The Gauntlet has been thrown!
alarin612 asked when we'd see more stories from me here. Well, the short answer is: most of my stories are going in to the podcast. The long answer is: I accept your challenge, sir!
Starting today and continuing for at least a week, I'll post a new, never before seen (or probably imagined in my head) vignette/scene/flash fiction each day, set somewhere in the worlds of Alternia.
Today's is the story that came out when I meant to write more for Optinomicon a few weeks ago. It's in the format of a teleplay or something, but most of it is narration from one character anyway.
Alone Doubles
CHILDREN clamoring for a story
Please!
Tell the one about how Novaman destroyed the scout ship!
We heard that one last week, and it wasn't just Novaman...
Yeah, Jhad and Tempo were there too.
Oooh! Tell the Tyrathi Invasion!
No! We heard that last night.
STORYTELLER
Okay kids, settle down (the din of the children fades) You want a story from the World of Heroes, do you?
CHILD
But not one we've heard before!
STORYTELLER
(ponderously) But not one you've heard before, yes.
(normal) That's a tall order to fill. Let me see... Have I told you about how Sundog lost his wife?
CHILDREN groan
CHILD
Only about a hundred times...
STORYTELLER chuckles
Alright then. How about Cathy Travis and the Jabberwock
CHILD
You made that up!
STORYTELLER laughing again
No so. But I think I'll save that for another time. No, tonight you'll hear how Ten Kelvin and Bearman managed to subdue the Manic Multiplier in a story called Alone Doubles. You kids know about Ten Kelvin and Bearman, don't you?
CHILDREN mutter in mild confusion, some positive answers, some negative, none very vocal.
STORYTELLER
Alright, a quick over view then. Ten Kelvin is a young boy, still in Highschool. He possesses a brilliant mind and clever imagination. His grandfather left him a suit of armor that's able to keep him warm in the coldest temperatures, with boots that allow him to leap great distances. Kelvin himself has invented a pair of gauntlets that let him spray forth waves of ice at his enemies, or chill the air around him to terribly low temperatures.
Bearman is possessed of incredible strength, endurance and resilience. He may not be fast, but he hits hard and can take it as good as he can dish it out. When Ten Kelvin had to stop him, it took all of his cleverness and a couple of well placed police cars, but that's a story for another time. Bearman usually lets Ten Kelvin take charge when they're together.
Now, this happened several years before any of you were born. Back when I was a wee lad. Ten Kelvin and Bearman were in the Bearcave, their hide out somewhere in the hills outside of Los Alamos, New Mexico. Bearm--
CHILDREN (all at once)
Where's New Mexico?
What were they doing there?
Why is it called the Bearcave is Ten Kelvin is in charge?
STORYTELLER
It's called the Bearcave because it was Bearman's hideout first. They were practicing crime fighting moves, keeping in peak physical condition while waiting for the city to need them. And New Mexico is South of here, and a little East in what's now called The Unbroken Lands. May I go on now? (sounds of assent) Thank you. Now, as I was saying, Bearman heard the sound first, and got to the console before Ten Kelvin. Someone was calling them on the emergency line. Police Chief Rex Summers needed their help immediately. The bank had been robbed, a purse was stolen from an old woman on Main street, and a bomb was planted at the stadium! Ordinarily, the police could have handled these on their own, even though they all happened at the same time, but clues left at each crime pointed to them all being done by the same man.
CHILD
That's impossible! One man can't be in three places at one time.
STORYTELLER
That's exactly what Bearman said to Chief Summers. The Chief said he couldn't explain it, but they need the duo's help to track down the perpetrator and, more importantly, stop the bomb.
Ten Kelvin and Bearman sped off and were at the stadium in no time. The inspectors at the stadium led them to the bomb. The bomb squad had the area sealed off and were trying to disarm it. “Come on, Beary,” Ten Kelvin said and the two ran to the bomb. Ten Kelvin spoke as he examined it. “We don't have much time,” he whispered to Bearman be for shouting to the Chief to get everyone out of the area. He didn't take his eyes off the count down timer as it slowly ticked down, but he could hear that no one was moving, so he shouted “NOW!” and everyone rushed like mad to get away from the bomb, trusting that the heroes knew what they were doing.
