“Torn Souls” by Dylan Rinald Dylan, Jake, Rune © Dylan Rinald Bayson © Eric Hunter Rex, Heidi © Dave Prizio Hunter, Master, Parvo © WB Animation Cobber © Mike Browner Dervish © Casey Johnson Jay Dogmen © NightShift Marauder © Jerimy Bass ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ “I guess you can never be sure about someone just from the outside.” - Rex ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 1000 AD, druid circle. Ten dark robed druids encircle the plain, chanting some crazy stuff. Another is sitting nearby. Moments later two druids come carrying a young man. He is tied up and struggling a bit. MAN - NO! LET GO!!! DRUID - Silence, mortal. MAN - NO!!! They bring the man to a large flat rock in the center of the ring of druids and lay him out on it. He struggles to escape but the druids hold him down. MAN - What the hell you want with me?! DRUID - If the elder is to live forever, then you are needed. MAN - What for?! The seated druid rises and approaches the man. From a flash of lightning we see his face. He is a grizzled, elderly man, withered and aging fast. No emotion rises on his face as he stops before him. He barely smiles, but it is an unearthly one. He motions another druid over. The druid then hands him a long sword, but we cannot see what it looks like clearly. The elder takes it and holds it in front of the man, who is pale and terrified. MAN - Y-you’re going to sacrifice me?!?!? ELDER - No...that would be a waste... MAN - ...Then what?! ELDER - ..... He raises up the blade, end down, above his head. He lets out a maniacal laugh and lightning flashes again. We catch a bare glimpse of the blade: there is blood stained on it, but that’s all we can see in the brief moment. The elder swiftly brings the blade down... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Present, Dylan’s room. Dylan is just starting to wake up. He rubs his eyes and sits up in bed, yawning. He then runs a hand through the fluffy fur on his head (no headband, mind you). DYLAN - Man, what a weird dream that was. These just keep getting stranger by the day. He gets up and quickly gets dressed in his usual attire of a red and blue jersey, matching headband, blue jeans and sneakers. He opens the door of his room and walks out into the hallway and down the hall towards the dining area. When he arrives he sees Dervish and Jay seated and chatting about something. Dervish has a can of Mountain Dew in his hand. DERVISH - So when can I test drive your set of wheels? JAY - Soon enough...if you learn to cut back on that stuff. DERVISH - Hey, can ya blame me? JAY - *rolls eyes* Yeah. You practically have that stuff running through your veins all the time. DERVISH - All the better! Dylan approaches them. DYLAN - Hey! DERVISH - *turning* Oh hey Dylmeister! Want some Dew? DYLAN - Derv, it’s 10 AM. How can you drink that stuff this time of day? DERVISH - .....And your point? Dylan shakes his head. JAY - So Dyl, care to come for a ride downtown? DYLAN - *shaking his head* Eh, not today, Jay. I appreciate the offer though. JAY - *nodding* That’s okay. No problem at all. Maybe next time. DYLAN - Definitely next time. Rex and Heidi then enter. Heidi is carrying a piece of paper in her right hand. They approach Dylan. DYLAN - Hi you two. What’s up? REX - The Master wants us to check something out at a warehouse in Vermont. Something about odd activity. HEIDI - The usual, more or less. Seems the Master has problems being specific lately. DERVISH - He’s losin’ it, I tell ya. JAY - And you haven’t? DERVISH - Oh I have, but it’s a happy Dew kind of losing it. DYLAN - *snickers* O-kay... REX - Wanna come along, Dyl? The more the merrier. DYLAN - *nods* Sure, I guess so. Just then Bayson comes running in, looking rather tired. He is in his werewolf form. He runs up to the gang and stops, catching his breath. BAYSON - *between breaths* Hey guys....*pants* DYLAN - Bay? What are you doing here this time of the day? BAYSON - *regaining strength* Boredom. I have off from school today, so I thought I’d hang out here for a while. REX - Well the three of us have some work to do, so... BAYSON - Mind if I tag along? They blink. HEIDI - Um... BAYSON - Hey, it’s rare when I get to help you guys. Come on. Please? REX - Hmm....*thinks* DYLAN - I personally haven’t a problem with it. HEIDI - *shrugs* I guess it’s okay. REX - *nodding* Fine then. You can come along, Bayson. Bayson has a big grin on his face. BAYSON - Great! DERVISH - Might wanna take some Dew along. JAY - *eyeing Derv* And why is that? DERVISH - *grinning* It’s a HAPPY drink! All moan. Dervish looks around. DERVISH - Whaaaaaat? ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Old warehouse, northern Vermont, meantime. An armored truck pulls up and out step two garbed canomutants. One is holding a long object that is concealed in a dark green cloth. They enter the warehouse... Room, far end of the warehouse. A canomutant stands his back to us. He is wearing a blue tank top, black pants and black army boots. His fur is dark brown with darker areas all over. He is holding some sort of communication device. ??? - I told you I know what I’m doing, General. Things will work out perfectly. Trust me. We see Parvo’s face on the communicator. He grins. PARVO - Good. Then I’ll expect to see results when you’re finished. ??? - You will. He turns off the communicator. The two canomutants with the object arrive and approach him. CANOMUTANT 1 - Sir, we have what you wanted. ??? - Good. He turns around. Sure enough, it turns out to be Dylan’s older brother, Jake. The cano with the object hands it to him. Both canos then turn and leave. Jake unveils the object barely, exposing a small portion of metal. It has a reddish stain on it. He grins. JAKE - You’re going to make my job soooooooo much easier...heh heh heh... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Outside the warehouse some distance away, 2 hours later. Rex, Heidi, Dylan and Bayson exit the Sky Rover. HEIDI - Well I certainly wouldn’t choose here for a vacation. REX - Or for any time, for that matter. BAYSON - *coughs* Um, guys? DYLAN - *turning to Bayson* Yeah bud? BAYSON - Um....why is it that we somehow always manage to fidn the place we’re looking for, even if it’s out in the middle of nowhere? Rex shrugs. REX - I dunno. We just do, I guess. HEIDI - *in her mind* Wonder if the creator ever thought about that too... BAYSON - Well, let’s go, huh? DYLAN - *nods* Guess so. They all walk towards the warehouse. No guards, oddly enough. Dylan scans the area. DYLAN - Something doesn’t seem right... REX - Oh? What’s that? DYLAN - No guards, I mean. Wouldn’t there normally be someone blocking the way? Silence... HEIDI - He has a point. This is weird... BAYSON - *shrugs* Either way we have a job to do. REX - Yeah. Well, come on then. He opens the warehouse door. It’s unlocked. Rex blinks at this. REX - Um.....okay. That was easy. They all walk inside. Everywhere there is machinery, most all totally unrelated to each other in look and use. Thing is, no one is around. Dead silence...except for the weak air conditioning, that is. HEIDI - *edging closer to Rex* This is creeping me out. She holds on to Rex’s left hand. REX - *comforting* It’ll be okay. Don’t worry. Dylan looks around a bit, still on the alert. DYLAN - Guys, this is too unlikely. BAYSON - Hmm? DYLAN - I mean, the door was open, there were no guards, and the place is practically empty. Something just isn’t right. I have a bad feeling about all this. BAYSON - *shrugging* Well, maybe it’s odd, but then again, maybe it isn’t. Who knows. REX - *nodding* Yeah, perhaps... His ears perk up. HEIDI - What is it? REX - You hear that? BAYSON - Might’ve been my stomach. I didn’t eat much this morning. REX - *shaking his head* No it was something else.. HEIDI - What? Suddenly some nearby crates blast into pieces and out come the two canomutants, guns at the ready. The four are startled and freaked out. REX - THAT!!!! BAYSON - Run for it!! The four race away from the canomutants, who proceed to give chase, firing all the way. They all turn down a nearby hallway. The hall seems to go on and on and on and...well, you get the idea. BAYSON - *looking back as he runs* Man! Yet another unexpected twist! DYLAN - *running* You know, if Hunter heard you say that, he’d sue you. BAYSON - Why? DYLAN - Stealing his line. Towards the end of the hall they spot a single door. REX - In there! Quick! They reach the door, shots barely missing each of them. Rex opens it quickly and lets the others in, then slams it behind him. They all catch their breath and look at the door. DYLAN - Whew! That was too close! BAYSON - *panting* Nice workout. Now what? ??? - How nice of you to come and visit... All freeze. DYLAN - *cold chill running down his spine* .....That voice! ??? - Hello, little brother. Nice to see you too... They all turn swiftly. Standing there is Jake, grinning in a vile manner. JAKE - I’m surprised you survived our last encounter, Dyl. It’s a shame you didn’t die sooner. DYLAN - ....... Rex readies his gun, but so does Jake. JAKE - Don’t take me lightly... The door busts down and the two canomutants enter. Heidi hangs on to Rex. JAKE - Take ‘em! The canos rush the four at full speed. One shoulders into Dylan, sending him across the room and into a corner. Bayson and Heidi roll out of the way. Rex manages to grab the other and swings him around like a top. He whacks the other cano and sends it sailing. Jake becomes infuriated and rushes them, but Rex flings the cano in Jake’s direction, taking them both out and sending them against the table nearby. As they hit it, the covered object falls to the ground beside them. They are apparently out cold. Dylan slowly gets to his feet, as do Bayson and Heidi. Rex rejoins Heidi. REX - A trap...nothing more than a stupid trap. DYLAN - Figures such. But why? HEIDI - *shrugging* Beats me. Jake slowly starts to open his eyes. The others don’t notice. He eyes them all, thinking. JAKE - *in his mind* Fools...they think they’re so smart...*squints at Basyon* The werewolf...I may have missed last time, but not this time... He reaches for the object carefully and in stealth. The others are still talking to each other and pay no attention. He uncovers the object....a long silver blade, looking rather bizarre, but frightening at the same time. On the blade are stains of blood. He slowly takes hold of it... BAYSON - All pretty lame, if you ask me. Just way too easy. Even this part. Boooooring... HEIDI - Well, now that we know there’s nothing here, I think we should--. JAKE - *leaping up, rearing the blade* Guess again, fools!!! He dashes straight for Bayson. The werewolf’s eyes go wide, as do those of the others. DYLAN - Bayson! Watch out! He rushes over and pushes Bayson out of the way just as Jake thrusts the blade at him. It plunges deep into Dylan’s chest, and he screams in intense pain. Bayson, Rex, and Heidi are horrified at the spectacle. HEIDI - *frightened* DYLAAAAAAAN!!!!! BAYSON - NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! He rushes at Jake, but is somehow thrown back by an unknown force. He falls to the ground. Jake is stunned at first, but then flashes a vile grin, then begin to laugh in a frighteningly insane manner. The blood-stained blade begins to give off a crimson glow, growing increasingly brighter with every moment. Jake’s eyes burn with hatred and evil. Dylan continues to yell in agony. JAKE - HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!! Without warning, the blade flashes a brilliant red light that blinds everyone for a brief moment. Bayson, Rex, and Heidi shield their eyes as best they can. The light dims to normal...Bayson peers out... BAYSON - *in shock* DYLAN!! Both Dylan and Jake lie motionless on the floor, as does