Our story begins in space, where a flying saucer is observing the Earth. The strange beings inside are the Klandorians, and they have determined our world to be suitable for conquering….
The object hovered over the Earth, its advanced technologies and mechanisms simultaneously keeping itself hidden from the planet’s many space sensors while allowing it to observe and learn about the world.
“Leader! We’ve completed our scans of the Earth,” announced one of the three bug-faced aliens at the circular console that took up the front half of the control room. Like all the others, he wore a white robe with loose sleeves and a hood tied to his antennae. His sharp teeth were occasionally visible behind his pincers that surrounded his mouth. “There are many different types of Earthlings, all with different manners of dress and cuisine.”
“Bah! Not for long! It is suitable for our needs. Earth will soon belong to the Klandorians!” declared the leader from his throne in the center. He focused his beady eyes on the main view screen, taking in the view of the blue planet.
One of the consoles began to beep, and a crew member pressed a button next to it. “Leader, our sensors are detecting the presence of two powerful beings in an area called ‘Herald City’!”
An image of two figures clad in blue tights and white capes appeared on the screen. The pair flew through the air with their arms outstretched, their faces and bodies marked with confidence.
“Their names are Blue Eagle and Switch the Blue Eaglet. They are far stronger than the average earthling,” reported the crewman. “They would pose a threat to our mission.”
“A threat, indeed. But not to us,” said the Leader. He pointed to the screen and ordered, “Fire the upgraded Duplicato-Ray! Let’s use their power against them.”
A zigzagging yellow beam fired from the belly of the ship. It entered Earth's atmosphere over Herald City, where Blue Eagle and Switch were flying through the air. Their flight wasn’t too far, a safe distance where Switch could easily make it even with his power limitations.
The beam hit their mark without warning and enveloped the two heroes. In another second, they were gone. A second later, they reappeared out of thin air.
They landed on a nearby rooftop, watching over the rest of the city. A pair of sinister smiles crept across their faces.
And so the Klandorian spaceship flies through outer space back to its home planet carrying a precious and unwilling cargo….
“Hey, let us go, you creeps!” demanded Switch as he banged on the glass of the small containment tube he was in. To his right, Blue Eagle did the same.
The Klandorian leader’s metal throne turned to face them. “That will not be happening, Switch the Blue Eaglet. You and Blue Eagle will never see your Earth again. The planet Klandor will be your new home!”
As the alien let out a cruel laugh, Blue Eagle asked, “And I assume this Planet Klandor is your home?”
“That is right, Blue Eagle. We are the Klandorians. A people of great strength! I’m sure you gathered that by the unbreakable material your containment tubes are made of,” said the leader.
“I did. It’s very impressive. I can’t even scratch it.” He narrowed his eyes at his captor. “Now tell me why we’re going to Planet Klandor.”
“It’s simple. We plan on conquering Earth. Our Duplicato-Ray has replaced you with duplicates that have your very abilities,” explained the leader. “They will run roughshod over your planet, allowing us to conquer it with ease.”
“You fiend!” said Switch in anger.
“And what makes you think that will be enough to conquer our world?” pressed Blue Eagle.
“Because your people are weak and stupid,” replied the leader. “We’ve been observing you, and we know your weaknesses. You have a wide array of different peoples and cultures, and you would sooner destroy each other than work together. We, on the other hand, have one superior people with one objectively superior culture and way of life. Your fractured peoples will never stand against unified Klandorian might!”
“You’re wrong about us!” shot back Switch. “Our valuing different perspectives on our world gives us strength.”
“We’ll see about that,” said the leader. He gave an evil laugh. “You will be brought back to Klandor as slaves, a public display of the difference between your fracturing diversity and our empowering unification. And as you toil away in the mines, know that the rest of your people are meeting the same fate! Earth now belongs to the Klandorians!”
At that moment, back on Earth….
