by R. L. Ullman
Scorpio looks at me, and then turns to the Emperor. “I’m sorry,” he starts. “But—”
“Wait!” I say, stepping forward. “I appreciate what you’re about to do, but I’ll go.”
“What?” Gemini says. “You can’t—”
“No,” I say. “It’s okay. Let me go, and then you guys should get out of here as fast as you can.”
“But he’ll kill you,” Taurus says, her fists clenched.
“And if I don’t go, he’ll kill you,” I say. “All of you. Trust me, this is for the best.” I stride to the center of the bridge and face the Emperor. “Take me. I’m ready.”
The Skelton Emperor can barely conceal his glee. “Beam over the Orb Master,” he commands. “Now.”
Orb Master? This isn’t about my so-called ‘crimes’ at all, is it? He wants me because of the Orb!
Suddenly, I feel a strange sensation.
I look down to see a crackling orange energy around my arms. Suddenly, my feet leave the ground. I’m being lifted into the air!
This doesn’t seem like any teleportation device?
“What is happening?” I hear the Emperor shout. “I ordered you morons to beam him across!”
Wait a minute! This is what happened to Siphon! And the Overlord!
“Elliott!” Gemini screams.
I see her racing towards me.
And then everything goes black.
I ENTER A GAME OF NIGHTMARES
I’m in a bed.
But it’s not my bed. The covers are stiff, and the pillow is too thin. I also don’t feel the weight of Dog-Gone pressing against my body. Usually, he hogs the covers and pushes me to the edge. This time I’m all alone—and, for once, I don’t think that’s a good thing.
I don’t know where I am, or how I got here. Then it all comes racing back to me, and my stomach drops in dread. The last thing I remember is being swept up in that mysterious, orange energy that zapped Syphon and the Overlord. On one hand, it saved me from being delivered to the Skelton Emperor’s warship. But on the other, it may have killed me, so if I’m in heaven right now I’ll be really, really annoyed.
I open my eyes, only to be blinded by bright lights glaring above. I shield my eyes, and take in my surroundings. Well, if I’m not dead, I’m guessing it’s the next best thing.
I’m in a small, white room roughly the size of a minivan. Other than the bed I’m lying in, which is sitting smack dab in the middle of the room, the only piece of furniture is a white bench to my right where my costume is sitting—neatly folded. So, wait a minute, does that mean …
I peek under the covers and realize I’m wearing white pajamas.
Whew!
That could have been embarrassing.
Hold on! I don’t remember putting on pajamas!
Wonderful.
As my eyes adjust, I notice something else that’s weird. There’s no door. So, how in the world did I—
“Good morning,” comes a voice.
I jump out of my skin.
To my right, sitting on the bench, is a tall, thin man who simply wasn’t there a second ago. He has white, slicked back hair and pale, purplish skin. He’s wearing a crisp, black business suit with a white pocket square and tie. What’s even more bizarre is that his eyes don’t have pupils—instead, they’re filled with stars.
“My apologies, I did not intend to alarm you,” he says, pulling out a small, round tin from inside his jacket. “Mint? After sleeping for so many days, I can only imagine how foul your mouth must taste.”
“Who are you?” I ask. “And exactly how long did you say I’ve been sleeping?”
“Suit yourself,” the man says, opening the tin and popping a small, white mint in his mouth. “To answer your first question, I am known as Order. As for your second question, you have been slumbering for five days, four hours, twenty three minutes, and thirteen seconds. Exactly.”
“What?” I say. “Are you serious?”
“You will find that I am always serious,” Order says.
“Okay,” I say. “Can I, um, go home now?”
“Home?” Order says. “Oh, I am afraid not. You have been chosen to participate in a most important contest.”
“Contest? What contest?”
Order smiles, his teeth are perfectly straight. “I see you are confused,” he says. “Do not worry, everything will be made clear in time. But first, I think it would be best to show you what you are playing for.”
