Neon Tiger Pt. 2

Agent Moonlight and Agent Jones stepped out of their car and headed into the alleyway. Moonlight spotted the body first but that was not a great feat as local medical examiner Dr. Creeper was standing over it. In this town, nobody wanted to meet the Creeper. Anybody who did had probably come to a bad end. Agent Jones silently pointed up and Moonlight followed the gesture to see a broken window a few stories above. Moonlight nodded. They would have to check it out.

“What have we got doctor?” Moonlight asked. “Things look messy here.”

“Is that you, Sirius?” the doctor asked with a grin. He was gaunt with long hair that he had to keep tucking back. “You’re assigned to this one?”

“Me and Mrs. Jones,” Moonlight said. “Agent Jones, sorry.”

Jones seemed to let that one slide. “Nice to meet you doctor,” she said. “I’ve heard good things about you.”

“I’m sure that isn’t true,” Dr. Creeper said. “But I’m happy to be of service. The young lady here had her throat slit before she took a ride through the window. She has glass shards embedded in her. It was a race between blood loss and the impact for what killed her. I need to do an autopsy but it was clearly murder.”

“I hope so,” Jones said. “Otherwise it’s the showiest suicide ever.”

Moonlight grunted at that. “Do we have a positive ID, Doc?” he asked. “We wouldn’t want to keep you from hauling her back to your lab.”

“I’m going to hit you with a shocker,” Dr. Creeper said. “She isn’t chipped.”

“That’s becoming rarer and rarer,” Jones said. “It’s about to become mandatory.”

“Lucky me,” Dr. Creeper said. “That only makes my job easier but I have another surprise. She was carrying this.” He held out a wallet in his gloved hands.

Moonlight slipped on his own gloves before taking the wallet with some amusement. “Wow, that’s old school,” he said. “I guess she needed to carry identification somehow.”

He opened the wallet and pulled out a thin plastic card.

“Annie Ophelia Kaye,” Moonlight said. He held the card up so Jones could scan it with her handheld.

“This is her address,” Jones said with a look back up to the window. “More or less. I guess we should go up and see what we can see.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Moonlight said. He put the ID card carefully back in the wallet and then slipped the whole thing into an evidence bag. The two of them headed into the building and climbed the stairs. “Which apartment was she in?”

“4A,” Jones said. “Right here. I’ll take care of the lock.”

She pulled out a slicer tool and burned through the lock quickly. She pushed open the door slowly, hand on the handle of her pistol in its holster. Moonlight drew his collapsible sword but did not trigger it to expand. They entered the apartment with confidence in one swift movement and looked in opposite directions, ready for an attack. No attack came. They slowly relaxed.

“Some bloodstains on the carpet over there,” Moonlight said, point at the stains. “Probably close to where the initial attack took place.”

“The fire escape is just outside of the window,” Jones said. “It would have to have been a hard throw to send her through the window and also clear the railing.”

“Some bio-enhancements could achieve that kind of strength strength,”  Moonlight said, still looking around.

Jones put her handheld up against a picture of Annie standing very close to a young man and scanned it. Her eyebrows went up as she read the screen.

“I knew I recognized that face,” Jones said. “That’s Maxwell Silver. What’s he doing slumming it in this neighborhood?”

“Dating our victim or at least that’s what it looks like,” Moonlight said. “We’re going to have to take it slow with the Silver family but he just might be our guy.”

“It can’t be that easy,” Jones said.

“He should at least know something,” Moonlight said. “We’ll get the forensic squad down here to check this place out. We’ll check in on Mr. Silver and any of Annie’s other known associates. We’ll shake something loose.”

“I hope so,” Jones said. “For her sake.”

The Muppet Show Season 7 Pt. 8

S07E22 Kim Novak

Kim Novak was born as Marilyn in Chicago, Illinois. Novak is of Czech descent with her father working as both a history teacher and freight dispatcher for the railroad. Interestingly, though her parents were not in show business, they would both appear in a movie with Novak later in life. She got her start as a promotional model for a refrigerator and went by the name “Ms. Deepfreeze”. She then traveled with some other models to Hollywood to look into the exploding film industry. When Columbia Pictures hired her, she was offended when the head of the studio wanted her to change her name to Kit Marlowe because he claimed her “Polack” name. They compromised on Kim Novak. The studio wanted her to be the successor to Rita Hayworth and a counterpart of Mariyln Monroe. She was immediately cast in movies like Pushover, Phffft, and  5 Against the House. She had her first major success in the movie version of Picnic. She also took a sultry turn in The Man With The Golden Arm. 

