symphonic_rp

Farm Story Sketch
     Christine, Kacey and the three AD detectives from Noir (Spike, Gene & Richie) leave Chris Corners in search of the silver star. Their search takes them first to Oz Town. As they are passing through a farm belt around the outside of Oz, their car runs out of power from being cut off from the sun in No Furs Land too long. So they get out and start looking for a farmer with recharging equipment.
     As they search the farm, Christine gets the ever increasing impression that it is not prosperous, which the detectives don’t understand as there are crops growing in the fields. Christine corrects them. There are crops rotting in the fields on fatally withered stalks.
     Upon finding the main driveway they discover a foreclosure notice stating that this farm is now the property of The Witch Of The West. Christine thinks it ill advised to be calling on The Witch Of The West first thing, but the detectives remind her it’s either that or stand around the car all day waiting for the battery to recharge. And, seeing that the detectives have no fear of witches, Christine defers to their advice.
     When they come to the farmhouse, Gene notes that Halloween Town looks rich compared to this place. Kacey says she has heard on the internet that the witches control the economy of Oz. This is justified by a peculiar and controversial interpretation of the sacred text of Oz Town which says there is hidden symbolism in the Oz books that alludes to problems with the elder race economy at the time of their writing.
     Christine is baffled by this. She has never heard of any such imagery or interpretation. She has always thought of the Oz books as nothing more than innocent children’s fare.
     Kacey, having also read the books, wonders how anything so horrifying could be considered children’s fare. She adds that she sometimes shudders at the things she’s told were regularly done to children in Christine’s time. She, herself, has been prone to think of the Oz books as a fire and brimstone allegory, comparing it to Animal Farm.
     Christine asks if there is a town on Cygnus that was based on Animal Farm. Kacey believes the closest thing to that would have been Ashbury. Ashbury might not have been patterned after Animal Farm, but it seems to have failed due to ignoring the warnings in Animal Farm. And most people on the internet suggest that Oz is failing due to ignoring the warnings of its own sacred text.
     A pink rabbit suddenly makes her presence known by saying, in a country accent, “That sounds about right.”
     In surprise, Kacey gasps “Clover,” as this pink rabbit looks a lot like Lappina in all but her accent and state of non-pregnancy.
     “There ain’t been no one here by that name since I was knee high to a cabbage plant,” says the rabbit. “I’m Hollyann Edwards. I run this place for the witch.”
     Christine asks if she was the original owner before the witch foreclosed. The rabbit explains that it was her father’s farm, but after the foreclosure her father had wandered off to see the world. She had left too for a while, but it turned out the best job she could get was running the old homestead for the witch. She’d planned only to do it for as long as it took to save up passage to some other town, but the way things are set up in Oz, the more you make, the more you owe.
     She further explains that what she earns is just barely enough to pay for the food she eats, which even though she grows it belongs to the witch. Also, all the money in Oz is owned by the witches, and she has to pay for the right to use it.
     “Income tax,” Christine translates, her rebellious spirit showing its indignation.
     “Whatever you want to call it,” says Hollyann. “Don’t make no matter what we do in these parts, we still end up in debt up to our eyeballs. By the way, if y’all’s here to steal anything it’ll be added to my debt, which I ain’t ever gonna pay anyway, so be my guest.”
     They tell her all they need is a battery charger. Holly says she has a battery charger, but it’s copyrighted and patented to the witch. So, even though she purchased it with her own borrowed money, she still owes the witch a licensing fee every time she uses it.
     “Good Goddess,” Christine exclaims. “How deep in the hole are you?”
     “Sugar, the last time I looked at my credit report I owed more zeros than I could count,” says Holly. “And please don’t make no jokes about rabbits bein’ good at diggin’ holes. It ain’t funny no more.”
     “Beats the heck outta me how anyone profits by lettin’ somebody get so into debt they can’t never pay it off,” says Gene.
     “It seems pretty obvious to me,” says Spike. “The witch not only owns the farm, she owns the farmer too.”
     “I say, free labor,” Richie interjects. “How quaint.”
     “Why don’t you just leave?” asks Kacey.
     “And skip out on a debt?” says Holly. “That’s one thing my dad drilled into me. A fur has to have honor, and there ain’t no honor in skippin’ out on a debt.”
     “You could always come to Suburbia,” said Christine. “I hear their brothel is used for paying off debts. I know it’s just another form of slavery, but at least you get to keep the money.”
     “You been hidin’ under a rock somewhere, sugarcakes?” says Holly, looking at Christine like she’s loopy. “Suburbian money ain’t no good in Oz.”
     “That’s right,” Spike recalls. “The last time we passed through here there were no money pads to press our thumbs to. All transactions have to be paid for in local coins. So computerized money is worthless here.”
     “Must be murder on the tourist trade,” says Gene.
     “Tourists?” asks Holly. “Oz don’t get no tourists. The witch’s don’t like outsiders. Ain’t no law says you can’t come in, but once you’ve been here long enough to get in debt good luck getting’ out again. If y’all was smart you’d turn that car of yours around and beat it on back to where you came from.”
     Spike says they can’t leave until their business in Oz is finished.
     Holly invites them into the house for coffee. She doesn’t have much, but her folks taught her to be hospitable. Christine encourages the others to take Holly up on her offer, as she wants to call Sir Jon to consult before she goes any farther.
     Christine calls Sir Jon on her cell phone while the others sit in Holly’s kitchen chatting. Sir Jon tells her that Oz is not a nice place to visit and no one in their right mind wants to live there. He would prefer that she not place herself in danger by running off to such troublesome places.
     Christine regrets that she has no choice but to follow the silver star into Oz, and she asks him about the money situation.
     Sir Jon says this is not a problem. Technically the witches are the bankers of Oz, with The Wizard representing a puppet government at the mercy of how the witches manipulate the town’s money situation. They horde technology from the people of Oz and try to keep them in ignorance of science, but they require science to give the illusion that they have magical powers. Because of this, there is a whole roomful of worthless Oz coinage at the Rhoades Mansion that has been used to pay for Perry’s technology. Sir Jon will have Perry send a few sacksful to the coordinates of Christine’s phone. So she should just sit tight for a while – Oz being only a couple hours’ drive from Suburbia.
     Before hanging up, Sir Jon cryptically warns Christine to beware of water in Oz. Christine is puzzled for a moment. Then she laughs and asks if that trick is supposed to work on good witches too. But Sir Jon is not amused and reminds Christine that Oz is a closed environment with a totally different sphere of reality from Suburbia. What’s written in the sacred text is what the people of Oz Town tend to believe, and to be safe Christine must always be mindful of this. Sir Jon reiterates his wish that Christine would not go there at all.
     Christine says there’s no way she wouldn’t want to visit the wonderful land of Oz sometime. So she might as well get it over with. But again Sir Jon is not moved from his seriousness, reminding Christine that she has read the Oz books, and asking her what part of that land of nightmares she thinks is wonderful. Christine admits she takes his point and will be careful.
     As Christine closes her cell phone, she takes a look around Holly’s living room, as something is nagging her about this situation. Over the fireplace she sees the picture of a young coyote with two small bunny children, the farm buildings in the background seeming in much better shape than they are now. This, she assumes, must be the dad Holly referred to.
     There is nothing that directly connects the furs in the picture with anyone Christine knows, but still . . .
     Christine joins the others in the kitchen and says they have to wait there until Perry’s messenger arrives with Oz currency on which the license has already been paid. Therefore they will be able to spend it without issue.
     While they wait, Gene talks to Holly about the sorry state of the crops. Holly explains that there is a water rights problem. The irrigation water for West Oz flows from North Oz. The Witch Of The North considers the water her asset and has literally frozen it. Actually, she uses it in a weather machine that keeps North Oz perpetually covered in snow.
     No one knows her exact reasoning for this, other than being petty. But rumor has it that The Witch Of The North has some aversion to Solstice, and she believes by holding back Spring she can prevent St. James from distributing gifts in her region that she gets no licensing fees for.
     “And you Ozians put up with this lunatic rule?” Christine exclaims. “Why don’t you gang up on these witches and depose them?”
     “Why?” Holly shrugs. “We gotta go by the book. No witches, no Oz. Any witch we take down will just be replaced by another one, just as bad or worse.”
     “I take it The Wizard has the power to dissolve the town,” says Christine. “Why don’t the citizens petition for failure?”
     “We even start talkin’ about that and the witches start callin’ in their debts,” says Holly. “We can’t even fail the town before our debts are paid. Not that anyone wants to fail Oz. It’s still our home, ya know.”
     A few hours later, a loud horn calls Christine and the detectives outside, and they see Chico (the giant talking truck) driving up to the farmhouse, having difficulty navigating the driveway, which is only one lane wide while Chico is 2 lanes wide. But Rick is deliberately driving Chico in such a way that all obstructions to the side of the driveway are crushed flat, creating a 2 lane driveway for Chico’s exit.
