World of Disney (featuring The Muppets)

[muppetwriter]

Chapter Thirty: Realm Zone – 1940​

The Mickey Mouse March continued to resound in Joanie’s ears, but it had played itself into a whistle as she began to regain consciousness. She was not certain how she lost consciousness in the first place. The last thing she remembered was stepping out of the Muppet Theater before everything went dark. Upon opening her eyes, Joanie discovered herself lying near what looked like a well, filled to the rim with gallons and gallons of water. Someone had dumped more water into the well at that moment and splashed some bits into Joanie’s face, awakening her much further.

Wiping the water off her face, Joanie looked across the well to see a very familiar character with two sets of iconic round ears; he barely noticed Joanie at all as he dumped two wooden buckets of water into the well and retreated indoors. As he left, Joanie seemed to have recognized who he was as she whispered, “Mickey?”

Joanie got to her feet and followed Mickey into a subterranean area that was dark, but partially lit by some strange activity that occurred in the center of the room. Stopping halfway into the room, Joanie watched along with Mickey, who stood a few feet away from her, as the sorcerer from Fantasia conjured up multi-colored smoke out of a skull. The bearded sorcerer brought the smoke eight feet above his head and sparkling, pointy blue hat with a crescent moon and a few stars decorated upon it. The hat appeared to have glowed while the sorcerer was working his magic, moving his hands in a repeated upward motion to create an image out of the colorful smoke.

The image that the sorcerer was creating had a mixture of gray, blue, purple, and lime green colors; it swirled and spun until it became something that Joanie instantly recognized: the Magic Gateway’s generator or Spaceship Earth as Sean referred it as. The detail on the image proved that it was the same geodesic sphere that was on Bunsen Honeydew’s blueprints. It seemed to Joanie that it was pure coincidence that the sorcerer conjured up an identical image of the sphere; however, the detail was too specific for it to be one. How does he know of the sphere, Joanie thought.

“I know everything that happens inside and outside of my world, young lady.” The sorcerer answered her unspoken question, alarming Joanie greatly. The cloudy image floating above the sorcerer’s head soon withdrew into the skull; once it had, the sorcerer brought his attention on Joanie, just as Mickey had at the moment he made her presence known. “I have been following your progress from the time that the worlds have shattered. Your interference in one had brought an unsettling end that cannot be removed.”

When she realized that he was making reference to what happened in Agrabah, Joanie lowered her head and said in shame, “I know…and I blame myself for it like crazy.”

“Don’t!” The sorcerer exclaimed in a powerful tone. “Do not blame yourself for something you had no power over…use it to channel a new power for something that will avenge the lives that were lost.”

Curiosity grew over Joanie as she asked the sorcerer, “What do you mean?”

The sorcerer turned his attention to the skull once again and conjured up another cloudy image that was of her former alter ego, Dawn; the sight of her spooked Joanie to the point that she was forced to turn away. Noting her fear, the sorcerer stated, “Never turn away from your past; it is the one thing that fuels your future.” Joanie mustered the courage to look at the image of Dawn again, tears streaming from her eyes. “You have gone through a remarkable metamorphosis upon your journey in this universe. Your time here has made you something that is on par with beings like me and my apprentice.”

“That’s me!” Mickey said with a happy chuckle.

“Yet you are unique in a great way.” The sorcerer gestured his hands to remove the image of Dawn, transfixing it into one of Joanie wearing the sorcerer’s signature hat. “You are now the link between our worlds. It shall be in your duty to maintain order and remove chaos.”

Joanie’s eyes lit up from the inspiring image that the sorcerer displayed for her, yet she was a little confused. “Wait. You mean…I’m some sort of enforcer?”

“It is a duty that requires complete focus, my dear.” The sorcerer stated. “Your mind must always be open to both the possible and impossible.”

The sorcerer’s words were like rhymes to Joanie, who tried desperately to keep up with all of which she was being told. “Are you saying that I’ll have to let go of the life I’m living outside of this one? No…that’s out of the question! I just found out today that I’m going to have four groovy kids – including a great son! And my mother…” She stopped and let out a deep sigh. “No, man…I can’t go through with it.”

Joanie turned away from the sorcerer and began to make her way out of the room; however, something strange occurred that prevented her from leaving. The young woman suddenly froze in place, and her eyes closed shut. The sorcerer had gestured his hands toward Joanie, causing the strange, sudden incident to occur. Mickey approached the frozen Joanie and gazed upon her face, wondering if she was aware of what was happening. All of the sudden, Joanie’s eyes snapped open, except they were not the normal blue that they always were; her eyes were completely white and glowing, displaying a very daunting image.

“W-What are you doing to her, M-Master Yen Sid?” Mickey inquired.

“I’m allowing her to understand what she must to save us all from Queen Grimhilde’s wrath. This girl is the one, true hope that we have…without her…we are all doomed.”

“Dimension B” Zone – 2011​

Bunsen Honeydew and Beaker stepped out of the lab just as Brandy, Michelle, Bella, Gina, and Joie crossed their path. Upon seeing them, Bunsen and Beaker were relieved that they were still in the real world. “Oh! Miss Brandy! Thank goodness you and our parallel universe friends are still here!”

“Are you alright, Bunsen?” Michelle asked in great concern.

“Never mind Lemon-Head and Carrot Top.” Gina harshly said. “When are we getting out of here? We’ve still gotta find our brother.”

Listening to the impatient Gina, Bella started to become a little frustrated; her heart was glowing red as a result. “You know, I’ve just about had it with your rudeness. You think your brother is the only one who is missing? Our brother is missing as well, so I believe you should show a little respect to those around you.”

Gina’s eyes had turned red as she glared upon Bella. “Joie, hold me back, girl…because I’m about to deliver a beat-down on E.T. here.” Gina advanced on Bella, who flinched and let out a petrified squeal, resorting back to her timid nature.

“Knock it off!!” Brandy yelled, growing annoyed with the bickering. “We have more important things going on like finding Joanie and Sean!”

Upon hearing Brandy, Bunsen questioned, “They’re missing? Where did they go?”

“Joanie vanished without a trace and Sean wandered off to another version of Anaheim, California that your machine transported us to, Bunsen.” Brandy sounded slightly frustrated with the Muppet while delivering the last part of her information.

