A Blast Rocks VIMworld
The newly constructed courthouse was bustling with activity. The meeting hall was packed with VIMs from every part of VIMworld, and everyone was anxiously awaiting to hear what Philippe had to say. Outside, Philippe was scanning the horizon to see if anyone else was coming.
“Has Armstrong or Bone Maiden arrived?” he asked.
Hoppuia shook his head. “I have not accounted for either. Azi has yet to arrive as well. I will stay here to monitor the situation and will alert you if I see anyone else arriving.”
“Thanks,” said Philippe. “I’m just a bit worried about my friend, Armstrong. I hope he’s doing ok. I guess I better get inside and start the meeting.” Philippe took a deep breath and went back inside the courthouse.
Immediately, he was barraged with an endless stream of VIMs shouting questions. “Why now? Why not when we knew she was missing? Why save Magessica? Didn’t she attack us? Are we in danger?”
Philippe raised his hands to simmer down the crowd. Eventually, the noise settled down and he could speak. “First off, it wasn’t the real Magessica who attacked us. It was someone disguised as her.”
Garu stepped forward and addressed the crowd. “The true identity of the person who attacked us is an evil genius named Trixie.”
“You can call her Weasel Girl,” said Diego, as he took a bite of a big sloppy burrito that he was holding. “She hates that.”
Garu ignored him and continued on. “She is from the Cyber Dharmapala’s dimension and has been a thorn in our side for quite some time now. As you can see, she has been a formidable threat.”
Philippe stepped forward to continue. “After the battle of VIMworld, we were able to seal off the portals between dimensions and prevent her from returning. Now that everything is stable and we have some knowledge of how the portals work, it seems like it’s time to find out what happened to Magessica.”
“How will we know it’s the real Magessica?” asked Hachi?
“Shoot first and then ask her,” shouted Sheriff Mo.
“Let’s not be too hasty,” said Thor. “With my hammer, I can detect that which is authentic and that which is not.”
“You can’t be with all of us all the time,” said Philippe, “but that might come in handy down the road. The important thing is that we all need to be on our guard once we figure out where Magessica is.”
“Do we know where she is?” asked Erlang Shen. “I’m ready to go now!”
“Uh, we haven’t figured it out yet,” said Philippe. “That’s why we’re here to figure out a plan.”
“Perhaps studying the multiverse for unusual bends in the space time continuum and see if there’s repeats in multiple universes?” asked Hacky. “If there’s repeats in the same areas, that could indicate that a portal had passed through, which could lead us to where she might have been taken.”
“Uh, sure,” said Philippe. “You do that.”
Hacky smiled broadly and then closed his eyes and stopped moving.
Garu leaned over to Philippe and whispered, “can he actually do that?”
Philippe shrugged. “No clue what he even said.”
Suddenly, the door burst open and Hoppiua ran in. “I have spotted your friend, Armstrong and Bone Maiden. You better come quick, it looks like they might be fighting.”
Everyone poured out of the courthouse. On top of a hill in the distance, the crowd saw flashes of light and explosions. As the smoke cleared, the figures of Armstrong and Bone Maiden could be seen facing off with each other.
“Stand down, you two!” shouted Philippe, but they were too far to hear.
Everything was quiet for a few seconds, when instantly, Armstrong’s rocket pack lit up and fired a huge missile at Bone Maiden. A deafening explosion rocked VIMworld as everyone ducked for cover from the bits of rock landed all around them.
Slowly, everyone got back to their feet and surveyed the damage. All that was left was a smoking crater where Bone Maiden was standing, and Armstrong could be seen speeding off into the distance.
“No, it can’t be,” whispered Philippe sadly. “Armstrong wouldn’t do that.”
“Philippe, I am sorry for what has happened, but it is true” said Hoppiua sadly. “I’m afraid your friend just murdered Bone Maiden.”