A Voice from the Future
(The Realm of Fantasia)
(The Realm of Fantasia)
The Fantasia
realm was practically in the eye of the hurricane from what Joan could see through
the window of Yen Sid’s workshop. The skies had grayed in some areas and
blackened in others, turning it to endless night. There were tremors at the end
of every half hour, growing in intensity. Mountains had turned into volcanoes
in lands far outside the city, forcing dozens of villagers to flee and take refuge
in the sorcerers’ medieval metropolis. She was thankful that the city was large
enough to keep so many desperate families safe from the splintering world
beyond its boundaries. Unfortunately, it was just a matter of time before the
rift completely tore open the Fantasia
realm, and the home world of Yen Sid, Mickey, and all of the other sorcerers
that inhabited it would be gone forever.
(Narrative Note: The effects of the dimensional rift within the Disneyverse are exactly the same as those brought on by real world interference, as seen from the destruction of the Aladdin realm in World of Disney and Facilier's reign as the Shadow Sorcerer in The Marvelous World: World of Disney 2.)
Upon watching the world fall apart in the distance, Joan
felt a shooting pain in her chest that made her bend forward. As the pain
settled in her chest, another tremor arrived – much earlier than expected – and
another volcano erupted from a mountain not too close from the city. A bolt of
blood red lightning shot across the sky and struck a once-luscious tree that
stood tall and proud for ages in the city, setting it ablaze within seconds.
The tree was located in the “park” area where a few of the villagers’ children
played, believing they were safe from the outside dangers. The incident proved
that not even the city would be safe for very long.
(Setting Note: The "kingdom city" that exists in Fantasia is envisioned to resemble a medieval take on New York City, complete with its own Central Park area and skyscrapers that are structured like towers. Yen Sid's castle is designed with an exterior that meshes a castle out of the Middle Ages with a contemporary mansion.)
The parents of the children took them out of the park
immediately, while a group of sorcerers entered the scene, acting as firemen
and dosing the flames that consumed the tree with water they conjured out of
thin air. Joan’s chest pain subsided, but her fright over what happened in the
park remained, intensifying her fears over the whole situation. Those poor children…nearly died…all because
of me, she thought while watching the parents carry their children
back inside the basilica next door to Yen Sid’s castle.
“Ya gotta be kiddin’ me!”
Joan’s focus impulsively went to the workshop entrance.
There stood Pete, who had witnessed the paralleling events of her chest pain
and the chaos outside. Apparently, he was smart enough to put two and two
together from the way he bellowed with laughter – his enormous gut jiggling in
place of it. “Yer causin’ all the
kablooey goin’ on out dere! Yer dyin’!”
(Authorial Note: Livingston felt Tales of the Disneyverse would be the last time he would write for the "Joanie Navarro" character, since he established Sean Thomas and his reincarnations as the primary heroes for future World of Disney installments. Therefore, he set up the plot involving the death of her original self not only to bring a conclusion to the character but establish connection to how her reincarnated form came to be in The Marvelous World. He ultimately decided halfway through the miniseries that he would bring the character's younger version back for World of Disney 3, particularly with the involvement of her two succeeding reincarnations.)
Joan frowned, furious at herself for allowing to be
caught by Pete of all people. “Yes…I am,” she sadly admitted. “And if you tell anyone about it, I will…”
“You’ll what?”
Pete snapped. “The way I sees it, yer on borrowed time and our universe is
sufferin’ ‘cause of it! Seems like dah only
‘sensible’ thing to do is put yer old keister out of its misery!”
Joan’s body grew tense – not from the pain that it was
wracked with just a moment ago, but from the idea that Pete proposed. She
glared at him with glowing eyes as he advanced upon her, popping his knuckles.
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Oh, I dares.”
Joan backed away from him, until she found herself at a
corner. Pete’s large and wide body looming upon her made it virtually
impossible for escape from whatever wrath he intended on unleashing over her.
She desperately wanted to use her magic to teleport herself past him, but she
knew her body – in its current state – would not have allowed her to do that.
She knew there was a naught chance of succeeding, but she attempted to appeal
to the crazed sorcerer. “Pete, listen. This isn’t
the way. Give Anne-Marie, Katie, and Mickey a little more time. They’ll save
the Disneyverse. I promise you that!”
