“Will Vetvix capture Garzooka and use the moscram ray gun to conquer the universe?” Nermal read the last few sentences from the comic book with excitement. “Read the anniversary issue of Pet Force and find out!”
The Mane 6 and the others (all except Garfield) had to admit, the story that Nermal had told was rather intriguing, and even they found themselves wondering what in the world would happen next. “Oh-ho, wow! What a cool story!” Lily cheered with a wide grin. “I have to admit, Nermal, that was something else!” Hitch smiled. “I can’t wait to read that next issue and find out what happens next!”
“Well, you’re in luck, Hitch!” Diamond said. “The new issue is coming out today! Whoo-hoo!”
“You don't really believe that stuff, do you?” Garfield asked while eating a hot dog. “It's not like real life… like here in the newspaper comics.”
“What if it is real, Garfield?” Jasmine asked her best friend. “I used to imagine myself the cool ruler of an entire planet,” Jon said, spinning a plate until he almost dropped it, but he grabbed it before it could fall. “Heh heh…”
“Uh, stab me another hot dog there, Your Highness,” Garfield said sarcastically, prompting Jon to turn back to the hot dogs. “Seriously. Wouldn’t it be great to really get out there and do something that meant something?” Lily asked. “Like what Sunny and her friends do every time the Unity Crystals summon them?”
“Sounds like that would mean actually, uh… getting involved,” Garfield said tiredly. “That takes a lot of effort.”
“Anything worth doing requires effort,” Arlene told her boyfriend with a smile. “And besides,” Zipp spoke, “anything would be more exciting than sitting here watching relish dribble down your chin.”
“Huh? Where?” Garfield felt his chin, but as it turns out, this was a prank set up by Zipp and Nermal, who laughed and high-fived one another at their success. That’s when Misty turned to look at Arlene, who was flipping through the comic book. “I didn’t know you had an interest in comics, Arlene.”
“Not usually. I’m just looking at the pictures,” Arlene said before flipping to a picture of Garzooka and showing it off to Garfield with a smirk. “Mmm, Garzooka’s pretty easy on the eyes.”
“But he’s got nothing on me,” Garfield huffed and got down from the picnic table, his big belly showing, which caused Pipp to roll her eyes. “Oh brother...”
That's when Garfield swiped the cooking fork from Jon. “I'll take that.”
“Be my guest,” Jon said and walked over to the picnic table with Odie. “I'm here to put an end to your evil ways, Vetvix. Supernova? Ha! I eat 'em for lunch,” Garfield said, imitating Garzooka and putting the cooking fork down on the grill. “Let the fur fly!”
Garfield struck a pose with his big belly jiggling, causing Jon to sigh depressingly. “Sad.”
“So sad...” sighed Lily, shaking her head with a deep frown on her face. “Well, at least he’s trying,” Jasmine tried to tell her friends. “I, for one, would LOVE to be a superhero like Garzooka and the Pet Force-- making a difference in HUGE ways? Fighting villains? Having superpowers? What’s not to like?”
“It does sound kinda fun. Makes me wish we knew some superheroes that could train us,” Diamond said with a shrug, making the Mane 6 look at each other. They promised not to activate their superhero forms in front of their friends unless it was a complete emergency, so they needed to wait for the right time before revealing their superhero identities.
Odie quickly barked for attention, and when Jon turned to look down at him, Odie pawed at Jon's watch, making Jon realize what time it was. “Oh. Thanks, Odie. Hey, gang, we'd better get going,” he said, getting up from the table. “I wanna get to the studio early to get ready for the strip today.”
“Oh, cool!” Nermal said as he hopped down. “Come on, Garfield,” Cobalt urged, but Garfield didn’t want to head to the studio just yet-- he still had hot dogs to indulge after all. “Uh-oh. I… listen, I'll, uh-- oh, uh, you guys go ahead. I'll catch up.”
“So,” Arlene spoke, immediately figuring out Garfield’s plan, “we get there early to set everything up, and you…”
However, Garfield began pushing her away before she could finish. “I'll be there in time for my, uh, close-up.”
