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A comedy of multiversal proportions! |
| [Introduction]
Let's be honest, this timeline we're all stuck in sucks. Royally! I'm pretty sure if given the chance, we all would choose to live in another time, or even another plane of existence. As long as it's better than this, right? Well, that's what this story is all about. Basically it's a mish mash of Back to the Future and Doctor Who. Martin McWry is just your average teenager living in your average, boring town where nothing exciting ever really happens. His only real friend is the resident recluse, Dr. Erwin Greene. When Dr. Greene invites Martin to help him test his latest invention on the edge of town in the middle of the night, Martin is skeptical, but decides to go anyway, having nothing better to do. That's when his dull life in this reality ends, and their adventures begin. Basically, the story will follow our two protagonists as they travel through time and even other universes using the doctor's inventions, searching for a more suitable place to call home, getting into various troubles and antics along the way. |
| Morton Hills, the kind of town where nobody outside of it even knew it existed. It was also about the most boring place imaginable, with absolutely nothing notable or significant about it. The time was about two in the morning, as a lone figure in jeans and a red hoodie rode his ten-speed through the abandoned, barely illuminated streets. This was local resident, Martin McWry, a high school junior who had spent literally his entire life in this armpit of a town, and yearned inside for something, anything exciting to happen in his life. Be careful what you wish for, Martin... Martin's only real friend in town was the neighborhood recluse, Dr. Erwin Greene. They had met back when Martin used to work a paper route, and accidentally sent one smashing through the doctor's window. While Greene was less than happy at first, Martin offered to do some work around his home to make up for it. Greene accepted and was soon impressed by Martin's willingness to accept responsibility and work ethic, and the two of them eventually became friends. It turns out that the good doctor fancied himself as an inventor and student of the scientific arts. Around his home were various contraptions he made himself to aid in day-to-day tasks. By his own account, he was once a teacher at a prestigious university forced to resign by the board because of his crazy theories. Martin made his way to the very edge of town, to a long stretch of road where Greene had specifically asked to meet him. Why he insisted on meeting at this ungodly hour, Martin had no clue. When he reached the designated spot, he lowered his kickstand and dismounted as he heard a familiar barking noise. He saw a German Shepherd running up to greet him. It was Dr. Greene's dog, Isaac. "Hey, Isaac, buddy!" Martin said, kneeling to pet the dog, who happily licked his face. "Where's Dr. Greene?" Isaac led Martin a bit further down the road to find the doctor himself, currently bent over the engine of what looked to be a classic 1950s hotrod, which, despite its age, looked to be in practically pristine condition. "Doc, I'm here!" "Martin! Glad you could make it!" Doctor Greene said as he closed the hood of the car and greeted his young friend. Dr. Greene wore his usual lab coat and boots, and the top of his head was bald with wild, white unkempt locks on the sides. "All the preparations have been made, and everything is ready to go." "Go where, Doc? And where did you get the car?" "Away from this miserable timeline, that's where! I don't know if you watch the news, but if not, believe me when I say, you're not missing anything. Every day, it's nothing but mass shooting this and natural disaster that. And that's on a good day! I moved to this town because I wanted to get away from the outside, away from the endless turmoil. But now I fear even a place like this will no longer be safe." "What are you talking about?" "Open your eyes, Martin! This entire planet has been steadily going down the toilet for the last twenty plus years! But I have a way out, Martin! This car is my latest and greatest invention, the Time And Space Interdimensional Traveler! Or TASIT, for short." Martin looked at his friend as though he had completely gone off the deep end, crossing his arms over his chest. "Right...so you're saying this car can travel through time?" Dr. Greene had never seemed so excited before. "Not just time! It can travel through the fabric of the universe itself! Into other realities and dimensions! Imagine what awaits us in another world, Martin! It's got to be better than this miserable planet, right?" "Doc, what are you saying? You turned an antique car into some kind of time machine/dimensional portal, and want to leave this reality in hopes of finding a better one?" "Yes! That's it exactly!" "Doc... no offense, but I think you must have hit your head pretty hard or something. This is completely ridiculous! I know you're an inventor, but I highly doubt anybody could make such a device." "Oh no? Why don't you put your money where your mouth is, then? You get in the passenger seat, and I'll prove I'm not crazy!" Martin decided that for their friendship's sake, he'd humor the doctor and his absurd fantasy. They both got in the front seats of the car, with Isaac climbing into the back seat. Martin's eyes widened as he saw that the dashboard of the car was covered in various displays, buttons, and switches. "So, where to?" Dr. Greene asked. Martin sighed, unable to believe he was really doing this. "Well, I've always wanted to go back to the 1980s, even though I wasn't born then." "Okay then! Next stop,1985!" Dr. Greene pressed some buttons on a control panel, flipped some switches, then slammed his foot on the gas, causing the car to zoom forward at high speed. Not expecting the sudden acceleration, Martin let out a startled cry as they flew down the straight highway out of town. The speedometer was steadily going higher, and higher, until suddenly... |