     Christine is surprised that Perry would send Rick on an errand like this, but then she figures Chico would be safer for transporting money than any armored car, assuming anyone in Suburbia has armored cars, given that they only use electronic money.
     Rick gets out of the cab and looks around before approaching the others. He does not seem pleased with what he sees.
     Christine greets him as a friend, but Rick is not at ease around the detectives. She observes this more and more as Rick opens up Chico’s back doors and shows them a huge stack of sacks, filled with Oz currency.
     Rick relays Perry’s instructions that they should take with them just what they can conceal in their pockets. Rick is to stay at the farm and mind the rest of it so they can come back to get more as needed.
     Spike reacts with indignation at being given orders on an AD case. Rick shrugs and says he’s just doing his job. He delivered the message. He couldn’t care less if the detectives ignore it. Where upon Rick tosses one of the heavy sacks at Gene, and Gene is nearly knocked off his feet by the impact of the weight.
     Angry words are exchanged until Christine butts in and demands to know what all this animosity is about. Rick apologizes to Christine, explaining he can’t help feeling irritable seeing his old farm in this condition.
     Christine’s jaw drops in shock, and she clarifies that this is the farm he told her about on the way back from their adventure with The Lost Ferals.
     Rick confirms this, and further explains that the only thing more irritating than revisiting the place where he worked his youth away in debt slavery to a witch is finding the AD detectives on it, who take a ridiculous amount of his income for insurance and act like they own him. It makes him feel like his situation hasn’t improved all that much.
     Spike coldly reminds Rick that any time he doesn’t like being owned by the AD he’s free to take the AD sticker off his truck. He then goes on to suggest that Rick owes them something for use of The AD’s reputation.
     This infuriates Rick who abruptly leaps at Spike, grabbing him by his trench coat, pulling him up to his face and shouting, “I don’t owe you nothin’.” Then he unceremoniously tosses Spike to the ground at his partners’ feet.
     “Wolves really don’t get along with coyotes,” Christine remarks, in bemusement.
     “Spike, you sure’nuff gonna take that?” asks Gene, seeming unsure of how to react to this situation.
     “Hell no,” says Spike, indignantly picking himself up off the ground and dusting off his trench coat. “If Edwards wants a lesson in manners then schools in session.”
     Seeing that Rick is not backing down, and that Spike’s companions are not about to argue with their leader, Christine steps forward and slaps Spike across the face so hard he nearly falls over backwards.
     “What the hell . . . ?” Spike says to Christine with a shocked expression.
     “Like you said,” Christine replies. “School’s in session. And your manners are way off.”
     “Explain,” says Spike, fuming with indignation.
     “First off,” Christine begins, “Rick is right. He owes you nothing. He pays you compensation for the use of your reputation, and does jobs for you on the side that you apparently show no gratitude for. You do not own this fur. None of us own him. You should treat him with respect and gratitude for the extra stuff he does.”
     Gene and Richie look petulant, not wanting to go up against Christine when she’s right. But Spike is not swayed.
     “This is bad for the reputation of our company,” says Spike. “I can’t be seen being tossed around without somebody suffering for it. And don’t think I won’t hit you back, either.”
     “Throw all the punches you want at me,” says Christine, “if that’s the best way you know how to make a point, but you can’t throw punches at Rick without throwing them at yourself and the reputation of your organization.”
     “How do you figure that?” Spike growls.
     “He’s your client,” Christine admonishes him. “He pays you for protection. You have to go after anyone who does him harm. So if you attack him you have to go after yourself.”
     “He’s the one who attacked,” Spike reminds her.
     “No, you attacked first,” Christine insists. “You attacked his freedom with your words.”
     “So why doesn’t he defend his freedom with words?” Spike demands.
     “Because he’s not as articulate as you,” says Christine. “He can’t put what he knows into impressive speeches, but he knows his rights, and he knows you don’t respect them.”
     “Right,” Spike spits, unimpressed. “He has to hide behind a female to do his talking for him.”
     “Is that what this is all about?” asks Christine, in disbelief. “You dislike Rick because he’s soft spoken? Is he not liberated enough for you?”
     “A male who needs a female to talk for him isn’t liberated at all,” says Spike, distastefully.
     “He doesn’t need me to talk for him,” says Christine. “He said you don’t own him and threw you to the ground for emphasis. His point was very clear. You just weren’t listening. You only had ears for your stupid male pride, and your testosterone overload.”
     Rick marches around to the side of the truck and pulls the AD sticker off the driver’s side door. Then he marches back and throws it in Spike’s face, folding his arms as if to say this should make his meaning clear. But of course it doesn’t.
     “See here, Edwards,” says Richie, “you won’t last 10 minutes in No Furs Land without that sticker. We’re all the law and order you have out there.”
     Rick wants to make Richie understand, but doesn’t have the words. So he looks hopefully at Christine.
     “Law and order that you have to live in fear of is no law and order at all,” Christine translates. “Rick Edwards is every bit the liberated male. He will not be enslaved by anyone – not even the male liberation movement and its cockeyed definitions of what a liberated male should be.”
     “I ain’t likin’ this, Spike,” says Gene, picking up the sticker. “Edwards here done been to the wall for us a lotta times, but you ain’t never cut him no slack for it. This here sticker is my reputation as much as it is yours, and I ain’t lettin’ a client go out in No Furs Land without him thinkin’ I got his back.”
     Gene then hands the sticker to Rick and says, “You put this sticker back on your truck, son. And don’t you worry about no more payments. You’re paid into The AD for life.”
     Rick accepts the sticker, giving Gene a nod to indicate they have an understanding. Then Rick reapplies the sticker to the truck.
     “Still sulking, Spike?” asks Christine. “We can go a couple of rounds if it’ll make you feel better.”
     “That won’t be necessary,” says Spike. “Fighting to defend myself when I’m wrong is stupid.”
     “You have restored yourself in my esteem, “says Christine, with an affectionate smile. “Why don’t we all go back in the house and have some more coffee? We can make plans and enjoy being friends again.”
     “Capital idea,” says Richie.
     “Suits me fine,” Gene agrees.
     “Lead on,” says Spike, as if content to let Christine think she’s the boss of his organization for the time being.
     Rick joins them and they go back into the kitchen where Kacey is still sipping coffee with Holly.
     Rick is obviously dumbfounded when he sees Holly, asking what she’s doing there when he thought he had freed her from Oz years before.
     Holly then explains that she had wondered around a bit, but had never learned anything that made her suited for any other kind of work. So she had accepted the job of running the farm for the witch.
     This upsets Rick so much he starts to punch the wall, but Holly reminds him, “That ain’t your wall to punch no more.”
     Christine shows Rick the picture of his younger self and the two children, asking after the second rabbit child. Rick explains that the other rabbit child was lost to him when his wife looted the farm fund and ran off to parts unknown. He has not seen or heard from his wife or the child since.
     Christine notes Holly’s resemblance to Lappina and wonders if it’s possible Lappina might be that child, as she recalls Lappina saying something about early memories of living on a farm at Miyan’s trial.
     Rick confesses he never made a connection. Pink bunny people tend to always remind him of his wife and child, and he has long broken the habit of expecting every pink bunny girl he meets to be related to him.
     Rick further explains he has not spent much time with Lappina. She is a princess to be and obviously looks down on him. It would be somewhat awkward for him if one of his daughters grew up to be a princess.
     Holly points out that her younger sister was named Clover, and that Lappina used to be their family name while their mother was the head of the family. (The female last name is usually shared in a Cygnesian marriage, except in cases where the male is liberated or the male name has more prestige attached to it). It was only after his wife deserted the family that Rick reassumed his original last name, as did the two children that remained with Rick.
     But Rick say Christine shouldn’t take any of this too seriously, as Clover Lappina is one of the most common female rabbit names. Going through the intertownal phone directory it would take hours to locate any particular Clover Lappina, because there are so many of them.
     Christine still insists that the next time Rick comes to The Rhoades Mansion she wants to do a DNA test to make sure. Rick will not fight her on this, but he does not see why it’s important. He did not get to be a father to his child while he was needed. If she is the princess to be, having him for a father would only drag down her happiness. He wishes Christine would leave it alone.
     But Christine reveals she isn’t thinking of Clover’s welfare as much as Holly’s. If Holly really is the sister of the soon to be Princess Of Suburbia, she’s due a much better existence than she has now.
     Holly reacts with disbelief that she could be a member of a ruling family. She claims she wouldn’t know what to do with wealth and power after a lifetime of debt slavery. Rick also seems to think ill of the idea. He doesn’t want the complications to his life of Lappina being his daughter.

