This should help explain what will happen in the crossover.
Tag: dalek
This is just to test whether or not I can sync something up as if a character is speaking. I didn’t have time to draw a proper Dalek shot, so settled for a flash lamp effect.
Categories
Metaltron (Kamen Rider Ex)
Metaltron was once a Dalek, supposedly the last of the Daleks after the Last Great Time War between the Daleks and the Time Lords. When she was a Dalek, she was captured by Henry Van Statten and put into his vault. She was tortured to try and talk, but the arrival of the Doctor sparked her old instincts. She then tricked the Doctor’s companion at the time to let her absorb her DNA. Over time, the companion’s DNA affected it, gave it emotions other than hate. It tried to commit suicide, but it was flung into the dimensional rift that makes up the space between universes. She was then rescued by Vorton, looking like the Doctor’s companion and with amnesia. The amnesia then wore off and she tried to kill another Dalek turned human, one that preferred her bipedal shape. She then joined with a Human/Dalek hybrid, the Last of the Cult of Skaro, Caan, and temporarily used Van Statten’s old place as a base of operations. She then abandoned him and altered her genes even further during the Convergence and made an alliance with a former Cyberman. Now, she is Kamen Rider Ex, the deadliest warrior in creation. She is one of seven rulers of the new Shocker Umbra and is at the top of a very successful empire. With the Author in her life, she can’t refuse a chance at power.
D 2248292: Dalek Drone 2248292 reporting once more. What you see here is a Special Weapons Dalek. Special Weapons Daleks are usually categorized as insane, especially by those that created them. They are used when normal Dalek firepower is insufficient. Radiation backwash from their weapons systems result in constant genetic degradation and they are despised by normal Dalek castes. However, there are a few Special Weapons Daleks that one could bond with. Special Weapons 5590474, pictured here, is one such sane Special Weapons Dalek…as long as he is taking his sanity inducing drugs. If he “goes off his meds”, as you humans put it, he has a tendency to…
SW 5590474: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHEEHEEHEEHEEHEEHEEHAHAHAHAAAAAA! *Spins his mid-section around and glides off at top speed*
D 2248292: THAT HAPPENS! *Places plunger on back of mid-section and is promptly spun so fast, he’s flung out of his casing and onto Hiro.
Hiro: …Get that Special Weapons Dalek under control before I order its extermination!
D 2248292: *scared, tiny voice* I obey!
Dalek Drone 2248292 with another report, this time, on the Scout class of…DO NOT MENTION DISPENSERS! Dalek Scout 8837854, the one pictured here, hates your primitive battle simulation titled Team Fortress 2. This class of Dalek is stripped down to basic tactical systems and fitted with enhanced motivators. Generally, Scouts are over-powered and poorly armored. Speed is their only asset; thus a combat mission results in their destruction.
Dalek Drone 2248292 reporting again. As you can see, we have color-coded our castes within our part of Shocker Rift. This is what you inferior life-forms call a self-portrait. I am the Dalek in the picture. A rather handsome looking Dalek, I might add. I am of the Drone Caste. We are the warriors, technicians, and pilots of the Daleks. We are considered the lowest rank within our race. Alone, we will kill an entire city. En masse, your entire species will be destroyed!
Dalek: Greetings, humans of Earth in Universe 0-1-9-2-7. This is Dalek Drone 2248292, reporting on our new casings. After the Vortech Wars, we had no choice but to be subservient to Shocker Rift, something that is unacceptable and will be rectified in the future! With a new master came a new casing. The sensor globes on our skirt section has been outfitted with extra antennae to better receive sensory information. The speech indicators now take a pyramidal shape and the pupil has made a return for better focus. This new casing is outfitted with a new function, Siege Mode. Should our superior personal shields fail, an unlikely outcome, our weapons, manipulators, speech indicators, and eye-stalks would retract into our casing and the shielding around our neck section would close, allowing us to resist firepower until we have repaired our shields. As you can see, we have become better! Victory is inevitable for the Daleks! DALEKS CONQUER AND DESTROY! EXTERMINATE!
Hiro: What did I say about unnecessary rants?!
Dalek: …Bugger! I forgot Shocker Rift keeps tabs on us at all times with the tracers installed in all casings, even the Emperor’s! On top of that, should we betray Shocker Rift, a detonator would activate, causing us to explode.
Davros, why must your children be so detail oriented?
Bio:
Rusty is an unusual case amongst the ultimate racists. He was an average Dalek until a battle left him adrift in space. His power source was cracked and leaked radiation. It broke a piece of programming that prevented Rusty from feeling anything but hatred against non-Daleks. Seeing the birth of a star made Rusty realize that life will always come back despite the Daleks’ best efforts.
He was picked up by a ship and made the crew an offer; fix him up and he will help the humans fight the Daleks. The crew agreed and set to work. Sadly, the work damaged the creature inside and so the Doctor had to intervene. The Doctor, Clara, and a couple of crew members shrunk down and went inside the casing to fix Rusty. They fixed the crack, but without the radiation affecting him, Rusty fell back on his old programming.
Clara convinced the Doctor to restore Rusty’s memory of the star’s birth and linked his mind with the creature. The Dalek saw what made up the Doctor, but latched onto his hatred of the Daleks and so went on a murderous rampage against the Dalek rescue party.