“I can stay and keep him company until he decides to head over,” Jasmine offered. “And we have to head to the market a couple blocks away and pick up more veggie dogs,” Hitch agreed, “so once we do that, we’ll take Jasmine and Garfield over to the studio ourselves.”
“If you’re sure,” Jon shrugged. “See you guys later!” Diamond told the group before she and the others left through the back door, and the Mane 6 hopped over the fence to head to the market. No sooner than they left, Garfield piled what hot dogs they had left onto the grill, chuckling to himself. “Well, I'd like to see Garzooka beat me in a hot dog-eating contest.”
“Trust me, Garfield-- no one in Cartoon World can match with your eating habits,” Jasmine giggled with a smile. “You keep an eye on the hot dogs, and I’ll start cleaning some of this up.”
XXXXXXXX
Jon drove his car with Odie, Arlene, Nermal, Cobalt, Jasmine and Lily inside, and as they drove past a specific part of the street, Lily immediately spoke up, excitement laced in her tone. “Oh, Jon! Can we stop at the newsstand? Please?!”
“I wanna pick up that new issue of Pet Force!” Nermal quickly added. “Sure,” Jon responded with a smile. “I am kind of curious about what happens to that handsome emperor.”
So, Jon pulled over to the nearest newsstand, where Nermal and Lily eagerly hopped out of the car and ran toward the newsstand, where a newspaper salesman was making sure all of the magazines, newspapers and comics were organized just right. “Excuse me. Yeah, down here,” Nermal called, causing the newspaper boy to look down at him. “Do you have the new anniversary issue of Pet Force?”
“You know, the one that will let us know if Vetvix captures Garzooka or not?” Lily reminded. “It was supposed to come out today.”
“Huh? Yeah, sure,” the newspaper boy nodded and got it off the shelf. “Hey, hey, hey! Careful, don't crease it!” Nermal said defensively. “That's a collector's issue.”
XXXXXXXX
Little did Nermal or Lily or any of our other friends know, but Garzooka was still traveling the universe through his space rover, at least until a warning flashed on his rover's screen. “Approaching interdimensional barrier.”
That's when Garzooka knew he was getting close.
XXXXXXXX
“You know,” the newspaper boy teased Nermal, “readin' this stuff will stunt your growth, kid.”
“Oh, brother…” Lily muttered under her breath. As Nermal laid the money on the counter for the comic, suddenly, the ground began to shake violently around them, causing Lily, Nermal and the newspaper boy to maintain their balance. After a few moments, the shaking ended, but it left Lily and Nermal in complete surprise, but the unicorn found her voice first. “What was that?!”
“Maybe it's an alien invasion. Whoo-hoo-hoo-hoo,” the newspaper boy said in a spooky voice. “Don't make fun of me!” Nermal frowned as he and Lily walked away. “Watch your back, kid. The aliens are comin'!” the newspaper boy continued to tease until they were far enough away where they couldn’t hear him. “What a loser.”
However, Lily heard him, so she stuck her nose up in the air with a huff before she and Nermal got back into the car. “Goofy kid,” the newspaper boy muttered as he began to pick up the mess that the shaking caused. “Who does he think he's foolin'?”
XXXXXXXX
Back in his universe, Garzooka piloted his ship until he managed to reach the interdimensional barrier, so Garzooka pulled the emergency brake to stop the ship. He then pushed a button to open the window and he zoomed out of the page and into Cartoon World.
Needless to say, the newspaper boy was stunned, which turned into slight intimidation as Garzooka stood in front of him. “Excuse me, kind sir,” Garzooka said politely, getting out the photos of Arlene, Odie and Nermal he had gotten from Dorkon. “Do you know these people?”
“...that way,” the newspaper boy stammered, pointing off to the right. “The universe is indebted to you,” Garzooka saluted before he ran off, leaving the newspaper boy to faint right on the ground.
XXXXXXXX
Back in Jon's car, Nermal was reading the latest anniversary issue of Pet Force and telling the ponies, Arlene and Odie everything that was happening so far. “And Garzooka comes out and… whoa!” Nermal blinked in shock as he turned the page. “I don’t believe it!”
“What?” Arlene asked, just as Lily took a glance at the comic book as well, causing her eyes to widen in shock. “T-T-T-This isn’t happening!”