She continued to star in movies but had another mega-hit with Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo. She continued to work after that but her career did begin to decline. She starred in Bell Book and Candle, a movie where she had some agency for once. She worked less and less but not because Hollywood was done with her but rather she was getting burnt out. By 1966 (17 years before this episode would occur), she was pretty much done with the life of a Hollywood star. At that time she was able to pick and choose her films, though. In the early seventies, she took four years off and she had already moved out of Hollywood to Big Sur. She continued to act here and there with more and more time between roles. She lost her home in a mudslide which is why she probably kept working a lot. Her career came full circle when she guested on the soap opera Falcon Crest as a character named Kit Marlowe. She was a gorgeous and talented actress who was true Hollywood royalty.

Cold Open: Kim rushes into the back door chased by paparazzi but is blinded by flashes

Guest Arc: Everybody fawns over Kim being a big star but she is modest

Guest Acts:

Kim talks with Kermit about being in danger and Novak proves she can be dangerous too

Kim and a bunch of female muppets dance to “A Lot of Livin’ to Do” (Schroeder/Weisman)

Kim is cast in a film noir sketch that devolves into competition with Ms. Piggy

S07E23 Mary Martin

Mary Martin was born in Weatherford, Texas to a lawyer father and a violin teacher. From an early age she was said to have a real ear for music. She began singing with her older sister and another girl on a bandstand outside of the courthouse where her father worked. She learned a lot of music by acting as a mimic and covering songs by artists of her day. However, she first started with an education in dance at the Franchon and Marco School of the Theatre before she opened up her own studio and taught dance for a while. Her studio was burned down by a man who believed dancing was a sin which spurred on both her divorce and her journey into show business. She auditioned so much in Hollywood that she earned the nickname “Audition Mary”. This actually led to her joining Broadway instead where she flourished. At the same time, she started a career as a singer on the radio.

She made her Broadway debut in Cole Porter’s Leave it to Me! where she was an instant hit. She moved on to the Kurt Weill musical One Touch of Venus. She then won a Tony Award for her portrayal of Nellie Bush in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s South Pacific. This led directly into the role she is perhaps most known for as she played Peter Pan on Broadway for quite a while. She was also in the first cast of the Sound of Music on Broadway as Maria. Notably, she originated a lot of famous roles in musicals but did not reprise them in film. She said that she did not like acting on film as she missed the connection with the audience but she did sometimes appear on television. She went on to play Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun. She was a legendary singer and a bright star on Broadway.

Cold Open: Mary walks through the back door and ducks as one of The Flying Zucchini Brothers flies past. Mary quips that she used to do that. 

Guest Arc: Sweetums has a crush on somebody and Mary gets immediately sucked in

Guest Acts:

“Honey Bun” (Rodgers/Hammerstein)  – Mary and Sweetums try to dedicate the song to Sweetums’ crush

“I’m Flying” (Charlap/Leigh) – Mary tries to show off by flying but can’t quite take off

“I Got the Sun in the Mornin’ (and the Moon at Night)” (Berlin) – Mary sings with the cast

S07E24 David Bowie

Bowie was born as David Robert Jones in London, England. His mother was a waitress at a cinema and his father worked as a promotions officer for a charity. Everything changed for Bowie the day that he heard Little Richard sing “Tutti Frutti” and he is quoted as saying that he “heard god” that day. He was obsessed with music and had a lot of poise for a small child. Bowie lived his life with faulty depth perception due to a schoolyard injury brought on by a fistfight. He formed his first band (The Konrads) at the age of 15. Once Bowie had an agent, he joined a succession of bands trying to find the right fit for his sound. Bowie dreamed of being like Mick Jagger, something he definitely achieved as the two later became peers and friends (and maybe more according to legend). Bowie finally came into his own with the release of his self-titled album Space Oddity, a song that particularly endures in pop culture. He then moved into a more hard rock sound rather than his earlier acoustic sound.

Listening to proto-punk, he started to come up with the part of his act that was arguably the most famous. This was his glam rock movement where he worked to experiment and innovate musically. He also came up with different personas through which he performed songs. Ziggy Stardust was an androgynous rock star from outer space. The Thin White Duke was a more serious performer who dressed in a cabaret style. Halloween Jack was a little wilder. Aladdin Sane was kind of like a reincarnation of Ziggy Stardust. He continued to push the envelope of rock music and flaunted his sexuality and androgyny. Bowie released a lot of albums and even released one a few days after his death in 2016. He was the epitome of a rock star.

Cold Open: Bowie is putting on his makeup in the mirror when he sees monsters in the reflection. “I’m going to fit in here.” 

Guest Arc: Bowie has an idea for a movie and wants to run it past the Muppets

Guest Acts:

“Space Oddity” – Bowie sings the song as the story is shown in muppet form

“Let’s Dance” – Bowie performs with the Electric Mayhem

“Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)” – Bowie rocks out with a bunch of monsters

The Device

The rain came down in droves in Cattack City. The storm had come on very quickly and Louise “Lou” Lampton was forced to activate her forcefield to see even a few feet. She had designed the device for many purposes but putting on a lighter setting diverted the rain away from her body. She took a moment to wring out her blue hair and wipe the water from her eyes. She then hurried down the street at a quicker pace. She had to be cautious but she had little time to delay. Her case depended on her getting to the device before anybody else.

