Author: Crofton77

the beat goes on

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in eatsaroundaustralia.

Happy New Year to you all – may 2020 bring you happiness and love.

The last time I  blogged my nails were shorter and a mess,  my hair was boofy and wild and I weighed 10 kgs more than I do now.
The terminally curious among you might ask what's going on then? and of course I would/will tell you, cos I'm nice like that.

The second CT scan was looming the last I wrote and this is where it all came a bit unstuck.
I had been recovering nicely and my Medical/Oncology team were pleased with my progress – as was I.
Alas it was not to continue and the results of the second CT scan saw me scheduled for a PET scan, it would seem Rasputin might not be dead!!
The PET scan confirmed the worst – Rasputin lives!! Bring on the chemo – yuk. Immunotherapy is an option we have always discussed but my particular cancer is not on the PBS so it is cost prohibitive at $4,000 per month but always there if the chemo doesn't work.

So, there I am, in the oncology unit, cannula in place and almost all of the first bag of saline as well as the anti-nausea drugs have been administered when an associate of Dr Tim whisks me of to the office for a bit of a chat.

I am being offered the opportunity to participate in a Phase One Clinical Trial for a brand new Immunotherapy Drug that has been developed specifically for my kind of tumour.
The drug has never been used on humans but the lab work has been very successful! So I figure it is my time to be the guinea pig and thank whatever animals gave their little lives so I could have a shot at living. A no brainer really. I discussed with the family and they were all singing from the same hymn sheet. let's do this!!!

Essentially I will be given a drug that will boost my bodies immune system and invite it to attack the cancer and pretty much anything else that is not working to make it all better.
The best thing here is that whereas chemotherapy and radiation is indiscriminate and kills everything – the immune system just targets what wrong with the body.
Not all people will respond to the treatment but…some people will be totally cured!!
Those that respond get to win straight up and good luck to them whoever they may be, those that don't may still have avenues to pursue (I still have some chemo options to delve into). however the chips fall anyone who has participated in the trial has given valuable information to the company for future research and I kind of like that.

We do need to keep in mind here that I am in a lot of pain, can barely walk and spend most of my days sleeping and crying.

Dec 16 was 'D' day and the Boy Child decided he would be with me!
It was a good few days having him with me. He cooked and cleaned and even left re heat meals for me in the freezer.
On the day of treatment I did the driving, but it was a long day; a lot of blood tests at certain times, meant it was over 6 hours before we got out of there. The Boy Child was an absolute Brick, he found a wheelchair and 'drove' me about the place in nasty hot weather. There was a crap load more testing to be done and so we had to return the next day and again several days after that to get blood taken for the testing regime.

Many thanks to the good friend who managed to look after me until HR and co got here!

For the second lot of treatment I was joined by HR and The Beloved Baby Sister (and there's a whole other story in that!!!!!).  It was interesting to get another perspective. Again the treatment was administered and enough blood was removed from my body to fill a small lake!
HR is now in permanent residence and I firmly believe he has a lot of responsibility for how much better I am these days than when I firsts started treatment. I am still fatigued and every now and then I have a crying fit – but I can almost walk without my sticks now and my weight is now stable to rising.
My pain is relatively under control and I may be able to return to work by beginning of March – no promises.
My third treatment looms – but before that I have to have a CT scan. This scan will be compared to the first scan that was done during pre trial screening. This comparison will let us know what is happening with my tumour.

This all happens in 5 days. 5 days of waiting, wondering and worrying.

Throughout the last three months I have dealt with the pain, moving and wondering if I have done the correct thing……

Anyway we will all know in 5 days won't we?

Chapter Eighty-One: My Fallen Idol, Part One

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

Richard Dickson walked
into the police station, looking around suspiciously. The suspicion
was returned wholeheartedly, except for Constable TJ who had his head
down and buried in paperwork.
“You look hard at
work for once.” TJ heard his boss, the stupid Inspector Dingbat,
standing over him. TJ groaned inwardly. He wished like crazy Dingbat
would just leave him alone.
“Just taking after
you Sir.” He suddenly heard slip from his mouth. Uh-oh…
Dingbat narrowed his
eyes at the younger man and was about to start a triade when Dickson
walked over.
“I'll deal with you
after work Jacobs.” Dingbat sneered at TJ, who groaned. Now there'd
be trouble, and he probably wouldn't get home until well after
dinner-time!
“Good Morning Mister
Dickson, glad you've decided to visit our little establishment.”
Dingbat said in his most wheedly, suck-up voice.
“I want to speak to
your men. Individually. Privately.” Dickson narrowed his eyes and
got straight to the point.
“Oh really?”
Dingbat narrowed his eyes back.
“You've been told to
cooperate with the Presidents Entrusted National Intelligence Service
on this exercise Inspector, I suggest you do.” Dickson looked
intimidating. TJ knew though that Dingbat was too stupid to be
intimidated by anyone, and too ambitious to let anyone get in his
way. Everyone else was trying not to giggle.
“I think I should
join my men. For emotional support. They need to know they have their
leader with them.” Dingbat stated. TJ tried not to snort. He knew
full well that Dingbat wanted to make sure nothing was said against
him!
“I want them to know
that anything they say won't be used against them. I can't assure
them of that if their boss is breathing down their neck.” Dickson
fired back. TJ allowed himself a small smile. “Now if you'll excuse
me, I'll start with your lowest-ranking officers, so you have less
time to threaten them.”
The giggling stopped.
Dingbat looked beyond
ropeable. Dickson motioned to the newest young recruit to the force,
a pimply little weasel of a kid who reminded TJ of a school snitch.
The little weasel quickly looked at Dingbat, terrified, not sure what
he should do, before looking at the much more intimidating Dickson
and bolting out of the room.
TJ quaked a little
himself. This was going to get very, VERY ugly.
—
Petunia was stirring a
beef casserole in her kitchen when TJ finally trudged home.
“Again?” She asked
sympathetically.
“Again.” TJ
groaned.
“Your father called
earlier, he asked for you to call him back after dinner.” Petunia
said, checking the rice.
“Swell. He probably
heard about Dingbat and Dickson.” TJ slumped onto the couch,
feeling defeated.
“Dingbat and
Dickson?” Petunia began to dish up the dinner. TJ sighed, and got
up to set the table.
“Dickson wants to
interview all the cops privately without Dingbat involved, and
Dingbat wants to make sure the truth doesn't get out. There was a
huge blowup, Dingbat was screaming at Dickson and Dickson didn't even
break a sweat.” He told her as he set out the cutlery.
“Damn. Sounds like
Dickson is one cool customer.” Petunia said.
“You should have seen
him. He totally had Dingbat scouted. Although I'm worried about what
this means for the force.” TJ sighed.
“You really should
talk to your Dad.” Petunia brought out two big bowls of steaming
casserole and rice. TJ was beginning to feel better already.
The pair happily talked
during dinner (TJ nearly spitting his out laughing when Petunia told
him about a rather disgusting mess she had to clean up in the
childrens ward). Afterwards, they cleaned up together before Petunia
settled down to her jigsaw puzzle and TJ called his father.
“Heya Teej.”
Theodore Jacobs Sr. greeted his son.
“Heya Dad. I guess
you heard about the big blow up today.” TJ chuckled as he settled
down in his favourite easy chair to talk.
“You bet. I've heard
a few different versions, including one involving a gunfight and
Chuckles and Giggles getting involved.” Theodore chuckled along
with his son. “So the government is running an inquiry eh?”
“Yeah, Dickson wants
to talk to us all privately.” TJ pulled up his footrest and leaned
back.
“Teej, let me give
you some advice. Don't say anything. Plead ignorance.” Theodore
warned his son. “It's for your own safety, and a good career move
too.”
“Dad…what?!” TJ
suddenly felt uncomfortable.
“You're at a stage of
your career where you can't afford to be making waves, and believe
me, when this is all over there'll be a tsunami. Minimise the damage
to yourself.” Theodore continued.
“But what about
Pleasantville?!” TJ sat up. “If I have a chance to do something I
have to do it!”
“You've been
listening to those Knights of the Last Order.” Theodore groaned.
“TJ, let them take care of Pleasantville, you need to take care of
yourself and Petunia. How do you think I got so far?”
TJ felt himself boil
inside. His father would never know that he was in fact a Knight of
the Last Order, otherwise there would be no end of trouble. Theodore
Jacobs Sr. was a career man, and he had hoped his son would be the
same.
“Dad, I can't. I
joined to serve and protect, and I can't do that by clamming up and
letting morons like Dingbat get away with murder!” TJ cried.
Petunia looked up from her puzzle.
“TJ you start
blabbing and it's gonna get ugly!” Theodore also raised his voice.
“Don't think for a second that those private talks are actually
private, you talk and you're going to find yourself so deep in
trouble you won't be able to breathe. Especially if it goes up the
City Hall and the Mayor gets involved.”
TJ growled.
“I'm telling you this
to protect you. There are dangerous people in Pleasantville who will
easily destroy you if you make trouble, and for added pain they'll
take down your whole family too.” Theodore pleaded. “Think about
it. Do you really want to risk your Mother and I? Petunia? Could you
honestly live with yourself if anything happened to her?”
“I'll think about
it.” TJ groaned.
“I only say this
because I care about you kid. Look, your mother is having a fit, she
needs to call a friend to organise their next Bridge game. Catch ya
later.” Theodore said.
“Love you too Dad.
Catch ya.” TJ hung up.
“That sounded
controversial.” Petunia sat down next to her husband.
“He wants me to put
my head down, bum up and shut up.” TJ sighed. “He worries if I
talk and cause waves it will get back to me and put me in danger.”
Petunia said nothing.
“But I have to say
something! If I don't, nothing will change!” TJ cried. “Dickson
HAS to know where the problems are, and I have to tell him, I'm the
only one on the force who actually cares about the people of
Pleasantville! Everyone else just cares about their pay packet and
half of them are under the employ of the Mob!”
“Yes. Dickson needs
to know, but you're not going to tell him.” Petunia said.
“If I don't, who
will?!” TJ cried.
“Sir Dark and the
Noble Knights of the Last Order.” Petunia grinned.