| They showed up somewhere. However, it wasn't 1985. Or, if it was, it was a very different 1985. |
| Sure, it was 1985, but something was quite off. Sure, everything was normal: a tree stood tall in a neighbor's yard, a giraffe was mowing its lawn- Wait a minute! A giraffe mowing its lawn? Martin was puzzled. Before he could say anything, a dog wearing clothes and a female human approached him. "Hey, neighbor," the dog said. "I'm Kyle." "And I'm Savannah," the woman added. "Savannah's my wife," Kyle replied. "Hi," Martin said timidly. "I don't suppose you have a pet cat or something?" "What's a pet?" Savannah asked. Martin couldn't believe what he heard. How could she not know what a pet was? "Forget I asked that," he said. "Sure thing," Kyle said as he and Martin shook hands. Before Martin could say anything, a really chubby cat with a goatee and wearing cargo pants with a belt and a shark tooth necklace approached the three after getting something from his mailbox. "Hey, Kyle," he asked. "Who's your new friend?" "Uh, Martin," Martin replied. "I don't know anyone by that name," the cat said. "You must be new to the neighborhood. Come with me. I'll introduce you to my housemates." He escorted Martin to his house which was nearby. An equally chubby wolf with a goatee and wearing cargo shorts with a belt and a shark tooth necklace pulled up on a lawnmower. "Andy!" He cried. "You didn't tell me we had a new neighbor!" "Actually," Andy said. "His name's Martin. Martin, this is Jim." "Uh, nice to meet you, Jim," Andy said, extending his hand for a handshake. Jim extended his hand and the two shook. "Andy, you said you had housemates," Martin whispered to Andy. "Jim is just one." "Actually, there's five of us," Jim said. He and Andy escorted Martin into the house. Sure enough, there were three other animals in the house: a bear, a fox, and a rabbit. All of them were as chubby as Andy and Jim and they all had goatees and wore cargo shorts with a belt and shark tooth necklaces. "Everyone, this is Martin!" Jim announced. "I'm Harold," the bear said. "I'm Greg," said the fox. "And I'm Sam," the rabbit replied. "Nice to meet you all," Martin said. "Want to stay for dinner?" Greg said. "We ordered three pizzas," Sam added. "The more, the merrier," Harold said. |
| After the pizza arrived, the group sat in the living room and ate as they got acquainted with their new "neighbors". "So, where are you two from?" Greg asked. Martin and Dr. Greene both suddenly became visibly nervous. How were they supposed to explain they were from the future, and a world where anthropomorphic animals don't exist? "Let's just say we're from somewhere very far from here. We'd rather not discuss it." Dr. Greene said quickly. "I noticed your car outside." Sam said, "I appreciate the classic cars quite a bit myself. It's a what, 57?" "55, actually." Dr. Greene said. "Anyway, it's been wonderful meeting you all, but we really should be going." "Stop by anytime!" Harold said as the group waved farewell and the duo made their way to the door. "Doc, just what the hell is going on?" Martin said the instant they were out of earshot. "It would seem we not only travelled back to 1985, but to an alternate reality as well." Dr. Greene replied, "I must have hit the wrong switch on the control panel by mistake. Regardless, it makes little difference. We'll just get back in the TASIT and try again. But as they tried to activate the car again, smoke came billowing from under the hood as sparks began to fly from the dashboard. "Well, that's not good!" Doc said through violent coughing fits. "Now what's the problem?" An exasperated Martin exclaimed. "Clearly, something's wrong with the car's inner workings. It might be the engine itself, or maybe something more technical. Until we figure which, and fix it...it looks like we're stuck here." |
| "Although, there is a question or two on my mind," said Dr. Green. "What do the meat eaters eat, because I want to know what that pepperoni was made of." "Why do you ask that?" Martin asked. "Well, they mentioned not knowing what a pet was," said Dr. Green. "Makes one wonder if they have livestock or wild game, and if said livestock or wild game are sapient or not." "Meaning?" "Well, if they only eat those that die of old age, natural causes, accidents, and don't actively try to kill folks in order to eat them, we might be okay for a while," said Dr. Green. "Otherwise, I'm going to double-check to make sure that I remembered my Colt Peacemaker revolver, along with my Colt 1911, my Winchester 1873, and my Remington 870, not to mention my kukri and bowie." "Why are you going to check for that?" Martian asked, as Dr. Green opened his glove box. "Because I'd rather have them, and not need them, than not have them, and need them," the doctor said. "Good news is, I at least remembered the handguns and ammunition for them." "What if we don't need them, and these guys see them?" Martin asked. "What then?" "We simply ask if they are legal here, and explain that our old neighborhood was very dangerous," Dr. Green said, as he pulled down the back seat, and checked inside something in the trunk. "Looks like I remember those too." He backed out of the trunk area. "I'm surprised you brought them anyways," said Martin. "Because, if something happens, and we drop them here, they won't look unusual if dug up in fifty or so years," said Dr. Green. "Try to make sure that weapons fit in with the era you are planning to be in. An M4A1 dropped in 1863 would look very odd to an Archeologist in 1933." |
