Red Alert

Synopsis
Three years have passed since the last anomaly occurred. Therefore, it is hardly unsurprising when a new one opens in the GDG's new base. It is even more shocking when the anomaly leads to a twisted universe ruled by one of Drauss's old enemies.

Plot
GDG base

Drauss is standing on a steel balcony on the edge of the base, looking out over the expansive beach below. Clad in a blue t-shirt and black trousers, he's sipping a can of something; as the camera zooms in on him the label on the can becomes legible and reads "Rune Blast". He turns round, away from the balcony, and sits on a chair. He lays the drink down on a table by his side, and picks up a book, "The Coal Rocks - A definitive history". Suddenly, a jet shoots past the edge of the balcony. Drauss watches it, then continues reading. The door hisses and slides open. Drauss turns to see who it is - it's Kairie.

"Hey 'Rie!" he says.

"Hey," she replies, smiling. They share a brief kiss, then Kairie stands up and leans on the banister. She's wearing jeans and a pink shirt. The sunlight dances on her gold hair.

"What's going on down below?" Drauss asks.

"Oh, nothing much," she responds, "The guys are all in the simulators, Creeth and Mordi are arguing about something or other, and Thyra's playing a guitar in her quarters. Cratus is, predictably, in the cargo bay. Other than that, nothing."

Drauss sighs. "Remember when we couldn't go a day without action?"

"Sure, who doesn't?"

"It's so boring nowadays, we barely do anything!"

"We've got each other," points out Kairie.

"You know what I mean, 'Rie. We used to get excitement from all sorts of stuff - remember the anomalies?"

"'Course."

"Now, pretty much all the excitement we get is from doing crazy maneuvers in a Wyvernfighter!"

"Well..." Kairie began, but she stopped. The base's siren, silent for so long, had started to wail.

"Hold that thought," smiled Drauss, as the door swished open. A Gnome came waddling in.

"Sir! You won't believe this - there's a new anomaly!"

Roll the titles

Beach

Drauss and Kairie run across the sands from the huge steel bulkhead doors that despite their size are incomparable with the towering base behind them. The anomaly is glowing over the sand, with the other Prodigies standing around in casual dress. A group of security troops swiftly follow Drauss and Kairie, and behind them a group of three tanks along with a dozen jeeps are trundling across the sand. Cratus is sitting in the lead jeep, which accelerates out of the column and fishtails round, screeching to a halt next to the small congregation. Cratus leaps out and jogs over to Drauss's side.

"Cratus wonders what's going on?"

"Right in front of you, Craty-boy!" Urtur says in the way of a reply.

Cratus opens his mouth to respond, then closes it, simply staring at the anomaly in front of them. One of the security squad's members runs up to Drauss clutching a laptop-like device.

"Sir? Remember how we got up a satellite and sent it back to the first anomalies to monitor what time period led to?"

"Sure. Where does this come from?"

"Um... it wasn't catalogued."

Drauss turns and faces the trooper with an air of disbelief.

"You what?"

"This anomaly has not... yet... existed."

"Aftershock of Angeror's blast?" suggests Mordi.

"No ma'am. We know that Angeror can't do anything now - hes dead."

"Then who...?"

"Stand back." Creeth orders.

"What?" asks Drauss.

"I said, stand back. Do you trust by precognitive abilities or what?"

"Better do as she says. Come on, everyone, back off."

They all edge back, until they are several metres away from the anomaly.

"Now wh-" Doarle begins, but his breath is snatched away from him as a massive explosion bursts through the anomaly. For several seconds a massive ball of flame erupts through the anomaly, scorching and blasting the sand. Then, a voice can be heard.

"Did it work? Did it? It better have - do you dare displease the Emperor?"

"I recognise that voice..." says Kairie, ominously.

"Me too." adds Drauss.

"Who is it?" Mordi asks.