The scanner at her hip suddenly sounded and Lou grabbed it and studied its readings. The device was nearby. She took a deep breath to calm and center herself and then started pointing the scanner in a slow circle. She was able to determine that the device was somewhere in the apartment building. It was only a matter of meters now. She approached the building and tried the front door but it was locked and required a resident keycard. The back door was similarly locked. She would have tried a few of the door buzzers but she saw no lights on in the windows. As she walked a circle around the building, she discovered a cellar door with no discernible handle.

She pulled out a taser from her belt and pressed it against the metal of the door before triggering it. Just as she hoped, the charge of electricity popped the door open when it short-circuited. She replaced the taser so it would recharge. She grabbed the edge of the cellar door and pulled the basement open. She crept down the stairs slowly and closed the door behind her. She wished she had a towel to dry off with but it would have to wait. She checked the scanner and saw that the device was at her elevation. That was very lucky. 

She was so focused on the scanner as she walked toward the device that she almost did not see the figure standing in the shadows. She only had a split second to react when the figure fired at her. She reextended her forcefield at its highest setting in the direction of the oncoming bullets. She heard them ricochet off of her shield, a very satisfying sound. In the confusion, Lou grabbed a device off of her belt and tossed it at the ceiling. It activated and instantly pulled away the assailant’s gun magnetically and it was out of reach. She pulled out her own sidearm and pointed at the shadowy figure.

“Hold it right there!” Lou called out. “I’m a pretty good shot. We’re done with this fight.”

The figure slowly raised his hands to the sky and stepped forward. The first thing that Lou noticed, because it was strikingly obvious, was that the figure’s skin was an odd color. The blonde woman’s eyes moved around too rapidly and there was just a general sense of the uncanny valley. This woman was not biologically human. Synthetics were getting better but they still could not pass for humans.

“You have me dead to rights, miss,” the woman said. “I was merely firing on a trespasser which you still are.”

Lou pressed the button on her lapel and a holographic badge popped into view in the air. “I’m a duly licensed agent of law enforcement,” Lou said. “I’ve been hired by the authorities on a case and I am here in that capacity. The name’s Lou Lampton.”

“But you’re not actually police,” the woman said. “You’re a mercenary. I will not impede you on your mission but I think we’re both after the same thing.”

“Uh huh,” Lou said skeptically. “So when you said you were shooting at a trespasser, you neglected to say that you are also a trespasser.”

“A simple evasion while I determined how much danger I was in from you,” the woman said. “I’m happy that you did not blow me away.”

“It was a close thing,” Lou said. She had good trigger discipline but she was good at evasion as well. “If you don’t get in my way, I can let you hang around while I find the device. What’s your name?”

“Awnd Sanlrun,” the woman said. “Can I have my firearm back?”

“Nice try,” Lou said.

Zilch Origins – A Psychonauts Story

Bobby Zilch climbed out of his seat as soon as soon as the plane touched down. He had been called up as a Psychonauts Intern. Apparently, Raz and Lily had actually put in a good word for him as he had been on a waitlist to get called into headquarters. Maybe little Razputin was not such a bad guy. Bobby had gone through a lot in the past few months. He had been trying to better himself. Not surprisingly, getting kidnapped and having his brain removed had been a life-changing experience. Like many of his fellow campers, he had needed to take some time to recover both emotionally and mentally. His powers had not worked right away but they came back with time. He had spent a lot of time getting his head straight and shedding his bullying tendencies.

A lot of credit for all of this was due to Chloe Barge, Bobby’s girlfriend. Bobby had developed an intense crush on Chloe, allowing himself to be a little vulnerable around her. Chloe seemed uninterested, focused instead on investigating her alleged extraterrestrial origins. In the end, Chloe agreed to date Bobby if he stopped bullying the other kids. He had agreed immediately and left bullying behind him bit by bit. Stopping being a bully felt really good after a while and Bobby started to feel better about himself. He was ready to focus on being a Psychonaut.

Chloe climbed out of the pilot seat. She still wore a helmet which she did whenever she was in public. Bobby had been able to coax her to take the helmet off in private. It was not a bad idea to still wear it for missions.

“Here we are,” Chloe said. “Back at Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp. How does it feel?”

“I don’t know,” Bobby said. “A lot of different emotions. A lot of really scary things happened here but I wouldn’t have met you or figured out my powers without being here.”

“I’m still surprised that they only sent two interns on this mission,” Chloe said. 