| At that moment, Kyle and Savannah approached them, having heard their mumbling. "We saw you talking out our window," Kyle said. "What were you talking about?" "Well, how do I put this?" Dr. Greene said. "What is your meat made of?" "Meat?" Savannah asked. "Why do you ask?" "Well, your neighbors invited us for pizza," Martin replied. "And we want to know what that pepperoni is made of." "Oh," Kyle said. "Meat is grown like fruits and vegetables." "It was nice the Fat Boys would invite you to their house for pizza," Savannah said. "Why did you give them that hurtful name?" Dr. Greene protested. "That's because they're all chubby," Kyle said. "They've been friends since childhood." "Maybe they can help us fix the TASIT," Martin whispered to the professor. "These two?" Dr. Greene asked, gesturing to Kyle and Savannah. "No, the Fat Boys," Martin said. "Sam did say he appreciated classic cars quite a bit." Dr. Greene tossed up his hands. "Worth a shot," he said. "Let's go talk to them." |
| Ringing the Fat Boy's doorbell, they were greeted by Greg. "Oh, hey! Back again so soon?" After a brief moment of hesitation, Martin said, "Sorry to bother you guys, but can Sam give us a hand with something? We're having a bit of car trouble." "Hey, Sam!" Greg called over his shoulder, "Our new neighbors need your help!" After helping the duo push the TASIT into the nearby garage, Sam prepared to open the hood. "Okay, let's see what the problem is." Before they could stop him, Sam looked into the engine bay and was speechless at what he saw. "What the...? What kind of car is this? There are all sorts of weird parts and doo-dads in here that I've never seen?" Thinking quickly, Dr. Greene said, "Let's just say it's an experimental prototype." Which wasn't exactly a lie. "Most of it runs off the V8 Engine, however. We think that might be part of the problem. Can you fix it?" Sam scratched his chin thoughtfully. "If it's a regular V8, I should be able to, but it'll take some time." "No rush." Martin said, "We've got all the time in the world." He meant that last part quite literally. "While you're waiting, why don't you see if Greg will show you around the neighborhood?" Sam asked as he retrieved his toolbelt. Figuring there was nothing better for them to do at the moment, Martin and the Doc did just that. As Greg was giving them the tour, they saw something that almost made their jaws drop to the ground. This reality's alternative versions of themselves! |
| "That's something to be careful of," said Dr. Green. "I have no idea what could happen. Could be nothing, could be the end of the galaxy." |
| "You mean we can't come in contact with them?" Martin asked. "Precisely," Dr. Greene said. Martin studied the pair. Dr. Greene's counterpart was a hippo in stretched taut. Martin's counterpart was an Arctic fox. "You guys okay?" Greg asked. "Not a problem," Martin said. "Do people call you and your friends the Fat Boys just to mock you?" "Not really," Greg said. "We were all thin before we moved in. When we moved in, we found out we had let ourselves go. We've called ourselves the Fat Boys ever since." "How's President Reagan doing?" Dr. Greene asked. "President Reagan," Greg said. "Our 39th President, he's still in office." "39th?" Martin asked. "But I thought Grover Cleveland was President twice." Greg chuckled, the laughter welling up from his large stomach. "Grover Cleveland's second presidency is just a myth," he laughed. "Like the Loch Ness Monster, the Queen of England, or Dan Rather." |
| Wait a minute, Martin thought, how is there an alternate me when I wasn't even born in 1985? He figured since this was an alternate universe, he must have a different birthdate here before pushing the thought out of his head. "So, what all is there to do for entertainment here?" He asked. "Well, let's see," Greg said, counting on his fingers. "There's the park, the swimming pool, the theater, the mall, basically all the stuff you would expect. Say, it's about lunchtime, wanna head to the food court for a bite to eat? I'm buying." Martin and Dr. Green looked at each other, shrugged, and agreed. Next thing they knew, they were enjoying burgers and milkshakes at the mall with Greg. As they ate, Martin couldn't help but admire the waitress who seemed to be around his age. She was quite a fox, in every sense of the word. Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find himself face-to-face with his alternate universe counterpart. "Hey, you looking at my girl?" His other self growled, cracking his knuckles threateningly. Martin stammered uncontrollably, completely stumped as to how to respond. In the back of his mind, he noted that he wasn't normally the confrontational type, so it would seem his alternate self had a different personality from him as well. |
| "Well, there goes that theory," Dr. Green muttered. "Lad, if I were you, I wouldn't start a fight with some random stranger. Knew a fool that did that once - turns out that the fella he tried to fight was an expert in that karate stuff, boxing, wrestling, a bunch of things I can pronounce the names of. Do you know what beat that fool though?" "What?" the fox asked. "Expert's buddy grabbed a chair and smashed it over the fool's head, and while the guy was dazed, they swept their legs from under them," said Dr. Green. "Sounds like a fight I saw," said the hippo. "Maybe we were at the same bar that day," said Dr. Green. "Then again, fools all over, are a lot alike." He made a certain gesture. The hippo looked at him, nodded, and grabbed the fox's shoulder, and all but dragged him to another table. "Know the feeling. Fools all over are a lot alike." The hippo then whispered something to the fox. The fox looked at the hippo, and then Martin and Dr. Green in shock. "What's with that gesture?" Martin asked. "A secret code between brothers," said Dr. Green. "Means nothing to anyone else, but between me and my brother, it meant, 'I saw you steal those cookies' when I was 8 and he was 6 - I was the one to take the cookies. Had to bribe him with some to keep him from telling mom." |
