The Secret of Edd- Part 8

 

Ed shook his head as submerged memories tore through it. The gate, Double D being a werewolf, their capture... Even the full moons that he had forgotten, all of it came back to him. He looked up slowly, then saw Eddy, and... Edd? Only he was covered in fur, his hands ending in claws... He looked just like the werewolves of Ed's B-movies, and he was lunging at Eddy!

 

"No, Double D! Don't!!" Escaped Ed's lips as he realized what was happening.

 

'Edd' paid no attention and tackled Eddy, pinning down his arms and grinning a toothy grin in his face.

 

Eddy growled something and shoved Edward off, his blank eyes filling with anger. "Get the #$%@ away from me!" He exclaimed, backing up.

 

Edward gave an angry smirk. "No, I don't think so..." He replied, then yelled and charged at Eddy, shoving him into the trailer.

 

"Ugh..!" Eddy gasped, clutching at his side. He looked up, then launched up at Edward, knocking him to the ground. They rolled over the other several times, ending with Eddy on top. "How do you like this, huh?!?" Eddy exclaimed.

 

Edward kicked him off, sending Eddy flying back towards the trailer. "How do you think, pretty boy?" Edward replied, getting up and readying for Eddy's counter.

 

*****************

 

Ed shook his head again as he watched the two fighting each other. //This... This isn't happening!// He thought, then winced as Lee shrieked.

 

"Tony! Do something, they're ruining everything!" The red-head yelled, only for Rolf to cover her mouth with one hand, and Marie to punch her in the gut. Lee winced and tried to claw at Rolf's hand, so Marie grabbed at her arms and held them behind her back.

 

May, however, shuddered and shrank into her chair, rubbing her arm where Kevin had hit her. "I-I'm sorry! The-they made me, I--"

 

"Be quiet." Kevin said slowly, then looked over at Ed. He rose an eyebrow. "Ed, what's the deal with you?"

 

Ed blinked, glanced at 'Edd' and Eddy's fight, then looked at Kevin again. "I-I'm okay now, Kevin... But I don't think Eddy is."

 

Marie yanked on Lee's arms again and the redhead collapsed. Marie then stood and walked over to look at Ed. She studied his face for a minute, then nodded to Kevin. "He's fine. I think you broke May's concentration... She'd have to be working at something to remember it this long, y'know."

 

Kevin nodded slowly. "True..." They looked over at Edward and Eddy, who were over by the trailer still.

 

**************

 

Edward cocked his head slightly as Eddy struggled to get to his feet. //How bad of shape is this loser in...?// He wondered absently, then tensed as Eddy glared at him yet again. "Come on... Try me." Edward whispered.

 

Eddy grinned shakily, then charged at him, punching at air as Edward grabbed him. He locked a hand around Eddy's throat and lifted him into the air. "They were afraid of you...?" Edward wondered as Eddy gasped and tried to kick him, but his legs didn't reach far enough. "Pathetic." He shrugged, then tossed Eddy towards the trees.

 

**************

 

The kids watched Eddy sail through the air, then looked at Edward. He grinned wolfishly, glancing at the moon.

 

"That should work, huh?" He asked, his voice returning to normal. The fur retreated, and he looked human again.

 

Rolf smiled and relaxed his grip on Lee further. "So, already we're winning this..." He stopped and tilted his head, frowning.

 

The others listened, and noticed some loud talking on the other side of the trailer.

 

"What the heck's going on now?" Kevin wondered, looking around. Everyone else looked as clueless as him, but... "Where's Jonny?"

 

"The bald kid?" Edward asked, watching Kevin nod. "He freaked out and ran over there a minute or two ago... Why?"

 

"That is strange... Why would he have left?" Rolf wondered.

 

Edward shook his head. "Well, we should pro'bly go check it out... You guys coming?" He glanced around the group, then walked off and around the trailer. Marie and Ed followed him, and Kevin and Rolf looked at each other.

 

"Should we bring the Kanker-demons also?" Rolf asked, and Kevin nodded.

 

"C'mon, up you go." He said to May. She didn't struggle, but her shoulders hunched up nervously. They walked to the other side just as another burst of talking broke out.

