CyberstarAries
09-19-2005, 02:35 PM
ZODIAC FORCE CYBERSTARS
Episode 01: "Revival of the Red - Part I"
The blanket of the night sky was filled with stars over the city of Austin. The midnight party scene had long subsided and the city streets were now vacant, with only a few cars parked outside the empty clubs and beneath the looming high-rise buildings. The full moon, high above the city, cast a warm, white glow across the glassy surface of the tallest skyscraper, which resembled a massive blue sapphire reaching into the sky with the utmost top flowering out like a white-petaled magnolia.
Inside the atrium of this building, a lone female, dressed in a slimming gray pants suit and a silky white blouse, stepped slowly into the moonlight. The wind caught the loose strands of her shimmering white hair as her blue eyes reflected the stars in the sky as if they themselves belonged in the heavens.
"You are both here..." she said softly. "Thank you for coming."
Two other figures turned around from the railing on the edge of the building - one, a beautiful, olive-skinned female with long, jet-black hair which seemed purple in the moonlight, and the other being a tall, hazel-eyed young man with shaggy, chin-length dirty blond hair and a goatee.
"Like we had a choice..." muttered the male, wearing a long brown leather coat and a black tee-shirt underneath. He wore faded brown corduroy pants with slick, brown leather boots. ""We cannot stay long. Why have you called us here?"
"Because it is time..." the spectral woman said in almost a whisper.
"We cannot let that happen, Celestia," said the woman, who wore a knee-length black leather coat, black boots, and a shorter lavender dress underneath the coat. Her green eyes flashed like those of a cat in the reflected light of the night sky.
"We demand that you leave Aries alone," the young man said with the hint of a lion's growl. The girl who had been called Celestia didn't react.
"Aries must be awakened," she replied, ignoring his aggression. "It is bad enough that I have let things go this far... and your powers are a privelege, not a luxury."
"Perhaps she would like to try and take them from us, Leo," the woman whom had been referred to simply as Gemini said to her comrade with a sly grin.
"That is not my wish," the lovely, fair-skinned girl said. "I have said what I needed to say. Don't try to stop me when the time comes."
"Celestia," Leo replied, stepping forward and putting a strong hand on the woman's shoulder. She looked down at it and then up at him with a defiant gleam in her eyes. "We will do what we must."
"Gemini," Celestia sighed with a smile. "You should know, better than anyone else, of the darkness that looms..."
"But we are protecting him," Gemini continued in a thick foreign accent. "Isn't that what you had asked of me in the beginning?"
"At this point, your influence has proved more of a hinderance than any help to me," Celestia sighed. "The fact that the two of you, bearing signs of Fire and Air, have succeeded in holding off the enemy thus far, is a blessing, but I have now decided to attend to Aries personally. Because of you, he has strayed too far. Anything that either of you might do could cause a disaster."
Leo and Gemini just looked at one another, then back at Celestia. In flashes of golden and purple light, they were gone, leaving the former Princess of Estreia by herself on the rooftop deck of the immense building. She sighed to herself.
"This is becoming too complicated, Mainframe."
"You got that right," a metallic voice crackled from an earring that Celestia had on right ear in the shape of a six-pointed star. "Their energy levels are off the hook!"
"And yet they are so complacent about it... almost defiant. Don't they realize who gave them this power?" the girl whispered as she re-entered the elevator on the thirtieth floor of the high-rise.
"Sweetie, all you gave them is a reason to get a bit big for their britches. Just be glad they're not using it for the wrong thing. Those two know whose side they're on."
"But we can't have them fooling around with Aries or any of the others. It's too late. There has been too much time," Celestia said, shaking her head as she watched the digital numbers count down to the first floor of the building. "It would send them into shock to know what they went through."
"I feel you, girlfriend, trust," Mainframe's voice replied with an understanding unlike that of any other computer on the planet would have. "But soon, we're not going to have a choice, and it's going to be us or them that does the dirty deed." Celestia closed her eyes, and wished that things could have been different from the start.
"If only my father had let me carry out my duty..."
"Celestia, don't be a fool!" came the frustrated voice of her digital friend on the earpiece. "Polycron may have been old, but he was no space case... like you. He knew exactly what he was doing. If he hadn't done what he did, you would have gone postal on the entire planet in a matter of minutes and gotten the place all to' up."
Celestia had to laugh. Mainframe was right - but she was right about too many things, now.
*****
The last note of the violin solo, together with the finale of the orchestra's melody, pierced the air of the concert hall as the audience erupted into applause. Center stage, a slender young man withdrew his bow from his red electric violin, sending everyone within earshot into an uproarious standing ovation. He then turned around and raised his arms as his fellow band and orchestra members stood proudly, calling for more applause. With a huge smile on his face, he looked across the stage to another violinist, a beautiful, long-haired female with dark skin who wore a long, shimmering purple dress, who nodded in encouragement of her young friend as she bowed as well.
Flowers and cards adorned the edge of the stage as the orchestra members began to exit, while the two main violinists held hands and bowed together one last time, then separated to exit on opposite sides of the stage. One last flower, a black rose, was placed gently on the stage, with the black fingernails on a slender white hand pulling back eerily.
The hand belonged to a mysterious woman in a black evening gown and feathered boa which was wrapped around her neck and pale white arms. Her hair was cut very short and was spiked upward with white highlights. Her deep red lips pursed tightly together as she watched the two violinists leave the stage, with her eyes flashing bright green. She then looked around to make sure no one had seen her drop the flower onstage, and smiled, walking away slowly.
Backstage, the young male violinist, still wearing his long red velvet coat and a pair of red wire-framed glasses, ran up to the older woman, who smiled and embraced him warmly after giving her violin to one of the stage hands, who took it away to put in its case.
"Mari! I can't believe it! Another hit!"
"You are performing way above and beyond what I'd expected of you, 'mi amorcito'," she said to him lovingly. "Wonderful job tonight."
"Thanks," he said smiling back at her, ecstatic about his performance. "You, too, were great as always... I owe all of this to you."
"We did it together, eh?" she said calmly in a thick Spanish accent. Maricela then looked up and smiled as the lead guitarist, a handsome young man with light facial hair and layered dirty blond hair that was pulled back in a pony-tail, came running up to both of them, his brown leather boots clacking on the concrete floor of the hallway. "Well, Matt, how's about our little virtuoso?"
"Omar, you pulled another one right out of nowhere, man," he laughed, giving Omar a strong hug and patting his back all at once. "That violin solo was screamin' - like from outer space!"
"Nah, I couldn't have done it without you guys... tonight was so much fun..."
"Well," Matt said, looking at the red-coated violinist and then at Mari, smiling. "How about we go tear up the town to celebrate?"
"Sounds great to me..." Omar replied. He then reached into his violin case to pull out a silver, clamshell-shaped mobile phone. "Hey, listen, mind if I call a few of my friends? They live here in town, so I was thinking..." Maricela cut him short, looking at Matt and trying to hide the worry in her face.
"Honestly, mi amor," she said, touching his shoulder. "We were hoping to just go out as the three of us, like usual!"
"Yeah, the three rockstars!" Matt echoed, nodding enthusiastically. Omar frowned slightly, then shrugged at his two fellow musicians.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. Anyway, I can call them tomorrow... right?"
"Right," Matt and Mari said together, smiling.
As the three of them boarded a taxi to leave the concert hall's parking lot, the dark woman watched from behind a light pole, her arms crossed as she held another black rose in her right hand. She gripped it tightly, feeling the thorns pierce her white skin, but didn't grimace and dark red drops of blood fell to the dimly-lit sidewalk outside the lobby of the concert hall. The woman then put on a pair of silver sunglasses, which reflected everything around her, and faded into the shadows, laughing musically to herself.
"The three rockstars, eh? We'll just see about THAT."
*****
Omar's phone danced violently across the bedstand of his hotel room as he slowly reached for it, mumbling to himself as he looked at the Caller ID. Apparently, he had already missed a few phone calls from this same number, one which he recognized but felt guilty for not having answered in quite a while.
A voice called to him from the other side of the large bed.
"Who is it..."
"One of my old gal pals from high school," Omar replied, putting on his glasses and pushing the sheet back to turn and face Matt, who just smiled at him. The handsome, dirty-blond guitarist was shirtless and probably wore little more than the white sheets which were wrapped around his slender, tightly-muscled body. "What are you smiling at?"
"Just you," Matt sighed. "Little firestarter that you are."
"Shut up," the glasses-wearing boy laughed as the older one took him into his arms and planted a kiss right on his lips. "God, what's gotten into you?"
"Just seeing you in front of your hometown crowd last night. You tore it up."
"So did you, if you've already forgotten," Omar said resolutely, sitting up and getting out of the bed. Matt looked after him inquisitively, his hair falling around his handsome, gaunt face.
"So where you going?"
"To go see my friend, like I said," he replied to his lover, whom he'd met while on tour with the massive rock orchestra that he'd joined a couple of years prior to the momentous concert the night before. "I feel kind of bad for not going out with her last night, 'cause it's been a few years, so I promised we'd go to brunch this morning." Matt feigned a pouty face, putting on his boxer shorts and following Omar to the bathroom as he got in front of the mirror. He wrapped his arms around the smaller, more slender young man.
"Not without a kiss goodbye," he whispered.
"You already got a kiss good morning, dork," Omar laughed, washing his face and putting some hair product in his brown hair to make it spike upwards and outwards. "Now, if I didn't know any better, I'd think that you were trying to keep me from my friends!"
Matt looked hurt.
"Why would I do that?"
"Just playing," came the reply as the taller blond with the goatee crossed his arms and frowned. "Don't take it too seriously. Anyway, you're more than welcome to come if you want." Matt went and jumped back into the large, comfortable hotel room bed. "Or not."
"I'm still pretty blasted from last night. Kinda want to sleep in a little bit more."
"Sleep in!? It's already one in the afternoon, Matt."
"Yeah, well don't forget, we have another show tonight. I gotta save my energy. So do you."
"Don't you worry about little old me," Omar said, sitting back on the bed after putting on a pair of low-rise flared jeans and a tight fitting red and black tee-shirt. "I'll be just fine." He kissed his boyfriend on the forehead and smiled as he threw a pillow at him. "Now you go back to bed, little boy!" Matt chuckled as Omar grabbed his phone and his keys and waved, closing the hotel room door behind him.
