clear path of where it went. The footprints were fresh and the scent was fresh, as well. Cloak could easily track it, using all his feline abilities. He walked without a sound, listening and using his Earthsight. It wasn't long before he found where the fiend was -- and it was in an open-air area of the forgotten facility. One it appeared to have made open air itself. There was a blast and the fiend leaped into its nest.

The fiend was a slightly short, slender humanoid robot with white skin beneath orange and green armor. There was a green belt-like marking on its waist. The fiend also had a green hair-like structure consisting of six spikes that stuck out from the back of its head, giving it the appearance of a bomb explosion. In addition, this fiend had reddish brown knobs covering parts of its body armor. Two larger knobs are on its head and "attached" by a pseudo-metallic strip, which resemble headphones. The fiend wore a sinister smile, and had human-like eyes with light orange sclera and green irises. It was clearly volatile and short-tempered.

When it saw Cloak, it hopped around the room while slinging explosives everywhere in its attempt to destroy him. It alternated between lobbing several bombs in an arc while standing still and jumping high up to chuck bombs downward. Sometimes, it'd also jump around Cloak and hurl a bomb right at him. Occasionally, the fiend will use its power to spawn four floating bombs which gravitated towards Cloak, only to explode after a few seconds.

Cloak sent a stream of flame upwards, which then arced downward at a sharp forty-five degree angle. It hit the fiend, igniting whatever bomb it was holding, detonating it.

After a few times of this, the fiend began increasing the size of its bombs and giving them greater explosive force and payout, while its attack patterns become more erratic. And, yet, Cloak was unworried. Cloak was basically indulging with a feline habit of playing with their prey, without even realizing that he was.

He decided that there were enough games being played. And he finished the fiend with fire. He didn't want to go into detail about it. Then he left, as if this were the end of a Death Battle.

***

Demos called it a "burasutosapien". He claimed that he created it for entertainment purposes. GH was the first to call that screwed up.

***

Malice was stewing over her defeat, having this on in the background. She had lost her army, and nearly was captured. Fortunately, she managed to wiggle her way out of that situation, thanks to Sage's failure of a pupil's laughable idealistic nobility and misunderstanding of ethics. Granted, she had forgotten that she had even raised that army -- she was old, and that was her excuse.

She needed a new scheme, or her relevance would take an unnecessary hit.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCD (1,400): "Get Off My Back" -- The RAFians must deal with an Eight Legs.

New chapter.

BOOK CLXXXVI:
REMNANT A.E.
CHAPTER ONE:
The Wire Sponge

Sakki was dispatched to the weather control center -- where they were, evidentally, researching the weather -- but not just how to predict it, but how to control and harness it. Sakki thought that that was an awful lot like mad science. But their endeavors clearly came up fruitless and futile, as the facility had been abandoned for some time -- whether because they lost funding, or because the project had gone bust, or some combinstion of the two, Sakki didn't know. Her briefing skimped over that part.

But the real reason why Sakki took this mission, was because she discovered recently that she could form the sound produced from her sonics into some sort of sonic constructs. She had hoped that the fiend would help her hone this newfound application to her sonics. She wasn't exactly sure if she could do it again, though.

Finding the fiend wasn't particularly difficult either. She just had to make her way through this mouldering, dilapidated facility. There was bound to be tetanus on just about every surface. All the steel surfaces bore some degree of rust damage. Surely it would cost more to let things get in this condition rather than renovating this facility into something knew? Bah, no matter. That wasn't any of her concern right now, as she came to a rather square room with metallic vines on the ceiling, which the fiend lowered itself down out of.

The fiend was slightly taller than the average man, and had a red, cucumber-like torso with two inset, human-like eyes with brown sclera and gray irises. It had crimson spiral, vine-like upper arms, blue elbows and wrists, purple lower arms, and black human-like hands. It had a golden flower atop its head. It had white thighs, blue rings around its knees, purple lower legs and pod-like feet. Two scarlet wires extended from its upper back ending in blood red, five-point, leaf-shaped blade with the part connecting it to the wires being green, which were the parts the fiend held. It was the left one of these with which it lowered itself into the room.

The fiend would utilize these blade-tipped tendrils like a whip and grappling hook. One of its attacks was to latch its chain-like tendril on to the ceiling and spit vine growing seeds in sakki's general direction while gradually pulling itseld up. These vines could be destroyed by two normal sonic whistles.