Shock registered on the faces of Bunsen and Beaker. “My machine did that?!” Beaker meeped a question to his boss, and Bunsen responded, “Yes, it is indeed a massive breakthrough, Beaker. The earlier incident must’ve triggered a ‘reverse switch’ in the machine’s functionality that resulted in doing the opposite of what it normally does. Rather than transporting us to a parallel Disney universe, it was transported us to a universe parallel to the real world!”

“Yeah, not a big surprise to me, considering such technology exists in the future that I come from.” Brandy’s tone signified just how unimpressed she was with the discovery.

Observing the discussion, Michelle interjected and asked, “Well, Brandy, wouldn’t that technology of yours be impossible if it weren’t for what’s happened here and now?”

Michelle’s hypothesis intrigued Brandy, who stopped for a moment and thought of the possibility. Her thoughts were soon interrupted as soon as the sound of wood snapping overhead caught everyone’s attention; as they looked up to it, something suddenly fell and landed hard near them. It was soon revealed to be Buzz Lightyear who had crashed to the floor; his wings were heavily damaged, as was his helmet, which had a large crack in it. Seeing the damaged space ranger, the eyes of those who stood near him grew wide with a mixture of surprise and bewilderment.

“Buzz!” Bella exclaimed as she and Michelle went to the space ranger’s aid. “Are you alright?”

Beneath the cracked helmet, Buzz appeared a little dazed, but he was seemingly unharmed. “Buzz? Who’s Buzz? My name’s Mrs. Nesbit!” His eyes were slightly crossed, and his head was spinning around.

“Yeah, that dude is toe up.” Joie observed.

“What did this to him?” Brandy wondered aloud.

“It was the Evil Queen.”

A small voice spoke from behind the group, and all heads turned to see Robin emerging from a clothing rack, which he hid in since escaping from Grimhilde. The tiny frog appeared visibly scared, his small form quivering. “She made his suit backfire on him.”

“Robin, are you alright?” Brandy asked.

“I guess so.” Robin answered. “I-Is the Evil Queen gone? She’s not still around here is she?”

“No, sweetie, it’s just us now.” Brandy assured. “There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

Robin swallowed hard and said, “Yes…there is. As long as she’s around and inhabiting Tracy’s body, we’ll never be safe.”

Seeing the fear on Robin’s face made Brandy more frustrated than she had already been and placed a great deal of resolve over her. She turned her attention to Bunsen and said, “My computer detected a large machine beneath the theater – that’s the Magic Gateway’s generator?”

Bunsen nodded. “Yes, it houses the second gateway mechanism.”

“Then that’s what we’ll use to fix all of this once and for all. We’re getting our friends and family back, and we’re getting Buzz, Beast, and Her Majesty back in their proper dimensions as well.” Brandy boldly declared.

“It’ll be impossible to reach the generator now that we’re in a different dimension, Miss Brandy.” Bunsen indicated. “The only access to it was a system built by the DHARMA Initiative; unfortunately, it does not exist here in this universe.”

“My wristband enables me to teleport between dimensions, remember?” Brandy clarified. “All I need is to reprogram it to teleport between dimensions within the same space and time, and I’ll be within the boundaries of the generator in no time.”

Bunsen nodded in agreement with her plan, but he was still worried about one issue. “What about Beaker and me? You will be able to teleport there, but we are still stuck here.”

“You two aren’t coming with me.”

Beaker meeped in a rather angry tone, which Bunsen acknowledged in the same manner. “I agree, Beaker. I must object to your idea of going alone in a machine that we designed, Miss Brandy.”

“I’ve studied your machine for years, Bunsen. It is how I’ve come to develop the technology I have that matches with it.” Brandy indicated her wristband device as evidence to back up her claim. “Although it is considered a marvelous relic from where I come from, I consider it a curse to humanity. As soon as I have solved all of the problems it has caused, I’m going to destroy it for good.”

Before Bunsen or Beaker could have a say on her decision, Brandy activated her wristband and instantly vanished from the eyes of everyone in the room. Watching her departure, the Muppet scientists felt very uneasy with what she had declared. The nervousness was clear on their faces, and Joie decided to make light of the situation by jokingly asking them, “Dude…you think she was serious?”

END OF CHAPTER THIRTY
​

 

[GonzoLover85]

Doesn't that create a temporal paradox if she destroys Bunsen's machine, because then she wouldn't have had his technology to study therefore couldn't have made her wristband device therefore couldn't have come back from the future to help them which therefore couldn't destroy his machine, so she'd therefore have had the machine to study in the future so she could create her wristband and come back from the future to hel...... Oh no, I've gone cross-eyed.

 

[The Count]

"Destroy that infernal machine." Famous last words Brandy... Doc Brown said the same thing about the DeLorean and they never destroyed that, heck, they ended up building an even awesomer time-traveling steam train locomotive from the wreckage at the bottom of Clayton Ravine. No, I don't mean Shonash Ravine, remember, after hijacking that locomotive everyone would have thought the blacksmith and his lady love—along with Mr. Eastwood—died in the glorious crash therefore making it so that it was indeed named Clayton Ravine by 1988 (the true/reel 1988).

That said, I'm rully intrigued with Joanie's new development. Hope we get more soon.
BTW: The posting limit's been lifted, so feel free to post away with more story.

 

[GonzoLover85]

I think you meant Eastwood Ravine.
It was named thusly after Mr. Eastwood aka Marty met his assumed glorious demise at the bottom of said ravine after highjacking the aforementioned locomotive.

 

[The Count]

Was it named Eastwood Ravine once they coasted across the abandoned train tracks over the yawning casm upon getting the DeLorean up to 88 MPH?
If that was revealed in a subsequent map, I apologize... That would have been a visual reference on the Hilldale maps of the time, and as you know, I don't do well with visual references (blind batty eyes and all), I'm just going off of the story related by Mr. Eastwood who remembered why it was named Clayton Ravine back in the original 1988 he came from.

 

[muppetwriter]

Haha! You guys are speaking my language - I love Back to the Future (it's one of the inspirations for "World of Disney")...

The paradox issue with Brandy's approach in destroying Bunsen's machine will be explained before the end (which we're getting very close to), I promise.