 

Rolf shook his head, then looked down at Lee. "You too, or you sha--" He gasped as Lee elbowed him in the groin as hard as she could. Rolf keeled over, and Lee then kicked him in the stomach to make sure he stayed down. After glaring at him, she flew up from the chair and ran to Eddy. "Are you okay? Answer me!" She exclaimed as Rolf gasped and tried to get up, only to collapse.

 

Eddy had a large bump on his head as he smiled shakily. "Don't worry, we already planned for this..."

 

"You... You what?" Lee asked, looking confused.

 

Eddy just smiled, glancing at the trailer as a lot of confused babbling started.

 

**************

 

Edd glanced at the cage again. He could see the other three in it, but they looked to be asleep. "Shoot!" He hissed bitterly, then looked at Plank again. //So, it WAS him...//

 

Plank's smile seemed to grow wider, if that was possible. //Well, what a surprise... Not.// He commented slyly.

 

"Plank!" Jonny yelled, as he ran up. He gasped for breathe, then stood up and glared at the piece of wood. "What do you think you're doing, Plank?!?"

 

"What did you hope to accomplish by coming here, anyway?" Edd said coldly, his attenetion flickering slightly as Marie came up behind them.

 

The piece of wood paused. //...You don't need to know my thoughts... You can't anyway, can you?//

 

Edd and Marie glanced at Jonny, who's eyes widened. He met their gaze and nodded slightly. "He's right... It's like he's not even there... And I always felt him before... Something's different now..."

 

Marie shrugged. "So he's not the hunk of wood you knew. Big deal."

 

Edd shook his head. "No, that's not right... Plank, why won't you answer me?"

 

It's smile seemed to stretch again. //The child wants to understand the game... But it's a little to complex for you, who couldn't even solve the map.//

 

"What...?" Marie and Jonny asked themselves, looking confused.

 

"How did you know about...?" Edd said slowly, shaking his head again. "The child? If I'm a child, then what are you?"

 

//Far more intelligent than you. After all, you came here, didn't you? It took longer than I hoped, but I got all of you here... And now I'm rather disappointed.// Plank replied lazily.

 

Marie looked annoyed. "Ya mean you arranged all this? Puh-leaze. We do what we want to, not what a stupid piece of wood tells us to do."

 

//Are you sure...?// Plank asked, then paused, as it's attention suddenly was focused elsewhere. //Well, until later... Here he comes.//

 

"Huh?" Marie asked, then the three of them jumped as the door slowly opened.

 

//WHAT?!?// Edd thought. //But there shouldn't be anyone else! Unless...//

 

The figure was tall, VERY tall. It crouched down to get through the door, then straightened. They could see his face now, thanks to the lights from nearby trailers.

 

"No way..." Jonny whispered. "It's..."

 

A face almost identical to Eddy's looked around vaguely. "Who the heck shook the trailer...?" He asked himself. The voice wasn't like Eddy's, but almost as familiar...

 

"Plank?!?" Edd and Jonny chorused, then covered their mouths.

 

The tall Eddy-look-alike stared down at them, then smirked as he descended the steps. "Oh, it was you guys... I should've known."

 

Marie shook her head. "You're that guy!" She exclaimed.

 

"What guy?" Edd asked her.

 

She glanced at him. "The guy who--"

 

"So you're Marie?" He asked, stepping down. "Not much family resemblence... Guess you all take after your fathers after all." He paused as she looked furious, then looked at Jonny. "Jonny, still the same as always... Somewhat taller, but still..." Jonny looked confused, then his eyes widened, and the Eddy-look-alike continued on to Edd. The man then frowned. "Aren't you Edward...? From that other world, where you lived here?"

 

Edd's eyes widened as well. "How on Earth could you know about that?"

 

He smiled and nodded to himself, then reached in the window and grabbed Plank. "Because of this lovely piece of wood... A splinter was in the hand of your counterpart, of this world, so I was able to use it as a focus... Just like I used this thing."

 

Jonny shook his head. "Then we were right! Y-You're Plank, right?" He asked nervously.

 

The man shook his head and tossed Plank to Jonny. "No, not exactly. You see... I just used that thing as a focus, like I just said. I wanted to watch back here, and at home, but no one else here, not even my little brother, had enough of, well, a psychic ability to pick up what I was saying... Then I noticed you, with that piece of wood that you used somehow to create a mind of it's own, and I figured it all out. Took a while, but this way I could keep an eye out for 'im."