The streets in front of the Herald City First National Bank echoed with the sound of gunshots. Bank robbers stood behind the marble columns, bags of stolen money at their feet, and exchanged gunfire with police officers taking cover behind their squad cars.
“Ha ha! Take it, coppers!” exclaimed one of the robbers as he let loose a stream of automatic gunfire from his tommy gun. The hail of bullets forced the cops to hold their fire, remaining behind cover.
“We’re really in a jam,” said one of the officers. “We need Blue Eagle!”
At that moment, as if summoned by the cop’s plea, Blue Eagle arrived onto the scene, floating down with arm wrapped around Switch’s waist.
Except neither the cops nor robbers had any way of knowing the true identity of the two newcomers.
“Aw, nuts! It’s Blue Eagle!” cried one of the robbers.
“You’re right on the money, chum,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle, firing his eyebeams at the robbers’ chests, knocking them out.
“Thanks, Blue Eagle,” said one of the cops as he and his partners approached the duplicates, who were picking up the bags of money. “We couldn’t have done it without–”
He was interrupted as Duplicate Blue Eagle slammed the money bag into his head, causing him to soar through the air and land on the hood of a squad car.
“That’s right, you worthless maggot. You couldn’t have done it without us. So we’ll just be taking our payment,” said the fake superhero. “Come, Switch. Let’s go figure out where we want to spend our money.”
“Right behind you,” said Duplicate Switch as he followed his “father”, who took to the skies.
News of Blue Eagle’s seeming betrayal reaches the ears of the Chief of Police, who wishes to verify this for himself….
“Blue Eagle, Switch. Good of you to come,” said the Chief as the duplicates entered his office.
“What is it, Chief? We’re busy at the moment dealing with crime,” asked Duplicate Blue Eagle pointedly.
“Well, that’s exactly what I wanted to ask you about,” said the Chief. He chuckled nervously. “I’ve heard that you attacked my officers and stole money from the bank. Naturally, I didn’t want to believe it, but I couldn’t dismiss it either. So I wanted to get your side of the story.”
“Our side of the story? Sure, Chief. Switch, you want to tell him our side of the story?” asked Duplicate Blue Eagle.
Duplicate Switch sneered as he activated his superstrength. He raised his fist and smashed through the Chief’s desk.
“What-what-what are you doing?” cried the Chief in shock.
Duplicate Blue Eagle laughed. “I said we were busy at the moment dealing with crime. Committing crime!”
“That’s right, Chief. We won’t be at your beck and call anymore!” added Switch.
“But, Herald City relies on you!” said the Chief.
“Is that so? Then it seems like we should take over Herald City. And then the world!” laughed Blue Eagle as he grabbed Switch and through the ceiling, bursting through and leaving a pile of debris all over the office.
Far away, on the distant Planet Klandor, the spacecraft enters the atmosphere and then descends into a mineral mine hidden beneath the surface. Now docked, the ship provides two new slaves to work the mines….
The rocky ground parted as the craft descended into the atmosphere of the reddish brown planet. The hidden door split open to allow the ship to descend, then closed back up again. In the vast underground were countless workers, toiling away with pickaxes and sledgehammers, breaking down rock under the watchful eye of guards dressed identically to the crew of the ship. These guards, however, were taller than the crew and more muscular, with white skin and wider pincers around their mouths.
Along the far wall of the cavernous mine was a four-story castle with multiple spires that reached almost fully to the top. A metal tube connected the side of the ship to the top of one of the lower spires.
Minutes later, the ship’s crew led Blue Eagle and Switch into the mines, their wrists in shackles and chains and their ankles similarly restrained.
“Move it, prisoners!” ordered the leader. “Into the mines for all the rest to see! You are the greatest of your world, yet nothing before our collective might!”
Blue Eagle’s ears pricked upward. “Strange. I could have sworn I heard a strange sound when the leader spoke.”
“What was it?” asked Switch.
“Silence!” ordered the leader as he handed over the shackled superheroes to the slavemasters.