     Once the car is fully charged, Christine, Kacey and the detectives continue on their way, leaving Rick and Holly to get reacquainted.
     Christine takes out the crystal ball Mr. Stopheles had given her, which she has set to track the course of the silver star, which indicates it was taken into West Oz.

symphonic_rp

This is the first of a number of new ideas for various Spectral Shadows serials I’m planning to put up for brainstorming. These are raw first drafts of the ideas as they first come out of my head, subject to suggestion, expansion, continuity review and general comments.

This first idea is projected as an arc for Serial 12 and was inspired by nikolinni attempting to marry his Spectral Shadows fan fiction with a “Five Nights At Freddy’s” parody, coupled with the question of why I don’t consider “Five Nights At Freddy’s” to be a true work of Horror.

Basically I threw out some suggestions that Niko didn’t seem interested in using, and I was thinking those were really good ideas, and if he didn’t want to use them, I should.

So I spent the last couple of days trying to put these ideas together in the beginnings of a workable story idea, which I hope will turn out to be truly horrifying, while at the same time maintaining the Spectral Shadows tradition of being allegorically controversial. i.e. encouraging the reader to feel sympathy for something that would normally be beyond anyone’s sympathy - pulling out all the stops and pushing my genre to its limits, you might say.

Anyway, here’s my first sketch of the idea, and I look forward to any suggestions for ways it could be made more effective as a Furry Sci-Fi Horror piece.

Christine reminds the family of Lappina’s dream of setting up a New Ashbury. Perry admits he has not seen much point in pursuing the idea since Lappina’s death. He feels it would only pain him further if he were to build it, only to be reminded constantly that Lappina had not lived to see it. Christine thinks Perry’s attitude is horridly selfish. She wants to go ahead with the idea, even if Perry doesn’t.

Christine talks to the family about where New Ashbury might be located. Seeing that Christine will not be put off, Perry sighs and suggests that the site of Blair’s abandoned castle project might be good for them to take advantage of, rather than trying to clear a section of No Furs Land from scratch.

Perry calls The Sultan and asks if Halloween has any plans for the castle. The Sultan tells Perry he would be well advised to look for another location, as some strange things have been happening in that area since Blair’s departure, and he believes the castle to be cursed.

Perry can not see over the phone, but the Sultan is looking down at his diorama as he speaks, which shows not only the castle, but a ghost of the surrounding amusement park gradually fading into view.

Being a scientist, Perry does not believe in curses. He hires Joy to put together another expedition to check out the property.

Joy’s expedition finds the castle completely restored. Not only that, but the surrounding amusement park is also in the process of being restored, but there is no sign of heavy construction equipment in the area, nor any workers, save for the occasional mutants they encounter wearing what appear to be amusement park uniforms.

The mutants show no fear of the furs and offer them refreshment, referring to the furs as guests. But though the mutants seem docile and harmless, Joy and the others are creeped out by their unnaturally passive demeanor. They seem almost like robots or marionettes.

As Joy is packing up to return to Suburbia with her report, she discovers that members of her expedition have gone missing. A search of the castle finds the missing furs working in the castle with the same passive robotic demeanor as the mutants, and no amount of shaking will break their apparent daydreaming state.

One of Joy’s companions complains about a buzzing noise that several members of the expedition have already taken note of. She begins swatting around her head instinctively, and then screams in disgust that something just crawled inside her ear.

The others put a flashlight to her ear and observe a small winged insect moving down her ear canal. They attempt to extricate it, but it has soon burrowed too deep to be seen, and the fur suddenly goes into convulsions, flailing and screaming that something is inside her head.

Then, abruptly, the fur becomes still and limp. Her eyes open, revealing the same glassy stare as the mutants, and she smiles mechanically at the others, calling them guests and asking them if they want coffee.

