Coming of the Codex is the first episode of the first season of Owen 10: Metamorphosis.
Plot[]
Ceanis gazed at the blue planet, with its great splotches of white clouds and green land masses. It was similair to her own homeworld. The water was shade darker and there weren’t as many continents but it brought a sense of familiarity that would have been comforting had she been hurtling towards the cozy little world at dangerous speeds.
She pulled up on her instruments struggling against the ojursteel controls as she attempted to slow her descent. Another attack rocked the entire vessel causing Ceanis to lurch forward and smack her forehead against a display monitor. All the lights flickered dangerously. Through the rear view screens she could see the massive looming form of Mobula’s warship.
Ceanis’s only hope was that she could hide on this primitive world until the calvary arrived to bail her out. Her ship evened out as she entered fully into the atmosphere her re entry shielding maintaining itself however just barely. She could imagine her smoking starship sailing over the heads of some local aliens as it coasted over this world’s vast land. They’d think it an unlikely meteor strike more likely than a visitor from the stars.
If she had her choice she would have attempted to crash in the ocean but given her pursuers that would left her far too open, so Ceanis aimed for a landlocked body of water to crash land into.
Even if she died in these next few seconds at the very least she knew the Codex was safe out of the hands of that monster.
“I’ll be back in two weeks, kiddo. Until then do your homework and don’t burn the house down. Mrs. Flannigan will check up on your from time to time. The shareholder’s meeting is about to start. I gotta go, Owen.”
“Take your time, old man.” Owen replied. “Every kid in my class would kill for an empty house to party in for two straight weeks.”
“No parties!” Owen’s father replied. “And don’t call me old. I’ll call you tomorrow. Bye, son.”
The phone clicked and Owen looked down at his beat-up smartphone at the clock it was half past five and already the sun was setting over the horizon of the Vaughnthorne lake.
Then the sun crashed into the lake’s surface. Gouts of water and fragments of red hot metal exploded into the air. The metal frame of what had to be a satellite skidded across the lake like an out of control speed boat before tumbling over, once then twice, and settling about fifty feet from the lakeshore where Owen stood in shock.
What the hell!?
Owen looked to his left and right. A few cars rode by on the road behind him completely unaware of the cosmic events unfolding in front of Owen. Owen took a cautious step backwards away.
What if that thing explodes? He thought to himself. Am I in the blast range? Should I call the cops? Does NASA have an emergency hotline?
His spiraling trail of thought was instantly dispersed to the four wind when the foreign object bobbing gently ont he surface of the water split in two and began to sink beneath the surface of the lake. A person emerged from the tear created by the newly sundered object. He or she floated face down clearly unconscious.
Crap! He’s gonna drown! Owen pulled his shoes and socks off, tossed his phone aside and dove into the water cursing his lack of care in gym class when they practicing swimming as he struggled to reach them.
He felt the water around the crashed starship was hot. Almost painfully. He grabbed the crash victim around their slender waist and pulled them back to shore with some effort.
Regardless of his poor swimming skills, Owen soon found himself on the shore panting for breath. He turned to get a better look at his rescuee. Owen gasped
She’s blue!
Owen perceived a girl, at least she looked female, and she indeed had pale blue skin and long green hair that someone could easily mistake for exceptionally clean looking seaweed. She wore a simple skintight wetsuit that Owen thought looked like a bad spacesuit.
She began to cough and groan. Fear gripped Owen. Was she dying?
I don’t know how to do CPR!
Then her eyes snapped open and she kicked him in the face. Owen saw stars as he fell back over into the shallow water. He came back up sputtering his arms raised in case she tried to attack him again.
She was on her knees clutching a strange cube to her chest and glaring at Owen with eyes as deep blue as the ocean. Then she spoke.
“Are you native to this planet?”
Owen was shocked. Less shocked she could speak since she looked similar to humans and more shocked she spoke English.
“Is your species deaf?” she asked her voice lowered from a domineering tone to a quivering confused one.
“...I can hear you.” Owen said slowly, struggling to speak with any kind of connected sense.