Before they made it even ten paces, the stadium was rocked by an explosion as the bomb went off. “Ten Kelvin!” the chief shouted, turning to look into the cloud of smoke that wasn't there a moment ago. “We have to help them!” Several offices held the chief immobile as he tried to rush back to help the exploded heroes. “We can't, Cheif” they said. “We can't see or breathe in there. Let the fire fighters go get them.” Before the chief could say anything, a wave of cold air swept past them. All around, everyone could see air moving along the ground away from the explosion. The smoke and dust in the air made it abundantly clear air was being drawn toward where the bomb had been. As it moved, the air cleared, slowly but surely, until the Chief shouted again. “There they are!” Everyone squinted and could make out two figures standing where they shouldn't have been. They strode forward, toward the Chief, apparently unharmed. “Ten Kelvin! Bearman! It's amazing. I thought you were a goners for sure.”
“We very nearly were, Chief. But a little quick thinking and some help from Granddad saw us through to safety.” Bearman chimed in, rubbing his chest. “Speak for yourself, little buddy. Explosions hurt...” When the Chief looked closer, he could see scorch marks on Bearman's chest, where the fabric of his costume had been destroyed. He didn't appear to be bleeding though. “Oh quit crying. It would have been a lot worse without the ice. Do we know who did this chief?”
“Not yet, no.” The chief answered sadly.
“Then how do you know it was the same person that robbed the bank” Ten Kelvin asked.
Bearman added, “And stole the woman's purse.”
The Chief answered by tell them that at all three crime scenes, identical fingerprints were left. Witnesses all say the crimes happened at 3:10 PM, and video surveillance at the bank and the stadium confirm it. The videos also showed the same man, and the old woman recognized him from the tapes too.
When the Chief showed the pictures of the guy to Bearman and Ten Kelvin, Bearman said he recognized the guy as one of the technicians that worked at Globex named Stan Norec.
There was just one problem with ol Stan being the guy that did it. Stan had an accident at work a few days before the crimes, and when the Chief, Bearman and Ten Kelvin went to talk with him, he was laying in bed with two broken arms and a broken leg. Hardly the sort of person that could have robbed a bank, stolen an old woman's purse, and planted a bomb.
Once they were outside Stan's apartment, Ten Kelvin told the chief something very important. He noticed the thermostat was set to a moderate 70 degrees, the same as the hallways between apartments, but the temperature inside the apartment was around 75 degrees! Much warmer than it should have been. The chief said Norec's air conditioner was probably just broken, but Ten Kelvin didn't think so. Ten Kelvin gave a quick nod to Bearman and everyone went home for the day.
Back at the Bearcave, Bearman asks Ten Kelvin what the deal with the temperature was. Ten Kelvin laughed and said he had nearly forgotten about that, but it seemed as warm in there as if there had been four people in the room before the Chief and the heroes came in. Bearman echoed his words for a moment, the great wheels of his mind slowly turning. A grin spread across his face as he realized what Ten Kelvin was saying. Stan Norec was two sets of twins!
Ten Kelvin laughed and turned to his computer. He pointed at the screen and told Bearman that he was close. It turns out Stan was working in the cloning department at Globex. And he wasn't twins, but full grown clones. With Stan's injuries giving him a solid alibi, they knew now would be the perfect time for their mysterious crimes. Without another word, the heroes jumped back in the Bearmobile and sped off, back to Stan Noric's apartment.
They knocked but there was no answer, so Bearman kicked the door in and Ten Kelvin leveled his ice beam into the room, but there was no one there. They quickly searched and found the rest of the apartment as deserted and the living room, but there were plans on the kitchen table for another bank heist!
Quick like lightning, the heroes dashed off to the bank. This time Ten Kelvin chose to use his ice skates and jumping boots, knowing it would give him a more direct route over the city's roof tops than Bearman could take in the car. Ten Kelvin got to the bank first, and saw Stan Noric, all four of him, already inside. Ten Kelvin decided to go in now, knowing Bearman would be there soon.
