Paula was beaten mercilessly by the guard, and inside, it tortured Ness. He knew she couldn’t take much more. He wondered as he worked aimlessly what life without Paula would be like. He loved her so much. What would he do without her? What kind of man would he be? He would probably be a broken man, without hope, and on the verge of suicide. Ness knew he had to get her out of here and into a hospital. How would be a different question.

One day, Paula was grabbed away by the guard, and taken to a nearby shack.. Ness was taken as well. He was tied to a nearby wall, and Paula was tied to the floor. The guard then took a six shooter, loaded it with one bullet, spun the chamber, closed it, and put the gun to Paula’s head. When he pulled the trigger, nothing happened. He then opened the chamber, put another bullet in, and repeated the process. Nothing happened again, but Ness had enough. The guard was playing Russian Roulette with Paula.

The tape that held Ness’ wrists to the wall melted off as his hands heated with PSI energy. He was able to concentrate. Just as the guard was about to try his luck again, Ness got his attention, and delivered a dropkick. He checked the chamber. If he had reacted a second later, Paula’s life would have been over.

The guard grabbed the six-shooter, and started hunting for Ness. "AS LONG AS YOU’RE GONE, NESS, I CAN STILL KILL THE HOSTAGE!" Suddenly, Ness popped up. "Pop quiz," he said, "You’re facing an 18-year-old kid who knows PSI like the back of his hand, and has mastered psychokinesis. Do you fire, or drop the gun?" The guard fired, and Ness stopped the bullet, just inches from his head, with his strong psychokinesis energy. "WRONG ANSWER, BEN STEIN," he shouted, and he turned the bullet against him at double speed and put it through the guards arm. He was knocked unconscious instantaneously.

Ness rushed over to Paula. "Are you OK?" "I’m fine," said Paula. Ness looked into her eyes. "This reminds me of the first time we met," said Ness, and they kissed. Suddenly, a voice flashed into his head. "Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness, Ness…" Ness abruptly stopped the kiss. "I knew that Guard’s voice," he said. "From where?" asked Paula. "The Giygas battle," said Ness, who looked at the body. Vaguely familiar, he thought. Perhaps a closer investigation…

Suddenly, the alarm rang. The time for escape was now...

As soon as the alarm sounded, Jeff, who was elsewhere, saw an opening and took it by leveling the guard with his pickaxe handle. He made a run for the gate. He found Poo at a nearby place, working as if nothing happened. Jeff ran over to Poo and grabbed him. "C’mon, let’s go!" he said. Poo realized what was happening. "Sorry, man…the work threw me into a trance. C’mon, I’ll map a way out." Suddenly, the guard started shouting at Jeff and Poo, then ran after them, a rifle in hand. "Let's get out of here!" screamed Jeff. He and Poo rushed out of the sector. They were far ahead, but still in the guard's sight. Poo shoved Jeff into a hiding place, and convinced a prisoner to distract the guard that was giving chase. During the time the guard was distracted, Poo mirrored another guard, grabbed Jeff, told him who it was, and then confronted the guard.

"You got the kid?"
"Yeah. I ran a check. He was just transferred to sector 1A."
"What about that Dalaamese kid?"
"Lost him."
"Find him at once, or Godon will have our heads!"
"Of course, I’ll drop him off, you keep looking."

Poo left the area, and headed towards the front door with Jeff in hand. There, the gang would reunite, escape, get their weapons, then come back and exterminate Godon.

Jeff and Poo, still in disguise, came to the front door and met Ness and Paula. Unfortunately, they also met a wall of guards. Poo had passed sector 1A, so he knew he was caught. He quit mirroring. Suddenly, a new delivery arrived, just as the guards were about to lead Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo back to their sectors. "Wait a minute," thought Jeff, "That's Max's Viper...." The man got out of the transport car, opened the trunk, and opened the lone crate inside. Suddenly, Tracy popped out with some sort of rifle in hand. She shot down the guards. Then, the transporter revealed himself as Jack. He grabbed some sort of rifle and started picking off any guards that came near the four.

"I thought it was against your religion to take a life!" said Ness. "That was just an excuse. I’m a wuss in real life!" said Jack, "Me and Tracy will cover your exit. In the meantime..." Tracy finished "Special delivery from Escargo Express!" As Jack covered her, Tracy tossed Ness his Gutsy Bat, Paula her Holy Frying Pan, Jeff his Baddest Gaia Beam and his so-called GadgetPak, and Poo his Sword of Kings. They equipped the weapons, and ran into the proverbial fire. Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo made their way through the crowd, destroying any guard in their path. A full alert was launched. Ness put up an Omega Shield around everyone to protect themselves. A few minutes later, Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo found the core, where Godon ran his operation. Suddenly, Godon appeared from the roof, and threw his long sickle staff at Ness. The pointy side broke through the shield, and landed in Ness' thigh.. He cried in anguish, and then collapsed. He was still conscious, so he motioned over Paula, Jeff, and Poo as Godon formed a new sickle staff. "I'll make it. Poo, pull the sickle staff out." Poo did so. Ness quickly telepathed Tony's via his Telepath Message Machine.

