Book 4

## Chapter 1

Icebear’s heart lurched. “She must have…melted the ice with her stick!” she realised.

Hop bear nodded. “She must be around here somewhere…”

Then, a loud thunderclap cracked the sky…

The DOT zapped herself in front of Hop bear, grinning triumphantly. “Guess who’s back!”

The GOT’s eyes widened in fear and as if it was some latent cat instinct to run from ex cat girlfriends, he screamed, “Ok BYE!” as he hid back in his bubble and teleported away.

Wow, Ice thought. Well, I guess we’re on our own now.

“DOT!” Ice bear yelled. She clutched the ring and diamond protectively, pulling them close to her chest. “You can’t have my ring or diamond, or you’ll do evil stuff!”

“Uh, actually,” the DOT pointed to the ice cream sign. There were new words sprawled across it, reading: and the DOT reserves the right to ruin the timeline.

Ice bear groaned. Were they going to have to deal with her all over again? As if reading her mind, the DOT continued, “But that’s not why I’m here, I came back because…I need your help.”

“Wait wait wait,” Hop interrupted. “Why?”

“Because…” she trailed off. “Because I saw your parents!”

Ice bear was dumbfounded. What did her parents have to do with anything?

“My parents were abducted by aliens in 2079, and I never got to see them again,” The DOT explained, a tear streaming down her cheek. Then she burst into tears. “I tried to forget about them, and it worked for a while. But after I escaped, I saw your parents with you two and I miss them all over againnn!” She fell on the floor, flooding a puddle with her tears.

“Sheesh,” Hop whispered, covering his ears. “No wonder the GOT broke up with her.”

Ice bear was a little suspicious of the DOT. Hadn’t she been trying to steal from them a while ago? “How do we know you’re not tricking us?” she asked suspiciously. “And anyway, why can’t you go save your parents yourself?”

The DOT wiped tears off her grey fur. “My stick can’t travel back more than 50 years,” she admitted. “But I know your ring can.” Her eyes suddenly shifted. “I know how you got the ring and diamond. I bet the GOT gave them to you.” She hissed. “His parents didn’t get abducted. But he wouldn’t help me free mine.”

“Okay, maybe I get why she broke up with the GOT now,” Hop told Ice bear.

Ice bear eyed the DOT. She wasn’t trying to steal the time travelling items anymore, probably because they would immediately freeze her to ice again and steal her stick this time. But was she really resorting to asking for help? “Hmm, I still don’t completely trust you…”

“I’ll give you ice cream,” DOT told Hop bear, taking out a caramel-nutella coated chocolate and vanilla ice-cream with sprinkles.

Hop bear’s eyes widened. “Are you trying to bribe me?” he asked. “Because it’s totally working!!” He twisted back around to face Ice bear and put on his most pleading expression. “Can we go , Icy?” Hop bear asked. “PLEASE?”

“Fineeeee.” She knew there would be no talking Hop out of it now. “All right, we’ll help—”

“Quick so I can get my ice cream!” Hop interrupted, reaching for the diamond Ice bear held out. The DOT reached out, too, but Ice bear stopped her. “It’s not safe for you to go,” she explained. “You’re a domestic cat, remember?”

The DOT’s expression dropped. Ice bear thought for a second, then handed her the ring. “DO NOT do anything evil with this. It’s just so you can come help us if we need it. If we’re not back by…I don’t know, sunset, then come find us.”

The DOT nodded, taking the ring. With that, the two bears both held on to the diamond. “Take us to 21 April, 2079.”

Ice bear had read in textbooks about the day aliens abducted humans for dinner, taking most domestic pets as well. Ice bear felt kind of sorry for the DOT, even though she was evil. She knew what it was like to lose parents and people she loved. Ice bear had been miserable…until everything crazy happened.

A bright burst of light blinded them and when the year started counting backward, a blue bubble warped and blurred the scenery. Soon, the scene of 2079 shifted into focus.

It was pandemonium. Throngs of screaming people ran amok. Two big things that looked like starships, each as big as the USA, hovered high in the sky, and slowly, more spaceships came and landed. Hop clutched Ice’s arm as the spaceships spilled light onto the ground, making tractor beams that lifted up nearby humans.

Hop bear tried jumping in to drag the humans back to the ground, but the tractor beam almost sucked him up, too! “Icy!!” he yelled. She raced in to heave him back down and they both fell to the stone floor with a thud. However, the humans still got raised in the tractor beam and were sucked away.

“Hop, we’re not here to save the humans, remember?” Ice bear whispered. “We have to save the DOT’s parents. Where are they….”

“There,” Hop bear pointed to a small house, soft mewing coming from the inside. The bears looked inside to see two scrambling humans locking their windows and doors, and…young DOT and her parents.