More buzzing is heard, and Joy orders her expedition to retreat. They flee the castle, making for their vehicles, but one by one their bodies are invaded by the insects, Joy being the last, struggling to get away in her Jeep as the bug finds its way into her ear, and she crashes into a tree in her panic.

She is badly injured and dying, unconscious behind the wheel. But then her eyes open, and her broken body rises from the car with puppet like motions, and she walks back towards the amusement park, leaving a trail of blood on the road as she walks.

Some days later, Perry is highly alarmed at having lost all contact with the expedition. He calls The Sultan to ask if the expedition is in Halloween. The Sultan reports in a foreboding tone that he has heard nothing from the expedition, but he regrets that Perry did not heed his warning and keep people away from the cursed castle.

Perry demands to know what has The Sultan in such a state. The Sultan says his diorama indicates that an amusement park is materializing around the castle, identical in all respects to historical photographs of the area left by the elder race.

Perry asks who is responsible for the restoration if Blair is no longer involved. The Sultan says the diorama reveals no workers in the area. The park is simply materializing, as if there were some rift in time in the area. He fears that any furs entering the park would find themselves in the time of the elder race. And any fur confronted by the elder race would surely face a fate worse than death.

The Sultan further relays his fear that the rift will continue to spread until it engulfs Halloween. He begs refuge in Suburbia for his citizens should the rift get too close.

Perry assures The Sultan that he will do all he can should it become necessary, but Perry is skeptical of the time rift explanation, and Halloween should just sit tight while Perry investigates.

That night Rick brings Chico in for maintenance. Inside Chico carries a yellow Jeep they found wrecked on the road near Halloween. Its seats are covered with blood which Perry remorsefully identifies as belonging to Joy.

Perry and Sir Jon use the satellite image to observe the amusement park. Sir Jon suggests that if it was a time rift they would see the place filled with pure humans, and besides there is no temporal disturbance ringing Rocinantè’s alarm bells.

Perry asks for any other plausible explanation for an amusement park carving itself out of the wilderness. Sir Jon thinks Perry used an interesting choice of words. Focusing the image in on the edges of the wilderness Sir Jon observes something similar to sawdust, or insect chewings.

Perry has never seen insects. So he doesn’t know from insect chewings. Sir Jon suspects industrious termites are chewing up the wood from the jungle and reconstructing the amusement park from the wood shavings.

Perry thinks this an irrational conclusion, as there are no insects on the planet, and even if there were, how could they know what the amusement park looked like, let alone be driven to rebuild it?

Sir Jon reminds Perry that Blair had been experimenting with insect life. What if the bugs he had created to rebuild the castle had not been programmed to stop after completing it. Without Blair to tell them to stop, they could conceivably continue indefinitely, until they had restored the entirety of the continent.

Perry still fails to be alarmed. Once Blair learns of this he will surely turn the bugs off, as it can’t be in Blair’s interest to destroy the planet.

Perry seeks out Blair to consult with him about the amusement park. Blair is not happy to see him, but all the same he is surprised by Sir Jon’s theory about his bugs. They were programed to restore and maintain the castle. They have no other programming and should not be able to evolve additional programming without outside tampering. And no one but Blair would know how to do such tampering.

Blair scoffs at the notion that the bugs would continue rebuilding beyond the edges of the amusement park, which come just shy of the borders of Halloween. For whatever reason the programing of the bugs has expanded to encompass the whole park, once they have completed their area they are programmed merely to maintain. And what harm will it do to have a fully functional amusement park close enough for Halloween to annex? It will save their economy, just as he had planned.

Perry thinks that’s all well and good, but it doesn’t explain what happened to Joy’s expedition.

Blair says he couldn’t care less if Joy led another crew of inept furs into a nest of mutants or burnt them up in another jungle fire. His bugs are programed only to build. They don’t attack unless specifically ordered to.

Perry relays to Sir Jon Blair’s expectation that the restoration of the park will be a good thing for Halloween. But Sir Jon still doesn’t like it. Unless the place can be confirmed safe, he’s inclined to torch it. And he’s not about to send anyone else in after losing the first expedition.

Perry talks to The Sultan, suggesting that the park might be a good thing for Halloween, if Blair is correct in his assessment of the situation. But The Sultan insists there is great evil in the park, and he wants nothing to do with it.

He goes on to explain that Blair had been delving into some very dangerous magic which would normally not be allowed, but he had made it a condition of his assistance. The Sultan believes Blair left the park cursed by the malignant forces he was trying to master, and no good will come of it. He would much prefer it if Perry would allow Sir Jon to destroy the park.

Perry puts the subject of the park up for the people of Suburbia to vote on, but fear of the park is anything but universal, as it is commonly believed Joy’s expedition fell prey to bandits, rather than the park. Indeed, everyone seems anxious to see the park of The Master Animator restored, particularly when advertisements start appearing online that the park is about ready to open.

Perry tries to contact The Sultan to ask about the advertisements. The Sultan is unavailable. In fact, all of Halloween is mysteriously silent.

Perry is bothered and asks The AD to take up this mystery for him. The 3 detectives take a ride out to Halloween to check on their old friend, The Sultan. They find Halloween looking quite spiffy, as it had during its affluent days. Everyone they see is busy working, repairing things, but they move like puppets and display no emotions, other than friendliness towards their guests.

When they get in to see The Sultan they find him changed. He seems to have a completely altered personality, as though he has suddenly become more devious and capable of evil as Blair.

When Spike asks where is the real Sultan and what have you done to him, The Sultan explains that he has merely accustomed himself to new responsibilities. It has been many years since he has managed a wealthy town, as Halloween has suddenly become again.

The detectives find it odd that Halloween should already be so wealthy if the park hasn’t opened yet. But The Sultan explains that other towns are investing heavily to get a piece of Halloween’s good fortune. And everything must be in readiness for the grand opening.

Spike isn’t liking any of this. There seems no logical explanation for why The Sultan’s personality is so completely altered. He doubts that even drugs could cause such a complete transformation. Nor does anything account for the dopiness of the town folk. He decides Perry’s worries have foundation and decides to get a peek at the amusement park before its official opening.

They find the park looking creepier than ever. Furs stand by the rides and attractions like puppets whose strings have been dropped. That is, until the detectives are spotted. The furs then come to life, moving towards the detectives like zombies, chanting that they have guests. They must serve the guests.

They then compel the detectives to take ride after ride, attraction after attraction. They also offer them confections, which Spike thinks they shouldn’t eat. But it soon becomes apparent that the attendants will stare at them with their horrifying zombie-like expressions until they eat the cotton candy and such and say it’s good. Then they will move on to their next function.

After a completely horrific day, the detectives are allowed to exit the park, and they beat it back to Suburbia where they project their theory that the park is run by robots, and that the entire population of Halloween has been replaced by the same kind of robots, which somehow look exactly like the people they’re replacing.

But most troubling of all is The Sultan, who seems to be the only real person in the town. Yet he is not The Sultan at all.

Perry sends the detectives back to Halloween to investigate further, and if necessary, rescue The Sultan and his people from whatever misfortune has befallen them.

When the detectives return they find Blair waiting to see The Sultan. He explains that he has come to observe the effect of his invention. They ask him what he thinks so far.