Chapter Eighty: Sneaky

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

“The LIBRARY?!” TJ
groaned loudly as he sat with Tammy at the Pleasantville Library.
“Shhhhhhh!!!!”
Hissed the Librarian.
“Sorry!' TJ ducked
his head.
“Trust me, the
Pleasantville Library is the one place where everyone comes for a bit
of privacy.” Tammy whispered. “Judith is here all the time, Demon
shows up on occasion with Daryl, and when Mark was alive he used to
love the Aquatics section.” Tammy took TJ through the History
section. “We won't talk about how Belle spends all her free time
here.”
“When she's not
stepping on her wicket.” TJ pouted.
“SHHHHHH!!!!” The
Librarian hissed again.
“Geezus…is he
always that vicious?” TJ hissed as Tammy picked a book from the
Contemporary Arts section.
“Mr. Bookley is the
sweetest man ever thank you.” Tammy glared at her friend.
“I was just
saying…” TJ started.
“SHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!”
The Librarian looked ready to kill.
“I'm not going to
speak for the rest of the day.” TJ grumbled under his breath.
“Good, because
Richard Dickson just arrived, and we need to scope him out today.”
Tammy took her book down to a table and opened her bag, pulling out
her laptop. “We're gonna find out why the Service is in
Pleasantville.”
TJ immediately grabbed
the nearest book and threw himself into the seat next to her, earning
a filthy look from Mr. Bookley.
Dickson looked at the
the library catalogue, then went to the Adult Fiction section. He
grabbed a mystery and sat down near a window. He began to read
quietly.
TJ looked at his book,
“Self-Care after Pregnancy”. He groaned inwardly. Tammy shot him
a Look, before continuing with her studies.
Dickson read quietly
for a while, before another man walked in. He picked up a mystery of
his own and sat by his commander. TJ noticed that Tammy sat back and
appeared to relax a bit while reading her book. He sighed, and tried
to enjoy the book he'd picked up.
“This is stupid.”
The lackey said to Dickson. “Why'd they give us such crap supplies
for?”
“Because you KNOW
they don't want us to fix anything.” Dickson replied bitterly. TJ
and Tammy nearly fell off their chairs when they heard the feminine
voice of the big, strapping Dickson! “Pleasantville is where they
take care of their shady business, and they don't want to lose it.
It's disgusting.”
“You're gonna try
anyway aren't you Sir?” The other man asked.
“Of course. I didn't
sign up to be a whitewasher.” Dickson snapped.
“SHHHHHHHHH!” The
Librarian looked ready to burst.
“I want to get a hold
of the main two. Chuckles and Giggles. I hear they have ties to the
Masters and Begly families who hold a bit of weight around here.”
Dickson said quietly.
“I'll see what I can
do Sir.” The lackey nodded, before returning to his mystery. “No
good, I've read this one a million times, it's lost it's charm.”
TJ looked at Tammy, who
looked deep in thought.
“What was THAT all
about?” He asked her.
“SHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Both the Librarian AND Tammy shushed TJ this time.
“What?!” TJ asked.
Tammy groaned, and dragged TJ out of there.
“The whole point of
the library is that it's QUIET and people DON'T KNOW THAT YOU'RE
EAVESDROPPING!” Tammy scolded him. “This is why I'm Lady Silent
and you're a chump.”
“Hey, give me a
break!” TJ groaned.
She ripped into him all
the way back to the tip.
—
“This goes deeper
than anything I could have imagined. Oh the drama!” Belle listened
intently to what Tammy and TJ reported back at the tip.
“A global conspiracy?
Awesome.” Charlie drawled, sitting on a pile of old mattresses.
“I'm sure you'll find some way to make it boring.”
“So, how do we help
them?” Sammy asked as Charlie went flying to the ground, the pile
of mattresses destroyed.
“This is where TJ
gets involved. Be sure to say hi from Chuckles and Giggles for us!”
Daniel thumped TJ's back.
“Hopefully he does
better than he did at spying.” Tammy frowned.
Suddenly, TJ's phone
began to buzz.
“Constable Jacobs
reporting…yes Sir, will be there soon Sir.” TJ hung up. “Bad
news, Demon has called the police to make sure the Noble Knights of
the Last Order are caught!”
“Not good.” Petunia
moaned.
“It isn't.” Daniel
rubbed his chin. “Okay. Lady Silent and Sir Dark will remain
on…well, THAT detail.” He couldn't help giggling. “Lady Luck
will remain here and keep things running. Lady Courage, Sir Hyper and
myself will help Chuckles and Giggles fight crime, should it pop up.”
“Right.” The
Knights nodded.
“Teej, it's up to
you.” Daniel looked at one of his two best friends. “You have to
get to Dickson.”
“I'll try.” TJ
sighed.
—
“You're distracted
love.” Petunia rinsed off plates and handed them to TJ, who loaded
the dishwasher.
“How am I supposed to
talk to Dickson? This is a job for Belle or Dan or even Tammy.” TJ
sighed. “I'm just a cop.”
“You know how to talk
to people.” Petunia pointed out.
“Yeah…but…” TJ
sighed.
“But what?” Petunia
looked up at him.
“I can't change
anything. None of my coworkers ever listen to me when I try to steer
them towards not being corrupt, and bloody Dingbat is the worst
Inspector I've ever heard of. He won't promote me to Senior Constable
because he's got his favourites.” TJ told her. “I wanted to do my
Dad proud, but I can't do anything.”
“Maybe you should
talk to your Dad.” Petunia suggested, finishing the rinsing.
“I guess.” TJ put
the last dish in the washer.
“Don't I guess me.”
Petunia smiled at him with a giggle.
TJ smiled back, and
hugged her tightly. “What would I do without you to keep me
straight?”
“You'd probably be
married to Dan and cheating with Sam right now.” Petunia poked him.
They laughed. As long
as they had each other, nothing else mattered.