His smile then turned into a frown. Mari was NOT going to be happy about this.
*****
A blond girl sat idly outside of a coffee shop, with her hair pulled back into a pony tail and white rimmed sunglasses over her forehead, smacking a piece of gum. A few people who were working on their laptop computers looked annoyedly over at her, then shook their heads in disapproval, but she didn't notice. She also had a small animal with her - a miniature Dachshund with black fur and a tan underbelly, but he was an older dog so some of his facial fur was starting to turn gray with his age. He wore a red collar around his neck.
She then smiled giddily and stood up with the dog, who barked and wagged his tail, as a familiar face came walking around the corner, his black leather sandals flapping on the hot concrete.
"Oh my God, look at YOU!" the girl screamed, disturbing more clients of the coffee shop. "Mr. Big Star!"
"Be quiet, Gwyn," Omar laughed. "You'll attract attention..." He then looked down and cooed at the small dog, who jumped up excitedly at him. "Well, look who came to see his Daddy!!!!"
"Oh, your Dad was super cool about letting him come with me. I figured Kooby would want to see you after you being gone for so long!"
"Almost seven months," Omar marveled. "And look at you, hotter than ever."
"Well, you know I'm good at that," she snapped with a smile. "Wow, it's been AGES since I've seen you. You look all grown up! I'm so glad you called." She gave him a big, tight hug, and he responded in turn, kissing her cheek, picking up his little dog who promptly began the ritual of licking his master's face and neck.
"Well, sorry for being late," he replied to his girl friend as they sat down together at a table underneath a tree. "It was a little hard leaving behind my total dish of a boyfriend in my..."
"BOYFRIEND!?" clammered Gwyn. "When did you go get yourself a man?"
"I kinda lucked into it, actually. He plays guitar - acoustic AND electric - for the band that I'm touring with, and we just totally clicked. He's super."
"Super... what?" the blond said, winking and crossing her legs as she leaned towards her friend mischieviously.
"Super nothing, I don't kiss and tell!" the boy laughed. "So how's the acting career?"
"Oh, it's acting. Got a couple of parts in some one acts out of the university... oh, and I'm still managing that Karaoke Club that my Mom used to run before she..." Gwyn paused and looked away. It really had been a long time since she and Omar had actually sat down and talked, instead of the quick phone calls to see where her former best friend from high school was playing that night.
Omar looked at her and his mouth fell slightly agape.
"Gwyn... I'm sorry... when did she...?" he asked.
"About three years ago," she interrupted, smoothing out her white and light blue sun dress. She looked around nervously and lit up a cigarette. "It's no big deal. She's probably better off now. Lung cancer, you know?"
"And YOU'RE smoking?" Omar asked with a frown. "That's a one way ticket to a mother-daughter party that no-one I know would want to be invited to." Gwyn shrugged. "I... I don't really know what to say..."
"Nothing much to say. There's a lot that's been going on." She paused and just looked up into the blue sky. "Not that you'd know. You're super busy, right?"
"Not busy enough to forget my friends..." he began. Kooby let out a vicious growl as a slender, fair-skinned waitress with short, spiky black hair came up to the table and brazenly interrupted him.
"Has anyone taken your order?" Omar looked up at her, and she smiled. He felt a chill run down his spine, even though she was quite attractive. Her green eyes seemed to pierce his own like daggers. The little dog just stayed underneath Omar's chair and growled again.
"Um, no ma'am," he replied nervously. "How about a tall mocha latte, no whip?" He then looked at Gwyn. "Want anything?" She puffed her cigarette one more, and shook her head.
"Nah, I'm all coffee'd out. I'm getting kind of hungry." Gwyn stared up at the waitress, squinting her eyes to eye a peculiar black flower that was on the lapel of her dress. "Is that a rose?"
"Why, yes," came the calm reply. "A black rose... very rare..."
"I've never seen one of those," Omar remarked. "Just red or white."
"Black roses are very special," the waitress remarked nonchalantly as she took down the order for the boy's latte. "Whereas red roses are symbolic of love, black roses signify revolution."
"Revolution, eh?" Gwyn sighed. "Well, let me tell you something, there'll be a revolution if I don't get something to eat. I'm starved!" Omar spoke up again.
"Yeah, can you bring us a menu?" The slick-looking waitress nodded with a sharp smile, and reached onto her lapel.
"Of course, and here..." she removed the black rose and placed it on the table. "For you. There are changes coming in your life - so embrace them and be ready." Without another word, the waitress then left the patio of the coffee shop, leaving both Omar and Gwyn stunned. Kooby growled once more, but under his breath, so as not to upset his master.
"What a weird girl," the blond said, putting out her cigarette.
"You got that right," the red-shirted boy said, shaking his head. He then examined the flower, not touching it. "I thought black roses signified death."
"So did I," shrugged Gwyn, putting the sunglasses over her eyes and chomping on another piece of gum, warranting some more annoyed looks from the studying and computer-ridden patrons. "Guess she's one of those new age freaks." Omar feigned his usual cheery smile, but he had a very strange feeling about the "changes" that this unusual waitress had spoken of.
*****
Maricela Nublado lay out underneath a floral-printed umbrella by the poolside of the lavish hotel in which she and the rest of the touring orchestra were staying, with a purple frozen cocktail situated next to her on a small white plastic table.
"Hey, Mari," a male voice greeted her.
"Hola, Mateo," she replied with a sigh, pulling her long black hair back behind her head. "Did you just now wake up?"
"Nah, a while ago now, I was watching some TV," Matt said, sitting on one of the reclining chairs as he watched some small children playing with inflatable toys and splashing noisily in the pool. "Did you sleep well?"
"I was restless," Mari answered, removing her deep purple sunglasses and looking up at him. "But then I..." She stopped speaking when their eyes met. "What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing," he said quickly with a smile.
"Where is Omar?" she demanded, sitting up and spilling the purple drink as she knocked over the table. The blond-haired young man shook his head.
"He just said he would step out for a few minutes to see a friend, but that he'd be back and..."
"You let him leave?!" Mari snapped, her green eyes flashing. "You idiot! You're letting him get to you!" She quickly wrapped a towel around her tall, slender body and rushed towards the lobby. "I should have never trusted you!" Matt shook his head in disbelief and ran after her, only catching notice from few of the parents out by the poolside, who then returned to watching their children play their loud, splashy game in the water.
*****
An elderly Asian man was slowly pushing a large broom across the front of the stage in the enormous concert hall, preparing the venue for that night's concert spectacular. The janitor happily whistled a familiar tune to himself which was being fed through a pair of headphones over his ears, checking his watch every few minutes to make sure that he would finish in time to go home to his wife for dinner. As he pushed the broom further, he felt it stop upon something. He squinted his eyes and adjusted his glasses and pale blue overalls as he cast his gaze upon a mysterious object - a black flower which lay peacefully upon the edge of the stage.
He looked around curiously. The entire hall, which could easily seat two thousand people, was completely empty. The orchestra had not yet come for the dress rehearsal and sound check, but somehow this flower had found its way onto the stage without being noticed.
The old man set his broom on the wheeled cart that carried many of his cleaning tools and solutions and knelt down to examine his find. The flower was in actuality a black rose, with a long, dark green stem and dark red points at the tip of each thorn.
He marveled slightly at the black rose, and picked up to examine it.
Upon touching it, however, he let out a sharp yell as one of the thorns pricked his index finger, drawing blood. His wife owned a flower shop just north of the concert hall, where many of the season ticket holders would order dozens of roses at a time to be able to throw at the stage when a show such as the one taking place tonight was over. The janitor had pricked his thumb on a rose before, but had never felt a sensation like this.
It was like an electrical shock that seemed to go through every vein in his body all at once.
The old man shot upwards on his two feet, yelling once more, but this time in a tremendous amount of pain. His scream echoed throughout the concert hall as his eyes turned as black as coals and then gave off a bright green glow, as did the black rose which remained on the ground.
The only words came from his mouth were the following:
"Black Rose Revolution begins - death to the stars."
*****
Somewhere not far from the downtown area, two glowing green eyes were reflected in a mirror upon a wall.
"Reporting," a woman's voice hissed, that which belonged to the green eyed creature. "The revolution of the black roses has begun."
"Perfect," a deeper male voice replied from the shadows within the mirror, bearing no body or face. "Continue making the preparations, Dimensia. We are almost ready to strike."
*****
"God," Gwyn moaned in fake agony. "I am SOOOOOOOOO hungry. When is she bringing out that blasted menu?" Omar looked at the digital clock on his phone. He didn't want to be rude, but he did want to get back to the hotel to see his boyfriend, Matt, so they would have enough time to be together before they had to do soundcheck at the concert venue.
"Let me see if I can find our waitress," he said quickly. "I'm pretty hungry, myself, and she hasn't even brought out my freakin' latte."
"That's the trouble with these local spots," the blonde retorted. "Always taking their sweet damned time." Omar made eye contact with a young waiter with curly red hair and a goatee, and smiled, until the waiter came to their table.
"I'm sorry, can I help you?"
"Yeah," the glasses-wearing boy said apologetically. "For some reason, our waitress hasn't brought out my coffee or our menu, and we're about to go into tremors over here." Kooby whimpered and wagged his tail. The redheaded young man looked at both Omar and Gwyn in confusion.
"Um, did you say waitress?" Omar nodded, while Gwyn lit another cigarette in boredom. "Tiff, our only Saturday waitress, doesn't come in until five o'clock. It's just me right now. I can take an order for you if you like." The blond girl moaned again before Omar could say anything, removing her white plastic sunglasses.
"Oh, gimme a break," she cried indignantly. "Then who was the chick that brought us this stinkin' rose and fed us all that revolution mumbo jumbo?!" The waiter looked completely baffled, staring at the black petaled flower that sat mysteriously on the table.
"Hum, I'm sorry," he replied with a smile, reaching for the rose. "I don't know who that was, but she sure as heck doesn't work here. I'll take care of this for you." His smile instantly turned into an expression of pain and shock as his fingers made contact with the thorns on the rose, and gave a loud scream. Kooby jumped up and barked, while Gwyn was jolted by the noise.