Now, for the BTTF3 reference, the ravine was originally called Shonash Ravine in 1885 before Clara Clayton fell down it, and it was named Clayton Ravine in her honor. However, when Doc and Marty traveled back to 1885 and saved Clara from falling into the ravine, it remained unnamed until Marty and Doc hijacked the train to go back to 1985, which resulted in the train crashing after the DeLorean disappeared. The fact that Marty hijacked the train with Doc might have resulted in the ravine being named "Eastwood Ravine," since the people of 1885 Hill Valley must have believed he died in that crash (a fact not explained in the movie, but just basic fan speculation).

Really glad the limit has been lifted - that gives me some hope for "The Muppets Take Jurassic Park" this fall!

 

[muppetwriter]

Chapter Thirty-One: “Dimension B” Zone – 2011​

The immense geodesic sphere practically shadowed over most of the attractions in the Tomorrowland area, including Buzz Lightyear’s Astro Blasters and Star Tours. Staring up at its towering structure, Sean got a sense of déjà vu; he was so used to seeing it up close in the Epcot theme park in Walt Disney World, standing so tall and shiny in the midst of nothing but a garden of beautiful flowers and well-structured hedges. Sean could not deny that there was also a sense of oddity in what he was seeing: a Disney World attraction in Disneyland, only much different from the one that Sean was familiar where he came from. There was not enough time to process its origins as the women Sean was with at the time seemed highly anxious to check it out.

“This ride is twenty-nine years in the making…literally!” Feather stated. “Rumor has it that Disney Imagineers kept it hidden within a secret warehouse somewhere far out in the Mojave Desert to prep it for its imminent debut next month.”

“Why did they keep it hidden for that long? And in a Mojave Desert warehouse of all places?” Aubrie questioned.

Feather shrugged. “Who knows?”

“And who cares?” Danny snapped. “I just wanna see this thing in action! To think, we can finally go into the cartoons that we all grew up watching as kids – Beauty and the Beast, Pinocchio, The Fox and the Hound, Cinderella…the list could go on and on!”

Whereas the three blondes were beyond ecstatic, Sean appeared very hopeful; the machine could be his only access back into the world of Disney, finding out where his sisters might have gone. As he approached the front of the attraction (which looked much like the Spaceship Earth attraction from his reality) with Feather, Danny, and Aubrie, the four soon discovered that people were walking away from it rather than into it. Observing the scene, Aubrie asked, “Um…what’s going on?”

Feather quickly spotted one of the cast members for the attraction and forwarded Aubrie’s question over to him. The cast member responded, “The ride’s been shut down for the moment, due to technical difficulties.”

Needless to say, Danny did not take the news lightly. “What?! You’ve gotta be kidding me, man! You had twenty-nine years to do test runs with this thing, and you’re already havin’ technical difficulties?!”

“What kind of technical difficulties are they having?” Aubrie inquired.

“I don’t know.” The cast member replied. “Something about the machine shutting us out from the ‘Disney Worlds’ or whatever. Look, folks, I’m just as confused as you are about this thing. I don’t know how it works.”

“No, but you do know how to put on a good poker face, Lady Gaga.” Danny retorted.

Her comment stemmed an argument between her and the cast member that Feather and Aubrie were quickly forced to break up. Sean just looked on the incident with amusement, seeing just how much of a loose cannon Danny was. I feel a little sorry my counterpart to have to deal with her on a bad day, Sean thought to himself. It was only then that he realized the perfect opportunity standing out in front of him while Danny created the scene between her and the cast member: he could walk right into the attraction undetected. If there was one thing that Danny was not overacting on, it was the notion that the ride was suffering any “technical difficulties.”

Not hesitating whatsoever, Sean moved into the loading area of the attraction without being seen by anyone, including other cast members. As he passed through the area, he spotted one noticeable difference: the mural that represented the ages of science and technology had been replaced with one of the “D” in Walt Disney’s signature that was animated to look like galaxy. Sean found the new mural to be original and creative; it was a perfect representation of the universe that Bunsen Honeydew’s machine had created, if not an actual model of it from the outside. Continuing on his path, Sean expected to have entered a loading area that was just the same as the one from the ride that he knew; however, he soon discovered something vastly different…

Expecting to have entered a room with Omnimover vehicles passing through with cast members either waiting to guide riders into them or standing near a control panel, Sean walked into a large, circular room with five enormous steel doors at all sides, one of which was the entrance that Sean walked through. The room was chrome-plated with only the doors serving any type of décor with their teal colors. Beside each door were scanners reserved for palms, which presented a challenge to Sean since he did not have the proper DNA access for them. Hoping for the best, he approached the door directly across from the one he entered through and pressed his palm against the scanner. A beam of light from the scanner went down from the tip of his fingers to the bottom of his palm, detecting every portion of his hand.

Much to Sean’s surprise, the door slid open, granting him access to whatever laid beyond it. Cautiously, Sean walked through the opened door and entered a gigantic area that literally sparked with energy. It was shaped in the same manner of the sphere it was contained in; its walls followed with the exterior structure. In the very center of the room was a large mechanism consisted of a glass cylinder that contained a glowing, spinning, and floating mini version of the geodesic sphere he was in with the exception of it being orange. It did not take much to figure that the mechanism was in actuality the sphere’s core generator – the true power source of Bunsen Honeydew’s Magic Gateway machine.

It was science that Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Stephen Hawking, and many other scientists could never have imagined to happen, yet somehow Bunsen Honeydew managed to create it. Sean approached the mechanism, traversing across a walkway that led straight to the control panel for it. At the moment he arrived upon the panel, something very strange occurred: the sphere glowed brighter than it already was, almost blinding Sean, and a deep, electronic voice sounded from seemingly out of nowhere. It carried throughout the entire room, making everything from the control panel to the walkway vibrate under its booming tone.

“Welcome, Sean Thomas.” The voice said. “We have estimated your arrival for some time. Your settings are exactly as you have left them in the time zone of 2037. All that is required is your chosen realm time, and you shall return within the world of Disney.”

Listening to the voice, Sean was surprised and confused that it knew him by name more so than he was over the fact that the machine was referring to the same year from which his future daughter came from. It made him wonder just what type of man he would become in twenty-seven years to be involved with such a complex form of machinery. Wherever (or whenever) it came from was question that he did not have the time or intelligence to ponder; he needed to find his sisters and, if possible, Joanie as well. The only problem was that Sean did not know where or when to start.