He shouted to the clones, telling them to give it up. He had the plan all figured out, and their jail time would be less if the gave up now and came along quietly. The clones were having none of that, and before the hero could react, each of them split in two. Now Ten Kelvin was alone against 8 Stan Norics! As the clones ran at him, Ten Kelvin knelt down and shouted.
CHILD (in awed wonderment)
Was he calling the name of the ice?
STORYTELLER
(soft laugh) Something like that. Ice spread out along the floor all around where Ten Kelvin stood. Before the clones got close than five steps, most of them fell and slid past the hero. And right in to Bearman, who was waiting at the door with a net. They were too feisty for the net, so Bearman took to hitting them on the back of the head with his massive hand, knocking them out as Ten Kelvin jumped and ducked, letting the clones slide past him.
No matter how many were knocked out, it seemed there were always more coming. After ten minutes, Ten Kelvin got bored and started freezing the clones where they stood, looking for the one with the broken leg, the original Stan Noric.
He found him in the vault, counting stacks of bills into a bag. Ten Kelvin called the ice again and Stan stopped counting, frozen in place.
And that's the story of how Ten Kelvin and Bearman defeated The Manic Multiplier.
CHILDREN (cheering)
MALE CHILD
But ... where did they put them? If there were so many multiples, where did they put them all?
STORYTELLER
You have a good ear for detail, son. By the end of that fight, there were dozens of Stans. More than the jail could comfortably hold. Fortunately, there was a side effect of Stan's bizarre power. His clones only had a limited life span. While the city was still trying to decide what to do with them all, they kept them in a small apartment complex, with guards posted all over the place. After a couple of days, everything was quiet in the apartments. Only three clones were left, the rest had vanished in to thin air, so they were moved to a normal jail. When a guard was taking them to the cafeteria for dinner one night, all three vanished at once, with a dozen people watching. That left only the original Stan, locked in his cell. And that is how the story ends.
CHILDREN (cheering, clamoring for more)
Tune in tomorrow for: Hammer And Axe!
Starting today and continuing for at least a week, I'll post a new, never before seen (or probably imagined in my head) vignette/scene/flash fiction each day, set somewhere in the worlds of Alternia.
Today's is the story that came out when I meant to write more for Optinomicon a few weeks ago. It's in the format of a teleplay or something, but most of it is narration from one character anyway.
Alone Doubles
CHILDREN clamoring for a story
Please!
Tell the one about how Novaman destroyed the scout ship!
We heard that one last week, and it wasn't just Novaman...
Yeah, Jhad and Tempo were there too.
Oooh! Tell the Tyrathi Invasion!
No! We heard that last night.
STORYTELLER
Okay kids, settle down (the din of the children fades) You want a story from the World of Heroes, do you?
CHILD
But not one we've heard before!
STORYTELLER
(ponderously) But not one you've heard before, yes.
(normal) That's a tall order to fill. Let me see... Have I told you about how Sundog lost his wife?
CHILDREN groan
CHILD
Only about a hundred times...
STORYTELLER chuckles
Alright then. How about Cathy Travis and the Jabberwock
CHILD
You made that up!
STORYTELLER laughing again
No so. But I think I'll save that for another time. No, tonight you'll hear how Ten Kelvin and Bearman managed to subdue the Manic Multiplier in a story called Alone Doubles. You kids know about Ten Kelvin and Bearman, don't you?
CHILDREN mutter in mild confusion, some positive answers, some negative, none very vocal.
STORYTELLER
Alright, a quick over view then. Ten Kelvin is a young boy, still in Highschool. He possesses a brilliant mind and clever imagination. His grandfather left him a suit of armor that's able to keep him warm in the coldest temperatures, with boots that allow him to leap great distances. Kelvin himself has invented a pair of gauntlets that let him spray forth waves of ice at his enemies, or chill the air around him to terribly low temperatures.