Order snaps, and an image of outer space appears on the wall. A black and pink planet hovers in the center, surrounded by three smaller moons.
“This is Protaraan,” he says, cheerfully. “One of my favorite worlds. It has a truly marvelous landscape—with vast grasslands and deep, majestic seas. It is the home to some of the galaxy’s most wondrous creatures. The Protaraan people are industrious and peaceful, and the wildlife is plentiful and diverse. Did you know there are ten thousand four hundred and ninety three sub-species of crustaceans alone?”
Suddenly, a tiny speck appears, like a firefly in the night, heading straight for Protaraan. As it advances, it leaves a bright trail behind it, like the tail of a comet.
The image pushes in closer, and I realize that firefly is actually a person. A man—made of fire!
“Who’s that?” I ask.
“The Herald,” Order sighs, “signaling the beginning of the end.”
I have no clue what he means by that. I watch as this Herald dude starts circling Protaraan over and over again, his trail getting brighter and brighter, until a shape emerges resembling electrons encircling the nucleus of an atom—which, in this case, is Protaraan. In my gut, I feel like something bad is about to happen, and I’m not sure I want to stick around to find out what.
“Well, what do you know?” I say, turning to Order. “That Herald certainly puts on quite a show. So, what’s next? We go for milkshakes and call it a night?”
But Order doesn’t respond. He’s fixated on the events unfolding before us. Reluctantly, I turn back to the image and do a double take.
Creeping in from the bottom of the scene is a mysterious, green mist. At first, it’s narrow and stringy, but as it approaches Protaraan it expands larger and larger until it covers the surface area of the entire planet itself! The Herald bolts from the scene, leaving a fiery trail behind him.
Now I can’t even see Protaraan through the green haze. I’m about to ask Order what’s going on, when the green cloud suddenly solidifies—and then clamps down on the planet’s surface!
That green thing is … alive?
The green mass pulsates, and then, without warning, it constricts, applying an incredible amount of pressure to the trapped world. There’s a tremendous CRACKING sound.
“It’s crushing it!”
“No,” Order says. “It is consuming it.”
KABOOM!
Suddenly, there’s a deafening explosion accompanied by a blinding flash of light! I shield my eyes, but I’m not quick enough. For a few seconds, all I can see is white. My ears are ringing like crazy. When I’m finally able to blink my way back to vision, my jaw drops.
Protaraan is gone.
All that remains is a sea of pebbles floating aimlessly in space. At the top of the image I catch the tail of a green mist, moving slowly out of frame.
“I-It’s gone!” I say astonished. “All of those people are … are …”
“Extinct,” Order says. “Now you understand the magnitude of what you will be playing for—the fate of an entire planet.”
“I-I don’t understand?” I say.
And then it clicks.
That green mist that ate Protaraan is …
“Ravager!” I blurt out.
“Yes,” Order says. “Ravager. The Annihilator of Worlds.”
That freaky thing destroyed the homes of Gemini, Scorpio, and the rest of the Zodiac! That’s the cosmic creature the Orb of Oblivion was supposed to destroy? How the heck am I supposed to stop that?
My mind is racing. I still have no clue what I’m doing here. Or, more importantly, how I’m going to get out of here. I breathe deeply, and try to re-center myself. If I don’t figure this out I’ve got no chance of getting home.
“Okay,” I say. “Let’s cut to the chase. How do I play this game you’re talking about. And how am I gonna get back home?”
“It is quite simple,” Order says, dabbing his eyes with his white handkerchief. “You have been selected as a galactic champion—my champion—to compete for the fate of a planet. If you win, the planet survives. But if you lose …”
“It’s eaten by Ravager?” I finish his sentence.
“Yes,” Order says, standing. He clasps his hands behind his back, and begins pacing. “It has been this way through all of eternity. You see, my brother, Chaos, and I are tasked with keeping all things in proper balance. My job is to ensure structure, discipline, and boundaries. My brother’s role is quite the opposite. His job is to promote stress, disorder, and randomness. We are constantly at odds. To be truthful, I find it all quite exhausting.”