| "Let's not let it happen again," Martin said. Without warning, the two could hear a loud growl. They looked around and heard the growl again. This time, they saw where it was coming from: Greg's belly! "Whoa!" He shouted. "I'm hungrier than before!" "No joke," Dr. Greene said. At that moment, he and Martin heard footsteps pounding nearby. It was Jim! "You guys want to come with us to the pool?" He asked the two. "I'm buying." "But we didn't bring swimsuits," Dr. Greene said. "You'll have to buy them." "Then it's a good thing I know where we can find you two some swimsuits," Jim said. |
| After stopping by a nearby shop, Martin and the Doc got themselves some swim trunks and followed Jim to the local swimming pool. On the way there, they noticed a certain hippo and artic fox who seemed to be tailing them. "They're not very good at the whole looking inconspicuous thing, are they?" Martin whispered with a bit of a chuckle. Once at the pool, the two sat on the edge of the deep end with their feet soaking in the water, as they discussed their next move. "This place doesn't seem so bad." Martin said, "But I'm curious as to what other universes and time periods might be like." "As am I." Dr. Green admitted, "Once the TASIT is fixed, we'll keep shopping around, so to speak. I wonder if Sam has made any progress?" Just then, they saw Jim climbing up the high dive. "Oh no," Martin whispered. "We should probably head back now, because it's about to be Nagasaki here." Dr. Greene agreed, and they both hastily retreated to the exit as Jim reached the top og the diving board. No sooner than they left, there was a loud SPLASH, and a huge wave erupted from the pool, soaking dozens of locals. Not long after, Jim followed close behind, soaking wet with a sour look on his face. "Not my fault the stupid diving board wasn't strong enough." |
| "With how big folks can get, you'd think it would be rated for thousand plus pound capacity," said someone else. |
| Martin turned to see who it was who said that: Harold! "Hey, Jim," he said. "I was wondering if our guests would like to join you, me, and Greg for a walk in the park." "Sure, why not?" Dr. Greene said. "Last one there's a rotten egg!" Jim shouted. Martin and Dr. Greene were the first ones to reach the park since Jim, Harold, and Greg were exhausted when they got there. "Phew!" Greg said. "We need to sit down!" So he, Jim, and Harold sat down on a park bench to rest, but it couldn't support all three of them, so it broke. "And I'm Theodor Geisel," Martin said. "I guess with the Fat Boys, there's no such thing as famine," Dr. Greene replied. "I don't know," Martin said. "These guys are fun." "We've got to focus on the task at hand," Dr. Greene said. "We must wait until the TASIT is fixed." |
| By the time evening rolled around, the time-travelling duo and the fat boys found themselves at a local bar, enjoying the nightlife of the town. "Go ahead, have a drink on me!" Greg said. "But I'm underage." Martin replied, "Don't you remember? They lowered the drinking age to seventeen last year." Said Harold. This intrigued Martin. He had never tried alcohol before, and always thought the twenty-one-and-over law was stupid. If you were allowed to join the military at eighteen, you should be allowed to drink too, he figured. So, he decided to live it up a little tonight and ordered a pint of lager, while Doc had a cocktail. Unbeknownst to them, the drinks of this universe were also much stronger than those of ours, and before long, before either of them knew what was going on, they found themselves waking upon the floor and sofa of the Fat Boys' house with throbbing headaches and no memory of how they got there. "Uuuughhh...my head..." Martin groaned "What happened?" Doc said as he regained consciousness, feeling no better, if not worse than Martin. "You two had quite the adventure last night," Greg said as he came into the room carrying two cups of a strange, unfamiliar liquid. "Here, sip this, it'll help with the hangovers you two no doubt have." "What happened?" Martin asked as he did so, almost afraid to hear the answer. |
| "But we're heavyweights," Jim said. "I'm the heaviest, so we go from heaviest to lightest in leadership. In this case, the next heaviest are Harold, Sam, Andy, and Greg." "Oh," said Martin. "I wonder how Sam's doing on our car." "Actually," Sam said as he entered the room. "I need a new part to fix it." "That's where we come in!" Said a voice. The alternate versions of Martin and Dr. Greene entered the room. "But weren't you -" Martin said. "I picked up a sense that these two were familiar," said Hippo Dr. Greene. "So I did some research, and it came to me that these two are from the future!" The Fat Boys gasped. "That's so cool!" Andy cried. "Have we landed on Mars? Do we have domestic robots catering to our every need?" "Maybe we can come with you to see for ourselves!" Greg said. "I don't think you could all fir in our car," Martin said. "You'll need to fetch some parts for us," Hippo Dr. Greene said. "They're at the carnival." "I'm sure we can keep the staff distracted," Arctic Fox Martin said. "My hippo counterpart and I will stay here and make some improvements to the TASIT," Dr. Greene said. "You guys retrieve the parts we need to repair it." With that, Martin, his Arctic fox counterpart, and the Fat Boys all left the house to go to the carnival. Once there, Martin and his Arctic fox counterpart had to pose as repairmen to get the parts for TASIT. Meanwhile, the Fat Boys were taking a trip through the House of Mirrors. |
