011: One Froggy Mission

Charleston Charge and the Frog of Chaos: 6 votes
Charleston Charge and the False Prophet: 5 votes
Charleston Charge and the Lost City of Uhld: 0 votes

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Charleston thoughtfully chewed his delicious waffles. It had been a month since Land Captain had rescued him from Liana Koleyna, and he had almost completely healed. In any case, he was more than able to leave TYRIS and pursue a goal or two. He knew what he wanted to do, too. He would seek out the cult of the False Prophet, and hopefully free his girlfriend from the False Prophet's thrall. It would take some work, and some time off, but he was willing to do the first one and had plenty of the second one coming to him. He hit the alert button, and a nurse who looked like a fertility goddess came in.

"Yes, Mister Charge?" she asked, her voice low and gruff.

"I would like a vacation form, Miss Melody," said Charleston, "Oh, and some more waffles."

An hour later, after the form had been filled out and returned and the waffles eaten, Robin Banks arrived, with a smile on his face.

"So you're ready to leave, Charleston?" he said.

"Sure am."

"Then we should celebrate!" said Robin, throwing some confetti at Charleston.

He picked up one of the larger pieces, and saw that it was his vacation form, shred to bits. He looked over to Robin, who radiated smugness.

"You're still on assignment, Charleston. After you bag the frog, or at least find out what its deal is, then you can take your vacation."

"You're a jerk, Robin."

"Hey, it's not me. This order came from the Dispatcher himself. Too many agents have been taking missions to exotic locations only to quit them and take two weeks of vacation."

"My mission is in a forest, and you know how much I hate recreational camping. I always attract every weird creature within a ten mile radius. It's hard to relax when every cryptozoological creature, escaped government experiment, and alien pet around is bothering you."

"Then you'll be pleased to know that you won't be going on this assignment alone, and we've provided adequate shelter for the duration of the mission."

"You mean I have to stay out there until I find the frog?"

"Certainly. Land Captain says you were quite interested in finding the frog, after all. You should be pleased."

"I was interested when I didn't know I'd be forced to spend who knows how much time in the woods."

Robin shrugged, and said, "You leave tomorrow. I've sent someone to fetch your clothes. You've no way out of this, by the way, so don't even try."

"I wasn't even planning on it."

"Certainly. Now, since you're technically handicapped now, with a bionic leg, we thought it would be wise to supply you with a cane and an assistant. While you do not have the choice of assistant, we will allow you to choose your cane. We know how much you like choices, Charleston."

"This is pretty much the worse choice you could give me, Robin."

"What with you setting off to finish your mission tomorrow, we thought it'd be wise to just give you a small choice to make. Keep your mental reserves as full as you can, and all that."

"You're a saint, Robin."

"Here's a brochure with all the fun and interesting canes you can choose. Have fun, Charleston."

Charleston sighed, and looked at the brochure. Three canes caught his eye: one was a fiberglass cane, supposedly able to break through cinder blocks. Potentially useful, thought Charleston. The other was a simple wooden cane, at least on the outside. Its head came off, revealing a long, thin blade. It had its charms, certainly. The third was, by far, the most technologically impressive. Its head had several buttons on it, and it was apparently able to fire darts, shoot out gas, and emit electrical shocks. It was made of finished oak with a titanium center.

Well, thought Charleston, I might as well choose.