“We know this place and it is probably not any more dangerous than it was normally,” Bobby said. “But I have a feeling that they’re not far away and that this is a test.”

Chloe nodded. “Everything is a test in the Psychonauts,” she said. “We should probably go over mission parameters really quick. Dr. Caligosto Loboto DDS has escaped captivity at Psychonauts headquarters an escape only witnessed by Razputin Aquato. Loboto was one of two villains responsible for the Thorney Towers incident. He was later used by Gristol Malik in an effort to destroy the Psychonauts.”

“Right,” Bobby said. “But we know from mission logs in the Rhombus of Ruin and Agent Nein’s interrogation notes that Loboto regrets his actions. He’s somewhat reformed. Maybe.”

“And there was that other thing that Razputin mentioned that Loboto said,” Chloe said. “That’s why we’re here. Loboto said that he was returning to camp because he left his child here.”

Bobby sighed. “I get it,” he said. “Loboto and I kind of look like each other. We have the same skin color, the same eyes, and the same body type. There’s a lot of similarities.”

“Do you think he could possibly be your father, though?” Chloe asked, trying to be tactful which Bobby knew was tough for her. “Is there a world where that’s true?”

“I don’t know,” Bobby said. “My mother went quiet when I tried to bring it up and I wasn’t about to ask my dad. I don’t think he’s my father.”

“But what if he is?” Chloe asked. “Can you still bring him in with me?”

“Honestly? If he’s my biological father then I want to capture him even more,” Bobby said. “But if he was my biological father then that means he still stole my brain and your brain. He also left me in the dark for thirteen years.”

Chloe nodded. “And that sucks,” she said. “I understand how that feels.” She momentarily looked up at the ceiling of the plane as if she was looking at the stars. “But Loboto is also insane. He barely knows what he is doing sometimes. Somebody drove an ice pick into his brain.”

“Yeah, it’s complicated,” Bobby said. “But we don’t get answers here on the plane. Let’s move out. We have a nutjob to find.”

You Are Nuts, Lady – A Batman ‘89 Story

Freshly minted doctor Harleen Quinzel made her way down the hallway of Arkham Asylum. She had heard a lot of bad things about the place but she was dead set on helping people. She wanted to put her degree to good use and help to heal the broken minds of the criminally insane. So far she was fitting in okay but she knew that everybody was watching her as the youngest and newest doctor. She had gone to great lengths to erase her lower-class accent and she had succeeded mostly. She was a professional and she was going to prove it.

Harleen stopped at the door of one of the therapy rooms and nodded at the two guards who nodded back before unlocking the door. Harleen took a deep breath and then pushed open the door with a gentle smile on her face. Inside the room, Alexis Kaye (Patient No. C-3457) was handcuffed to the table. She was slumped over the table with her head down and when Harleen sat down, she slowly raised her head to look at Harleen through the curtain of her hair. Harleen fought to keep her composure. She had seen scarier. Alexis had used some dirt to draw clown makeup on.

“Good morning, Alexis,” Harleen said. “How are we feeling today?”

Alexis grinned and made eye contact. A disturbing amount of eye contact. “Good morning, Harley,” she said. “I’m doing great.”

“Now, I’ve told you before that you must call me Doctor Quinzel,” Harleen said gently. “Let’s keep things professional.”

Alexis frowned briefly but then returned to her unhinged smile. “Sorry, Doctor Harley,” she said. “I’ll use your professional name if you use mine.”

“I’m not calling you Punchline, Alexis,” Harleen said, immediately kicking herself for even saying the name. “Your name is Alexis Kaye and I am Doctor Quinzel. That’s our relationship.”

“So serious,” Alexis said. “You should learn how to cut loose and have a little fun.”

“We’re not here to talk about me, Alexis,” Harleen said, brushing off the personal comment. “Is there anywhere you want to start today?”

“I’m an open book, doc,” Alexis said. “I just love to talk.”

“Fine,” Harleen said. “Why don’t we talk about the League of Smiles? Until recently you led the group. What is the League of Smiles?”

“Who says I’m not still leading it from the inside?” Alexis asked with a playful tilt of her head before moving on. “The League of Smiles are my friends. We’re all true followers of The Joker.”

“Alexis, Jack Napier also known as The Joker is dead,” Harleen said. “I know you all are looking for something to fill your lives with but The Joker is not coming back.”

Alexis shook her head. “He’s not dead,” she said. “If you look in the morgues for him, you won’t find him. If you dig him up, you won’t find him.”

“Alexis,” Harleen said, struggling for words. She had sympathy for this young woman but it could be frustrating. “He fell off of the Gotham Cathedral. Nobody could survive that fall.”

“It’s all a coverup,” Alexis said. “The guy they scraped off of the pavement wasn’t our Joker. That was just another loyal follower. They wanted the people of Gotham to stop being afraid so they made him go away. He’s still out there.”

