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Tension Rises as Gormball Finals Approach
Candon County's Shadowflame Favored
Gormball Hero Shadowflame Favored For Cup
Shadow glanced at the newspaper headlines, grinning
widely.
"I'm favored for the Gormball Finals against
Jahbal from Lujen Grandpa!" she shouted into the living room.
She shook the papers once more and stood up from
the kitchen table. She walked into the next room to show them to Feines.
"Yes, I see you are," he told Shadow, adjusting
his eyeglasses. "Whassis? Hero they're calling you? Sure didn't say that when
ya started by crackey! 'National Disgrace to Gilden' they said."
Shadow nodded, "Didn't deserve to play in the
league according to them!"
"But then ya won the local tourney... And the
Island International... And that blasted grudge match against the runners-up
from both tournaments... Three-way-free-for-all my bones! They tried to beat
ya to a pulp!"
Shadow grinned at the memory. The runners up
from the two tournaments she'd played in had challenged her to a grudge match,
winner-take-all for the tournament titles. It was supposed to have been every
man for themselves, but instead they had both ganged up on Shadow, cheating
terribly. After what seemed more like a battle than a game, even in the Gilden
Gazette photographs, the two other pets were beat soundly and sent from the
stadium bombarded by Gormballs, the ball the game was mainly played with.
And now Shadow was to play in the World Finals!
Shadow grinned at Feines. Five years with him
had passed quickly. He had raised her as his daughter, though she never quite
felt he was her father. Feines' wife, Candy, had passed away when she was two.
The loss of 'Grandma' had been quite hard.
Grandpa, as she knew Feines, was all she had.
Feines glanced at the clock as they were discussing Shadow's Gormball history.
"AYE! We best be gettin' down to the stadium
if'n I'm gonna get good seats! Hour ta game an I'm bettin' that I kin still
get ma fav'rit seat!"
Shadow grinned, imitating Feines, "Aye, if'n
ya wants summat, ya gots ta get there early ta get it!"
"Young rip," muttered Feines as they headed for
the door.
There was an issue of Gilden Gazette in the
next room. Shadow paid little attention to it as she admired her latest trophy.
In the last five years, she had become the best Gormball player in Gilden, undefeated
since she had joined the game (you had to be undefeated to make it to the finals,
which she had won every year).
"Shadow, you need to see this!" Feines croaked
from the next room.
Shadow lead the team into the living room, where
the remains of Shadow's birthday cake sat on the table next to a new food called
'Pizza', something Shadow enjoyed very much. She took the newspaper from Feines
and began to read.
"A new continent has been discovered! The many
residents call the land 'Neopia' and seem friendly enough. But are they dangerous?
See page C11 for more."
"New Gormball opponents!" Shadow smiled, looking
light and happy.
"Not so!" Feines told Shadow, "They're dangerous.
The NewsWocky who wrote the article said that they're sending troops to steal
our beautiful orb! See for your yourself!"
Shadow's smiled faded instantly as she flipped
to page C11. The orb was what kept a normally desolate Gilden lush and green!
"They must really want the orb," she noted, "It's
a long hard boat trip, and they're clear on the other side of the planet if
the article is right!"
The article went on. One stretch of writing
caught Shadow's eye;
"The so-called 'Neopians' are apparently sending
troops to steal the orb. Our best intelligence points to a King 'Skarl' of 'Meridell'."
Shadow was shocked, and passed her friends, who
had been visiting, the pages and there was an uproar. Feines had to wave his
cane around haphazardly to get them to be quiet.
"There's a problem. Darigan isn't going to fight
these people alone! He's convinced Galahan that we need to form an army instead
of a peace group who could talk this over and resolve it nicely. That's not
our new king's ways!"
Galahan had stepped down from the throne a year
ago, leaving Darigan in possession of power. Rumours flew unhindered in bars
and public gatherings that the new king was once a Korbat, until he was struck
by lightning. Very few people still lived from the time that Darigan had first
arrived, however, and it was mostly myth.
For sinister reasons, Darigan had allowed Galahan
to stay as his right-hand man, without who's agreement, nothing was allowed.
It had to be complete unanimity between Darigan and Galahan or nothing would
happen.
Shadow wasn't listening, though she knew Feines
had been thinking about what he was saying; stuff about Darigan raising an army
and how he was going to try and stop them.
Her memories of the first five hours of birth
were coming back, how she'd been born marked as a hero- The Aura...
"Feines," she said suddenly, a thought striking
her, "we need to talk. Privately."
Her friends nodded and left. Opichi, a Fire Meerca,
shut the door.
"How did you hide me from Darigan all these years
even when I went public in the games of Gormball? What happened to my parents?"
Feines sighed, knowing that it would have had
to come to this at some point.
"How did you hide my Aura from Darigan, especially
after I went public with Gormball?" Shadow demanded the moment they were alone.