 

"...'Little brother'...? You can't mean..." Edd said slowly, staring up at him.

 

Eddy's-look-alike smiled. "Oh, Eddy? Yeah, he's my little bro... The name's Tony."

 

***************

 

Edward, Ed, and Marie walked around to see the three there, and Ed stopped suddenly. The other two followed suit and looked at him. "Edward?" Ed wondered quietly as he stared ahead at Edd, then looked at Edward. "What's he doing here?"

 

Edward grinned. "Don't you mean what am I doing here? Or can't you tell us apart?"

 

Ed looked blank, then he looked quickly between the two. "You're Edward, not Double D?" He hissed to the boy next to him.

 

He nodded. "It was his idea... Since I'm a better fighter, and all.. Did I hurt you, or what?"

 

Ed looked confused and checked himself over, then shook his head. "Uh uh..."

 

Edward stared. "Dang..." He muttered, then looked forward as he first noticed another, taller person step towards Edd. "Who the..?" He wondered, then jumped as heard what they were saying.

 

****************

 

"Oh, Eddy? He's my little bro... The name's Tony." The tall man was saying, just as Kevin came around the corner. Ed, Marie, and Edward were staring ahead, looking shooked. Kevin cocked his head, then realized what the guy had said.

 

//What the?!?// He thought frantically, stepping forward quickly to get by the others. //This is him?!? Tony? Eddy's older brother? THE SAME GUY?!? But... But how?!?//

 

The others were whispering similar disbeliefs, but they stopped as he stepped towards Edd into the light, giving them a good look at his face. His hair was somewhat shorter, but it was still three hairs waxed down by his head. Out of the neck of his shirt some REAL chesthair was visible, and he had somewhat noticable muscles. Asides from these, and his height(A foot or two taller than even Ed or Rolf), aisde from that, he looked just like Eddy.

 

"Dang..." Edward whispered up ahead of him. "He looks just like that little dork, only bigger..."

 

Kevin stared at Edward and considered grinning. Double D's, well, double, thought Eddy was a dork too... Kevin felt it was rather funny, then he shook his head and turned his mind to the matter at hand.

 

****************

 

Edd wasn't all that surprised that this was Eddy's brother, it almost made sense.

 

Marie didn't really care, as long as it wasn't the Tony she knew. Jonny, however...

 

Felt horrified. He looked down at the piece of wood in his hands. It didn't say anything to him, just sat there, a mindless hunk of wood. Every time the other kids had made jokes about Plank being a simpe piece of wood, nothing more? Now they were right. Jonny considered crying, he felt so... so distraught. Then he blinked, and looked at the piece of wood again. Since this man, Tony, had come out, PLANK HADN'T SAID ANOTHER THING. Before that, he HAD been talking, to the point that even Edd, even MARIE, had heard him. But now...

 

Jonny looked up at Tony, then felt even more shocked. He could hear what was going through everyone around him's mind, althought he was almost pushing it to the side and ignoring them. However... Just like with Plank now, he couldn't hear the man's thoughts... At all. //What the...?// He wondered, then cringed as Tony seemed to wink at him. //Why did he just...?// He frowned. //He said he wasn't Plank, but why else would Plank be talking to me? He's lying to us... What would he have to hide...?//

 

Next to Jonny Edd shook his head, completely unaware of Jonny's dilemma. He stepped forward again. "Why are you here?" He asked loudly, feeling braver with the crowd behind him.

 

Tony also stepped forward, looking down at him. "I felt like visiting my little bro, Why else?"

 

Marie looked annoyed. "But you're the guy who we heard on the phone!"

 

Now Tony looked surprised. "How the... How could you remember that, unless..." He trailed off and looked at 'Edd', who was still standing next to Ed. "You told them to ignore me, didn't you...? I THOUGHT I gave you too much of that..."

 

"Huh?" Edward asked, in a higher voice than normal.(Imitating Edd still) "What are you talki--"

 

"But YOU forgot... So you only told them to ignore what anyone on the phone told them...? Well done." Tony commented, looking up thoughtfully. He then looked confused and glanced at Edd, then at Edward. "AND you brought your double to distract those idiot girls... I hadn't thought you would do that..."