Bearman is possessed of incredible strength, endurance and resilience. He may not be fast, but he hits hard and can take it as good as he can dish it out. When Ten Kelvin had to stop him, it took all of his cleverness and a couple of well placed police cars, but that's a story for another time. Bearman usually lets Ten Kelvin take charge when they're together.
Now, this happened several years before any of you were born. Back when I was a wee lad. Ten Kelvin and Bearman were in the Bearcave, their hide out somewhere in the hills outside of Los Alamos, New Mexico. Bearm--
CHILDREN (all at once)
Where's New Mexico?
What were they doing there?
Why is it called the Bearcave is Ten Kelvin is in charge?
STORYTELLER
It's called the Bearcave because it was Bearman's hideout first. They were practicing crime fighting moves, keeping in peak physical condition while waiting for the city to need them. And New Mexico is South of here, and a little East in what's now called The Unbroken Lands. May I go on now? (sounds of assent) Thank you. Now, as I was saying, Bearman heard the sound first, and got to the console before Ten Kelvin. Someone was calling them on the emergency line. Police Chief Rex Summers needed their help immediately. The bank had been robbed, a purse was stolen from an old woman on Main street, and a bomb was planted at the stadium! Ordinarily, the police could have handled these on their own, even though they all happened at the same time, but clues left at each crime pointed to them all being done by the same man.
CHILD
That's impossible! One man can't be in three places at one time.
STORYTELLER
That's exactly what Bearman said to Chief Summers. The Chief said he couldn't explain it, but they need the duo's help to track down the perpetrator and, more importantly, stop the bomb.
Ten Kelvin and Bearman sped off and were at the stadium in no time. The inspectors at the stadium led them to the bomb. The bomb squad had the area sealed off and were trying to disarm it. “Come on, Beary,” Ten Kelvin said and the two ran to the bomb. Ten Kelvin spoke as he examined it. “We don't have much time,” he whispered to Bearman be for shouting to the Chief to get everyone out of the area. He didn't take his eyes off the count down timer as it slowly ticked down, but he could hear that no one was moving, so he shouted “NOW!” and everyone rushed like mad to get away from the bomb, trusting that the heroes knew what they were doing.
Before they made it even ten paces, the stadium was rocked by an explosion as the bomb went off. “Ten Kelvin!” the chief shouted, turning to look into the cloud of smoke that wasn't there a moment ago. “We have to help them!” Several offices held the chief immobile as he tried to rush back to help the exploded heroes. “We can't, Cheif” they said. “We can't see or breathe in there. Let the fire fighters go get them.” Before the chief could say anything, a wave of cold air swept past them. All around, everyone could see air moving along the ground away from the explosion. The smoke and dust in the air made it abundantly clear air was being drawn toward where the bomb had been. As it moved, the air cleared, slowly but surely, until the Chief shouted again. “There they are!” Everyone squinted and could make out two figures standing where they shouldn't have been. They strode forward, toward the Chief, apparently unharmed. “Ten Kelvin! Bearman! It's amazing. I thought you were a goners for sure.”
“We very nearly were, Chief. But a little quick thinking and some help from Granddad saw us through to safety.” Bearman chimed in, rubbing his chest. “Speak for yourself, little buddy. Explosions hurt...” When the Chief looked closer, he could see scorch marks on Bearman's chest, where the fabric of his costume had been destroyed. He didn't appear to be bleeding though. “Oh quit crying. It would have been a lot worse without the ice. Do we know who did this chief?”
“Not yet, no.” The chief answered sadly.
“Then how do you know it was the same person that robbed the bank” Ten Kelvin asked.
Bearman added, “And stole the woman's purse.”
The Chief answered by tell them that at all three crime scenes, identical fingerprints were left. Witnesses all say the crimes happened at 3:10 PM, and video surveillance at the bank and the stadium confirm it. The videos also showed the same man, and the old woman recognized him from the tapes too.
When the Chief showed the pictures of the guy to Bearman and Ten Kelvin, Bearman said he recognized the guy as one of the technicians that worked at Globex named Stan Norec.