Chapter Seventy-Nine: Good Enough for Government Work

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

Sir Lionheart felt a
bit foolish. Here was this huge beast of a man with a feminine voice
who had just called him “Knight” with a level of respect.
“Sir, um, you might
want to watch the knives. They're hollow and full of drugs that can
knock you out.” Sir Lionheart warned.
Richard Dickson walked
towards the Haunted Maze Troupers, pulling out his gun.
“Now I don't want to
have to use this, but I will in order to subdue you.” He told the
Troupers, who stared back blankly. Sir Lionheart squinted. No way…
One of the Troupers let
out a high-pitched giggle and threw a knife towards Dickson. It
missed, but Sir Lionheart hissed. It had come dangerously close to
Dicksons face, which meant-,
“As a member of the
Presidents Entrusted National Intelligence Service, I'm immune to
petty drugs like yours.” Dickson scowled. He pointed the gun at the
Trouper who had thrown the knife.
Sir Lionheart
swallowed. It WAS! That gun was a cousin of the Lucky Seven Gun and
the Mystic Eight Gun! Did that mean that a cousin of the Lions Claw
Blade and the Dragon Scale Scythe was nearby?
Dickon held the gun
steady. “Are you going to cooperate?”
Another Trouper threw
their knife too, missing Dickson by inches.
“So be it.”
Dickson pulled the
trigger twice. Nothing happened.
“Why did they give me
this stupid thing…?” Dickson pointed the gun downwards and
inspected the chamber. Suddenly, the gun went off twice, right in
Dicksons foot!
Sir Lionheart groaned.
Loudly. Bloody government employees…
“Fine, let's try
this!” Dickson pulled a dagger out of his belt. Sir Lionheart
grimaced. Sure enough, there was the talisman attached to the hilt,
a hedgehog. Sir Lionheart debated whether or not it was worth the
three hours it would take for Belle to explain it to him.
Dickson threw the knife
at the Troupers…unfortunately the talisman got caught in his
fingers, and the knife quickly turned around and stabbed its owner in
the hand.
“Hmm. Unfortunate. Oh
well, as you were Knight, I think you can handle this. I'm going to
continue my investigation.” Dickson looked at his wounded hand,
before walking away.
Sir Lionheart blinked.
He looked at the Troupers, who were shrugging to each other.
“I, um…I'll take
these kids to Peter Masters, maybe he can analyze what they were
given and see if we can't get them some treatment.” Sir Hyper
rubbed the back of his neck.
“Good idea.” Sir
Lionheart sighed. He noticed one of the Troupers about to hand
another little girl a stash of drugs. “NO.” He snatched the drugs
away and bopped the Trouper on the head with the butt of his replica
Scythe.
—
“Okay, hands up, who
actually expected a group with the name Presidents Entrusted National
Intelligence Service to actually be competent? Actually?!” TJ
groaned at the restaurant after Daniel had told them everything that
had happened.
“I don't think it was
him per se, but his weapons.” Belle piped up, her nose (where else)
in a book.
“Apart from
exposition, do you DO anything?!” Charlie groaned.
“Don't make me
reverse Clause you.” Belle threatened.
“What about his
weapons?” Daniel asked.
“I'm just looking at
it now, it seems -,” Belle started, only to be interrupted by
Charlie.
“I called my friends
over in Awesomica recently, and they said they'd been looking further
into the lore behind our weapons. If Dan is correct, then we're
looking at the Speedy Two gun and the Hedgehog's Quill Dagger.”
Charlie said.
There was silence.
“Awesome! Do you know
about any of the others?” Belle dropped the book and focused all
her attention on her best friend.
The others nearly
fainted.
“No one seems to have
the full story, but it seems these weapons can be traced back to a
war 150 years ago. Somehow in this war the weapons were created and
made their way around the world.” Charlie tried to recount what
he'd learned. “There's seven pairs in total.”
“I've only heard of
the Lucky Seven and the Lions Claw, the Mystic Eight and the Dragons
Scale, the Palatable Six and the Stingrays Tail, the Quadroon Four
and the Elephants Tusk, and now the Speedy Two and the Hedgehog's
Quill. There's nothing I can find about the other two.” Belle
mused.
Charlie pulled out his
smartphone and checked his emails. “Here it is. The other two are
the Trinity Three and the Tigers Tooth Scimitar, and the Dangerous
Five Gun and the Wolf's Fang Gauntlet.” He said.
“This is all
interesting, but how does that help us now?” Sunny asked, again
trying to feed her daughter with limited success. “Bloody kids…”
“It's weird.” Belle
looked at Charlie. “I've never been able to use the Lions Claw
Blade, it's too heavy for me, and Charlie can't make the Lucky Seven
Gun fire.”
“None of us can, and
none of us are able to use the Lions Claw very well either.” Sammy
added. “Except Dan, but he's just talented.”
“I think you need to
have a certain level of skill to use these weapons.” Belle folded
her hands in front of her mouth and focused. “Or maybe it's a
certain bloodline.”
“Neither apply to
me.” Daniel said quickly.
“Hmm.” Charlie and
Belle continued to think.
“The point is, how
are we supposed to keep the Service from hurting themselves? More
importantly, how are we supposed to show them that the problem is
with the Pleasantville Council?” Tammy banged her hand on the
table, making everyone jump.
“Especially as Demon
is doing everything he can to keep Dad and I away from them.” Belle
sighed.
“Maybe…maybe this
calls for something a little bit…covert…” Daniel rubbed his
chin, before grinning at Tammy.
“Me?!” She
squeaked.
“Of course! The
Shadow of the Last Order! The Ghost of the Last Order! Our own
invisible informant!” TJ cheered.
“Of course…she'll
need some help from the OTHER Knight who just so happens to work for
the Pleasantville Council…even if it IS their police force.”
Daniel smirked at TJ, who faltered.
“Of course! Demon
wouldn't DREAM that one of his cops is part of the Last Order! He
might have the reins tight on Belle and Peter, but he knows NOTHING
about TJ!” Petunia laughed. “Dan, you're a genius!”
“I know. That's why
I'm the leader.” Daniel stretched nonchalantly. Just then, Melody
spat up a mouthful of carrots all over his shirt.
“Sorry! She's being
difficult!” Sunny tried to clean up the mess as everyone laughed.

