The cell of the dungeon was not where Ben was wishing to find himself. The walls felt damp and had a slight smell of mildew. The bars were cold to the touch and although were showing rust, were still intact. Shaking the bars Ben found out two important things. One, the bars were still quite strong and two, someone else was down here with him.
A faint noise from the cell next to him caused Ben to stop shaking the bars and move closer to the next cell. Out of the darkness a figure rose up and came towards him. In the dim light cast by the lone flickering flame of the wall torch, Ben saw Cotton Bear, his old friend.
“What are you doing in your own dungeon?” Ben asked.
“I was tricked by the evil Voltran. He stole my castle and had me put down here”, Cotton Bear’s explanation went. “He seems to hypnotize people into doing things they don’t want to do. That’s how he got into my castle and was able to turn all my workers against me.”
“That’s not fair”, said Ben. “We have to get you out of here and get your castle and your people back.”
“How are we going to do that”, questioned Cotton Bear.
“I’m not sure just yet but I have a plan” replied Ben.
Ben proceeded to look over the cell and all the area around it. By the end of the small hallway connecting all the cells was a doorway and a solution. Hanging just on the far wall were the keys to the cells, in plain sight with no one guarding them. Ben figured the keys to be around 15 feet away and he thought he could snag them with his trusty whip.
Sticking his arm out between the bars he uncoiled his whip. Then in one fluid motion threw out the whip towards the keys. With a crack the whip missed the keys by only half a foot.
“Darn” thought Ben. “Just my luck to have brought my 14 foot whip when I needed 15 feet”.
Then thinking, Ben realized if he was higher he just might be able to shorten the gap and snag those keys. Climbing up the cell wall as high as he could, Ben locked his feet and hung himself upside down. Sticking his arm out between the bars he once again flung out the whip towards the keys. This time with a crack of the whip came the rattling of falling keys as they flew off their hook and onto the floor towards the cells.
Jumping down Ben used the whip once more to knock the keys closer to Cotton Bear’s cell and within Cotton Bear’s reach.
Cotton Bear grabbed the keys and used them to open his cell door. Checking to make sure the coast was clear, he snuck out and opened Ben’s cell door. Together again they gave each other a big hug and smiled. Then quickly they snuck along the hallway and out the doorway leading to the cells.
Meanwhile in the castle’s upper laboratory, the evil Voltran was deep into a new experiment that would bring the common man under his control and make him all powerful.
Voltran was going to use the power of the thunderstorm to energize his secret weapon: the Brainmaster 2000. This was the weapon he used to take over the castle, imprison Cotton Bear and control his people. Voltran was very smart and very evil and he knew that the Brainmaster 2000 needed more power if he was going to take over the world.
The Brainmaster 2000 was a helmet made of a mysterious metal that Voltran could wear and when he brought down the eye shield he could hypnotize almost anyone who looked at him and make them do whatever he wanted. No one knew where the secret metal came from but it had amazing power. Because he was so clever, Voltran was able to create a small satellite dish that he hoped could capture lightning and put the electricity into the helmet. He was about to test it for the first time.
Voltran stepped out of the laboratory and onto the castle’s large stone balcony, his long cape flapping in the wind. The storm raged around him as he walked out to the edge. He carefully put on the helmet and adjusted the newly fastened dish. Then he waited. The lightning exploded around him and thunder filled his ears.
Suddenly a bolt hit the dish directly, and there was a loud hum as the electricity was sucked into the helmet. Voltran staggered back from the impact and fell down. The helmet had a bluish white glow and was still humming loudly. Voltran put his hands to his ears to try and stop the loudness but the humming began to lessen and he relaxed. He slowly stood up. He brought down the shield and a smile came to his face, a very evil smile. Voltran looked up into the sky. The rain poured over him as he let out a hearty laugh that echoed over the valley. He had succeeded! He had made the helmet more powerful then ever, and now he could take over the world. There was no one to stop him now, except maybe one…
End of Chapter Four
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