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Narrator: You unlock this door with the key of imagination.
Bug 1: Hey, where's the key?
Bug 2: I dunno.
Bug 1: Don't you have it?
Bug 2: I though you had it.
Bug 1: *facepalm* It's back in my chamber, sitting on the toadstool nightstand. I'll be right back.
Narrator waits, sighs. o.o
Bug 1 returns.
Narrator: Are we ready now?
Bug 1: Ready!
bug 2: Me too!
Narrator: Fine, lets continue.
Beyond it is another dimension. A dimension of sound. *squeak!* Ow!
A dimension of sight.
Bug 2 interrupst. "Uh, we only use text here."
Narrator: "Details, details." Contunues: A dimension of mind. (Or loss of one if you're a crazy blue 'hopper')
Narrator deadpans, then resumes.
You're moving into a land of both style and substance of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into the Twilight Zone. A Bug's Muck style.
Both bugs call out in monitone: "Yay."
Narrator: I need to find new work. o.o
Puppets Revenge
It was an unusually quiet night on the muck, when I decided to get some work done on the WR room, and maybe it was just as well. Quite a bit of thought can be required in creating locales as this one, for the purpose of greeting and indoctrinating new and visiting bugs to the muck. Thus I was deeply engaged in my work as others later on popped in, and seemingly popped out again, for I never got more than the standard greeting of 'waves!' or even Silver's 'howdys!'
For some reason this didn't concern me too much as I felt a great desire to get as much work on the West River information room as possible. I just assumed that since little was going on, they simply idled out. However, a barely imperceptible then steadily growing feeling of eerie silence seemed to linger and eventually overcome the muck.
So, while I was in this state of mind, deeply concentrating on the next object of information at hand that I didn't notice someone enter the room. There really was no conscious sound or obvious sign that anyone had entered this place, but it was that feeling of being watched-perhaps that feeling we get when someone has violated our personal space that finally caused me to stop work and to quickly whirl around on my heels.
Standing before me in an almost motionless, as well as /emotionless/ position was Walter, Willow's stepbrother. With a long, penetrating stare he gazed at me with a look that sent a quick yet undeniable chill through me.
"Walter!" I called out in a pitch higher than I intended. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you come in." Again, no obvious response was made to my talking with him. This only further set the steadily growing feelings of concern within me. "Is there something I can do for you?"
Finally after a long awkward moment, he responded to my inquiry. "Come with me." He stated evenly.
So, I did as he requested. Along our trip to who knows where, we passed the Rec Room, the common residing place of Silver, our resident scientist and Milaksian. What I saw was rather peculiar, even for this place. Silver was doing some odd little dance before his young friend and puppet Gem. He seemed to whirl around and then do various little dances that could have come from some ballet. Perhaps I say ballet because he wore these ballet shoes, along with his standard attire of lab coat, and wire rimmed glasses.
Also I noticed were huge piles candy and stacks of soda cans next to the young female ant, along with a scattering of wrappers and empty soda cans. Some of the same said candy was stuffed into her mouth liberally, while giggling wildly at the gyrations of Silver. While he didn't seem to be in too much tribulation, I knew that wasn't his nature, and figured that some strange force was upon him. What also struck me as odd was that despite my desire to at least investigate the incident, all I could do was watch as though a powerful force kept me from entering into the room.
Soon I began to walk again, following Walter to his destination.
Almost immediately after a tiny blue grasshopper ran quickly past us, and as he came up and passed me, I quickly realized it was Locus! But shrunk to approximately 1/64th his normal size. Again, a strange force seemed to contain me from stopping to help him. And help he did need, as I quickly noticed Mini-Locus running after the shrunken Locus with his 'Kaiburr Crystal' sending out various waves and bands of powerful 'Force' energy after him. Soon they were out of sight.
I then passed the sleeping form of Sky in the hallway, and noticed the same of Luna, the muck's head wiz in her office. No help there. In fact as usual most of the players were sleeping, but others would I see on my journey.
Just before we left the out of character complex, I could hear the sounds of banging and calling out for help from our building wiz and resident big lizard Ampillion, locked in his shower. Don't ask me how a dragon of his size gets locked into a shower, but clearly sinister forces were at work.
