A young Oscar hides within a dark closet, his mom and dad fighting just outside it. The closet bursts open, and young Oscar screams in pain as he is dragged out by the arm by his father. Oscar’s dad throws him to the ground before kicking him in the ribs. “STOP!! You are hurting OUR child! Oscar’s dad lets out a harsh laugh. “YOU call this crossdressing BITCH our CHILD?!” Oscar’s dad kicks him again, this time in the face. Oscar’s body instantly goes limp as his vision blanks out. Oscar feels himself falling. Then, A ghostly version of young Oscar appears next to his own body as his parents engage in a physical fight. Oscar looks around, jumping as his eyes land on a crouching skeletal figure dressed in dramatic and colorful garments. Mictlantecuhtli? Oscar recognizes the Mexica death god from the Mexica history books his mother would sneak home for him. Golden lights appear in the death god’s empty eye sockets. “You are the one…” He says in a voice much like a death rattle. The death god reaches out towards Oscar, A golden disk with a skull in the middle appearing in their skeletal hand. The disk floats towards young Oscar who curiously reaches out to touch it. The disk is instantly absorbed through Oscar’s hand, golden light running up his arm and into his chest.
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Deathmatch gasps for air. Around him is nothing but molten metal beams, smoke, and burnt skeletons. Deathmatch gets up, slowly looking around. It’s all gone… An eerie sound comes from his left. He looks towards the noise which comes from none other than Mr. Champ himself. Deathmatch’s obsidian club appears in his hand as Mr. Champ walks towards him. Mr. Champ’s face is blank. Deathmatch throws his club at Mr. Champ who grabs it out of the air and throws it back at Deathmatch with immense force. Deathmatch screams in agony as his own weapon slices him across the arm. “Oscar! Make a gateway! Get out of here!” Mr. Champ lunges forward and slashes Deathmatch across the chest with strange inky black claws. Deathmatch’s music glitches to life, the decimated environment shaking with the rhythm of the music. He quickly flies into the air, a golden ring of light, a gateway, opening up above him. A dark warping tendril grabs his feet, dragging Deathmatch back towards the ground.
Deathmatch uses his own claw tipped fingers to slice through the dark tendril, making his escape through the gateway. He speeds through the abstract space between dimensions before making a sharp turn. Deathmatch bursts out through another gateway, nearly crashing into a rocky slope as the gateway closes behind him. Deathmatch sinks down to the ground, clutching his chest. His eyes widen as flashes of the demonic entity, which has the same dark claws Mr. Champ had used, killing his husband and young son across Deathmatch’s breathing becomes heavy, his chest heaving as he gasps for air. “Keep calm, please-” Deathmatch abruptly darts into the thick foliage, tearing up bushes and vines as he blindly runs. The darkness and shadows around him start warping into dark beasts and monsters that give chase. “You’re having a psychotic break! Stop running-”
“DANI!”Deathmatch skids to a stop, falling face first into the ground. Deathmatch rips off his mask and begins sobbing, his back heaving. “He’s DEAD! He DIED!” Oscar rolls over onto his back, covering his face with his hands. “This isn’t your fault-” Oscar grabs his head. “THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!!” Oscar slashes at his own face with his claws, drawing deep lines of blood. Oscar starts clawing at his arms and chest in a frenzy until his body suddenly jolts to the side. NO! I’LL FUCKING KILL MYSELF IF YOU- Oscar’s body gives another jolt as Tempo fully takes control.
Tempo looks down at their scratched and beaten body. “Oh, Oscar…” Tempo activates their music, a calming track plays as they start healing their wounds.There. Now to make the body more like mine. Oscar’s muscular body begins to change shape, rounding out and growing softer until a very fat version of Oscar emerges. There, much better. Now, where are we? Tempo taps on their wrist gauntlet, a hologram appearing that shows a 3D image of a planet with a vast mountain range and modern looking city. He took himself to Krition? He really is still dead set on getting the Masterhand. A sad look crosses Tempo’s chubby face. He still wants to get rid of me… Tempo sits down on a fallen tree with a shaky sigh. What do WE even do now? Everything is gone, for real this time. For the first time in a long time, Tempo feels true hopelessness.
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Shade stares at the annihilated warehouses from far off in the grassy field, completely shocked at the mass carnage and destruction. “Hey, sport!” Shade jumps in shock, whirling around to find Mr. Champ standing behind him. “You said it was just a really intense stun bomb.” Shade states flatly. “Well, the outcome will certainly STUN any of those superheros into giving up their way of life-” Shade punches Mr. Champ directly in the face, breaking his glasses and fracturing his nose. “YOU LIED!!!” Shade yells as Mr. Champ falls on to his back, clutching his bleeding nose. Shade rips off his mask and glares down at Mr. Champ with angry pale gray eyes. “I’m still just a KID, and now you’ve made me a MURDERER! Those homeless, those PEOPLE you said you would build housing for, YOU KILLED THEM JUST TO FLEX YOUR POWER!”