“Ah, new slaves for our mines,” said one of the guards as he and another Klandorian handed the superheroes pickaxes. “Now, start working! And don’t even try to think of breaking out of your chains. They are completely unbreakable to even the strongest of beings.”
The guards stepped away to survey the entire mine, leaving the superheroes under supervision but not specifically being watched. They looked at their pickaxes, then each other, and back at their pickaxes.
“What do we do now?” asked Switch.
“It’s simple,” said Blue Eagle, lifting his pickaxe over his head. He slammed it into a rock. “Start digging. We’re slaves now. Until we figure out how to break out, at least.”
“Gosh, what a pickle, Blue Eagle,” said Switch glumly as he followed suit. “We’re stuck here on this alien planet as slaves while duplicates of us wreak havoc on Earth. How are we gonna get out of this?”
“Best not to think about it stranger,” said one of the other slaves.
A group of seven or eight had paused to share a glimpse at their new “coworkers”. They looked like Klandorians, except rather than the dark brown humanoid bugs in white robes that brought them here or the muscular white ones that guarded them, these creatures ran a gamut of different colors. From magenta to neon and everything in between. They were also skinny and wore loincloths and boots as attire. It seemed like their faces and claws were their only bug-like features.
“We’ve been slaves here for many years. And unfortunately, such is your fate, too,” said the alien, an elderly man with dark crimson skin. “You’re going to want to focus on how best to avoid the guards’ ire rather than on any wacky fantasies of escape.”
“Sorry, friend, but we can’t stay here,” said Blue Eagle. “We’re needed back on Earth.”
“Who are these turkeys anyway?” asked Switch. “Where do they get the idea that they can just force people to work as slaves like this?”
“That’s just how the master Klandorians are. Their superiority allows them to dominate, so this is the way it is,” said a bright green man.
“But who are they? And who are you? What happened on this planet?” asked Blue Eagle.
“We, like the slavers, are Klandorians,” explained the elderly man. “Klandor was once a beautiful planet where all different types of races and creeds of Klandorian lived together, with thriving cultures that never saw one as better than the other. We interacted peacefully with each other. That changed when the group that abducted you decided they were superior to everyone else. They had great physical strength, but we don’t value life in that way. But they do, and they used their strength to take over the planet and enslave us all.”
“And you just let them do it?” said Switch. “Why don’t you fight back? There’s more of you than there are of them. You can take them.”
The old man shook his head. “It’s hopeless. Their power is too great.”
“Not with us on your side.”
“That’s right, Switch,” said Blue Eagle. “On our world, we are champions of good. We have strength beyond that of ordinary men. Though it’s not enough to break these chains, it should be enough to help you if you can bring it in you to fight back.”
“If breaking the chains isn’t possible, then getting the key and unlocking them would be our only option,” said a girl, apparently around Switch’s age, with bright orange skin. “I’m good at sneaking around and stealing extra food from the guard pantry. I can swipe the key to our chains from the guard when he’s not looking.”
Blue Eagle gave her a grin. “Perfect. It will be dangerous, but it will be worth it if you can break us out. With us by your side, these slavers won’t stand a chance.”
“You certainly give us hope, Blue Eagle. I believe you when you say that you are a hero on your world,” said the old man with a kind smile behind his pincer mouth. “I will let the other prisoners know so they will be ready to join the fight.”
“Good. We strike tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, back on Earth, where the Chief of Police and other city officials have been summoned by the Mayor to City Hall….
The Mayor of Herald City sat at the head of the rectangular table, the Chief of Police to his right, and other officials sitting around it.
“Gentlemen,” he began, “this is a day we could never have imagined. Blue Eagle and Switch the Blue Eaglet have turned on us, and are preparing to conquer the city. We must not allow them to–”
As quickly as their meeting began, the sound of gunfire could be heard from outside.
“What is going on?” said the Mayor.
