"Where are we? Whose room is this?"
"I have something to say, Austin. I did not become king because I aspired to be one. It came about because of other people's actions And I did not become king out of ambition, but once again; I had no choice as a result of other people's actions. But nonetheless, I am king!! King Josh, that is my name. Now what does a king do, Austin?"
"Baby, over here! Over here!!"
"He….He rules!!"
"Yes, good…he rules. And as a ruler, I have the last say. Me!! Not you, not you, not you, and not you. ME!!"
"Darkness has clouded your mind Josh son of Elwin. Before you can become king, you would have to dethrone the current king and queen; Jim….and me!! We're not going to just hand the kingdom over to you on a silver platter."
"Oh, but you are. Jim has already given me his blessing. All I have to do is bring your head to him and carry Austin in the other hand. Then Jim will take us to Ecrin where we will be wed and ordained."
"You..take my head!! Sorry, I forgot to laugh, because if I did then I would cry and we would all drown."
"Jade, I think you've been stuck in your canister for far too long. We aint living in the old ways anymore. This is the twenty-first century, baby!! There is a device and an app for everything. Hold still and flash me your best I'm dead smile. Well, your anger face works just as well. Say cheese!!"
"I'm gonna kill you!"
"Not if I kill you first. Now we just upload this image to our 3D facemask machine and sit back while we watch the magic happen."
"Jim's not going to fall for a stupid clone trick. He's going to feel it to make sure it's really me. There is nothing you can stuff it with to convince him."
"Ahh, thanks for reminding me. All we need is a skull and some modeling clay for the neck. I'll be right back. Don't move a muscle while I'm gone!!"
"Austin, hold on! We're coming for you."
"Got it!"
"Kerina, quick! Untie us!!"
"Wait, I hear footsteps. Hurry!!"
"Girls, I don't think I'll have enough time to untie you all and untie Austin as well, but I'll try my best."
"Kerina!"
"Not now. I almost got the first one done."
"Kerina!!!"
"What?"
"Just stop and listen to me, please!"
"What is it? I'm trying my hardest right now and can't go any faster!"
"Just stop trying. We're not all going to make it out of here so please listen to me. Save Austin, get out of here, and then find your sister. I promise we will all be reconnected as one soon. I love you all as if you were my own daughters and if I could adopt you all then I would do it in a heartbeat. Now go with all God-speed and may the Lord be with you."
"Kerina, what are you doing? Go save my mother!"
"I'm sorry. She asked me to release you. Hurry, quick; we need to go. Come on! Drape your arms over my back and I'll carry you out."
"Hurry girs!! I can see the doorknob turning."
"Hey, you!! Stop right there."
"Hold on, Austin. It's about to get messy real fast."
"Is this tight enough?"
"Tighter!"
"What about now?"
"Tighter! Huuu!! Too tight! Too tight!! I can't breathe."
"Oh, sorry. Here is your neck back."
"Huu!! Thank you."
"Just stay still so I can shoot you."
"In your dreams, buttergreen!! We…are….outta here!!"
"Did they really just jump through that window! I hope they are ok."
"I hope they are ok too, but you aren't."
*Ding*
"Oo! Foods' ready. Let's dig in and see what we got. I'm so excited!!"
"You won't get away with this."
"Pish posh, little girly. Pish posh. Now for the finishing touches."
"Huh!! Is that…."
"Yes it is. Your eyes do not deceive you, my queen. This is Anne's skull and it's a perfect match to yours. It kinda makes me wonder. I just….squeeze it in there all snug like a big and then put in this neck cord.
Funny story really. I got this neck cord from triumphing over an enemy who also thought he could overtake me. Say! Now that I remember it, he actually did right there in that cage that you are now trapped in. Sorry I couldn't get around to cleaning out the blood. It might still be fresh!! What a poor helpless soul he was. He lived with nothing to give, but died giving everything.
Let's just slap this clay on there likelife and then…umm…could you raise your head a little, Jade? Thank you. We make the pattern here, here, and here! Now for the final touch. We glue on a wig, dunk it in red paint, blow it with a hairdryer and tada. She looks good as new…uhhh, I mean good as dead! Now to catch a few rats that escaped there cages. Don't move a muscle till I get back!"