Koj, Jarek, Serra, Hawke, Rikk, Brad, Tom, and Frog Soldiers are © to Todd Dezago and Mike Wierino. Rage and Lionwarrior are © to me Chester Quaife. Tellos® is used with permission.
"Rikk! I can't believe you did that!" Hawke shcolded. "Of all the people on Tellos, you had to choose him. Didn't you!"
"I couldn't help it. It's second nature to me." Rikk agueed. "Besides, it's a cheep watch. I bet he has a thousand of them back home."
As Rikk and Hawke bickered about the watch, Serra sat on the other end of the tavern. She resently received a letter from Dani. Stangely enough it was from Hawke!!
"Why didn't I get this sooner, Dani." Serra sighed. "When did he sent this?"
"He didn't send it. He just gave it to me." Dani squeeked. "Well, actually Rikk gove it to me. I was to give it to you when you were alone. This is as alone as it gets."
Serra broke the seal and read the letter. It simply read: "Serra, I'm sorry I can't tell you thesecret that is 'Hawke'. Maybe some other time. ~ Hawke"
Serra slammed the note on the counter. The whole room turned and stared at Serra. She wasn't paying any attention to any one, but had her sights set on the elf and fox on the other side of the tavern.
Rikk's couriosity got the best of him again. He pressed on the buttons on the watch. A large gateway opened. Rikk and Hawke disappeared in the vortex. Serra, Dani, Koj, and Jarek approached the vortex which was slowly closing. Getting too close, they were instantly absorbed and the vortex disappeared. The only traces of it was a slight burn mark on the floor boards.
Elsewhere... near a comic book store.
"I can't believe that it's not here!" a disgruntled fan cursed. "This place is geting as bad as all the others. The book's been out for two weeks and no one carries it yet. Oh well, the SDCC is sure to have it. And while I'm there, I can get it signed."
As the angered fan approached his van, a large, white gateway opened. The fan's beeper began whaling like a siren. "Damn! Not this again. Why me?!" he sighs. Six, shadowy figures, ranging from six inches to seven feet emerged from the gateway, closing quickly behind them. "Yep, again."
"Where in Hin are we?" Rikk questioned.
"Not Hin," the fan answered, "you're on Earth. You need to come with me. It ain't safe here."
"Why should we?" Serra scolded.
An explosion was heard in the distance. People were running from the where the explosion orgininated. A second and a third followed. Each blast was getting closer and closer.
"Need more reason than that!!" the fan gestured towards the fan. "Get in, we don't have much time before those blasts are here." The Tellosians crammed into though the side door. The fan took his position behind the driver's wheel. With a quick twist of the key, the engine roared to life. Without even waisting a second, transmission was speed-shifted into reverse. The tires sqealled as power increased. Clearing the row of trafic, transmission shifted into drive and sped off.
The roads were pretty clear of trafic, so the fan took the usually crowded Mooney Boulivard to the an erily empty Highway 198. However, when the van left the comic book shop's parking lot, the store was desimated by an explosion. Comics, cards, magazines, and action figures were sent flying in all directions. The first items to fall to Earth were chunks of the building. Luckily none were large enough to stop the speeding van. The assortment of burning bookshelves and steel frames were enough to slice though the left-rear tire. Skidding to a stop, explosions aproaching closer, it looked hopeless.
"Guess it will be one of those days. Why do they make it so difficult... on themselves. Stay in the van. This will only take a minute." Hidden in a panel above his head, the fan exposes a four foot saber. He quickly exits the van. "I'm going to change the tire." He laughs evilly as he closes the driver side door.
Sitting in the van, how boring. Sensing an enevitable battle, Koj decided to help change the tire. Once outside of the van, the eary silence of the city of Visalia was clear. The silence was broken by the swing of a sword and a terrifing roar. Koj's warrior insticts kicked in. Tearing off around the van, the man-tiger discovered a second man-tiger. This one was engaged with a not so invisible enemy. This hidden enemy was bleeding severely. Koj had overlooked the fact that the fan was nowhere to be seen.
The hidden enemy managed to knock the four foot sword free from the second man-tiger. The man-tiger reacted by leaping at him and digging his claws deep into the crest of his enemy. In addition, his fangs sunk into the soft tissue where the throat would be. The blood from the enemy was spraying all over his body. His blood was also on the hands and face of the man-tiger. Shortly, from the lack of blood, the now not so invisible enemy died. The body of the enemy turned up to be not of human origin.
The second man-tiger, turned to face Koj. A look of scorn was on the face of the second man-tiger. He began to shrink in height and mass, exposing his true form... the form of a human. It was the fan! "Didn't I say not to leave the van. Oh, well, I guess it was only a matter of time until someone found out." he sighed. "All I have to do is change the tire, and we are gone. I'll explain all of this as soon as I get you back home."
"Home?" Koj questioned. "Where is that?"
"Somewhere, but I can't tell you. It must remain a secret."
Jarek came around the corner of the van, asking why. The fan wasn't about to waist more time justisfying himself. So Jarek's question when silently unanswered. The fan hated to do it, but there were too many ears around.
After changing the flat tire, the crew left the city of Visalia for safer ground. The location is somewhere out in the country.
"You like?" the fan asked. He was answered by silence. Their faces showed the answer. They were shocked to be there. The room they were in was covered, wall-to-wall, with anything and everything Tellos. From posters to T-shirts and from comics to action figures, he had them all. There was no Tellos collectible he was missing. "You think I can get a photo of all of you... you know just for ummm... me?"
"I don't see what the harm is in it... except what is a 'photo'?" Jarek asked.
"It's like a painting, without painting it. It's safe."
The Tellos group gathered close together, the picture was taken. They saw spots for a few moments but they eventually vanished. The fan led them out of the 'Collection Room' and into the dining room. This was where the fan told them about himself.