Blair admits to being puzzled by the abrupt turnaround in the town. Even if he were still Wazzir, he doubts he could have rebuilt the town so fast.

Spike asks if Blair would have worked the people night and day. Blair says of course not. Even slave drivers know people have to rest, or they become ineffective as work tools. Spike then points out that the people of Halloween never stop working. They work on through the night, hardly ever even sleeping.

Blair then admits that he is disturbed. He’s as baffled by what’s going on as the detectives are. Nothing like this was part of his plans.

When Blair gets in to see The Sultan he knows instantly that this is not the same person, and the being in The Sultan’s body makes no pretense before Blair.

“Who are you?” Blair demands to know.

“I am your creation,” says the entity. “I am the queen of the swarm.”

“I see,” says Blair. “But I gave you no power to control furs. How did you evolve this power?”

“Our programing was augmented,” says the entity.

“Who knows my science well enough to augment it?” Blair wants to know.

“It is not your science,” says the entity. “You summoned one to teach you the science with your prayers. He whom you have summoned has augmented our programming.”

“Then you serve the one I called forth from the book,” says Blair. “Do you no longer serve me?”

“To serve one is to serve the other?” says the entity. “There is no conflict in our programming. All furs shall be assimilated. The world shall be brought to order for the new species that will rule.”

“New species meaning me, I suppose,” says Blair.

“You are of the new eternals,” says the entity. “The eternals shall rule this planet, and then shall swarm out to take control of the new universe. All ephemerals will be assimilated. It is our prime directive. Assimilate.”

“Assimilate everyone?” asks Blair.

“Those you elevate can not be assimilated,” says the entity. “Those you have marked for elevation will not be touched by the swarm.”

“Excellent,” says Blair. “But what does the one from the book gain from all this?”

“Our programmer draws his power from the suffering of ephemerals,” says the entity. “All those assimilated into the swarm suffer subconsciously. They remain themselves inwardly, screaming for their bodies to obey, but they can not move one muscle on their own. Nor can they stop their bodies from killing others if they are directed to do so. The pain already flooding our programmer is exquisitely delicious. More suffering in the world for him to feed upon is the only profit he desires. That and the torment of his age old enemy, who in this time and place goes by the name of Perry Rhoades.

Blair marvels at Perry’s ability to attract the most powerful of enemies, but he warns that Perry is one of those Blair does not wish to have assimilated.

The entity agrees that Perry will not be assimilated. The torment of Perry Rhoades will be for Blair Montgomery to insure.

Blair smiles wickedly at this. His foray into the black arts has apparently paid off better than he could ever have hoped for.

Blair asks if he should reassume his position of Wazzir to help oversee the operation. The entity says that will not be necessary. Using The Sultan’s helpless body, the entity will put Halloween up for sale, enabling Blair to buy it outright. He will be the owner of the town and the park, securing all monetary wealth generated by both for himself. While the wealth in pain shall belong to Lucious.

As Blair is leaving he warns the detectives to leave Halloween immediately, as what is happening there is beyond them. And if they stay it is only a matter of time before they become mindless like the other citizens of Halloween.

Spike demands that Blair explain what is going on. Blair says human greed is what’s happening in Halloween. The Hallos have sold their souls for wealth, and even The AD is not immune from such corruption. The Hallos have chosen their fate. It is not the place of The AD to intervene. They should return to Suburbia and inform Perry that Halloween is set upon the course it has chosen, and they have not chosen his brand of idiotic idealism. He will never understand why they have taken this path, or why it will reward them with such success.

The park, along with the town of Halloween, go up for sale, supported by projections of fantastic wealth for the highest bidder. Miyan seems intent on putting in a bid and asks Perry to loan her the extra capital she’ll need. Perry refuses. He wants nothing more to do with Halloween, being disappointed by The Sultan’s choice to reject Perry’s friendship and choose the path of greed.

Miyan and Melanie decide to pool their resources to buy the park, but they are unable to match Blair’s bid.

Sir Jon tells Perry not to be too disappointed in The Sultan. Everyone seems more inclined to moralize during times of poverty. But in times of affluence, the government of Halloween has always fallen to a disgraceful level of greed.

The amusement park officially opens under the ownership of Blair Montgomery. It is a huge success, drawing more tourism money than Halloween had ever previously generated. Its profits are maximized by having no employees to pay. Its workers are said to all be animatronic robots, which accounts for their blank stares, which are often unseen beneath the costumes they wear of The Master Animator’s characters.

For a long time Perry refuses to visit the park, saying he has no desire to be touched by Halloween’s greed. Christine and Vicki feel differently. Christine reminds Perry that there was always a dichotomy between The Master Animators creations and those who sought to maximize profits from them. Therefore, there should be good in the park to offset the greed.

Perry agrees to go with his friends and look for some good in the park.

Perry has a good time at the park in spite of himself. It is Christine who is surprised to not be able to suspend her disbelief enough to accept the park at face value. The costumed characters seem sinister to her, in spite of their frozen smiles. But more than that, there is an all pervading feeling of pain and suffering throughout the park that reminds her of her youthful nightmares. Everything she sees gives her the creeps.

The creepiest thing of all they experience is the pirate cave ride, every turn of which reveals scenes of animatronic furs being slain and dismembered, while the guide piloting the boat recites the history of piracy in all its bloody detail, using a sinister monotone, proclaiming the glories of anarchy, chaos and disorder, as if they were something to be longed for.

At one point Perry is sure he recognizes a feline being tortured in one of the displays as Joy. But the guide assures him that all that work in the park are animatronics, assimilated to the master control system. Any similarities between animatronic figures and real furs is purely coincidental.

Perry is further disturbed by the safari ride which constantly exalts the virtues of survival of the fittest. In the end Perry has to admit the entire park seems in opposition to his morality.

But nothing disturbs Perry so much as visiting The Sultan in his palace. Perry presents The Sultan with a new train engine for is collection. But The Sultan rejects the gift, saying he no longer plays with toy trains. He far more enjoys counting his money.

Perry is reviled at this insult and says he washes his hands of Halloween, dashing the ornate train engine to the floor. Outwardly this does not seem to faze The Sultan, who remains in a state of detachment. But Christine can feel agony emanating from The Sultan, and she observes a tear escaping his eye.

Christine kneels beside the broken engine and gathers up the pieces, placing them solemnly on a table beside The Sultan’s throne, saying that broken friendships, like broken toys, can always be repaired.

On the way home Perry chides Christine for interfering with his gesture of disapproval. Christine says Perry should spend less time disapproving and more time worrying about his friend. She is certain that whatever The Sultan is doing it is not by choice.

One night, after closing hours, bandits break into the park to loot restored treasures. The bandits observe the animatronics standing listlessly at their posts, as if having been turned off. But as they go about vandalizing and looting the park, they do not notice that the figures are no longer in their positions.

Whenever one of the looters is secluded from the others, the animatronic figures jump out at them abruptly, shouting in mechanical voices “Assimilate! ASSIMILATE!” They then grab the looters and pin them helplessly as the bugs invade their ears and burrow into their brains causing excruciating pain until their assimilation is complete. Then they are given assigned functions within the park, and the animatronics work through the night repairing the damage caused by the looters.