In using one of the muck's 'jump' functions, we quickly arrived at the center of Ant Island. Standing at the base of the anthill was Dia, one of our newer puppet additions to the muck. In her hands was a 'remote control' of sorts, the type used in flying toy airplanes by way of radio signals.
However, it wasn't a model aircraft that Dia was controlling, but her step-sister, Gina. Gina, a winged worker ant was performing various acrobatic stunts such as loop-de-loops and figures 8's and such.
It would seem that this time I was given the ability to speak, as I was able to inquire what Dia was doing. "Dia, what the /heck/ are you doing?" I called out in disbelief.
"I'm having fun. Do you have a problem with that, /Basil/?!" She responded angrily and with irritation, especially well shown in how she stated my name.
"But you're forcing Gina to do stuff. That's not nice!" I stated in mild disgust. "How can you do that?"
Dia's eyes that had never wavered from Gina then looked directly at me and stated. "Gina is /my/ puppet now." I was immediately dumbfounded, but before I was able to speak, she added coldly. "Basil, the puppets /will/ prevail." And went back to her 'hobby'.
A short wave of dizziness filled my mind as Walter and I proceeded into the entrance of the anthill. Half way down the stairwell I heard some one coming that when reached us I could see that it was a giant animated Flik Plushie. Tilly's life sized Flik plushie! While this may not be odd, what struck me as being odd was the plush Life sized Tilly plushie it was carrying. And in response of me staring, the Flik Plushie whapped me with the Tilly plushie that called out in pain, then spoke to me. "Sorry Bassy! I can't control him anymore!" Called out the young female ant as they continued up the root stairwell.
Twice I tried to speak to Walter in hopes of gaining some sort of explanation, but he totally disregarded my words. Nary did he do more than to bat an eye in effort towards me, or anything I said or did. Finally we reached the intended destination: Walter's chamber.
One of the first things that caught my eye was a 12 inch plushie of Walter's stepsister Willow, sitting on a chair just offset from the center of the room, with a the most saddened expression on the plushie's face. Odd.
"Walter?" I asked, struggling with my words. "What are you doing with a plushie of Willow?"
Before Walter could answer, the plushie began to move, almost imperceptibly at first, but enough to show that it was a living being. Left hand was marginally lifted in a melancholy wave, and a voice called out to me in marked depression. "Hi Basil. It's me: Willow." A labored sign was then released from Willow. I knew something was wrong.
"Walter!" I yelled out in an angered voice. "What have you done to her?!? I demand to know. Now!
With arms folded, Walter gave me the nastiest leer, then preceded to explain. "We, the puppets of this muck have reached our limits to the amount of abuse, mistreatment and humiliation that we've been taking from you players, so we are taking over. /We/ will now be the 'puppeteers'.
"You and Willow have caused me more pain, suffering and abuse than anyone else here. But all the players have been sinfully guilty of neglect and abuse, so what I've done is stolen my sisters wizard bit, given it to myself, and have endowed powers to the other puppets so we can finally obtain the dignity we deserve."
"Dignity!" I shouted back. "Dignity in making fools of them, of treating them like toys, or make them look like fools or reducing them to mere sizes to increase abuse--"
"Exactly!" Walter shouted back. "Turn about is fair play. But my sister is too powerful and dangerous to be simply left alone, so I've changed her into a more harmless form, locked the program with an encryption code that only I know, and may or may not ever use. She may very well stay a plushie the rest of her life. Under /my/ watchful eye." Then in accordance, the defiant Walter picked up and placed his sister on his bed next to the pillow where he can watch her.
Total disbelief filled me as I looked from Walter to his now plush, diminutive sister who then sat up and looked directly at me. "It's true, Basil, I can't do anything to change anyone little alone myself back, only he can do it." Again, the same sad look settled across her visage.
"You may have control over the others..." I began as I set my heels hard to the ground, ready to turn and run wildly from this place. "But you won't get me!" I then attempted to escape, but a figure entered and filled the entryway to Walter's chamber. It was Holly.