"Have you forgotten? It's -"

Right then, a figure steps through the anomaly. He's tall, he's wearing his gold hair in carefully arranged dreads, his face is old but deceivingly young. A very slight goatee is detectable on his face. His eyes are blue and gleam, but gleam of evil. He is in a huge black suit, which looks like leather but the careful shapes, delicate patterns, and brilliant gleam shows that it's made of some kind of metal. It's studded with diamonds of the utmost brilliance, white shells that glint in the sun. He's wearing gloves that are made of a fabric that seems both bulky but dexterous and comfortable, and tiny lines of writing cover them. A billowing cape waves gently in the slight breeze. Around his belt a variety of weapons are slung, from beautifully crafted rifles, to grenades that are perfectly, seamlessly rounded, to even a shining sword of a metal that resembles but obviously is far stronger than gold. He grins confidently.

"It works. It really works. I am in another universe - the other universe - the one that I have always wished to conquer."

"You...?"

"Oh yes, it's me. And it's you! Drauss! Fortunately I have managed to erase you from my ancestry ever since that pitiful affair when I crushed the will of your feeble self in my home universe. And the rest of you! Why, I haven't seen you in... three millenia! And I hope I never will! Why? Because you're freaks. Especially you, you little thing. What was your name? Er.. Boxy? Basketio? Oh, yes. Cratus! Did you know your species has barely the intelligence of a gnat?"

"You're not welcome here."

"Me? Why would I not be welcome here? After all, we've met before! Surely you must remember commander - no, I haven't gone by that title for twelve million years... Emperor Zell?"

Advert break (certain channels)

Beach

"Leave this universe. Now!" commands Drauss.

"You? Scum? Ordering me to leave 'your universe'? I don't think so. You see, I have created an empire spanning an entire universe. I have brought my empire back from a chaotic time and allowed it to grow since the dawn of time. I come from a technological utopia where you can see the dawn of time and the end of creation in an hour. I certainly think that as a god to all of that, a protoplasm-of-a-brain can hardly have the authority to order me to leave his backwater, dystopian universe."

"You may be the lord of a trillion galaxies, but you cannot take this universe without a fight," Drauss sneers.

"Oh, I agree. But it will be a very short fight."

"Really?" says Thyra, "Then fight this!" She whips an E-Pistol out of her back pocket, sets it to high, and fires a short burst at Zell. The beam hits the armour, which glows blue, but quickly dies down.

"Hah!" laughs Zell, "This armour is Myrocose Crystillate from the moons of Glafar IV - completely invulnerable to energy weaponry!"

"How about acid?" asks Doarle, producing a Battery Blaster.

"What?" Zell exclaims, suddenly defensive.

"Let's give it a test."

"No!" cries out Zell, but Doarle has already fired the gun. Four canisters are rushing towards his armour, and the moment they hit huge areas of red blossom around the impact. The armour begins to steam in the affected areas as the acid eats away.

"Yah!" Zell yells as he hits a button on a control panel connected to his belt. The sizzling stops, but the ugly gashes remain. "This means war!" he shouts.

"Then war it is," replies Drauss, "Let's see who wins."

Zell glares at them, then walks back through the anomaly. As he disappears through, Drauss turns to one of the security troopers and says:

"Set up a perimeter around the anomaly. If anything comes through, alert me. If it is hostile, destroy it. Set up an incendiary too, in case things get dangerous."

"Sir."

"Come on, people. I will videoconferance King Lance. Cratus will join me. The rest of you, get your armour on and wait for further orders."

"Ten-four."

The group splits up, running back to the base.

Conference room

Drauss and Cratus are sitting on chairs in a large conference room, dominated by a long, frosted glass table. The walls are red but lit with yellow lights, and curve round to form an extended oval. Ferns are scattered in pots at regular intervals. But Drauss and Cratus are not looking at this; rather, a very large screen at one end of the room. King Lance is looking back at them.

"So what does this mean?" he asks.

"As I said, your Majesty," replies Drauss, "We are in greater danger than ever before. But not blatant danger - that is basically safer, as you can run away. No, we are going to be in a war - a secret, deadly, undercover war."

"And should anyone know about this?"

"You, your highest staff, and maybe some important officials. And of course the rulers of the other Kingdoms. But aside from them, no one."

"Gotcha. So, how long are we looking at this war lasting?"

"We cannot tell. We can't even guess. We could be fighting long after the war has ended."

"How so?"

"Timestream," Cratus interjects, "They can attack us at any point in the past or future. So even if we won in, say, a year, the first battle might have taken place - or be taking place - five years into the future."