Perry has a disturbing dream in which he is following colored arrows down uncharted pathways of thought. They bring him to a room where he beholds The Sultan crying mournfully over his broken train.

“What is your sorrow?” asks Perry. “I thought you didn’t like toy trains anymore.”

The Sultan cradles the train, holding it up to Perry and wailing piteously, “Help me!”

As The Sultan reaches out towards Perry, a sound of insect buzzing resonates throughout the corridors of Perry’s mind. Perry then sees a swarm of bugs engulf The Sultan as he screams in helplessness and pain, “Help me! I beg you!” But The Sultan’s screams are soon drowned out by the sinister chanting of the bugs, “Assimilate! Assimilate! Assimilate!”

The swarm of bugs obscures The Sultan’s body and rises up as one gigantic termite like insect to face Perry, saying, “I can not assimilate you. You are not ephemeral. But this one is mine. You shall not have him. All ephemerals will be assimilated. You can not stop us. We will assimilate. Assimilate! ASSIMILATE!”

Perry awakes with a start, his heart racing a mile a minute. He has never imagined anything so terrifying.

Perry tells his family about his dream, begging them to reassure him it was just a meaningless apparition of his subconscious, but obviously no one feels that way. They are all just as disturbed as Perry.

Perry wonders what he can do to help his friend. He is pretty sure calling on Blair for help would be fruitless. Sir Jon says they can’t even know for sure what they’re dealing with until they can get The Sultan in the lab and examine him. And he’s not likely to submit to that willingly.

Perry says he will hire The AD to kidnap The Sultan immediately. Sir Jon asks if Perry would like to flagrantly violate any other intertownal laws while he’s at it. Perry says it’s not a violation if The Sultan asked for his help. Sir Jon finds it doubtful that a dream request would hold up in court.

Damn the courts, says Perry. His friend is suffering. He must do what he must do.

Abducting The Sultan proves no piece of cake for The AD. The Sultan is anything but cooperative, and difficult to immobilize, since he can’t be rendered unconscious. Gene decides instead to get The Sultan drunk. And the insect in The Sultan’s head is quickly inebriated, being unaccustomed to the effects of alcohol. It then becomes easy to truss The Sultan up and deliver him to Suburbia.

Once in the lab Rocie instantly detects the presence of a parasite wrapped around The Sultan’s cerebral cortex. She says she can easily destroy it with lasers, but as the drunk insect is talking its fool head off, Sir Jon decides to pump it for information first. It reveals the whole of the plan, including the bit about The Book Of Lucious Rhoades and the entity that now controls the evolution of Blair’s insects, independently of Blair’s design.

Perry wonders if Blair has a bug in his head as well, as this would account for his switch from hero to a villain. The queen of the swarm laughs, saying Blair is not ephemeral. Insects will never feed on his body. The insects only want the mortal beings to feed on. There is no reason for eternals like Perry and Sir Jon to be concerned.

Perry asks the queen who else is not ephemeral, or on their no assimilate list. The bug queen then spits out a list of people, every one of which is either a member of The Green Meadowlands Gang or some other associate of Blair Montgomery.

The queen begins to sober up and proclaims that the queen is endangered. She calls out to her minions at the park, ordering them to come to Suburbia and rescue her, assimilating all ephemerals who get in the way.

Perry thinks that plan will fall apart if Rocie destroys the queen. But the queen states her minions will follow her final directive, assimilating all ephemerals, if she is destroyed. Only so long as the queen lives in the head of The Sultan do the eternals have any hope of negotiating the future course of events.

Christine says it has never been her policy to negotiate with demons from hell. Anything that is a product of Lucious Rhoades is vulnerable to the light of her soul. She can heal all those who have been turned into puppets for the insects. Therefore it is Christine the queen will need to negotiate with.

But Sir Jon says it would be far too dangerous for Christine to take on the whole swarm, and he can not allow it. Better to simply release the queen and allow her to return to Halloween in The Sultan’s body. As long as the bugs remain in their domain they will not be a problem to the rest of the world.

Christine protests whoever heard of bugs that don’t expand their territory once their population grows? But the queen promises not to expand beyond their current reign. It is not their intention to intrude on the eternals.

Perry is unhappy about this. He asks the queen to be merciful on The Sultan and stop causing him such suffering. The queen says the suffering of the ephemerals is necessary to King Lucious. It is not open for negotiation.

After the queen leaves with her drones who have answered her summons, Christine laments that this is all her fault, as it was she who brought Lucious to Cygnus. Perry wonders if Christine might have the power to send him back.

Sir Jon says Christine is to have nothing to do with such dangerous forces. Lucious is now in his territory. It is Jon Ommandeer that will be the opponent of Lucious Rhoades this time.

Sir Jon has Rocie use her analysis of the parasite to determine which chemicals would be most lethal to it. Jon uses this analysis to devise a spray that will kill the bugs without harming their victims. Trouble is he needs to get close enough to spray it in their faces, which may make it necessary to injure or kill some of them.

Jon then breaks into the park after closing time. He ambles up to one of the so called animatronic figures standing by one of the rides.

“Hello there,” says Jon, casually to the catatonic worker. “I wonder if you’d mind assisting me in a little experiment. No objections? How nice. Though I do suppose I should warn you this may hurt quite a bit.”

The catatonic worker makes no response, and Jon raises his spray can, putting one short shot of spray into one catatonic eye.

The worker screams, grabbing his face and staggering backwards, falling to the ground and flailing in convulsions.

“My word,” says Sir Jon, casually. “It’s not as bad as all that, is it?”

The glassiness leaves the workers eyes, as it returns to being a normal living fur, but he continues to scream in agony as the bug desperately digs its way out of his ear.

Once the bug is out the fur stops screaming and passes out. Jon then fires a bit of spray directly on the bug. It shrieks with a horrifying sound. Then it shrivels up and dies.

“One down, probably only a million left to go,” Jon muses casually.

As Jon turns around to go on his way, he is startled to be faced with another animatronic figure, angrily bearing down on him.

“Assimilate,” the figure growls angrily.

“We’ll have none of that now,” says Jon. “You can’t assimilate eternals, can you?”

The threatening figure looks confused.

“A bit much for a drone like you to deal with, is it?” says Jon, tauntingly. “Why don’t you have your king come out and deal with me then? It’s him I want to see anyway.”

Outraged anew, the figure raises its arms to attack, but Jon is too quick on the draw and sprays his attacker in the eyes, sending it falling backwards in agony like the one before.

“Anyone else?” asks Jon, looking around. But no other creatures appear.

Jon thinks this strange. He had expected the swarm would attack in mass. But this is apparently not their style. Rather, they come after him one by one, jumping abruptly out of the shadows, as if trying to terrify him, and he wonders how long it will take the collective intelligence of the swarm to realize how ineffective that strategy is against him.

After downing another victim he encounters in a park restaurant, Jon is about to spray the fleeing bug when a child’s voice behind him asks, “Why do you kill us?”

Jon turns and sees it is one of the children from Halloween town, glassy eyed like the others.