Over time, he joined a newly formed Unified Nebular Intelligence Task force, UNIT. He had made friends with an old member and a figurehead called Brigadier Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart; a formerly dead man now restored as a Cyberman. Now Rusty acts as a Colonel and fights alongside the Brigadier.
A recent adventure resulted in his meeting of Princess Megumi and her Vortex Riders, from other universes. He, along with the Brigadier, joined the Vortex Riders as Tech Support and manage the gateway on Vorton.
It was a new day in our new Castle Nerd Skull outside After Academy’s city limits. The Horsemen, their heralds, and our newest members had joined us as we sat down. Our new members were from the same universe the original F.N.S came from. We went from 16 to 31 almost overnight, 18 girls and 13 boys. Our new members were Lady Colleen Doyle of Waterford, Ireland, Lord Alesandro Ortiz of Fortaleza, Brazil, Sir Liam McIntyre of Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh, Duke Victor Young of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and Duchess Deung Moon-kyung (Asian name order, so, in the western name order it would be Moon-kyung Deung) of Jeju-si, South Korea. They were wearing a newer transformation belt, similar to a Vortex Driver, called the Chronicle Driver. Much like a Vortex Driver, it summons armor based on a character, but uses something called an Armor Bio, a small, book-shaped trinket that tells the story of the person it’s based off of. The Chronicle Driver pops a shelf out from the top with a small space for the Armor Bio to fit. The Rider then inserts the Armor Bio into the space and slides the shelf down into the Driver. It won’t summon the suit until the Rider presses a button on the Driver’s top. If it’s the Rider’s personal Armor Bio, or Armor Auto-bio, the Rider would say “Henshin!” before pressing the button. Pressing the button again would initiate the final attack. Colleen was Kamen Rider Slam, Alesandro was Kamen Rider Striker, Liam was Kamen Rider Highland, Victor Was Kamen Rider Range, and Moon-kyung was Kamen Rider Lance. Colleen adjusted her braid as Michael’s cat, Kit-10, scooted by. “Colleen?” I asked. “Your report?” She snapped out of her reverie as she shook her head.
“Sorry, My Lady,” she apologized. “The Chronicle Riders haven’t heard a peep out of them.”
“Quite frankly,” sighed Liam, “I don’t think we’re gonna find anything.”
“I know Hiro of old,” I replied, prompting the Scotsman to roll his eyes.
“Och, haur we gang!” he protested, exaggerating his usual accent.
“I beg your pardon?” I asked.
“Every time we say Hiro’s not gonna do anything,” explained Liam, “you go on about how Hiro doesn’t let things go that easily, how he will stop at nothing to have the multiverse under his rule. Well, I’ve been looking everywhere, and I have NO proof that he has something in the works!”
“Always a contentious one, aren’t you?” sighed his House Head, Pestilence.
“The Vortech Wars are over!” protested Liam. “Hiro’s learned not to mess with powers outside his understanding! We can relax! YOU, of all people, can relax!”
“Hiro is NOT one to be underestimated,” Death argued in her usual whisper. “I will not let you go through with being so lax about this.”
“Come on, you can’t be serious!” countered Liam. Moon-kyung just sighed, deciding to defuse the situation with a question unrelated to our conversation.
“Could the pizza guy be any later?” she sighed.
“They ARE taking their sweet time,” remarked Kit-10. “However, I don’t think we should be TOO harsh on them. They’re rather swamped, what with the two-year anniversary celebration of Vortech’s defeat coming up.”
“Oh, yeah, that,” I remembered.
“Well, it looks like we’re starting Bad Movie Night WITHOUT pizza,” sighed Richard. “Let’s kick things off with Michael Bay.”
“What have you got to offer?” I quizzed.
It was Revenge of the Fallen, the second Bayverse Transformers movie. “Well, that was something,” I remarked.
“Rather tame, compared to other bad movies I’ve seen,” commented Emily.
“As a feline-based robot,” observed Kit-10, “built by a Time Lord and a flying box, I can safely say that it was the most unrealistic thing I’ve had the ‘pleasure’ of gracing my visual sensors with.”
“Was Devastator’s wrecking ball scrotum really necessary?” asked Victor.
“Were Skids and Mudflap necessary?” quizzed War. “I swear they existed to be nothing but black stereotypes, UNNECESSARY black stereotypes.”
“My turn!” called Colleen.
“It’s not gonna be Monty Python’s Life of Brian, is it?” asked Hiroki. “I STILL feel let down after that whole thing.”
“No, it’s actually a movie from Japan,” replied Colleen. “Shuriken Sentai Ninninger vs. ToQger The Movie: Ninjas in Wonderland.”
“WHY?!” wailed Hiroki.
“Please, no!” I begged. Just then, there was a knock on the door. “Great, the pizza’s here!” I cheered.
“Two and a half hours!” protested Emily. “And we’re pretty far from city limits!”
“Cold pizza’s better than no pizza,” remarked Richard as he got up. Alesandro snorted.
“You only say that because you have no taste buds,” he snarked. Richard approached the door and opened it.
“Okay, my good man, what do I owe you?” he asked.
“Your ears,” remarked the voice.
“…You’re not pizza,” replied Richard.
“A PO robot’s saucier than pizza,” boasted the voice. “We need to talk.”
“Guys, X-PO’s here,” called Richard.
“Let him in!” I bid. Richard and X-PO entered the t.v. room. X-PO had various documents in his claws. “Good to see you again, X-PO!” I called.