"I see. Is there anything we can do to help?"

Drauss replies: "Perhaps the best you can do is to sign a declaration with the GDG promising the Asgarnian Marine Corps GDG weaponry. Other than that, no, not really."

"Very well. Contact me if you have any news."

"I'm sure we will soon, your Majesty."

"And it better be good news."

"We'll try, your Majesty."

The conference screen fades to black.

"So what do we do now?" Cratus asks.

"If we're gonna be able to effectively fight them, we'll need to find a way of creating our own anomalies."

"How shall we do that?"

"Well, Zell came through the anomaly from what seemed to be a test lab. Obviously, if we'll find any anomaly creation devices, they'll be in there."

"Excellent!" cries Cratus, "I'll get my armour."

"See you down on the beach!" says Drauss, as they part through different doors.

Advert break (certain channels)

Beach

The Prodigies, Drauss and Cratus are gathered round the anomaly. Behind them a huge network of machinegun nests, walls and vehicles has been created to destroy any possible threats.

"So are we all clear?" asks Drauss.

The Prodigies nod.

"Then let's roll!" he cries. The Prodigies and Cratus cheer. Drauss pulls his helmet down, flicks his visor down, and runs through the anomaly.

Parallel universe test lab

Instantly, Drauss emerges on the other side of the anomaly in a massive steel bunker. Catwalks span the ceiling, and armed guards walk across. Technicians in white coats walk around. But they all stop when they see Drauss. And then, as Thyra and La'ab rush through, the alarm bells start ringing. The armed guards raise guns that look like massive mortars and fire at the emerging stream of Prodigies. Huge bowling-ball sized spheres of energy tumble through the air. Drauss raises his Assault Laser and fires. He rakes the chests of two guards, sending them tumbling from the catwalks to the ground down below.

"Kill 'em!" Drauss yells. In no time the air is thick with laser fire. Drauss blasts twice into the air, before getting down and rolling under a metal desk. Inside, he runs his finger down a glowing blue panel on his armour. A hatch opens up, providing a grenade of swirling blue, like a glorified atom. Quickly, he stubs his finger onto a tiny grey mesh on one side. As the arms of swirling particles around it start to spin faster until they are just a blur Drauss chucks the grenade over the top of the desk to the other side. A blue hemisphere erupts on the other side, as the ground beneath Drauss shakes; seconds later he rolls back out.

Quickly, amidst a stream of green particles ripping through the air behind him, he runs up to a panel inside the small grey square he now occupies. He leaps as the green bolts start to singe his light brown hair and lands just on the other side of the panel and the wall it is attached to. Carefully he leans back over and stabs a few buttons at random. A hissing, metallic noise emerges; as Drauss looks up he sees a number of disco-lamp-like turrets enter from holes in the ceiling and pelt streams of fire down in the smoke-shrouded battlefield.

"Wrong button!" Drauss scowls. He leans back over and stabs another random set of buttons. This time floodlights start with thunderous booms and move this way and that, scanning the haze with their beams. "Bit better," Drauss mutters, then sprints across the corridor running beside the panel. Ahead is a steel door - he turns his Laser around and smashes the panel beside. Sparks fly whilst the door slides open very slightly. Drauss claws it open, then rushes into the darkened room beyond.

Once inside, he slaps the side of his helmet, causing two high-powered white-blue beams of light to illuminate the room. A guard is sitting on a chair, facing a computer away from Drauss. Drauss pulls out an E-Pistol, slides it to it's lowest setting, and fires at the man's neck. Unconscious, the man slumps down to the floor. Drauss grins, then moves across the room, to the side of the computer panel, to another door. He breaks it open.

Meanwhile, back outside, Cratus is hunching down behind a control panel. He holds a Quad Shotgun, and is reloading it. The moment it is ready he lifts it back up and places it on the rail that runs on top of the control panel. He fires. A small crab-like robot in black floating around explodes as the pellets tear it apart. Suddenly, there is an explosion on the far side of the control panel. Cratus ducks down as the shockwave balloons over his head. Carefully, he peeks out over the railing, to see a large gun hanging from tracks beneath one of the catwalks aiming at him. The gun's barrel swivels and glows green, charging up. Just as it fires, Cratus rolls over behind another control panel. The other panel is vaporised. Cratus looks over again, to see the gun still staring at him, charging up again. He rolls over to the left again - but his attempted hiding place disappears as the shot intended for him hits the control panel instead. Too late to stop himself, Cratus rolls into a large hole, falling straight down.

