Prologue: The Treacherous Mountain

This is the history of the Treacherous Mountain, previously known as a young teenager on planet Xerox named Travis Chapman

The Treacherous Mountain is a forbidden place on planet Xerox, but the Treacherous Mountain isn’t a real mountain. The Treacherous Mountain used to be a young teenager named Travis Chapman. He and his mother were neighbors of Paradise Utopia for six years before he left and he never saw them again until ten years later. This is how it all began:

One sunny day in Watauga, End of the World, Paradise Utopia got ready to leave for work at The City of Aristotle Medical Center. He was just about to lock up when he was greeted by his neighbor, a young boy named Travis Chapman. Travis was a student at the End of the World Elementary School at Watauga, which is just down the street from his mother’s house.

“Hey, Mr. Paradise,” he said with a smile, “how are you doing this morning?”

“Hi, Travis,” Paradise said, “shouldn’t you be in school today?”

“My bus hasn’t come yet,” Travis replied. “Mr. Paradise, I was wondering if you’ll still be able to make it back in time for dinner at 5 o’clock. It’s Friday and my mom is having a backyard barbecue and I want you to be there. So, will you be able to come?”

Paradise smiled, “You know, I’m in the Neurosurgery Operating Room and the Disease Treatment Building all day, and I’ll be in the Maternity Ward tonight, Travis,” he said, to which Travis hung his head. “But, I’ll try to be there,” he added.

Travis smiled, “Yay!” he shouted as the school bus pulled up. “We’re gonna have so much fun! See you later, Mr. Paradise!”

Paradise chuckled and waved as the school bus departed. He locked his front door and took the Rainbow Road to work. At the City of Aristotle Medical Center, the Neurosurgery Operating Room was full of Ancient Xeroxians who injured their heads while skydiving and some who suffered from a head injury after accidentally falling into the River of Oblivion, a river in The Dark Lands that causes anyone who comes into contact with it to get amnesia.

“Dr. Utopia, we have a patient here who has suffered from multiple head injuries,” a neurosurgery nurse said, “He is in a minimally conscious state on the road to recovery, but the family wants to pull the plug on his life support. What should I do?”

“How long has he been in the minimally conscious state?” he asked him.

“About a week, sir,” the nurse replied.

“Have you explained to the family that the patient is indeed on the route to recovery?” Paradise asked.

“No, sir,” the nurse responded.

“Well then, talk to the family and explain to them that he is on the route to recovery and tell them how long he has been in the minimally conscious state,” he said. “I really shouldn’t have to tell you this.”

“Sorry, sir. I’m on it,” the nurse replied and departed the Neurosurgery Operating Room.

“Dr. Utopia, we have a patient over here in need of brain surgery,” another neurosurgery nurse said.

After sterilizing his hands and putting on sterile gloves, Paradise went to perform the brain surgery on the patient, removing the abnormal brain tissue. After tending to that patient, he tended to the other patients who also needed brain surgery. When he was done with them, and he was no longer needed in the Neurosurgery Operating Room, he moved to the Disease Treatment Building adjacent to the main Medical Center.

He was testing a cure for a rare disease that had plagued some Xeroxians with a sickness similar to pneumonia and tuberculosis combined, and in some cases it was too fatal for them to survive. He and his brother Silver worked together to find a cure for this disease. They tested many different versions of it but to no avail, and this is their third test so Paradise was hopeful it would work. He went to the bedside of a bedridden patient and used a syringe to inject the medicine into the patient’s IV, doing the same for all the patients in the Building.

He recorded their vital signs and monitored them for several hours before being called back into the Neurosurgery Operating Room. There, he performed more brain surgeries such that when the clock struck 5, Paradise had already performed well over 200 brain surgeries and tested a cure on 150 patients. He departed the Neurosurgery Operating Room to go to the backyard barbecue Travis’s mother was having.

When one of the neurosurgery nurses noticed he was leaving, she stopped him, “Dr. Utopia, where are you going?” she asked.

“I’m late for an appointment,” he responded as he removed his lab coat and hung it on the door of his office.

He turned to leave and noticed that the nurse was studying him, curiously. “I’ll be back,” he reassured her.

“You expect me to believe that you’re late for an appointment at this hour?” she asked. “What’s your appointment with? Dinner?”

“Just watch my patients until I return,” he said as he left his office and headed for the exit.

“And if you don’t return?” the nurse inquired.

“Michelle, I’ll be back,” Paradise replied, departing the City of Aristotle Medical Center.

Michelle sighed and returned to the Neurosurgery Operating Room as he left the Medical Center. He made it to the backyard barbecue with only 45 minutes to spare. Because it was so many people there, it was hard for him to spot Travis immediately, but he eventually found him. When Travis saw him, his face lit up, “Paradise! You made it!” he cried, jumping into his arms.

Paradise laughed, “Well, I told you I’ll try to be here. Here I am,” he said as they stopped hugging. “But, I’ll have to go back to the Medical Center soon, so I can’t stay long.”