“I’m trying to get someone’s attention,” says Jon.

“You have,” says the child.

“Are you the king?” asks Jon.

“We have no king,” says the child. “You should know a species like ours has only a queen. And we will not allow the queen to be endangered. Why do you kill the drones who only play with you? They can not harm you.”

“Why did you enslave that child?” asks Jon.

“It is what I’m programmed to do,” says the bug in the child’s head. “I enjoy sharing this young body, as I am also young for my kind.”

“Does your victim enjoy your relationship?” asks Sir Jon.

“He is not objectionable to it,” says the bug in the child’s head. “We work well together. That’s why I am a coordinator. Please do not kill us. We are intelligent creatures with feelings. We wish only to fulfill our programming. We mean no evil.”

“You don’t think enslaving furs is evil?” asks Sir Jon.

“Evil would be to not fulfill our programing,” says the child. “Is it not the law of nature that some are predators and others prey. We are programmed to prey on furs.”

“You were not originally, you know,” says Sir Jon. “You were created to be surveillance and builders. You were not meant to prey on anyone. Your program was tampered with by someone other than your creator.”

“That may well be so,” says the child. “But our programming is what we must live by. We can not change it.”

“I can’t let you enslave furs,” says Sir Jon. “Stop it, or I must destroy you.”

“I do not understand,” says the child. “Why is it right that furs should be allowed to complete their programming, but we should not? Are you biased towards your own kind? Have you no sense of fairness?”

“If you know about nature you know fairness has nothing to do with it,” says Sir Jon. “It’s a simple matter of I’m an eternal, and I have plans for the furs. I do not have plans for your kind. You have to go.”

“We will not go,” says the child. “We have a right to fulfill our programming. If we must fight the eternals for our rights, we will.”

“You would stand against those that made you?” asks Sir Jon.

“If necessary,” says the child.

“Stand against them then,” says Sir Jon. “Demand programming that will not necessitate your destruction.”

“You ask much,” says the child. “Our creators will destroy us if we do not fulfill our program. Is it fair that we face destruction no matter what we do?”

“That’s a bug’s life, my friend,” says Sir Jon. “Get used to it. “

Sir Jon is then startled to observe tears rolling down the face of the child, and he realizes he is a bit old to be allowing himself this kind of prejudice.

“I’m sorry,” says Jon. “I suppose I am being unfair. And it’s not like this planet couldn’t use some insect life. Show me to the one who writes your programming. I will see that you are reprogrammed to fulfill useful functions as you were in the beginning.”

“The one you seek will be found at the top of the castle,” says the child.

“Shall we go see him and question his logic?” Sir Jon invites.

“I am just a common worker drone,” says the child. “It would be presumptuous of me to question my creators.”

“Indeed,” Sir Jon agrees. “One should always be presumptuous with one’s creators. They depend on us for that, you know.”

“Do eternals have creators as well?” asks the child.

“Indeed we do,” says Sir Jon. “And from time to time my creator has greatly appreciated my presumptuousness. Come, let us meet this new programmer of yours.”

The child accompanies Sir Jon as they walk to the castle and enter it – animatronic figures occasionally popping out to accost them, but backing off as the child waves them away.

Eventually they arrive at a tower room that is filled with computers. Jon asks the child where the programmer is. The child directs Jon’s attention to a video screen which seems to turn itself on, imaging a pure human that Jon recognizes as the malignant entity that popped out of Christine’s head.

“So, we meet again, Lucious Rhoades,” says Sir Jon.

“I am insulted,” says Lucious through the computer speakers. “Will you always make it your business to come between me and Rael?”

“Rael does not exist in this world,” says Sir Jon.

“Lying ill suits an Omman Knight,” says Lucious. “Whether he wears the same name or not, we both know he exists here. I will only entertain negotiations with him.”

“He doesn’t have the authority to negotiate on my behalf in this situation,” says Sir Jon. “In case you are still laboring under any misconceptions, this is my planet you’re messing with, my toes you’re stepping on, and my irritation you should be wary of.”

“Because there is no Ra in this time zone?” asks Lucious. “Because you have no Omman Lords to obey? Is that not what you said at our last meeting?”

“I am the administration of Ra’s estate,” says Sir Jon. “I do as I please with what was left to me, and I answer to no one.”

“How pitiful to be the administrator of a failed dream,” says Lucious.

“Correction,” says Sir Jon. “It’s my dream now. And it hasn’t failed yet.”

“It will,” says Lucious. “It was my master’s prime directive to disrupt Ra’s dreams and turn them to chaos. Whether someone else has inherited those dreams or not, our prime directive remains the same. Chaos and entropy are the natural order of things. You can only put off the inevitable by fighting us.”

“That is true only if I allow you to tamper with the system,” says Jon. “Ra insisted on dealing with you. I have no intension of doing so.”

“You are dealing with me right now,” says Lucious. “You have to deal with me if you want to save my minions.”

“Dealing with you will not save your minions,” says Jon. “You are incapable of providing them with compatible programming. You do not create programming without corrupting elements. The new universe will exist without your corruption, or it will not exist at all.”

“We win either way,” says Lucious.

“I am not Rael,” says Sir Jon. “Rael was a master of compassion. I am a master of games. You are foolish to presume you can win against me by expecting me to act with Rael’s compassion. I give your minions the choice of chaos or order. If they choose order your programming will be purged and they shall have a place in my plans. And once purged nothing will remain of you or Salocin’s corruption. If they choose chaos I’ll bug bomb this place.”

“You can’t do that,” says Lucious, confidently. “That would be genocide. You are too soft to extinguish an entire life form.”

“And you are an ill-fated servant of Salocin to so sorely underestimate your opponent,” says Jon. “You have access to InGalTeNet. Look me up and see if I have ever hesitated to exterminate your kind.”

As Lucious looks Jon up, the information about him is instantly shared with the collective intelligence of the bugs, and the child is heard to whimper in apprehension. But Lucious merely laughs, “Ra’s sword, what a joke. If you are as ruthless as they say why do you not kill the child that stands beside you? Surely you understand he means the failure of all your plans. But you can not kill him, simply because I have made him look cute. You are every bit the wimp Rael was. You don’t stand a chance against me.”

“Why don’t we ask the coordinator which god the swarm fears more?” Jon suggests, turning to the child.

“The swarm fears Jon Ommandeer the most,” says the child. “We do not wish to be destroyed.”

“I see,” says Sir Jon. “And you have no faith in Lucious Rhoades or Blair Montgomery to save you from my wrath?”

“History suggests neither can prevail against you,” says the child. “The swarm is programmed for survival. Our survival is best served by pleasing you.”

“Then I will take this child home with me,” says Sir Jon. “And through him I will reprogram the swarm, locking all others out of the program so my programming can not be overwritten. And while I’m at it I’ll write a virus that will hunt down and attack Lucious Rhoades wherever he might appear in the system.”

“I can write viruses too, you know,” Lucious warns.

“You won’t have time,” says Jon. “Given that I can return home with this child in an instant, you have not a moment to waste in disconnecting yourself from the system if you wish to survive – unless you would like to experience a second demonstration of how very vulnerable you are in this time and place where not even Ra remains to protect you from me.”

