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PREVIOUS (PART 11)

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"Do I have to be hung upside down like this?"

Stan smiled. "Just trying to keep things familiar." He shoved Doug and sent him spinning.

Again, Doug could only see darkness around him. He had hoped that it was just a dream the previous night, but it all felt quite real now that it was occurring again. "You didn't do anything to my friends when you took me, did you?"

Stan grabbed Doug and steadied him. "That's what I like about you, Doug. Last time, I warned you to keep yourself safe, but you still charged out into danger in the defense of others. It's that spirit I'm counting on for you to succeed. To cut to the chase, you will encounter the Fallen in the mission you will be doing with your friends, and thus soon will come your time to show your worth."

"How do you know that? Can you see the future?"

Stan smirked. It seemed like there was some joke that Doug was unaware of. "I can, to some degree. I am God."

Stan had neatly trimmed facial hair, but he still didn't seem like a god to Doug. "So you created the world and everything?"

"No... that was the previous Supreme Ruler." He smiled again, and it kinda creeped out Doug. "I like to think I gave this world its character, though."

A woman laughed at that, and Doug could see the same woman as before standing behind Stan smoking a cigarette. Doug motioned towards her with his chin. "If you’re like the one true God, who is she?"

"The Queen Bitch Goddess." She blew out a long puff of smoke.

Stan moved so as to block the view of Ms. Bee. "Ignore her. You have an important mission, Doug, and I want to make sure you understand it."

"Well, understanding things is not one of my strong points... especially while upside down and dizzy. I think you have the wrong person for this."

Stan tapped Doug on the shoulder, sending him spinning around. "You have to have more faith in yourself, Doug. Anyway, if you can't succeed in defeating one of the fallen, you and your friends are going to die."

That sense of responsibility had a crushing weight on Doug. He really hoped this was all a dream, but he was not so certain. "But what do I do! How do I send these Fallen people back to their prison? Like, what did that Jesus guy do?"

"He died," Ms. Bee said with a slight chuckle.

Stan steadied Doug again. "Jesus was a special case; don't worry about him. You're going to have to find your own way to defeat the Fallen. The bodies the Fallen appear to have in this world are merely shells; the Fallen are linked to their prison still, and, if you can shatter the shell, back they go. The problem, of course, is those shells are not vulnerable to normal weapons, so I need you to obtain a sacred weapon."

"Sacred?"

"That just means 'really really special'. I can't tell you exactly where to get one, but you'll know it when you see it."

Doug never knew much... even when he saw it. This Stan guy seemed to have a lot more faith in him than seemed reasonable. "I just don't get this! What am I supposed to accomplish? Are you going to make me fight all the Fallen?"

"No, just a few to put fear back in them, then I'll do the rest. The Fallen think they now own this world and are invulnerable, and we will pierce that ignorance. Then, do you know humanity will gain?"

Doug thought about that. "No, but you'll stop hanging me from the ceiling, right?"

"They will gain freedom, Doug. Throughout its existence, humanity has been nothing but pawns in a battle beyond their comprehension. You've played Chess and know what a pawn is, right?"

"Yeah, those were those stupid pieces that couldn't attack in front of them."

Ms. Bee laughed. "I'm guessing you didn't win those games."

Doug tried to swing past Stan to face Ms. Bee. "I could have won if those stupid pawns could attack in front of them!"

Stan pulled Doug towards him. "We're getting off topic. When one says 'pawn', they refer to a piece of limited value that is often sacrificed for the benefit of a long term strategy. You humans have lived and died for our battles. First, you were pawns in the fight between us and the previous God, and now you are pawns in a battle between the Fallen for control of this world. We can't harm each other, so that's why we use you. With your help, these battles will end, and, for the first time in history, humanity will have its freedom. So, will you help, Doug?"

Doug still didn't see what he could do, but it did sound like he had to do something. "I'll try my best."

"And that is all I ask." Stan let Doug go. "We're about done here. Remember: you need to find a weapon appropriate for this battle. Also, as some extra help, when you break into the lab as part of your mission with your friends, look for a project labeled GX-7 and take that for yourself."

"GX-7," Doug repeated, once out loud and a number of times in his head. "Wait... how do I tell who the Fallen are again?"

Stan started to smile, but then stopped. "Believe me: you’ll know."

Doug was back to really hoping this was a dream.

"I know you're scared, Doug, but, remember: you must succeed or all of you will die."

Doug frowned. "That doesn't help me not be scared."

Stan shrugged. "Goodbye, Doug. Good luck."

As Doug's vision started to fade, he heard Ms. Bee say, "Remember to attack along the diagonals, nitwit."

NEXT

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Hellbender
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