"Oh, Holly! I'm so glad so see you!" I cried out with relief mixed with panic. "Walter has taken Willow's wizard's bit and..." Her hands quickly went up to calm me down. "I know, Basil. I know. And there is nothing you can do about it." Her calm demeanor quickly melted into a maniacal grin. "I've longed for this day, and now I shall have my revenge, Basil Riley Harvestwacher!"
Suddenly that same powerful force that kept me from acting out to help the others kept me solidly planted in place. "And I have the perfect revenge, one that I've mulled over, and perfectly created in my mind." Holly then raised her hands with fingers extended toward me, called out: "Sweet revenge is mine!" She shrieked as her newly acquire powers extended from her into my physical form.
Suddenly a bright flash of light engulfed me, and a feeling of intense, yet painless energy radiated through me, producing the strangest feelings I'd ever felt. Then as quickly as the flash occurred, it dissipated to nothing.
My first observation was that the room seemed to become significantly larger, with everything much taller than before. I then noticed Holly walk up closer to me, towering high above, with the most gleeful expression on her face, announced: "It's done then." She beamed brightly. Walter then walked up next to Holly with a similar triumphant look on his face as well. "Oh, that's just wonderful! I couldn't have come up with anything nearly as good. Excellent, Holly, excellent!"
A sharp inhale then came from over my right shoulder as Willow hopped off the bed and stood behind me with plush hands held into fists. "Holly! How could you be so cold hearted! Basil never meant to do any harm to you-- none of us did!" Walter then bended down and with a firm grip on Willow's cottony arm, picked her up and tossed her back onto his bed, with a rumpled 'Oof!" her dazed head was slowly lifted up, and an even harder scowl was passed from sibling to sibling. No words were made.
"Leave her alone!" I shouted to Walter as I was filled with disgust, but between the change in my voice, and the alteration of the color tone of my arm as I had lifted it to point angrily at Walter stopped me cold. My voice: Much softer yet higher in pitch and more youthful. My exoskeleton tone: Pink. Not just a solid pink, like having been covered with paint or dye, but consistent with a natural covering for an ant. I also noticed a scattering of freckles across my hand and arm.
I then look a longer, and much more studious examination of myself, from my right hand and arm to my thorax, legs and even my antenna. "Y-y-y- you. D-d-d-d-i- diddn't?" I called out in a shaky voice. Holly then pulled out a very large mirror and held it before me. "Aaaah!" I screamed out as I looked at myself in the reflection. "YOU DID!!!" I felt on the verge of faint. "You turned me into a little girl!"
Holly then pulled the mirror away and upon looking at me again passed another gleeful look to Walter. "Isn't /she/ adorable!" She spoke to him as if I had always been this way.
"Oh, yes!" He replied.
"I think I'll call her... Rose! Fitting for her color, don't you think?"
"Most definitely!" Walter smiled back broadly. By this time Willow had climbed down from the bed, and came over to look at me. "You two are so cruel!" She called out, but this time with no action taken upon her.
"Oh, and you two weren't." Spat out Walter despondently. "Making our lives a living heck by my being stranded in Bug City or Holly's being imprisoned at the colony. But that wasn't good enough! You had to make us look like villains or idiots while we were OOC or even humiliate us. But that's over now."
"Not for me it isn't!" Holly shouts back. "There is one more thing I feel entitled to. Okay, two more things. Maybe more, I'm not sure." Suddenly a figure passed the room, to whom Holly called out to invite them inside. It was Queen Atta.. As she entered the room, Willow seemed to go very quiet, and I felt some strange force upon me, keeping me from moving.
"Your highness? I've found this poor adorable young girl outside the colony who I think can't find her way home but wants to stay here at the colony. But she can't stay alone so I was wondering if I could have your permission to adopt her as my own child." Holly stated in a request of sincerity. What shocked me even more is what happened next. As Holly bent down to pick me up, my arms went to hug her back passionately and my head pressed up against hers. Then my mouth opened and words came out beyond my control. "Holly is a nice and pretty lady and I want her to be my mom!"