Chapter Seventy-Eight: The Presidents Entrusted National Intelligence Service

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

Peter Masters was old
enough to know better than to eavesdrop. He certainly should have
been professional enough.
The interesting
stranger who walked into Demons office was too enticing however. So
Peter decided today was the day to get all of his shredding done.
Nothing to do with the shredder being close to a vent that was right
next to Demon Jones office.
"Mr Dickson. It's
nice to meet you." Peter heard Demon say. The sound of clinking
alerted Peter to the fact that Demon was trying to ply his guest with
alcohol. Which meant this was either a good friend or Demon was
trying to intoxicate them to cover himself.
"I won't be
needing any of that." An almost female voice replied. Peter did
a double-take. When Mr. Dickson had walked into Demons office, he'd
looked HUGE.
"As you wish."
Demon replied, Peter heard the note of disappointment in his voice
and grinned.
"Now as you know,
I'm here from the Presidents Entrusted National Intelligence Service
to investigate reports of unrest in Pleasantville." Mr. Dickson
continued.
Peter nearly died
trying to keep his poker face. Across the room, Belle noticed her
fathers behaviour and raised an eyebrow. A MASTERS sinking so low as
to EAVESDROP?!
"I appreciate you
coming in. We seem to have a strong vigilante problem here in
Pleasantville." Demon said. Peter gritted his teeth. This was
bad if Demon was turning the Government against chuckles and Giggles!
"If there's
vigilantes, that usually paints to a bigger problem." Mr.
Dickson replied.
'BURNNN!' Peter thought
with a smirk.
"I'm sure with
your help we can get to the bottom of it." Peter could hear
Demon gritting his teeth.
'Looks like life in
Pleasantville is about to get veeery interesting.' Peter thought with
a smirk as he returned to his desk.
"Obvious
eavesdroping is obvious." Belle said dryly as he sat down. Sure
enough, everyone on their team was looking at Peter expectantly.
—
"The Government is
coming down on Demons head!" Belle laughed at the tip with her
friends after work.
"Ooooh, so the Law
Enforcement Division is here?" Sunny perked up.
"Not quite…"
Belle could barely keep her face straight.
"The Ostraylan
Police Department?" Daniel looked suspicious.
"Nope."
"The International
Law Association?" Sammy piped up.
"NO!" Belle
groaned. She told them who had come to their rescue.
"You're telling us
that the saviors of Pleasantville are the…" Charlie snorted.
"Presidents…"
TJ giggled.
"Entrusted…"
Petunia burst out laughing.
"National…"
Tammy was grinning ear to ear.
"Intelligence…"
Sunny looked fit to burst.
"Shut up guys!"
Belle was laughing too.
"At least the
Government is looking into it now." Daniel popped a barley sugar
into his mouth and followed it up with a swig of ginger beer. "Who
knows WHAT they'll come up with."
"Anyway, don't we
have patrolling to do?" Sammy looked at his watch.
"Sure, although I
doubt we'll need to do much if everyone's going to behave while
the…the…" Tammy started giggling again.
"Hey, if Judith is
right about the March Hill Crusaders trying to take power, this could
be the perfect time to act up." Belle pointed out. "Especially
as no one has seen Roger since Mark was slaughtered."
"Great choice of
words there." Charlie groaned.
"Well, from what I
heard, it WAS a slaughter." Belle began.
"We don't need to
hear it. Thank you." Tammy looked pale.
The group suited up and
shipped out.
—
"No crime over
here." Sir Hyper walked past a jewelry store.
"None here."
Sir Lionheart checked Pleasantville First Bank.
"No crime to be
seen here, except my heart being stolen." Lady Courage giggled
as she played marbles with some children.
"I think we can
say that crime is taking a break." Lady Luck walked with Sir
Dark.
"Absolutely."
Sir Dark agreed.
Suddenly, they heard a
loud screaming.
"Stand down, it's
just Giggles trying to kill Chuckles." Lady Silent advised them
over their radios.
"Wonder what
Chuckles said this time." Lady Courage wondered.
They continued to
patrol in various parts of the city, stopping briefly to watch
Giggles hang Chuckles upside down in midair. ("I'M NOT SORRY!")
before they both fell into the duck pond at the park.

"Any moment
now, and the peace will be broken." Sir Lionheart stretched.
"Can't you just
enjoy our good fortune?" Sir Hyper deadpanned.
Suddenly they heard a
loud giggling. They rushed around the corner and found a Haunted Maze
Trouper counting money.
"What the hell?!"
Sir Lionheart readied his replica Dragon Scale Scythe.
"Sir Lionheart!
Look!" Sir Hyper ran to come children who were all glassy-eyed
and swaying dangerously.
"Too late! They're
hooked!" The Trouper in her pink baby mask giggled. "They'll
just want more and more and more and…"
"You MONSTER!"
Sir Lionheart cried.
"Monster?
HAHAHAHA!" The Trouper laughed. Suddenly, ten more Troupers,
each with different coloured baby masks appeared.
Sir Lionheart slapped
his watch and prepared to defend Sir Hyper, who was trying to round
up the addicted children.
"You won't beat
us. You can't survive until they get here. Why don't you just give
in?" The Troupers pulled out their knives, all of them smoking
with burning drugs just waiting to be inhaled.
Sir Lionheart stepped
back. Even though he had added breathing protection now, he was still
wary of those knives and the drugs they held.
"Give in Sir
Knight, this will feel so good, I promise you." The Trouper said
softly.
"I'll take it from
here, thank you Knight."
Sir Lionheart turned
around expecting to see a woman, and instead came face-to-face with
Richard Dickson.

Chuckles and Giggles Holiday Special 2019!

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in Specials.