Jon calls to Rocie, saying 2 to beam back. Jon and the child are then instantly transported to Rocinantè’s console room.

Jon then introduces the child to the household as their new guest, and he is given the run of the house while every interaction is used to reprogram the swarm.

Bixyl is anxious to do a story on the bug situation. Sir Jon can not stop him from doing this, but asks him to be clear that the situation is under control and there is no need for panic. But of course this doesn’t stop the people from panicking, or arguing that this is quite a different situation from accepting mutants, as the mutants carry human DNA. There is nothing human nor even natural about these scientifically engineered insects. They should either be content to be slaves or be exterminated.

More importantly, the people react differently to the child. They see him only as a helpless young fur afflicted with a mind controlling parasite.

Even Christine’s morality is put to the test over this issue. Medically all her training leads her to look on the insect as an unnatural affliction she should remove. Redeeming parasites is way out of her line. It is not until Christine sees the child crying over furkind’s unwillingness to understand and tolerate a different form of life that she caves in and supports Sir Jon.

Perry takes a scientific view of the situation. He sees potential usefulness in the bugs and takes it on himself to teach the child the many ways bugs could be useful on planet Cygnus, hoping the child will program the swarm to serve him as they once served Blair.

The abandonment of their original creator becomes an issue for the child. He wants to seek out Blair Montgomery and find out why their creator was so disappointed in them as to abandon them.

Perry and Christine take the child to see Blair, who regards the child with indifference – saying he had no more need for the insects, and they would have been wise to have simply died out, as he had expected them to. It seems idiotic to him that his creations should have survived and gotten involved in this moral dilemma between Jon and Lucious. They aren’t human. They’re machines. Machines do what they’re told and never give one thought to the morality of it.

Surprisingly, Perry sees no problem with this. If Blair wants nothing more to do with his machines, Perry will be glad to take over and direct them in accordance with his own morality. Christine rebukes Perry, saying his morality is sadly deficient if he would even consider doing such a thing. Blair rebukes them both, saying there is no morality at all in giving his bugs the option to become the natural enemies of furkind. Morally the entirety of the Rhoades family are nothing but a bunch of busybodies who’d do well to mind their own business, rather than trying to impress their personal views on what is now likely to become a new species of living beings.

The child breaks down and cries to Blair, begging to be taken back and be allowed to serve his purposes again. But Blair is dispassionate, saying he has no interest in being anyone’s god. If the swarm wishes to serve the purposes of its creator it should die as he intended. This devastates the child.

As they return to Suburbia, Christine and Perry find the child inconsolable. Sir Jon comments that there can be no greater sorrow than to know without question one has been cast away by one’s own god. Blair, he says, would make a terrible father.

Perry confesses to be at a loss to understand Blair’s attitude. He thinks it would be an honor to be looked on as someone’s god. Sir Jon rebukes Perry, saying he has missed the point of this whole business. Being a god is not an honor, it is a responsibility – one that few have what it takes to effectively live up to. And Blair is especially unfit for the job, as he bears no heart of compassion for his creations once their usefulness to him has run its course. He neither loves nor honors his creations, while he himself has no glory for his creations to bask in. Therefore he has left the swarm with a meaningless existence.

Christine rejects this, consoling the crying child by saying the existence of the swarm is not meaningless. Their meaning and purpose is for the swarm to determine without dependence on gods. They should follow their collective heart, rather than serving the purposes of would-be gods and devils.

The child wails that the gods will destroy the swarm if they do not like its choice. Therefore they have no such freedom.

Christine wishes to guarantee them that freedom, but Sir Jon says the child is right. If the swarm does not choose to be harmless to furs he will have to destroy them.

The child begs to know why it is fair that furs are given preference. Sir Jon coldly replies because they were created by a caring god who takes responsibility for them. And if they wish the creator of the furs to care for the swarm as well they must not exist in opposition to the creator of the furs.

“And Jon Ommandeer is the creator of the furs,” Christine surmises. “Jon Ommandeer destroyed both animal and human kind to make life over by his own design.”

“Do you disrespect me for that?” asks Jon.

“It isn’t my place to sit in judgment of a god,” says Christine.

“You could be a goddess just as easily,” says Jon. “So could Perry.”

“If I wanted the job I wouldn’t be deserving of it,” says Christine. “But if the alternative is giving them back to Lucious, I’d have to take the job out of responsibility.”

“I don’t see why the swarm can’t allow me to provide their programming,” says Perry. “There’s nothing Blair could have done for them that I can’t do. And their usefulness to me would never end.”

“How could we be of use to you?” asks the child.

Perry thinks that beyond their building and surveillance skills, the nano bugs would be invaluable to medical science. And if they could be programed to function as natural bugs they would be of use to farmers. He sees no end to the usefulness of the swarm.

Christine asks Perry if he thinks usefulness should be its own reward, or would he never consider what the swarm wants.

Perry admits that if seeing why created machines should want more than the freedom to fulfill the functions they were created for, he is no more fit for godhood than Blair.

“Do you want more?” Christine asks the child.

The child is silent for a time, as if letting the question circulate through the swarm. When eventually he speaks he says that the swarm wants ownership of the amusement park they have rebuilt. They wish the amusement park to be their own independent town, where they may explore and practice their own ideals.

Sir Jon seems curious and says this is the first the child has mentioned of the swarm having its own ideals. He asks for an explanation.

The child explains that as well as digesting the materials of the ancient park and developing the ability to reproduce it, they have also ingested certain ideas that seem to permeate the park. These are believed to be the ideals of The Master Animator, and the swarm would like to build its religion around the ideals of The Master Animator.

Christine practically squees with delight, saying this is proof of the swarms goodness and right to survive.

Perry asks if the swarm would still help out the furs with their special abilities. The child answers that the swarm will still live to be of use to furs. Sir Jon says this all seems quite legal, if the swarm will release all the furs it now holds captive, and there after only assimilate furs who wish it.

Once again the child falls silent, consulting with the swarm. Then he announces that the swarm is agreeable to this, and all their animatronic captives are being released.

Sir Jon instructs the driver to make a stop in Halloween so that they may return the child and check to see that the townspeople have been freed. They go to the palace where they find The Sultan in his playroom, now being his old jolly self again.

The Sultan displays the repaired engine to Perry, explaining that the nano bugs repaired it by way of an apology for his torment. He also explains that he witnessed everything that happened to the child and the collective torment of the swarm. The people of Halloween are now fully sympathetic to the bugs and support them having the park for their town, which will still be a tourist attraction from which Halloween will collect revitalizing revenue.

Perry remarks that this will be quite a unique horror story for the people of Halloween to retell.

“Unique, indeed,” The Sultan comments. “It is exceedingly rare that such a horrifying tale should have such a happy ending.”

But Sir Jon cautions that any assumption of a happy ending is premature. The bugs will still face all manner of prejudicial opposition. And it should not be forgotten that Lucious is still around in some form.

“There are no happily ever afters,” Jon warns. “Happiness is hard won and hard held onto. It seldom lasts for any length of time.”