Tony, are there any bandage wraps in Jeff's GadgetPak? asked Ness. Yeah. It's in the medical compartment. "Check the medical compartment of your GadgetPak for bandage wraps," Ness told Jeff. Jeff found the wraps.. "Here," said Jeff, who handed the bandage wrap to Ness. He wrapped his wound and said, "Leave that sickle staff here. As soon as I can stand, I’ll fend off anyone that comes near here and cover your exit. I’ll be there as soon as I can climb." Everyone nodded and quickly ran into the core to face Godon, leaving Ness and his plan behind.

Paula, Jeff, and Poo reached the top of the core where Godon awaited. "Close your eyes..." said Poo, "He took his mask off. Jeff, give me your bandage wrap." Jeff gave Poo the bandage wrap and closed his eyes, and Godon turned around to reveal his face. Poo quickly acted and used Mental Metamorphosis, the type of mirror technique he learned from his master in Twoson. He thought like the leopard, and suddenly, in his mind, he was the leopard. He moved around Godon, and bandage wrapped his face. Then, he returned to normal and sealed the bandage wrap with PSI Freeze. "OK," said Poo, "He's covered and he ain't getting uncovered. You can open your eyes!" Everyone opened his or her eyes, and Paula was the first to attack. Godon, who could see despite the bandage wrap, blocked with the staff part of his sickle staff. "I can do that too!" said Poo, who dived low, narrowly missed Godon stabbing him, and sliced Godon's hand off. It quickly regenerated with his black energy. Jeff figured it out right then and there. "He's weak against light attacks! PSI Flash should help!" he said to Paula and Poo. "I wasted my last bit on sealing Godon's bandage cover!" said Poo. "Here," said Paula, tossing Poo a Magic Tart, "Make this one count!" Paula then started praying for light energy. 50% of the time, she got it, but only the dazzling light, which she rarely got, damaged him noticeably. The same for Poo, who kept using PSI Flash until it tired out. "We need Ness," thought Paula aloud, "I think if we can somehow get mix that light energy with the dark energy..." She telepathed him.

Ness, said Paula, please, pull yourself together. We need you now! Charge that sickle staff with PSI Flash energy. It's a technique I've been practicing for a while. Ness shrugged in pain, and then telepathed back. Explain, he asked. Paula told Ness how to do it. Ness followed her directions, and then asked Paula to lure Godon so he had a clear shot at him. Then, Ness started climbing the core tower slowly, despite his pain. "Hurry Ness..." thought Paula. Suddenly, Godon knocked nearly knocked her off the core. Paula was holding on to the edge, knowing if she let go it would be an 8-story drop to the bottom. Paula held on while Jeff and Poo distracted him as best as he could.

Ness was halfway up. Suddenly, he felt a power surge in his body. Somebody replenished his PP in no time flat. He sensed a telepathic message come to him from an unknown source. I’ve relayed enough PP to you so you can heal your wound, said the voice, but I only have enough time to give you a short message. Heal your wound and hurry. Paula is about to take an 8-story drop. You have about fifteen seconds, I estimate. I will not stall you any longer. Good luck. The message ended. Ness healed his leg wound and started climbing the core at his best speed.

Jeff and Poo were knocked out. Godon now made his way toward Paula, who was already slipping. Its finger charged with black energy. Suddenly, inches from the touch of death, the sharp point of a glowing sickle staff went right into Godon's face. Ness turned him around, looked into it's bleeding face, screamed "THANKS, SPANKY." and tossed it off. Godon fell 8 stories, and hit the bottom hard.

For five whole minutes, it's body emitted black energy. Ness helped Paula up just as the energy rose at screaming speeds. When it stopped, the bandages on Godon’s face turned black.

When he was done, Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo climbed down and crowded around him. In shaky words, it said, "Who are you?" Ness paused, and said, "I am the Chosen Boy." Godon pointed to the core, let out a laugh, and then disappeared in a blanket of hellfire and brimstone. A little door popped open on the core, and as Ness, Paula, and Poo were celebrating, Jeff went to check on the panel. There was a timer, and it read 9:30. Then 9:29, 9:28, 9:27, 9:26, etc., etc., etc. Jeff came to a startling conclusion. "THIS CORE'S ONE BIG BOMB!" he screamed, "RUUUUUUUUN!"

Ness ran inside and found a guard at a type of PA system. "Tell everyone to evacuate," said Ness. "Who are you?" fiercely inquisited the guard. "DO AS I SAY OR I'LL KNOCK YOUR HEAD OFF SO HARD THAT THEY'LL USE IT AS A SOCCER BALL IN ENGLAND," screamed Ness, showcasing his baseball bat. The guard made the announcement. Then Ness told him to get out too. As he left the core, he made another pass at the timer. 8:30, 8:29, 8:28, 8:27...

Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo made it to the exit, got into the car, and told Jack and Tracy to get in. Jeff jumped into the driver's seat, and drove out quickly after clearing a large tunnel. "Clear Fourside, and the desert as well," said Paula, "There's gonna be an earthquake caused by that explosion!" Jeff headed for the Fourside Tunnel, and when they reached the bridge, they slowed to a halt.