Any “realm time” could have been a good start, but the one that came to mind for Sean at the moment was the one that had been stuck on his mind since he had gotten involved with this machine. Without a second thought, he said to the machine, “Realm Zone…1937.”

As soon as he input his chosen destination, the mini-sphere within the glass cylinder spun more rapidly until it was practically a blur; its glow intensified until the entire room was consumed with white light. Once the transaction was complete, the glow dispersed and the mini-sphere slowed down to its normal orbit. Everything in the room was exactly the same as before with the only difference being that Sean was no longer inside of it. The door leading inside the core room of the geodesic sphere closed shut, preventing any one else from entering.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
​

Within an entirely different sphere at an entirely different location, Brandy had materialized upon the walkway leading to the generator, courtesy of her special wristband. The machine did not react to her presence and continued function as it normally did, allowing Brandy to approach the control panel without any interference. None of what she was seeing in the core room impressed her at all; she mostly kept her focus on the task at hand, which was operating the machine to bring her aunts, her grandmother, and her great-grandmother back to their respective times. Brandy figured the situation between Tracy and Queen Grimhilde could have been easily taken care of with her technology, not Bunsen’s.

Brandy did not waste any time in approaching the control panel in front of the generator. Just as her hand got near it, she suddenly found herself unable to move her fingers anywhere over the buttons and switches. Her body had become very stiff as if all of her joints were locked in place, making him impossible to even twitch her eye. She then unexpectedly dropped to the hard, chrome floor and was pinned down to it by an undetectable source.

Of course, the source soon revealed itself once Queen Grimhilde – still inhibiting the form of Tracy Belcher – walked right into Brandy’s view from her left side; she stood over her with a devilish grin that brought an uncharacteristic sinister effect over Tracy’s appearance. Brandy was on the verge of questioning how the Evil Queen come to arrive within the underground complex until Grimhilde appeared to have read the young woman’s mind and said, “You’re not the only one who has the power to see what goes on beyond the layers, my dear.”

END OF CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
​

 

[muppetwriter]

Chapter Thirty-Two: Realm Zone – 1937​

Diana stared upon the group of characters that had landed within the boundaries of the chamber; some of them were familiar to her while others were less so. Each of the characters slowly began to rise to their feet, and Diana provided some help for one of them. Unbeknownst to Diana, it was one of her future granddaughters who she helped up – a very young redhead with a strong personality and went by the name of Meagan. Even as Diana helped Meagan to her feet, the young woman displayed her feisty attitude before her.

“Whatever happened to the days when people would say ‘Excuse me’ before sending them into a parallel universe?” Meagan dusted herself off before turning to the woman who helped her up and showing some sincere gratitude. “Thank you for…” As soon as she looked at her face, she stopped and stared with her mouth opened wide in surprise. “Oh, my…”

Soon the others were staring along with her, all of their eyes locked on Diana, who felt a little awkward. Tracy walked into the scene and stood beside Diana, smiling over all of the surprised stares that her long-lost aunt was getting from the group. “So this is what it’s like when you’ve been missing for thirty-four years,” Diana uttered to Tracy. “The strangest part is that it only feels like thirty-four minutes.”

Tracy chuckled as she introduced Diana to Kimberly, Meagan, and Ciciley. “Aunt Dye, these are your granddaughters…Joanie’s daughters.” She watched as Diana stood overwhelmed from seeing the young women before her, who were looking back at her in the same manner. Diana felt like a comatose patient who just woke up and started catching up on a world that had completely passed her by.

There was a peaceful moment of silence between Diana and her future granddaughters; all of them lost in thought. The moment was soon broken once Fozzie approached Diana with Gonzo, Scooter, and Kermit and exclaimed, “Diana! We’re so glad that we finally found you!”

“Joanie’s been worried sick about you.” Scooter added.

“Are you okay?” Gonzo asked. “Do you need us to get anything for you? Like a peanut butter and sardine sandwich or something?”

Kermit awkwardly looked to Gonzo. “Uh, Gonzo? In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not exactly in the right setting to get a peanut butter and sardine sandwich…not that there’s ever a right setting to get one.”

Diana laughed over the courtesy of her Muppet friends, raising her hands in protest. “Guys, I’m good. I’m just…” She looked back over to her granddaughters, who continued to stare with much awe. “How long have you all been looking for me?”

“Well, considerin’ da fact dat we’ve been travelin’ through time and space lately, it’s kinda hard ta tell.” Rizzo answered.

Rizzo’s answer reminded Diana of the story that Tracy recently shared with her; she was so awestruck by what just transpired that she had forgotten. “Oh, right. Well…what now?”

“How ‘bout findin’ a way outta here?” Clifford suggested. “Don’t know about ya’ll, but this place is givin’ me the creeps.”

“Without Bunsen knowing where we are, there’s no way we can get out of here the same way we came in.” Scooter indicated.

“We’ve got bigger problems, guys.” Ciciley stated while looking out of the only window within the Queen’s private chamber. “Does this sight look familiar to anyone?”

Everyone gathered with Ciciley near the window to see how the bright, sunny day had been eclipsed by dark gray clouds that had shrouded the skies; fiery explosions erupted from inside each one. It was the same unnatural storm that followed the destruction of the Aladdin realm – something that Ciciley, Kermit, Fozzie, Scooter, Gonzo, Bobo, and Bean bore witness to before. Upon seeing the unearthly sight, the Queen’s guard muttered, “Good heavens.”

“More like bad heavens there, buddy.” Bobo corrected the guard.

“Ya wanna share with us what dis means?” Rizzo requested.

“Remember what we told you all just after coming back to the real world from the Aladdin world?” Ciciley inquired. “The world literally came apart around us because there were so many of us there, just like there are so many of us here.”

Thinking back to earlier in the Muppet Theater, Scooter reminded himself along with the group, “Brandy said that if too many subjects from the real world were within one of these Disney worlds, then the world itself would collapse and cease to exist…the same way that last one did.”

BOOM! BOOM!