“Happy Holiday Belle!” Charlie called out from his window.
“Happy Holiday to you too!” Belle called back from her window.
“Ready for the game?” Charlie smirked.
“Oh you are going DOWN! “Belle fired back.
Every year for the annual summer holiday, all our heroes and their families got together for a major game of cricket. If you have been following this series for ANY length of time, you’ll know this is a BAD idea.
Especially with breakfast beforehand.
“Careful with that milk Charlie.” Belle said as Charlie poured himself a glass.
“More careful than your bowling.” Was the retort.
“Guys, it’s just a friendly game.” Lara tried to calm things down.
“Please don’t make it like last years disaster.” Betty begged, cutting up her bacon.
“What was wrong with last year?!” Thomas looked offended. “The Begly team WON!”
“Charlie and Belle nearly killed each other!” Lara cried.
“I had to drive all of you to the hospital, it almost looked like you’d been attacked by the Mob!” Betty added.
Belle and Charlie shot each other accusing looks.
“Give it up, I don’t think the message is sinking in.” Bill sighed. They were sitting out the front of the two houses, enjoying a cool morning breeze. It was a Holiday tradition, both families having an early Holiday breakfast together.
“Finally, we might get some sense.” Bill muttered to Lara later on as Patrick and Sunny walked over with Melody.
“This is the year of the Masters!” Sunny announced as she sat down.
“You were saying?” Lara groaned.
“Get STUFFED Sunny, we destroyed you last year and we’ll do it again!” Suddenly Lizzy popped up, ready to play.
“That’s my girl!” Thomas grinned at Charlie, who looked proudly at his sister.
“This is going to get nasty.” Lara looked worried.
Peter looked at his phone. His face fell.
“Judith just messaged. Looks like the game is off this year.” He said.
“WHAT?!” Everyone screamed.
“Marion decided she wanted the field and overwrote our booking.” Peter groaned.
“So… no cricket?” Belle said in a small, sad voice.
“No cricket?” Charlie looked just as devastated.
“NO!” Sunny slammed the table. “We WILL have our cricket game!”
“I was hoping for peace.” Lara sounded almost tearful.
Sunny lifted up her hand, and hit the face of her watch. “Those morons won’t know what hit them!”
“Go Sunny!” Belle laughed.
—
“It’s one way to get a one-up on those annoying Masters.” Mobster Marion sipped her champagne as she looked out over the field. On the pitch. Master Revolver was stood at the crease looking out towards deep cover.
“No wonder the Pleasantville Bombs haven’t won this season. This pitch is a joke.” He groaned. “I mean, just look at backward point. There’s more grass on the track than there is there!”
Suddenly, he was hit right between the shoulder blades with a pink cricket ball. He got up and spun around furiously. Floating at midwicket was none other than Giggles!
“Wanna play Revolver?” said a voice from leg gully. Chuckles held a cricket bat in his hand, ready for battle.
Revolver growled. Then, to make things even worse, the March Hill Crusaders showed up!
“So, you lot are here too.” Mark growled.
“Yup. Wanna play cricket with us?” Giggles asked politely.
“Eh, could be fun.” Roger pointed out.
“Okay then. Bad guys us Good guys!” Giggles cheered.
“I can’t believe this.” Marion groaned as she headed to the wicket with Damon Jones and Ruby Daryl.
“Hang on, Chuckles and Giggles PLUS six knights of the Last Order vs. myself, Marion, Demon, Ruby and the Crusaders?” Revolver did a headcount.
“What about Sidewinder?” Sir Lionheart asked.
“I’m umpire!” Sidewinder walked to short leg.
Just then, two Haunted Maze Troupers poked their heads over the fence.
“OI! YOU TWO! GET TO SLIPS!” Ruby called out.
“You’re sending us in?” Lady Luck asked.
“Have you SEEN the pitch? There’ll be no bowling left after 20 overs!” Mark poked the ground.
Chuckles and Giggles grinned at each other.
“I’ll open.” Sir Lionheart said as the group gathered in the shed. The opposing team began to sort out their field.
“You? Sir LBW?” Lady silent snorted.
“Yes, me.” Sir Lionheart snapped back.
“I’ll go with him.” Lady Courage stood up.
“Remember-you have to go INTO the crease to get a run and not get out. You know, the line in front of the stumps?” Sir Hyper smirked.
Lady Courage shot him a murderous look as she and Sir Lionheart headed out to open the batting. Sir Lionheart opened, facing Crusader Mark who appeared to be a spinner. Thankfully, not a very good one.
“How wiiiiiiiiiide, do ya want to bowl?” Chuckles, Giggles and the rest of the knights sang after Sidewinder called the third wide of the first over. It was lucky for Sir Lionheart, who currently couldn’t hit the ball to save his life. Lady Courage fumed at the non-strikers end as each ball went through to Marion, who was keeping. Suddenly, Sir Lionheart got one! Alas it was one that went straight up in the air, aiming to land right between the two Troupers at slips!
Neither Trouper moved as the ball landed harmlessly between them. Suddenly Sir Lionheart bolted, forcing Lady Courage to run.
It was the end of the over, and Lady courage was ready to scream. AGAIN at the non-strikers end?!
The second over started with Demon bowling. The first ball went harmlessly to the keeper. The second went for four leg-byes. The third?
“Him and his big bloody knees!” Sir Dark yelped as Sidewinder lifted up her finger to signal LBW. The good guys were 1/8 as Sir Hyper took to the crease.
“I predict a big fat golden duck.” Lady Silent said to Chuckles.
“He’s your brother!” Chuckles replied, shocked.
Lady Silent was right. Sir Hyper smashed it towards cover, where Ruby was waiting.
“I didn’t even need to fly for that!” Ruby taunted as Sir Hyper slumped back to the pavilion.
“My turn!” Giggles popped up. She rushed out to the crease, where she bumped fists with Lady Courage.
“This’ll be over quickly.” Marion muttered to one of the Troupers, who inclined their head slightly in response. “Dork.”
Marion was wrong. Giggles and Lady Courage managed a magnificent innings, scoring 73 runs off 10 overs until Giggles got out, five runs off her half-ton.
“You. Stepped. On. Your. Wicket.” Chuckles looked at her incredulously.
“Shut up. Just shut up.” Giggles snapped at him as he went out to take her place.
Lady Courage fell next, being run out for 29 (“We TOLD you that you needed to be in your crease!”). Sir Dark took her place, and together he and Chuckles managed another 60 runs.
The innings ended with our heroes on a respectable 4/142.
“Not bad, but not good either.” Lady Silent checked the scorecard.
“I’m just thankful no one has been hurt.” Lady Luck donned her wicket-keeping gloves.
“Innings break is just about over, time to get out there.” Chuckles tossed the ball up and caught it.
“Let’s go!” Giggles agreed.
The team headed out to the field. Opening the batting was the two Troupers.
“Don’t be fooled by their fielding. They’re probably keen batsmen.” Sir Lionheart warned Chuckles as the latter prepared to bowl.
“Right.” Chuckles grimaced. He bowled fast around the wicket, hoping to throw his opponent off-guard.
Instead, he got his opponent leg-stump. The Trouper didn’t move a muscle as it watched the ball sail past.
“Wow.” Giggles watched as Ruby came out. Chuckles went around the wicket again. This time Ruby managed to hit a cover drive for a single.
“Whew… oh lord, MOVE! Get to the other end!” Ruby cried is the Trouper at the non-strikers end didn’t move. Panicked, Daryl ran back to the strikers end. It was too late. Lady Luck stumped him.
“You. ” Ruby looked furiously at the Trouper, who stared blankly back. He stalked back to the sheds as Revolver came out.
Being 2/0 wasn’t ideal. Wisely, Master Revolver defended the rest of the over. The next over started similarly, with the second Trouper getting bowled, leaving the bad guys 3/0. It was looking bleak as Demon steeped up to the crease. Lady Silent bowled, and suddenly the ball was in the stands!
“Oh crap.” Chuckles groaned to Giggles. “We need to deal with him ASAP!” Giggles agreed.
It was difficult. Demon was smart about finding gaps and protecting his wicket. As Revolver fell, Demon stood firm.
“What are we going to do? “Giggles groaned. At 4/140 with five overs to go, our heroes were in trouble.
“If only we could get wickets!” Chuckles groaned.
“No chance. Demon insists on hogging the strike CHUCKLES!” Giggles roared as Chuckles walked away, the familiar grin of the Improbability Clause on his face.
He quickly moved every one of his fielders to leg side. Then he bowled a short ball that was nearly a bouncer but forced Demon to take a single. Now Roger was on strike. Perfect. One well-timed yorker and the stumps went flying. Chuckles smirked. Next was Mark. He did a Sir Lionheart, and LBW was paid. Demon growled. Marion was their last hope.
Mobster Marion meanwhile was highly irritated. She HATED playing sports with a passion, and was ready for a nap.
“Get me back on strike, I’ll do the rest.” Demon commanded.
Playing sport was one thing, but being told what to do by Demon?! Unacceptable!
Chuckles bowled an easy ball. That was a rag to a bull, and the infuriated Marion smacked it as hard as she could towards the boundary. Alas for her, Giggles was waiting! She caught the ball easily, securing the hat-trick and the game!
Marion sighed. “Well, it was a good, tight game I guess.”
“We must do this again next year!” Demon agreed.
“We had fun!” One of the Troupers piped up.
“Anyway, the wicket is yours.” Marion smiled as the bad guys headed off.
“Happy Holiday!” The bad guys left, leaving our heroes to enjoy their victory.
—
“What a match!” Belle slipped a cherry into her mouth as she sat with her friends in the Masters front yard.
“Pretty well played, if I do say so myself.” Daniel lay on a rug, looking up at the late afternoon sky.
“YOU?!” Charlie cried.” Mr. LBW?!”
“I started us off!” Daniel cried, sitting up. “At least I didn’t go full golden duck like SOME people!”
“Keep me out of it!” Sammy shot up.
“Seriously though, that was the stupidest shot ever.” Tammy looked at her twin with disdain.
“Bite me Miss Front-Foot-No-Ball.” Sammy snapped.
“Back off Ducky.” Petunia stood up.
“Tuney, don’t. Not after your keeping.” TJ tried to pull her back down.
“Oh, like YOU did anything.” Petunia slapped him off. TJ stood up and shoved her back.
“I see the team is celebrating their victory in customary style.” Thomas noted as a full-scale war broke out.
“I’ll go get the first aid kit.” Peter sighed as Lara and Betty rolled their eyes.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE, FROM:
THE DEATH VALLEY MOBSTERS
THE MARCH HILL CRUSADERS
THE HAUNTED MAZE TROUPE
THE JONES FAMILY
THE BEGLY CLAN
THE MASTERS CLAN
THE NOBLE KNIGHTS OF THE LAST ORDER
AND
CHUCKLES AND GIGGLES!!!