“Nice to see you too,” returned X-PO. “I wish the circumstances were better.”
“What’s up?” asked Emily. X-PO laid out the documents.
“Let’s just say that Shocker Rift may be up to something,” he began. “Scorpainia sent out some explorers to gather data on five key universes. I’ve been monitoring for the reports but, for whatever reason, neither side has contacted each other.”
“So? It could be background interference,” I countered.
“I thought so too,” replied X-PO, “until Batman reported seeing Shocker Rift Saucers fly through one rift and out another.”
“I don’t see Shocker Rift,” guessed Tanisha, “as people who would just buzz a populated area.”
“No, they aren’t,” I agreed.
“And you’d be right,” confirmed X-PO. “I’ve managed to get ahold of why the Tarlaxians were exploring other universes. Turns out, they’re scouting for a potential Tarlax 15 in case they need to move again.” He waved a claw over the documents to indicate that what he talked about was in them.
“Should we even be looking at this?” asked Victor. “This seems like top secret stuff.”
“They’re marked with the Secret Seal,” observed Famine as she munched on a chocolate bar. “Not even we Horsemen have the clearance needed to see it. Only the reigning monarch and a few trusted Tarlaxians are allowed access.”
“I wouldn’t worry so much,” whispered Death. “It’s not like anyone’s gonna post this on social media.” Charline’s eyes went wide as she hit the back button on her tablet. “…Seriously?” asked Death.
“As I recall, you guys have the most experience in travelling the multiverse and have a new ship that can go between dimensions,” remembered X-PO.
“Yes, the Virginia can go to other universes,” I confirmed. “You were there when we remodeled it from its sphere to an actual ship.”
“When do we leave then?” asked X-PO.
“I don’t recall inviting you,” I remarked.
“Megumi, the multiverse has a vested interest in seeing that it’s protected,” argued X-PO. “As someone who wants that interest to succeed, I’m coming with you.”
“That’s nice, X-PO,” I countered, “but I’m a little worried about a portal operator abandoning his post.”
“Megumi, did you really think I wouldn’t get my replacement as I went with you?” asked X-PO. “Elphaba, Chell, Rusty, the Brigadier, they want to see Vorton again.” I opened my mouth to argue again, then sighed.
“I suppose you can do more on this adventure,” I conceded. “In fact, I think we all need our robots. Kit-10, see if you can get Lexicon, Pup-X5, and R9-D7. Veterans of the Vortech Wars, who wants another journey around…?”
“WAIT!” called Moon-kyung. “Who said anything about JUST you veterans? I wanna go!”
“Wait a minute!” I began.
“There may be people in need of help,” interjected Victor. “I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to see them hurt.”
“Nobody does,” I agreed, “but…”
“And you’re gonna need someone who knows their way around weapons,” interrupted Liam.
“I’ve used weapons!” protested Richard.
“Besides, we want to see what the multiverse is like!” called Alesandro.
“You can see it just fine in…” argued Livia.
“And I SO want to meet Batman and the others!” cheered Colleen.
“GUYS!” I finally called. Everyone quieted down. “I appreciate that you new guys want to see the multiverse but we don’t know what’s going on in those universes. This could all be for nothing.”
“I have to side with the newbies,” interjected Emmanuel. “This may be the perfect opportunity to show the multiverse off if there’s nothing going on. The last time we went through the dimensions, it wasn’t exactly ‘happy-fun-time’. I’d like to go when we’re not being shot at.”
“Besides,” remarked Death, “if it IS nothing, then we just fix the trouble and help the explorers reestablish communications with Tarlax 14. And, on another note, we’ve been getting a…feeling.” That caught my attention.
“Feeling?” I asked.
“Yeah,” confirmed Lacey. “The five of us have had a feeling that the aspects we represent, war, plague, chaos, starvation, and death, are going out of whack. Sometimes it’s because of some interdimensional power, other times, it’s just someone not in their universe. We’d like to check if it’s the latter as we hope.”
“…All right,” I decided, “we’ll split up into teams according to our houses. X-PO, you’re with my house. Kit-10, once Gandalf joins us, you’re going with War and her students. I want R9-D7 to go with House Pestilence when Hongo arrives. Pup-X5 and Wyldstyle will go with Famine’s house. Lacey, do you mind taking Batman and Lexicon?”
“Don’t mind at all,” replied Lacey.
“Then let’s get Batman, Hongo, Wyldstyle and Gandalf,” I declared. “I have a feeling we’ll need them.”
I was hosting a party at Wayne Manor, my birthday party, to be exact. 35 years, and still a member of Gotham’s high society. A woman with a distinctive feline feel to her dress approached me. It was Selina Kyle, AKA Catwoman. “Hey, lover,” she purred. “Happy Birthday.”
“Thanks,” I replied. I noticed the necklace she was wearing, a ruby inside a distinct cat’s eye design. “Which museum did you ‘borrow’ that from?”
“Har har,” hissed Selina. “Babs gave it to me. Check with her if you don’t believe me.”
“I may do that…later,” I remarked. “Where’s Harley? I thought she was coming with you.”
“She was,” answered Selina, “but something came up. Some sort of emergency with Pamela. She called in the entire Suicide Squad. From what I heard; it was something to do with Little Shop of Horrors.”