Outside, police officers in front of the entrance fired their service revolvers at the duplicate duo, who had just arrived. Duplicate Switch stood in front of what everyone else would have believed to have been his father, bullets bouncing off his invulnerable body.
“Keeping firing, knuckleheads! You’ll run out of bullets long before you even tickle me,” he said with a taunting laugh.
Picking up a nearby car, Duplicate Blue Eagle held it over his head. “Need a lift?” he said with a confident smile on his face, tossing the vehicle at the cops.
The police officers ran from their position just in time as the car landed and exploded.
“Quickly, Switch! Into the building!” ordered Duplicate Blue Eagle as he ran through the now-broken front door, his sidekick right behind him.
“Great Scott! Is there nothing that can stop them?” wondered one of the police officers in awe.
Inside, two police guards stood at the end of a hallway, brandishing sleek wooden rifles.
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“Look out! It’s Blue Eagle and Switch!” cried one of them as the Duplicate Duo entered the hallway. “Stop them from getting to the Mayor!”
They opened fire, but the bullets continued to bounce off of Duplicate Switch’s invulnerable body.
“I don’t have much longer until I’m in cooldown,” he advised.
“Then let’s clear out these law-loving losers in record time,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle.
The cops were in shock as Duplicate Blue Eagle grabbed Duplicate Switch, who rolled up into a ball. Duplicate Blue Eagle rolled his sidekick down the hallway like a bowling ball, the impact sweeping the two men off their feet.
“Strike!” exclaimed Duplicate Blue Eagle.
“With these two weaklings?” said Duplicate Switch, getting to his feet. “Felt like a gutter ball.”
Seconds later, the superpowered invaders burst into the meeting room, startling the Mayor, Chief, and all the rest.
“I’d like to voice my concerns to my elected officials like a good citizen,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle mockingly.
“Blue Eagle! Why are you doing this? Have you gone mad?” cried the Chief.
“Mad? Yes, Chief, I have.” Duplicate Blue Eagle grabbed the Chief by his collar and lifted him into the air. “Mad that I’ve been given nothing during all my time as your savior. Mad that I have to live as an equal amongst you weaklings. Mad that I am not your ruler. But that changes now.” To the Mayor, he said, “Surrender this city to me immediately, or else he will be the first I eliminate.”
A flash of anger crossed the Mayor’s face, followed by a look of defeat. His shoulders slumped. “There’s nothing I can do. You win, Blue Eagle. Herald City is yours.”
The next day, the prisoners of Planet Klandor put their plan into action….
The female prisoner made good on her word. Early on, when standing near a guard, she “made the mistake” of “accidentally” bumping into him. “Hey! Watch where you’re going!” he scolded.
“I’m sorry, sir!” she said apologetically before rushing back to her work. But once the guard’s eyes were off her, she smirked as she looked at the key in her hands. A successful pickpocket.
As Blue Eagle, Switch, and the other prisoners broke down rocks, she rushed over to them. “I got it,” she whispered.
“Great! Now, quickly, unlock as many chains as you can before they catch you,” Blue Eagle told her as she quietly went to work.
Blue Eagle and Switch were quickly freed. She then freed a large slave with white skin and big muscles who looked very similar to the guards, then a bright blue slave holding a sledgehammer, then one of a faded yellow color.
Over a dozen slaves had been freed–not including Earth’s superheroes–when a guard saw her inserting the key into a prisoner’s leg shackles. “Emergency! Emergency!” he shouted. “The prisoners are escaping!”
“Uh oh! Guess the cat’s outta the bag,” said Switch.
Blue Eagle’s brow furrowed. “Strange. I heard that strange sound again just as the guard shouted. What could it be?”
“I don’t think that matters right now!” replied Switch as a swarm of guards came rushing at them. They brandished long, purple staffs with glass bulbs at the end.
“Subdue the prisoners!” shouted the lead guard.
“Let’s get them!” yelled a prisoner.