 

"What are you talking about?" Kevin asked, an annoyed expression on his face. "You said you're Eddy's brother, and that you're here to see him. But how the heck did you tell Double D what to do like that? And WHY?"

 

Tony frowned and stepped towards him. "My buisness is my own, but... Hmm." He trailed off as he looked around at the group of kids, then smirked. "It's a long story, and it's the reason all of YOU are here right now."

 

Marie(no one knew which one) folded her arms across her chest. "You're just talking like that to annoy us, aren't you? Why can't you simply answer our stinkin' questions?"

 

"Because he doesn't have to..." Eddy's voice rang out from behind them.

 

Everyone jumped and turned towards him. There, Eddy stood smirking, with Lee towering above him.

 

"H-How the...?" Several kids exclaimed. "What happened to Rolf?!?" Kevin demanded, just as Edward asked, "How are you conscious?!?"

 

Lee smiled sweetly at them, glared at May, who cringed under her gaze, and smirked at Marie, hesitating as she noticed there were two. "I knocked that big guy out... Guess one girl's too big for him to handle... Or maybe he's just too tired from chasing chickens."

 

"No way!" Kevin exclaimed, starting to run around the trailer to Rolf.

 

"Stop!" Lee ordered, scowling at him.

 

Kevin froze in mid-step, then panicked. "What the F---!?!"

 

Every kid there froze as well, staring in absolute shock. They all turned towards Edd, hoping for an explanation.

 

****************

 

Rolf groaned and finally gt to his feet, still swaying. "I... Am the son of a shepard... So how could that... That vixen, HURT Rolf so badly?" He whispered, then slowly shook his head and looked around. There was no sign of any of the others, not even Lee and Eddy. He heard talking on the other side of the trailer, however.

 

"They already left Rolf? But..." He murmured, staggering forward. His head began to clear, and he walked straighter, around the trailer in the other direction. Once he got around it, he stopped. Everyone was there, even a tall stranger he didn't recognize... At first. When he did, his eyes bugged out, and he stepped back once, twice, into the shadows.

 

"It is him...!" Rolf whispered. "Eddy's demon of a brother... Here!" He stared at them, then new movement caught his eye, in the cage. Sarah was slowly starting to sit up, and she looked confused.

 

"What...?" He saw her mouth as she looked around her, then fixed her gaze on the group of kids about 10-15 feet away.

 

Rolf shook his head again, then snuck over to the edge of the cage while everyone else's gaze was elsewhere. "Are you alright?" He whispered as softly as he could.

 

Sarah turned and stared at him. "Rolf? What are... Are you guys saving us?" She asked vaguely, looking confused.

 

He nodded. "Hopefully, very soon... But Rolf has no way to open the lock and release you, and the others are... busy."

 

Sarah looked confused, then jerked in surprise as Lee's voice suddenly rang out.

 

******************

 

Edd shook his head slowly, staring first at Kevin's piteous gaze, then Eddy and Lee's challenging smirks. "H-How on... How did you do that?!?" He finally demanded, striding towards them. "Let him go!"

 

Eddy frowned. "Edward, right? What do you care? You don't really KNOW Kevin, unless..." He trailed off as he noticed something odd. "Your... Your voice was too high..."

 

Edd stopped in front of Lee and glared. "Let. Him. Go."

 

"Make me." Lee replied, smiling sweetly again. She looked over at Tony and winked.

 

"Why... am... I... still..." Kevin trailed off, trying as hard as he could to move his leg, an arm, something! It didn't work.

 

Tony and Lee both stared laughing, though Eddy still seemed deep in thought. "Nothin' you do will work, y'know..." Lee told them bluntly.

 

"Why are you doing all of this? What on EARTH are you hoping to do? This has all been a massive waste of time and my life, and you haven't really DONE anything!" Edd half-yelled, about to snap.

 

"Oh, I wouldn't say that..." Tony said softly, pulling out something that looked suspiciously like Edd's 'controller' for the gate. "What do you think?" He asked, holding it up for 'Edward' to see. "Doesn't it look just like the one your double used when he visited you? We made one, so this can be finished, and properly explained... Although I'll miss this, it's all been great fun."