Mr. Champ sputters, pushing himself up. Shade rises into the air, clenching his fists. “You jokingly said that you would kill yourself if you didn’t win the presidency. Well guess what? No one is going to vote for you now, so I may as well help you out!” Shade’s cape snakes down towards Mr. Champ who gasps as he is forcefully constricted around the neck by the dark fabric and lifted high into the air. Shade makes the fabric wrap tighter and tighter until Mr. Champ goes limp. Shade then drops Mr. Champ’s body from over one hundred feet up, watching as it hits the ground with a CRUNCH, the sound reminiscent of a large bug being crushed. Shade, realizing the gravity of what he has just done, instantly bolts away from the scene.
Mr. Champ’s body begins to twitch as a dark oozing substance forces its way out of his mouth and engulfs his body, forming a cocoon like structure. moments pass, then the dark mass retreats back into his body. Mr. Champ stands up, slightly dazed looking. The sound of a hovercraft approaching fills the air. “Sir, we saw Shade flying away, are you okay?” A voice crackles in his ear piece. “Yes, I’m okay. But track down that little brat immediately…” Mr. Champ orders in an unusually flat voice. “On it!” With that, Mr. Champ begins walking back towards the decimated land where the warehouses had once stood.
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Tempo had found a rocky overhang in which they lit a small fire before creating a makeshift sleeping pad out of stacks of thick moss and foliage before drifting off to sleep, their excess body fat providing extra warmth and cushioning. They had also conducted scans of the surrounding area to make sure nothing dangerous or organic was lurking, and everything had come up clear. But as Tempo sleeps, something small and mechanical hops towards where they lay. Tempo stirs as they feel something small hop up onto their big plush belly. “Meow!” Tempo startles awake, their soft body mass jiggling with the sudden movement. A little golden cat figurine, reminiscent of a Japanese lucky cat statue, looks down at Tempo with its happy little face.
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“Where did you come from?” Tempo asks gently. The golden cat statue hops closer towards Tempo’s face. “I come from the caves.” The cat says in a little bit crushed voice. Hmm, a cave would certainly provide more shelter than this overhang while I figure things out. Tempo thinks to them self. “What’s your name, if you have one?” Tempo asks, carefully sitting up. “I am Robo Kitty.” It says. “How did you end up in the caves?” Robo Kitty’s ears droop. “My owner abandoned me…” It says sadly. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that.” Tempo says. Robo Kitty’s ears suddenly perk up again. “Would you be my new owner?” Tempo stares down at Robo Kitty. Well, since Oscar isn’t here, I guess I could take this little guy under my wing. At least for a while… “Of course, you seem very sweet!” Tempo says kindly. Robo Kitty jumps up and down on Tempo’s belly like it is a trampoline. “Thank you, new owner!” It exclaims. “Could you possibly take me to the caves?” Tempo asks. Robo Kitty slides off of Tempo. “Yes, follow me!”
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Meanwhile, Oscar paces back and forth in the dark void that separates the outer world from the vibrant inner world he knows exists within his mind. He feels more like a caged animal than a human at the moment, desperate to enact violence on Mr. Champ and those who have now taken away everything he had left. plants along with a deep pool of water in the middle. I need to be in control, I need the Masterhand! Oscar suddenly lunges forward striking out at an invisible wall. A brief view of the outside world appears on the wall before fading away. Tempo is moving deeper into the mountains, but why? Oscar lunges at the wall again. The sight of the mouth of a giant cave from Tempo’s point of view shows up. Oscar’s eyes widen. How did they find the cave so quickly?! Oscar begins to pound on the wall with all his might.
Tempo and Robo Kitty now stand at the mouth of a giant cave. “I have friends inside!” “Oh, I’d love to meet them!” Tempo says, then tenses up. The sound of Oscar yelling to be let out rings through their head. I can’t afford to let Oscar out, not now… Tempo and Robo Kitty enter the cave. plants along with a deep pool of water in the middle. “I have brought a new friend!” Robo Kitty hops forward excitedly. From the other side of the cavern two giant beings stir. A giant red female T-Rex by the name of Apex, and an equally as large battle mech named Headbanga. Apex is the first to fully wake up, and she looks at Tempo with a deep interest. She uses her tail to prod Headbanga awake, and the battle mech’s red lights flicker on. The two giant beings get up and make their way over to Tempo and Robo Kitty, the ground shakes with their heavy footsteps.