“Then why hasn’t he shown himself?” Harleen asked. “He’s never shied away from the public before. He loves a camera.”

“He’s an artist,” Alexis said with an offended frown. “You expect him to perform on command? He’s working on his next masterpiece. Besides, who wants to share the spotlight with that Penguin creature.”

“Alexis, that does bring up an interesting point,” Harleen said. “The Penguin was found to be working with the Red Triangle Gang who were inspired by the circus.”

“I know where you’re going with this,” Alexis said. “They were phonies. They had clowns among them who did not follow the Joker. Traitors.”

“Did you do something to them?” Harleen asked.

“Oh, we murdered a lot of them,” Alexis said. “It was hilarious. Some of them were forgiven and allowed to join us. Those that saw the light.”

Harleen felt a shiver run down her spine and fought not to let it show. “You do know that this behavior is both illegal and wrong, right?” she asked. “You’re not going to prove anything to anybody. You’re going to rot away in captivity.”

“I won’t be in here that long,” Alexis said. “The Joker will come for me and mine. Maybe I’ll even introduce you. Would you like that?”

Harleen shook her head and could feel her heart racing. “I think we’ve reached the end of our time today,” she said. “Please clean your face.”

Harleen stood up and left the room, barely glancing at the guards. The thought of Alexis being right was terrifying. The Joker was a homicidal, psychopathic madman. Harleen shook it off. There was no way that Alexis was right. She was certifiable. Harleen would call up her mentor Dr. Meridian and see if she had any insight into the situation.

Xena of the High Seas – A Xena: Warrior Princess Story

[Quick note: This little story takes place before the events of the show when Xena was a pirate and still a villain]

Xena’s ship had been sailing the wide blue sea for days without seeing another soul. She and her crew were definitely getting restless, wanting some action and some blood. When they sighted a merchant vessel, they hurried to sail toward it. At the very least there would probably be good food aboard and a little bit of a fight to take it over. Xena sharpened her sword as she ordered her crew to get the ship to go faster. She glared across the waters, mentally preparing herself to take the ship. She was a fierce warrior and she knew that nobody could take her in a fair fight and this would not be a fair fight. These merchants had no idea what was coming.

The ship cut through the water and closed in. Her men lined the railing of Xena’s boat as they closed in and the merchant crew knew what the score was right away. Xena struck first. She had spotted an archer up in the crow’s nest and she tossed her chakram, downing the man with one shot. She grabbed a rope and swung over, drawing her sword with her distinctive war cry. Her strikes and moves would have been called beautiful if they did not shed so much blood. She was expertly attacking to injure, not to kill. She could not torture dead men for information later and she might sell a few into slavery. Her men followed her in an overwhelming force.

It was only a few moments until the guards and sailors started to throw down their swords. They sank to their knees in desperation which brought a fierce smile to Xena’s face. She sheathed her sword.

“Bring forward your goods for my inspection,” Xena called out. “And I’m warning you that you will die if you try to hide anything from me. I want to see your best.”

Some of the sailors started to look at each other but scrambled to fulfill her request when she touched the hilt of her sword. They went below decks to gather what they may.

“Let me talk to the captain if he or she still lives,” Xena called out.

A older man stepped forward, making sure not to provoke any punishment for himself or his crew.

“I am here,” the man said. “My name is Timolus and this is my ship.”

“You mean that this is my ship now,” Xena said, stepping forward to poke Timolus’ chest with her finger. “You have been boarded by Xena. You know what that means?” 

Timolus nodded, taking a deep yet shaky breath. “I’ve heard the stories,” he said. “We all have. We will not give you any more trouble. Please spare us.”

“I haven’t decided what I’ll do yet,” Xena said with a dangerous grin. “I could burn this boat. I could do a lot of things.” She paused. “Is there somebody important on this vessel?”

“Why do you ask?” Timolus asked cautiously.

“Remember when I warned you about hiding things from me?” Xena asked. “Answer the question.”

A young woman emerged from below decks, clad in fine silks. She was gorgeous and held herself with a noble bearing. Xena was immediately interested.

“It’s no use, Timolus,” the woman said. “She knows. I won’t try to hide and let you and yours be hurt by her or worse.”

“Hello, Beautiful,” Xena said with a smile. “So brave. What’s your name?”

“My name is Iphigenia,” the woman said. “I have heard of you. Have you heard of me?”

Xena laughed. “Yes, you’re a bonafide princess,” she said. “Your father will pay plenty to get you back. A ransom that will fill our coffers for a long time.”

Iphigenia scoffed. “I hate to disappoint you but my father wants nothing to do with me,” she said. “He has washed his hands of me. He tried to have me killed, sacrificed to Artemis but she changed her mind and saved me at the last moment. I paid for passage on this ship to leave a homeland I no longer wanted to live in.”