“So, you’re like … Gods or something?” I ask.
“Oh, no,” Order says. “We are more than Gods. Much more. You could say we are the very fabric of the universe.”
“That does sound exhausting,” I acknowledge.
“Indeed” he says. “Instead of constantly trying to undo all the other has done, we have agreed to a simple contest to be held after the birth of a new solar system. What I just shared with you was a replay of the outcome of our last contest. Unfortunately, my champions lost. That is where I hope you will come in.”
“What do I need to do?” I ask.
“You, and three other champions I have selected, will compete to recover a hidden artifact. The team that recovers the artifact first will determine the fate of a planet. If my team wins, the planet will survive for another million years. If my brother’s team wins, the planet will be sacrificed to Ravager, and his champions will be granted new worlds to rule.”
He stares at me as I process what he said.
This isn’t a game of tiddlywinks he’s talking about here. I mean, I don’t even have control over my powers. Doesn’t he want to win? Maybe he should have picked Dad or Mom or anyone else on the Freedom Force. But not me!
“Hey, listen,” I say. “I’m really flattered you want me on your team. I mean, I’m never picked first for anything, not even checkers. But this is serious stuff you’re talking about. I think you’ve got the wrong guy.”
Order smiles again. “I have observed millions of champions in my time. Sometimes I am right. Sometimes I am wrong. But, you have been selected, and therefore, you must compete.”
“And what if I refuse?”
“As our agreement stipulates, if any selected champion refuses to participate, then that team must automatically forfeit the match. And, if that team is mine, an entire planet will be destroyed.”
I breathe deeply. I think about Gemini and what’s happened to her world. She’s lost everything she’s ever known. I could never willingly let that happen to anyone else. I couldn’t imagine being responsible for the deaths of billions of people.
“You’ve got me there,” I say. “Okay, I guess I’m in.”
“As I knew you would be,” Order says. “Now please, get some rest, and eat.” He snaps again, and a tray of food appears at the foot of the bed. There’s pizza, and cucumbers, and tortilla chips, and root beer. All of my favorite things! It smells amazing!
I dive in. It feels like I haven’t eaten for days.
“Tomorrow, you will meet your teammates,” Order says. “But before I leave you, I will share with you what you will be playing for in your contest.”
He snaps again, but I’m so famished all I can focus on is the food.
“When the door appears tomorrow morning,” Order says, “make sure you exit wearing your costume.”
At this point, I’m totally pigging out. I should probably ask what I’m supposed to do when I need to use the bathroom, but when I look up, Order is gone.
I glance over to see what it is I’ll supposedly be playing for. And that’s when I drop my pizza.
Because hovering before me is a familiar blue-green planet.
Earth.
I GET MISTAKEN FOR SOMEBODY ELSE
Needless to say, I didn’t sleep a wink.
I mean, how could I after learning my actions will determine the fate of Earth! I tossed and turned all night long, thinking about all of those innocent people down there, and all those kids just going about their business worrying about pimples, homework, and social media cred. They have no clue what’s going on up here. None of them are fighting for their lives to stop a globe-gobbling pile of glop!
Nope. Apparently, only I’m dumb enough to get signed up for that one.
And what the heck am I doing here anyway? Why would Order pick me? I mean, I’m just a kid, not some freaking galactic gladiator. Why didn’t he choose Dad, or Mom, or even Grace? They’re playing in the big leagues with full control of their powers. Me? I’m squarely in the minors with no clue how my powers work.
I look around the tiny room. There’s no clock so I have no idea what time it is. Order said a door would magically appear when he’s ready for me—whenever the heck that is.
To my surprise, a door did appear at one point. Thinking it was game-time, I got suited up, only to burst through the door and crash into a toilet. So, instead of answering the call of adventure, I answered the call of nature.