There was just one problem with ol Stan being the guy that did it. Stan had an accident at work a few days before the crimes, and when the Chief, Bearman and Ten Kelvin went to talk with him, he was laying in bed with two broken arms and a broken leg. Hardly the sort of person that could have robbed a bank, stolen an old woman's purse, and planted a bomb.
Once they were outside Stan's apartment, Ten Kelvin told the chief something very important. He noticed the thermostat was set to a moderate 70 degrees, the same as the hallways between apartments, but the temperature inside the apartment was around 75 degrees! Much warmer than it should have been. The chief said Norec's air conditioner was probably just broken, but Ten Kelvin didn't think so. Ten Kelvin gave a quick nod to Bearman and everyone went home for the day.
Back at the Bearcave, Bearman asks Ten Kelvin what the deal with the temperature was. Ten Kelvin laughed and said he had nearly forgotten about that, but it seemed as warm in there as if there had been four people in the room before the Chief and the heroes came in. Bearman echoed his words for a moment, the great wheels of his mind slowly turning. A grin spread across his face as he realized what Ten Kelvin was saying. Stan Norec was two sets of twins!
Ten Kelvin laughed and turned to his computer. He pointed at the screen and told Bearman that he was close. It turns out Stan was working in the cloning department at Globex. And he wasn't twins, but full grown clones. With Stan's injuries giving him a solid alibi, they knew now would be the perfect time for their mysterious crimes. Without another word, the heroes jumped back in the Bearmobile and sped off, back to Stan Noric's apartment.
They knocked but there was no answer, so Bearman kicked the door in and Ten Kelvin leveled his ice beam into the room, but there was no one there. They quickly searched and found the rest of the apartment as deserted and the living room, but there were plans on the kitchen table for another bank heist!
Quick like lightning, the heroes dashed off to the bank. This time Ten Kelvin chose to use his ice skates and jumping boots, knowing it would give him a more direct route over the city's roof tops than Bearman could take in the car. Ten Kelvin got to the bank first, and saw Stan Noric, all four of him, already inside. Ten Kelvin decided to go in now, knowing Bearman would be there soon.
He shouted to the clones, telling them to give it up. He had the plan all figured out, and their jail time would be less if the gave up now and came along quietly. The clones were having none of that, and before the hero could react, each of them split in two. Now Ten Kelvin was alone against 8 Stan Norics! As the clones ran at him, Ten Kelvin knelt down and shouted.
CHILD (in awed wonderment)
Was he calling the name of the ice?
STORYTELLER
(soft laugh) Something like that. Ice spread out along the floor all around where Ten Kelvin stood. Before the clones got close than five steps, most of them fell and slid past the hero. And right in to Bearman, who was waiting at the door with a net. They were too feisty for the net, so Bearman took to hitting them on the back of the head with his massive hand, knocking them out as Ten Kelvin jumped and ducked, letting the clones slide past him.
No matter how many were knocked out, it seemed there were always more coming. After ten minutes, Ten Kelvin got bored and started freezing the clones where they stood, looking for the one with the broken leg, the original Stan Noric.
He found him in the vault, counting stacks of bills into a bag. Ten Kelvin called the ice again and Stan stopped counting, frozen in place.
And that's the story of how Ten Kelvin and Bearman defeated The Manic Multiplier.
CHILDREN (cheering)
MALE CHILD
But ... where did they put them? If there were so many multiples, where did they put them all?
STORYTELLER
You have a good ear for detail, son. By the end of that fight, there were dozens of Stans. More than the jail could comfortably hold. Fortunately, there was a side effect of Stan's bizarre power. His clones only had a limited life span. While the city was still trying to decide what to do with them all, they kept them in a small apartment complex, with guards posted all over the place. After a couple of days, everything was quiet in the apartments. Only three clones were left, the rest had vanished in to thin air, so they were moved to a normal jail. When a guard was taking them to the cafeteria for dinner one night, all three vanished at once, with a dozen people watching. That left only the original Stan, locked in his cell. And that is how the story ends.
CHILDREN (cheering, clamoring for more)
Tune in tomorrow for: Hammer And Axe!