the blade. They rush over to Dylan’s side. REX - *shaking Dylan* Dyl! Buddy! Are you...? Dylan begins to stir and slowly opens his eyes, looking around. The chest wound is gone, though. He looks up at the three. DYLAN - Yeah...I’m okay... Heidi looks at Dylan’s chest. HEIDI - What happened? You were stabbed!! DYLAN - *shaking his head* I dunno, but I’m okay now. BAYSON - *relieved* Whew. Thank goodness for that. Dylan stands up and dusts himself off, then turns to Jake, who is still out cold on the floor. DYLAN - I say we should take him back with us and keep him under close observation. BAYSON - *surprised by the remark* Gar? Why? REX - Whoa, wait a sec. That’s a bit risky, isn’t it? Dylan shakes his head confidently. DYLAN - I doubt it. Besides, it’ll keep him out of trouble with us on top of him. HEIDI - Well.....I guess he kinda has a point. REX - *nods* I suppose so. Let’s take him and get out of here. He walks over to Jake and slings him over his shoulder and walks away, Heidi following. Bayson approaches Dylan. BAYSON - Geez, Dyl. Never seen you quite so confident about something like this before. Dylan shrugs. DYLAN - First time for everything. Bayson nods and walks off. Dylan starts to leave. As he does, he smiles...oddly... DYLAN - Yep...a first time for everything...heh... He exits. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ RRMC, main hall. Dylan, Bayson, Heidi, and Rex stand before the Master, Hunter, Cobber, Rune and Jay Dogmen, recalling what had happened. Dylan says little the whole time, though. REX - So that’s pretty much what happened, Master. Fortunately Dylan’s okay. He smiles at Dylan, but Dylan pays little attention. This surprises the GSD. MASTER - Dylan, I’m relieved that you survived despite what was told to me. For safety reasons, though, I’d prefer you see Marauder and make sure that everything’s perfectly okay. DYLAN - Do I necessarily have to? MASTER - I’d appreciate it if you did. Dylan frowns and looks to the side. DYLAN - ....Fine...Where is it? COBBER - *startled* Where is it? You know where it is, Dyl. Dylan blinks. DYLAN - It’s been a long day. Sorry, okay? Just refresh my memory. Rune seems to be lost in thought at this. RUNE - *in her mind* This is weird. Dylan forgetting where things are? JAY - *shakes head* Just follow me, buddy. He walks off down the nearest hall. Dylan slowly follows, grumbling to himself. HUNTER - Whoa. ATT-I-TUDE! Bayson stretches a bit. BAYSON - You know, I think I’ll hang around for the day. I’ll just call Mom and let her know I’m at a friend’s house or something. She should be okay with that. The Master gives a nod of approval. MASTER - There’s a phone in the rec room. You can use that one. Hunter, could you show him where it is again? HUNTER - *nodding* Sure thing. C’mon Bayson. He and Bayson leave down the west wing. The Master turns to Cobber. MASTER - Cobber, go along with them. I want you and Hunter to check on Jake afterwards. COBBER - *shrugs* Eh, okay. Might as well, I mean. He takes off after the two. The Master then leaves. Rex and Heidi look over at Rune, who still is lost in thought. REX - Rune? HEIDI - Something wrong? You look bothered. What’s up, huh? RUNE - ......... HEIDI - Rune? Rune loosk up suddenly. RUNE - Wha? Oh, sorry. Thinking...Um, did you notice Dylan acting...odd...at all? REX - *shakes head* No, not really. A little moody, perhaps, but nothing odd. RUNE - Hmm...Something’s not right....I can feel it... Rex and Heidi look confused... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Holding cells, 10 minutes later. Jake is seen lying on the floor of one of the cells, unconscious. After a few moments, he begins to stir. Slowly, he opens his eyes and sits up, moaning a bit. JAKE - *blinking a few times* Man, what happened? He stops and grasps his throat, eyes wide. JAKE - Wh.....What happened to my voice?! What’s going on?! He looks down at himself. His fur. His clothes. He touches his ears. Both are erect. Fear starts to rise inside of him... JAKE - *starting to shake a little* What...what’s happened to me? I... Suddenly the sound of a door opening nearby is heard. Coming down the hall are Cobber and Hunter, talking to one another. Jake’s ears perk up. HUNTER - Wonder of he’s up yet... COBBER - Well, just watch. As soon as he gets up he’s gonna go nuts at us. HUNTER - Not much he can do, though. *grinning* At least we finally got the best of him this time. He won’t be causing any more trouble for a while. COBBER - Yeah... They approach Jake’s cell. He looks up at the two canosapiens, confused. They eye him suspiciously. HUNTER - Finally woke up, eh? Took long enough. COBBER - It’s time you talked, Jake. What the bloody heck have you been up to with those experiments, hmm? JAKE - *confused* What? HUNTER - You can’t play stupid with us, Jake. JAKE - Jake?! What’s going on here?! COBBER - Knock it off. You know what we’re talking about. JAKE - *shaking head* No I don’t! COBBER - Hmph...fine. If that’s the way you want it... The area around Cobber’s scar begins to glow a bluish light. Jake’s eyes grow wide and he edges away in fear. JAKE - W-Wait!!! Jake is suddenly thrown against the back wall with extreme force. He falls to the ground, holding his back in pain, almost beginning to cry. COBBER - We’ll let you think about it a bit more... Hunter walks away back down the hall and up the stairs. Cobber turns to leave, then looks back at Jake, who is lying on the ground. COBBER - *in his mind* Odd...didn’t even ATTEMPT to get mad... He walks away. Jake staggers to get up, moaning. JAKE - What the heck’s going on here? He trudges over to the front of the cell. On the other side of the walkway is a shiny steel door, almost mirror-like. Jake peers at it, and his eyes open wide when he sees his reflection. His fur is a dark shade of brown with even darker patchs of brown all over. The color around his muzzle and on the end of his tail are a dark gold color. Both ears are erect, with dark patches on them. His top head fur is a mess, edged with dark brown. His eyes are a reddish color. He is wearing a blue tank top, black pants, and black army boots....the same as usual...but...Jake’s heart stops cold. JAKE - I.....I’m.....how?!?! He drops to his knees, crying. JAKE - No.......