A couple of tremors suddenly emerged, shaking the entire room so much that grime streamed down from the ceiling and landed over Rizzo’s face. Spitting the grime out (just as he did back at the Theater), Rizzo yelled, “Why does dat keep happenin’ to me?!”

“The reaction’s already starting.” Kermit indicated. “It won’t be long before we start going through the same incident as before…only this time there’s no escape from it.”

Fozzie nervously nibbled on his fingers before he moved them away and said, “There’s got to be some way out of this, Kermit. We can’t just stay here and wait for things to get worse!”

As the others were mulling over a way out of their situation, Tracy spotted Queen Grimhilde’s book of spells on a nearby podium; she left it open, possibly having little time to close it when transferring her subconscious within Tracy’s body in the real world. Tracy approached the book with hope in finding a solution to the group’s dilemma; what she found was a book filled with text that she could barely comprehend. The book contained spells written in a dead language that Tracy could barely recognize; however, they were titled in plain English. Tracy found one spell listed under “Transference,” which was where she guessed the Evil Queen got her one spell from. There were at least five different spells listed in the section, leaving Tracy with hardly much choice.

Diana soon spotted Tracy with the book and asked, “Whatcha got going there, Trace?”

Turning to her aunt, Tracy looked to her and the others with a hopeful look upon her (the Queen’s) face. “I’m not sure, but…I think it’s the answer to our problem. One of the spells here is the same one the Queen used to switch places with me. Maybe another spell can take me back to the real world, so I can find a way to get you all out of here – perhaps even get my old self back, too.”

“Well, go on with ya bad self.” Clifford encouraged.

“Yeah, get it over with while there’s still time to save our butts.” Meagan added to her.

Tracy was about to recite the spell that she found in the book until the guard stepped forward and said, “Wait! If you are returning to your world, you’ll want to wear this.” The guard handed a dark cloak over to Tracy, who accepted it with a hint of confusion. “It is the Queen’s. I believe it will serve some use if you are returning to the world she had banished you from.

Diana nodded in approval for the guard’s idea with the cloak. “Good idea. If she’s still there in the Theater, I’m sure she won’t be too happy with seeing her own face again.”

Once Tracy was in agreement with the idea also, she placed the cloak over herself; it instantly obscured the face of Queen Grimhilde, making it difficult to see who she was. As soon as the disguise was in place, Tracy commenced in reciting the spell that she found in the book. After the spell was recited, the form of Tracy/Grimhilde became translucent, which she found to be very alarming at first. The others could see right through her body up until the point where she was no longer in the room with them.

Time Zone – 1977 (Before Temporal Displacement)​

Tracy found herself standing in the back alley of the Muppet Theater; the stage door was not very far from where she stood near a collection of garbage cans. Joanie’s brown Lincoln Versailles was parked just across from her, looking as brand new as it did when she bought it…thirty-four years ago. The sight of the vehicle was enough of a clue for Tracy to discover that she did not transfer back to the real world of 2011 subsequent to everything that she and everyone else had been through, but rather the real world of 1977 prior to the events. The help that she was hoping to get or any chance of finding Queen Grimhilde and her true form was not coming, leaving the spell completely wasted.

Suddenly, she heard the stage door open; her eyes were directed to it just as Joanie and Robin came out into the alley and approached the parked Lincoln. Neither Joanie nor Robin seemed to have known that Tracy was standing there until Robin, after hopping into the Lincoln, pointed to where she was standing and asked, “Hey, Joanie, who’s that?”

Joanie followed his gaze and spotted Tracy where she stood, which greatly alarmed her. The plan was not to find any help from the past; that only seemed pointless to Tracy. Ironically, just as that notion came to mind, Joanie asked her, “May I help you?”

Tracy wanted to tell Joanie there and then all that was going to happen to her – from her mother going missing for thirty-four years to having the rare pleasure to seeing her future children, all thanks to Bunsen Honeydew’s unique machine. It was an opportunity that was just as open as when Tracy encountered her aunt moments ago in the Snow White realm, but it would be more difficult convincing Joanie of who she was before any of the events that they had been through together happened. As these thoughts ran through Tracy’s mind, it became clear what the only thing she could tell Joanie at that time could have been…the only hint of advice that she would recognize and take with her. Rather than stating it in plain English (speaking with a voice that Joanie would be unfamiliar to her), Tracy decided to take the same approach that Diana took: speaking in Swahili.

“Huwezi kuzuia kwepeka.”

The spellbound look on Joanie’s face told Tracy just how great of an effect what she said to her left. Joanie continued staring her way and barely heard Robin as he asked, “What did she say?”

BOOM!

Tracy nearly jumped as she felt the immense tremor that came simultaneously with the loud noise emitting from inside the Muppet Theater. Robin and Joanie’s attention quickly went away from Tracy and on the stage door, which had hints of smoke seeping through it. Tracy was not sure what the explosion was, but she figured that it had something to do with Bunsen’s machine. It was a sign to her that it was not too late to change things for the better. Tracy opened her mouth to shout to Joanie, but transference occurred before she could utter even a syllable.

Realm Zone – 1937​

“Joanie! Don’t go in there!!”

Tracy’s warning came out just as she unexpectedly reappeared in the Queen’s private chamber; she was no longer shouting to Joanie, but to Diana and the others instead. The transference occurred without her consent, leaving her to deduce that the spell was only temporary, much to her dismay. The others looked on in confusion and great hope seeing Tracy back in the room. Breaking the awkward silence that had come over the room upon her return, Kermit uttered, “You’re back already?!”

Tracy could not believe she was back in the chamber either. “How long was I gone?”

“Well, you vanished right in front of us for one second and then reappeared on the next.” Bean informed.

“You shouted for Joanie not to go anywhere.” Diana pointed out. “Where was she going?”

A distraught look appeared on the Queen’s face as Tracy responded, “I don’t know. It wasn’t the same place where we left before coming here. It was 1977 again…I was in the alley behind the Theater, and Joanie and Robin were about to leave somewhere in Joanie’s car. They saw me there, and I…”

Picking up on Tracy’s description, Diana came to a realization. “Wait! Was there an explosion while you were there?”

“Something exploded in the Theater, yeah.”

A hand went to Diana’s forehead while an overwhelmed look was masked across her face. She then revealed to everyone where exactly Tracy had gone. “You went to the night that Bunsen’s machine first went active.”