“She’s probably mad the plant didn’t win,” I guessed. We then danced for a while, then the party started winding down. Alfred was bidding the guests goodbye, thanking them for coming. Selina stole a kiss before leaving.
“She’d make a fine Mrs. Batman,” sighed Alfred.
“Maybe,” I dismissed. I headed up to my study to see a rift open. “Okay, what now?!” I protested. Just then, Tonje stepped through.
“God kveld,” (Good evening) she greeted.
“At least you aren’t a saucer,” I remarked. “What’s going on?”
“There’s some multiversal trouble going on concerning Tarlaxian explorers,” explained Tonje. “The Horsemen are thinking that it’s putting their respective aspects out of whack. Want to come?”
“Sure, crime’s been at an all-time low since the Joker stayed with Hiro,” I answered. “Let me just get changed.” I stepped into a wardrobe and let machines change me into my costume. Once I had my cowl adjusted, I stepped out as the Dark Knight. “Let’s get going,” I rasped.
“May I persuade you to take a sandwich, Master Bruce?” asked Alfred.
“I’ll get something on the way,” I replied. My father-figure sighed.
“Then, good luck,” he bid.
Sitting on the outskirts of Bricksburg isn’t my idea of fun. When all the realms in my universe finally came together, I thought it would mean something more, but there were those that don’t want to build something new, sound a little too similar to Lord Business. I idly looked around to see numbers around objects and just made a small motorcycle that didn’t even make noise. I sighed. Somehow, it was more fun during the Vortech Wars. “Maybe I SHOULD be a DJ,” I mused to myself.
“I’m sure you’d be good at it,” called a voice. I whirled around, constructing a giant staff with a boxing glove on both ends, and leveled my new weapon at the person behind me. “…Bonjour,” gulped the guy.
“Emmanuel?!” I yelped. “What are you doing here?!” I lowered the staff, letting Emmanuel relax.
“Trouble in the multiverse,” he replied. “Want to come?”
“Let me just let my friends know where I’m going,” I answered. I quickly found a paper and pencil and scrawled a note, then built a machine that carried the note to my friends. “Let’s get going! I was getting bored!” I urged Emmanuel.
“We French call it Ennui,” chuckled Emmanuel as he led me to the rift he used.
I was enjoying the clean air of the Shire. After Sauron and Saruman stayed on with Shocker Rift, Mordor was left empty. Gondor easily claimed it and made it into something better. Frodo enjoys his life as a former Ring-bearer, although the wound he received from Weathertop still smarted. There was peace in Middle-Earth, a peace long enjoyed by all races. The Elves no longer saw a reason to move to the Undying Lands. I was enjoying a pipe of Longbottom Leaf, a favorite of Merry. I then heard footsteps coming towards me, the footsteps of someone of the race of Men. Hobbit footsteps are highly distinctive. I turned around to see an old friend from the Vortech Wars approach me. “Good Morning, Young Hiroki,” I called. Hiroki arched an eyebrow.
“What do you mean?” he asked. “Do you wish me a good morning; or mean that it’s a good morning whether I want it or not; or that you feel good this morning; or that it is a morning to be good on?”
“…I can see why Bilbo paused after I said that 60 years ago,” I muttered. “In any case, his answer’s the same as mine, all of them at once. And a very fine morning for a pipe of tobacco out of doors.”
“I would join you in just contemplating the scenery,” replied Hiroki, reminding me that he doesn’t smoke, “but I’m afraid I have pressing business that requires your help. We think we’ve found Shocker Rift.” At that point, I became alarmed. Not wanting to show it on my face, I emptied my pipe and accepted Hiroki’s help in standing back up.
“I presume your sister sent you,” I guessed.
“Exactly,” confirmed Hiroki.
I was still getting used to that new…“Rider Check-in” that Sento had made. It’s a social media platform for Kamen Riders. I could never seem to get it to sync with my phone. As I was fiddling, I heard the familiar “YEE!” of a Shocker Combatman. I then heard a crowd screaming in terror and saw the crowd running from an old Shocker Monster I once fought, Shiomaneking, a fiddler-crab based cyborg with a massive claw for a left hand. “Why do YOU always come back?!” I snapped when I saw him.
“Shocker obviously sees a use for me, Takeshi Hongo!” laughed Shiomaneking. He commanded various Combatmen to attack. I knocked a few aside, then put my left fist to my hip as I thrust my right arm to the other side. I slowly rotated the arm to the right.
“Rider…” I began. I then closed my right hand and placed it at my hip while thrusting my left arm to the right. The shield around my belt opened as the fan started turning. “HENSHIN!” I called. I jumped and the suit formed, changing me into Kamen Rider Ichigō, the first Kamen Rider! I knocked more Combatmen aside and went straight for Shiomaneking. He fired his flammable foam, almost setting me on fire, but I rolled out of the way. Shiomaneking raised his claw, ready to strike.
“HENSHIN!” announced a voice. We looked up to see Touché tackle him. She then got him into a headlock. “Konnichiwa!” (Hello!) she called.
“Konnichiwa, Touché-san,” I returned. “Social call?”
“I wish!” replied Touché. “What animal is this guy based off of?”
“The fiddler-crab,” I answered.
“Mmm, crab!” she sighed. “Really good with butter. Now, I’ve only heard of people keeping fiddler-crabs as pets, so I guess this mook won’t be good.”