“Who are you?” Apex’s voice is deep and vibrates the air. “My name is D- uh, Tempo, and I have lost my home.” Headbanga rolls forward slowly. “I have conducted a scan of your brain. You appear to have multiple neurological conditions, and are experiencing great stress at this time.” Headbanga’s voice is very robotic and measured. Robo Kitty looks up at Tempo. “You lost your home? Why did you not tell me?” Apex steps forward. “You may tell us everything, and we will understand.” “We have all lost our homes too.” Tempo walks over to a large rock and sits down. “Are you all familiar with Newon?” The three nod. “A right wing presidential candidate has become completely unhinged, and dangerous. Tonight he decimated a place in Newon that we have called home for years, and killed hundreds of people as a result.” Tempo stares at the floor sadly. “You used the word WE, is there someone else you lived with that did not make it?” Headbanga asks. “Oh, he did make it but, uh…” Tempo feels their heart pounding. Would they even understand if I tried explaining our condition? “One of your conditions that my scan detected appears to be Dissociative Identity Disorder. Is this other person an alternate identity?”
Tempo shifts around. “He is, but he is also the main host of our system, the one who identifies with the physical body. His body is usually very muscular, I’ve just temporarily altered it to be more comfortable for myself…” Tempo trails off as they hear Oscar yelling again. “He is very angry and mentally unstable at the moment, and he is listening to our conversation right now.” Tempo explains. Apex huffs, sniffing the air. “I smell something strange…” She growls and looks around. Tempo feels a searing pain in their chest where Mr. Champ had sliced Oscar with those strange demonic claws. Tempo clutches their chest, gasping in pain as small dark slug-like things force their way out of the claw marks on the body’s chest and drop to the floor, writhing around before disappearing. Tempo blanks out from pain, then finds them self in their default robotic form in the dark mind void with Oscar. “You have to let me out!” Oscar shouts as his Deathmatch outfit appears on him, the dark obsidian club appearing in his hand. “I can’t. Your anger will kill infinite amounts of HUMAN PEOPLE and not just those non-human “monsters” you’re so convinced deserve death!” Tempo says boldly. Oscar charges forward, much like a bull seeing red, and slams head first into Tempo. Tempo is thrown off balance, but quickly jolts back forward and smacks Oscar away. Oscar quickly gets back up, activating his music and flying through the air, back towards the transparent barrier.
Tempo also flies through the air, grabbing Oscar in a bear hug. Oscar claws and snarls like a wild beast, but his struggle is in vain as Tempo throws him away from the wall, deeper into the void. Tempo blanks out again before finding them self laying on the cave floor surrounded by the three non humans. “Are you okay?” Apex asks in concern. Tempo huffs, heaving their heavy body up into a sitting position. “Yes, but there is something really important that I should tell all of you. Oscar, our host, wants to obtain the Masterhand to do something awful that he truly thinks is justified.” Apex lets Tempo use her tail to help them self up onto their feet. “Oscar’s young son and husband were both killed by the Darkness, which I’m sure you all are familiar with due to reports popping up in countless dimensions of people being possessed by it. But, uh, he thinks that all non human people are like the Darkness and deserve to be annihilated…” Tempo finishes, waiting to be met with fear or anger. Robo Kitty speaks first. “We all know that the Masterhand is hidden within these caves. We have been searching for it for the past twenty years, but we have now given up.” Robo Kitty explains. “We all wanted to use one of its three wishes to return to the lives we used to have, but I suppose that all of us have realized that it wouldn’t be the same.” Apex says. “We have realized that even though we can not return to our former lives, we can all build a new one with each other.” Headbanga adds. Tempo’s pounding heart slows. “I… I wish Oscar would take that last bit to heart.”
Tempo looks up towards the roof of the cave, the glowing foliage reminiscent of stars. “He wants to use the Masterhand to revive all his deceased loved ones, including his mother who was murdered on Earth. He also wants to get rid of me, and all the other alters in our system. I just know that there would be some sort of catch, though. Wishes always turn out like that.” Tempo looks back at the three. “I’m not sure how long I can keep Oscar back, and I’m afraid that he will try hurting all of you or get lost in these caves looking for the Masterhand. But I’m even more afraid of what he will end up doing first if he does manage to find it.” Tempo admits. “We will do everything we can to keep Oscar in line if he tries acting out. Non lethal things, of course.” Apex reassures them. “Good. Oscar may hate me, but he and his body are all I’ve known for decades.” Tempo sighs. They feel tired and drained from everything. “You are tired, we will stand guard and keep Oscar in line if he returns while you sleep.” Headbanga says. “Sounds like a plan. And thank you all for being understanding of our condition, it’s a nice change.”