Kermit, Scooter, Gonzo, and Fozzie were all just as overwhelmed as Diana.

“You mean…she was transferred into the past?!” Scooter exclaimed.

Diana nodded. “I remember hearing and even feeling the explosion while I was putting you to bed after the trip you and Joanie took to Africa, Scooter. Joanie and Robin wandered into the machine shortly after Bunsen and Beaker used it, and they disappeared to one of the Disney worlds. I remember going nuts when I found out my daughter was lost in a parallel universe, but we thankfully got her back.”

Kimberly, Ciciley, Meagan, Rizzo, Pepe, Bean, Clifford, and Bobo were listening in, but only Rizzo appeared to have understood what Tracy’s journey into the past could have meant for their current situation. “Well, didn’t ya do anything or tell her anything ta help us outta dis?”

“I tried, but the spell brought me back here before I could’ve told her not to get involved.” Tracy said in disappointment. “I’m sorry.”

Her apology did not seem to bring any peace over Rizzo as the rat yelled, “Well, dat’s just great! Da one chance we had ta prevent all dis from happenin’ and now we won’t get another shot at it!”

“Yeah, well… Huwezi kuzuia kwepeka, Rizzo.” Tracy uttered with frustration.

Diana’s ears perked when she heard those Swahili words. “What did you say, Tracy?”

“It’s what I told Joanie while I was there.” Tracy remarked. “It means…”

“‘You cannot prevent the inevitable.’” Diana translated in a soothing voice.

The others were confused with the meaning behind the message, which led Kermit to ask Tracy, “What made you tell Joanie that?”

The answer to Kermit’s question did not come from Tracy, but Diana instead. “Because it’s what Joanie’s father told her…before he passed away.”

Diana’s answer brought silence over the group once again; some of them could not help but to see the irony in the message with the situation that was happening there and then. More explosions rang through the air, breaking the silence, and flashes came through the window of the chamber. In immense curiosity, the group moved back to the window and saw how more violent the fiery sky was becoming over the land. Hope began to disperse among the group, seeing no other alternative in escaping the dire fate that awaited them.

END OF CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO​

 

[GonzoLover85]

dun dun.. DUN!

 

[muppetwriter]

Chapter Thirty-Three: Dimension B Zone – 2011​

The semi-conscious Buzz Lightyear rambled beneath his cracked helmet for minutes. Joie, Bella, Michelle, Gina, and Robin were listening closely to what he was saying, and none of it seemed to make much sense to Bunsen or Beaker, who were listening as well. “Woody…You were right…I’m not…a real space ranger…just a toy…”

“What is he talking about?” Bunsen asked.

“He thinks he’s a toy. Isn’t it obvious?” Joie told Bunsen.

“Only he’s not a toy…he’s a real space ranger.” Robin stated. “Well, at least in this world he is; in the other, he’s…well…a child’s play thing.”

“Here or there, he’s still a sad, strange little man.” Gina said.

Seeing how bad out of shape Buzz was in, Robin shook his head. “We have to get him to a doctor.”

“Robin, sweetie, I don’t think it’s a good idea to take a six-foot space ranger to a hospital in a parallel dimension.” Michelle contradicted.

“Well, he’s badly injured. We can’t just leave him here. His injuries might get worse than they are.” Robin indicated. “He’s got to go back to being a toy. He’s got to return to his world.”

Bunsen could see how distraught the tiny frog was over the space ranger’s condition, yet he felt utterly helpless to the situation. Neither he nor Beaker knew what Brandy was up to in the backup generator underground, and the thought of her tampering with the equipment, especially after she threatened to destroy the machine, made them quite uneasy. Then there was the loud roar of the Beast that was contained in the dressing room upstairs, followed by the sound of him clawing at the door, signifying his impatience with being confined there. The clawing grew louder and fiercer than the last time Bunsen and Beaker heard it, which made the Muppet scientists just as nervous as before.

Joie and the others heard the clawing as well, but only Bella, Michelle, and Robin were unnerved from the loud, fierce sound of it; Joie and Gina were bracing themselves for trouble. “Sounds like someone else wants to go back and real bad,” Joie notified.

The clawing over the dressing room door continued until it abruptly stopped. All eyes focused on the door as the room fell silent, save for Buzz’s ramblings. After a few seconds, the door suddenly exploded to pieces as the Beast busted out of the dressing room and emerged on the upstairs landing, snarling at everything in the sight, including the group of strangers downstairs. Bunsen and Beaker trembled, hiding near the equally terrified Bella and Michelle, while Joie and Gina stood up and prepare to do battle with the Beast.

Beaker meeped an observation to Bunsen to which the Muppet scientist remarked with a hint of sarcasm, “Yes, Beaker, thank you for reminding me of the Mind Control Spray’s temporary effects at this precise moment.”

The Beast leaped from the upstairs landing and hit the floor below with a tremendous thud, his weight snapping the wooden floorboards beneath him. Snarling more ferocious than before, the Beast demanded, “Take me back to my castle!”

“Whoa, dude! How ‘bout we work on your people skills first?” Gina suggested. “Try sayin’ ‘Please take me back to my castle.’”

RRRRAAAAARRRRRGGGGHHH!!!!

The Beast bellowed with impatience; his roar practically shook the room. At first, the group believed that the Beast was so angry that he would lunge at them; Joie and Gina prepared themselves for if he had done so. It was when the Beast suddenly calmed down, ceasing any further bellowing and snarling, when the group witnessed a sudden change in attitude over the creature. No longer was he an untamed monster; he was simply just calm. The Beast stared upon the group with emotionless eyes, seeming to be in some hypnotic state, much like how he was while under the effects of the Mind Control Spray.

Gina, believing that her assertive approach worked over the Beast, smiled and said, “Now that’s much better…looks like we’re finally gettin’ somewhere with this thing.”

A calm female voice soon spoke out from behind the Beast and revealed, “Sorry, Gina. It wasn’t you. It was me.” The group could not see whom the voice belonged, due to the Beast’s large form concealing her appearance. Soon the speaker revealed herself, stepping around the Beast and showing herself to the group. Robin gasped over the sight of the woman standing before them, his eyes growing wide with mixed emotions.