One prisoner rushed a guard with his pickaxe. The guard pointed his staff at him, rings of intense light emanating from the bulb and washing over the prisoner. It was a stun rod, and the prisoner groaned and fell to his knees, dropping his weapon.
Two other slaves leapt onto the guard’s back. A third one dived into his midsection, tackling him to the ground.
Blue Eagle turned toward the girl. “Keep freeing every prisoner you can,” he told her. “Switch and I will take care of our attackers.”
Pushing off his legs, he flew forward at a group of eight guards rushing toward him, his outstretched hands mowing through them and sending them flying.
Switch used his superspeed to maneuver around stun waves that were fired at him. In a blur, he plucked a rod out of a guard’s hands.
“Why don’t you boys take a knee?” he teased as he fired the stun rod, sending five guards to their knees with one strategically placed blast.
“I think you two should take a rest,” taunted Blue Eagle, holding two guards above his head, one hand on each of their backs. He tossed them away as easily as beach balls.
The battle was in full swing now as prisoners battled guards. The guards were stronger, but the prisoners outnumbered them.
Blue Eagle gasped and fell to his knees as the stun rings of one of the guards’ weapons overtook him.
“Even you are no match for our advanced weaponry,” laughed the guard.
With a smile, Blue Eagle said, “Perhaps you should see what it feels like.”
“Why would I be hit with a–” were the guard’s last words before being hit with a stun rod blast.
“Great work, Blue Eaglet!” said Blue Eagle to Switch, who stood behind the guard with a stun rod. He picked up the guard and threw him into two more rushing towards him.
As more prisoners were freed, they started to push back against the guards. One threw a rock that knocked a guard onto his back. Three more piled onto another and took him down.
A wave of guards rushed at Blue Eagle and Switch, who stood side by side. With superstrength-fueled uppercuts, the superheroes knocked the guards out of sight one by one.
But more guards poured in seemingly from nowhere. The tide began to turn, and prisoners were either getting stunned or tossed aside like rag dolls.
One guard grabbed Switch in a bear hug from behind. “Hey! Get off me, you big oaf!” said the 12 year old boy as he struggled mightily to escape the guard’s unbreakable grip. “You just wait until my powers reactivate!”
Blue Eagle was busy keeping three guards at bay. Two he pushed away with his hands while he kept a third away with his foot.
“Oh no! Switch! I’ll be right there!” he cried as he saw his son in danger.
“No, prisoner! The only place you’re going is into the punishment hole!” threatened a guard.
“There, again. That strange sound, every time one of them speaks,” said Blue Eagle to himself. He looked around, trying to see if he could tell where it came from.
He found himself looking at the rocky castle that sat at the far end of the mines. And then at the highest pointed spire, towering above everything.
“Hmm, I wonder. Could it be?” He flew upwards as fast as he could, pushing the guards away. “Sorry, gentlemen! I’ll be right back. I just want to check on a hunch.”
He ascended high into the air until he was hovering over the castle.
“I hope I’m right,” he said to himself as he headed over to the top of the highest tower.
Wrapping his fingers around the tip of the spire, he began to pull upwards. He gritted his teeth and grunted, his mighty muscles flexing with power. Soon, concrete and stone began scrape and tear, and the sound of heavy debris falling filled the mines. The tower slowly began to rise, pulled off its base by the mightiest man on Earth.
“I-Impossible! He just ripped that tower off like it was nothing!” cried a guard.
Tossing the tower aside, Blue Eagle eyed the creatures he found within.
They looked like the dark brown Klandorians that had kidnapped and enslaved them, but different. They were smaller, more frail. Their bodies were withered, their eyes saggy and tired. They also wore helmets with a single antenna on each one.
There were about two dozen of them. And they all stared up at the floating figure in shock and fear.
“Of course! Those helmets must be sending signals to the guards. The sounds I was hearing were transmissions from these withered creatures. But if the transmissions were sent every time a guard spoke….” Blue Eagle narrowed his eyes. “Only one way to find out.”