They were pets, so they knew they’d be abducted too. So they took baby DOT and hid her in a basket of apples.

Young DOT giggled, completely oblivious to the alien abduction. Her parents covered her up just as a tractor beam came shining right through the window into their house. The windows flew open, much to the bears’ surprise. The two humans got as far away as possible, holding the DOT’s parents close; but the light pulled them in and sucked them away.

“Let’s follow them!” Ice whispered and padded into the light with Hop following closely. It felt weird and warpy, pulling the two bears across the soft rug and straight toward a large opening in the spaceship.

Ice bear looked over at Young DOT before they disappeared completely. Apple cores were littered all over the basket, but the DOT was curled up and safe. She sighed with relief and let the warm light pull her into the alien’s ship.

## Chapter 2

Hop and Ice nervously stepped into the cold, metal spaceship. The good thing was, it was on the ground. The DOT’s parents must have been the last pets to get abducted, so the spaceship was deactivated!

They kept low to the ground in case anyone saw their bright white fur against the dull grey of the spacecraft. “Let’s just grab the DOT’s parents and get out of here,” Hop bear muttered.

But the cats were nowhere to be found.

“They must be with the other pets,” Ice bear said. She glanced around the room before spotting a door with a lock. “Maybe they’re in here?” she wondered, wandering over to the door.

On the door there was a huge sign painted across the door that said:

“THE PETS AREN’T HERE”

“The pets must be in here!” Hop bear exclaimed.

Hop bear nudged Ice bear away and typed a password with the small keyboard under the lock. To her surprise, he got it on his first try! The lock unlatched and there was a soft click.

“Wow! What was the password, Hop?” Ice bear asked.

“Oh, it was ‘HERE ARE THE PETS’,” Hop bear answered. “It was EASY!!!”

Wow. No wonder Hop could get away from the gangster so easily, Ice bear thought, pushing the door open a crack to peer inside. There were no aliens in sight, so she opened the door fully and walked in.

Pets.

So many pets.

A ruckus of loud meowing, barking, squeaking and whimpering greeted them and echoed across the room. Rows of cages were laid across the room, each with an animal inside. Mostly dogs and cats, but also hamsters, rabbits and even fish. They all stared longingly at the open door. Ice bear’s heart melted for them. Even though they were only here for DOT’s parents…if she could help all these pets, she would.

“These cages are easy to unlatch!” Hop shouted from across the room. He clicked a small button on the top of the latch and held it down and the door swung open. The DOT’s parents ran out of that cage, meowing gratefully at Hop bear and racing away. They ran out of the hole the tractor beam had come out of, leaping easily to the ground.

Ice bear got to work as well, freeing all the pets from the cages. If they had this amazing chance to help the animals…why wouldn’t they? For the smaller pets like hamsters and fish, the dogs and cats helped carry their cages and bowls on their backs. One by one, the domestic pets were free.

“Yes!” Hop bear ran over to Ice when the last cat escaped through the exit. “We did it!! I can get ice cream now!”

*Well that was easy,* Ice bear thought.

“CELEBRATION TIME!!” Hop started flumping in the alien spaceship. Ice bear rolled her eyes but copied him. “We should go save the humans now,” she said as they flumped around. “They’re all stuck here, too.”

Just then, a figure crashed into the room. It was big and loud and made Ice bear’s heart skip a beat.

The figure looked like cheese.

It smelt like cheese.

It probably was cheese.

That was why it was an alien.

“WHAT ARE YOU DOING???”  It yelled, glaring at the two bears. Ice and Hop froze. Ice’s mind whirled through a hurricane of thoughts, from: We’re caught we’re caught we’re caught, to What’s he gonna do to us? to RUNNNNN!!!!!!!

The alien stalked forward, frowning. He snapped his cheese fingers and blue rings of light like handcuffs appeared around the bear’s wrists. “Hmm. I see… freeing our lovely dinner. How dare you!” The alien pushed the bears forward, making them stumble. “Come now, bears.”

The bears looked at each other, fear welling up in both their eyes. Was this the end for them? When Ice bear had just gotten her family back?

The alien was leading them out of the room…and the handcuffs dragged them to follow him. There was no escaping. No matter how Ice bear twisted her hands or tried to run, it was no use. Her body kept walking behind the alien.

Fear coursed through her veins with every step she took, but after step number 231, she had come to accept her impending doom. This was it. Her life flashed before her eyes, her solitude, losing her brother, losing her parents, finding the GOT, getting her life back, meeting Hop bear. Although her life hadn’t been the best, at this moment, she was grateful for having the gift of life with her all this time. Resigned to her fate, she glared at the floor as she watched the sleek floor zip past her with every step.