“Are you native to this world?” she asked again.
“I am.”
Her glare immediately dissolved and she glanced up into the darkening sky. “I apologize for striking you, gaian.”
Owen tapped his chin where her foot had made contact and lied, “No harm done. I don’t feel a thing anymore.”
She nodded and glanced up at the sky again before getting to her feet, her legs wobbly.
“Are you ok? Do you need a hospital?” Owen asked concerned. “I can lend you my bicycle or…”
“I am not injured.” the alien stated as she surveyed her body, inspecting it for lacerations or contusions. “My suit is damaged that’s all.”
“Is that a really bad thing?” Owen questioned.
“It will be.” she bit her lip. “My species can’t breathe air like yours, I require the oxygen in water to breathe.”
“You’re a fish!” Owen exclaimed.
Her glare returned for a flash before she resumed scanning the sky. “Are there any structures or caves devoid of other gaians?” she asked.
“You mean like an abandoned building?” Owen replied.
“Yes. I need somewhere to rest in relative concealment.”
“Concealment?” Owen repeated. “Are you hiding from something? Is the FBI after you?”
“I do not know who this Effbeeye is but I am not hiding from them.” the fish lady replied. “I am hiding from a different creature.”
Owen looked down the beach and saw a small dock and dockhouse that stored rental canoes and kayaks for summertime use. “That building is empty.”
“My gratitude, Gaian.” the fish lady said as she limped over to the dockhouse. “Leave now.”
Owen blinked. This is surreal. “Hey, wait!” he jogged up to her. “I can’t leave you out here alone. Let me help you.”
“I do not require your aid, Gaian.” she retorted.
Owen’s brow furrowed. “I don’t know what a Gaian is but my name is Owen.” he put his hand out for a handshake.
She paused and glanced at his hand. She placed her hand on top of his clearly misunderstanding the gesture. “I am called Ceanis on my world.” she said. “This planet is designated as Gaia on my navigation system so I called you a Gaian since you claim to be a native.”
Funny. Owen mentally remarked. I was hoping to be called puny earthling. “It’s nice to meet you, Ceanis.”
“It has been very cordial.” Ceanis admitted. “You should evacuate now, Owen. It could get dangerous here.”
“That’s all the more why I should stay. Two is better than one.” Owen retorted.
Ceanis inhaled deeply. “You are not aware of the severity of your words. You are only-”
Ceanis was cut off by a low droning noice as a smooth black machine floated towards them. It was a flat board of reflective ebony metal atop it was an array of cylindrical devices that reminded Owen of laser pointers. Then they fired lasers.
Ceanis kicked Owen in the stomach and fell down herself with the movement. The ray of crackling energy sailed through the air where Ceanis and Owen had been and vaporized a shrub behind them.
“Run!” Ceanis gestured away from herself as she got to her feet and broke out into a run towards the dock house. The black robot changed course to follow Ceanis.
“Like hell!” Owen shot back getting to his feet. He broke out into a sprint of his own trying to chase down the black surf board shaped killer robot.
Ceanis jumped through a glass window, cutting her shoulder slightly on the sharp glass shards. A second later another energy beam blasted the space she was previously in. The dark robot paused outside the window before rapidly firing its laserbeams into the wall of the dockhouse, threatening to bring the old structure down on top of Ceanis.
Owen grabbed a old broom used for sweeping debris off the dock and leapt into the air and bringing the broom down in a overhead slashing movement down onto the top of the manta shaped droid.
The broom snapped in half but the robot quickly shot into the air to reposition itself. Owen took this opportunity to dive into the dockhouse for cover. Ceanis was there scowling at Owen.
“You primitive creature!” she rebuked him. “Are you mentally afflicted or are all Gaians as unintelligent as you!?”
“Only the cool ones.” Owen replied. As he replaced his broken broom handle for a hefty canoe oar.
“Wooden clubs don’t stand a chance against an advanced scout drone.” Ceanis stated. “Your world’s weaponry isn’t advanced enough.”