Other customers looked up from their computers or their conversations and stared in surprise at the waiter, who clutched his hand in pain.
"Sir," Omar said, standing up slowly. "Are you okay?"
Gwyn came up behind her good friend, tapping him nervously on the shoulder.
"Dude, look at that flower... it's GLOWING."
Sure enough, the mysterious black rose was giving off an eerie green glow, as did the eyes of the poor waiter, who then feigned a horrific, twisted expression on his once charming face.
"Um, is this Candid Camera or something?" Omar asked slowly, backing away with Gwyn, while Kooby bared his teeth and kept barking. The waiter turned towards the both of them, gritting his teeth and muttering some very strange, disturbing words, and in a very different voice from that which he had earlier.
"Black Rose Revolution begins - death to the stars."
"Honey, it looks like he doesn't like superstar violinists," the blond said nervously.
"I don't know, Gwyn, something really strange is going on," Omar whispered.
As if almost on cue, the waiter's fingers erupted into large, twisted vines with glistening black roses on them, causing Gwyn to scream in terror as everyone within the coffee shop's outdoor patio began to panic at the horrifying sight of the insane, possessed man. Like the tentacles of a giant squid, the vines lashed out with dark red thorns, slashing through cars that were parked on the street and tearing into the patio furniture.
"Shit, run!" Omar commanded, grabbing his barking dog and his girl friend by the other hand and running for the valet stand where he had dropped off his car. Almost breathless, they arrived at the small wooden booth where a uniformed young man had his back turned to them. "Sir, I'm sorry, I need to get my car now, it's kind of an...." The valet driver turned around slowly. "...emergency..."
A black rose sat on the counter of the valet booth, and the man's eyes were also glowing with a wicked green light.
"Black Rose Revolution begins..."
"Oh, great, attack of the black rose zombies," Gwyn whined, tears welling up in her eyes as she grabbed her cheeks in despair. "What do we do?" The possessed, tentacled waiter was slowly making his way up the sidewalk towards the parking lot, while the valet driver also was transformed into a mutant rose bush with serpentine vines. Omar was virtually speechless at the nightmare that had become of his afternoon.
"Ummmm, I don't think either one of us have super magic powers, so I think the only option is..."
A powerful, womanly voice called out from nowhere, startling both Omar and Gwyn, causing Kooby to bark once more. His master looked down disapprovingly to reprimand him, but was then shocked by the appearance of two new figures in the sunlight, standing atop the building which housed the quaint little coffee shop.
"Stop right there, Black Rose Marauder scum!" The two mutant humans stopped short.
"Who in the world..." the blond girl marveled.
"Maybe not of this world," Omar whispered, trying to make out the two forms.
"I have been heralded by the celestial twins of wisdom - I am Cyberstar Gemini!!!" A beautiful woman clad in a tight purple uniform, with a silver vertical stripe extending down her chest, wore a purple-visored mask with wings protruding from over the silver plates which covered her ears, but her long jet black - almost purple - hair poured out from behind it. She wore white boots and white gloves, and her silver, white-rimmed chest plate was encrusted with a purple amethyst inset with the sign of Gemini.
"And I have been summoned by the celestial lion of courage - I am Cyberstar Leo!!!" A tall, handsome man dressed in a uniform similar to that of Gemini, except that his had a black vertical stripe down the center of his torso, posed like a lion about to spring on its prey. His golden-visored mask, like that of a lion's gaping mouth, shielded his face, but his golden brown hair flew in the wind. His golden, black-rimmed chest plate bore the star sign of Leo within the center of a tiger's eye, and he wore golden gloves and boots with black lining.
"Cyber-whats?!" Gwyn whispered.
"Cyberstars, I think," Omar replied. Something triggered a memory in his head - but had no time to recollect exactly what that was as the black rosed tentacles of the valet driver lashed towards him.
"Take cover, let us deal with this!" Leo shouted down. The two friends nodded, sprinting as fast as possible for Omar's red sport utility vehicle which was at the opposite end of the parking lot.
"Leo, now!" Gemini ordered.
"Thunder Lion, roar!" came the man's powerful, deep voice.
Gnashing its teeth, the mutant human came face to face with a blazing, thundering image of a fearsome golden lion that seemed to eject straight from Cyberstar Leo's own hands. Before he could react, the beast was devoured from top to bottom by the spirit, which, as it dissipated, left only the unconscious body of the valet driver, having been returned to normal.
Leo then stood smiling, proud of his victory, when he was suddenly choked by the tentacles of the mutant waiter from the coffee shop, who licked his lips and prepared to move in for the kill. The black rosed vines began to tighten their grip around the gold-suited hero.
"Sag... help..." he gasped, clutching at his binds.
"Twin Illusion Typhoon!" came the voice of Cyberstar Gemini, who still stood atop the building. It was as if she had generated a clone of herself, as the two identical purple-clad heroines then generated horizontal whirlwinds of purple energy towards the mutant, slamming him into the ground. Moments later, his body returned to his original, redheaded self, sans zombie vines.
Kneeling on the ground, Leo looked up as Gemini joined him in the parking lot. Omar and Gwyn had left in his SUV, and the two Cyberstars were relieved. The purple suited female sighed, shaking her head as she helped her partner up. It was obvious he was still short of breath.
"Are you all right?" she asked seriously, looking into his eyes from her visor.
"I'll be fine... we were almost too late..."
"I know," Gemini said worriedly. "We have to keep a closer eye on him from now on. No more mistakes."
"No more mistakes," Leo agreed. In a flash of golden and purple light, the heroes vanished.
Meanwhile, the waiter sat up from the concrete, examining his surroundings and not remembering how exactly he had gotten all the way to the valet parking lot outside the downtown coffee shop.
*****
Celestia looked up from her meditation in a brightly-lit yoga classroom surrounded by many open glass windows, where she sat by herself in a very awkward, yet beautiful position, with her legs crossed over one another and her arms spread straight out.
"You felt that, didn't you..." Mainframe's voice buzzed in through the earpiece.
"Indeed," the girl replied. "A transformation has taken place again."
"There was an attack at the Little City Coffee Shop in downtown Austin," the computer continued.
Celestia's blue eyes widened and she released herself from her position.
"Omar is not far from there! Mainframe, we must act at once."
*****
The glowing green eyes reached out from the black void into the mirror once more, with the woman's voice hissing like a serpent.
"We were thwarted yet again, but we were close."
"Close is not good enough, Dimensia," the demonic, gutteral voice came from oblivion, shrouded in darkness. "Find Aries and destroy him before it is too late."
"The other two Cyberstars, Gemini and Leo, are already tracking him," the unseen creature only known as Dimensia replied. "And are hot on his tail. If all goes according to my plans, they will lead me right to him!"
"Do as you wish - in order to ensure that this comes to fruition, I am sending Saurak..." Dimensia's eyes seemed to communicate a frown, but blinked and the darkened face nodded in compliance.
"Yes, Master."
*****
Gwyn nervously puffed away at another cigarette - her third since their frantic getaway from the attack at the coffee shop - flicking the ashes out the passenger side window of Omar's red Nissan Pathfinder and looking in the rearview mirror to make sure no one - or nothing - was following them. She then exhaled a long flume of smoke and gritted her teeth.
"Okay, so obviously you've pissed someone off..." she said matter-of-factly. Omar looked at her in bewilderment as he made a sharp turn and headed down the street towards the hotel.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded.
"Well, scary rosebush monsters pop up out of nowhere and you just act like it's normal," Gwyn replied, shaking her head. "You must be making some friends in low places."
Kooby looked up at her, his big brown eyes blinking innocently. "Isn't that right, little puppy puppy poo?!" The dog barked in reply. "See, even HE agrees."
"Oh, please," Omar groaned, teasing his spiky, messy hair and examining himself in the mirror before turning into the parking garage. "Kooby has no clue about what just happened." His little black and tan dog then looked up at him and gave a small growl, then put his head back on his master's lap.
"And then there's that spooky ass waitress," Gwyn mumured. "I wonder what she has to do with all of this..."
"Forget it for now. We have to pretend like nothing happened - put yourself together real quick. You're about to meet two very important friends of mine."
Gwyn just rolled her eyes, pulling some glossy red lipstick out of her small white handback and slathering it on her lips as she silently mimicked her friend. Kooby seemed slightly amused by this as the young man parked his SUV, picked up his dog, and went around the other side to let his pretty blond friend out of the vehicle. She hastily brushed her white and yellow sundress of and sighed.
Omar and Gwyn entered the hotel lobby, as the blond was completely awed by her gorgeous surroundings. Marble pillars supported an elaborately painted ceiling, and tall indoor plants stretched upwards along the walls. She sighed and tugged on her guy friend's red shirt.
"This is sooooooo cool... you're living like a superstar!"
"Yeah, I guess," Omar replied with a shrug. Kooby looked at both of them and wagged his tail. The three of them arrived at the front desk, and Omar greeted the attendant, a young, shoulder-length haired brunette in a pink vest and shiny white blouse over a pair of black slacks. "Hi there, Rachelle. Any messages for me while I was out?"
"Actually, Mr. Lopez, we left a message in your room's voicemail system a couple of hours ago, and with another gentleman, but since we didn't hear back we just decided to hold it here for you."
"Call him Omar - Mr. Lopez is too formal!" Gwyn chirped with a friendly smile, putting her sunglasses on her forehead. Omar gave his companion an annoyed look, and then back at Rachelle.
"Hold what?" he mused with a friendly smile. The clerk bent over behind her desk and returned upwards with a small box wrapped in glossy red paper, which she placed gingerly on the desk for him to see. "Oh!"
"This package. It arrived for you right after you left for your afternoon outing."
"Oh," Omar mused, examining the package first, then giving Kooby to Gwyn, who looked on curiously. "Who is it from?" The front desk attendant shook her head as she
"I'm sorry, Mr. Lopez," she continued, ignoring the blond girl's suggestion. "...but there was no name left with the delivery. There's just a tag here that says it's for you." Examining the little package, Omar discovered that Rachelle was right. There was only a golden tag attached onto the red wrapping paper with his full name name in very delicately written handwriting.
"Interesting," Omar remarked, rotating the cube-shaped package. It was roughly the size of an old music box that his stepmother used to have on her vanity when he was a little boy. He shook it slightly to see if any noise came from inside, but there was none. He then sighed and looked back at Rachelle. "Thanks, Rachelle. I appreciate it."