Yep, villains fear me.
It feels like I’ve spent hours in solitary confinement. To prevent myself from going stir crazy, I’ve done everything from jumping jacks to the Hokey Pokey. But mostly, I’ve done a lot of thinking.
Especially about the Orb of Oblivion.
What I don’t get is if the Orb is somehow inside of me, then why isn’t it working like it did before? The last time I had it, we were mind-linked, and it was talking to me like crazy. Now there’s complete radio silence. I’m beginning to suspect it’s mad at me for blowing it up, which is probably justified.
The Orb is a cosmic parasite. When it was a physical entity, outside my body, it mentally bonded to its host and fed off their deepest desires. So, what’s it doing now that it’s inside of me? The image of a radioactive tapeworm comes to mind.
I’m feeling totally restless, so I hop off the bed to top my astounding push-up record of five when I notice something unusual.
There’s a door.
A gold door.
The last door that materialized was white. So, I’m guessing this has to be the one!
I rush over to put on my costume when, suddenly, I get the jitters. Is this really it? If so, what happens next could determine the fate of everyone on Earth—including my family.
And it’s all up to me.
I pull on my mask, and straighten my cape. The words of a brave friend echo in my mind: Never show weakness.
I take a deep breath, and push through the door.
I step into a large, white chamber with walls that climb hundreds of feet high. There are gold doors all around the perimeter, just like the one I entered from. The chamber is windowless, so I still can’t tell whether its day or night.
Order mentioned I’d be meeting my teammates, but there’s nobody here but—
“Are you friend, or foe?” comes a voice.
I spin around to find a stern-faced man standing behind me. Where’d he come from? His dark eyes study me from beneath a thick, leather headband adorned with the symbol of a black eagle. With his long, black hair, and tan costume he appears Native American, but his skin is blue! He folds his arms across his broad chest and repeats, “Friend, or foe?”
“Friend,” I say quickly. “I-I think we’re supposed to be teammates.”
The man studies me, and then extends a hand. “I am called Wind Walker, Crosser of Realms.”
I shake his hand. “And I’m Epic Zero, a member of the Freedom Force. Well
, sometimes I’m a member of the Freedom Force. I mean, when I’m not grounded.” I smile lamely.
I can tell by his arched eyebrows he’s far from impressed. Way to go, Elliott.
Suddenly, another door opens, and a large figure emerges. At first I think it’s a man, but he looks young—like he’s only a few years older than me. His muscles are huge, but that’s not his most impressive feature. That belongs to the pair of long, curved horns protruding from his forehead. Could it be?
“Please,” he says, squeezing his giant hands into fists, “tell me you’re the bad guys, because I want to get this over with, and get back to my friends.”
“Whoa, big fella,” I say. “You’re Aries, aren’t you?”
He looks at me funny, trying to place me. “How’d you know that? Who are you?”
“My name is Epic Zero,” I say, trying to muster more confidence this time around. “I’m a hero on my world, a member of the Freedom Force. For the last few days, I’ve been travelling with your team, the Zodiac.”
There, that was better.
He looks me up and down. “You’re Epic Zero? You’re kidding me?”
Or not.
Suddenly, there’s a SLAM.
“What’s he doing here?” comes an angry, female voice.
I turn to find a girl standing in the doorway. She has long brown hair, and wears a blue mask and bodysuit with white shooting stars across her top and legs. Wait, why do I know that costume? And how come her angry expression look so familiar?
Then, she points at me, and commands. “Stand down, super-creep!”
Wait? What? Super-creep? Me? Her voice is so familiar.
“Who are you?” Aries asks.
“Who am I?” she says. “I’m Glory Girl. And I’m taking this goober out.”
Glory Girl? Grace?
But Grace doesn’t have brown hair?
The next thing I know, she charges me. But before she gets far, she’s frozen in her tracks.
“Halt, heroes!”
I try turning, but I’m frozen too!