“Nothin’ doin’, ya old hag!” Pete viciously exclaimed.
“I’m gonna make sure this never happens again!”
Pete raised his large, white-gloved hands high above his
head while they glowed to signify whatever deadly spell he intended to cast
upon the helpless Joan. However, before any spell could have been unleashed by
Pete, the foul, overweight sorcerer was suddenly engulfed in a flash of golden
light that briefly illuminated Yen Sid’s workshop. His large, wide form then
shrunk down and Joan watched as it transformed into something that was almost
the size of a crumb. When the light that had engulfed his body dispersed, Pete
was revealed to have been transformed into a mouse – not like Mickey, but an actual mouse – with a tiny version of
his face on his new body. Still having control of his mouth, he screamed out
something that was only heard as squeaks in the ears of Joan while scurrying
into a nearby mouse hole, which seemed to have come at quite a convenient time
for him.
(Narrative Note: Pete's transformation into a mouse is a justification for his mistreatment of Mickey, who is not just a mouse himself but a character of small stature that is often picked on by the bigger, more intimidating Pete. It is also an ironic twist on his species - a cat - the known predator of mice.)
Shutting her eyes (which had returned to normal) and
breathing a sigh of relief, Joan thanked her rescuer, whose identity she had
already recognized. “Yen Sid…I truly and respectfully owe you what’s left of my
life.”
“Keep it.”
Joan’s eyes immediately snapped open when she discovered
that it wasn’t Yen Sid that replied.
Standing across the room was a young woman – someone Joan had never seen in the
Fantasia realm before – that wore a
robe similar to hers, only it was black instead of red; beneath it, she wore a
pair of blue jeans, black knee-high boots, and a navy blue top – all of which
hugged her slender, toned figure. But the most striking apparel that Joan
noticed on this young woman was the sorcerer hat on her head – the same hat
that was once owned by Yen Sid – the same hat that she had on her head at
that very moment.
Joan asked the obvious question upon seeing the woman:
“Who…Who are you?”
The young woman chuckled. Joan noticed how strikingly
gorgeous she was with raven hair that had a bob cut style, her bangs hanging
from the sides of her head, and lightly tanned skin that brought out her eyes,
which were just as blue as Joan’s. “My name’s Jacqueline,” she answered, “but
you know me by another name…as another person.”
(Biographical Note: "Jacqueline" is based on/inspired by Jacqueline Zediker, a close friend of Livingston's. Her presence in Tales of the Disneyverse was brought on by Livingston's decision to introduce more of Sean Thomas's reincarnations through the miniseries. He had been inspired again by Doctor Who and its 50th anniversary special in late 2013, which is when he returned to work on Tales after a long hiatus brought on by his work in finishing the Disney Ghostbusters series.)
Joan was understandably confused from her odd response,
which sounded close to a riddle. “I’m sorry, but…I…”
“I know it’s gonna be hard for you to do, but use your
sorcery to really look at me and see
who I really am.”
It was a
difficult task. Each time Joan used her magic, it had taken a toll on her
frail, elderly body, driving her closer to death than she cared to admit. But
she braved the agony and did as Jacqueline requested to understand what was
going on. Digging deep, she used what limited magic she had in her and gazed at
the young woman with glowing eyes. Through hazy black-and-white “magic vision,”
Joan saw Jacqueline’s form contort and shift. Alterations in hair, skin, and
height were induced until Joan no longer saw Jacqueline standing there but a
young man from her life outside the Disneyverse – someone who she was all too
familiar with.
Her glowing eyes widened in surprise as she weakly
uttered the name of Jacqueline’s “secret” identity: “S…Sean?” And then, between
the shock of the discovery and her declining health, her eyes ceased their glow
and closed just as she collapsed to the floor.
Jacqueline rushed to Joan’s aid, gently raising her upper
body to let it rest upon her lap while she tearfully cradled her. “I’m so
sorry, Mama,” she whispered to the unconscious Joan. “I had to let you see.”
(Authorial Note: This ending was originally visioned to be more comical with Joan fainting after discovering Sean's reincarnated form and Jacqueline reacting with a clever quip, but Livingston figured the scene was more effective taken seriously.)
(UP NEXT: Things get interesting in the Mermaid/Nemo worlds.)
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