She nodded shyly and watched as Omar and Gwyn made their way to the elevators. Omar pressed the button to head to his upstairs suite, and sighed as he watched the golden doors close in front of him in his friend. He could have sworn that he saw a slender, fair-haired girl watching him from behind one of the ornate marble pillars in the enormous foyer, but the elevator was on its way up before he could look again.
Her platinum white hair was pulled back into a pony tail, and she had soft, blue eyes. She also wore a very slim-fitting white dress with a matching white jacket over it. She took great care to make sure she had not been seen by anyone in the lobby, including the Rachelle, the front desk clerk.
Celestia took a deep breath, and nodded to herself. It was done.
*****
In the darkness cast by the elaborate architexture of the immense concert hall, past the velvet red curtains upon the stage, a pair of glowing green eyes greeted their loyal servant, as a serpentine female voice reached out from the shadows.
"They will return soon, my pet..." hissed the voice of Dimensia. "And when they do, destroy them."
A vicious snarl emitted from the mouth of the little old janitor, whose eyes glowed in return at the command from his mistress. Her presence vanished, and the Asian man continued sweeping the stage, getting it ready for the musicians and audience that would soon arrive.
*****
"Hello... anyone home?" Omar called in almost a whisper into his hotel room, slowly unlocking the door with his key card. He knew that Matt slept late quite often, so he didn't want to disturb him.
Gwyn looked curiously around the gorgeous surroundings - white walls, soft plush carpeting, ornate mahogany furniture, and beautiful yellow lamps all around the room.
"Wow, these are some nice digs, babe!" she giggled.
"Shhhhh!" Omar said, putting in his finger to his lips. "We can't wake him..." He stopped short to find that the bed was empty, and there was a half-wet towel on the floor, indicating someone had already taken a shower and left for the afternoon.
"Hmph," Gwyn said, brushing her long blond hair back over her shoulder after placing Kooby on the bed. He scratched his ear with his right hind leg and made himself comfortable amid the large, fluffy white pillows. "Looks like your man left you high and dry." She then looked at the shiny red gift box that Omar held in his hands. "Well, aren't you going to open it?"
"I don't know," he replied. "After what happened earlier this afternoon, I'm not sure I want to be getting anything from strangers."
"What... you think that there's a black flower waiting for you inside that box?"
"Who knows what's inside that box," Omar said quietly, a bit unnerved at receiving an anonymous gift. He then looked at the little table, upon which sat the shiny red package.
"Well, why don't I open it FOR you," Gwyn volunteered cheerily. "That way if one of us turns into a rosebush monster, it'll be me first!"
That comment sent a chill down the young man's spine, and he quickly snatched it from his best friend, who looked insulted.
"Look, Gwyn, let's just not fool with this thing for now, okay?" He bent over and slid it on the carpet under the bed. "I'm going to go freshen up, now - don't touch anything!" The blond snorted and looked over at Kooby, who returned her gaze and wagged his tail happily. He seemed to be enjoying his new surroundings.
"So where'd your boyfriend go, anyway?"
"Dunno," Omar said with a shrug, heading for the bathroom and taking a jar of molding paste for his hair with him. "It's kinda weird... Rachelle said that she had left a message for him about the package, but he would have told me if he was going somewhere. Maybe he's with Mari."
"Mari?" his girl friend repeated the ethnic-sounding name curiously.
"Yeah, Maricela," Omar replied, checking the bathroom to make sure that Matt wasn't hiding in there and waiting to scare him. That was something that the older of the two young men enjoying to the brown-haired violinist.
"You're not talking about that super cool violinist, Maricela Na... bisco...?"
"Nublado..." the red-shirted young man with the red wire-framed glasses and outrageous spiked hair corrected quickly. "We just call her Mari." Gwyn was completely star struck.
"Oh, my GOD! You're touring in the same band as her!? Oh, wow...." she marveled, her blue eyes getting very large and her voice reaching a fever pitch. Kooby cocked his head curiously as his master put him down on the bed. "I saw her on television a few weeks ago on the fashion show, and her playing was totally out of this world!"
"Hey," Omar snapped, catching a look of dismay from his bubbly pal. "Don't get too amped up. You might scare her if you go on like this when you meet her."
"Omar, she is like the DEAL! Top chiquita banana... she's like the Mexican superstar of the violin!" She then made an enthusiastic, silly face at the dog, who wagged his tail.
"She's Spanish," Omar corrected once more. "You know, like from Spain?"
"Oh, whatever," she groaned, flopping down on the comfortable, unmade bed. "Same difference." Gwyn then thrust herself backwards into one of the large, soft pillows, and sighed dreamily. "So, is she the coolest chick ever... next to me?"
"She's a lot more calm and collected if that's what you mean," he called from the restroom, washing his face. He looked in the mirror and sighed. He loved Gwyn Hample dearly, but when it came to movie stars and recording artists, he could not stand to see her lose her head. After all, Maricela, no matter how famous she was, was now one of his closest, dearest friends. He heard the door open, then shut.
The bloodcurdling scream he heard next sent a chill up his spine as he ran out of the restroom, anticipating the sight of another one of the vine-fingered zombies from the coffee shop. The sight that awaited him was completely different.
"WOOOOOOWWWWWWW!" Gwyn screamed, grabbing the olive-skinned hands of a lovely woman with long, jet black hair and jumping up and down, shaking the very-surprised looking female as a taller male with dirty blond hair just looked on in amazement. "It's REALLY YOU! Oh, wow, Omar was just telling me about how you are like the coolest of the cool." She then dragged Maricela, who gave a blank stare at her younger, brown-haired friend, to the bed as the blond went to her purse and pulled out a pen. "Pleeeeeeeeeease, can I have your autograph?!"
"Um, I'm sorry, miss, where do I sign?" Mari asked plainly.
"Oh, wow, even her accent rocks..." sighed Gwyn dreamily. "Sign anywhere... here, sign my dress!" Omar and Matt perspired nervously as their lady friend complied with the young girl, who had gone completely bonkers over the appearance of the world-famous violinist. "To Gwyn... not Gwen. Gwyn, with a Y. Yeah, just like that. Oh, you are THE BEST!"
She then ran to Omar, hugging him tightly as he made an apologetic face to his older friends.
"Next to Omar, of course... I can never forget how awesome he is... especially for having such beautiful friends like you, Mari!!!! WOOOOW!"
"I... am pleased to meet you," Mari said, nodding politely. "Gwyn?"
"Oh, don't you love the way she says my name?!" the blond fawned. "And YOU..." She turned her attention to the handsome man with the pony tail and goatee, who wore a pair of light brown cargo shorts and a black tee-shirt. "Is this that hunka hunka burnin' love boyfriend you mentioned?!"
"Yeah... I'm sorry, you guys..." Omar began. "Matt, this is Gwyn - we went to high school together." He then stood next to Matt, who blushed.
"Oh, of course," the handsome young man nodded with a smile. "Yeah, Omar's told us all about you..." He winced as Omar elbowed him in the side. Gwyn just exhaled and gave another short scream, jumping around excitedly.
"Oh, wow... Omar, he is such a HOTTIE! I am sooooo jealous!" She then grabbed the slender hand of her friend's boyfriend, giving him a curious look. "So, gorgeous, what's your sign?"
"Um, my sign?"
"Yeah," the blond giggled. "You know, your star sign. Like I'm a Virgo, and Omar's an Aries. What's YOUR sign?"
"Oh, I'm a Leo, I guess," Matt fumbled. Maricela shot him another icy look, and he shrugged apologetically.
"Hmmm," Gwyn said, pulling at one of the strands of her long blond hair while chewing on her white plastic sunglasses. "I'll have to use my phone's net service to look up your compatibility when I get the chance. I'm dying to know what's in the stars for you two!"
By now, even Kooby had gotten excited, barking and wagging his tail. Matt knelt down and smiled, avoiding Mari's convicting eyes. "Look here, this must be... ummmm... Colby?" He pet the little dog affectionately.
"Kooby," Omar replied quickly with a smile. "The one and only."
"Now, he's quite the celebrity in our backstage conversations," Maricela marveled, sitting down gently on the bed as the floppy-eared dog sniffed her pretty hand and licked it. Gwyn was still marveling at the two beautiful strangers who appeared to be quite close with Omar. "Hello, Kooby. Nice to meet you, I'm Mari." The dog barked as if he understood every word she said.
Matt looked at his watch, then at Maricela and Omar.
"Hey, you two, pre-show soundcheck is in thirty minutes... we'd better hustle." He then smiled at Gwyn. "Why don't you come along?" The olive-skinned Spanish woman shot him a look with her sharp green eyes, but he ignored her. Gwyn beamed and nodded.
"You mean it? I can come to your soundcheck? And the concert!? FANTASTIC!!!" Mari gave her an icy smile, then brushed roughly past Matt as she walked at the door. The young man looked apologetically back at Omar and Gwyn, who was fastidiously putting her things together. Omar looked down at his little dog, who wagged his tail
"Sorry, boy," he said with a sigh. "Looks like you'll have to stay here - I don't think dogs are allowed in concert halls." Kooby's ears drooped, as if he knew exactly what his master was telling him. "Okay, let's go, peeps." Omar got up and smiled at his friends and followed them out of the hotel room, the door making a sharp clicking sound as it locked shut. The little black dog gave a small sigh, not liking to be left alone.
He put his head on his paws and closed his eyes to take a nap, when something caught his attention. A soft white glow was coming the floor around him. Kooby gave a confused growl, confused by what was happening, and quickly jumped off of the bed to examine the peculiar occurrence. He cocked his head curiously.
Suddenly, a brilliant flash of white light erupted from underneath the large bed, causing him to bark loudly. A bodyless voice greeted the dog as the room vanished around him, leaving his small form surrounded in only a warm, bright light.
"Hello, little one... Kooby, I presume. Do not be afraid... I will not hurt you. I am a friend."