Then a name escaped Robin’s lips as he whispered, “Joanie?”

Realm Zone – 1937​

Rematerializing amidst a forest, Sean arrived in the Snow White realm to a scene of utter chaos. Several woodland creatures were scouring for cover, a massive gust of wind was blowing hard and fast through the area, and the sky was looking the exact same way it did in the Aladdin realm. The horrifying display came as an immediate sign to Sean that the Disney world he had arrived in was coming to an end. He remembered Brandy’s warning about too many real world subjects being in one world leading to catastrophic circumstances. It made him wonder just how many subjects were in the realm, other than himself and his grandmother.

“Hey, sonny! Watch where you’re standin’!” He heard someone in a grumpy tone of voice shout out to him.

Sean looked around to see where the voice came from, but he saw no one. Another voice soon spoke out to him, sounding happy compared with the previous one. “Down here.” He looked down and spotted seven dwarfs – the seven dwarfs – walking past him.

“Wh-What are you doing here, son? There’s a dorm, I-I mean, there’s a storm brewing!” Doc warned. “Y-You’ve got to get out of it before you end up hurt or horse, I-I mean, worse!”

“I’ve got to find the Queen’s castle,” Sean said. “There’s someone there that I need to get out.”

“The Queen?!” The dwarfs exclaimed in shock.

Grumpy waved Sean off with a scoff. “Well, good luck to ya. No one’s ever made it out of that witch’s castle alive, I tell ya.”

“The Queen isn’t there anymore.” Sean revealed to the dwarfs. “I can’t explain it because it won’t make any sense to any of you, but she’s not the same woman you know her as here.” The dwarfs stared at him with befuddled expressions, leading Sean to shaking his head and admitting, “I’m wasting my time. I need to find that castle.”

Sean ran in the opposite direction that the dwarfs were moving in, not knowing exactly where he was going. They watched him leave with mixed emotions – whereas Doc, Bashful, Happy, Sneezy, Sleepy, Dopey showed some pity for him in foolishly searching for the Queen’s castle, Grumpy would rather mind his business and continue on their path. Of course, Grumpy was outnumbered by one to six on the sudden decision to assist Sean in his foolhardy mission, choosing not to let the stranger get involved in something that he could not get himself out from.

“Wait! You’re going the wrong way!” Doc shouted as he and the other five helpful dwarfs caught up with Sean.

Watching the other Dwarfs chase after Sean, Grumpy grew even grumpier and yelled in a total fit of anger, “Ya gotta be pullin’ my beard!” He then stormed after them, wondering to himself what made him and the other dwarfs want to get involved with such a reckless stranger.

Dimension B Zone – 2011​

Queen Grimhilde stood before the glistening generator machine within the sphere beneath the Muppet Theater; she was truly impressed by its grand design, bearing witness to nothing like it in her entire life. The glowing, spinning mini-sphere within the glass cylinder reflected in the eyes of the woman whose body Grimhilde had possessed. “It truly is beautiful,” she softly said, “The key to endless worlds…within my very reach.”

Still pinned down to the floor just behind Grimhilde was Brandy, who tried desperately to move her arms to gain access to her wristband; unfortunately, with her arms pinned at her sides, such an action was practically impossible. Moaning with aggravation, Brandy used her only weapon against the Evil Queen – her words. “That ain’t gonna happen, Your Majesty. You don’t belong in this world or any other, except for the one you escaped from.”

Grimhilde turned to Brandy, laughing and smiling wickedly. “How are you so sure? What part do you play in all of this, if I may inquire? Who are you?”

Brandy frowned. “I’m no one. I don’t even exist yet…and I probably never will after all that has happened or will happen.” She chuckled amusingly and added, “I assured the guy who built all of this that I would destroy it once I’ve corrected everything, but I didn’t take into consideration how much that would mess up the order of time. For all I know, destroying this machine could very well prevent my own conception.”

Listening to Brandy, Grimhilde was completely puzzled by what she was talking about; at one point in her ramblings, it seemed that she was talking more to herself than the Queen. Grimhilde made her best deduction of Brandy’s dilemma: “Sounds as if you are unsure of your own destiny. If that be the case, perhaps you were never meant to exist; therefore, you have no purpose in stopping me in my goal.”

The Queen turned to face the machine again until Brandy spoke up once again. “Maybe…but if I cease to exist after the moment you take control of this machine, there will someone else to stop you.”

Grimhilde’s smile grew over Tracy’s face. “Like who?”

“Like me!”

A third voice spoke out within the confides of the sphere; Grimhilde looked all about for it and finally spotted a shimmering figure floating just above the walkway that she and Brandy were upon. The face of the intruder was visible enough for Grimhilde to recognize; it was the face of Joanie Navarro, the very woman who she believed to have ended moments ago. Joanie bore the hat of the sorcerer, Yen Sid, and the red robe that was normally seen on his apprentice; both pieces of cloth practically glowed on her, overwhelming even the light of the mini-sphere within the generator mechanism. The most daunting part of Joanie’s unearthly appearance was her eyes, which lacked the usual blue iris and pupil center, consumed entirely in white.

Grimhilde displayed genuine fear upon witnessing the unexpected arrival of Joanie. “Fair one?! How can it be?! How do you continue to live?!”

“Clearly you’re not very good at getting rid of anybody.” Joanie bantered while lowering herself down to the walkway, landing just beside Brandy, who was equally surprised to see her. “I’m only going to say this once, Grimhilde…leave my granddaughter alone!”

Turning her attention to Brandy, Joanie waved a single hand over her pinned-down body. The next thing Brandy knew, she regained usage of her limbs, no longer feeling herself being held down; she stood back up on her feet and leaned against the walkway’s railing, staring up at her grandmother with thankful, teary eyes. “I’m sorry, Grandmama. I’ve let you down. I’ve let everybody down.”

Joanie shook her head. “No, you haven’t, sweetheart.”

“Of course she has!” Grimhilde exclaimed. “She hasn’t stopped me from…” The mouth of the Evil Queen suddenly went shut, and her entire body froze in place. It did not take much guessing for Grimhilde to realize that Joanie was using her sorcery on her.