"Aw... that's so sweet! Declares Atta happily. "Well, Holly. I think you've proven you're a much kinder and caring individual, and have gained my full trust, so I don't see why you can't at least have a trial run. So... I therefore grant you permission to adopt... What your name, sweetie?" Again my mouth opened up and the words: "Rose, your most highneses!" came tumbling out. Atta then beamed back. "I then shall grant your request. Rose, Rosethorn. That's a very pretty name." "Thank you!" I spoke again against my will. Holly then put me down.
After speaking to Holly for a few moments, Queen Atta departed. While at the moment I didn't have control of my tongue or my actions, I could still think for myself. 'Rose Rosethorn'. Someone please squish me now!" Walter who seemed to have enough pleasure in this quickly departed after Atta did.
Holly then sat down in the chair I originally saw Willow sitting in, and looked at me in a slightly wearied expression. "I hope you had your fun making my life miserable, /Rose/ because the tables are about to turn. I intend to be as strict as I can possibly get away with. For now, I want you to go to your room, and stay there until I say you can leave."
Oh, that was it. I never intended on making Holly's life miserable, and certainly didn't feel I had earned virtually any of this-- this... punishment. My blood began to boil. "And I suppose you've put an encryption code on me too, so I can't be changed back either!" I stated in my best mimicking tone fitting of a little girl.
"Hmm. I did, and I can't seem to remember it, so it looks like your stuck! But for talking back your mom, I have the perfect punishment for you!
Holly then firmly grabbed my left wrist, and in picking me up, laid me across her lap and firmly whapped my abdomen several times until tears poured out of my eyes, and sobbed pitifully while my abdomen turned just a little darker pink. She then set me up on my feet and glared at me deeply. "Don't make this harder on yourself than you have to."
I rubbed my sore abdomen with tears still rolling down my cheeks. "Okay"
"Okay, who?" Holly spoke back in a demanding voice.
"Okay, mommy." I dropped my eyes and my head. I wasn't forced into that one, but didn't see a point in making things worse.
"Good now..."
Now that Willow was no longer under any kind of control, her temper grew to a white-hot glow. "Holly!!! She-I mean he created you and gave you an existence and a purpose, and how do you repay him? By treating him with almost unspeakable cruelty and humiliation! How-" Willow was quickly cut off as Holly grabbed her my the wrist, forced her against my thorax and pushed me toward my new bedroom. "Now go to your room, and play with your dolly!" As soon as we entered the room, the leaf door was pushed in the doorway and we both plopped onto the floor.
"I'm so sorry!" Lamented Willow as she attempted to brush away tears that she normally would have had if her eyes weren't made of plastic. "I just don't see how Walter could have stolen my wiz bit and done all this." She then pulled out her notebook and began to write something into it "What a nightmare!"
At this point my eyes widened at the surprise that Willow could have guessed. "How did you know this was a nightmare?" I said in astonishment.
Flower filament pen dropped to the ground, as twilight blue eyes grew even wider. Okay, would have if not been plastic. "What do you mean, how did I know?" She then quickly got to her feet and looked eye to eye with me, while I remained in a squatting position on the floor. "Are you trying to tell me that this is just a nightmare?"
"Yup." I replied simply.
Suddenly her rubber chicken appeared in her inventory and she whacked me across the head with it. "Then why don't you wake up, already?" She said testily.
I instinctively rubbed my head and winced momentarily before responding. "Because it's not my nightmare."
"Oh, I'm sorry." She apologized sincerely. "But if it's not yours, then who's is it?"
"It's Holly's."
Willow the plushie stared back at me. "/Holly's/ nightmare?!?'
"That's right."
Suddenly Holly's eyes shot open with a start, and quickly sat up in her bed, breathing heavily. "Gah!" She exclaimed, as she attempted to regain her breath, and calm her pounding heart. "Wonderful." She sighed deeply. "Now why couldn't I have had those kinds of dreams, back when I still had feelings against him..."
Slowly Holly lied back down and pulled her leaf comforter up to the top of her thorax. "Instead I get them now." The adult female then shifted to her side to gain a more comfortable position, mind still quite riveted on the dream. "Now that I care about him... about all of them, really." With a pronouncedly saddened expression on her visage, Holly eventually drifted back into a slightly calmer sleep.
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