*****
Atop the roof of the seven-story concert hall, in broad daylight, the waitress from the coffee shop crossed her arms, examining the beautiful city of Austin from where she stood. Her short black hair, flecked with white highlights, was styled firmly in several jagged looking spikes, and her dark red lips were pursed tightly. She had very sharp features, with a small, pointed nose and ears that also seemed to end in points, making her look like a cunning elf. She seemed very impatient, as her short black skirt blew in the slight wind around her slender white thighs, which were adorned in black fishnet stockings.
A voice greeted her from behind, but she wasn't startled in the least bit.
"I trust you've made all the necessary preparations, Dimensia," the voice said in a sharp growl
"So," she sighed, turning around addressing the strange-looking being that had appeared behind her, not in the least bit fazed by his grotesque appearance. "Malfeitor thinks I need a babysitter in order to do my job."
"Call it quality control, if you will," replied her new companion, a shorter male creature that resembled a hybrid of a reptile and a human, with long white hair pulled back from his forehead and webbed ears protruding from the sides of his scaly, green face. He wore a white cloak over a gray uniform which was tightened around the waist by a belt made of metallic silver loops. The long cloak itself was fastened by another silver loop. His yellow, reptilian eyes gleamed brightly even in the sunlight, and a long scaly tail dangled from underneath the rear of his uniform.
"I didn't need you here, Saurak. You're just going to complicate things further."
"It's already too late for that," Saurak replied to Dimensia, who scoffed in the other direction. "You struck too soon and alterted the Cyberstars to our presence. Now, we must complete the task at hand before another one of them is awakened..."
"There is no chance of that, I assure you, dear lizard," she hissed, walking provocatively up to him and sliding her long black fingernails up his shoulder and around his leathery face. "My plan is failsafe. All you have to do is sit back and watch the show." She then strode past him as he watched her disappear into the shadows from the corner of his eyes. A dark red tongue flicked out of his sharp-toothed mouth, and he vanished into thin air, only his voice remaining.
"Failsafe, eh, Dimensia... we shall see..."
*****
Maricela, who carried a glossy purple violin case in her right hand, and Matt, who had a guitar bag strapped over his right shoulder, gallantly strode side by side through the lobby of the hotel as Omar and Gwyn followed close behind. The blue-eyed blond looked worriedly at her friend.
"Are you sure it's okay that I come with?" she asked. "I mean, I don't want to intrude."
"If Matt said it's okay," the boy and the black-striped red tee-shirt said under his breath. "Then it's okay. Don't push the issue with Mari, though."
"I don't think she likes me very much." Omar stared at his old pal and shook his head.
"Well, after what you pulled in the room, I'm surprised she didn't call security on you." Gwyn was visibly embarassed, and put her white plastic sunglasses on to hide her mortified expression, but Omar kept walking until something caught his attention. "Oh, crap!"
"What?" Matt said, turning around and stopping, as did Mari.
"I forgot my violin upstairs," groaned the boy.
"Smooth move," Gwyn muttered. Omar shot her a look and then smiled sheepishly at his two older musician friends.
"I promise I'll hurry... I can't believe I forgot it in the room. I'm so sorry!"
"It's no problem, mi amor," Mari said calmly with a nod. "Take your time."
Kooby jumped up with glee as his young master re-entered the hotel room, wagging his tail.
"Hey again, boy..." Omar laughed, patting the dog's head affectionately. "Sorry, I can't stay long. I just forgot something."
"Oh, it's okay, I noticed the violin case under the bed right after you left."
"Right," Omar replied without thinking. "That's where I put it!" He then stopped short and looked at his dog, who looked back at him with big, brown eyes. The boy then laughed to himself and shook his head, making a funny look. "Omar, you're hearing things."
"You are?" the little dog asked curiously. "But there's only two of us here."
Omar screamed, jumping back in horror and landing roughly on the hotel room carpet, while Kooby sat down and stared at him with curiosity.
"What the..."
"Please don't look at me like that," Kooby said, shaking his head. "It makes me quite uncomfortable."
"I have GOT to be dreaming," Omar said to himself as he picked himself up from the floor, rubbing his behind. "Perhaps I had a bit too much to drink last night and it's just now catching up with me."
"Well, I did smell something on your breath but I just figured you hadn't brushed your teeth this afternoon," his pet continued, jumping off the bed and sitting in front of his master. "And you're not dreaming."
"Yes, this entire day has just been one big crazy fucked up dream... and if I pinch myself hard enough, I'll wake up..." Omar said to himself, nodding with a nervous smile, trying not too look at the dog. "And when I do, you'll not be talking, and there won't be monsters with black roses and vines for fingers, and that bubblehead Gwyn won't be driving me completely nuts."
"Well, about Gwyn, I can't do anything about that," Kooby said in a matter of fact tone of voice. "But about that waking up thing, and the monsters, I can explain all of that!" His voice was very uncharacteristic of his small body, being very gruff and resolute. It reminded Omar of one of the puppets on television from when he was a child. He would have expected his dog to sound more like a little kid, but of course, Kooby was already over nine years old.
Omar took a deep breath, and looked into Kooby's eyes.
"Okay, let's say for a minute that I'm not dreaming, and that you can really talk, Kooby."
"Okay..." the dog agreed with a nod and what seemed to be a smile. Omar couldn't be sure.
"Tell me what the hell's going on."
"Oh, it's all very exciting, actually," Kooby said, wagging his tail. "I even got a new dog tag. Look!" Sure enough, the old, oblong-shaped tag that had once dangled from Kooby's red collar was gone, having been replaced with a six-pointed star made of gold.
"Oh, are you Jewish now?" Omar asked, trying to play along and waiting for himself to snap out of this twisted daydream.
"No, silly. But look, you got a present, too!" Kooby gestured with his paw to the little box which had arrived at the front desk for Omar that afternoon. It had obviously been opened, since the glossy red wrapping paper had been torn open at the top.
"Well, who told you that you could open my mail?" demanded the young man with a frown.
"The Princess did." Omar shook his head in complete disbelief of what was going on, and ran his fingers in frustration through his spiked hair. First, his best canine friend since high school was talking and wearing a new dog tag on his collar, and now he was talking about Princesses that gave him permission to be disobedient.
"Right, and what else did this Princess tell you?"
"I'm glad you asked!" Kooby said happily. "She said that she wanted you to have what was inside the box, and she's also the one who gave me my pretty new tag." Omar stared blankly at the dog, then at the package.
"Let me guess. She also gave you the ability to talk."
"Correctamundo!" the dog nodded.
"Whatever..." Omar muttered dismissively. "So, Koob, what's in the box?"
"Why don't you see for yourself. I did you the favor of opening it." The red-shirted boy frowned again and reached down to pick it up, when Kooby interrupted him. "Don't worry, there aren't any black flowers in there, I already checked."
"That's a real relief," came the sarcastic reply.
"Seriously, O! Open it. You might like what you find."
Upon touching the outside of the package which was wrapped in shiny red paper, he felt something very strange, which terrified him. Kooby stood up and watched intently. Closing his eyes, Omar halfway expected his own hands to start mutating into vines bearing black roses, but nothing of the sort happened. In truth, the box itself was seemed to invite the boy to open it.
"See, it's not so bad, now, is it?" the red-collared Dachshund barked. Omar ignored him, gently pulling the rest of the red wrapping paper from gift until he discovered that this was not just any old box. He had expected it to be a few pieces of cardboard taped together, but this was not the case.
Omar held a silver metallic cube in his hands and on his lap, receiving a very warm feeling through his skin and his body. There were strange astronomical designs emblazoned in gold all around it, and there was a small button on the side which seemed to hold the lid shut.
"Wow... this is something!" Omar marveled. Kooby just watched, wagging his tail anxiously to see what Omar found inside. There was a button shaped like a six-pointed star on the side of the box, which Omar pressed to release the lock, and as he opened the lid upwards, he gasped in awe at what he found.
Inside, there was a golden chain, which looped through a tiny hole at the top of circular coin, not much larger than a silver dollar. However, this coin was remarkable in the fact that it too was made of a dull gold, not reflecting the light too much. In fact, it was quite dusty. What really caught Omar's eye was the red ruby which was encrusted into the middle of the coin.
"It's beautiful..." he marveled to himself, lifting the necklace out of the strange metal box. The ruby had a gleam like a burning flame, seeming to shine brighter than any other source of light in and making the rest of the dressing room look very dim. Omar then saw that the red jewel was emblazoned in gold with a very curious star sign in the center... that of Aries. "Wow. Someone must have REALLY gone out of their way to get this for me."
"The Princess seems to think really highly of you," Kooby commented casually as Omar looked in the mirror over the desk in the hotel room, fastening the gold chain of the necklace around his slender neck. The mystical medallion hanging right between the open collar of his red v-necked tee-shirt.
"Does she now?" Omar asked curiously, starting to believe his little dog, and starting to realize that perhaps after all this was not a dream like he had hoped it would be. "What'd she say?"
Kooby sat on his haunches, cocking his floppy-eared head and looking at the talisman in wonder.
"She wanted me to tell you that the Aries Zodiac Force medallion - that's what it's called - is for you, the fire star that burns brighter than any other," Kooby said, seeming to quote a sentence word for word in the way he pronounced it. "And something else about always keeping it with you, as it will bring you love, protection, strength, and much success in your future, no matter the hard times that may befall you. Pretty neat, huh?"
"Seems a little vague to me..." Omar mused, admiring the talisman in the mirror. "But it does look nice on me, right?" Kooby nodded again, as his master touched the medallion itself for the first time after fastening it around his neck. Everything else that happened after that seemed to take place so quickly, Omar thought he was hallucinating. "Whoa.... what's happening?!"
*****
As the room seemed to vanish around him and Kooby, images flashed through his mind, reflected in the large, ornate mirror . Like a colorful collage of memories of another life which Omar did not remember, the scenes changed so quickly that he could only remember parts of them... but they gave him peace and feelings of happiness and nostalgia.
First, there was a flash of five heroic figures clad in sleek, birdlike uniforms and helmets - with five separate colors illuminating some familiar young faces from Omar's teenage years, who were united around him in friendship and love - among them being the blond-haired and bubbly Gwyn in a sparkling blue light, the sharp-faced and self-assured Dana in a pure white shine, the shy and gentle James in a blackened hue, and the confident and handsome Nick in a bright yellow glow.