*Is this the end now?*

At least the pets are safe, Ice bear reassured herself. At least the DOT has her parents back.

## Chapter 3

“MEAL TIME!” The alien announced in a deep voice. He walked them out of the room and down an alleyway. Then he zapped a ray at a seemingly dead end of 7 layers of obsidian, warping them into a room behind the obsidian. It was tinged with gold and had a large round hovering table in the middle. There were several aliens huddled around the table, looking eagerly at the bears. Ice bear felt her stomach sink as she realised…

“M-meal?” Hop bear’s voice quivered.

He shot Ice bear a look of dread as they walked towards the aliens.

Ice bear held his gaze, saying with her eyes: *Sorry Hop, for everything…*

If she hadn’t found him, sure, he might not have a foot, but he’d still have many years left of his life.

“You let our dinner escape, so now you will become dinner,” the alien answered in a deep voice as he laid down a fork on the table.

Hop bear’s eyes grew wider.

The alien put down a spoon.

Hop bear’s eyes grew even wider.

The alien reached for a box under the table and put down a can of soda.

Hop bear nearly jumped out of his skin.

“AAAAH!” he yelled, leaping into Ice bear’s arms. Ice bear staggered back a step. “They’re going to eat us, Icy!” Hop whimpered, staring with horror at their fate.

Ice bear whipped her head around, searching for an exit. But the room was cold and bare, with no vents or windows. And they couldn’t get back through the 7 layers of obsidian because the alien who was holding the ray gun was laying out all the knives while keeping his eyes on the bears.

“Sorry, Hop, I don’t think there's a way out,” Ice admitted, making Hop leap back out of her arms again.

Suddenly she remembered her diamond.

“Wait, maybe we can time travel out of this mess.” Of course! What a simple solution. She held the diamond out to Hop bear, relief pounding in her brain.

“Come on!”

Hop touched the clear surface and Ice bear whispered, “Take us back to a few minutes ago, when we were still freeing the pets.” She expected the warm tingling sensation to swoop them away to safety, but…

It didn’t work. The diamond stayed still.

She frowned, wondering what had happened. Maybe she needed to be more specific? “Take us to 21 April, 2079, 2pm.”

The diamond still did not respond. Ice bear was starting to get worried. “Hop, did we break the diamond somehow?”

“Drat…It was working fine just now…maybe time travel just doesn’t work in alien spaceships?” Hop suggested. “Or through 7 layers of obsidian..” Then they noticed the cheese alien glaring at them. Hop bear tried to hide it but it was too late. “I’ll take this,” the alien grunted, plucking the diamond out from Ice bear’s paws.

Ice bear’s heart pounded. No, not the diamond! Not the–

The alien threw the diamond to the corner of the gold-tinted room and it shattered into millions of tiny pieces.

Horror washed over Ice bear. *I—what—I CAN’T BELIEVE HE JUST DID THAT!!!!*

But before she could move or speak, the alien hoisted the bears up onto the floating table. Hop slid down the cold metal beside her, and Ice bear realised that the handcuffs were pinning him to the table now.

The alien was licking his lips menacingly. Ice couldn’t believe it. She had never not found a solution to a problem this big before…although being trapped in an alien spaceship to be eaten was unexpected.

“I’m too young to die!!” Hop bear screamed.

“Me tooo!!!” Ice bear reached for Hop’s paw. At least we’re together. “Hop, I just want you to know—”

Before she could finish her sentence…SLASH!

Ice bear had one more heart stopping second to see what was happening before the bears were both beheaded with a sharp laser.

“Dibs on their heads,” one alien said.

## Chapter 4

The DOT twirled the ring around her paw mindlessly. She was boreddd. The bears had been gone for sooo long, and she needed something to distract her from the idea of limitless power the ring gave her. She knew she couldn’t use it now, though, not until she knew her parents were safe. When the bears come back with my parents, then I will keep the ring forever and take over the world!!

As she was thinking this, her parents suddenly appeared in front of her. Since they were saved, they still were with the DOT in the present! The DOT gasped and jumped up. “Mom? Dad?” She ran over to their embrace, snuggling in their warm fur. Her parents looked confused. “Um…what? You seem like you haven’t seen us in years, DOT!”

Suddenly, a head rush hit the DOT. It was the stream of memories from the years her and her parents had spent together now! She clutched her head for a moment, waiting for the pain to subside as she looked up at her parents again.

“Ice and Hop did it!” the DOT exclaimed. “Where are they, anyway?”

“Who?” her mom asked.

“Oh…” she backtracked. “In 2079, do you remember two bears who rescued you from the aliens?”

“You mean the two bears who helped us escape and probably got beheaded? We watched them get caught by an alien through one of the windows,” her mom replied.