Chapter Seventy-Seven: Lies and the Truth

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

“You were WRONG.”
Daryl smirked.
“Shut. Up.” Judith
Jofrey seethed.
They were sitting in
the Mayors office, where Demon Jones had called a meeting.
“Both of you,
enough.” Demon growled.
“C'mon Dad. Let me
just have this.” Daryl grinned. “I mean, unless that baby brat
Masters has grown into a teenager in the past twelve months, there's
no way Belle Masters could be Giggles, because she doesn't have a
sister old enough to fight!”
“Get OVER it!”
Judith hissed.
“ENOUGH!” Demon
raised his voice. “Now, if you don't stop Daryl, I will have you
removed.”
Daryl settled back into
his seat, satisfied.
“Now, we have a
problem. Mark is dead, thanks to Master Revolver. Roger has vanished
for the time being, which is annoying because I had plans with the
March Hill Crusaders.” Demon glared at Judith.
“You were going to
betray the Mobsters of Misneach.” She said evenly.
“They're idiots who
have only kept their power by the sheer virtue that no one else could
be bothered.” Demon muttered.
“They're the reason
you got in as Mayor, remember?” Judith replied.
Demon bristled.
“I don't think we
have anything further to discuss. Good day, Arnold.” Judith got up
and left.
—
“Is this going to be
another chapter of exposition?” Charlie groaned as Belle jotted
down some notes.
“I'm just going say
this is totally the fault of the Mob. The last time we had so many
crime syndicates in Pleasantville was when the March Hill Crusaders
ran the Mayors office. Now the Mob are in with Demon, it's history
repeating.” Belle collated her notes, neatened them up, and put
them in a folder. “Now, we need to deal with the fact that it's
lunchtime.”
“Definitely
exposition.” Charlie sighed as he climbed in through Belles bedroom
window and followed her downstairs for lunch.
“So I heard that
Demon is REALLY pissed at Master Revolver, and they had a huge blow
up after Mark died.” Tammy was telling them what her snooping had
discovered. “They haven't spoken since.”
“Maybe murdering Mark
wasn't such a good idea for the Mob after all.” Peter mused. “It's
just driven a further wedge between them and City Hall.”
“Which leaves the
door wide open for the Haunted Maze Troupe, or anyone else to come
in.” Belle sat down.
“No Belle.” Charlie
shushed her.
“I just sat down!”
Belle looked insulted.
“You had your lecture
face on. We don't need random facts about Pleasantville history.”
Charlie told her.
“Sounds like
someone's being attacked outside!” Next door, Patrick began to
panic.
“Calm down. Charlie
just insulted Belle and is paying for it is all.” Sunny rolled her
eyes, and went back to reading Melody her book.
“I don't think the
Troupe want power though. They just want to sell their drugs.”
Tammy said as Belle tore after Charlie.
“It makes things
interesting though. Demon can't act until he has another legitimate
name to throw his weight behind.” Peter mused. “Will you two sit
down and eat?”
Belle and Charlie sat
down, Belle pouting and Charlie grinning.
“Of course, we never
exactly know WHO is getting themselves ready underground.” Peter
continued.
—
Demon Jones sat at his
desk typing up a letter to some rich snob or other that he needed to
appease. Keeping all his connections happy was a difficult task,
especially when those connections had needs that could only be
serviced by drawing the ire of Chuckles and Giggles.
Those two pests and
their friends the Noble Knights of the Last Order were making life
extremely difficult. Especially when they had the backing of that
goody-two-shoes Peter Masters. The criminal element, while still
quite profitable, was running into huge problems because of them.
Demon sighed and
finished off the letter. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and
his son entered.
“What now?” Demon
glared at Daryl.
“Well, my sister is
finally getting married.” Daryl sat down. “Interestingly enough,
to someone you might know.”
“I really don't care
about that little trollop. She chose not to be a part of this
family.” Demon grumbled.
“Also, we're going to
have a visit from some government officials. They're going to do a
full investigation.” Daryl added.
“WHAT?!” Demon
roared.
“Thanks to Chuckles
and Giggles and that stupid protest they had. Of course news of it
got out and now we're under pressure.” Daryl told his father.
“Those two little
morons have been a thorn in my side for too long!” Demon growled.
“First they invade MY home, now they've got the government onto us.
Well, never matter. Pleasantville has gotten through things like this
before. We'll just have to keep things relatively clean while they're
doing their little investigation.”
“How about putting
Masters on leave? Both of them?” Daryl asked. “If the
investigators get a hold of them, it could spell trouble.”
“No, that will just
draw attention. We'll just give them light duties. Nothing where they
can get involved in any investigation.” Demon rubbed his chin.
“We'll need to do something about the Mob.”
“They don't want to
get arrested any more than we do.” Daryl pointed out.
“I hope you're right.
They might just decide to act up out of spite.” Demon mused.
“Especially with how unstable Mobster Marion has become.”
“Losing the Lions
Claw Blade twice has unhinged her completely.” Daryl agreed.
“I'm trusting you to
keep an eye on the Mob.” Demon told his son.
“Count on me.”
Daryl grinned.
“Not sure what we're
going to do about the Troupe, and the Crusaders could want revenge at
any moment. DAMN Revolver!” Demon growled as Daryl walked out to
lord over his two associates.
He only hoped that he
could keep things under control until he could have his revenge on
Chuckles and Giggles…and their number one fan, the number one
lawyer in the city, Peter Masters.
—
The man and his
coworkers stood on the edge of Pleasant Gorge, looking out over the
city of Pleasantville.
“It's time to find
out exactly what's going on in this city, or my name isn't Richard
Dickson!” He said in a high-pitched voice while he narrowed his
eyes.