| "So, what exactly are we looking for?" The human Martin asked his fox self. "We need some kind of special generator. I don't know where exactly it is, so we'll have to search every ride until we find it." Meanwhile, the Fat Boys made their way through the house of mirrors, laughing at their distorted reflections. When they came across one that made them look like their old, skinny selves, they just sighed in disappointment. "If only..." Greg said, remembering when he wasn't so overweight. "Well, it could be worse." Andy said, trying to cheer them up, "We may be fat, but we're still the same fun-loving guys we were back then. We could have changed a lot personality-wise." Nodding in agreement, the group continued through the attraction. Back with the Martins, they were pretending to inspect the bumper cars, looking for the part they needed. "I think this is it." Said Fox Martin, pointing to a piece of the electrical system that powered the cars. "You know when we pull this thing, the ride will shut down, right?" Asked Human Martin, "How will we explain that?" "We'll just tell them we had to shut it down for further maintenance or something. Now help me get this thing loose." |
| "Best be good with lying, as I can see what looks like maintenance, or a guard, coming this way," said Martin. |
| At that moment, the Arctic fox version of Martin took out a tazer and aimed it at the approaching guard. Back in the House of Mirrors, the Fat Boys past the skinny Mirrors, feeling better about their bodies. Jim stepped in front of a mirror that made him look top-heavy, Harold stepped in front of a mirror that made him look bottom-heavy, Sam stepped in front of a mirror that made him look like he had a big behind, Andy stepped in front of a mirror that made him look like he was shaped like a pear, and Greg stepped in front of mirror that made him look wider. Each of them began to comment on each other's reflections. Both versions of Martin called to them from the exit. "We got the parts!" The human version of Martin said. In no time at all, they returned to the Fat Boys' house as the two versions of Dr. Greene had made modifications to TASIT so that the Fat Boys would ride along with human Martin and human Dr. Greene. "Before we head to the future," human Greene said. "We need to test it by going back in time." "You know," Jim said. "I've always wanted to see the 1964 Olympics." His housemates all agreed. With that, Dr. Greene input the year 1964. After the same procedure as before, Martin, Dr. Greene, and the Fat Boys were speeding all the way to 1964, or a different version of 1964. When they emerged, they were a bit confused. It was 1964, but everywhere they looked, they saw jungle flora and fauna. "Oh, dear," Dr. Greene said. "It seems every country in 1964 is 100% jungle." "You don't say," Andy said as he heard a growling sound behind him. "Tell me that was your stomach," Greg said. But it wasn't Andy's stomach. It was a creature behind Andy. It was a big cat with a mane of hair surrounding it's head. "A lion!" Sam cried. "I know what to do," Harold said. "Drink water, hold your breath, hang upside-down." "Harold, that's hiccups," Jim said. The group began to run for their lives. As they got further into the jungle, a group of people dressed in black with weapons dropped in their path. "Ninjas!" Sam cried. "Jungle Ninjas, to be precise!" Dr. Greene said. |
| Okay, I think I've seen enough ridiculousness! Let's get outta here!" Martin said. Everyone agreed, and Doc threw the TASIT in reverse. "Where should we go?" "Anywhere but here!" Martin cried. In his haste to not be murdered by Jungle Ninjas, he began to panic and push buttons at random in a desperate attempt to escape. "Stop!" Doc exclaimed, "Don't press tha-" But it was too late, the TASIT entered the vortex once more, and when they emerged through the other side, they found themselves in a wide, sunny field lined with cornstalks. Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief. "So, where are we now?" Martin asked. Doctor Greene looked at the readout on the dashboard. "It seems we're still on Earth, at least. And not too far from our original time zone." Then he noticed something that made his heart drop into his stomach. "Oh no." The fuel gauge was on E. The TASIT was out of gas. "No worries." Martin said, "There must be a gas station somewhere nearby." "That won't help." Dr. Greene said dishearteningly. "The TASIT doesn't run on ordinary gasoline. It needs something with a lot more kick. Which I doubt we will be able to find, wherever we are." "Well, what does it run on?" "A mixture of my own formula, consisting of Uranium and a very high proof alcohol." The Fat Boys volunteered to find the alcohol they needed and went off to search for a liquor store or some such place that might have it. Still no clue where they would find uranium, but one step at a time. Just then, they saw a truck approaching far off in the distance. "Maybe they can help us." The truck pulled to a stop, and out stepped a large, burly-looking humanoid wolf creature, and a middle-aged human man carrying a walking stick with a thick knob on one end."Hello there." Dr. Greene greeted. "A bit far from home, aren't you?" the wolfman chuckled. "There aren't usually any humans in this area this time of the season." The man with the stick pulled the wolf man aside and whispered, "Looks to me like they're runaways. They probably stole that car from their owners and tried to escape. Didn't count on running out of gas." The wolf chuckled again. "You may be right, John. But until we figure out just who they belong to, let's take them back to the farm. They'll be our guests until we get things sorted out." The wolf man approached the humans once again. "Alright, you two get in the back of the truck. We're taking you both in." "Now wait just a minute, sir!" Dr. Greene protested. "Just who do you think-" But he was cut off as the one called John knocked him unconscious with a pressure point jab. "Come along now, and there won't be any trouble." He said to Martin in a warning tone. Knowing he stood no chance in a fight against these two, Martin reluctantly did as commanded. Loading the unconscious Doctor in next to him, the two drove back to their home, which was lined with three layers of electric fence and razor wire. "Looks more like a prison than a home." Martin thought as they passed a sign by the main gate, which read, "Wolfe Family Farm." |