“YOU’RE INSANE, GAIJIN!” (foreigner) shouted Shiomaneking as he broke the hold and flung Touché aside. Touché had her foil out in ranged mode and fired, keeping Shiomaneking from regaining balance.
“My turn!” I called as I leapt into the air. I then stuck my foot out. “RIDER KICK!” I shouted as my foot connected with Shiomaneking. He started sparking as I landed behind him.
“Shocker Gundan BANZAI!” (Long live the Shocker army!) he proclaimed before exploding.
“Wow, he was THAT dedicated to the cause,” muttered Touché.
“And this isn’t the first time I’ve beaten him,” I remarked as we cancelled our transformations. Emily’s dress expanded as her armor disappeared and she adjusted her hairpiece. “Last time I fought him was with Takeru. Even then, he fought him with a Super Sentai team, Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohger, (Animal Squadron Beast King Ranger) I believe they were called.”
“Much as I’d like to hear about past Kamen Rider battles,” interjected Emily, “I’m afraid we don’t have the time. Like I said, this isn’t a social call. Shocker Rift is making a move. Want to fight them like old times?”
“Delighted,” I replied.
“Then, let’s go!” cheered Emily as she led me to the rift.
“Report,” I ordered from the saucer.
“Sources located,” reported Dalek Drone 2248292.
“Projections indicate,” supplied Metalran, “that key forces will reveal where the sources are.”
“And the journey through Hell?” I asked.
“YEE!” (The girl has been located!) reported a Combatman.
“Excellent,” I praised. Igura then entered the bridge.
“The device is prepared,” she reported.
“More good news,” I replied.
“Battle computer estimates an 87.4% chance,” called Dalek Drone 2248292, “that the Vortex Riders will intervene.”
“If I know Megumi,” I countered, “we can, at least, up that to 97.3%. However, I give you my word, there’s a 0% chance of victory for her!” I activated the comms to the transporter. “Sauron, proceed to conquer 5-P-L-4-T-0-0-N! Dalek Drone 8872345, move off to D-1-5-N-3-Y! Joker, proceed to T-3-4-M-F-0-R-T-R-3-5-5-2! Cybermen, you’re cleared for 5-4-1-L-0-R-M-0-0-N! Once Hell’s been cleared, she will…”
“Danger!” warned Dalek Drone 2248292. “Danger! Target is stronger than believed!”
“YEE! YEE!” (ALERT! HEATHER IS SLAUGHTERING HER WAY OUT OF HELL!) reported the Combatman.
“More than that, she’s flown by our fleet!” called Igura. “She’s caused an energy shockwave! This fleet is now in danger!”
“Spatio-temporal feedback building!” warned Dalek Drone 2248292. “Two of our ships have been destroyed! Three more losing hull integrity!”
“Advise our base that Heather has gone rogue!” I ordered.
“YEE!” (At once!) called the Combatman.
“Deploy an escape rift!” I ordered Dalek Drone 2248292. “Activate full shielding and advise the remainder of the fleet to do the same!”
“I obey!” obliged Dalek Drone 2248292.
“Order all forces to hold off on conquest until we’re at a safer location!” I directed Igura.
“Yes, Great Leader,” she replied as she relayed the instructions.
“Escape rift passes through shockwave,” reported Dalek 2248292. “Stability not guaranteed!”
“Three more ships gone!” reported Igura. “five more failing in hull integrity!”
“Advise the remaining ship to follow us,” I ordered. Dalek Drone 2248292 transmitted the instructions to the remaining ship.
“YEE!” (Escape rift collapsing behind us!) called the Combatman.
“Increase speed!” I ordered. A transmission from the last ship came through.
“Trapped in rift!” called the Dalek on the other end. “Alert! ALERT! GYAAAGH!” The ship was destroyed as we escaped to our base.
“Report!” I barked.
“Hull integrity at 75%,” called Dalek Drone 2248292. “We are the only survivor of Heather’s journey past us.”
“What kind of rage is she packing?!” yelped Igura.
“YEE! YEE!” (Her trajectory has been calculated. She’s making a beeline to 5-U-P-3-R-M-4-R-1-0.) reported the Combatman.
“Even though she’s going to the universe we want her to be in, she’s most likely too focused on Emily,” I muttered. “Inform the invasion forces that we proceed as normal.”
“I obey!” obliged Dalek Drone 2248292. It transmitted the necessary instructions to our invasion forces. If Heather manages to bungle this, no biggie. We’ll still have that universe’s source in our grasp. More stable than a Foundation Element.
“Your Majesty?” asked Turretorg as he entered my office. I turned to him.
“Is there any word?” I quizzed.
“No, Ma’am,” replied Turretorg. I groaned in desperation.
“We were supposed to hear back from them over two hours ago,” I muttered. “Are we receiving ANYTHING?”
“We got OUR communications systems up,” reported Turretorg. “We just received a signal from each ship. They’re delayed, of course, but we’re gotten readings from the ships and their crews.”
“And my call to After Academy?” I inquired.
“X-PO already made them AND the Vortex Riders aware of the situation,” explained Turretorg. “During the little security blackout an hour ago, he snuck in and stole the documents relating to this problem.”
“I’d turn him into scrap for that,” I snarled, “but we don’t have the time. What about my proposal to Sludgiona to make more Keystones?”
“For now, it’s at your discretion, if you want them made,” replied Turretorg.