*throwing his head up to the ceiling, crying out* NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sick bay, check-up room. Jay enters with Dylan. Marauder is seated, looking over a few things from a folder. He looks up and sees them. MARAUDER - Hey guys. What’s up? JAY - The Master just wants you to give Dylan a check-up. You know, make sure he’s okay and such. MARAUDER - *getting up* Sure. No problem there. Just sit up on the table, Dyl. DYLAN - ........ He sits on the table and Marauder gets out a stethoscope. Dylan just stares at him. MARAUDER - Lift your shirt up for me, okay bud? DYLAN - Why? MARAUDER - *puzzled* Just need to check your heartbeat, Dyl. That’s all. DYLAN - Oh.....right.... He lifts up his shirt. Marauder places one end on Dylan’s chest and listens. MARAUDER - Hm....odd....heartbeat’s a bit lower than usual. DYLAN - *grumbles* Just hurry up, okay? I have things I need to do. Marauder stops and looks at Dylan, confused. MARAUDER - Dyl, is something wrong? DYLAN - No, I’m fine. *jumping off the table* I’m fine and fit. No need to continue, okay? See ya. He walks out the door. Marauder has a concerned look on his face. MARAUDER - What’s wrong with him? This isn’t like Dylan at all... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Holding cells, an hour later. Jake is sitting against a wall, his head on his arms, his knees up. He sighs. JAKE - I don’t understand what’s happening...this is....I don’t get it....How did this happen? Suddenly a door is heard opening, and soon Rune appears in front of Jake’s cell. He looks up at her, surprised. RUNE - Jake... JAKE - Rune!!! Rune is startled a bit by his reply. He gets up and comes to her. JAKE - Rune! It’s you! RUNE - Whoa, back off Jake! I have something I want to ask you... JAKE - Hmm? What’s wrong? RUNE - Why is Dylan acting so weird? What did you do to him? JAKE - What do you mean, Rune? I’m right here! Rune looks puzzled. RUNE - Who is??? JAKE - Me! Dylan! Rune steps back. RUNE - You think I’m stupid? Cut the crap, Jake! What did you do to him?! JAKE - Rune, it’s me! It’s me, Dylan! I swear! RUNE - Ha! That’s so far-fetched. I’m not falling for your-! JAKE - Rune! Please believe me! I’m Dylan! I’m.....*starts to tear up*....I’m Dylan... He starts to cry, feeling defeated. This startles Rune. RUNE - Hold on a sec! Jake’s heart would NEVER be that emotional! But... She closes her eyes and places her hand over Jake’s heart. He looks at her, confused. She concentrates for a few moments.....then opens her eyes. RUNE - *in her mind* I can’t believe it! It’s Jake’s body.....but with the heart and soul of Dylan.....could it be? She looks at Jake. RUNE - .........Dylan? Jake nods sadly. Rune lifts his chin up and looks into his eyes. She sees no malice, no hatred, no evil in them. RUNE - It IS you! I can see the love and warmth in your eyes. JAKE - *sniffling* Rune...I... Rune opens the cell and walks in. Jake hugs Rune tightly and she returns the hug effortlessly. RUNE - It really is you...I can’t believe it... JAKE - You believe me...thank you... RUNE - *looking at Jake* Dylan, how did this happen? What went on back there? JAKE - *sighs* This is what happened... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dining hall, in the meantime. Dervish and Jay are munching away at a freshly-made sausage pizza, talking a bit. Dylan walks in, but is dressed differently. He wears a black vest, torn blue shirt, navy blue fingerless gloves, black bandana, black pants with a black belt, and black boots. Dervish and Jay look at him as he comes over. DERVISH - Whoa, Dyl! Nice duds! That’s a first! DYLAN - *smug* Yeah yeah...*sits down* Mmm, pizza! *snatches a slice* Thanks! JAY - *startled, ticked* Hey! Ask first! DYLAN - *munching pizza* Gooooooood! Heh heh...*finishes* Not bad. Could be better. He gets up and walks off. Dervish and Jay are very annoyed. JAY - What the heck’s with Dylan lately? DERVISH - Yeah....this isn’t like him at all. What’s up with that? Dylan continues down the hall towards the tech room. He seats himself down and begins to type away on the keyboard. A screen appears with a bunch of files on each Rover. He chooses one. DYLAN - Hmm....Cobber.....heh heh....this is VERY interesting indeed....psionic powers, I see...that should be useful to know... He picks another. DYLAN - Hmm....Rune....yes indeed. *sneers* You know we were made for each other. You oh so know it! *laughs* You will be mine soon enough! He picks another... DYLAN - *laughs* Well bro, looks like I finally got the best of you, eh? Now I can destroy you and no one can stop me! He types away some more and manages to download an odd file. He opens it....and flashes an evil grimace... DYLAN - So....top secret weapon plans, eh? *reads over the information and memorizes it* Parvo will be soooooooooo pleased with this... He logs off, the information in his memory now. He turns to leave but bumps into Bayson, who seemed surprised to see him. BAYSON - Oh hey Dyl! Sorry. *looks at him up and down* Nice threads! DYLAN - *pushing past Bayson* Yeah yeah, I’m busy. Not now... BAYSON - *confused* Dylan....what’s wrong? DYLAN - *turning back* Nothing! BAYSON - ....Dyl... DYLAN - Are you finished? Bayson is deeply hurt by his remark. He hangs his head. DYLAN - Good... He turns and heads back to the main hall. Bayson looks on after him, upset. BAYSON - What’s wrong with him??? Why is he so cold...? He decides to follow Dylan... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Holding cells, 20 minutes later. Rune is sitting with Jake, listening to his story. Jake hangs his head, afraid. JAKE - *shaking a bit* That’s what I remember, Rune... RUNE - That’s incredibly weird, Dyl... JAKE - I’m scared, Rune....I don’t want to be like this forever....*tearing up* I just can’t...live like this.. Rune throws her arms around Jake and holds him. RUNE - It’ll be all right, Dylan....it’ll be all right... JAKE - .......But..... Rune lets go for a moment. RUNE - Dyl, did you get a good look at that blade? JAKE - *nodding* Yes, I think so...why? RUNE - I need to see it. Just relax for a moment. Jake nods and closes his eyes. Rune places a hand on his forehead and closes her eyes, concentrating.... RUNE - Picture it for me.... Jake thinks hard...recalling as much of the appearance of the blade as he can...slowly the image tranfers into Rune’s mind...a minute passes....and Rune opens her eyes and takes her hand off of Jake. He opens his eyes and looks at her. She appears troubled. JAKE - Rune? ....What’s wrong? RUNE - ......Achtzehn... JAKE - *confused* Wha? RUNE - The blade is called Achtzehn. It is a evil blade that was created by druids hundreds of years ago; a weapon always stained with blood. It has the power to purge souls between two bodies when thrust through the heart of another. The souls of the wielder and the victim become switched, and the druids used this to keep themselves alive for much longer that humanly possible. Jake must have known about this, but for what reason he wished to do this I don’t know. You had said that he stabbed you in the heart with the blade, so your souls MUST have been switched....*shakes her head* This isn’t good, Dylan. Who knows what Jake’s managed to do in your body! Even worse, the others surely think that really is you and that you’re truly Jake. We have to get you out of here now! She quickly stands up. Jake rises as well. JAKE - But Rune, if they think I’m Jake, and they see I’ve gotten out with your help, they’ll think you’re a traitor and take both of us out! Rune shakes her head. RUNE - Dyl, we have to prove to them that you’re Dylan in this body, not in your real one. I have to tell them. JAKE - But how? RUNE - We’ll figure out something. Come on, we have to get to the others and clear up this mess. She exits the cell and Jake follows. They race down the hall and up the stairs to the ground level, but bump into Hunter, who is coming around the corner. He blinks and looks at them, then snarls. HUNTER - Hey! What’s going on here?! *drawing his gun* Rune, get away from him! Now! RUNE - *holding her hands up* Hunter! No! Wait! It’s not what it looks like! Hunter aims at Jake. HUNTER - Get away from her!!! RUNE - Jake! Run!!!! Jake dashes past Hunter, as does Rune. He blinks and chases after them, firing. HUNTER - Get back here!!!! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Main Hall, meantime. Cobber, Dervish, Jay, Rex, Heidi and Marauder are seen talking amongst one another, apparently all ticked off by Dylan’s pranks and attitude. COBBER - I tell ya, Dyl’s become a real jerk lately! I swear I’m gonna knock some bloody sense into his head! JAY - Even if he’s a friend, he can’t keep acting this way. REX - This just isn’t like Dylan at all, you guys! It’s like he’s a totally different person....a horrible person... HEIDI - *scratching her head* This is too strange... Just then Dylan enters, a smug grin on his face. The rest stop to face him, stern looks on their faces. He stops and eyes them. DYLAN - What’s your problem, huh? Never seen another person walk around before? MARAUDER - *taking a step forward* Dyl, this has gone far enough. What’s wrong with you already?! DYLAN - Oh shut up and mind your own business, jerk... Marauder’s eyes open wide, then he snarls. MARAUDER - *angry* JERK?!?! Oh THAT DOES IT, DYL!!! Cut the crap or I swear I’ll knock you out! DYLAN - *grinning* Yeah, right, whatever... Bayson rushes in. BAYSON - *running to Dylan* Dyl! Wait! What’s going on, huh? Dylan swiftly turns and delivers a hard punch to Bayson’s stomach. Bayson gasps and falls to the ground. Dylan laughs. DYLAN - Idiot.... The others are in horror. Suddenly.... VOICE - Everyone! Wait!!! They look to the right and see Rune and Jake running in their direction. Hunter is closing in on them, still firing a bit. HUNTER - Stop them!! Rune and Jake stop in front of the others. Hunter catches up but stops firing, and he grabs Jake’s arms. HUNTER - You’re not getting away Jake! He socks Jake in the face. Jake hits the ground, then rubs his face, looking up at Hunter. The others close in on Jake, standing over him, disgusted. COBBER - *eyeing Jake* Don’t make any false moves, Jake...unless you’d like more of that little ride you had earlier. JAKE - *scared* I..... DYLAN - *from the side* I say we trash him already! The others turn and face Dylan, who shows no emotion. DYLAN - *tapping his foot* Well? You gonna do it or not, huh? Or should I? JAKE - *turning his head to Dylan* ....... Dylan grins menacingly at Jake, bearing his teeth. Jake quickly gets to his feet. JAKE - Don’t listen to him! Bayson crawls over to Dylan and grabs the bottom of the mutt’s vest. BAYSON - ........What’s...... Dylan snarls and grabs Bayson by the throat, lifting him to his feet. He eyes Bayson... DYLAN - ......Shut up.... He throws Bayson in the direction of the others, Bayson’s body hitting Jay, and both fall to the ground hard. Jake looks, upset, then turns to Dylan. JAKE - Jake! Stop it!!! All the Rovers but Rune are silent. DERVISH - What?! RUNE - *pointing at Dylan* That isn’t Dylan! It’s Jake! MARAUDER - That’s impossible! Dylan is Dylan and Jake is Jake. DYLAN - *unamused* Duh! HUNTER - That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever--! RUNE - LISTEN TO ME!!! *pointing at Jake* That is Dylan!!! Just in Jake’s body!! Dylan starts to burn with anger...He snarls to himself. JAKE - Our souls got switched back