He flew over them, grabbing each antenna and snapping it off. The aliens put up no resistance, only recoiling with fear and indignation.
The guards all collapsed. The battle was over.
The prisoners were freed.
“And now, gentlemen,” said Blue Eagle sternly as the sounds of cheering slaves wafted up to his ears, “I think you have some things to answer for.”
Minutes later….
The withered aliens were brought into the mines by Blue Eagle. All of the prisoners, now freed, gathered to see the true faces of their captors while the two newcomers from Earth listened to the story of Planet Klandor.
“We are the true form of them,” said one who acted as speaker for the decrepit bugs, pointing to the collapsed and unconscious guards. “We are the Klandorians. The true Klandorians. The superior Klandorians. And the others we share this planet with were jealous and filled with hate over our greatness, so they created some insidious plot that caused us to deteriorate over generations.”
“That is a lie!” said the elderly prisoner. “What he says is a thousands-year old myth made to inspire hatred against other groups. You are like this because of countless years of complacency.”
“What about the guards we fought? And the ones that brought us here? You controlled them with your helmets. Explain that,” said Blue Eagle.
“With our superior minds, we created the Duplicato-Ray, which allows to create exact duplicates of the physically strongest race on this world–a particularly dumb race of Klandorian–and operate the duplicates’ bodies using our Duplicato-Mental Transmission Helmets,” said the lead captive.
“You speak of my people!” accused the large white prisoner, pointing at him. “My people have been accused of having low intelligence for generations, but you’ve yet to ever show evidence of it. We are just as smart as any other race on this planet, and no one believes your hateful lies!”
“Oh, but it is true,” the withered leader said. “All of what I say is true. Our breed is the superior breed of Klandorian. And this defeat is only a temporary setback. Our people and our culture will soon be the only one on both Klandor and Earth. After all, different types of people cannot get along. This diversity leads only to harm and chaos for society. With only one people and culture, we have a society where everyone lives in harmony.”
“Shame on you!” scolded Blue Eagle, pointing an accusing finger at the man. The withered aliens shied away pathetically. “Shame on you for believing in such nonsense. That your way of life is the only way to live. On my planet, different types of people work in harmony to make the world great for everyone. We are more than the sum of our parts. But you, look at you! You’re withering away. Generations of stagnation in every area of your lives made you like this. No one did this to you. You did this to yourselves.”
He looked around at the freed slaves, all people of different color and builds. “How ironic that you thought the other races to be a stain on this planet when you need the other races to live. That completely disproves your point about different peoples and cultures living together being harmful to society,” he added.
“And now you want to do the same thing to our world. But we’re not going to let you,” said Switch. He glanced at his father. “Though that means we need to get back to Earth and stop our evil duplicates.”
Turning to the elderly man, Blue Eagle asked, “Will you all be okay without us?”
The man nodded. “We will, now that we know their weak point. Finding and destroying their helmets means they won’t be able to fight back anymore.”
“And I think we’re ready to fight,” said the orange girl. “I’m ready to take our world back. And I’m willing to share Klandor with all Klandorians. Even those who enslaved us.”
“Take their flying saucer, Blue Eagle,” added the bright green prisoner. “It will be your best bet for getting back to Earth.”
“And thank you for all you’ve done for us, “added the old man. “If it weren’t for you, we might have been living as slaves forever. I truly believe you to be heroes.”
“All in a day’s work,” assured Blue Eagle. He turned to his sidekick. “Quickly, Switch! We may have saved this world, but we must get back to our world to save it before it’s too late.”
“Right behind you!” said Switch as they both ran for the castle.
Within moments, they were in the control center of the flying saucer they were brought to Klandor on. A button-press later, and the ship began to ascend. The ceiling of the cavernous mines parted, and the ship rose into the air before leaving Klandor entirely.
Blue Eagle and Switch will need to hurry! For not too long after that on Earth, the Duplicate Duo addresses a crowd in front of City Hall….