"My friends..." Omar whispered, reaching for those memories in his mind but not being able to touch them. This was followed by the roar of five sleek, birdlike aircraft which rocketed through the sky and outer space... and reaching their destination, a shimmering, larger fortress that was like an immense silver eagle. "The Jetbase... the Robojets..."
The next few images terrified and disgusted Omar, who was hypnotized by the magical slideshow of his mind... among them being an army of silver and black armored creatures which covered the horizon like dark clouds of an oncoming storm. "Oh, no..."
A beautiful girl glad in a tight-fitting white leather suit with feathered wings and a white and gold mask gave a seductive smile, but became shrouded by the darkness of death as she revealed her vampiric teeth and the true evil within her soul. She was guarded by a formidable, red-eyed warrior clad in twisted black and silver armor. He wielded a deadly sword. "Seraphina... Knightonyx..."
Then, there was an glowing image of a wise, bearded old man clad in a white uniform and cloak, with a kind, smiling face and gorgeous blue eyes that reflected the blue sky above him... and this man, a powerful sorcerer, faded into the stars, waving goodbye. "Polycron... where are you going? Don't leave me..."
Omar then saw a mysterious young woman, her milky white skin and silvery white hair shining with all the light of the stars as twelve mystical medallions bearing the signs of the Zodiac surrounded her. She smiled and Omar smiled back, reaching out to touch her delicate white hand.
Finally, the images of the five Sky Force Robojets crashing headlong into the birdlike fortress, exploding furiously and taking the lives of Omar's friends with them. Then came the flash of a handsome, but wickedly vain face - that of a silver-haired, leather-clad young man with the insane hunger for galactic domination, commanding these forces of evil and laughing maniacally as he charged forward with twin sabers, screaming as the boy tried to cover himself with his arms in fear. "Nefarius!!! NO!!!" He screamed in terror at this sight. A voice startled him.
*****
"Omar... OMAR!"
Omar was covered in sweat, and his brown eyes were wide with surprise. He turned around from the looking glass to face his dog, who jumped back up on the bed as Omar instinctively reached forward, picking the small animal up up to cuddle him close.
"What... what was all that?"
"That, Omar, was a recollection of your past life as one of the Sky Force Cyberstars." Cyberstars. Where had Omar heard that before? Ah, yes, he thought to himself. That's what the two strange people in uniforms who had rescued him and Gwyn from the mutants had called themselves, but those two characters didn't look anything like the ones from Omar's montage of memories. "I remember it well," the dog continued. "I was there..."
"I guess you would have been," Omar said thoughtfully. "It looks like it wasn't too long ago. But, why don't I remember any of this? I mean, it looks like I was having some pretty crazy times there, and that explosion at the end... and those scary monsters... I mean, why does it all still seem so foggy in my mind?" Kooby looked at the medallion of Aries which hung around his master's neck, and sniffed it.
"Dunno... maybe it's not time for you to completely awaken..." the dog said.
"Awaken? But I'm quite awake now... I'm sure of it..."
"That's not what I mean," Kooby shook his head. "The Princess said that your revival will happen when your old and new lives come together - although that didn't make much sense to me at first, I think I understand now after having watched you experience all of that." Omar listened to his dog. "Omar, it looks like your journey as one of the Cyberstars isn't quite over just yet. The Princess is just waiting for you to achieve this transformation... until then, she will not appear."
"Just who is this Princess, anyway? You've mentioned her way too many times now, like I'm supposed to know who you're talking about."
"Omar, you do, you just don't know it," the black-furred Dachshund replied, with another smile. "But you just saw her in your memories..." Omar closed his eyes, remembering the mysterious girl who was illuminated by the light of the universe. "You and your friends fought to save her one time, and it's because of that battle that your old self died, but in reality, it was just your memories of that time that went away. She saved you, and is the reason you are here now."
Omar felt a sinking feeling in his stomach. All of the events that had transpired over the last several hours seemed to indicate that Kooby was telling the truth.
"So where is she... the Princess?"
"Honestly, I couldn't tell you!" remarked the dog, shaking his head. "All I know is that one moment, I was checking out that package and the next, I was floating in all this white, warm, cuddly stuff, and she - the Princess - wastelling me about your medallion and about your awakening... and some other stuff about black roses... and she gave me my new..."
"What about the black roses?" Omar interrupted with an urgent look on his face.
"Why don't you think for yourself?" Kooby replied quickly. "The answer is inside you now..."
Indeed, the answer was all too clear. The creepy, dark woman who had posed as a waitress from Little City coffee shop had said something about black roses signifying a revolution. Now, the dark revolution was coming closer and closer, as was the awakening that Omar's dog was telling him about. Omar just didn't know if he was ready for it.
"Anyway, O, you've got somewhere to be, don't you?" snapped the dog. Omar gasped and nodded, reaching for his violin case which was underneath his bed.
"Yeah, my friends are waiting for me downstairs!" he cried anxiously. "They must be going nuts by now - I've gotta go."
"I'm coming with you," the dog said quickly as he hopped off the bed.
"Oh, no you're not, Koob. You're staying right here. The concert hall doesn't let dogs in."
"But I'm a talking dog!" Kooby whimpered, putting his paws upward on Omar's knees and wagging his tail.
"Don't even try that!" Omar retorted. "It didn't work before. No dogs - talking or not!"
"Well see, that's another thing," Kooby said in an agitated voice. "The Princess told me that I couldn't let you go anywhere by yourself, and that I had to protect you." Omar laughed.
"No offense, boy, but you're no Rottweiler." The animal grimaced at this remark. "And I'll just bet that Princess also told you that you didn't have to stay on your lean kibble diet, right?" The dog shook his head.
"I wish!" he replied. "Seriously, though, O, I have to come with you. I promise I'll behave... but I can't disobey the Princess. She did give me the ability to talk, so I have to give her at least that."
"And that's the only reason why you're protecting me, huh?" Omar asked irritably. "Fine, but you have to wear the leash. You may be able to talk, but you're still my dog... oh, and no talking around my friends, capiche?" The dog seemed to frown, making his ears droop in disappointment, then nodded and gave a quick bark. "Good boy!"
Moments later, Omar dashed out of the elevator, his large double violin case strapped over his right shoulder and his left hand carrying a red plastic handle which connected a black leash to Kooby's red collar. In the enormous, marble-pillared lobby, Maricela, Matt, and Gwyn turned around with shocked expressions on their faces.
"Damn, Omar," Matt said, putting his arm around the boy. "Are you the Flash or something?"
"What are you talking about?" Omar demanded in confusion, out of breath from being in such a hurry. "I was up there for almost half an hour. We're going to be seriously late!" He knew that he had wasted too much time in having that long conversation with Kooby in the hotel room. However, Gwyn just gave him a funny look.
"Um, okay," she said, rolling her eyes.
"Seriously!!!" Omar cried.
"Ay, mi amor," the dark-haired Spanish woman said, touching his forehead and smiling. "Are you feeling well?"
"Mari, I'm fine. But we're going to be late!" replied the younger of the two violinists. The dog barked in agreement.
"Babe," the handsome, blond young man with the goatee said, shaking his head. "You just got into the elevator like thirty seconds ago. Right, Rachelle?" The cute little clerk at the front desk, who had been listening to this interaction, nodded quietly with big, hazel eyes. "See?"
"Weird..." Omar commented to himself. Then, Maricela and Matt both saw what was around his neck, and looked at each other with worry in their eyes. Gwyn also noticed it, and instantly fawned over it.
"Hey, cute necklace! Is that what was in that box that arrived for you?" Omar nodded and smiled.
"Yeah..." he said, then glared at Matt. "And apparently YOU knew about it and didn't say anything." The longer-haired, black-shirted guitarist then caught the glares of both Gwyn and Mari - however, one was quite different from the other. The younger blond's was more of an accusatory look, while that of his longtime musician friend was one of disappointment and failure.
"Um... sorry," he said quietly. He then changed the subject. "So, you're bringing little Kooby now, huh?"
"Typical Leo," Gwyn mused cheerily. "Always avoiding the issue!" Omar gave her a bothered look and then addressed his boyfriend.
"Yeah, I don't want him to be cooped up for so long... I promise he'll behave. RIGHT, Kooby?" The dog wagged his tail, giving his master a knowing look.
Maricela just gave a quick scoff at Matt and stormed out the door, while Matt, Omar, and Gwyn followed in close pursuit. Within moments, the four of them had boarded a taxi to head for the downtown concert hall, which was not far from the hotel.
As the yellow cab pulled away from the curb, another figure watched them depart. Shrouded by the shadows of another one of the marble pillars, it stepped out into the light. However, it was not Celestia or Dimensia - it was a tall young main, with light brown hair and piercing brown eyes. He wore a tight-fitting dark blue tee-shirt under a dark gray windbreaker and a pair of black slacks. He watched Omar's taxi depart with wistful eyes, and then turned away, disappearing into the parking garage.
CyberstarAries
09-19-2005, 11:41 PM
ZODIAC FORCE CYBERSTARS
Episode 02: "Revival of the Red - Part II"
As the sun set on another day in the city of Austin, the world famous Paramount Theater in center of downtown was being prepared to be filled with hundreds of fans young and old. The massive, brightly-lit marquis above the elegant glass doors read in proud letters: TONIGHT - DREAMSOUND ORCHESTRA - SOLD OUT. Some of the attendees had seen the previous night's performance, while others had not, and were anxious to experience the prestigious Dreamsound Orchestra, live and in concert. The Paramount's lobby was already packed with well-dressed concertgoers, while the street out front was host to numerous taxi cabs and vehicles of all kinds that were dropping off ticketholders.
Gwyn had even taken the opportunity to dress for the occasion, wearing a shiny light blue dress and a white coat over it, and her blond hair was pulled up in a bun on top of her head. She also wore bright red lipstick, which she carelessly applied in the mirror of Omar's dressing room. She then turned around to face her best friend, and frowned.
"You have been giving me those dirty looks all day! Stop it!"
"Well, blondie," he said critically. "You're spackling that stuff on like a fresh coat of paint." Kooby barked in agreement, seated on a red leather couch next to Omar's double violin case.
"Hey, I have to look my best. Who knows what kind of hotties might be at the concert tonight!" Gwyn vamped, lustily adjusting her breasts and blowing a kiss at the mirror after winking her blue eyes at herself.