The DOT’s eyes went wide. *WHAT?* She froze, all her words seemingly swallowed up.

Her parents must have seen the horror in her eyes. “Oh no, were they important??” her dad gasped.

“I—they—” The DOT looked at her paws. A golden metal lay on the ground. The ring! She held it to her chest as two images appeared in her mind.

An image of her taking over the world with the ring. Everyone bowing down to her. Her finally, finally getting back at the GOT for breaking up with her, not allowing her to save her parents and taking the title of—

and showing him how strong she was, how much she didn’t need him. She would rule over all of time!!

But another image shoved through, one of her and the bears and her parents being happy. They were talking to each other on a beach, making jokes and eating ice cream.

When the visions cleared, the DOT looked at the ring again. She saw her face in its reflection and pulled away gently from her parents. “They saved my parents, the least I could do is save them,” she said softly.

The DOT made up her mind. She turned to her parents. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

“We know,” her mom said, smiling.

The DOT smiled back and time travelled to 2079.

She arrived in 2079 in front of a huge silver starship and looked inside. There! There was Ice and Hop, freeing all the pets. They were down to just the last few pets.

Without a second thought, she raced into the open entrance of the spaceship. The door where the pets had been kept was swung open to reveal the two bears. The DOT saw that they had freed the last cat and ran up to them. “Guys, come out now. It’s not safe to be here anymore.”

“DOT?” Hop asked. “Is it sunset already? What are you doing here?”

‘No time to explain,” DOT urged. She looked down the tractor beam hole–luckily, all the pets had run far, far away from the starships. The aliens wouldn’t be able to tractor beam them as long as they couldn’t find them! Sighing with relief, the DOT held out the ring to time travel back to 2144. “We have to go!”

Suddenly, she could just hear an alien stomping in to check on the pets. Uh oh…if she failed to get them out of here, they would all get beheaded. Again. But almost immediately, the alien stomped right into the room.

The DOT blurted out, “Bringusto2144LAJune1,” just as she saw the slimy green skin and a bubble encrusted around them just in time. The alien was staring at the three of them, shocked, as the time period faded into a blur.

Once they were back at 2144, the DOT explained what could have happened (or did happen) to the bears.

“Ohhh…” Ice realised. “Thank you so much, DOT!” She looked a little sad. “We saved all the pets, but we couldn’t save the humans…the aliens would have killed us…”

“It’s alright. You can always go back and save them,” The DOT told her. Ice bear shot her a grin.

“Using time travel for good now, huh? I’m glad.”

Hop bear wasn’t really listening to their conversation. All he cared about was, “Can I have my ice cream now?”

The DOT handed him the cone. She realised that Ice bear was right…suddenly, there was a warm tingly sensation in her heart. Being a good guy was so fun!

“You guys,” the DOT said softly. “I think—I think I want to be good.”

“Sounds good to me,” Hop said as he was licking his ice cream.

“Sounds good to me too,” Ice said warmly, turning her face to reflect the fading evening sunshine that streamed into the grass. “Let’s go change time.”

## Epilogue

Ice bear and Hop bear were going home to relax in their cold tub. It had been a long past few days after all. As they strolled down the streets of LA, Ice bear felt peace.

But then, they saw an alien back facing them.

Hop bear stumbled back, screeching to a halt. They both had PTSD of aliens now. “Hey…isn’t that exactly how the alien watching us time travel away looked like?” Hop realised. “And probably the one who BEHEADED US??”

“I thought aliens went away for good!” Ice bear whispered anxiously.

Just then, the alien muttered to himself, “Whoops, forgot to put on my disguise.” He snapped his fingers. The bears watched as he shapeshifted into…George?!?

Hop bear screamed, making George turn around. Ice bear’s mind whirled. *George has been an alien all along?? And he’s been disguising as a bear? But…wasn’t he born in Bangladesh in this timeline?? How did he get here…and why?*

She held the ring and diamond close and prepared to run away.

George noticed Ice and Hop. “Oops.” Then he straightened up and smiled. “Ah. YES!! The two time-travelling bears…I remember you from 65 years ago. I was a small alien, recruited by my relatives from my home planet. I remember going from my home in Bangladesh to their spaceships to help abduct everyone, unfortunately, it was a mission failed. To this day, I have no idea how.”

“But yesterday I found my old diary from when I was 5. I wrote: ‘Two bears and a cat were in the middle of the empty pet cages, and they TIME TRAVELLED. To LA, 2144, June 1.’ And I realised, hey! That’s tomorrow! So I caught a flight here to hunt you down. To hunt you and your amazing time-travelling ring.” George eyed the ring hungrilly. “And now I’ve found it.”

Before they could do anything though, George ran up to them and snatched the ring out of their hands.