| "I don't think that they are from around this area," said John, as he looked at Robert. "They don't talk or smell right. They don't even act like those Free Domesticated ones. No visible Feral Herd marks, unless those are under their clothes. Also, no Ownership brands, or at least, no obvious ones, but those might be under their clothes." |
| (I don't know if the characters are in the Wolfe Family Farm timeline or the Monster Mafia (which we haven't worked on in a while) timeline, so I'm just going with the Wolf Family Farm timeline.) The Fat Boys, who had seen the whole thing from a distance, followed Robert and John by foot, careful not to be seen. "What can we do?" Andy asked, worried about their new friends. "I've got a plan," Jim said. Before he could tell his housemates/friends his plan, a flurry of kunai came flying nearby. They started to cut the three layers of electric fence and razor wire, no problem. "I guess we go in," Sam said. That's what they did. They walked right through the hole in the fence, no problem. "Hey! What are you doing here?" Robert called from the house. "Get off my property!" "You heard him!" John said, stepping behind the Fat Boys. He was about to take them all out with pressure point jabs, but he was kicked in the back of the head which knocked him out. The Fat Boys saw who it was that knocked him out: a jungle ninja! Robert rushed up to Robert's aid armed with a pitch fork, but the jungle ninja chopped it in half with "his" katana and punched Robert, causing him to fall in defeat. "Who are you?" Greg demanded. The ninja unmasked himself, revealing "himself" to be a human girl with black hair who looked like she was 18 years old. "Hey," she said. "The name's Rosalina. I saw you back there in my home. So, I hid in your car and now I'm here, wherever here is." "We saw what happened with our friends," Harold said. "Can you help us?" "Can you help |
| Before Roslaina could answer, she and the Fat Boys felt a sharp sting as they were hit by tranquilizer darts. Falling unconscious, they woke to find they had been stripped of their clothes and whatever equipment Roslina may have had, and instead dressed in the standard white outfits of the human residents of The Wolfe Farm. They seemed to be in some sort of barracks where the resident humans were kept. John and Robert had recovered from their encounter with Rosalina and stood before them, alongside the rest of the Wolfe family, as well as Martin and Dr. Greene. "Sorry about the darts." Robert said, "But you had made yourselves out as threats, and we couldn't take any chances." "Thanks to you, there's now a huge hole in the fence that needs to be patched," John said to Rosalina. His voice was stern, but he gave a knowing wink to her, much to her confusion. "I can have it repaired by tomorrow," Robert said. "In the meantime, James can keep watch so that nobody tries to escape." The oldest of the Wolfe's children nodded in response. "Now then, while you're here, feel free to go anywhere you like on the property, just stay behind the perimeter of the fence. I know you're thinking of finding a way to escape, but I'll save you the trouble and tell you right now that it's impossible. No human has ever escaped from this farm, and we intend to keep it that way. John, go ahead and show them around." "John motioned for the humans to follow, as Robert turned to the Fat Boys. "As for you lot, you trespassed on my property, and for all I know, you could be human rustlers. You'll be staying here until I get this situation sorted out. |
| As Martin, Dr. Green, and Rosalina reluctantly followed John, they looked at the other humans. There was something off about all of them. Even the one known as John seemed odd. "Is this some sort of prison or treatment facility for criminals or those with disabilities?" Martin asked. John looked at them, the three actually getting a good look, seeing the various visible tattoos he had, one on his face showing an image of a human standing over two beheaded wolves, a smaller human behind the bigger one. "You're clearly not from around here. You got no marks of ownership, nor any herds tattoos, and certainly none that were forcibly removed. You also don't even have any silvered weapons." He looked at Rosalina. "I was especially surprised that you weren't and I removed six thin throwing points off of you, after I had already removed your outfit." Martin looked at Rosalina, before looking back at John. "What do you mean by that?" "They performed a Cavity Search, Martin," said Dr. Green. "Explains why my ass is sore at the moment, same with my throat." It was then that Martin paid attention to his own sores. "Seriously? Why?" "Let's just say that werewolves don't like finding silvered blades and the like in their food," said John. Martin looked back at the one sign, before looking back at John. "They breed humans to be food?" "That they do," said John. "That's something I was worried about," said Dr. Green. John looked at Rosalina. "Now, I can guess that those two have had a mostly, comparatively speaking, pampered life - no malnutrition or serious injuries, or anything that screams fighter. You though, you interest me. While you lacked any silver weapons, you still had enough blades, not to mention the musculature, that I have to wonder if you're an unmarked Feral, like some of those that live in the towns and cities tend to do, including your use of easily concealable weaponry, not to mention your choice of hiding places for your back-up weapons. Either your mate is a patient one, or you don't have one, yet. If you don't have one, or want another, let me know - if I get a chance, I got to introduce you to my Tobias, if he's still alive, which I hope he is. He's be about 17, maybe 18, now. He could use a good mate, and one that can not only give Robert a handful, and knock me out - that's someone I want him to meet, and have a child with." "And if I'm not interested?" Rosalina asked. John chuckled. "I'm smart enough to not push such things. I know how my mate is, or was." He looked past the fence. "I wish I could see her again, my Bella." |