 

The others looked confused, but no one spoke when Eddy shook his head as he examined 'Edward's' face. "Hey, hang on, Tony... I think that this... You're Double D, aren't you?" He asked Edd, who simply glowered at him.

 

Tony frowned and looked at Edward in the back, then at Edd again. He then grinned. "I see... So YOU'RE Double D, and he's your double from one of hose other universes? Clever of you two to switch places... You know, you're far brighter than I suspected.. Maybe you'll work after--"

 

"What the?!?" Lee suddenly exclaimed, turned towards the cage. "Hey, you, get away from there! NOW!"

 

A figure slowly stood, obviously struggling to not do so. Everyone watched as he looked back at Sarah, Jimmy, and Nazz(Sarah the only one awake), then hesitantly walked towards the group. It was Rolf, and he seemed to be muttering various curses of his.

 

"Rolf?!?" Several kids exclaimed looking startled, or happy. Kevin looked hopeful or the first time in several minutes, despite his predicament.

 

Tony looked annoyed as he stared down at Lee. "I thought he was knocked out?"

 

"He was! He must've just woken up faster than I thought he would, that's all! Really!" She exclaimed, cringing almost as May had under Lee's gaze earlier.

 

He shook his head. "What can you expect from kids... Go over there, let them take care of you... But first..." He leaned down and whispered in her ear. Lee looked terrified, mortified, even.

 

"N-No! Not that! You already did that to May, and look how--"

 

"Shut up." Tony's face had none of the former amusement on it, just a cruel, merciless expression.

 

Edd watched this all with a bemused expression. //So he IS stronger... And they seemed to have known about him before... Maybe he's the one who...?// He stared as Tony looked at him and gave a very slight nod. Edd felt confused, then jerked slightly and stared over at Jonny. //He's reading our minds!//

 

Jonny looked surprised as well. "Then---"

 

Tony made a face as he shoved Lee at them, then smiled down at Eddy. "So, when it comes down to it, all you can count on is yer kin..." He commented, waving a hand at all the others. "Each and everyone of THESE guys went and betrayed you, but not me. And it worked the same way with you to me... Got it?"

 

Eddy nodded quickly, although nervously. "Uh-huh..." He said, but something was different in his eyes now, he didn't have the same blank expression.

 

"Just like Ed..." Kevin whispered to Rolf, who had come to stand next to him. Both were unaware of what Edd and Jonny had noticed. "Once the Kankers aren't controlling them, they start to wake up... But what about the Kankers themselves?" They looked over at May, who was still shaking, and Lee, who looked completely lost. "Was he controlling them?"

 

Kevin said that as Tony talked to Eddy, so those two didn't notice the conversation. Ed and Marie(Edd's) were kinda milling about, staring at Lee and May while listening to Kevin. Edd and Jonny looked preoccupied, and Edward the other Marie were trying to sneak over to the cage again with little smirks on their faces.

 

Ed finished listening to Kevin, then turned to May. "Is that true?" He whispered.

 

May looked up at him and shrugged. "I-I don't really know... I can't see WHY I've been like this, I didn't even get you... I just..." She trailed off and looked down again.

 

Tony finally looked up from Eddy, then noticed Edward and Marie. "Hey, even more of you are trying to... Oh, forget it! You guys are getting to be way too much trouble here!" He frowned and looked down, then pulled out the controller thing again.

 

"What...?" Edd murmured as he looked up, then noticed what was going on. "Oh, hang on...!"

 

Tony ignored him and pressed a button. Unlike when they were in the other worlds, the gate didn't appear. Instead, a line appeared in the dirt, trailer, all of their surroundings, forming a large circle around them and the cage.

 

"Wha... What the heck?!?" Kevin exclaimed as he suddenly fell over from the shaking of the ground. He got up, holding onto Rolf for support.

 

The line rose up, revealing a thin metal wall. It began glowing like the gate did, the light spinning around the circle. After a revelation or two as the kids all backed away from the edges and towards the center, the light expanded towards them.

 

Edd froze. It looked just like the light from his dream several days before, where it swooped down and... destryed the world. He covered his eyes as everything lit up so that they could see nothing.

 

"To Eight-thirtytwo, boys and girls!" Tony's voice said vaguely, then the pressure in the air around them became too much to bear, and the lost consciousness.

