Lost and Found
(The Merged Realms of Up and Peter Pan)
(The Merged Realms of Up and Peter Pan)
(Narrative Note: With the featured introduction of two new characters in the second half, this tale is notably longer than previous ones in the miniseries.)
After an hour of wandering endlessly through the jungle
and getting absolutely nowhere, Ellison’s leadership proved to be more
questionable than Panda, Anne-Marie, Katie, and Mickey realized. It got so
exhausting walking through the dense, humid jungle that Mickey abandoned skipping
and walked to the point where he was just dragging his feet across the dirt.
Ellison continued to be ever the optimist, skipping with more energy and width
than she did earlier.
Anne-Marie’s patience wore very thin. “I’m about to destroy her.”
Hearing her comment (which sounded a lot like a vow),
Panda panicked and spoke up to Ellison. “Uh, M-Mistress?” Ellison immediately
stopped skipping when she heard him address her. “Perhaps magic could assist us
in helping move things much…quicker?”
“That’s very sweet of you to suggest, Panda.” Ellison
said with a smile. “But I have a strong
feeling right here,” she pointed to her heart, “that we’re very close to where
we need to be.”
(Character Note: Ellison's sweet-natured personality is inspired by such Disney Princesses as Belle - who Jennifer Ellison is fluent in impersonating, Cinderella, and Aurora - whose Briar Rose attire is the basis for Ellison's.)
Anne-Marie gritted her teeth; she could take the nonsense
no longer. “Oh, really? Because I
think where we need to be is the location of the rift that will rip the two
worlds apart in a matter of minutes – not
sightseeing!”
Ellison giggled. “We’re not sightseeing. And we have plenty of time to get to the rift before
things get nasty. You just need to have patience and not be such a Grumpy Lil’
Gus.” Her tone again shifted to baby talk on the latter half of her address to
Anne-Marie.
(Authorial Note: Ellison is one of Livingston's favorite characters to write in the World of Disney series. Her sweetness and tendency to act in a motherly way - that reflects the parental lifestyle she possessed once in the life of Sean Thomas - is the one aspect Livingston finds enjoyable to express in dialogue.)
Beneath the bangs of Anne-Marie’s auburn hair that
covered her forehead was a large vein that popped from beneath the skin in
response to her growing anger. “My patience was lost the moment you showed up. And, right now, my
restraint is about to disappear as well!” She had gotten threateningly close to
Ellison, practically right in her calm, smiling face (which heavily
contradicted Anne-Marie’s stressed, pulsating one).
Sensing a different kind of rift developing between the
two of them, Panda quickly separated them. “O.K., O.K.! L-Let’s just take it
easy, shall we? If it will save time – and lives – I’ll simply use my magic to light our way.”
For the first time since they met her, Katie and Mickey
saw how Ellison’s demeanor moved from tranquil and happy to great fear and
concern from what Panda had suggested to do. “John, no!” Calling him “John” was
further proof of this shift in attitude. “You know that using your magic will
destroy you.” Katie and Mickey were caught off guard by this warning. Was
Panda’s magic so powerful that even he
could be a victim to it? Or was there some other reason that Ellison advised
him against it?
(Narrative Note: With the lost of Fantasia from the perspective of Panda and Ellison, any surviving sorcerers from the realm are at instant risk to themselves in the event of usage in magic. Since it requires a use of energy reserved in their life force, the sorcerer or sorceress brings himself or herself closer to death.)
“Only casting powerful spells will destroy me, Mistress.”
Panda assured. “I’d be merely casting a tracking spell, which requires minimal,
harmless magic.”
The trepid look on Ellison’s face was enough evidence to
show how she was still against this idea; but she allowed him to do it as an
act of trust. She backed away while he clapped his hands together in front of
him and shut his eyes, taking in a deep breath. To the others, it appeared that
he was meditating while standing. Unfortunately, this mediation had broken as
soon as they heard the shouts of help from a nearby elderly gentleman. They all
rushed in the direction of the screams and came upon a clearing where Mickey discovered
a cane with tennis balls.
“Where the heck did this
come from?” The mouse questioned as he picked the cane up off the ground.
“Hey! Up here!”
Mickey and the others did as the unseen elderly stranger
directed and looked up to see Carl Fredricksen – the old, cantankerous main
character of Up – trapped in a net
suspended ten feet above the ground. Carl adjusted his glasses to get a good
look at his would-be rescuers. “What’re you people? Monks?” He jumped and let
out a quick, startled cry once he caught sight of Mickey. “And what is that? I-Is that a three-foot walking mouse?” He pointed to Mickey
with a quivering finger. “How did such weirdoes get to be in Paradise Falls?”
Believing Carl’s rhetorical question to be legit, Ellison
was prepared to answer until Anne-Marie stepped forward and addressed the
jeopardized old man herself. “Sir, keep calm. We’ll have you down in a second,
and you’ll be on your way.”