Chapter Seventy-Six: What Matters

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

Giggles woke up.
“Belle! You're okay!”
Petunia hugged her friend.
Belle felt her face.
Her Giggles helmet was gone, and she was at the tip.
“It was a group
hallucination controlled by the Haunted Maze Troupe!” She cried.
“They had a little noise-device thing that they used to control
it!”
“Explains a lot.”
TJ said bitterly.
“Where's Charlie!?”
Belle suddenly looked around for her best friend.
“Well…he's
okay…but…” Petunia looked uncomfortable.
“Phew. Wait, where's
Sunny?” Belle looked around.
“Facing off against
Ruby Daryl.” TJ told her.
—
Lady Courage was
slammed into a brick wall, and only just got her countenance back in
time to dodge a Ruby Whip. Her left arm was already dead thanks to a
Ruby Dagger, and the fight had turned against her.
“I don't know what it
is about you, but I hate you more than I hate any of the other
Knights.” Ruby Daryl told her. His eye was blackening fast, and he
was certain that the little witch in front of him had left quite a
few other bruises over his body.
“The feeling is
mutual, jerk.” Lady Courage replied. This boy, her brother, had
tried his best to ruin her life along with her father, just because
she had been an unplanned pregnancy, and had been born a girl. He
hadn't been a true older brother at all. He had never protected her,
he had never believed in her or showed her things or loved her.
As far as Lady Courage
was concerned, Daryl and Sunny Jones weren't siblings at all.
She flew at him with
her baseball bat, which he dodged. He counter-attacked with a Ruby
Spear, which nicked her foot, making it tingle but not quite enough
to numb it completely. She spun around and clocked him fair in the
shoulder.
He screamed angrily. In
his fury, he fired a Ruby Blast. It threw the siblings in opposite
directions, Lady Courage hitting the side of a van and Ruby able to
stop himself with the Ruby Suit.
Lady Courage felt sore
and defeated as Ruby advanced on her.
“You're finished
Knight.” He said hoarsely, forming a final Ruby Blast.
There was a gunshot,
and suddenly the Power Box on Ruby's shoulder was shattered, the Ruby
Blast dissolving harmlessly to the ground!
“Wha-?” Ruby looked
around, confused, before copping a knee to the head, Giggles-style!
“DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH
MY SISTER AGAIN!” Giggles roared in fury.
“Giggles!” Lady
Courage cried in joy.
“Darn it!” Ruby
growled. Not only was Giggles armed with the Lucky Seven Gun and the
ability to fly, she was also immune to the Ruby Power. Ruby wasn't
going to stick around, he got out of there quickly.
“Thanks Giggles!”
Lady Courage grinned as Giggles helped her up and flew both of them
into the sky towards the tip.
“Any time.” Giggles
grinned back. “Uh-oh…”
As proof that the drug
had worn off and Giggles was in fact back to reality, the Backpack
cut out, dropping both women in Pleasant Lake.
“Now I get why
Chuckles hates flying.” Lady Courage groaned as the pair finally
got airbourne again. “Where IS Chuckles by the way?”
“Well…” Giggles
hesitated.
“Is this real life?!
What if it's just fantasy again?! What if I'm still in the dream?!
What's going on?!” Charlie cried, rocking in the fetal position as
the Noble Knights of the Last Order looked bemused.
“It's a fault of the
family.” Thomas Begly told them later as he helped load Charlie
into his car. “We tend to overthink sometimes.”
“By the
way…Belle…what you said before to Ruby…” Sunny asked as the
pair got into the back of the car.
“You're as much my
sister as Madels is.” Belle said firmly. “Don't worry about it.”
Sunny beamed all the
way home.
—
It took three hours to
finally convince Charlie that everything was okay (a quick spin on
the Backpack fixed things).
“It's kinda scary to
think we now have enemies that can do that to us.” He said as the
group sat at Bills restaurant eating roast chicken with thick gravy
and vegetables.
“Maybe we should up
our breathing protection. Just in case.” Daniel shoveled down his
dinner. “I mean, who knows what the side effects of that drug are?”
“I swabbed some from
Belles helmet.” Peter Masters told them. “From the looks of
things it's not addictive, but you'll probably be having some weird
dreams for a few days.”
“How on earth do you
get access to things like that?” Sammy asked.
“Being a prosecutor
means access to labs and people who can run those labs.” Peter
winked at him.
Just then, Judith
Jofrey in her wig walked in looking harassed.
“Judy, you okay?”
Peter got up and offered her his chair. She sat down, frazzled.
“Revolver…he killed
Mark…and I just walked away and let him.” She shook with emotion.
There was silence
around the table.
“This is getting out
of control. Especially now that the Haunted Maze Troupe is back.”
Sunny held Melody tightly.
“Pleasantville is a
war-zone, and Demon is encouraging it for his own profits.” Tammy
growled.
Lara held Madeleine,
and looked at Belle and Ozzy. “I wish I could have been born
elsewhere sometimes.”
“I don't blame you.”
Betty had her mouth set in a thin line.
“Judith, I know
you're in a bad place, but if you truly love your sister you need to
join us. We can help you guys keep some sort of control until we can
get a decent Mayor in to clean the city up.” Peter told her.
“Betray my sister?!”
Judiths eyes snapped up with fire.
“If you don't, she
could be the next one dead.” Thomas said darkly. “Especially if
Jones is in bed with the March Hill Crusaders. They're going to want
blood.”
“Marion and I are on
thin ice anyway. If she gets even a sniff that I'm working with you,
she'll kill me.” Judith groaned. “Especially now that Daryl has
pretty much told everyone I'm a liar.”
“Do you see now why
we want to end crime in Pleasantville?” Belle asked her gently. “If
you weren't part of a crime syndicate, you and Marion would just be
regular old sisters.”
Judith looked away. “It
doesn't matter right now.”
There was a brief
silence.
“I'll tell you what
DOES matter, and that's Belle and Charlie!” TJ suddenly spat out.
“Huh?” Belle and
Charlie looked at each other.
“You two!” Petunia
groaned. “You OBVIOUSLY have feelings for each other!”
“Huh?”
“You keep up with all
this 'best friend' stuff but you two CLEARLY belong together!”
Sammy added.
“Huh?”
“Guys, they're
oblivious. Just drop it, it's never going to work.” Sunny groaned.
Judith looked around,
before turning to Peter, confused.
“Just…go with
it…” He recommended.
—
Later on, Charlie and
Belle were in their tree, looking up through the leaves to the stars,
listening to the creek flow.
“I can't believe
them.” Belle sighed.
“Yeah.” Charlie
agreed. “We know what we have.”
“Exactly.” Belle
smiled.
They were together, and
that was all that mattered.

Chapter Seventy-Five: Apart and Together

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

“I wonder what Demon
will think when he hears about your treachery?” Crusader Mark
smirked, wiping the new cut on his cheek.
“You can't do
anything. The Mobsters of Misneach have ruled Pleasantville for
decades. You belong back in the past.” Sidewinder told him as she
reloaded the Mystic Eight Gun.
“That's not what
Demon thinks.” Crusader Roger stood up shakily. “Your days are
numbered, Mobster.”
“Not if I have
anything to do with it.”
Sidewinder spun around.
Master Revolver walked over, looking quite pleased.
“Well done
Sidewinder. I'll take it from here.” Master Revolver pointed his
shotgun at Roger. Sidewinder swallowed hard, before backing off and
running away.
“You wouldn't dare.”
Roger looked horrified at him.
“Oh wouldn't I just?”
Revolver grinned.
It happened quickly.
Master Revolver kicked Roger to the ground easily. Roger tried to
scramble away, but Revolver stepped on his ankle, ready to make the
kill. At the last moment though, Mark shoved his fellow Crusader out
of the way, the bullet going straight through his back.
Blood spewed out of
Marks mouth. “Run Roge. Get out of here while you still can.”
Another bullet got him
through his lower back, going through his stomach. Roger looked equal
parts horrified, disgusted and devastated.
“You're the
descendant of the original March Hill Crusaders! You have to live!
GO!” Mark cried with his dying breath. Roger took his chance and
ran as fast as he could as Master Revolver finished Mark off with a
shot to the head.
“That will keep
Marion happy. Just a shame I didn't get the other one.” Revolver
said to himself as Crusader Roger stole a motorcycle and escaped.
—
Lady Courage ducked as
another Ruby Shard whizzed past. She used her baseball bat to destroy
another one.
"Stop it! How
about you just lay down and DIE already?!" Ruby Daryl roared.
"Why don't you
just DIE already, nobody wants you anyway! Unwanted bastard!"
"How
about you just give up on your little temper tantrum already?"
Lady Courage jumped onto a nearby car and tried to jump high enough
to take a swipe at her brother. She missed, and he laughed.
—
Chuckles woke up with a
start.
“Am I still in crazy
town?!” He looked around. Sure enough the street was empty.
“Time to die little
man!”
Chuckles cried out and
dodged as the Haunted Maze Trouper attacked. Steadying the Lucky
Seven Gun, he fired at the Trouper, who disappeared into a haze of
smoke.
“Wait…this isn't
right!” Chuckles cried, throwing the Lucky Seven away.
—
Chuckles woke up again.
“Black and white?
REALLY? You're not doing well if you want me to start questioning
reality.” He groaned as the world around him appeared in monochrome
colours.
—
Chuckles woke up yet
again, this time in the Council building.
“Hey Chuckles.”
Said Peter Masters.
“You're not Peter
Masters.” Chuckles said drily, getting up. He ran out of the
building and through the empty city, ending up at Pleasant Lake. What
on earth was going on?!
“Sink or swim,
coward!” The Trouper appeared, shoving Chuckles into the water. He
felt like lead. He tried to get out of the water but he kept sinking.
Giggles!
—
Giggles couldn't escape
the vines. They wrapped themselves around her throat, her arms, her
legs.
She kept shooting with
the Lucky Seven Gun and the Desert Eagle, but finally she dropped
them, unable to hold them anymore as the oxygen left her body.
Chuckles!
—
Whiteness.
A dark figure in the distance.
I'd never leave you.
Never ever!
Struggling.
Trying to break through…
I'd never ignore
you. Except when you're annoying.
YOU'RE annoying!
Reaching
out…
It doesn't matter
though.
Not in the
slightest.
Getting
closer…
Nothing can get
between us!
We won't let it!
Fingertips
against fingertips…
We're best friends!
We're always best
friends!
And we'll-
ALWAYS!
Be,
Together!

