Laloc was still holding me in her arms when I saw Judy, Tak, and Debra racing over.
"Can you put me down, please?" I asked Laloc.
Laloc set me on the ground. I knew my hair must have been a tangled mess. I smoothed the wrinkles out of my skirt.
Boy, I can't believe I was so concerned about my appearance. I did turn into a girl!
When Judy ran up to me she threw her arms around me and embraced me in a big hug.
"I was so scared for you," she cried, tears streaming down her cheeks.
I wriggled out of her embrace. "I'm okay," I assured her. "I'm a big boy." I glanced down at myself. "Or a big girl," I corrected myself.
"This is going to make a great story for the school paper," Debra declared. "All I need now is that one on one interview with Zeronia!" Turning to me, she said, "How about it, Zeronia?"
I grinned. "Do I have to wear high heels?"
Debra beamed. "Nah, this time you can wear flats."
Just then I saw Laloc and Tak pressing buttons on their bracelets.
"What are you doing?" I asked.
"Opening up a direct link to the Crillinarian ship," Laloc replied.
"Why?"
"We're going to finally stop the Crillinarians once and for all," Tak said.
"How are you going to do that?" Judy wanted to know.
"By doing to them the same thing I did to Toby," Tak explained.
"You mean, you're going to turn them all into girls?" Debra asked.
"In a way," Laloc replied, then she said into her bracelet, "This is Commander Laloc calling the Crillinarian ship. Please comply."
There was a crackling sound, then a voice came from Laloc's bracelet. "You are no longer our commander. We do not have to listen to you?"
"That much is true," Laloc said. "But we offer you something. A chance for peace."
"There can never be peace," the voice said firmly. "As long as we need life energy to survive. Just like the Zerons, the Crillinarians fight against their extinction."
"What if I were to tell you that we can fix it so you don't need to drain planets of their life energy?" Laloc said.
The voice was silent for a moment, then said, "Explain."
This time it was Tak's turn to speak. "For years I have been experimenting with DNA restructuring," she said into her bracelet. "For example, I can change a lanky male into a petite fully functioning female. With that same science, I can grow you all-new bodies. You wouldn't need to drain planets of their life energy anymore. You can live in peace."
The voice was silent for a long time. Obviously discussing it among the other Crillinarians. Then Laloc's bracelet crackled and the voice said, "We'll agree to your offer."
"Good, we will send you our coordinates," Laloc told him. "Teleport us to your ship in five minutes." Tak and Laloc both pressed a button on their bracelet, then lowered their arms to their sides.
"This is goodbye," Tak said as she and Laloc turned toward us. "In a few minutes, we will be teleported aboard the Crillinarian ship
I held out my wand. "I suppose you're going to be taking this back, too."
Tak held up her hand to emphasize her refusal to take it. "No, you keep it. After all, the Zeron Crystal did choose you."
"And after the way you defeated Tragon, I'd say you earned it," Laloc added.
"Would we ever see you again?" Judy asked.
Tak shrugged. "I can invent a lot of things," she said. "The one thing I can't invent is the machine that can see into the future. But I'm trying."
"Toby, thank you for all you have done for us," Laloc said to me."You came through not just for Earth, but the universe as well."
"It was no big deal," I said, trying to sound modest.
Laloc grinned. "That is where you are wrong," she said. "It was a big deal. A very big deal."
Just then a ring of light surrounded Tak and Laloc. They waved goodbye before they faded away and were gone as though they were never there.
YOU ARE READING
Zeronia
FantasyToby was always a fan of superhero comics. He even wrote his own superhero comic. Then one day Toby met a girl who claimed to be from another planet. She handed him a wand that would transform him into a real superhero. The only problem is that the...