"Jeff, go! What are you waiting for? We have one minute to get out!" "I'm out of fuel," said Jeff, "We'll have to run for it." "It’s too far," said Ness. "I’m a fast runner," said Tracy, "If I go now, I might be able to make it. This way, at least I can carry on your legacy." "Go now," said Ness. He kissed Tracy. "We’ll make it. See you at home." Tracy took off. "I thought you just filled it, Jack!" said Paula. "This is like a 7.7 L engine," said Jeff, "It consumes fuel like crazy." Jack suddenly remembered something. "After we filled the thing, Dr. Andonuts gave us some special fuel for this car," he said, "It's in the trunk." "We have time to fill it, but what if we don't make it?" asked Poo. Ness was already out of the car. "It’s a chance we’ll have to take," said Ness, "Wait here. Jeff, pop the trunk. Hurry up!" Jack popped the trunk. Ness grabbed the fuel. He opened the fuel door, and started filling the tank. Ness had 30 seconds left when it was finally filled. He got into the car. Jeff went to start it, but only grinding noises could be heard. "What’s going on? We’ve got 20 seconds left! Start the damn car!" "It’s stalling, it won’t go." With 15 seconds to go, the Viper suddenly sprung to life. "Thank you GOD!" screamed Jeff, "I’m not waiting for seatbelts, we’re going NOW!" He started racing out, cutting people off left and right at dangerous speeds. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1...and then, the earthquake happened. Everything was shaken up. The bridge got it worse, as the core was right under one of the supports. It swayed left and right for hours, breaking the suspension cables and tossing cars off the bridge.

The Viper never made it.

Tracy, who was waiting a mile away in Threed, waited for hours for the Viper. She realized it was never coming, and shed a tear. Suddenly, out walked Jack. Tracy frowned. "Where are the others?" He explained.

They couldn’t make it out in time, so they jumped from the Viper just as it was shaken off. Paula couldn’t make it out in time, though. He thinks that she couldn’t make it because when the car crashed into the water, she got bad whiplash that knocked her unconscious. Ness, hanging onto a suspension cable he grabbed along with he, Jeff, and Poo, realized Paula didn’t make it, and dove in after the Viper and Paula. Everyone else climbed up from the cables when the quake ended. Jeff and Poo stayed behind to greet Ness when he resurfaced. No word from either one, though.

Tracy knew what that meant. She started crying at the thought that had to be all too true: Ness Jason Franklin was dead. Jack ran to Tracy’s side to comfort her. "It’s OK…if Ness and Paula are dead, they’re in a better place, now, and they’re still together." It didn’t help much. Jack, on instinct, looked up, and saw something unbelievable. "Tracy, look!" he said.. Tracy looked up, and gasped.

In the tunnel was Ness, leaning on Jeff, and Poo, who had a bruised, unconscious Paula in a Fireman’s Carry.

Ness, panting, hugged her sister and said, "Let’s go home."

About an hour later, Anna Franklin was watching her regular soap operas. She heard the jingling of keys at the door, and opened it. She lost her breath then. She saw her son and his friends there, standing at the doorway. Ness hugged his mother. "I told you I’d be back," said Ness. Anna said nothing. She just enjoyed this moment of happiness, knowing that her son was back home. Even if it was for a week, due to Ness’ going to college. She was just glad he was alive.

A week later, Ness and Paula were walking on the beach in Summers. Tomorrow they would be off to separate colleges, so they just went to rekindle old times. Suddenly, someone bumped up against Paula. He apologized and sped off, laughing. "That guy must have been a pickpocket," said Paula. "There's only one way to find out," said Ness. Paula reached into her pocket and found that there was more there rather than less. She pulled out the extra thing she got, and found a small case. It said "To Paula, love Ness." She opened the case, and found a beautiful ring. It secured a little piece of paper. She took out the paper and opened it. It read "Marry me Paula." She screamed in delight and hugged Ness. Then, a funny expression crossed her face. "What's wrong," asked Ness, "that sounded like a yes..." "It's just that we're off to college tomorrow. We can't get hitched for four years." "Exactly," said Ness, "so we'll stay engaged for the four years, plan our wedding over the time off we have, and when we get out, we wrap up any loose ends and--" "Get married," finished Paula. She kissed Ness excitedly. "C'mon," said Ness, "I already have an engagement gift." He pulled out two front row tickets to that night's Runaway Five concert at the Summers Memorial Stadium. "Starts in five minutes. Wanna go?" "Sure," said Paula. The couple then headed to the stadium, never feeling more alive and in love.

-Jeff graduated from the Snow Wood Boarding School two weeks after the war with Godon. He now lives in an apartment in New York City and is one of the world's most brilliant scientists..

-Poo was crowned king of Dalaam when he returned. Since Poo was crowned, he has dropped the crime rate to an all time low, and is making a bid to enter the United Nations.

-Very few people have recollection of the concentration camp set up by Godon. Those that don't recall it ever found out that its destruction caused the "Great Fourside Earthquake".

-Ness and Paula did get married, and earlier than expected, as it seemed. That's a whole other story, though.