Xena frowned. “Very disappointing, princess,” she said. “I’ve been betrayed myself so your story has not fallen on deaf ears. I will decide what to do with you in time. I’m sure I can find some use for you yet. For the time being, you will sit beside me. Bring on the food and drink. My men deserve a feast.”

We Must Be Untethered – An Us Story

The Hands Across America Uprising as it had started to be called, had occurred and taken the United States of America by surprise. Many people had been killed by their doppelgangers but not everybody had died. Several had either escaped pursuit by their doppelgangers or had murdered them as they appeared. When the subterranean doppelgangers had joined together to mimic the Hands Across America fundraising event that occurred in 1986. While the doppelgangers had been distracted, they had been relatively easy to contain by what was left of the military joined with a quickly formed militia. For the moment, the doppelgangers seemed content to stand in the sunlight.

With the initial danger passed, the government started to take stock and see how bad the attack had been. The death toll was astronomical as many places were absolutely littered with dead bodies. The media investigated and this caused enough pressure for a full government investigation. The government was forced to reveal the obvious, the massive clone army had been caused by a government program. Unfortunately, most of the files regarding this program had been destroyed but excursions into the subterranean tunnels had recovered a few files. These files indicated the uncanny link between a person and their doppelganger or “tethered”. An investigation into who was responsible for this travesty began but few had hope that it would result in meaningful punishment.

With the revelation that these Tethered were actually victims of a sort, the idea of exterminating them became less and less popular despite their violent attack. They knew from anecdotal evidence that the Tethered could be killed without harming the human they were copying but ethical questions were raised once that killing would not be done in self-defense. The deceased Tethered were gathered in order to study them. Human survivors were interviewed. This was how Adelaide Wilson had been discovered.

First thought to be patient zero of the phenomenon, further questioning revealed that Adelaide had tried to cover up her true origins after killing her double. Addy was in fact a Tethered who had learned to speak and interact with society correctly. She had imprisoned her own human double in the tunnels. This led to the revelation that the original Adelaide had actually taught the previously aimless Tethered and turned them into a fighting force. This meant that the Tethered could be taught and could respond to normal human stimuli. 

If these clones could be ‘tethered’ to humans, perhaps they could be ‘untethered’ without either person getting killed. Scientists believed that the Tethered had a much better chance at becoming a more civilized society if they were separated from their counterparts. Such a procedure might also remove the uncanny sixth sense the Tethered had in finding their counterparts that they had been trained to kill. Violence did not need to be the answer. 

In the meantime, surviving humans had been encouraged to live in walled settlements in case the Tethered decided to attack again. So far they had turned docile but the Tethered could turn again at any moment. Scientists began to study the dead bodies of Tethered but these studies yielded few interesting results. Europe sent special military forces to help capture a few living Tethered to study. These volunteers would not have a Tethered and would be at less risk of provoking violence. At least, that was the theory. A lot of work went into selecting Tethered subjects that had living doubles for capture and study. The work was ongoing and those involved were confident that a solution could be found.

As for Adelaide Wilson, it was decided that she had been away from her fellow Tethered for too long to be of much help. She had been tried by a military court based on her kidnapping of a human citizen. The growing empathy for the Tethered made the military’s decision to acquit Adelaide easier. She was fitted with an ankle monitor and returned to her adopted family. 

The Wilsons are just one story in a sea of stories of that fateful night. Historians and reporters are working tirelessly to record as many stories as they can. Both the deaths and the survivals of humans and Tethered would not be in vain. The world could be fixed again. 

Viridian Dreams – A Wizard of Oz Story

Dorothy Gale had been caught in the tornado and she could have sworn she had flown through the air. Something had hit her head and when she had looked out of the window of their small farmhouse, she could have sworn she had seen terrible visions. She had then felt weightless as the house had started to fall. Dorothy grabbed her dog, Toto, and hugged him tight. Then there was a horrific crashing noise and everything went black. When she woke up, the house seemed to still be intact. Toto wiggled out of her arms and circled her as she stood up. She brushed herself off and headed toward the front door. 

When she opened the door, the light was blinding. The world out there was like nothing on Earth and, as she stumbled into the light, she saw a little village. Little was the operative word as all of the buildings were smaller than anything she had ever seen. As soon as she had that thought, a crowd of three-foot-tall people came streaming out of the buildings, surrounding her. She was startled but she stood her ground.

“You killed the witch!” One of the small people yelled out.

“Ding Dong the Wicked Witch is Dead!” Several people yelled out in response.

“Wait,” Dorothy asked. “What’s going on here? Who are you?”

One of the most authoritative-looking of the group stepped forward. “We’re the Munchkins,” he said. “This is Munchkinland.”