there! REX - *surprised* WHAT?! How?! COBBER - *taking a step forward* Wait a second. How can we be so sure what you’re saying is true, Rune? RUNE - Because I know what happened. COBBER - *shaking his head* That’s just you. Not us. We don’t know if what you say is true or not, so... RUNE - *shaking a bit* But... DERVISH - Then I think we need a test here. *turning to Jake and Dylan* We’ll just see who’s the REAL Dylan... Both Jake and Dylan blink, confused. DYLAN / JAKE - Huh?! DERVISH - How about this...Dylan would know how my parties go...so what’s the deal with them? DYLAN - Easy! They’re by invitation only! JAKE - *shaking his head* Everyone knows that they’re word-of-mouth parties. DERVISH - *stunned* R-right....!!! *scratches his head* Odd... DYLAN - *annoyed* So I forgot that one. Can ya blame me? Geez! COBBER - Clam it. *coughs* My turn...what nickname do I call Derv over here sometimes? DYLAN / JAKE - Fluoro Boy! COBBER - *shocked* Uh.....yeah....but how.....? Dylan grins confidently and crosses his arms. DYLAN - Too easy... JAKE - *in his mind* Shoot, he must’ve heard that somewhere...Man I’m in a fix... HUNTER - *looking around* Two to one, but I’m still not convinced. How can we tell who’s who? DYLAN - Obviously, I’m Dylan. Always have been, always will ---! VOICE - No! They all look behind them. Bayson staggers up to his feet, Jay helping him up. He appears worn out... BAYSON - No, we’re not done here yet...MY turn now! JAKE - *to himself* Bayson... DYLAN - Tch...fine. Go ahead... BAYSON - *stepping forward* I know the real Dylan, and only the REAL Dylan can know the answer to this... Dylan begins to sweat a little, as does Jake. BAYSON - Then....what happened some time ago when Dylan and I went for a nature hike on Were-Mountain? DYLAN - *smirking* Jake attacked us by causing a rockslide. JAKE - But you tackled me out of the way and saved me. DYLAN - We then ran into a cave to try and lose Jake. JAKE - But then Jake still caught up with us at the edge of a cliff outside the cave. BAYSON - *stern* And...? DYLAN - Jake fired at you, but I leaped in the way of the shot, was wounded, and fell off the cliff. JAKE - Then you came down to my side and heped me, but I passed out. BAYSON - Impressive, seeing how Jake would natually know that information as well. DYLAN - *confident* See? I told you I was--. BAYSON - BUT! DYLAN / JAKE - But??? BAYSON - The proof. The real Dylan knows what I gave him as a thank you for helping me. *looks at them both* Well? DYLAN - It was....*a little panicked* It was..... Jake steps forward. JAKE - Bay, you said you noticed I had some trouble with the terrain of Were-Mountain, unlike you, and I did because of the steep rocks and slippery areas. All watch attentively. Dylan eyes Jake. JAKE - *continuing* Because of this, you gave me a pair of silver boots with a red patch on the front and R’s in them. You said they gave much better traction than my sneakers did, and indeed they do. You had them specially made for me for that reason, and as thanks for risking my life for you. *shakes head* I’ll always have them and I’ll never forget that day. All goes quiet. Bayson’s heart stops. He looks at Jake, eyebrows raised. BAYSON - Dylan.... JAKE - Yes...It’s me. The others turn to Dylan, growling. COBBER - YOU!! Dylan snarls. DYLAN - Damn you, Dylan!!! Damn you to hell!!!! He leaps back and snaps his fingers. Instantly a blood-stained blade appears in his hand. Rune gasps. RUNE - He has Achtzehn!!! DERVISH - The what?! Dylan readies himself with the blade, teeth beared at Jake. DYLAN - You ruin everything! My plans! My life! EVERYTHING! JAKE - Jake! Enough! Why are you doing this?! DYLAN - *growling* I knew about this blade. I knew about its powers. And I knew that if I could get around you mongrels undetected, I could very well destroy you from the inside out...*flashes an evil grin* And taking your body was the way to do it. Now, you’ve ruined everything, but at least I have what I want! *cocks blade at Jake* Come on, Dylan! I have your body! Now I want your life!!! JAKE - !!! Dylan then rushes at Jake, ready to swing the Achtzehn. Jake stands motionless, unsure what to do. RUNE - DYLAN!!! HERE!!! She quickly concentrates and a blue fire surrounds her. Instantly a silver katana appears in Jake’s hand. JAKE - What the--! Dylan swings down at Jake, but Jake raises his own blade and stops it. The two struggle... JAKE - Rrrrr...!!! DYLAN - *grinning* You sissy! Can’t you do any better than that?!! They break abruptly. A swift sword fight ensues. The other Rovers step away quickly and watch in amazement. RUNE - Dylan! COBBER - Mate! Don’t let your guard down! DYLAN - *swinging at Jake* Tired yet, mutt? JAKE - Never! He deflects another blow from the Achtzehn. Another...another...sparks fly from the blades with each successive blow. Dylan seems to have the advantage, constantly forcing Jake backwards and up the nearby stairs soon after. The other Rovers pursue. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Top of RRMC, balcony. The battle has reached outside RRMC on the top floor. Dylan apparently has the best of Jake, for Jake is constantly being pushed back. Closer they get to the end of the balcony, and Jake grow more tired with each deflection. DYLAN - *swinging* Just give it up, Dylan! You can’t win!! JAKE - Forget it Jake! I won’t let you destroy anyone!! The others manage to reach the top. They gather outside and watch what happens, so worried to make any false moves. DERVISH - Man.... MARAUDER - This is absolutely insane! *calling out* Dylan! Hang in there!!!! The brothers reach the edge. Jake manages to deflect two more blows, but suddenly, Dylan makes a full swing at him and knocks Jake blade clean away. The katana falls to the bottom far below. Dylan readies his blade and smirks. DYLAN - So....I think we know the victor of this fight is, now don’t we? JAKE - *backing