"No Strings Attached"
*Christina looked at the remnants of the soldiers who attacked her, an expression of incredulousness on her face. There had ben at least six of them, and she had defeated them all on her own. All this time, all these claims that she didn't have as much power, as much strength...what a crock of bull. She had much more power than people give her credit for, even her friends. Much more power than she herself credited. Amusing. Soon it will be time to take matters into her own hands.
She had power.
So much.
Soon it would be time to express that power...
But not yet. There was too much to do right now. The guys needed her help...she had a job to do. Not yet. Soon.
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*Chris: Watch out for the exploding blubber! Wow, something else I never thought I'd say in my life. Ever. Someday, I'm just gonna lead a life where I will never have to use the term "exploding blubber."
On the rooftops of the Pearlman Estate...cue tunes of "Digital Getdown"
The *NSYNCers and the thing that Lou became has taken the battle to the rooftops; The air crackled with blasts from both ends as *NSYNC tried repeatedly yet unsuccessfully to bring Lou down.
*JC: *NSYNC Plasma Shockwave!
The bolts struck at all corners of the giant creature but fizzled moments after impact.
Lou: It's not gonna do anything, and you know it...you can't destroy what I am. What I represent.
*Lance: And what is that, Lou? What do you represent?
Lou: ...
Dark tendrils creeped out from somewhere within Lou's body and lashed out at the guys. The whiplike appendages struck at insane speeds and cracked cement where it landed.
*NSYNC: AAAAH!
Lou: Look at you. Look at what you are. You think you're so independent and original and unrestrained and untainted. Like you're just the epitome of artistic idealogy.
*Justin: Jes wa' you tryin' ta say, foo'!?
Saying thus, *Justin unleashed his Holy Glaciation, which glazed across the surrounding landscape like an avalanche. It flashed across Lou...but didn't seem to affect him in any large way.
Lou: You were made! You were made by me and you know it. Maybe not your potential, maybe not your talent, but your success: That was me. That was me behind the scenes pulling the strings. I made the *NSYNC Phenomenon, just like I made every other boyband phenomenon. Without my marketting, without my guidance, do you really think you could have made it, made it this big, in the cynical world of pop-haters that you live in?
*NSYNC: What!?
*Justin: That's not true, we've always had fans who appreciated us, appreciated the music...
At this Lou cackled, angering the quintet even more.
Lou: This, from the very model of boytoy appeal?
*Justin: ...!
*Joey: *NSYNC Apocalyptic Flare!
The asteroid-bombs blew forth onto the area surrounding Lou, resulting in colossal explosions of pure flame. When it cleared, the destruction was immense, however Lou was once again unharmed.
Lou: The "music?" >:D
*JC: As long as we keep the music, keep the music true...
Lou: The music! Which one of your fans do you think actually looks at you and sees musicians!? They look at you and they see your glitter. They look at you and see prospective sex mates is what they see!
*Lance: You're full of it, Lou.
Lou: Am I? How much worth, really, is your music, to those little girls who can't get enough of your bodies!? You think that I'm the one who's all bad...when you are the ones who represent the falseness, the total emptiness of your work? Do you know what I am? I am truth. You are the lie.
*Lance: *NSYNC Titan's Grave!
*Chris: *NSYNC Raging Dragon!
The earth itself lunged upwards like a living thing, threatening to collapse everything, but Lou stretched winglike appendages from his back and flew upwards, escaping the anger of the land and the fury of the skies.
*Chris: Oh look, a flying pig! I guess I really could become more popular than Justin after all.
Everyone turns to stare at *Chris for a moment.
*Chris: You know, how everyone's always saying that the...the only way impossible stuff can happen is if pigs fly? I mean...oh nevermind. You can't blame a fellow for trying to be funny, can you!?
*Joey: Now you know how I feel, now.
*Justin: Tho' you right 'bout the impossible part, dawg.
*JC: Can we at some point remain serious?
*Lance: I'm serious. You guys always leave me out of the fun things...
*Chris: As serious as an albino in a puppet suit can be.
*Lance: Hey!
*Chris: Hey, wow, I'm funny again! Yay!
*Joey: I'm still hungry.
Lou: You...why...why are you so unaffected by what I just said? Don't you worry at all!?
Lou fired a battalion of dark missiles at the guys, but they deflected it just like any other force.
*Joey: What, me worry? Wait a minute...is that humanly possible?
*Chris: I don't think so, Joey. I don't think so.
*Justin: What, you mean the part about us being fake? Yo, we ain't dumb. We all knew about that. We knew dey was gonna be people who pass us by like toys. We knew there was gonna be people who...see us as toys.
Lou: ...What? But if you're all aware of this hypocrisy...
*JC: Because we know, for every one person who looks at us as fake, as toys...there are ten, no a hundred more who truly see what we are. Who see past the glitter...see our true shine.
*Chris: You know, I think it's you who underestimated people, underestimated us. We've always known what we were, what we still are. And we're not fake.
*Justin: We're masters of our own destinies.
*Joey: We're here to stay.
*JC: We're true.
*Lance: We're *NSYNC.
Lou stared at them, flustered. What was this? They were supposed to be uncertain. Just like all the others. They were supposed to be confused. Just like all the others. They were supposed to conform to his ideals, because they didn't know any better, he was Big Poppa. Just like all the others. They were supposed to be controlled. They were supposed to be his!