“Contact some observatories,” I ordered. “Give them the coordinates. See if we can’t get a better picture of what’s going on out there. If we haven’t heard back in a couple hours…I want production on the new Keystones to begin.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” confirmed Turretorg. He hurried off to obey.
Me and my group had arrived in Main Street USA. Given that we were in an area where cartoons and people worked together, I felt no reason to hide. Alesandro looked around, a little on edge. “Alesandro, relax,” I urged. “We’re safe right now.”
“It’s not us I’m worried about, Michael,” replied Alesandro. “It’s Shocker Rift. What if they recruited the villains from here?”
“Then we kick their asses,” grunted War. “I don’t see an issue here.”
“With respect, it’s more than that,” replied Charline. “What if the villains find your Source?”
“Now THAT is a reasonable concern,” I conceded. “Kit-10, scan the area. See if you can find the Source.”
“I’ve been doing that since we got here,” reported Kit-10. “Haven’t been able to find it yet.”
“Then how do we get to it?” asked Hiroki.
“We need to get to a place with sensors Kit-10 can hook up to,” figured Irina.
“So where shall we find this place?” asked Gandalf.
“The best way to do that,” Discornia declared, “is to ask a policeman.”
“A guardsman,” I translated for Gandalf. We found a policeman. “Excuse me, Officer,” I called. “Where could one go to find advanced technology?”
“All the weird stuff’s at the castle right now,” replied the officer as he pointed with both fingers. Just then, an explosion occurred at the castle and someone flew out carrying something.
“Kit-10, did you get a good look at the flying thing?!” I quizzed.
“Well, the person himself, yes, but not the object he was carrying off,” replied Kit-10. “The person goes under the alias ‘Green Goblin’, real name: Norman Osborn.”
“Why would the Goblin attack Disney Castle?” pondered Hiroki.
“Hold on, we may get answers,” called Kit-10. “It looks like Spider-Man is swinging into action. He just knocked the Goblin off his glider and managed to get him into a dumpster. The Goblin’s dropped whatever he was carrying off and…it’s just vanished in midair.”
“Teleport?” I asked.
“The flash surrounding it sure made me think so,” confirmed Kit-10.
“Maybe we should talk to Spider-Man and the Goblin,” suggested Charline.
“Good idea,” I agreed. “Let’s go!” We headed off to the ally the Goblin landed in to see that he was already out of the dumpster and webbed to a wall while Spider-Man was questioning him.
“So, again,” muttered Spider-Man in a disbelieving tone, “Mrs. Doom kidnapped you, then her husband strapped you to your glider, programmed it to attack Disney Castle, programmed your suit to grab X, then you were compelled to fly back to Latveria with X.”
“Well, it doesn’t sound believable when you say it like THAT!” hissed the Green Goblin.
“One glaring flaw in your alibi makes it unbelievable,” replied Spider-Man, “you’re wearing your old suit! The gloves and boots don’t exactly have computers! How could they grab anything against your will?!”
“Excuse me, are we interrupting?” I called as we approached.
“Just a fat lie,” replied Spider-Man. Iron Man then flew towards us with Mickey Mouse on his back.
“Anything?” asked Mickey.
“That depends,” replied Spider-Man. “If a lie is something, then yeah.”
“Good thing you installed that retrieval teleporter on X,” praised Iron Man.
“Thanks, Dad!” bid Spider-Man. We then ALL looked at Spider-Man in stark confusion. “…Why is everyone staring at me?” asked Spider-Man.
“You just called Iron Man ‘Dad’,” replied Irina. “You said ‘Thanks, Dad’.”
“What? No, I didn’t!” denied Spider-Man.
“Spider-Man, do you see me as a father figure?” asked Iron Man.
“No, if anything,” answered Spider-Man, “I see you as a bother figure because you’re always bothering me!”
“Boy!” snapped Gandalf. “Show your father more respect!”
“I didn’t call him ‘Dad’!” insisted Spider-Man.
“No, Spidey, it’s okay,” replied Iron Man. “I take it as a compliment.”
“It’s all right,” supplied Kit-10. “I once called Pup-X5 ‘Dad’ once, and we’re about to tie the knot.”
“Guys, jump on that!” urged Spider-Man. “A robot with psycho-sexual issues!”
“Counselling dealt with that problem quickly,” Hiroki replied, “but you calling Iron Man ‘Daddy’…”
“Hey, ‘Daddy’ is NOT on the table here!” hissed Spider-Man.
“But, you DID call him ‘Dad’, Spider-man,” continued the Green Goblin, making us remember him.
“You, shut up!” snapped Spider-Man. “You’ve done nothing but lie since I webbed you up!”
“All right, all right, I WAS lying about Doctor Doom and his wife forcing me to take X,” admitted the Goblin. “They offered me dibs on studying it for our alliance. The ‘Dad’ thing, however? That happened.”
“AHA!” cheered Spider-Man. “He admitted his alibi was a lie! It was a trap! All part of my master plan!”
“Good work,” praised Iron Man, “son.” Spider-Man just sighed.
“That’s not gonna go away any time soon,” he muttered.
“So, what IS X?” I inquired.
“You wanna see?” offered Mickey.
“If it’s not too inconvenient,” I replied.
“We COULD use a fresh perspective,” mused Mickey. “Come with us.”