Joanie glared to the Queen, with her arm outstretched to her, and stated, “If you don’t mind, this is family business. I’ll deal with you in a bit.” She then returned her attention back to Brandy, her façade quickly changing from intimidating to comforting in a matter of seconds. “I understand your fears, but you mustn’t focus so much on the past. You must focus on your future. It’s what Sean would want you to do.”

Tears streamed down from Brandy’s eyes. “I’m not sure if I even have a future left anymore.”

With her other hand, Joanie gently touched Brandy’s face; its warmth brought serenity over the stressed young woman – a feeling she had not felt for as long as she could remember. Joanie’s soothing voice was just as comforting as she told her, “You do, Brandy…and you can go back to it now…and remember nothing of your time in the past.”

Unbeknownst to Brandy, her face began to glow in the same way that Joanie’s form was. It was not before long when her entire body glowed brighter and brighter until she was only a beacon of light that had soon extinguished before Joanie’s eyes, which weld up with tears. Grimhilde, in her frozen state, witnessed the scene with mixed feelings of trepidation and confusion, wondering just where Joanie had done to Brandy. After a moment of silence, Joanie turned her attention to Grimhilde, the generator towering behind her.

Without saying another word to her, Joanie lifted before of her arms high and closed her eyes. Grimhilde felt the hold over come loose, regaining her speech again. “You wench! What have you…?” The Evil Queen stopped once a loud whistling sound came through the area, forcing her to cover her eyes from it. It was such a distracting noise that Grimhilde’s concentration had been disrupted, dropping to her knees and screaming in agony.

Everything within the sphere from the walkway to the walls began to vibrate violently. The mini-sphere in the generator mechanism spun so fast that it became a blur, yet it also changed a rainbow of colors in the process. The sphere’s chrome structure soon mimicked the mini-sphere’s color changes; there were enough of them to boggle anyone’s vision. All of the chaos seemed to have resulted from Joanie, who used her immense powers to make it all happen; she was in total control of the enormous machine.

In the midst of the chaos, Queen Grimhilde was undergoing a transformation of her own; the form that she had taken, being that of Tracy Belcher, began to “melt” away and expose her true form. The Evil Queen looked upon herself and witnessed the transformation as it occurred, becoming mortified that such sorcery – which she had no control over – had overpowered her so. All she could do in reaction was scream, “No…no…NO!”

Realm Zone – 1937​

Everyone watched in shock as the form of Queen Grimhilde “melted” off of Tracy, leaving only her real form out in the open. After the transformation had passed, Tracy went to the Magic Mirror and smiled with great joy from seeing her real face again. “Hey! I’m me again!”

“Uh…yeah.” Kimberly said, inundated by what she saw happen to her cousin. “You apparently are.”

“But how?” Diana curiously questioned.

Touching her face, Tracy responded, “I don’t know. I didn’t use any spells from the Queen’s book. Maybe it was…”

KURACK-BOOM!

Another massive tremor took apart a section of the wall in the Queen’s private chamber, leaving the group staring upon the horrifying view of a once-enchanted land plagued by total anarchy. As the fiery sky loomed over the land, more immense tremors cracked the earth apart, knocking over several trees and putting many woodland creatures in severe danger. A huge gust of wind blew through the private chamber, knocking over bits of furniture, including the Magic Mirror, which shattered upon hitting the floor. The door to the chamber soon came off its hinges, but it was not because of the chaotic situation at hand.

Sean and the seven dwarfs arrived inside the private chamber, discovering the endangered group of people there. Upon entering, Sean’s eyes locked immediately with Diana’s, both meeting for the first time. Seeing his grandmother brought an astounding feeling over Sean; he barely knew that his sisters, Tracy, and the Muppets were in the room as well. A large smile emerged on Sean’s face as he moved toward his grandmother; if there was one thing he wanted to do before the world came to end around them, it was having a chance to hug her.

Just as he took a step…

BOOM!

An enormous tremor shook the room much fiercer than the previous ones did, causing chunks of the stone ceiling to break away and violently land upon Sean. Upon watching him go down, his friends and family all cried out in horror, “SEAN!” He was barely conscious as he was pinned to the floor with many scrapes and bruises.

The dwarfs immediately got to work on removing the debris off Sean, using their mining skills to get it done fast and properly. They soon got help from the Queen’s guard, as well as Fozzie and Bobo, getting the job finished much sooner than expected. As soon as all the debris was away, Diana went to Sean’s aid, gently lifting his upper body and resting it upon her kneeling form. Diana touched her future grandson’s face, which made him open his eyes slowly, looking up at her face that was masked with tears. “Stay with me, sweetie,” Diana softly told him, “you’re gonna be okay.”

Sean weakly smiled and whispered, “I’ve…f-f-found…y-you…”

It was the last words he had said before his eyes went shut once more, and his head went limp. Diana realized to her instant terror that her grandson was gone, passing away right in her arms. The sight of her brother’s passing horrified Meagan as she clung to his lifeless body, repeatedly crying out his name. Ciciley and Kimberly burst out in tears as well, as did Tracy and the Muppets. The Queen’s guard and the seven dwarfs removed their hats and lowered their heads in mourning of the brave young man, who they wished to have known much longer than the people around him – a feeling that was mutual with Diana, who wept over her fallen grandson.

In the corner of Diana’s eye, an intense light shined through the hole that had formed in the wall. Even though she did not want to take her eyes off her grandson, Diana somehow brought herself to see what the light was. To her surprise, something much brighter than a sun had broken through the fiery, dark gray clouds. Having no knowledge or interest of what it was, Diana returned her focus on Sean…only to discover that he was no longer in her arms.

“What the…?!” She heard Gonzo exclaimed, leading her to looking up and discovering that Kimberly, Ciciley, Meagan, Tracy, Rizzo, Pepe, Bobo, Bean, and Clifford had vanished as well.

“W…Where did they go?!” Kermit frantically asked.

Diana realized that she, Kermit, Gonzo, Fozzie, and Scooter were the only ones left within the Queen’s private chamber, along with the guard and seven dwarfs. Completely perplexed of what was happening, Diana returned her gaze to the mysterious light that had emerged in the sky, as it appeared to be glowing brighter each second. It reached a point that Diana was forced to shield her eyes while everything and everyone was consumed by the light. The chaos that had ensued over the world ceased and all went quiet…and totally white.

END OF CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
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