Somewhat grateful by her straightforwardness on the
matter, Carl relaxed and said, “At least one
of you appears to act like a regular
human being.” But his ease dissipated once he got a glimpse of the bizarre
occurrence with Anne-Marie’s eyes, which had suddenly turned ghostly white. He
was not the only one that had noticed either – Katie (again) and Mickey (for
the first time) noticed as well.
The net ropes around Carl vanished in the blink of an
eye, and he found himself without support. He howled and thrashed about in
fear, seeing how vulnerable he had become to the ten-foot drop, which would
have certainly done him in. But he stopped his screaming and flailing once he
realized that he was actually floating precisely where he had been for the past
minutes when the net ropes were still around him. He was slowly and carefully
lowered to ground level, landing feet-first. The whole thing scared the living
daylights out of him; even as Mickey kindly handed his cane back to him, the
old man flinched at first and then took the cane back with much hesitation – it
was clear that he was still baffled and startled by the mouse’s “abnormal”
appearance.
(Narrative Note: This is the first case in the series where Mickey comes in contact with one of the Disney characters outside the Fantasia realm. Carl's reaction to his appearance can be attested to others in the Disneyverse or the universes beyond it, with the notable exception of the Star Wars galaxy, which is where Mickey feels the most at home being among various outlandish species.)
“Mr. Fredricksen, please don’t be scared.” Ellison urged.
“We won’t hurt you.”
Carl’s eyes grew wide behind his thick black spectacles.
“You know who I am?”
Anne-Marie face-palmed herself over the blunder that
Ellison naïvely made. “Oh, great.”
“I’ve heard stories about strange things found around
Paradise Falls.” Carl said. “Mysteries that Charles F. Muntz dedicated his life
into finding.” He directed his attention to Mickey and added, “Like you, for instance. You’ve got to be that
monster he went after and disappeared trying to find seventy years ago.”
(Authorial Note: Tales of the Disneyverse marks the second time Livingston has written characters from Up. He has previous experience with writing them in his original Marvel Mayhem series in 2010, just a few months before he began work on World of Disney.)
“Monster?” Mickey exclaimed, taking much offense in
Carl’s accusation. “Now listen here, fella!”
Katie was quick to calm the mouse down, placing steady
hands on his tensed-up shoulders. “Easy, Mickey. He didn’t mean anything by
it.”
“Or maybe the monster might be you.” Carl said, switching his focus on Anne-Marie. “You’re no more
human than this ‘mouse’ is, aren’t ya?”
Although she did not express it as openly as Mickey,
except for a slight twitch in her right eye, Anne-Marie was deeply offended by
Carl’s accusation – more so than Mickey was. Fighting hard to hide her emotions
– going as far as biting her tongue for a brief moment – she let Carl’s
judgment on her pass from her mind and told the old man, “You’re free to go, sir.”
Taking one last disgusted look at the group, Carl began
making his departure from the clearing; of course, he did not do it without
getting one last insult in: “Whatta bunch of freaks of nature.” Anne-Marie
clearly heard it, and her body tensed. As if sensing her tension, Ellison
placed a calm hand on her right shoulder, but it only just made Anne-Marie more tense.
Carl was nearly out of the clearing before he was cut off
by the sudden emergence of characters dressed in animal skin, jumping out from
the foliage and surrounding the group. The Lost Boys! The ambush had not
surprised Anne-Marie, who was aggravated in her failure to realize that the
boys would return to claim their prize – Carl.
“Oh, man!” Katie cried. “What should we do now?”
“We might wanna knock ‘em out with magic.” Mickey
suggested.
“I agree.” Anne-Marie said. “I have the best knockout
spell that can buy us enough time to—”
“NO!”
All eyes centered on Ellison, who displayed a very
serious side to her persona that they had yet to see from the usually-giddy
sorceress. “We will not use magic on these
children.”
Anne-Marie could not believe what she was hearing. “This
is a necessary time to use it, in order to spare the mission!”
“I SAID ‘NO’!” Ellison’s voice
amplified and echoed in reflection of her aggressive tone, but the one
characteristic that was most noticeable to Katie and Mickey were her glowing
eyes.
They both came to the same mental conclusion upon this
discovery: Ellison was a Guardian.
(Character Note: Ellison is the eighth reincarnation of the many to follow after Sheryl in the afterlife of Sean Thomas. She actually is many incarnations behind Anne-Marie, who is the fifteenth, hence Anne-Marie's full knowledge of her.)
Anne-Marie saw no point in arguing with her; they had
already wasted time in their debate on the matter that could have been used to
conjure up a spell and make an escape. Fueled with anger and frustration, she
allowed herself to be taken captive by the Lost Boys, along with everyone else.
As their hands were tied at the wrists and connected to
each other’s binds, Ellison’s sternness melted away and she returned to her
usual perky self almost instantaneously: “We’ll be O.K. They’re nice little
boys.” She smiled at one Lost Boy by the name of Tootles, who only blew a
raspberry at her in response to her kindness.
--------------------
“I was right!”
“Shhh!”