“Munchkinland,” Dorothy said with wonder. “Wait, you said that somebody died. Who’s dead?”

The Munchkins all pointed at two feet sticking out from under Dorothy’s house. Dorothy gasped and started shaking.

“I didn’t mean to!” Dorothy yelled out. “Oh God, I can’t believe I killed somebody. Wait, this was the tornado’s fault.”

“I don’t think the Wicked Witch will see it that way,” one of the Munchkins said. 

Dorothy looked back at the Munchkins. “Who?” she asked. 

Instead of answering, the Munchkins looked expectantly at the sky.

“What are you all looking at?” Dorothy asked.

“We’re waiting for Glinda, the Good Witch,” one of the Munchkins said. “We summoned her, she should be here soon.”

Dorothy looked up as well which is why she was so surprised by the explosion of fire and smoke a few feet away. She was briefly knocked off of her feet and the Munchkins scattered while screaming. Dorothy looked up at a green woman glaring down at her. She scrambled to her feet.

“Are you the one who killed my sister?” the woman asked. “I should pull you apart right now, girl.”

Dorothy struggled to speak but then she gathered her courage and stood up. “I didn’t kill anybody,” she said. “It was a freak accident.”

“You’re wearing my sister’s magic slippers,” the woman said. “That means you defeated her.”

Dorothy looked down and she was indeed wearing the slippers that she had seen on the feet sticking out from under her house. They shimmered and sparkled with something more than the strange material they were made from. They also fit perfectly which surprised and disturbed Dorothy greatly.

“Look, just give me the slippers and I’ll consider letting you live,” the woman said. She reached to pull the shoes off of Dorothy but some force stopped her hands inches away. She cried out in pain. “Curses! I must defeat you to win the slippers.”

Dorothy shook her head. “I don’t want to fight you,” she said. “More importantly, I don’t want to die. I never wanted these slippers and I don’t remember even putting them on.”

Dorothy bent down and unbuckled the slippers and took them off. She stood back up and held the shoes out to the green woman. 

“What?” the woman asked in surprise.

“Take them,” Dorothy said. “Please just take them.” She shook the slippers at the woman.

The woman reached out slowly and grabbed the slippers. When the woman first touched the slippers, Dorothy felt a surge of heat that hurt but also felt good. The green woman clutched the slippers and there was something in her eyes that told Dorothy that she had felt something similar. The woman disappeared again in a sudden burst of flames. Dorothy looked down at her hand and watched as it shimmered and turned green for a moment and then returned to normal.

“What’s going on?” Dorothy asked nervously.

“It looks like freely giving the slippers had some unforeseen side effects,” a voice said. “What happens next is uncharted.”

Dorothy turned around and saw a woman in a resplendent pink gown with vibrant red hair. She also had a horrific bruise on the right side of her face.

“Um, I’m Dorothy,” Dorothy said. “Who are you?”

“I’m Glinda,” the woman said. “The wicked witch you just met jumped me before I could arrive to help you out. We have a lot to figure out.

Under Siege in Kamar-Taj – A Marvel Age of Apocalypse Story

Dane Whitman was fleeing on horseback through the streets of Atlanta from pursuing Infinite soldiers. He had been able to avoid the mutant threat for a long time by laying low and keeping his head down as much as he could. He would use the magic of his sword to save a few people here and there but he would keep things low-key. Then the announcement had gone out about the European Council’s evacuation of humans from the eastern seaborn of the former United States of America. He knew that he could do more good by joining up with the other humans in Europe rather than in the chaos of America. He had tried to travel slowly and quietly but he had been found out. The Infinites had then given chase.

As he rode, he wished he still had his winged horse Aragorn. Having wings at his disposal would make short work of getting to an evacuation point. The Infinites started to fire on Dane and his horse and the countryside started to explode around him. He spurred the already tired horse into a faster gallop, knowing that his end had come. Even with his armor reinforced by Marc’s power, he knew that he was no match for such an overwhelming force. That was when a portal opened in front of him and the horse leaped through without a second thought. It was suddenly very quiet and the air felt thinner. He encouraged the horse to come to a stop as soon as he noticed that the gunfire had stopped.

A bald man was waiting nearby with a smile on his face.

“Who are you?” Dane asked. “Where are we?”

“My name is Wong,” the man said. “And I have brought you safely to Kamar-Taj, currently a refuge for magical beings away from the violence of the world. By order of the Sorcerer Supreme, I brought you here with a portal.”

“Why me?” Dane asked. “There are so many people to save out there.”

“We only have so much power and space here,” Wong said. “It forces us to be selective when choosing whom we save. You carry and wield a very powerful magical artifact and we have sensed that you have had your powers altered and amplified recently.”

Dane looked confused and nodded. “Yes,” he said. “I recently inherited the mantle of the Moon Knight and I combined it with my own mantle as the Black Knight. The Black Moon Knight. I’m still workshopping the name but I haven’t really socialized a lot lately.”