JUST LIKE ALL THE OTHERS!
Lou: AAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrr...
The dark figure began to expand yet more. It began to explode as a mass, like a slow motion bomb. Lou was drawing all the energy that used to belong to the Corpulence.
*Chris: I think we hurt its feelings.
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Back inside the mansion...
*Brian: Le...Leighanne...?
She didn't move.
*Brian: Leighanne...
She didn't move.
*AJ: I think we...I think she might be...
She looked up.
She stood a little ragged, a little uncertain. But there was no denying what has happened.
She was beautiful. Truly.
*Brian: ...!
*Howie: I think...I think she might be...cured...!
*Nick: Some thing must be messin' up with the dark power...something must've happened to the source! *Brian, she's...
Of course *Brian wasn't hearing a word of what they said. He was too preoccupied with laughing and crying and shouting and hugging the dazed girl to care.
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Lou was totally berserk. He shot dark missiles at all directions, uncaring if he even came close to harming his adversaries or not. He was like a computer program gone haywire.
Something did happen to the Corpulence core. It was misaligned at an alarming rate. It pulsed and it shrank, like a living representation of Lou's emotions.
Lou: AAAAAAAaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrgggg...!
Cue tunes of "No Strings Attached"...
*Justin: WHOA! The freak's gone mad!
*Chris: As an equally insane person, I believe I can really sympathize with Lou's dementia...oh wait I really can't. Forget that.
*JC: Look out for the...the...black thing that's flying at us!
*Lance: It's these days that make me glad I'm from Mississippi.
Everyone turns in midst of their dodging to stare at *Lance.
*Lance: I know, I know, I just couldn't resist.
Lou: AAAAAaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrssssssssskkkk...!!!
*Joey: Lou, you're losing control! Get a freakin' hold of yourself or you'll destroy yourself!
*Justin: Really?
*Joey: Actually, I have no idea, but it sounded like the right thing to say at the moment, didn't it?
*Lance: You watch too much Superman...
*Joey: Don't I know it.
Suddenly Lou shot an amazing stream of convulsing acid from his lips.
*Lance: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...
Lou: I. Can't. Stand. Any of. You...obey me!
*Chris: Um, no. While we're at it, ever heard of Peptol-bizmol?
Lou: I. Can't. STAND. Your. Shine. Your. Positivity. Your. Freaking lame-*** jokes!
*Justin: Don't hate us 'cause we're cool.
Lou: DIE!!!
From the thing that was once Lou, once the Corpulence, blasted forth the darkest, most immense formation of energy the guys had ever seen.
But they weren't afraid. Far from it.
"If you take a chance with me..."
*Chris: You know we warned him.
*JC: Let our powers combine! Earth, Fire, Wind, Water, Heart! Oh wait, forget that. Let's let him have it.
"...I'll be everything you need..."
*NSYNC: *NSYNC Digital Star Power!
The five men joined their star crystals as one, emitting a blinding glow.
*NSYNC: *NSYNC Superstring Halation!
"...Because, it's our destiny...!"
An equally blinding stream of multicolored rays exploded from the five men of *NSYNC and propelled itself at sonic speeds at Lou's dark ray.
"Baby, you're not the only one..."
It never stood a chance.
"You don't have to be afraid to fall in love..."
The halation drove straight into Lou and erupted like blinding fireworks in the darkest night.
"...and I know that you've been hurt in the past..."
The creature let out an anguished scream and began to void.
"But if you want it here's my heart..."
*Justin: In the words of, well, us..."Bye. Bye. Bye!"
"No Strings Attached!"
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Somewhere in the world...Cue tunes of "This I Promise You."
The little girl was worried. Mom and Dad were talking about violent occurrences all over the world. The little girl was also sad. Everyone was so mean to her sometimes, and no one understood what she wanted, no one understands who she is. Sometimes people say the meanest things, and she couldn��t even talk to her friends about it. She needed help with her schoolwork, but was afraid that people were going to judge her if they knew she wasn't smart. She wanted to be popular, but wasn't very pretty. The little girl sat in her room, upset at the world.
But the little girl knew what would cheer her up. She searched through her desk and found that *NSYNC CD that she bought the other day and popped it into her player. Listening to them always made her feel better. They were such good singers, and their looks are a definite bonus. She wondered what their names were, especially that one with the curly hair, and vowed to remember the next time she saw them on TV or something. Total Request Live would be on in a few hours, and even though Carson acted like such a snob, it was fun to watch that show and see who was gonna win. She hoped it was *NSYNC. It's not like she even knows who they are, but they seemed like nice people. She hoped that they would go places.
After listening to "I Drive Myself Crazy" for a little while, she decided to go talk to her mom about some things.
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Busta: Is Pearlman...?
Central: ...No. He's not gone. I sensed it...at the very last second he disengaged from the Corpulence and got away.
Busta: So...he'll be back.
Central: I believe people like Lou Pearlman will always exist...the type of person who represents a sort of inbalance in our hearts. But people like *NSYNC will continue to exist too. And for that, we can be glad.
Busta: You really can't destroy true art, can you? There are just some people who are meant to stay.
Central: Agreed. But for now, there is need for some time off. Central, out.
*NSYNC: Digital Star Saga Season 1...end