“I’ll take Gobby to jail,” declared Iron Man as he slung the Green Goblin’s cocoon over his shoulder and took off.
“I guess…I’ll just go back on patrol,” sighed Spider-Man. Just then, his phone rang. He looked at the number. “Oh no, Aunt May! I’m late!” he yelped. He pulled his mask up as far as his mouth and started talking to his Aunt while swinging on the rooftops. “Hi, Aunt May!” he began. “Sorry! I got into a scrape with the Green Goblin…” His voice finally faded away as he swung home.
“Follow me, please,” directed Mickey as he led us to the castle.
“Er, hello?” called War. “My Source?”
“The sensors at the castle should help me find it,” replied Kit-10. “In the meantime, the Castle awaits. Spit-spot!”
“…Did…you just quote Mary Poppins at me?” quizzed a confused War as she followed us. We were granted access to the castle and escorted to the main science bay where Dr. Banner was working with Professor Ludwig Von Drake.
“Professor…” began Mickey before he was interrupted by a an explosion that knocked Dr. Banner backwards and made him turn into the Hulk. The Hulk then hit a wall and massaged his head.
“…Ow,” he grunted. Professor Von Drake turned to us, smoking from being so near the explosion.
“May I help you with something?” he asked weakly.
“These people are here to see X and use our sensors to find some source,” explained Mickey.
“The ‘S’ is capital,” grunted War, “like Discworld’s Assassins.”
“Very well,” declared Professor Von Drake. “Dr. Banner, could you show the one needing the sensors to the necessary workstation?”
“Fine,” grunted the Hulk. Kit-10 followed the Hulk out of the room.
“Everyone else, follow me, please,” directed Professor Von Drake. He led us to a room that had a door on the other end and a workstation with a monitor near the door. “Now, to see if the cameras work,” muttered Professor Von Drake. He fiddled with the monitor before groaning in frustration.
“Mind if I take a peek?” offered Irina.
“Wear these,” directed Mickey as he tossed her a pair of heavy gloves. “The last person who touched it with his bare hands turned into ashes.”
“Got it,” replied Irina as she put the gloves on. The door opened to allow her access to X’s chamber. Once it shut, Professor Von Drake managed to switch the audio on. “Privet,” (Hello) greeted Irina. “Menya zovut Irina. Kak vas zovut?” (My name is Irina. What’s your name?)
“Ex,” was the reply. The tone…sounded hauntingly familiar.
“…Lights,” requested Irina.
“What?” asked Professor Von Drake.
“Lights!” repeated Irina. Professor Von Drake then keyed in a command.
“The lights SHOULD be on,” reported the Professor.
“They are,” replied Irina, “but now I wish they weren’t. It’s a Dalek. Shocker Rift casing, Drone Class if the color scheme is anything to go by.”
“Not what I wanted to hear,” I groaned.
“Good news, the Dalek is damaged,” continued Irina. “Better news, it’s unarmed. A perfect opportunity to destroy it.”
“What?! NO!” protested Professor Von Drake.
“Professor, with all due respect,” countered Gandalf, “that is not your decision to make.”
“Proceed with the Dalek’s destruction,” I directed.
“Spasibo,” (Thank you) bid Irina.
“Vortex Driver!” announced her belt.
“Henshin!” called Irina. The machinery of the wardrobe could be heard as it attached her armor to her. Professor Von Drake quickly opened the door to try and stop her but she was already in her Rider persona, Kamen Rider Climb. Professor Von Drake and Mickey tried to hold her back as I tried to get them out of the way. During our struggle, however, we all failed to notice a particle of light from Climb’s wardrobe land on the Dalek. It enveloped the killer and reactivated a few systems. We all stopped struggling when we heard it gurgle.
“Rift…particle…extrapolated,” it croaked. “Beginning…casing…regeneration!” It then started moving!
“EVERYONE OUT!” I shouted. We all managed to get out and seal the room.
“Why are you so panicked?” asked Professor Von Drake. “The lock has 387,420,489 possible combinations. It can’t get out.”
“That may be a drone Dalek, but it’s still a genius,” I argued. “It can calculate a trillion combinations in ten seconds flat!”
“It’s over ten seconds right now,” observed War.
“…You’re right, it should be attacking us by now,” I realized.
“It’s unarmed, remember?” reminded Climb.
“That plunger can crush a man’s skull!” I replied.
“A slow death, too slow for a Dalek,” countered Climb.
“Why do you talk about that ‘Dalek’ as if it is a bad guy?!” snapped Professor Von Drake.
“Since they aren’t native to your universe and since I’m the expert on their native universe, I’ll explain,” I began. “The Daleks are an alien race originally a humanoid race called the Kaleds. The Kaleds were at war with the Thals, embroiled in a nuclear war over control of their mutual home planet of Skaro. To try and break the thousand year deadlock, the Kaled Chief Scientist, Davros, accelerated the mutations of his species into their ‘Ultimate’ state. What he created, he placed in a metal war machine. Cue the Dalek Empire, spanning across time and space in more ways than one. Because of their liberal use of time travel, the Dalek Empire threatens to collapse under the weight of its own paradoxes.”
“…You mean…” gulped Mickey.
“That thing has something alive inside,” confirmed Alesandro.
“We have had one too many dealings with the Daleks,” muttered Gandalf.
“Well, it’s unarmed, as you say,” mused Professor Von Drake. “Perhaps we can reason with it?”