It will also spin his tendril in front of it as a form of defense (which Sakki would soon discover that her sonic constructs penetrated easily) and throw it horizontally (if it caught a far wall, it will pull itself in that direction). When its took enough of a beating, it would become enraged and electrified, causing lightning bolts to fall at random in the room for a brief moment. It was also seemingly invulnerable in this state. Sakki knew to wait and bide her time.

She used her sonic constructs to pummel the fiend, getting more adept at using them with each successful strike. The fiend wasn't too long for this world, and the final blow sliced it in two. It was done -- and Sakki just left.

***

Demos called it "waiya hetimarl". He wouldn't elaborate further.

**

Malice was worrying as she seemed to be out of ideas.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDI (1,401): "A Yokai Grimoire" -- A powerful Grimoire is found by a foolish magician.

New chapter.

CHAPTER TWO:
A Baffling Exodus

Cloak had a sense of dread hovering over him for months. He couldn't tell anyone why, as he didn't know. The Truth Dreams were less helpful than usual. The words "Alahenena" and "Stinger" floated around as if a Digimon were Digivolving, against a black background. And an image . . .

It was a very aggressive looking thing. It had a small central fuselage with a pair of sharp fins on the back and another pair on the sides, and a pair of long arms coming up at an angle from the sides, then leveling off, and coming back down at a slight angle inward toward each other. For some reason, it reminded him of a Bug fighter, and he could not think as to why.

Then there was another image that a recent Truth Dream had shown to him. It was a massive structure of some kind, seemingly powered by a white dwarf star. But everything else about it was vague.

He knew it meant something, but he couldn't say what exactly. But "I had a bad dream" is hardly a reason to raise an alarm. Yet, his anxiety just would not abate. It wouldn't leave him alone, refusing to abate. He would later get verification of the validity of his anxiety. He didn't want to be right about this. He really didn't.

The validation came from what appeared to be a mass exodus from the planet from those with vehicles capable of space travel. Leaving humans (most, if not all, of which lacked vehicles that supported space travel -- and some human actually believed that space itself was a fictitious construct) on the planet. To which, the Knights were quick to try to take credit for this, claiming that their rhetoric was right and other such nonsense that intelligent people tend to ignore.

"Why are they leaving?" Parker asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Cloak said, disliking the sinking sensation he felt in his abdomen. "They're evacuating. Like rats from a sinking ship."

"But why?" Ash inquired.

Then something clicked. Cloak remembered an obscure species that he had forgotten. They were like Realm Walkers and Anodites, but Realm-bound. They were energy-based beings with some sort of corporeal tangibility. They were -- if Cloak's memory served -- bluish-black and existed in an insectoid caste system.

"The Drej," Cloak said. "We need to evacuate people, if they had set their sights on Earth."

"We can handle them," Dino said, bracingly.

"They are planet destroyers," Cloak said, very serious.

"But we have you, Cloak. Anything they can do --" Helen began, but Cloak knew where it was going.

"I'm still one person," Cloak said, cutting her off. "And I have my limits. It's one thing to keep the planet rotating, this . . . this would be much harder."

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDII (1,402): "Know-It-All" -- The Know-It-All Compulsion was cast.

New chapter.

CHAPTER THREE:
Entitled Evacuation

Cloak tried to organize an evacuation, not knowing how much time they would have until the Drej showed up. Cloak was panicking internally, as he did not know as much about the Drej as he would have liked. He didn't know their homeworld, or the specs of their spacecraft -- just that their technology was energy-based, just like the Drej themselves.

He had Broken cast an Undetectable Expansion Charm on the interior of Yarin's ship. But Broken said that that would not even be enough to evacuate the entire populace of upwards of six billion. They would not be able to save everyone, especially on such short notice. The charm could only expand the interior of his ship so much, especially with how tricky the charm is to begin with.

It wasn't lon before Yarin's ship was full up, and he had gone to the working class families first, believing that they had just as much right to be evacuated as anyone else. However, this sentiment was not true of everyone.

"I am sorry," Yarin said, holding out both his left hands, palm out placatingly, to stop a a formally-dressed man with close-clipped hair and a beard like Jafar, and a woman with bad makeup, hair so teased it looked as if she were trying to torture herself, a dress so saccharinely frilly it looked as if good taste itself had thrown up the dress, and an impatient, expectant demeanor. It was Brett S. Intitulare and Karen Privilegia. They were skeptics of this whole thing, until the first Drej ships came. Before then, they would write article after article smearing the RAFians for their "fearmongering" and, ironically, their "greed",when they were both part  the elite class who had advocated moving money from the working class into their own pockets. All the while, pretending that they were impartial, neutral, and objective while doing so. "We're full up."