 

***************

 

Edward groaned and tried to get up. Light was still coming through his eyelids, but it seemed more like sunlight than anything.

 

"Do you think they're dead?" A familiar voice asked from above him.

 

"That one just moved..." Another familiar, thought less so, voice replied.

 

"What...?" Marie murmured besides him.

 

Edward opened his eyes. Concrete met his eyes, as he was lying on the sidewalk. An ant walked by just ahead of him, only to get stepped on by a rather large foot.

 

"You two okay?" The second voice asked him, as the foot's owner crouched down to check his face.

 

"'Think so..." Edward replied, his voice sounding surprisingly low and hoarse. //I'm never talkin' like that again...// He decided as he slowly sat up.

 

"Whoa! Another me, again!" The second voice exclaimed from several feet away.

 

Edward looked up to see Edd and Ed, only both looking... tougher than before. "

 

"...Again?" He asked, getting slowly to his feet. "Where am I?"

 

Ed looked concerned. "In Peach Creek... We found you two in the middle of the street when we were chasin' that wimp, so we decided to take care of you first..." He pointed towards Eddy, who was shaking over in the yard they were in.

 

Edward nodded slowly. "Then what happened with that Tony guy?"

 

"Who?" They both chorused, looking confused at each other.

 

Marie tapped Edward on the shoulder, and he looked down at her. "I think we're in another world again..."

 

Edward groaned. "Great... Why did we have'ta get mixed up in all this?"

 

Ed looked between the two of them. "So, you ARE okay? You're not, like..."

 

"We're fine." Edward replied, then looked around the cul-de-sac again, and rested his gaze on Edd. "You said 'another me'... So did that Double D kid come here too?"

 

Ed and Edd looked confused. "Well, yeah, but aren't you Double D too?" Ed finally asked as Edd simply had a blank expression.

 

Marie now shook head, and Edward replied, "No, I'm just called Edward... I'm not a part of that 'Eds' thing, or anything. Why?"

 

Edd's gaze looked at the top of Edward's head, and he looked up. The comwboy hat wasn't there.

 

"Huh?" He asked, putting a hand to Edd's sockhat. "Oh, shoot..! He still has my hat!" He exclaimed to Marie.

 

She nodded, then gave him a kiss on his cheek. "Ya still look cute with that, don't worry..."

 

Edward made a face. "But still..."

 

Edd looked curious. "If you're not a part of the Eds, and you don't wear.. This kind of hat, then..."

 

"I wear a perfectly good lookin' cowboy hat, not a sock like you two." Edward replied.

 

"Hey!" Edd exclaimed, looking annoyed.

 

Ed shook hs head. "Whatever. If you're not friends with me, then who are your friends, anyway?"

 

"Marie, Will, and Tom..." When the other two looked blank, Edward looked up and groaned. "We all live in the trailer park..."

 

"Really?!?" Edd exclaimed. "Wow... We were going to be stuck in such a position, then Father was accepted for a good job in the government for research in science..." He looked Edward over carefully. "So, if we hadn't, I'd be you?"

 

Edward shrugged. "I dunno... It wasn't MY idea to roam around like this, it was the other Double D's... And he's the one who knows how the thing works..."

 

"Well... You'll have to tell me everything about it, it sound amazing! I mean, think about it. When we're grounded and have to stay in our rooms, we could get one of the nerdier us's to take our place while we go and have fun..." Edd started saying, wrapping an arm around Edward's should, and leading him up the street.

 

Ed and Marie watched them leave.

 

"Oh, man..." Marie muttered. "They're gonna be forever..."

 

Ed groaned at the same time. "Yeah, Double D's usually cool, but he's into science and that stuff... Daddy's little boy, I guess."

 

She shrugged, then turned around as she heard a twig snap. Eddy was trying to sneak away to his house.

 

"Hey! I'm not finished with ya!" Ed exclaimed, then started chasing him again.

 

Marie stood there on the sidewalk, looking vaguely around. "Well..." She muttered, then yawned. "I don't have anything ta do, and I'm stuck in another universe... Great."

 

******************

 

Edd and Edward had been talking a few minutes when Edward looked confused, and reached into his pocket.