“For far too long, I have given you my protection and you have given me nothing in return,” said the Duplicate Blue Eagle, speaking from a podium set up on a wooden platform in front of City Hall. “It’s time for that to change.”
A crowd of confused civilians watched as the man they thought was their hero gave a strange and unnerving speech. Duplicate Switch stood proudly next to him, while the Mayor, Police Chief, and other city officials sat shamefully in chairs to his other side.
“For all Switch and I have done for you people, you will now give me my just reward,” he continued. “You will recognize me as your new ruler. You will give me regular payments of gold and luxuries, you will lavish me with praise, and you will obey my every command.”
“What? He can’t be serious,” said a woman in the crowd.
“This is madness,” said a man. “This is not the Blue Eagle I know.”
“We can’t go along with something as un-American as a supreme ruler,” came a third man.
“You can and you will. And this is why you need a supreme ruler,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle. “Your system of government–your democracy–runs on getting people who can’t agree with each other to agree. Why allow inferiors to poison your society with a voice when you can have everything taken care of by a superior race of people with the correct views? First Herald City, then all of Earth will consolidate under the might of…. What is that?....” he trailed off at the sound of something far above him.
At that moment, a flying saucer approaches Earth and enters its atmosphere. From its hatch, Blue Eagle and Switch emerge ready to do battle with their alien alternates….
The trip from Klandor to Earth was short, thanks to the spacecraft’s advanced technology. Blue Eagle and Switch took their time in figuring out the functions on the main console, making sense of the many multicolored buttons and switches. They knew how to have the saucer enter Earth’s atmosphere safely, and how to open the main hatch.
And they flew out of the ship at full speed, headed toward the crowd that Blue Eagle’s supervision allowed him to see from even above the clouds. They landed on the wooden platform, where they were greeted by the eerie sight of themselves giving a speech.
“I hope I’m not interrupting anything,” said Blue Eagle. “Now I’m not big on giving speeches, but this is ridiculous.”
“Wow, Blue Eagle, look at them,” said Switch. “It’s like looking in a mirror.”
“Confounding!” exclaimed the Chief, grasping the side of his head. “There are two Blue Eagles and two Switches!”
“Not for long, Chief,” said the Duplicate Blue Eagle. “I intend to get rid of our guests at once so we can get back to my coronation.”
“That’s right, Blue Eagle. This town ain’t big enough for the two of us,” said the Duplicate Switch.
Blue Eagle wrinkled his nose. “Strange. I don’t hear the sound of hidden Klandorian signals when they speak.”
“Of course you don’t. You weren’t hit with an ordinary Duplicato-Ray. You were hit with an advanced one,” explained Duplicate Blue Eagle. “Rather than creating a lifeless duplicate that a Klandorian can use as a puppet, the upgraded one creates advanced robotic duplicates. Perfect for abnormally powerful beings like yourselves.”
“Wait, you mean you two are robots?” asked Switch in disbelief.
“That’s right,” said his duplicate, knocking on his chest. The sound of metal rang out. “We are perfect duplicates of you, with all your powers. But better.”
“Enough talk. Let’s get them, Switch!” said Duplicate Blue Eagle, launching himself toward the real one.
“Let’s test how good of a copy you are!” said the real Blue Eagle, meeting the duplicate in kind.
The two tussled in the air, each one clasping the other’s hand to avoid being grabbed.
“Gosh, I must be seeing things,” said a man in the crowd, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.
“You ain’t seeing anything we aren’t,” said another man. “That’s Blue Eagle fighting Blue Eagle!”
“And Switch fighting Switch,” added another, pointing at the two sidekicks standing face to face.
The robotic duplicate laughed. “You shouldn’t have flown earlier. I know that you are in cooldown now and can’t do anything to me. Why don’t you surrender so you don’t get hurt?”
“Wow, you really are duplicates of us, aren’t you? You sound just like me,” said Switch. “Well, if you’re so strong, why don’t you come get me?”