"Surely," Karen said, with venomously honeyed tones. "you can make room for us?"

"Ma'am," Yarin said, trying to be polite, "I said that we're full."

"I don't believe you," she said, her sickly sweet smile vanishing from her face. "Let us onboard."

"Ma'am, we're full." Yarin said, firmly. He was annoyed because she was also shouting at him with her thoughts -- and her thoughts were full of some of the most unsavory and vulgar things imaginable.

"I don't believe you," she repeated, as if this emptied out Yarin's ship, "let us on. Now."

"Ma'am. Whether you believe me or not, the fact remains that we haven't any room for you or your companion." Yarin said, still trying to be polite.

"I don't believe you," Karen repeated once more, as Brett began to puffing up. "Let us board!"

"You heard her!" Brett roared, in a clear attempt to intimidate the Nyac. It didn't work. "Let us board!!"

"No." Yarin said, cooly. "As I've said before, there. Isn't. Room. Regardless of whether or not you believe me, we haven't room for any more passengers. That's not going to change."

"Then kick off one of those -- er, two of those peasants we saw boarding," he snarled. Yarin was again bombarded with the angry, hostile thoughts of the two. This was really starting to annoy Yarin, and he didn't have time for this entitlement.

"No." Yarin said, his tone cold and icy.

"Do you have any idea who we are? We could break you!" Karen screeched like a temperamental child.

Yarin narrowed all six of his eyes, and folded both sets of arms, as he spoke, "Yes, I know who you are."

All semblance of politeness was gone now, and the sky seemed to crackle with electricity, in convenient timing. Yarin was just about done with these two, and he was about to lay down the smackdown.

"I know that you were in denial about this incoming threat, and would gaslight whoever was foolish enough to pay you heed," Yarin began, and he didn't care if he sounded testy. "That is, until it became obvious to everyone that you two were both full of it. And now . . . now, when it comes to saving your lives, you're demanding that I kick two individuals off my ship -- two individuals who took the rightful steps to prepare -- to make room for two self-entitled, disingenuous individuals who think that they can just come here and bully me into compliance. That's not going to work. and you know it."

"Let us board!!!" both screamed.

"No." Yarin said, turning his back to them, boarding his ship. "Perhaps, if you survive, you will learn this lesson. But, given your record, I don't think that's likely. Anyway, we're done here."

And, with that, Yarin closed off and sealed his ship. Then he took off with his human cargo. He never had illusions about being able to save every human, and none of the elitist "upper crust" had been in that refugee cargo. Why? They were incredibly comfortable, and didn't want to leave if that didn't carry over (and it didn't, and wouldn't). They chose to ignore it, until they couldn't ignore it any longer. Only then it was far too late.

Even despite Cloak's efforts to stop the Drej mothership from destroying the planet.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDIII (1,403): "Crossing Inbetween the Green" -- The Compulsion to Ignore Road Safety is cast.

New chapter.

CHAPTER FOUR:
Clash of Wills

Cloak stood in the middle of the forum, eyes closed, breathing slow. He was waiting. He was waiting for . . . something. He didn't know what precisely, but he aligned himself against the direction the planet was rotating. He was waiting for the time to come, hoping Yarin could get as many people off-planet as he could. He knew that Yarin couldn't rescue everyone.

Not that everyone wanted to be saved. There were those that the elite gaslit to believing the Drej were a hoax, and couldn't be swayed from that. Others were convinced that it was a RAFian conspiracy to take their land, or something of that nature. Then there were those that just ignored the dangers, willingly and willfully. Then there were those miserable, dimwitted fools who thought space didn't even exist*. Those people were pretty much a lost cause at this point -- and you can't save people who don't want to be saved.

And there Cloak continued to wait. His anxiety was biting at him like a rabid chihuahua, and it irritated him. He was no stranger to waiting, and he could be patient, but, in this instance and in this circumstance, he was rather impatient.