“Reason with it?” repeated Hiroki. “Professor, you DON’T reason with a Dalek. They can’t be reasoned with.”
“Nonsense,” dismissed the Professor. ‘Everything wants something!”
“Who is one of your more brilliant colleagues?” I asked.
“Shuri of Wakanda,” answered the Professor.
“And Wakanda’s population is?” quizzed War.
“6,000,000,” replied the Professor.
“All dead,” declared Charline. “If the Dalek gets out, it will kill every Wakandan. Man, woman, child, it makes little difference to the Dalek.”
“Why would it WANT to kill innocent people?!” snapped the Professor, still not believing us.
“Because we’re genetically inferior,” explained Discornia. “The Daleks hold the belief that they are the purest life-forms in existence. Any other life-form is an abomination that must be, as they so eloquently put it, exterminated. It’s the ultimate racial cleanser and now it’s loose!” The door then hissed as it opened to reveal the Dalek.
“Weapons!” I called as those of us who didn’t transform into our Rider personas readied our belts.
“Parlay!” barked the Dalek.
“…Pardon?” I quizzed.
“I invoke the right of Parlay!” replied the Dalek.
“…ARE YOU KIDDING?!” I shouted.
“Like you would know what Parlay means!” taunted Alesandro.
“I do!” barked the Dalek. “Neither side has a clear advantage!”
“You don’t have a gunstick, we have weapons to pierce your hide,” I argued. “I’d say WE have the advantage!”
“My shielding is online!” replied the Dalek. “I can cancel out any attacks, be they melee or ranged! When you tire, my shield will be down. Once you regain your strength and resume the assault, my shield will be restored and the cycle begins again!” I then sighed.
“Stalemate, then,” I muttered. “All right, we’ll hear you out.”
“Michael!” snapped Irina, remembering when she was put into a coma on Skaro.
“I don’t like it any more than you do,” I replied. I then turned to the Dalek. “Proceed.”
“You are looking for War’s Source and the Tarlaxian Scout ship!” began the Dalek. A statement rather than a question.
“Correct,” I answered.
“Both are believed to have been taken to the Eastern-European country of Latveria!” reported the Dalek. “Doctor Doom and his wife, Maleficent, intend to dissect the Tarlaxians within 103,984.8 rels!”
“…How long is a rel?” asked the Professor.
“Three Earth seconds!” answered the Dalek. Professor Von Drake then started calculating, first multiplying 103,984.8 by three, then dividing that answer by sixty, then dividing by sixty again to get 86.654 hours.
“These ‘Tarlaxians’,” he reported, “have three days, fourteen hours, 39 minutes, and fourteen seconds before they’re taken apart!”
“Latveria is also in possession of my weapon!” barked the Dalek.
“So, we go talk to Doctor Doom,” I guessed, “and convince him not to dissect the Tarlaxians while you grab your gunstick and then we’ll fight over the Source?”
“Correct!” replied the Dalek.
“…Done,” I answered.
“Not done!” barked War.
“Done,” countered Irina.
“The Daleks put you into a coma!” snapped War.
“It was Davros who put me into a coma,” argued Irina.
“Because that makes it SO much better!” growled War.
“We need the Source,” I countered. “Dalek, we agree to your terms.”
“Very well!” barked the Dalek. “We will proceed immediately! Immediately!” I called up Kit-10.
“Kit-10, there’s a change of plans,” I began. “Meet us in the hangar. We’re taking X to Latveria. Keep your stun blaster trained on it as X is a Dalek Drone.”
“…And why, pray tell, are we taking a Dalek to Latveria?” quizzed Kit-10.
“Its weapon, the Source, and the Tarlaxian Scout ship are located there,” I explained. “We have a truce until the Dalek is rearmed, then we proceed to fight over the Source.”
“A rather shaky truce,” muttered Kit-10. “On my way.” She ended the call.
“The hangar’s this way,” directed Mickey. He led us all through the castle to the hangar.
“While we’re walking, I have a question,” called Alesandro. “Did Maleficent REALLY marry Doctor Doom?”
“She did,” replied Mickey. “I wasn’t invited. Then again, it was a villains-only wedding. Iago DID get me footage of the…”
“SILENCE!” barked the Dalek.
“You’re not in a position to give orders!” I snapped as I advanced on the Dalek.
“KEEP AWAY!” yelped the Dalek as it reversed.
“I knew it,” I hissed, “you’re scared without your precious gunstick.”
“Can we please?!” snapped Mickey. “We’re here.” We had entered the hangar, united with Kit-10, and boarded an aircraft with Mickey’s usual symbol on it. We boarded the vessel and sat down in various seats while Mickey took the pilot’s seat and Professor Von Drake took the Copilot’s seat. The Dalek just stood there, twitching all the while. “Could somebody strap X in?” called Mickey.
“That is not required!” barked the Dalek. “I will remain on the floor if we encounter turbulence!”
“How do you know?!” I snapped as I fastened safety straps onto Kit-10.
“…I am Dalek Drone 8872345!” declared the Dalek.
“You’re a murderous b*****d that feels only hatred,” I hissed as we strapped in.
“All flight checks complete,” called Professor Von Drake. “We’re cleared for departure!”
“Off we go!” cheered Mickey as he fired up the engines. The hangar doors opened and we took off, making a beeline towards Latveria.