“You’ll be singing a different tune when I crush you with my super strength!” declared Duplicate Switch as he rushed toward the original.
Switch chuckled as he stepped to the side and stuck his foot out. “Have a nice trip!” he said playfully as his duplicate tripped over his foot.
“Yiiiii!” screamed Duplicate Switch as he flew head over heels, landing in a trash can with his feet kicking the air.
“Remember: Good citizens don’t litter,” teased Switch.
Above them, the Blue Eagles struggled in the air. They exchanged titanic blows, but no one yielded.
“Incredible! Klandorian technology is truly a marvel! If only it were used for good,” said Blue Eagle.
“I find it equally incredible that Earth can make such a powerful being equal to the weaklings that populate it. You should use your strength to dominate these people. Show them the correct way to live,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle.
“If I used my strength for that, I could never call myself strong.”
The duplicate made a two-handed grab for Blue Eagle, who moved out of the way just in time. Clutching his opponent’s cape, the real superhero spun him around and around and around before letting go, sending the duplicate rocketing towards the ground.
Duplicate Switch was still angrily pulling himself out of the garbage can when Duplicate Blue Eagle crashed into him. The result was an explosion of blue and white and dust.
And when the dust settled, the duplicates lay back to back, defeated. The Blue Eagle copy was missing his left arm, wires sparking in the socket. The right of his sidekick was in the same state.
“I can’t believe it. They defeated us so decisively,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle.
“He didn’t even use his powers against me,” murmured Duplicate Switch. “How?”
“It’s simple,” said Blue Eagle, who had landed and stood over them. “You have our physical strength, but the way of thinking of your creators. They are frail and weak and need others as slaves to work for them.”
“What? Weak? What do you mean weak?” asked Duplicate Blue Eagle in shock. “We come from the greatest people in the galaxy! The true Klandorians! They are strong! The strongest! With their guidance, all will live in peace and harmony!”
“Then why do they need slaves for their mines?” asked Switch. “If they’re so great, why couldn’t they sway people to their beliefs? Why did the slaves revolt?”
“I…. They…. Our makers are the superior Klandorians. They can’t be….equal….” whispered Duplicate Blue Eagle, his voice trailing off.
“But they lost on Klandor. And we lost to them. If they’re so superior….” started Duplicate Switch. He stared at the ground fully before a look of realization washed over him. “We’ve been had, Blue Eagle! There were no superior Klandorians! We’ve been fighting on the wrong side!”
“That’s right, Blue Eaglet,” said Duplicate Blue Eagle. “No group of people, regardless of their characteristics, should be put in a superior position over others. No one culture or belief system should be pressed onto others. If our Klandorians had learned from the others instead of subjugating them, they would be proud citizens of a prosperous world!”
The duplicate superhero turned to his “other”. “Please, help us repair ourselves and get to the ship you brought back. We wish to assist in freeing all those suffering under subjugation on Klandor. We wish to defend the planet—and all who live there—from the forces of evil!”
Blue Eagle smiled. “I think that can be arranged.”
It’s not long before the Duplicate Duo are fully repaired and, after boarding the flying saucer, off to Planet Klandor….
Blue Eagle, Switch, and the Chief watched and waved goodbye as the flying saucer took off from City Hall, leaving Earth's atmosphere for the distant planet of Klandor.
“I’ve got to say, Blue Eagle, it’s good to have you and Switch back on the side of good,” said the Chief. “I’m ashamed to say, but those copies really ran roughshod over us.”
“I wouldn’t call them copies anymore, Chief. They’re the real deal now,” said Blue Eagle, looking back at the American flag on top of City Hall. “After all, they’re off to Planet Klandor to help its people promote the core values of the United States of America: Freedom, diversity, and tolerance!”
“I hope they promote a good burger and fries there, while they’re at it. There wasn’t anything good to eat on Klandor,” added Switch as the three of them shared a laugh.