Feines explained about the certain paints being
able to cover the Aura and Chameleons. Then he explained with a great deal of
recalling from his memory about Darigan's visit and how he had used the Blue
Kiko Morphing Potion as Anti-Paint Solution to fool Darigan and pass Shadow
off as a Kiko. He'd been lucky.
Shadow asked about her parents.
Feines frowned. "Yer parents? I ain't seen 'em
since the day afore you was born."
Shadow cringed. Oh well. She looked up and grinned
menacingly.
"Right. We'd better get into hiding then, just
like you said!"
Feines gave her a surprised look.
"Ya fake the glazed look very well, kiddo!"
"Faked? No, I half paid attention."
"Tha's not fair! I thought I'd get to give ya'
a whippen fer not payin' 'tention!"
There was a knock at the door. Feines shot Shadow
a questioning look.
"Spectin' friends?" he asked worriedly.
"No..."
The knock thumped again.
"Get yer friends downstairs inta the basement!"
Feines told Shadow grimly. "Now!"
Opichi's voice rang out loud and clear, and time
seemed to freeze as she called through the door, "I'll get that!"
"NO!" Shadow screamed.
THUD! THUD! WHAM!!!
Opichi screamed as the front door imploded into
the kitchen, rattling the door into the living room where Shadow and Feines
were. There was a crash as Opichi, flung by the blast, struck the stove and
knocked a shelf down.
"Where's the brat?" came a familiar shout.
Darigan and Galahan!
The group of kids, having been told what to do
earlier by Feines, all dashed through the doorway that Feines held open, and
down into the basement. Shadow helped a blue Draik called Dracknord support
Opichi and they flew to the safety of the basement.
Shadow held her breath as the shouts rang out.
"You lied! That brat is still alive and now we've
got another world threatening the peace! FOR THE LAST TIME, GIVE US THE GIRL!"
"I'm going up," the Shadow Shoyru told Dracknord,
"They'll think you've run off."
Dracknord looked at a blue Wocky called Aseevin,
and then back to Shadow.
"They've got guards around the house Shadow.
We saw them as we ran downstairs."
"Oh..." Shadow moaned, "you guys prepare to fight.
This could get ugly. In fact, fight your way out and get out of here! The house
isn't going to stay standing if a battle comes!"
Without further words, Shadow flew up the stairs
with a lead pipe.
Darigan did double-takes as Shadow appeared in
the doorway, pipe held high.
"You two have caused enough trouble for Gilden
and now you want to war with people you've never seen. It sickens me to think
that you've destroyed innocent lives for the sake of yourselves!"
"I think it is time," Galahan menaced, his grin
fading and changing to a smirk, "that we find out if you scream as loud as your
daddy you brat!"
Shadow smiled grimly, "No, you'll scream louder!"
Galahan's temper snapped and he launched himself
at her, slapping Feines aside with a crushing hit. Shadow raised the pipe and
pulled it back suddenly, shooting out a fist instead. She was intent on making
him suffer for his treachery. The infuriated Jetsam fell back and roared in
pain. Shadow was everywhere at once, landing dozens of blows to make him pay
for it all.
Darigan grinned. It was all so easy. Maybe it
was time to eliminate that girl though. She'd caused him plenty of pain in the
last ten years. That vulnerable old man had believed that he'd bought his story!
The pieces for total control were coming together and it was almost funny. He
grimaced, striding down the stairs. Funny; except for HER.
Shadow hated the way that Galahan fought. He
was haphazard and slapped with his fins in an attempt to do damage. She picked
him up and heaved him into a wall, gliding across the ruined kitchen to tend
to Feines. He stirred, and her tear-streaked face lit up. He'd be fine!
Darigan enjoyed terrifying young children. They
babbled all sorts of comments and lies; sometimes very imaginative ones. Not
these ones though. One meditated silently and another one stared cold-eyed at
him until he was forced to turn his head. There was no fun here, no remarks
or speeches that he could write down and laugh about.
"Go if you wish," he growled resignedly. "Your
bravery speaks well of you."
They exchanged excited glances and, carrying
the one that Galahan had foolishly injured while making his ingenius entrance,
left. Now to tend to Shadowflame.
Shadow hid, in a cupboard with a knothole. This
stirred a memory in her and she shivered. She sensed clouds gathering outside
and smiled. It was time for payback.
Darigan walked into the kitchen, mirthlessly
stepping on the remains of a counter and crushing it under his foot. Shadow
watched as he surveyed the damage to the kitchen. A look of amazement crossed
the villain's face. Shards of a porcelain sink were scattered amongst the chunks
of shredded cupboards and smashed dishes.
Galahan certainly had done a number on the kitchen.
He lay imprinted in the wall in a familiar position which he had spent most
of the battle: flattened. He'd been thrown into every kitchen accessory invented
including the kitchen sink and showed it. Scratches marred his skin and clothing.
Shadow deemed the time right. She would never
see anyone again, this she was sure of. Parents, friends, family. Her destiny
was now. History was her's to write. The cupboard swung open...
To be continued...
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