“What?” Cobalt asked his friends in Arlene’s place. “We’re in the comic book!” Nermal said, showing them a comic panel of the entire gang at the backyard having a barbecue. “Here we are having our cookout!”
“Look! It even shows us buying the comic, and…” Lily paused as Nermal turned the page again. “Oh my gosh!!”
“What?” Arlene asked again, just before Nermal turned the comic toward her again. “It’s Garzooka!” Lily exclaimed. “He’s in Cartoon World!”
“The DNA matches to the Pet Force are right here!” Nermal added in agreement. “Hold on-- are you guys sure about this?” Diamond asked from the front seat. “I mean… Garfield told me not to believe everything that comes from fiction literature.”
“The proof is in the pages, Diamond!” Lily said, pointing to the picture of Garzooka from the comic. “I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but… Nermal, I really believe that these comics are magical! Somehow, the comic was able to show our cookout, and then Garzooka came OUT of the comic book dimension and into our world!”
“You really think so?” Diamond asked in shock. “Hey, it’s the best theory we’ve ever come up with,” Nermal pointed out, “so I’d say that’s a good enough theory for me. As soon as we get to the studio, we gotta tell Sunny and the other ponies about what we found out!”
“I totally agree,” Lily nodded. “It’s best that they know… especially in case Vetvix could be coming out of the comic world too.”
“So, what happens next?” Arlene asked, causing Nermal to turn back to the comic. “Um, let me see. Let me turn the page and…”
He turned the page a few times, only leaving blank pages and a very confused Cobalt in their place. “The pages are blank!”
“Because,” Lily said gravely, “it hasn’t happened yet.”
This got the others slightly worried… if it wasn’t in the comic, then… what in the world would be happening next?
XXXXXXXX
Outside Jon’s house, Garzooka followed the coordinates his rover gave him and rang the doorbell. But when there was no response, he knocked on the door instead. “Hello?” he called, accidentally pulling the door off its hinges. “Hello? Anybody home?”
However, just like before, there was no answer, so he walked inside, his strength accidentally putting holes in the wall as he came through the doorway. “Hello!”
XXXXXXXX
Back in the backyard, Garfield was busy stuffing his face with hot dogs as usual. The Mane 6 hadn’t got back with the veggie dogs yet, so Garfield and Jasmine just had to wait patiently for them to get back.
But until then, Garfield could try to break his natural hot dog eating record.
He was about to use the relish on one of his hot dogs, but the jar lid was tricky to open. After the second attempt, he tiredly gave up. “I wonder if we’ve got any relish that’s already open.”
“I'll go with you to go check,” Jasmine offered to the orange cat, and they hopped down from the picnic table and toward the back door. However, when they reached the back door, they stopped and stood completely still when they saw the unthinkable...
...the real life Garzooka standing in front of the back door, looking down at them.
Jasmine felt herself gasp with wide eyes upon seeing one of her comic book idols right in front of them. “Whoa...”
She didn't really care how Garzooka was here right now, but... he was! And that was a dream come true in itself.
Seeing them caused Garzooka to smile and open the back door to approach them. “Comrade.”
“Mommy!” Garfield yelped in fear as he and Jasmine backed up to give him some room. “There's nothing to fear,” Garzooka reassured as he picked Garfield up off the ground and hugged him, causing Garfield to scream and squirm in panic. “Don’t eat me! Don’t eat me! Please!”
“Eat you?” Garzooka chuckled as he sat Garfield down on the ground again, just as Jasmine came to his side. “You have a sense of humor, my interstellar brother. I have traveled here to call upon your help to save the universe.”
“Uh...” Garfield looked surprised at this. “Hello?”
“The evil Vetvix has stolen the moscram ray gun and vowed to enslave the planet Dorkon,” Garzooka took the chance to explain. “If she has followed me here, then all of Cartoon World is in danger too.”
Jasmine gulped nervously at this, realizing right then that the story about the Pet Force that Nermal read earlier was indeed true.
Garfield, on the other hoof, seemed to believe otherwise. “This is a gag, right? A publicity stunt to promote the Pet Force comic book? Come here,” Garfield said to Garzooka before pulling on Garzooka’s face. “Is there an actor inside that mask? If I were you, I’d fire my agent.”