Chapter Seventy-Four: Panic

Written by Crofton77 on . Posted in The Story.

“They're all out
cold. Darn it!” Lady Courage groaned as she tried to keep her
fellow Knights safe. The drug had gotten them all, and now they were
all in trouble.
“I've got Sir Dark,
Lady Luck and Sir Hyper.” Patrick pulled up in an unmarked old
station wagon with no back seats. He wore a black scarf around his
face. “I'm so glad you wear that gas mask.”
“It was a present
from someone who protected me.” Lady Courage replied, thinking of
the late Joe Masters who had treated her like his own grand-daughter.
“Where are Chuckles and Giggles?”
“Load those two into
the back, then we'll go look for them.” Patrick replied.
“Good idea Sir
Motor.” Lady Courage grinned beneath the mask which had protected
her from the poison gas. With a bit of difficulty, she loaded Sir
Lionheart and Lady Silent into the back of the car, both of them
unconscious.
“Looking for these?”
Lady Courage spun
around. Sidewinder had a small wagon, where Chuckles and Giggles were
loaded.
“I'm only helping
because I don't want the Mob threatened. I'm hunting down any
Troupers that haven't been gassed and chasing them out of town. No
killing.” Sidewinder spat.
“Thanks Sidewinder.
We won't forget this.” Lady Courage smiled at her.
“Oh won't DAD be
pleased when he sees this!” They heard another voice, a much
slimier, nastier voice!
“Ruby.” Lady
Courage glared at her brother. Ruby Daryl floated above them, looking
pleased with himself.
“What do YOU want you
little sneak?” Sidewinder snarled.
“Aww, c'mon Wine-dy,
don't be like THAT.” Ruby grinned. “I just want a little peek
under the hoods of your cargo there.”
“Of course you do.”
Sidewinder snarled.
“I mean, weren't YOU
going around claiming that Belle Masters and Charlie Begly were our
worst foes?” Ruby continued to gloat. “You wouldn't happen to
want to keep them hidden because you're WRONG would you?”
“Shut up!”
Sidewinder lashed out with an Emerald Shard, which did nothing
against the Ruby Suit.
“Nice try, but the
Emerald Suits have NOTHING on the power of the Ruby Suit!” Ruby
laughed, skewering Sidewinder through the shoulder with a Ruby Spear.
Pure fury rushed
through the veins of Lady Courage. She HATED Daryl, her older brother
who had helped her father treat her like dirt!
“Sidewinder, get
Chuckles and Giggles into the car and protect Sir Motor. Get them out
of here.” She said.
“Are you nuts?!
There's no WAY you can take on Ruby by yourself!” Sidewinder cried.
“This isn't your
battle.” Lady Courage told her. “I have my own problems with the
Jones family.”
Sidewinder looked at
her funny, before helping Sir Motor load Chuckles and Giggles into
the van.
“Not so fast!” Ruby
went to attack as they drove off, but he was stopped by a baseball
bat to the chest by Lady Courage.
“Owwwww!” He
choked.
“Your fight is with
ME, Ruby.” Lady Courage squared up to her brother.
—
“CHUCKLES!”
Chuckles stopped again.
He could hear Giggles calling him, but he couldn't see her.
“GIGGLES!” He
called out.
“DON'T LET THEM KNOW
YOUR NAME!” He heard. “CHUCKLES!!”
“WOULD HELP IF YOU
WEREN'T SCREAMING MY NAME OUT FOR EVERYONE TO HEAR!” Chuckles
retorted.
“CHUCKLES!!!” He
heard her voice again. Either she couldn't hear him or (more likely)
she was ignoring him.
He ran towards her
voice. Suddenly, something flew out in front of him, smacking him in
the face and knocking him out cold.
—
The world was filled
with joy and laughter. The water was perfect, the sun was warm, the
breeze had the slightest suggestion of jasmine…and it was fading.
“Ugh…” Sir Dark
sat up in the back of the moving station wagon.
“You guys were
drugged.” Patrick told him. “Smoke bomb.”
“Why is Sidewinder
outside?” Sir Dark looked out of the window and onto the roof.
“Because she's
helping save your butts.” Patrick replied. “She really must have
a thing for Lionheart.”
Sir Dark chortled.
“NOPE!” Patrick
suddenly swerved. “Oh not good, not, NOT good!”
“You keep driving,
I'll take care of the Crusaders!” Sidewinder leapt off the car and
into the path of the advancing March Hill Crusaders. Patrick quickly
pulled a 300-point turn, before shooting down a side-street.
“Why are you
protecting them?” Crusader Roger aimed his new bayonet at her.
“Because they happen
to be our best weapon against YOU.” Sidewinder aimed the Mystic
Eight Gun back at him.
—
“CHUCKLES!” Giggles
cried, desperately trying to make her way through the thickening
forest.
She could hear the
Haunted Maze Trouper laughing at her. “You can't save him little
girl. Pull off your helmet and I'll let him live.”
“He'd never forgive
me if I did!” Giggles fired back, angry. She fired the Lucky Seven
Gun at a branch, which fell, allowing her to fly upwards. Alas, as
she flew up, the forest grew up with her!
“Your little deus ex
machina won't save you now little girl!” She heard the Trouper
gloat. Two vines shot out and grabbed her feet. She shot them away,
pulling out the Desert Eagle. More vines shot out, and Giggles dodged
them, heading to ground before running through the thickening
undergrowth. The vines shot after her, and she knew it was only a
matter of time before they got her.
—
“C'mon guys, wake
up!” Sir Dark shook Sir Hyper and Lady Silent. Lady Luck and Sir
Lionheart were awake and groggy, and Sir Motor nearly had them at the
tip.
“Where's Sidewinder?”
Sir Lionheart rubbed his eyes. “What happened?”
“I think it was a
group hallucination.” Lady Luck told him.
“Sidewinder is taking
care of the Crusaders.” Sir Dark added. “This is bad. If we now
have enemies that can take us out en masse like that, then we're in
big trouble. We're just lucky none of us had our identities exposed.”
“Thanks Patrick.”
Lady Luck smiled. “Where's Sunny?”
“Taking on her
brother.” Patrick replied bitterly.
“Damn! We have to
help her!” Sir Lionheart cried as Lady Silent started to come
around.
“You guys aren't in
any condition to help anyone. Plus, this is HER fight.” Patrick
told them.
Meanwhile, Lady Courage and Ruby Daryl were falling from a building
together, locked in a death grip. Seeing Lady Courage was serious,
Ruby quickly pulled them up and threw Lady Courage to the side. She
landed on her feet and glared at him.
The siblings were fighting to the death.

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