He hits the floor hard. A guard, standing in the red-lit room turns to face him. His rough-shaven face is twisted into a mocking smile. "Yer a kinda stocky alien, ain't cha?"

Cratus stares back with his deep black eyes, then barks from his crocodilian mouth, "Stocky alien this!" He swings his shotgun round and clubs the guard round the side of the head. He falls with a bump onto the rough grey floor. Cratus quickly scrambles up and runs to a door, placing the shotgun's barrels on it and firing. The metal application buckles and is thrown out of it's place.

Drauss runs through another door, emerging onto a wide corridor. He is confronted by a huge selection of doors to choose from. Instinctively, he smashes open the door immediately in front of him. A strange beast with massive jaws and mechanical implants roars at him. Drauss immediately slams the door shut on the creature's nose. He then turns and runs down the corridor, until he reaches the end.

"No door." He pants. Then, as he turns to face the way he came, he is suddenly shot up by a lift. He suddenly emerges on the level of one of the catwalks.

"That's useful!" he says, then runs onto the steel mesh of the catwalk. A fully-armoured soldier turns to face him, and then runs. Drauss stands back and sticks his foot out. The soldier trips, slams onto the metal deck, and Drauss kicks him off. The soldier is too surprised to scream as he tumbles off the deck and slams onto a grating that buckles beneath the weight. The soldier falls into a glowing pit.

"Tut tut," says Drauss, "Never forget the magnetic boots."

Another soldier, this time without armour but with an intimidatingly powerful weapon, turns to face Drauss. The soldier pulls a small object from the side of his armour, then flicks a button, to reveal a shimmering, obviously energy-based machete. Drauss reels back slightly, and starts to walk backwards - but suddenly something hits the soldier. It falls to the floor. The soldier, assured that Drauss is to scared to stop him, picks the object up. Right then, as he holds it to his face, the grenade explodes.

"Did I hit him?" crackles a voice on Drauss's radio.

"Yeah, good shot 'Rie!" Drauss says.

"You can always tell you'll make a good couple if one has eagle-eye vision."

"Yeah, I know. Thanks."

"Anytime, sugar."

Drauss smiles, then moves on. Two guards turn to face him at once; Drauss quickly finishes them off with a long blast from his laser. Drauss runs the rest of the catwalk, passing by a number of shocked guards. As he reaches the end, he raises his laser, and fires at the lifting struts of the catwalk. Instantly it plunges, taking all those on it with it. He runs up a set of stairs, turning to see another catwalk.

"Oh, not again!" he moans as he runs across it, firing.

"Drauss! Drauss! Are you there!" says a voice.

"Gotcha, Yargther. What?"

"There's one of those naptha-turrets right nearby. Could you take it out for us?"

"Where?"

"Well... I suggest you duck."

Drauss bent over just in time to avoid a stream of flames passing over his head. As it finishes, he turns to face the huge black disco-lamp turret and it's nozzle gazing at him. Drauss quickly fires at the struts, causing it first screech as the holders melt and bend, then finally fall.

"Man, that thing's got a fiery temper. Hey, I should write these down!"

Drauss continues along the catwalk, eventually arriving on the other side. He is faced with a corridor, with a door at the end. He hurries down it and slams open the door, kicking it shut behind him.

"Nice of you to drop by, Drauss."

"I know that voice..."

Advert break (certain channels)

Drauss turns to face Zell, standing and facing him, holding an E-Pistol inches from his face. Zell smiles.

"Well, well, well," Zell sneers, "What do we have here?"

Drauss lowers his Assault Laser

"Um... me?"

"No, that's not it."

"Erm... I know! You've got an E-Pistol! A stolen GDG E-Pistol!"

"Nope."

"How about... ah, that's it! Your ego - of course!"

"Be quiet Drauss. We both know that with a twitch I could put the power of a thousand atomic bombs into your face. And the answer is, I have a stupid, moronic, scheming, two-legged pig standing where you are."