“What are you talking about?” Garzooka asked in a muffled voice. And once Garfield let go of his face, Garzooka pulled out the photo of Arlene, Odie and Nermal from earlier. “Where are these three? I need them.”
“They should be, uh... at the studio,” Jasmine said nervously as Garfield prepared to walk inside. “Very well. I shall go and get them,” Garzooka smiled, and turned Garfield around so he could face both Garfield and Jasmine at the same time. “Vetvix is sure to be looking for me. I need you to hold on to the Klopman Crystal.”
Jasmine and Garfield looked shocked and amazed at the crystal, and Garfield immediately grabbed it so they could look at it closer. “Keep the crystal safe. It cannot fall into Vetvix's hands. And remember,” Garzooka told the duo, “one cat can make a difference!”
The superhero cat saluted toward them, and while Jasmine saluted rather optimistically, Garfield did it with little effort. “Hey, guys! Sorry it took so long to get back,” Sunny’s voice said as the Mane 6 and Sparky got back to the house. “You wouldn't believe the huge line of people in the checkout lane.”
“Holy pegasus peppers!” Zipp cried out in shock as many of the ponies laid their eyes upon Garzooka. “Is... is that who I think it is?!”
“Oh, I almost forgot! Garzooka, these are our pony friends from Equestria. Guys, this is Garzooka! The real one, not an actor in a super muscular costume,” Jasmine said, introducing the groups rather optimistically. “We’re good friends now! Eee hee hee hee!!”
“Uh... it's nice to meet you, Garzooka,” Sunny said, shaking off her stunned expression and shaking Garzooka’s hand. “Sorry about the sudden reaction, but... what in the world are you doing here?”
“Oh, he's here searching for Arlene, Odie and Nermal,” Garfield explained casually, “and he wanted Jazzy and me to look after this crystal thing and keep it away from Vetvix. Crazy, am I right?”
“Crazy awesome! I mean, not the Vetvix part, but the whole guarding the crystal part?” Jasmine said excitedly. “So awesome...”
“Wait a sec... we know the way to the studio like the back of our hooves!” Pipp pointed out with an enthusiastic smile. “We could take you there!”
“But just in case Vetvix really could be a threat, we better assume our superhero alter-egos,” Misty told her friends. “Just to be on the safe side.”
Jasmine looked confused at this. “Superhero alter-egos?”
But before she or Garfield could question this, the Mane 6 pulled out their enchanted masks and put them on, revealing their superhero alter-egos that they sometimes took on for emergencies.
And needless to say, Jasmine was shocked. “You guys are superheroes too?! Why didn’t you ever tell us before?”
“It's not something we we like to share all the time, especially in public,” Hitch explained. “Being a superhero means that sometimes, you have to keep your identity a secret until dire circumstances come around. I read that in a superhero how-to guide once... I think.”
“We can take you to the studio now, Mr. Garzooka!” Izzy chirped. “You’ll be safe with the Unity Squad around!”
“Very well,” Garzooka nodded to the Mane 6 with a kind smile. “Come-- let us start our journey and hope we are in time to save the universe from Vetvix's supreme vengeance.”
But before they could leave, Jasmine felt a sinking feeling in her gut that she couldn't ignore, no matter how hard she wanted to.
She had to say... something, and let her true feelings show. “Garzooka, guys! Wait!”
Garzooka, the Mane 6 and Sparky turned to her in surprise as Jasmine’s ears pinned. “I... I think you might have the wrong filly for the job. Going into a mystical forest to find the funny water was something I could handle. This is... this is a whole other level of craziness that Garfield and me have never done before. I'm sorry... I know that makes me look like a total wimp, but... I just couldn't let you think that I was brave enough to handle this when my insides are churning.”
The Mane 6 glanced down at the filly with concern, and even Sparky cooed in sadness, feeling sorry for the poor filly.
However, what happened next stunned Jasmine and the Mane 6 entirely.
Garzooka smiled softly and knelt next to the young filly, putting his hand on her mane. “You admitting your fear to me doesn't make you look like a wimp at all-- in fact, it makes you the bravest out of all of us.”