He sensed it immediately when it happened. He could see it in his mind's eye. The Drej ship zooming up to the North Pole. Then firing their laser down upon it. But the laser wasn't designed to destroy Earth via pure brute power. It was like that rotational energy harnessing machine the ailurosapiens had . . . only they had no intention on harnessing anything.

Cloak felt the planetary rotation speed up ever so slightly. He opened his eyes and went into his Apex Tier immediately. He pushed back. It was easy at first, but it got harder when he had to take into account that he didn't want to slow the Earth's rotation too much. As with all things, there was a delicate balance that needed to maintained in order for life to function. Cloak understood this, and it made his task all the more difficult. As this wouldn't be about brute strength and raw power but precision and endurance.

At first, it was easy. Like trying to impede the path of a petulant toddler. But it didn't stay that way. It soon graduated into trying to stop an obstinate young brat from going somewhere, then an even more stubborn teenager. Then it further graduated into being like trying to push back a fit, strong adult. Doable, but requiring effort to accomplish. But, in addition to this, making sure the planetary rotation was stable, and that was a difficult task in and of itself.

Soon, the force was like a jalopy chugging forward. Then it was like a regular car. Then it quickly ramped up to being like stopping a friggin' bullet train. Yet, he still did his best to negate this effect on the planet. He lost track of time -- it had been hours, and he had to focus. Maybe the Drej would give up and go away.

No. No, that would be a foolish hope. They clearly saw the planet as a threat. a significant threat. And what do to percieved significant threats, militarily? There was no way they would give up, and their mothership wouldn't tire. Cloak, after many hours, would. He was not immune from exhaustion. Very few beings are immune to exhaustion, no matter how powerful they are.

"Parker," Cloak said, when the strain was finally getting to him, "Parker . . ."

"Yes, Cloak?"

"Activate Code Elysium," Cloak said. He was just at his limit of resisting this rotation-increasing beam. He was in Apex Tier, and he was at this for hours. Days? He didn't know.

Only when Parker affirmed that Code Elysium was activated, did Cloak permit himself to stop and collapse in exhaustion.


* Apparently, there are people who don't believe in the existence of space. Smh.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDIV (1,404): "Nike, Part Deux" -- Competition Compulsion is cast.

New chapter.

CHAPTER FIVE:
Are You Kidding Me?

"It's time for a --"

"No." Cloak said, leaping over a window which was clearly intended to keep him separate from his gladiatorial battle to death -- that he had no say in, whatsoever. Cloak knew that it was due to the fourth wall awareness that Realm Walker have (just never often addressed, as he considered things beyond the fourth wall boring and unworthy to note), and he knew that there were other people and figures that did not have this awareness he did (and he knew of two who did, one who was too optimistic to see anything bad about what they're doing and another who just didn't care).

"Wait, what?" said the fat guy with the shotgun leg.

"How -- ?" said the guy with white hair, glasses, and a robotic left arm.

 "I said, no," Cloak said, firmly. "I'm not indulging either one of you in this battle."

"That's not how this --" the cybernetic arm guy said.

"I don't really care how you think that this is supposed to work," Cloak said. " I really don't."

"It's not really hurting anyone," said the hick with the beer gut. "They --"

"Not hurting anyone? You call this show --" Cloak said, before ending it with a sharp, frustrated sigh. "Why would expect anything less from people who think a hard light construct from an Oan ring is sufficient to stop an attack from a decisive Celestialsapien?"

The two tried to defend their position, but it just came across as babbling to Cloak, and he really had enough of these two. Them and their entire "research" team. He just Walked away in disgust, destroying the machine they used to pull people and figures from realities in the process. Yes, it was a petty thing for him to do, but he didn't care. He really didn't, and he was glad to wash his hands of them.

But, of course, none of this was real. It was just a dream as Cloak had had collapsed in exhaustion after Code Elysium was fully activated and in place. He had been sleeping ever since.

***

Earth was destroyed, and that happened fifteen years ago. And Cloak was asleep this entire time -- but it was just a year and a half to him, considering the significant differences in a Nexusian year and an Earth year. But still, this was a long time to be in a comatose, near-vegetative state.

The RAFians did what they could do to make him comfortable as they went about the day-to-day minutia of keeping up Code Avalon, making sure there was enough food to go around to the RAFians and the people Yarin managed to save -- it wasn't everyone, and, yes, there were those that died on the planet. But RAFian resources had their limits -- and some of the humans on-planet were grossly naive in believing space to be nonexistent, believing the Drej threat to be nonexistent, didn't want to disrupt their lives in any way, or just had a death wish. these were e ones that they could not save, even if they had more time and space available on Yarin's ship.