“You have suffered much,” Wong said as he nodded. “We wish we could have located you earlier.”

“How did you find me?” Dane asked.

“I located you,” a woman said. She was clad all in armor and had long blond braids. “I felt Marc Spector’s passing and discovered you while investigating. You may call me Valkyrie.”

Dane’s eyes went wide. “As in Norse mythology? That Valkyrie?” he asked.

“As you can see, I am very real so please refrain from calling me ‘mythology’,” Valkyrie said. “I am indeed a Valkyrie under the banner of Odin. I was cut off from the other nine realms when the rainbow bridge went down and I was stranded here on Earth.”

“How many magical beings are here?” Dane asked.

“There are very many magical beings here and also people who are not innately magical but wield magic such as yourself,” Wong said. “We have managed to save quite a few.”

“Then we should use the force that you’ve gathered to save even more people,” Dane said. “We shouldn’t be hiding on some mystery mountain.”

“What you propose is dangerous,” Wong said. “We could put magic in the hands of Apocalypse’s forces and he would use it to dominate the entire planet. Perhaps even farther.”

“But your plan is also something that I have also proposed,” Valkyrie said. “It seems I have a new ally to help rally the troops.”

“This will have to be an ongoing conversation,” Wong said. “No decisions are to be made lightly. I will lead you to meet some of the others including the Sorcerer Supreme himself. Doctor Druid will be very interested in you.”

“I’m also very interested,” Dane said. “Let’s get the meet and greet over with.”

Torchwood Debriefing – A Doctor Who/MIB Crossover Story

Agent M was there to meet Agent O at the airport. Of course, Agent O would never travel by any commercial airline as that would both draw attention and would take a long time. Instead, she flew at night in an experimental craft combining Earth and Byvoidian technology. She touched down with no human observers and M was waiting for her on the tarmac. Agent O looked graceful getting out of the small craft but she looked graceful doing anything. She was the head of the US office of the Men In Black and the woman that hired M. The two of them shook hands and then hugged gently.

“It’s good to see you again, Boss,” Agent M said. “How was your flight?”

“Exhilarating,” O said. “How are you doing here in London since the last time we met? How are you finding my home country?”

“I’m enjoying it,” M said. “Things have been going a lot smoother here after T was caught. I feel like this is a good fit for me and I’m adapting to the local culture.”

“Excellent,” O said. “I had a feeling that assigning you there was the right move. How is Agent H doing in charge so far? His probationary period is almost ended.”

“He’s doing great,” M said. “He’s just really busy cleaning up T’s messes all of the time. It will pass eventually, I hope.”

“That’s why I asked you to meet me here instead of him,” O said. “A problem has arisen at Canary Wharf that needs attention and he has very little attention to spare. I left Agent K in charge back in New York. Would you like to team up with me?”

“I would love to,” M said. “I’ll drive.”

The two of them drove from Heathrow Airport out to Canary Wharf elsewhere in London. With O’s guidance in navigation, the pair had shown up at a large white building with a large sign out front that said “Torchwood Institute”.  The building had seen better days. It had a few holes in it and there were scorch marks everywhere. The building bore signs that it was soon to be condemned and demolished. 

“What happened here?” M asked. “It looks like a war zone.”

“Some are calling it the Battle of Canary Wharf,” O said. “But you won’t see it on the news.”

“Neuralyzers and a clean-up crew, huh?” M asked. She knew all too well about that.

“Some of that was employed,” O said. “But we also had some local help from UNIT, a governmental group that acts discreetly against alien threats. This was a very nasty affair. Two techno-organic species went to war with humans caught in the middle.”

The two of them walked carefully through the front door of the building. Their heads were on a swivel just in case there was still a threat in the building.

“How did anybody survive?” M asked. “Normal humans caught in all of this?”

“They had abundant help from an alien that we have been tracking for some time without being able to meet him,” O said. “He is known only as The Doctor. I’ve heard that he has mastered time travel, something that I thought we had locked down after Agent J confiscated the Price devices.”

“He sounds pretty crazy,” M said. 

“So far he seems to be on the side of good,” O said. “I would like to think that we could catch him if he started to be a threat but I am not sure we can catch him. He does have some contacts in UNIT who assure us that he is on the level. On the other hand, this Torchwood is meddling in things they do not understand and have become dangerous. They were apparently set up by Queen Victoria but they have strayed from the path.”

“What do we need to do about it?” M asked. “Track them down? Convince them to stop?”

“By whatever means necessary,” O said. “And we have to contain their path of destruction to keep them from alerting the public to the existence of extraterrestrials.”

“Sounds like a normal day with the MIB,” M said. “Let’s get started.”

“Yes,” O said. “Let’s.”