Marvel Mayhem

Prologue: A New Journey Begins

           "Joanie, what's happened to you?!"

           "My name is Dawn, creature! And you and your companions will keep silent if you know what is best for you!"  

            ........  

            "Joanie! Please don't do this! This is not you!"  

            ........  

            "How does it feel? Enjoy your last moments of existence!"  

            ........  

           "We will meet again. Whether it's by this new face of yours or by one of your old ones, our business is far from over."  

            Genevieve awoke with a loud, terrified gasp. Her forehead was drenched with her own sweat from the horrible nightmare she took a moment to recover from. But it was not a nightmare – it was a series of memories...memories of one woman who haunted her, no matter how hard she tried to forget about her. Dawn.  

            The first time Genevieve encountered her, during her original life as Sean Thomas, was an unforgettable moment. To see a woman who looked like Joanie Navarro but acted like a completely different person – a psychopath nonetheless – still sent chills through her. Dawn nearly killed Robin the Frog on their first encounter; it was something Joanie, after awakening from the sinister alter ego that nearly controlled her life, was unable to forgive herself over until she made things right by becoming the first Guardian of the Disneyverse.  

            For the previous eight months since she and Victoria had taken solace in the Muppet Theater, Genevieve had these recurring nightmares. It did not help her sleep status much by being in the basement – the former site for Muppet Labs and a living reminder of her first adventure with the Sphere. She wondered if there was some "ghostly residue" left behind in its banishment from the Muppets' realm, its original home. Maybe that is what's haunting me, she thought while sitting up and staring at the brick wall where the Magic Gateway used to be housed.  

            "Another night terror?"  

            She looked to her left and saw Victoria, lying in her cot and staring up at the ceiling in annoyance.  

            "I'm sorry." Genevieve told her, wiping away her sweat with her bed sheets.  

            "It's the seventh night in a row." Victoria remarked, finally turning her eyes to Genevieve. "What is it that's got you all riled up?"  

            Genevieve swallowed hard before she answered. "It's Dawn. I don't know why she's been on my mind so much these past months."  

            Victoria sighed, knowing exactly how she felt. "I've been a bit concerned myself since we last saw her, during the merge. I mean, what she said about us seeing her again...none of us really know when or where that'll happen."  

            She was not doing much to ease Genevieve's anxiety, only making it worse by reminding her of that fateful moment when both of them, along with many other reincarnations, were merged as a new entity, self-named "JeniLynn." It was a moment that she had not forgotten and left her on edge ever since.  

            "When will the nightmares end, Genevieve?" Victoria asked, though Genevieve was not certain if it was for her own benefit or hers.