Travis smiled, “Okay,” he said. “I’m so glad you came!”

Travis’s mother came over, “I’m glad you made it,” she said as she hugged him, “I was worried that with the number of people being admitted into the hospital today, you wouldn’t be able to make it.”

“Well, I was in the Neurosurgery Operating Room and Disease Treatment Building all day,” Paradise said.

“Really? How did it go?”

“I performed a lot of brain surgeries today. You wouldn’t believe how many people needed surgery due to a skydiving accident!”

“Wow. Skydiving accidents. That sounds like fun. Tell me how it went for you in the Disease Treatment place.”

“Well, I’ve only just started testing out this new cure my brother and I had for this rare disease, so I won’t know anything for a while.”

“I guess we’ll see. So, how much time do you have here?”

Paradise glanced at his watch, “I have at least 35 minutes, tops,” he said. “Maybe I’m just being optimistic?”

Mrs. Chapman laughed, “I’m happy you were able to come for Travis,” she said. “The school asked me to do this backyard barbecue in honor of all the kids and their male role models. Most of the other children chose to bring their fathers but Travis’s father couldn’t come. Travis invited you because you’re the only father he knows. Well, he thinks of you as his father anyways. He talks about you a lot and even says how he wants to be just like you when he grows up.”

Paradise watched as the other kids played catch with their fathers and siblings on the grass, while Travis’s mother talked, “Why couldn’t his father come?” he asked her.

Travis’s mother sighed, “He hasn’t been around for Travis for a long time,” she replied. “The last time I remember seeing him was when I was pregnant with Travis and that was when he was taken away. He was arrested for a Ponzi scheme with his business that put a lot of executives out of a job and costed a large number of investors billions in losses. Travis doesn’t know about it because I haven’t told him and I haven’t even told Travis about him. Our accounts were frozen and it took a while after the divorce for them to unfreeze my account so that I could afford the down payment on this house. I was told this was a good place to raise a family.”

“Well, The End of the World is known for its award-winning education system,” Paradise said. “Their students’ test scores are the highest in the nation.”

Mrs. Chapman smiled, “Well, get over there. Travis is waiting,” she said. “I’ll have your plate ready for you when you get ready to leave.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Chapman,” Paradise said as he went over to where Travis was standing. He was watching the other kids playing catch with their fathers. Some of them were even throwing light plastic disks around. Paradise went to his garage, grabbed his ball and glove, and returned to Travis’s backyard.

“Hey, do you want to play catch?” he asked Travis.

“Don’t you have to leave soon?” Travis asked.

“I still have 15 minutes. So, what do you think? You wanna play?”

Travis smiled, “Okay,” he said as Paradise handed him the glove.

Travis put the glove on his hand and Paradise threw the ball. They played catch for a while until about five minutes before it was time for him to return to the Medical Center. “Alright, I have to go back to work,” he said. “Are you gonna be okay while I’m gone?”

Travis nodded, “I’ll be okay,” he replied. “Thanks again for coming.” He handed Paradise his ball and glove, but Paradise refused them.

“They’re for you to keep,” he said. “And you know what else?”

“What?”

“There’s an athlete on Earth who is also named Travis Chapman.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. And this ball and this glove were signed by him, according to the person I bought them from. So, what do you think? You like them?”

“Wow! I have a ball and glove with my name signed on them! Thanks, Mr. Paradise! You’re the best!”

“You’re welcome, Travis,” Paradise said as Travis gave him a big hug. They stopped hugging, “Well, I have to go now. Be good to your mother,” he said as he turned to go back to the Medical Center. Before he could leave, Travis’s mother rushed over with a to-go box, “Wait, Paradise,” she called. She handed it to him, “Don’t forget your food.”

“Thanks, Mrs. Chapman,” Paradise said as he took his plate of food and headed back over to the Medical Center. He stashed it in the refrigerator in his office and went back to the Neurosurgery Operating Room. When he entered, Nurse Michelle came over, “Thank goodness you’re here,” she said softly. “I got tired of covering for you.”

“Good looking out, Michelle,” Paradise sighed. “So, what all happened while I was away?”

“We have thirty more patients in need of brain surgery, fifteen pregnant mothers were admitted into the maternity ward and about half the patients in the Disease Treatment Building started improving in their condition,” Nurse Michelle replied.

“That’s good,” he said as he sterilized his hands, put on sterile gloves and went to perform brain surgery on those patients in need of brain surgery. When he was done and Dr. Moaveauntraé Johnson had taken over, he moved on to the Maternity Ward to tend to the pregnant mothers there. He helped deliver 35 babies: 18 baby boys and 17 baby girls, before his shift ended. He went back to his office, grabbed his plate and departed the Medical Center. When he got to his house, he warmed up his plate and ate it before going to bed.

The next day, Paradise rose early to go to work, ready for another busy day, but when he got there he found the Chief Physician there and discovered half the hospital staff was gone. “Good morning, Dr. Jayvion,” he said. “It’s very quiet in here, isn’t it? Where’s everybody? Did they all decide to be late today?”