 

"What?" Edd asked him, looking confused as well.

 

"Somethin' poked me... Ah!" He pulled out Edd's controller for the gate. "What the... What's this thing doin' here?"

 

Edd looked it over. "What exactly is that...?"

 

He groaned. "It's the way he gets that gate thing to open from anywhere but his world... And if I'M in another world that quickly, I bet HE is too..." He muttered something irritably. "Well, 'guess I better go find 'im..."

 

Edd grabbed his shoulder. "What? Why?"

 

"Ya heard what I said about this Tony guy, right? Well, it looks like he's been screwing with their heads the whole time, controllin' them, like." Edward replied, then looked it over. "I think... This thing?" He pressed a button, but nothing happened.

 

"Wait. Those three went into the woods behind Ed's house when they left..." Edd said.

 

He nodded. "Okay, then... Marie!!" He yelled.

 

She looked around, then jogged up the street. "What?"

 

Edward held up the controller. "I want my hat back, and I'm gonna give Double D his remote thing back. You comin' with me, or do ya want to stay here?"

 

Marie glared at him. "Lead on..." She finally said.

 

Edd looked thoughtful. "So, we ARE talking about the same person, right?"

 

Marie and Edward looked at each other. "Well..." Marie said slowly.

 

"He changed a lot in the last few days..." Edward replied. "Why?"

 

Edd smiled and half-closed his eyes. "I have nothing else to be doing, why don't I come along?"

 

Marie nodded slowly, then smiled at Edward. "Why not? Th' more th' merrier..."

 

Edward groaned, then stretched. "Ok, then... Come on." He led them towards Ed's house, where he literally bumped into Ed.

 

"Whoa!" Ed exclaimed as he stopped and Edward fell to the ground. "What the..." He looked around at the three. "Where are you going?"

 

Edd smiled. "To that other Double D's world... Wanna come?"

 

"This is getting rediculous..." Edward growled from where he was getting up. He threw his arms the air. "Why the heck not? C'mon, follow us aimlessly!"

 

Marie shook her head as Ed and Edd looked confused. "Let's just go before he goes nuts..." She told them, going out onto the faint path.

 

Ed and Edd followed her with a final glance back at Edward, who had put his arms down. He looked around, then noticed them vanish into the woods.

 

"What the... You have'ta be kidding me!" He exclaimed, then ran after them, swearing under his breath.

 

*****************

 

Edd groaned as he slowly came to. After a minute, he opened his eyes and looked out. Ruins of buildings and a dismally gray sky met his gaze, though it was sideways.

 

"Eight-thirtytwo, he said..." Marie's voice whispered from behind him.

 

Edd sat up and turned towards her. Marie was sitting there, looking at the sky, as ws Jonny. who looked tired. Kevin was about 10 feet away, leaning over Nazz(who looked to be asleep), with Rolf softly snoring several feet to the right. Sarah and Jimmy were sitting together off to the side, and Ed was glaring at May+Lee, who were huddled together a distance from everyone else.

 

"Where's Eddy?" Edd croaked. Marie looked at him, puzzled, so he cleared his throat and repeated the question.

 

The others(who were awake) looked startled. "Double D?"

 

Ed turned towards them and gave a small smile. "Hi, Double D... I was wondering when you'd wake up."

 

Edd sat up further and rubbed his head. "Why, how long have we been here?"

 

"About 30 minutes..." Marie replied, looking rather bored. "Me and Ed woke up first, then him," She pointed to Kevin, "Those two," Sarah and Jimmy, "Him," Jonny, "And Rolf, but he said his stomach hurt, so he went back to sleep... And finally you."

 

Edd scratched his head and looked all around himself. "Then... What about Edward and Marie?" She shrugged. "Eddy and... Tony?"

 

Ed muttered something, then stretched and stood up. "We haven't seen those two, not at all..." He told Edd.

 

Jonny nodded. "Nobody knows where they are, not even May or Lee."

 

"Hmm...." Edd frowned, then slowly stood up and walked over to the Kankers. He looked down at them until May looked up hesitantly. "Why are you two here?"