Code Elysium wasn't able to save the nearby city, either. But it wasn't designed too -- the paperwork had stalled in city hall for the "more pressing" issue of saving a statue meant to intimidate racial minorities from protesters. And, to be fair, most of these politicians dismissed the Drej threat as a hoax from a foreign, but Terran, nation. Merely talking to these people proved to be a frustrating task, and the RAFians' collective hands were tied by this red tape. And it came around to bite them when the world was destroyed, when they could have possibly been saved. But that was then.

Now the humans in the forum were the ones that had to wear disguises if they went outside -- as the Drej were evidently not satisfied with just destroying Earth. They wanted human beings to be completely wiped out. They weren't sure why they were seen as such a threat, especially as just a harmless fragment of a planetary crust only fit for a modest population. It was like a combination of the titular dome of an Andalite Dome ship and a ship from a Triceraton fleet. It had no engines, it was towed along by Estelore. It had essentially became her sole satellite, and she allowed it. She wished it didn't need to come to this, but she provided them with sunlight and warmth, as the star Sol had done once.

All seemed well. For the moment.

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDV (1,405): "How Rude!" -- The Rudeness Compulsion is cast.

New chapter.

CHAPTER SIX:
Deepest Desire and Human Extinction

In the star-lit sky, Cloak was flying upon an energy disc with a female Realm Walker on a violet and indigo energy disc. Her form was obscured, but Cloak knew she was the most beautiful thing he had ever laid his eyes on. He sought to impress her, and so he sang, as he notice her sparkling eyes.

"I can show you the Realm.
Shining, shimmering splendid!
Tell me, my princess, now when did
You last let your heart decide?
I can open your eyes.
Take you wonder by wonder,
Over sideways and under,
On a energy disc ride.
A whole new Realm!
A new fantastic point of view.
No one to tell us no,
Or where to go,
Or say we're only dreaming."

She sang with full voice and passion:

"A whole new Realm!
A dazzling place I never knew.
But when I'm way up here,
It's crystal clear
That now I'm in a whole new Realm with you."

Cloak put in:

"Now I'm in a whole new Realm with you!"

His lady friend continued:

"Unbelievable sights.
Indescribable feeling!
Soaring, tumbling, freewheeling
Through an endless diamond sky!
A whole new Realm!"

Cloak removed her hands from her eyes gently, as he sang:

"Don't you dare close your eyes!"

She added:

"A hundred thousand things to see!"

Cloak advised:

"Hold your breath, it gets better."

She exclaimed:

"I'm like a shooting star!
I've come so far!
I can't go back to where I used to be!"

"A whole new Realm!"

"Every turn a surprise."

"With new horizons to pursue."

"Every moment, red-letter!"

Then they sang together:

"I'll chase them anywhere!
There's time to spare!
Let me share this whole new Realm with you.
A whole new Realm.
That's where we'll be.
A thrilling chase.
A wondrous place.
For you and me. . . ."

They communed with each other in the traditional Realm Walker way, which humans would have probably found cold and detached. Realm Walkers tended not to be a touchy-feely species, in that physical contact wasn't made as frequently as it was in matter-based species.

But, again, none of this was real. He was still in his fifteen-year(Dweller years) coma. And he was only semi-aware of it at this point.

***

Humans were seen as either delicacies or just otherwise ridiculed by other species. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it) none of the Knights survived Earth's destruction.

Humans were forced to disguise themselves or risk being eaten or ridiculed. Survival often trumped pride, so the refugees always complied with this. This happened so much so over the years, that most species seemed to believe that humans had gone extinct. Not many species did -- some, like the Yeerks and Chapeausapiens, seemed to care, usually for their own selfish reasons. Some Galvans actually blamed themselves for Earth's destruction, many feeling as if they did not help them enough, despite the rampant xenophobia demonstrated in a few of the humans. Cerebrocrustaceans were quick to claim that they could have saved the planet, and they -- what it amounts to -- didn't want to help nor hurt the human beings. Transylians, like all species from the Anur system, saw all humans as hideous and monstrous-looking -- but the majority of them would agree that they didn't deserve this. And Galvans, Cerebrocrustaceans, and Transylians were pretty much the most intelligent species known.