| "You know," Rosalina said. "Come closer." John leaned forward. "Closer." John leaned even closer. WHAM! Rosalina gave him a devastating headbutt. "Junglejitsu Master Rosalina summons the spirit of the elephant!" She cried. As James rushed up to her, she grabbed him by the throat and threw him really hard until he landed in a tall tree. "Junglejitsu Master Rosalina summons the spirit of the shark!" She cried. He ran up to Robert and bit him in the neck before flipping him onto his back. "Junglejitsu Master Rosalina summons the spirit of the bat!" She cried. She leapt into the air her weapons found their way back to her. She released the captives with a slice of her katana. At this moment, Robert's only daughter Hanna came running to help her father, but Rosalina was too quick for her. She beat her with all she had. "Come on!" She told Martin, Dr. Greene, and the Fat Boys. "I've got what you need for your car! Let's go!" They all piled into the car (which Robert had ordered to be towed to the property when Martin and Dr. Greene were captured). At that moment, Robert's wife Julia came running to help her family up. "Is everyone all right?" She asked. "Wait a minute!" James gasped. "Where's Billy?" "Over there!" Robert cried, pointing to the intruders' car. In the trunk was a small, 7-year-old runt of a werewolf with a chunk missing from his ear who had climbed in before it took off. "Hang on, Billy!" Julia cried. "We're coming!" Everyone made a dash for their truck. Julia tied a bandanna around her head and got into the driver's seat while Robert began fumbling through his overalls for the keys. When he found them, he tossed them to his wife and climbed into the passenger seat. Then, Julia slammed "We've got company!" Sam cried, seeing their truck in the rear view mirror. "We'll have to go somewhere else!" Dr. Greene said. "What about 1975?" Andy suggested. "I've always wanted to meet the first cast of Saturday Night Live!" Dr. Greene input the year 1975 and hit the gas. As the Wolfes' truck came closer to them, TASIT began to zoom before Robert could grab Billy from the truck. ZAP! It disappeared without a trace. "Oh, cripes," Robert said. "Here come the waterworks!" He leaned onto Julia's shoulder as their youngest (and smallest) son was whisked away to 1975 as a stowaway on TASIT. Upon their arrival to 1975, the group noticed something strange about everyone living in that time: people were doing magic! Real magic! |
| Everyone they saw was dressed in typical 70's style clothes, but there were several unusual sights as well. Unusual to them, at least, such as lawnmowers cutting grass on their own, and people seemingly appearing from nowhere, teleporting from place to place instead of walking or driving. They decided to get out and explore a bit, fascinated by this new reality. As they did, they passed through a local farmer's market, where various vendors were selling all kinds of goods. "Potions! Get your potions here! Brewed by master alchemists, guaranteed to cure what ails you!" "Enchanted items, right here! Dishes that clean themselves, tools that always stay sharp, and much more! All at reasonable prices!" "I've got a lovely bunch of dragon eggs! Here they are, all sitting in a clutch!" "Did he say dragons?" Martin whispered to Doc. "Wherever he got those eggs from, I hope the mother doesn't come looking for them while we're here!" They came to one stand in particular, which looked to be selling various articles of clothing. "See anything you like?" The stand owner asked. Upon closer inspection, everything appeared to be just regular pieces of fabric. "What does this stuff do?" Martin asked. "Each item has a different enchantment on it." The owner explained, "Watch this." He took a nearby scarf and wrapped it around his neck, instantly transforming into a beautiful woman in a red dress. He gave a knowing wink before removing the scarf and returning to his original form. The group was very impressed. "Do you have anything that could make us look thinner?" Greg asked eagerly. "I might, but I'm not sure what exactly. I've got so many enchanted clothes I've lost track of which does what. Feel free to browse all you like. I'll even let you each have one piece for free." "Really?" Doc said, astounded. "That's awfully generous of you. Why would you just give such items away?" "The author is telling me you may find something you might need later in the story." They all could only give confused looks in response. "Author? Story? What are you talking about?" Martin asked incredulously. "I have a rare gift that very few possess. The ability to see beyond the wall, so to speak. The authors have never steered me wrong before, so I know when to listen to their advice. Trust me." "Oooookaaaaayyyyyy..." Martin said, before turning his attention to the garments lining the stand, with the others following suit. They had no idea what this guy meant about "Authors" and "Stories" and "seeing beyond the wall." But if he was willing to just hand out magical items for nothing, they felt it was wise not to question it. Back at the TASIT, Billy Wolfe climbed out of the trunk and looked around, scared out of his wits by this strange new world. Should he get out before those strangers came back? Or take his chances on his own? |