 

Lee kept her head buried between her knees, but May's shoulders drooped. "Because... I..." She sighed and scratched the side of her head while Edd waited, surprisingly patiently. "I was kinda against all this from the start, I just... Thought of getting revenge on you Eds, and getting Ed to... To love me... But then Lee started getting these really wierd ideas, and she just got worse when first Plank, then Tony showed up..."

 

Lee muttered something, and the two looked over at her. "Lee?" May finally asked after they waited a minute.

 

The redhead picked her head up, but they didn't know if she looked up at them. "I think he did the same thing we did to Ed and Eddy..." She finally replied, then shook her head and buried it again.

 

Edd crossed his arms. "Do you two mean you weren't in charge of your own actions, or that you were simply being manipulated somehow?"

 

They looked at each other, then chorused, "Manipulated."

 

Ed snorted, then shook his head as Edd looked over at him. "Yeah, right, Lee. I don't think YOU were... May, maybe, but you?" Ed shook his head again, then looked out at the horizon.

 

"Well, then..." Marie muttered. then looked around the group. "Do we even know where we are? I think we could deal with my sisters later..."

 

Edd nodded and walked back to he others. "We're in that Other World, with the vampire... I think this is the middle of the cul-de-sac."

 

Kevin sighed, then looked up from Nazz "But how did we get out here? With your gate, you don't fall asleep when you come through..."

 

Edd nodded. "Agreed, but... We didn't use mine."

 

They all fell silent for a minute, then Jonny spoke up for the first time. "So, why are we here...?"

 

"That... Is a very good question." Kevin's voice replied, from behind Edd.

 

Edd spun around as the other kids looked up, only to see the vampire Kevin again. "You again?!?" Edd exclaimed, looking seriously irritated.

 

He looked as surprised as the others. "Wait, you two?!?" He exclaimed as he noticed Marie getting up. "Why do you... keep following me?!?"

 

Kevin's skin turned very pale as he backed up some, staring at his counter- part. //H-Him again...//

 

Jonny looked confused through the whole thing, turning towards Kevin. //When did he meet this guy...?// He wondered, then focused on Kevin's thoughts.

 

Sarah and Jimmy stared at the vampire in shock. "K-Kevin..." Jimmy whispered, then hugged Sarah. She returned the embrace as they cowered down.

 

Edd, meanwhile, made a fist and stepped towards him. "Us following you? I should think it's the other way around..."

 

"What?!?" The vampire stepped back, then looked annoyed. "You people keep coming in here, and now two of you went to the hospital and roused all those stupid zombies! Those things are nasty when they're angry, and it's all your fault!!"

 

Marie shook her head. "Our fault? We're all here, unless..." She trailed off and met Edd's gaze.

 

"Eddy and Tony..." He continued in a whisper. His eyes widened, then he shook his head and turned back to Kevin. "What do you mean, roused the zombies?"

 

Kevin rolled his eyes. "What do you think? Ticked 'em off, so they're out to find anyone and anything that smells even slightly like 'em..." He seemed to relize something suddenly, then looked around nervously. "Well, I'M out of here... See ya, dorks!" He said, then noticed Kevin in the back. "You too, brethren!" The vampire called to Kevin, then changed into a bat and took off again.

 

"Uh, oh..." Jonny whispered, watching the vampire leave.

 

Edd shook his head, then turned towards Jonny. "What is it?"

 

Jonny looked at him. "I, uh... I caught his last thought, there... He left, cause he didn't want to risk smelling like us, who--"

 

"Are from Eddy's world..." Ed suddenly put in. He blinked, then looked at Jonny. "Wait, what do you mean, you caught his last thought...?"

 

"Never mind, Ed, it's a long story." Edd replied. He looked between Edd and Jonny. "Are you two sure about this?"

 

Jonny nodded slowly, and Ed's eyes were REALLY big. He looked at Edd frantically. "If Jonny's right, then WE'RE gonna be on their list of things... To kill..."

 

Every kid who was awake looked terrified, including Edd and Marie.

 

"Shoot..." Edd whispered, looking out at the horizon. "We're trapped in another universe because Edward had the controller, we're possibly being pursued by Eddy and Tony, and we're on the hit list of a mob of angry zombies..." He looked up at the sky. "God help us..." He ended in an almost un-hearable whisper.

 

The others followed his gaze upward, then winced as they heard vague yelling in the distance, slowly getting louder...