Quala - The Plush Planetary Takeover Read online

KIMI’s Awakening

  1am within the circle of ritualistic practice

  Quala – (In a raspy low voice) “KIMI!... KIMI! Wake Up!”

  K – Groggy, blurred vision, just coming to… all of a sudden… popping up, eyes wide... “What’s going on? Quala? You’re out of the box?!?” Getting a big greeting hug for the first time, she looks around over his shoulder. People lying on the ground everywhere, motionless. The children, the townspeople, even Mãe do Mar!! She immediately runs over to her, ignoring what Quala is trying to say to her in the background.

  “Mãe! Wake up!” Shaking her, but there’s no reaction in her lifeless body. In fact, everyone is lifeless - it’s silent - no singing, drumming, footsteps, laughing. No sounds at all except the now loud voice of Quala.

  Q – “Kimi, we need to get out of here right now! There’s a problem, something that I knew but couldn’t tell you!”

  K – Reaching out at Quala for his paw, she heads into the interior of the favela. A little distracted, she is now looking and walking with her new cherished toy and holding his soft yet firm grip. They race into one of the nearby dwellings.

  K - In a panic, “What’s happening? Where is everyone?”

  Q – “I can only explain what I know. It isn’t good. When the toy release happened, you were in your trance. I was so excited to see you, I ran right over, the same way every toy did to their new friends. But as they hugged, the humans just collapsed about a minute after. There is some type of effect given off that has disabled the humans around here! I think that maybe I didn’t have that same effect when I hugged you because you woke up. I must have not been complete, which is why I’m missing my eye. What I know is, we need to leave this place and you cannot come into contact with any of the other toys!”

  K – “How can we do that Quala? There must be thousands of you guys in my neighborhood - and where do we go? I’ve never been anywhere but here and maybe the beach once in a while…”

  Q – “We need to get to the water. The toys cannot survive if they get wet - neither can I, so I need to get something protective as it looks like it’s about to rain, but that will buy us some time.”

  K – “I just had the strangest dream. It seemed so real,” Kimi whispers, “It was kind of warning me of this, am I still dreaming?”

  Q – Pinching Kimi, “No, this is very real.”

  Kimi and Quala creep from dwelling to dwelling, as if they we’re playing hide and seek, looking for rain proof clothing. The only things they could find were some bright yellow rain coats and rubber boots.

  Q - “We need to be very careful. The toys have some deadly effect that I don’t have. It will be important to keep you out of sight as much as possible and we need to find a toy store and pick up as many water toys as possible - water guns and water balloons.”

  K – “Oh, I know! We can go to Old Man Rudolfo’s store - he’ll have that! But how do we get inside?”

  Q – “I’ll get us inside!”

  K - “I’m scared!! I just want to hide!”

  Q – “We have to get you to safe grounds. I won’t let anything happen to you Kimi. Let’s rest a little and figure out a plan then head out in a few hours. Their camera eyes won’t be able to adjust as quickly at dawn.”