up* You’ll never win, Jake! DYLAN - I beg to differ... He swings Achtzehn at Jake, and Jake moves back out of its reach, but in doing so, he loses his footing and falls off the balcony. He manages to barely grasp the edge of it...Dylan approaches and looks down at him. The others are frightened. RUNE / HEIDI - DYLAAAAN!!!!!! DERVISH - DUDE!! Dylan sneers at Jake. DYLAN - Well well well...You’ve reached the end of the line, bro. *shakes head* How pitiful, isn’t it? For you to die, I mean. And in front of all your friends...tsk tsk tsk...such a shame... He grins almost satanically as he raises the Achtzehn over his head. Jake’s heart pounds wildy with fear. Dylan’s face shows a face of pure evil. DYLAN - *laughing insanely* BURN IN HELL, DYLAN!!!!!!!!!!!! Rune drops to her knees and cries out! RUNE - DYLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNN!!!!!! *** Dylan......now... *** Suddenly, Jake grabs hold of Dylan’s ankle and yanks. Thrown off-guard, Dylan falls to the floor and onto his back, the Achtzehn jerked from his grasp. Jake leaps up onto the balcony and grabs hold of the Achtzehn. Dylan sees this and his eyes grow wide. The others remain motionless...but Rune closes her eyes... RUNE - Dylan....now is your chance..... Jake closes his eyes hard, emotionally in pain. He raises the Achtzehn. *** Jake....someday....please....forgive me for this.... *** DYLAN - NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! Jake cries out and plunges the Achtzehn into Dylan’s chest. Dylan screams out in pain, but so does Jake...but not in the same way....The blade begins to glow a bright red, growing increasingly brighter. The sound of thunder can be heard, and the winds grow with increasing strength. The others look around, confused and in some fear. COBBER - The heck?! RUNE - ........ REX - What in the world’s happening here?! The light from the blade continues to grow intense and ever crimson-toned. Both brothers continue to cry out in agony... DYLAN - .............DAMN....................YOU..............!!!!!!! His screams echo everywhere. The blade’s light becomes blindingly bright and suddenly blasts out crimson brilliance throughout the entire area, blinding everyone!! JAKE - Please...............forgive me....... Almost as quickly as it started, the light dissipates...The others gradually start to open their eyes and look. Heidi gasps. HEIDI - Dylan!! Dylan and Jake lie motionless on the floor, as does the Achtzehn...Cobber and Dervish rush over and prop Dylan’s body up. COBBER - Dyl? DERVISH - *shaking Dylan a bit* Dyl...Dyl......... Then a slight moan comes from Dylan, and his eyes slowly open. He looks up weakly at both of them. DYLAN - .....Mmm...Derv? Cobb? ....What happened? Excited, Dervish turns his head to the others. DERVISH - He’s okay!!! Dylmeister’s okay!! The others are overwhelmed and rush over to Dylan, Cobber, and Dervish. They help him up. Dylan dusts himself off and looks at the others, who all have smiles on their faces. COBBER - Wait, just to make sure...Dyl, what’s my most prized possession? DYLAN - *laughing a bit* Everyone konws it’s that afro wig of yours, Cobb. Cobber smiles. COBBER - Yep, it’s him! *pats Dylan on the back* Great to have you back, Dyl. DYLAN - *smiling* Thanks Cobb. I’m just glad to have ME back. *looks at himself* But man, these threads have GOT to go... Jake suddenly begins to stir. Cobber and Rex rush over and grab his arms, pulling him up firmly. He comes to and struggles a bit. Hunter approached him and eyes him. JAKE - Let go!!! I swear I’ll kill you all!!! HUNTER - Whatever...Get him out of here... Rex and Cobber pull Jake along past the others towards the stairs, Jake struggling constantly. Jay ruffles Dylan’s fur on his head a bit. JAY - You gonna be okay, buddy? DYLAN - *nodding* Yeah, I’ll be okay Jay. He smiles. Bayson comes over and puts a hand on Dylan’s shoulder. BAYSON - I knew it wasn’t you the whole time, Dyl. DYLAN - *eyes Bayson with a smile* Oh really... He laughs a little, as do the others....As Cobber and Rex take Jake away, he becomes violent. JAKE - *growling* We’ll just see who has the last laugh!!!! He makes a sudden jerk of his right arm, grabs Rex’s gun from his belt, breaks out and fires. The shot sails through the air and straight towards Dylan! They all snap to attention and panic. Dylan’s eyes go wide. DYLAN - !!!! BAYSON - DYLAN!!! Dylan turns to Bayson, but is shoved out of the way by the werewolf just before the bullet meets its mark.....in Bayson’s stomach. Everyone’s faces go pale. DYLAN - BAYSON!!!! Bayson slumps down and drops to the ground. Cobber and Rex manage to grab Jake again, but barely. Jake gets out another shot, headed for Dylan once again. Without warning Jay leaps in front of Dylan and stops the bullet dead in its tracks. JAY - Bastard... JAKE - *infuriated* Kiss my--!! Almost as in reflex, Jay fires a bolt of White Fire straight at Jake, striking him in the forehead and knocking him out cold. Cobber and Rex look at Jake, then each other, then at Jay. COBBER - You... JAY - *shaking his head* He’s not dead. It was only strong enough to knock him unconscious. *turns to see Dylan kneeling by Bayson, frightened* Besides, we have other things to worry about... Bayson is breathing rather hard. Dylan has him propped up on his knee, holding him. Bayson looks up at Dylan and gives a weak grin. BAYSON - Heh...this is familiar.... DYLAN - *upset, but laughs a bit* Y-yeah... BAYSON - We’re even now... He passes out. MARAUDER - We gotta get him to sick bay and fast! He needs the medical attention stat! He and Dervish quickly pick up Bayson and rush him out. Dylan sighs sadly. Jay approaches him and Dylan just rests his head against him. Jay pats his shoulder. JAY - He’ll be okay, bud. DYLAN - I hope so... They all go back downstairs, except for Rune. She stops and goes back. She picks up the Achtzehn and looks at it up and down. RUNE - .....Something has to be done about this....We can’t let it harm anyone else again... She turns back around and carries the blade with her down the stairs... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sick bay, Bayson’s bedside, 5 hours later. Dylan, Jay, Rex and Heidi are gathered around him. Bayson is awake now and is recovering from the wound. Dylan is dressed in his usual attire now. DYLAN - How’re you feeling, Bay? BAYSON - *smiling* A lot better than before. But how am I gonna explain this to my mom? JAY - I think I can handle that. He smiles and leaves the room. REX - Well, at least everything’s okay now. *turning to Dylan* What was it like in Jake’s body anyway, Dyl? Dylan makes a sour face. DYLAN - Not exactly what you might call comfortable. I wasn’t keen on the whole ensemble like the tank top and such. Just wasn’t me, but in his body I guess it works. REX - *smiling* I guess you can never be sure about someone just from the outside. DYLAN - Yeah. *lightly laughs, then looks down, a bit disheartened* Though.....I just still don’t understand... BAYSON - *puzzled* Understand what, Dyl? Dylan sighs. DYLAN - Why Jake hates me so much...I don’t understand what he has against me, his own little brother...*rubs his arm* I just don’t get why he wants to either ruin my life or kill me... A hand comes onto his shoulder. Dylan turns and sees Jay standing behind him. JAY - Don’t worry too much, dude. We wouldn’t let him do that to you. At least I personally know I wouldn’t let him. Dylan smiles, as do the others. HEIDI - Jay’s right, Dyl. We’re here for you. DYLAN - *grinning* Thanks guys. I really appreciate it. BAYSON - Say Jay, what exactly did you just do, anyway? JAY - *smirking* I called your mom and said you were staying over a friend’s house for the night. You’re lucky it’s Friday, you know. Bayson laughs a bit. BAYSON - Yeah, I guess you’re right about that. Thanks. Jay just nods, then thinks for a moment. JAY - Hmm... HEIDI - Jay? JAY - I’m wondering....what happened to that sword-thing? HEIDI - I think I saw Rune with it earlier. She was heading to the containment vaults, I believe. Wonder why... REX - Speaking of missing things, what happened to Jake? Marauder comes in from another room. MARAUDER - They took care of him already. JAY - *cocks an eyebrow* Oh? And just where is that jerk? MARAUDER - Somewhere where Parvo can go and pick him up. *winks* Out in the middle of nowhere. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Middle of nowhere, USA, meantime (okay okay, not real inventive. :P ). Jake is on the ground, slowly beginning to stir. He opens his eyes and stands up, groggy. JAKE - *annoyed* Those bastards!! I swear I’ll--!!! He stops, then reaches into his pocket and pulls out a communicator. He sets the frequency and Parvo’s image appears on it. PARVO - So, I let you work on your own, and I assume you failed?! JAKE - Not entirely, General. *evil grin* I think I may have some information you’ll find very useful indeed... ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Containment vaults. Rune is seen placing the Achtzehn in an unbreakable glass casing. She covers it and just looks at it for a bit. RUNE - If only its properties could be reversed, then it could be of real use. *thinking for a moment* I know it can be done, but who has enough knowledge of rune weaponry to figure out....*she stops* ....He would know... Rune turns and starts to close the vault... RUNE - But when will he be back....? The vault door closes shut. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dylan’s room, about an hour later. Dylan is sitting on his bed, lost in thought. There is a knock at the door. DYLAN - Come in. Bayson walks in, his stomach area bandaged a bit. BAYSON - Hey, how’s it going? DYLAN - *surprised* Bay, what are you doing out of bed? BAYSON - Eh, I’m recovering quickly enough and I feel okay, so Marauder said it was fine to walk around a bit. Thought I’d see how you were doing. DYLAN - *smiles* Thanks. BAYSON - You okay? DYLAN - *nodding* Yeah, I’m okay dude. Just thinking. Bayson nods and sits next to Dylan. He looks around. He spots in the corner the silver boots he gave Dylan. He smiles, then turns to the mutt. BAYSON - You know, I honestly couldn’t tell who was who back there. DYLAN - *smiling* Yeah, but nor could anyone else. That was the main problem. It was a good thing you guys asked those questions, otherwise I’d be in big trouble. BAYSON - *nods* For sure. Either way it’s just great to have the real you back, dude. Dylan smiles. DYLAN - Me too. They share a laugh. Seconds later a mob of Rover recruits flies by Dylan’s doorway and down the hall. Dylan and Bayson get up and look out. Cobber comes by and stops in front of them. COBBER - You blokes coming to Fluoro Boy’s party? BAYSON - *confused* Party? What’s the occassion? Cobber snickers. COBBER - You haven’t been here enough to know I guess. It’s for no reason at all. *grins* And boy do I plan to have fun, heh heh... DYLAN - *cocks eyebrow* Uh oh...what’s going on in that Kelpie head of yours? COBBER - *innocent* Oh nothing...nothing at all...*snicker* Comin’ or what? BAYSON - Sounds like fun to me. DERVISH - *from down the hall* Hey! I said 100 cases of Dew! This is only 99 cases, and one is 2 cans short of a six pack! We have to have Dew! COBBER - *low voice* Two cans short of a six pack, eh? No argument from this corner. The three chuckle a bit. Bayson then walks out into the hall and starts to leave with Cobber. He turns back to Dylan. BAYSON - You gonna come, Dyl? DYLAN - *nodding* Sure. Might as well. Bayson smiles and walks off. Dylan starts to follow, but then stops and zones out for a second. He snaps to and gives a quick head shake. DYLAN - ............Why do I get the feeling something bad is going to happen soon? He walks off to the party.... THE END...or it it the beginning...?