Dr. Jayvion shook his head, “No, they’re not late,” he replied. “They’re gone.”

“Gone? Gone where?”

Dr. Jayvion smiled, “They’ve gone on permanent leave,” he replied.

Fired? Paradise thought, horrified. But why?

“The hospital has fallen behind on its payments and it needs to downsize,” Dr. Jayvion said, as if reading Paradise’s mind. “So, we let them go, or trimmed the fat, so to speak. Letting people go from various departments.”

“Good to know,” Paradise sighed. “I’ll just get to work then.”

“Uh, Paradise, that includes your department, too,” Dr. Jayvion said.

Paradise turned to face him, “It’s Dr. Utopia,” he said, “and what do you mean that includes my department too? Do you even know what I do here?”

“Yes, “Dr. Utopia” I do,” Dr. Jayvion replied, “but, the hospital can’t afford to keep the Neurosurgery Operating Room open anymore nor can they afford to continue the Disease Treatment Building.”

“My patients have just begun to improve and now you decide to cut off funding to those departments?” Paradise retorted. “Do you know that we have finally found the cure for this rare disease that has taken half the planet by storm and those patients in that building are alive because of it?”

“Yes, I understand all that, “Dr. Utopia” but as it stands today, I don’t believe you’ll be using that title anymore,” Dr. Jayvion replied. “And as for your patients, don’t worry about them because the neurosurgery department of the Golden Twinkle Medical Center is taking care of them, plus the Disease Treatment Building released the disease patients that you cured this morning. And now you’re being released. Goodbye, Paradise.”

“Well, I guess I’ll just go into the Maternity Ward then.”

“Maybe you didn’t hear me,” Dr. Jayvion said. “I said you’re being released. That means you’re no longer needed here so goodbye. We have someone else taking care of the Maternity Ward. The hospital can no longer afford to pay you, so I have to let you go.”

“What am I supposed to do now?” Paradise asked.

“Oh, um, how about you clear out your office? We’re done here. Sorry, not sorry,” Dr. Jayvion replied. “Good day to you, Paradise. How about you consider it an early vacation? Everyone loves vacations.”

Paradise couldn’t believe it. Just yesterday he had solid job security, but today he has been given the task of cleaning out his office and figuring out where to put his stuff once he got back to his house. He sighed exasperatedly as he shoved his box of belongings in the corner and sat down at his computer to search for another job.

So, after so many hours of searching and coming up empty, Paradise finally found an available position as the Family Physician for the king of Summer Breeze. The job required him to move into the Sunflower Palace but Paradise didn’t want to leave so the king gave him some time to think about it. After the interview, Paradise returned to his home in Watauga, End of the World to sort through his box of belongings.

Paradise eventually took the job as the Family Physician at the advice of Travis’s mother and was given a month to move out of his house, courtesy of the king of Summer Breeze. During that month, Paradise and Travis’s mother grew very close and both took custody over Travis as his parents. When the day came for Paradise to move away, he promised Travis that he’d write him every day, but ten years had passed and Travis hadn’t saw a single letter from Paradise (mainly because the king had his servants withhold them from Travis). So when Travis and Paradise saw each other again, Travis was very bitter towards Paradise because he thought he had forgotten him.

Paradise apologized to him for not being there for him but Travis refused to accept his apology. He explained to Travis that he had been writing him every day since he moved but Travis dismissed his claim saying, “I never saw those letters, so you’re a liar.” Paradise was working on a big project for the king Manorá the day he and Travis fought. The king asked him to find a cure for the disease Queen Theresa, Martha’s aunt, had, because he was the family physician, so Paradise set out to work on it.

He had no access to any technology of any kind so he wasn't able to find out the source of the problem fast enough to save her. When Travis wouldn’t shut up, despite the king's orders, Paradise became frustrated and accidentally placed a Mute Spell on him to make him hush, but he left the spell on him too long because Travis ran away from his presence out of anger. Unlike the normal effect that happens when the spell is left on victims for too long, which is the person will lose the ability to make any sound and become mute forever, because he was cursed by the Evil that currently plagues planet Z (Zeta), the effect that occurred when Paradise left his spell on Travis too long was it permanently transformed him into a volcano.

Travis’s mother returned to inform Paradise of Travis’s disappearance, so Paradise left from work early to help her search for him. When she led him back to the place she said he was last seen, they discovered a giant volcano in his place. Paradise was grieved for the loss of their son and when he informed Travis’s mother about the identity of the volcano, she demanded he get her son back for her.

Paradise made an effort to transform him back into a boy, but he only made it worse. In the process of transforming him back into a boy, or in other words, reversing the spell, he retrieved Travis’s body back, but Travis wasn’t the same. He was made completely out of lava after that and became known as Lava Boy. Also, his life was tied completely to the volcano and his strong emotions triggered the serious eruptions from the volcano. Travis never forgave Paradise for that and he now holds a grudge against him, despite Paradise’s efforts to explain to him that this was something he could not change.

Author's Note

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