The truth of RAF was a closely guarded secret. All the human RAFians were given ID masks which projected the images of different species over them. Even some non-human RAFians, who happened to look like a human, like Aquilai and Aila, opted for an ID mask -- citing that they didn't believe the Drej would split hairs on this issue.

No one, however, knew or understood why the Drej saw humans as a threat. No one knew why they believed that humans had to be exterminated, wiped from existance. But the fact was that they did. And this is what the human RAFians had to do to survive.


SOURCE SONG: https://youtube.com/watch?v=hZ1Rb9hC4JY

[Cloak]

All titles subject to change.

Book MCDV (1,405): "Hide Away" -- The Agoraphobia Compulsion is cast.

New chapter.

CHAPTER SEVEN:
Mr. Cloaky and Tau 15

The semi-lucid dream turned towards the RAFians parading a thoroughly-embarrassed Cloak toward one of the higher-end areas of the Nexus. Or at least what appeared to be the Nexus. They sang.

"Make way for Mr. Cloaky!
Say hey! It's Mr. Cloaky!"

Then what appeared to be a fusion between GH and the Celestialsapien known as Anomaly appeared, flamboyantly singing:

"Hey! Clear the way in the old bazaar!
Hey you! Let us through!
It's a bright new star!
Oh, come on!
Be the first on your block to meet his eye!
Make way! Here he comes!
Ring bells! Bang the drums!
Are you gonna love this guy!"

It was the grand reveal of Cloaky, who looked rather uncomfortable at all the attention. He never did like being in the spotlight in this way. The GH/Anomaly fusion sang:

"Mr. Cloaky! Fabulous he!
Mr. Cloaky abroad!
Genuflect, show some respect!
Down on one knee!
Now, try your best to stay calm.
Brush up your Friday salaam.
The come and meet his spectacular menagerie!
Mr. Cloaky! Mighty is he!
Cloaky abroad!
Strong as ten regular men, definitely!
He faced the galloping hordes!
A hundred bad guys with swords!
Who sent those goons to their lords?
Why, Mr. Cloaky!
He's got seventy-five golden 'mons.
Purple Pokemon,
He's got fifty-three!
When it comes to exotic-type Pokemon.
Has he got a zoo?
I'm telling you, it's a world-class menagerie!
Mr. Cloaky! Handsome is he, Cloaky abroad!"

Then the ensemble of RAFians sang, sans the GH Anomaly:

"He's got ninety-five white shiny Pokemon.
And to view them he charges no fee!
We're just lousy with loyalty to Cloaky! Mr. Cloaky!"

Then the GH Anomaly sang with the ensemble:

"Mr. Cloaky!
Amorous he! Cloaky abroad!"

The the GH Anomaly sang solo:

"Heard your maiden was a sight lovely to see,
And that, good people, is why he got dolled up and dropped by."

Then the RAFian ensemble took over the singing:

"With sixty shinies, shinies galore,
With his shinies and more shinies,
A brass band and more!
His Pokemon that warble on key!
Make way for Mr. Cloaky!"

And it was at this point that Cloak had gained enough lucidity to know that he was dreaming. He remembered why he had been slumbering for so long, and wasn't surprised that it took so much out of him.

***

The remnant of humanity that the forum had become had managed to exist as a self-sustaining ecosystem for these fifteen years. They had enough food to survive -- but all plant-based food material. There wasn't the kind of space that having livestock would demand. But there was no denying that just eating pretty much an obligate vegetarian diet just wasn't suitable to some of the dwellers of this planet shard orbiting around a sentient star.

Estelore bore this responsibility with the grace and poise that one would expect from such a being. But she would be lying if she said that she didn't miss the exploration of the vast universe. But she bore this responsibility, and, heaven help her, she was not going to fail that responsibility.

But, as such, they would send small teams out at resupply relays and stations. Any humans on such missions were required to wear a disguise, making them not appear human in any real discernable manner. This is what they did when they cam to Tau 15, which was, principally a salvage yard and a scrap yard. The RAFians quickly organized a bartering team to see what the locals had. They could only afford to send two RAFians in, as Tau 15 itself was a small place and sending in a bartering team any larger might have arisen unwanted attention, especially because the Drej were still out there and their heavy hitters were incapacitated in some way.

It was just supposed to be a simple stop.


SOURCE SONG: https://youtube.com/watch?v=aEryAoLfnAA