Jasmine looked up at him in surprise. “Really? But... you're a superhero-- one of the coolest superheroes ever! I didn't think superheroes were afraid of anything.”
“Everypony is afraid of something,” Sunny said reassuringly. “When we were foals, I found out that Hitch was afraid of kites.”
Hitch gasped deeply. “That was supposed to remain confidential!”
“The point is, Jasmine, is that admitting you're afraid actually makes you really brave,” Zipp told the filly. “And we know that you're the right filly to stick with Garfield on this assignment.”
Garzooka nodded at all of these statements, and as he looked at Jasmine again, a soft smile came onto his face. “You know... you remind me of a young princess I used to know many years ago.”
“Really? I remind you of a princess?” Jasmine asked in surprise. Garzooka nodded, urging the ponies, Sparky and Garfield a bit closer and went on to explain. “This princess was just a little older than you, I bet. Her name was Spectra of the planet Kaleidoscopia, and she was the leader of a band of young royals with magical powers that came from their crowns. They dubbed themselves the Royal Force, and banded together to protect their homes from evil.”
“Wow… she sounds filly-tastic!” Jasmine smiled. “Is there any chance I could meet her?”
However, Garzooka’s face slowly fell, a trace of sadness entering his tone. “Unfortunately, no, little one. During a fierce battle, an evil sorcerer cast a powerful spell over the Royal Force, turning everything on their bodies except their magical crowns into stone.”
“Oh my pony… I’m so sorry…” Pipp frowned. “That sounds horrible.”
“However, Princess Spectra made me promise that if something happened to her and the rest of the Royal Force, I would take their crowns and find worthy souls to take their place, whether they are of royal bloodline or not,” Garzooka went on, digging into the satchel he was wearing. “And I believe one of those worthy souls to be you.”
He finally found what he was looking for inside the satchel and brought it out, revealing it to be a beautiful silver tiara with a purple gemstone inside that sparkled in the sunlight.
Jasmine gasped at seeing this, unsure of what to say for a few moments. “Oh, Garzooka… it’s beautiful, but… I don’t know the first thing about being a superhero or a princess,” she said with a frown. “I-I don’t know if I’d be right for the job.”
“Come on, Jasmine, at least try!” Pipp urged. “I mean, it’s princess-worthy headwear that’s functional! You have to at least give it your best shot.”
“Well…” Jasmine hesitated for a few minutes before nodding. “If you really insist.”
Garzooka then proceeded to put the tiara on top of Jasmine's head, and even Jasmine had to admit... she did look good in it.
Suddenly, the crown on her head released a white glow that spread all around her body, starting to freak Jasmine out a bit. “Uh... you guys?! What's happening?!”
The others had to shield their eyes from the bright light, but when the light faded and the group stopped shielding their eyes, they were stunned at the transformation Jasmine went through.
Jasmine was thankfully okay, but her appearance had been altered. Now, she was wearing a suit of blue and purple, with black boots, a matching mask and a purple cape, with her new tiara still on her head.
Once she managed to get herself straightened out, the filly groaned, opened her eyes and looked at her friends, who still looked rather surprised. “Why is everypony looking at me like that?”
“Sorry, Jazzy, it’s just… you gotta take a look at yourself,” Misty said, once she finally got over the shock. “It’s actually pretty amazing!”
At first, Jasmine wasn't sure what to make of this sentence, but when she finally looked down at her new attire, she gasped and looked at herself in shock and awe. “Whoa! Garfield, look! I look like a real superhero!”
“You definitely look like a super… something,” Garfield commented. “But a good super something.”
“Okay, now we have something of a plan lined up,” Zipp said. “Jasmine and Garfield will stay here to look after the Klopman Crystal, and the rest of us are going to go with Garzooka to find the others and warn them about Vetvix.”
“You can count on us, guys! We’ll be the best crystal-guarders ever!” Jasmine promised with a salute. However, Garfield stopped the group before they could leave. “Uh, before you go,” he said, lifting the jar of relish, “can you, uh… open this?”
Izzy gladly went to help Garfield open the jar, leaving the other ponies to sigh.
When this was over, they had a serious job to do, and nothing-- not even Garfield's huge appetite-- was going to stand in their way of victory.