| That was when a hand was placed on Billy's shoulder. Carefully, he looked, and found himself looking at a male human dressed in black, with dark sunglasses. "Your parents must be worried about you, young one," the human said. "I'll make sure that you'll return home, safely." Billy gulped as he looked at the human. The human seemed scarier than John on a bad day, simply by looking at him. "Stay in the vehicle for now," the human said. "I'll get the other time wanderers in a moment." A few minutes later, Dr. Green was wondering when the merchant was going to get to the point of their sales pitch when the merchant paused, and looked past them. "Hello, Mr. Blue," he said. Dr. Green and the rest turned around, to see the man in black. "Salim, I have business with these folks," said Mr. Blue. He flung a coin. The merchant caught it. They looked at it. "Understood." He looked at the group. "Thus concludes my role in this tale." Mr. Blue snapped his fingers, and the group was back at the TASIT, where they saw Billy in the back seat. "You need to watch out for stowaways when crossing time and space," the man said. "Now, get in the vehicle." "And if we don't?" Rosalina asked. "Let's start with the fact that you assaulted several folks in the last place you were at, and kidnapped their son - slash - sibling - slash - someone that they care about enough that they won't ask a whole lot of questions if I showed up by them with your corpse, especially since I can easily change myself to look like a fellow werewolf," said Mr. Blue. "As for your ninjutsu trick of calling out your attacks - " He flicked the first two fingers on his right hand upon the woman's forehead. Rosalina called an attack, and tried to jump him, only to not jump very far, and the landing was less than dignified. "Learned that maneuver from a Chinese Chi Wizard, who was also a master of Kung Fu," said Mr. Blue. "He's one of a small number who could beat me regularly. I'm glad he was never my enemy." He looked at the ninja, who was now getting to her feet, if a bit shaken. "I would stick to the basic punches and kicks for a while. Anything using Chi, Chakra, Magical energies, or anything like that, has been rendered exceptionally difficult to do, but not impossible. This lower level version wears off in ten minutes." "So, what are you going to do to us?" Dr. asked. "Simple, go to TEA HQ, and send you to your respective timelines and dimensions, and call it a day," said Mr. Blue. "Hopefully." "Hopefully?" Dr. Green asked. "Also, what does TEA mean?" "Time Enforcement Agency," said Mr. Blue. "We try to make sure that time doesn't end, which can happen when half a dozen timelines cross, and that requires a lot of work to undo. You folks were extremely close to ending it for each of your timelines. Now, you do as I say, and all will resolve in a quiet manner, and nothing bad will happen to billions of innocent folks." |
| That was when Martin noticed one of the computer typing by itself. The message on the screen was: "TEA is lying." This message was typing itself on the computer again and again. "Uh, guys," he stammered. "I think it's time to go." |
| "I wouldn't try running, if I were you." Mr. Blue said with a calm but threatening voice. "I can easily catch you." "Not if we split up!" Dr. Greene said, and they all ran in different directions. The mysterious man in the suit just sighed. "Why do they always want to make it more difficult?" He tapped a button on his wrist watch, and suddenly there were multiple copies of him standing at attention, side by side, before each took off after a different member of the group. |
| The chase, if it could be called that, didn't take long. The time wanderers were escorted back to the car, where the real Mr. Blue pulled out what looked like a white USB drive. "Now, to deal with the real issue," he said, plugging it into the computer. "Ah, there you are. Hiding in the nav-drive." He did some typing, and then, the USB drive changed colors to an angry red. He put on a glove, and pulled the USB drive out. "You had yourself a Time Gremlin. They like causing trouble when time streams cross. Nasty buggers - make the average computer virus seem tame." "Is that what sent that message?" Dr. Green asked. "Yes, and if I hadn't caught you, you would be responsible for the deaths of a hundred trillion people, at the bare minimum," said Mr. Blue. "Let's take a look at the little bugger." He popped the drive into a screen pad of sorts. A reptilian-like creature appeared. It was very angry. "How dare you ruin my fun, Mister Tea Agent?" they said, in a high-pitched voice. "You will pay for this!" "You might want to behave, or I'll toss you into an incinerator," said Mr. Blue. "I can do that to you, you know." The gremlin muttered something. "Okay," said Mr. Blue. "Now, let's get to HQ, and we can sort the mess out in a neat manner." "So, you're not going to harm us, right?" Dr. Green asked. "If I intended to do that, you would have been dead the moment that I laid eyes on you," said Mr. Blue. "You're not the first time wanderer I've had to assist when things happened, and you won't be the last..... that much I know." |
| "Get away from him!" A voice called. It was a man who looked a lot like Mr. Blue. He approached the Mr. Blue who was with the group and waved his hand in his face. In seconds, Mr. Blue turned into an ugly being with an eyepatch. "So, we meet again, Mr. Blue," he said. "You still trying to find the Time Gems, Slauntok?" Mr. Blue asked. "I'll find the Time Gems if it's the last thing I do!" Slauntok vowed before teleporting away. "Are you Mr. Blue?" Dr. Greene asked the man. "The one and only," Mr. Blue said. "I bet Slauntok was trying to send you to the eraser dimension?" "But he said we were going to end time for our timelines," Martin said. "No," Mr. Blue said. "You've done no damage from being removed from your time periods. Slauntok's planning on finding the Time Gems, if they are found, will allow him to destroy time." |
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