"That's a rubbish insult."

"SILENCE! Only speak when you are spoken to."

"Look, what is it?"

Zell started to walk around Drauss, always keeping his E-Pistol levelled at Drauss's head.

"I've been thinking Drauss. Did you know? Of what to do with your universe. Should I conquer it? Burn it? Or should I make it my sandpit? Well, I've decided that it's more fun to destroy it."

"Starting with me?"

"Ah, but that would take the fun out of it! You're so compassionate, you love the world so much, it would be a shame for you not to see it happening."

"You're going to kill me after you destroy Gielinor?"

"Just after Gielinor? The first conflict? Why no, that would be boring. Instead, I'll keep you with my fleets all the time. Front row seats to every stellar nova, every genocide. That way, I'll put you through pain!"

Right then, Drauss heard a voice in his ear.

"Drauss? Drauss? This is Creeth. Cough if you can hear me - actually, don't bother. I can see you coughing in the future. Okay, now listen. Zell isn't going to do what he says. He's going to kill you right here, right now. He's going to fire the E-Pistol just as he says greatest ruler ever. The moment he starts to say that, bend over, okay? Good."

"...for my armies will rip apart every rogue star, trample over every rebellious fool. And then they will see that I'm the greatest ruler ever!"

FZZZT!!!

A blue beam shoots out from where Drauss's head had been the second before. It keeps on going, and hist the wall, where it glows slightly, then dims down.

"W-w-what?"

"You were saying?"

"How did you know...?"

"Drauss? He's going to try again as he says nevertheless. Sidestep right."

"Nevertheless,"

FZZZT!!!

Another beam spits harmlessly by Drauss.

"How are you...? Can you tell the future?"

"Drauss! Whatever you do, don't say one of us can!"

"One of us... may."

"Cratus is coming from the door behind Zell. He will arrive the moment Zell blinks twice."

Zell stares at Drauss. He is quivering.

"How? How in all the...?"

-Blink-blink-

BANG!

The door falls inwards, and Cratus comes through.

"Drop it!" Cratus yells. Zell, shocked, lets the E-Pistol slip out of his hands. "Go!" Cratus cries, and the two run back out the way Drauss had come in. They thunder across the catwalk, round, down the stairs, round -

Nothingness.

"Oops." Drauss says, as they stop in front of the drop.

"Um, Drauss? Gel-armour?"

"Oh, yeah!" Drauss leaps of the ledge, and fell five metres - before hitting the ground softly and standing up. Cratus followed.

"Let's go! Move!" Drauss orders, as soldiers start to pour out from doors around the chamber. The Prodigies gather up and run through the anomaly. Drauss reaches round for his backpack, and grasps a grey cylinder. Inside is a blue mush. As he passes the anomaly control panel, he wrenches a master switch to the off position, before balancing a grenade there.

"Anomaly - closing," a metallic voice announces. As the switch is engulfed in the grenade's explosion, Drauss shoves Cratus through, then drops the blue cylinder on the floor. It smashes, and the blue mush starts to spread rapidly.

"Anomaly - five seconds until closure."

"5... 4... 3... 2... 1..."

Drauss leaps through the sparkling portal and emerges on the soft beach on the other side, inside the defence perimeter set up earlier. Behind him, the anomaly implodes, winking out of existence. He lies in the sand, panting, Cratus beside him. The two pull each other up.

"Wow," Thyra says.

"Yeah," La'ab pants. The group looked back at where the anomaly had been. Drauss wrenches off his helmet.

"Pack up, guys." He says to the number of troops all around.

"Nice work everyone," he tells the Prodigies, "That'll make him think twice before he comes here again."

"Will he?"

"Of course. But it'll be quite a while. Thanks to our Nanoconsume back there."

"Drauss?"

"Yes, 'Rie?"

"Don't you owe someone a thanks?"

"Oh, yeah. Creeth - thanks so much for getting me out of trouble back there.

"No problem, boss." Creeth shrugged, smiled, and brushed back her ginger hair.

"Well everyone, that's some damn good work. Remember, they'll be back. But until then, we can rest."

The others turn and walk back to the base. But Drauss stays on the beach, looking out to sea. He mutters, again,

"They'll be back..."

Roll the credits!