“Only one way to find out.” Owen replied trying to keep his voice calm as he peered out a window for the so called advanced scout drone. The wall opposite him shattered into a hail of wood chips and splinters as a barrage of laserfire filled the dock house with smoke. Owen dove to protect Ceanis and gasped in pain as he felt a laster graze his chest.
He got to his feet and swung the oar at the newly formed entrance and felt it strike the impervious metal shell of the robot doing no lasting damage but sending it careening back a few yards. He ran to Ceanis and pulled her out the door as the entire dockhouse began to fall down around them.
With a crashing noise matched only by the time Owen shattered all his grandmother’s fine china, the dock house fell into a heap off rubble. Owen and Ceanis had only just managed to fling themselves clear of being buried beneath it.
Owen helped Ceanis up. “That was pretty good for a primitive creature, huh?” he laughed but was then seized by searing pain his chest as he doubled over and fell to his knees.
“Owen!” Ceanis cried. She laid him on his back and gasped. “You were hit!”
“Just barely…” Owen groaned.
“Even a glancing blast is bad when it hits you here.” Ceanis said. “I think this is your specie’s heart.”
Owen glanced down and saw on his chest a glimpse of seared flesh before actively choosing to look away. “Well that sucks.”
“You should have run when I commanded you to.” Ceanis remarked sadly.
“I was never good at listening…” Owen chuckled even though it hurt to do so.
Ceanis held the cube she’d been holding a death grip over Owen and her face twisted with an indecipherable expression. “I am going to regret this, Owen of Gaia.” she said. “I am going to regret ever meeting you.”
“Wha…?”
Owen felt a sharp pain as something cold and metallic was pressed to his chest wound. The pain melted away into a warm feeling that felt like Ceanis was pouring soothing aloe gel into his chest cavity.
Owen felt the skin on his chest twitch and soon all embers of pain faded away entirely. He peaked an eye open.
“I’m alive?”
Ceanis nodded with a forlorn expression.
Owen looked down and saw a strange circular plate of metal on his chest where the laser hole was once located. He gingerly touched and felt lukewarm metal. As he examined it more closely he compared it to an rotary dial like the phones he’d see in old movies his dad watched.
“What is this?” Owen asked.
Ceanis never answered because the black drone appeared above them it’s blaster whining as it charged up another blast. She threw herself and Owen off the dock into the briny depths of the lake.
Owen heard the dull crack of the dock likely being demolished by the drone’s blast. He saw Ceanis swimming around him navigating the two deeper into the water avoiding chunks of wood as they spiraled down from the surface above.
She looked up her face twisted rather unpleasently with fear and stress. The drone had followed them into the lake. It moved much quicker underwater then it did in the air as it closed in for another shot.
Ceanis pressed her slender blue finger into Owen’s chest as she turned the dial on his chest around and around in circles. She then released the dial allowing it to spin back to it’s originally positon as it spinned it glowed with a blinding emerald light as Owen felt every atom in his body twitch.
When the light subsided Owen saw with greater clarity the drone as it closed in on Ceanis it’s blaster cannon charged and about to fire. Owen forced his body to swim forward so he could shove Ceanis or at the very least intercept the attack.
To his surprise he swam forward at incredible speed accidentally colliding with Ceanis in a manner much rougher than he intended and swimming the two of them to the opposite side of the lake.
The blue skinned alien girl smiled with relief. Owen looked down at his hands and saw red clawed hands. He had transformed into a red-orange fish alien rather different than Ceanis herself but aquatic nonetheless.
“In that form you can destroy the droid.” Ceanis explained. “If you move quickly you can tear it apart.”
“Say no more.” Inferneel replied as he swam back the way he’d came.
More lasers flashed from the droid as it closed the distance across the lake. Inferneel avoided them like it was dodgeball. In seconds he was face to metal witht he robot. He swung a sharp clawed hand down and tore a solid gash in the black armor of scout droid revealing important looking circuitry and wires.