“Oops. Sorry. I mean, I was right. Most of the other
reincarnations were called to the rift. There’s Ellison in all her sprightly
glory. Man, am I glad that you toned it down a notch when you took in your body.”
Tasha and Allison watched from a distance as the Lost
Boys led their captives out of the clearing. The two women had crouched down
low in the foliage during the entire scene, but they stood to their full height
as soon as it was over. Both women were quite tall – Allison at 5’8” and Tasha
at 5’9”; it was this reason they kept down low, avoiding detection from the
boys and their captives.
(Biographical Note: "Tasha" and "Allison" are based on and inspired by Tasha Cyhanick and Allison White, both of whom are very good friends in real life, which helped Livingston to establish their characters as such. Cyhanick and White are two friends Livingston met through photographer Eddie Kiplinger, whose "ME Photography" line introduced Livingston to many models that he has written into the World of Disney series, including Anne-Marie McLean.)
Donned in a blue robe with the hat of Yen Sid sitting
upon her head, Allison was a true sight to behold with long, straight, flowing
auburn-brown hair that parted to the side, a thin frame, light peach skin,
rose-red lips, narrow eyebrows, and perfect, bright white teeth. Tasha (her
fellow reincarnation, as well as successor) was just as much so with long reddish-brown
hair (also covered by Yen Sid’s signature pointed hat), green eyes with a ring
of blue around them, and a slender, toned physique complete with a six-pack.
The two women were highly fashionable as well – Allison complete in a flowery
scarf with matching colors to a long burnt orange colored blouse, forest green
leggings with a braided pattern, brown braided belt, and brown leather boots
(all worn beneath her blue robe); and Tasha in only a white sleeveless top and
short skirt with very glittery flats (all worn beneath her green robe).
(Authorial Note: At this point in the miniseries, it was clear to Livingston that he had an opportunity of introducing a possibly endless amount of reincarnations that could go on to play vital roles in other World of Disney installments. For this, he approached as many women he knew - online and personally - that would be interested in being featured as a character. This even included a few celebrities.)
“John’s with them.” Allison somberly noted. “I wonder
if…”
“Don’t!” Tasha hastily interjected. “There’s already a
rift in space-time. We don’t need another by interfering with our own past.”
Allison acknowledged her warning with a nod before
changing the subject. “Who was that with them? The tall, thin blonde and that
woman who looked ready to explode with rage?”
Tasha shrugged. “No idea. Maybe other sorcerers that
managed to escape from Fantasia before its demise?”
“Could be.” Allison said. “So, let’s recap: there’s us
and then there’s Ellison – that makes three so far.”
“But there have to be more that the rift called to.”
Tasha gathered. “The rift called to
us and possibly Ellison, so it had to call to more.”
“How many more of us do you think there are? You’re the
ninth one and, as far as I can tell, the last of us.”
“We still can’t
be too sure. We both know the cycle of Guardian is never-ending.”
(Spoiler Note: Readers will see much later who the actual "Last Guardian" really is.)
“You think that the rift might’ve also called to him, too?”
Tasha did not consider this fact, which prompted her to
think about it. Before she could, she felt a weird tingling sensation come from
behind her. “Do you feel that? I think something just…” She stopped when she
noticed how Allison was stifling a laugh. “What? What’s going on?”
“There’s a dog sniffing your butt.”
That weird tingling sensation increased once this was
pointed out to Tasha. She half-turned her upper body and looked down to see
there was in fact a dog with its nose lightly pressed against her backside. Of
course, what made the moment even more “interesting” was that the dog was Dug –
the short, obese golden retriever from Up.
When he realized that his activity had been caught by the very person he
sniffed, he looked up at her and said (through his brown collar/translator),
“Hi.”
Tasha responded with a simple “Hello.” She did not seem
to mind very much how the golden retriever made his first impression.
Curious by Dug’s gesture, Allison questioned to Tasha, “Did
you use the form of a dog recently?”
Halfheartedly, Tasha replied, “Maybe.”
(Narrative Note: This exchange is a tease at a story of Tasha's that will be told in Tales of the Guardians.)
Dug moved in between the two women, rubbing himself
against both their legs. “My name is Dug! I have just met you, and I love you!”
Allison and Tasha responded to the classic, memorable
line with a collective “Aww!” They gathered around Dug, petting and hugging him
lovingly.
“I was separated from my new master and the small mailman
when my master was caught in a net that sprung from nowhere. The small mailman
and I went to find help, but then we
were separated and I saw a pirate lady and other pirates take the small mailman
away with them. I could not keep up with them in time to stop them.”
Dug’s story baffled Allison and Tasha; they could only
manage to figure out that his “new master” and “the small mailman” were undoubtedly
Carl and Russell. “I don’t remember any ‘pirate lady’ being in Up or Peter Pan, do you?”
“Definitely not.” Tasha said. “You think there could be
others from worlds outside these two that are coming in through the rift?”
(UP NEXT: Enter Genevieve.)
No comments:
Post a Comment