"Whatever - it's not like you're going to be onstage," Omar said with a roll of his eyes as he styled his brown hair in his trademark mess of spikes. He was dressed in black slacks and a matching black vest over a silky white dress shirt and the same red velvet coat from the night before. "And even if anyone did pay attention to you, they'd be laughing because you look like a clown."
"Ugh!" Gwyn said haughtily, disgusted at her friend's remark. "You're just jealous because I'm hot and you look like a cocktail waiter with an oversized jacket." They both stuck their tongues at one another until a knock came at the door, causing Kooby's ears to perk up.
"Come in!" Omar exclaimed in surprise.
"Hey there, gorgeous." The handsomely faced Matt, with his dirty blond hair pulled back in a pony tail once again and carrying a black and gold Fender Stratocaster electric guitar in his right hand, entered as Gwyn was starry-eyed at her friend's lover's good looks. He wore a slim-fitting pair of dark gray slacks and a shiny gold dress shirt which was unbuttoned to expose the matching hair on his tanned chest. "And hello to you too, beautiful." The blond girl swooned.
"You both look so amazing together," she sighed dreamily. Omar and Matt looked at each other with smiles on their faces. "I bet the two of you have some pretty hot romance going when you're all alone!" This comment caused the two young men to blush intensely and the little dog, whose golden star on his red collar sparkled brightly, wagged his tail, while the red-coated Omar shot her a humiliated look, then turned back towards Matt.
"Well, soundcheck was a breeze, wasn't it?"
"Sure was," Matt said. "I was pretty relieved." He then caught himself as Kooby cocked his head in confusion. Even Omar and Gwyn both gave him an inquistive look.
"Relieved?" the girl asked. "Did you think something was going to happen?"
"Ummmm, of course not," came the quick reply from the guitarist. "Anyway, Omar, curtain call for you and Mari is in five minutes - I'm taking the stage with the rest of the band now." Omar nodded and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. Gwyn giggled, covering her mouth.
"Cool... good luck."
"You too, O," Matt smiled, winking at his boyfriend. "Hey Gwyn, I managed to snag a ticket for you in the VIP section, so if you come with me, I'll make sure you get seated quickly." She nodded and gave Omar a wet kiss on the check as she took Matt's arm in hers, waving.
"Break a leg... errr... uh, a string... babe!!!!" she called back as the door closed behind them. Omar went to his double violin case, which was set on a red couch in the dressing room, and unzipped it to remove his violins and his bows from inside. He then paused, pulling on the small gold chain around his neck to reveal the golden, ruby encrused medallion from inside his shirt.
"Man," Kooby sighed, waiting until the lock on the door had clicked to make sure it was shut. "This no talking business is for the dogs."
"Well, it's the rule," Omar said, startled at his dog's human-sounding voice. He still had not gotten adjusted to his pet being able to talk. He continued examining his gift, which was emblazoned with his own star sign of Aries in the red jewel. "So don't break it or it's no table scraps for you for a week!"
"Oh, darn, I get to miss out on the nasty leftovers," the dog muttered sarcastically. "You know, your little snuggle muffin Matt seems a little weird to me." His master looked at him and smiled, patting him on the head.
"What do you mean, Koob?" The Dachshund shook his head.
"Just that comment he made about being relieved about nothing happening during the soundcheck. I watched him from the corner the entire time... he and that Mari lady both looked a little nervous about something."
"I'm sure they just want tonight's show to go well," Omar explained.
"No, that's the look that YOU had on your face during the rehearsal... which sounded great, by the way." This warranted another smile from Omar. "Considering how bad you used to sound when you practiced at the house..." Omar's smile turned into a frown. "But the two of them... I have a funny feeling about both of them, just not sure why. It's like they were waiting for something bad to happen."
"You're just nervous because of what that Princess person told you, Koob," Omar sighed, taking his glossy red electric violin out of his case, followed by the natural wood-colored classical violin. He began plucking the strings on each instrument to make sure they were in tune, after which he removed two long wooden bows from the case. "Don't worry, boy, nothing's gonna happen. But if it makes you feel better, you can just hang out on the side of the stage and enjoy the show."
Kooby nodded and seemed to smile, the gray fur around his little snout wrinkling upwards.
"That does make me feel a little bit better, O... thank you."
"Okay, well, let's get this show on the road," Omar said, carrying his red violin under his right arm and the other in his right hand, while he had his index finger wrapped around the end of his bows. Kooby jumped off of the red leather couch, wagging his tail as he followed his master out of the backstage dressing room.
*****
Her legs crossed, Gwyn sat impatiently in a red velvet seat next to two elderly women who were whispering to one another about the famous faces they recognized down in the VIP section. Matt had lied to her and put her in one of the balconies above the main auditorium, and she swore to herself that she was going to give him a piece of her mind after the concert.
"Oh, and look," one of the ladies said to her overweight friend, who was wearing an orange floral-printed dress. She pointed down into the crowd at a platinum-white haired young woman who a couple of nervous ushers were helping to get seated. "Isn't that the heiress daughter of the famous scientist who disappeared a few years ago?" Gwyn rolled her eyes, trying not to pay attention. These women were being very loud even though they were whispering.
"I think so..." replied the larger of the two gossips. "Dr. Paul Cronin, right?"
The blond girl in the light blue dress looked over at the two women, then down into the crowd at the lovely young woman who was now seated with her back to them. Her long hair was up in a pony tail, and she wore two golden earrings that were in the shape of six-pointed stars. Something about the name of that scientist had stirred Gwyn's interest. It was familiar to her.
"Oh, yes!" exclaimed the first, nodding excitedly. "Apparently she's taken over his research observatory, but has been hiding from the media and her activities are quite mysterious!"
"What's her name again?" mused the tackily-dressed fat lady, causing a commotion as she opened her purse to find a stick of chewing gum.
"Celeste," Gwyn chirped with a smile. She then stopped herself. Was that really it or something else that sounded like it?
"Thanks, dearie," remarked one of the two women with an annoyed look on her face at the fact that the girl had been eavesdropping on their conversation. "Yes, Celeste Cronin." Her companion, dressed in a frilly blue dress, nodded.
Gwyn was confused at why she remembered that beautiful girl's name, although she felt she had gotten it wrong, but could not put her finger on the right name. She could have sworn she had never seen her before in her life. She stirred uncomfortably, and watched as the light dimmed and the audience fell silent. Instantly, her heart began beating as she anticipated the start of the concert.
The audience cheered as the world-famous Spanish violinist, Maricela Nublado, and her up-and-coming stage partner, Omar Lopez, entered the stage from separate sides, both bowing as they carried their prized instruments in hand. Even members of the orchestra and rock band known as the Dreamsound Orchestra were applauding the arrival of the two soloists.
Omar took his seat in the middle of the orchestra, directly in front of a drum set and the electric bass player and electric guitarist. He smiled at the audience as he adjusted his long red coat, while Mari took her seat on the left hand side of the stage in front of the violin section. Now, the Dreamsound Orchestra awaited their conductor to enter the stage.
The orchestra, consisting of a large string section and several horns and wind instruments, had already been tuned by both Omar and Maricela, who played their A notes on their violins first. The audience continued to watch as nothing happened. Several people began to whisper to each other, while Gwyn watched nervously. She was ready for the show, but nothing was happening.
From his position on the opposite side of the drums from the bassist, a well-built Jamaican man with dreadlocks in his black hair, Matt looked towards the right of the stage, where their conductor normally entered. He then made eye contact with Maricela, and she nodded worriedly.
Just then, an elderly Asian man carrying a flat pushbroom entered the stage from the left. He was wearing a black tuxedo jacket over his dark blue overalls and a messy plaid shirt. Some of the audience members clapped in amusement at the antics of the man, but the general state amongst the hundreds of concertgoers was one of confusion. For the conductor of such a well-renowned show orchestra, this strange man sure was not dressed like it. Some of the band members recognized him as the janitor of the concert hall as he took his place on the conductor's podium. He had a very disturbed look on his wrinkled face.
"What the... is this a joke?" Omar mused to himself, looking back at Matt. He then saw the expression on his boyfriend's face, and became very worried.
"Well, this is just great," Gwyn blurted, warranting some irritated glances from the people next to her. "First I get this crappy seat in the nosebleed section with these old gossip geese, and now there's some old guy with a broom conducting the damned orchestra."
Celestia, along with several hundred other people, heard the comment, and craned her head back to see where the voice had come from. Something seemed familiar about it, and her blue eyes widened as she recognized the voice immediately - the former Blue Sky Force Cyberstar. She then turned around to face the stage, the tension growing in her heart, and slowly rose from her seat.
"Excuse me," she said quietly, crossing in front of some of her fellow concertgoers. "Pardon me... sorry..." Slowly, she slipped out of the row of red velvet chairs and headed for one of the exits. Maricela, dressed in a dark purple gown and her jet black hair styled upwards and then cascading past her shoulders, could see quite clearly from where she was seated onstage and watched the well-dressed young woman exiting through a pair of double doors. She glanced up quickly at Matt, her green eyes also meeting with those of her young friend Omar.
Another thing that had caught the eyes of the perplexed musicians was that instead of a bright red rose being in the lapel of the black coat on the janitor, there was a black rose. The young violinist with the red electric violin in his right hand noticed it immediately and a chill ran up his spine.
Nodding at Maricela, the golden-haired guitarist with the goatee knelt down on the black platform and addressed his boyfriend.
"Omar... don't say anything... you need to get off the stage, now."
"Why? Matt... what's going on?"
There was a gasp from the audience as Omar turned around to see a very strange figure now entering the stage. He froze in horror. It was a slender, pasty-skinned woman with short black spiky hair, highlighted with white stripes. Her lips were dark red, and she wore a strapless knee-length dress with a black feather boa around her shoulders.
"Oh.... no...." Omar whispered to himself as the woman gave him a quick, malicious glance before addressing the people in the auditorium. Up in the balcony, Gwyn gasped in shock.
"The black rose waitress!" she exclaimed.
"Ladies and gentlemen..." the dark woman sighed apologetically to the audience members, all of whom listened closely. "The conductor of the Dreamsound Orchestra is a bit - how shall I say? - tied up at the moment, so tonight's performance will be conducted by a very dear friend of mine..." She then raised her slender hand with black fingernails up towards the Asian man who stood on the conductor's podium. "Black Rose Marauder Number One - Garbaggio!!!!"