With another swipe of his other hand he reached inte hole he’d created inside the robot and grabbed a handful of important internal parts and ripped it out. The droning wail of the robot died away as the rended robot fell away from Inferneel sinking to the bottom of the lake.
Ceanis swam up to Inferneel her smile from before had unfortunately vanished as she led him back to shore. Once on the surface Inferneel found his tail could split into two awkward legs so he could stand on the beach with the strange alien girl.
“So uh…” he started.
“Just wait.” Ceanis commanded.
Inferneel stayed silent and less than thirty seconds later the dial appeared on his stomach and flashed red rapidly for a few seconds before flashing red one final time and Owen felt his familiar legs beneath him and his wet clothes sticking to his skin.
“I was an alien.” Owen marveled.
“An anguilasul.” Ceanis said. “That device I used to repair your damaged heart is called the Codex Metamorphosis.”
“Metamorpha-what?”
“It’s a DNA alteration device. One of a kind prototype.” Ceanis explained.
Owen frowned. “Well it certainly works.” He lifted his shredded shirt up. “You can have it back.”
“I wish I could.” Ceanis sighed. “But now the Codex is bonded to your nervous system. It can’t be removed without potentially killing you. And even if you did survive…”
“My heart would go back to being soup.” Owen finished.
An awkward silence hung in the air between the two of them for a minute. Finally Ceanis spoke.
“Owen,” she started. “I was assigned to protect the Codex from the despot Mobula who covets the device for evil purposes. Now that you and the Codex are one in the same that burden now coincides with protecting you.”
“Hold on.” Owen said. “I don’t need protection. I’m the one who should be protecting-”
“I have my mission.” Ceanis stated. “I thank you for saving my life and I have also returned the favor but in doing so you are now my charge. If you truly wish to reject my protection I will need the Codex Metamorphosis returned.”
Owen gulped. “Okay.” he crossed his arms. “We’ll protect one another. Partners in protection.” he extended his hand again. “Deal?”
Ceanis awkwardly placed her hand out with a confused expression. Owen grabbed her hand and gently shook it.
“This is a handshake.” Owen explained. “It’s how us ‘gaians’ say hello.”
“On my planet we say hello verbally.” Ceanis replied.
Owen scratched the back of his head. “We do that too…” he said exasperatedly.
Ceanis nodded. “I will come to understand your customs. In the meantime we need to relocate. Does your domicile contain a body of water like this one? I require it every hour or I will suffocate.”
“My domicile? You mean my house?” Owen chuckled. “My dad has a hot tub.”
“This ‘hot tub’ contains enough water to submerge fully?”
Owen nodded.
“It will be sufficient for now.” Ceanis decided. “Let us go to your ‘hot tub’.”
Owen rubbed his neck. Normally I’d jump at the chance to chill in a hot tub with a girl. He mentally remarked. What have I gotten myself into now?
Mr. Norcroft whistled in amazement as he gazed at the strange hunk of dripping metal set before him.
“You found this in Vaugnthorne?” he asked.
A heavy set bald man named Sergei nodded his head to clarify. “We fished it up just a few hours ago, sir.”
“An alien spacecraft in a small town like Vaugnthorne.” Norcroft chuckled. “I thought aliens always attacked New York or Tokyo.”
“Sir?” Sergei said.
“Nevermind.” Norcroft waved his hand dismissively as he turned to go. “Get our reverse eingeeners here I want this ship taken apart and rebuilt in a week. And get some more of our guys to Vaugnthorne. I expect we’ll be hearing more strange goings on coming from that town soon enough.”
Noteworthy Events[]
- Owen and Ceanis meet for the first time.
- Owen receives the Codex Metamorphosis.
- Owen and Ceanis team up to protect the Codex.
Character Debuts[]
Codex Alien Debuts[]
Characters[]
- Ceanis (first appearance)
- Grant Archer/Owen's father (voice only)
- Owen Archer (first appearance)
Villains[]
Aliens Used[]
- Inferneel (first appearance)
Trivia[]
- This is the debut episode of Owen 10! Yaaay!
- This episode's word count is 3071.