The janitor gave a twisted grin to the orchestra, and his head then rotated on its neck with a sickening crack as he smiled at the audience, warranting some fearful screams as he blinked his eyes, which were as black as coals.
The strange girl reared her head back, laughing maniacally as she lifted her arms into the air, startling the orchestra musicians and band members as her body glowed with a wicked green light and she was transformed into a tight black leather outfit with silver zippers. She also wore knee-high black boots with sharp heels, and she wore a twisted metallic tiara which wrapped around her forehead and down her gaunt cheekbones.
"Dimensia..." Mari whispered to herself, slowly placing her violin on the seat as she stood up.
The musicians of the Dreamsound Orchestra who had witnessed this up close were instantly mortified by this transformation as they scattered, overturning the music stands and chairs while Omar stood up, his glossy red electric violin hanging from his right hand . The evil Dimensia turned around to face him and gave him a serpentine smile.
"Hi, stranger," she hissed. "I told you a revolution was coming." The young violinist shook his head in horror, terror-stricken. "I told you to be ready. But look at you... you're looking at me like you have no idea what I'm talking about. Oh well, that's your own fault for being unprepared."
"No!" Matt gasped. "Not now!" It was too late as the possessed janitor began to mutate into a larger, ogre like form of his original self, with disgusting yellow skin and black eyes. His hands also grew monstrous claws as the broom handle which he clutched grew longer and more twisted, the ends of the floor brush transforming into metal spikes.
By now, the entire audience had gone into a complete panic. Men, women, and children tore over each other, trying to escape as the monster known as Garbaggio gave a monstrous roar of a laugh, slamming his weapon into the conductor's podium and smashing it into pieces. Even people in the balcony struggled to exit as terrified screams arose from the auditorium.
Gwyn, however, was not trying to escape. Something told her that she had to get down to the stage as soon as she could. However, the performance area had been left in a complete disarray as the band and orchestra fled from the monster and his summoner, the leather-clad Dimensia, as she started walking towards Omar, maintaining the grin on her face.
"Stop!" Maricela commanded, pointing her finger at Dimensia. Omar's eyes went to the elegantly dressed female violinist in surprise as her jet black hair flowed around her. "Don't you touch him..."
"Mari?" he asked curiously, trying to catch his breath. Garbaggio growled in confusion as Matt jumped down and got in front of his boyfriend with his arms stretched.
"Yes, stay away from him!"
"Matt, what are you DOING!?"
"Oh, and who are you to try to protect this pathetic human boy?" demanded the alien woman, putting her hands on her hips. Maricela looked at her male companion and nodded, pulling a slick purple device resembling a small, clamshell-style flip phone out from behind her waist. Matt did the same with a similar device that he removed from his pocket, only in a shiny gold color.
"It's time," the female violinist said softly.
"I guess you're right," the handsome guitarist agreed, then looking at his boyfriend. "Omar... sorry about this..."
"What the..." Omar began.
Maricela and Matt gave each other a look - one of what seemed to be regret - before crossing their wrists over their chests in an x-formation, then thrusting their right hands into the air. Omar watched in disbelief as his two best friends flipped open their colored cell phones.
"Zodiac Force, transform!" the lovely, olive-skinned Spanish woman exclaimed with a striking voice that intimidated the young man in the red velvet coat.
What happened next was almost as if it were part of a strange dream. Matthew Ray Storm and Maricela Nublado were instantly bathed in respective beams of golden and purple light.
"Leo Celestial Power!" the handsome, dirty blonde-haired young man who wore a golden button down shirt over dark gray slacks commanded.
"Gemini Celestial Power!" exclaimed the black-haired woman in the long purple evening gown.
There was a clap of thunder and a volcanic explosion from beneath Matt as he was surrounded in golden flames which at first rendered him without his performance attire. His body then glowed with golden energy as he posed with his arms outstretched like a lion about to pounce, and he was adorned in a tight-fitting golden bodysuit with a golden chest plate lined with black metal armor around his neck and over his upper torso. In the center of the chest plate was a golden tiger's eye, bearing the sign of Leo. The suit itself had a black vertical stripe which extended from underneath the chest plate and past a black belt around his waist. The belt was buckled by a golden, six-pointed star. Matt then received golden gloves and boots with black rims and knee cuffs, as his good-looking, rugged face then received a golden visor which covered his hazel eyes.
Maricela was showered with a blast of wind as her slender, naked body was then dressed in a purple bodysuit that had a silver vertical stripe down the middle of her chest. Fastened by a silver belt around her waist which was buckled by a similarly-colored six-pointed star was a purple skirt, underneath which were silver leggings. Her breasts and upper torso by a silver chest plate with white lining which had a purple amethyst bearing the sign of Gemini centered upon her now armored bosom - she then received pairs of white boots and white gloves that were also lined with silver rims and cuffs. Her transformation was completed by a purple visor which covered the green eyes on her beautiful, olive-skinned face.
"Damnit, it's them," cursed Dimensia, crossing her arms at the appearance of the two armored warriors - the male in the golden uniform and the female in the purple uniform. "Why did I think they weren't going to show up?"
"What's the matter, Dimensia?" Cyberstar Leo taunted with a laugh. "Did you forget to send us invitations to your solo debut?" This warranted an angry glare from the Marauder vixen.
"Looks like she did," Cyberstar Gemini nodded with a smile. "It's okay, Dimensia. But I think we're going to have to teach you a lesson for trying to get in on our own concert."
Suddenly, a long whip lashed out, causing the Purple Cyberstar to gasp in surprise as a strange hideous reptilian mutant with yellow eyes and a green scaly face coming from a head of bushy white hair emerged from behind the curtain, wielding the handle of the whip in one scaly hand.
"Oh, no..." the black-haired Gemini whispered to her fellow warrior. "There's already more of them..."
"Yeah, and they're getting uglier," Leo answered.
"What the hell is going on here!?" Omar cried angrily. "At what point were guys going to tell me that you two were parading around in spandex suits fighting weird goth chicks and lizard men!?"
"We were going to get to it eventually, babe," his boyfriend, now in the armor of the Gold Cyberstar shrugged sheepishly. "Right now probably isn't the best time."
"And who... or what... are you?" Omar said, cringing in fear as Garbaggio joined Dimensia's right side with a hideous, toothy grin on his putrid face, and the third creature, Saurak, readied his long bullwhip in one of his scaly, green-skinned hands and stood to his female companion's left side.
"Oh, I'm sorry," the evil female creature said. "In all this excitement, I forgot to introduce myself... I am Dimensia, field general and caster of spells for his Darkest Honor, Malfeitor, and the Marauders... and this delightful creature is my cohort and weapons specialist extraordinaire, Saurak."
The lizard-like humanoid bowed with a grin.
"Whatever you are..." another female voice exclaimed. "Leave my friend alone!" With a clatter of white sandals, the blond girl, Gwyn, appeared in front of the stage, throwing a peace of one of the red velvet chairs at the mutated janitor, who turned his head to face her. "Holy shit!" she gasped, stopping in her tracks.
"Gwyn, what are you doing here?!" Omar demanded, clutching his girl friend's hand. Apparently from the look on Gwyn's face, she too had witnessed her good friend's guitar-playing boyfriend and the famous female violinist Maricela Nublado, transform into the very same warriors from that afternoon - the ones who had called themselves Cyberstars Leo and Gemini.
"Oh, my God... did you see that?"
"Uh, yeah..." the brown-haired young man with the red wire-framed glasses stammered, completely in shock from what he had just witnessed. "My boyfriend and my mentor are superheroes..."
"Omar... " Cyberstar Leo called to the two younger people. "We're going to handle them. You need to get out of here... NOW!"
"He's right," the blue-eyed blonde in the blue dress and white coat nodded seriously. "We can discuss details later. Let's go." She reached out for her violinist friend's arm in order to take him to safety.
"Run, Gwyn!" Gemini ordered in her thick Spanish accent as Saurak tightened his grip around her, chuckling. "Leave this place before it's too late... it's dangerous!"
"Dangerous? You haven't seen dangerous..." Dimensia smiled. "Say hello to our little friends."
"Yessss," continued the reptilian mutant named Saurak, snapping his fingers on his right hand. "Marauder Sauroids - my darlings - come out, come out, wherever you are!"
There was a crackle of green electricity as several new forms materialized out of thin air - vicious-looking soldiers clad in hideous, twisted black armor over green bodies that seemed to be a hybrid of green reptilian skin and sizzling circuitry. Wearing black helmets over their faces, they seemed to have the same yellow eyes and fanged teeth as Saurak, but made strange metallic grunts.
"Eww, gross!" Gwyn repelled, still clutching her best friend's arm.
"What on Earth..." Cyberstar Gemini said as she reeled back in surprise at the new arrivals.
"Ssssauroids," Saurak said with a serpentine grin on his face. "My own creation... a hybrid of Saurian ssssoldiers from my home planet combined with the most advanced Marauder fighting technology."
"Yes," sighed Dimensia, surveying her new troops with evil satisfaction. "We figured that since you Cyberstars seemed to have the upper hand in past confrontations with our Black Rose Marauder zombies... we'd better even up the score. Aren't they lovely?"
"Not exactly the word I was thinking," Cyberstar Leo retorted, crossing his muscular, gold-clad arms.
This is insanity, Omar thought to himself, looking at the Gold and Purple Cyberstars on one side of the stage and the group of armored, mutated reptilians on the other. They're completely outnumbered!
"Get them!" ordered Dimensia, pointing a long black fingernail at the two heroic warriors. The Marauder Sauroids, uttering robotic hisses and snarls, charged forward with a speed unlike anything that either of the Cyberstars had ever seen.
"Thunder Lion..." Cyberstar Leo began. Bolts of yellow energy shot from the eyes of two more Sauroids, sending him flying backwards and into Omar and Gwyn's arms. In a flash of light, Leo's transformation was undone and the gold cellular phone rattled onto the floor as Matt hit his head on the platform.
"MATT, NO!" the boy in the red velvet coat screamed, struggling to hold him his injured boyfriend by his shoulders.
"Mateo!" cried Gemin