"Things are strongest where they're broken"

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***"Things are strongest where they're broken"*** is the twentieth episode of KOllOK 1991.

## Synopsis

The group returns to Kollok to search for answers. They make a new friend in the process, and the group's friendship is tested. Devastating losses are felt.

## Plot

5am, March 20

On the bumpy road back into town, Mickey takes notice of Tibby shyly stabilizing her wheelchair and they share a moment as she tries to see if he can use his powers to take the pain of losing her family. Unfortunately Tibby can’t as his powers only work on physical injuries, She asks him why he keeps on trying to make the right choice when it doesn’t seem it matters and why they should keep playing by the rules with the world around them crumbling. Tibby answers by quoting the story of the Fantastic Four, that even when people thought the worst of them, they still did good. Mickey warns him that should she decide to go down the darker road, to stay out of her way, but Tibby refuses affirming that he’ll stay by her.

In the front of the armored van Clarence brings up to the group that they are wanted and they should have a plan if they are to head back to town. Billy uses his powers to disguise himself and the others as buff rescue workers, but when doing so he cannot change Clarence as there are no other realities with a Clarence he can take from. Clarence reveals that he and the Anah family are Constants, those without any copy in reality; something Clarity assured by killing all other versions of them. Mickey recognizes the name Anah, which jogs Skye memory of the painting of Shiloh Anah in Mammon.

They reveal to Clarence about freeing one of Clarity’s clones and J.A. being his brother and he reveals to them pieces of the towns history, that everything started when a ship crashed into the lake, that 9 clones of Clarity walked off of the crashed ship and when the town could not recover from the crash his grandfather, Shiloh Anah visited it, opened something inside and made the deal that brought back those who died. Sometime later Clarity divided her clones and gave them to Keepers to look after so in later years she could use them as bargaining chips, leverage and experimentation, like creating him, while using them to remain young and alive. He mentions that his family flooded the lake to hide the ship and that he still doesn’t know all the pieces.

As they ride closer to the town, the glow of the fires pierce through the eerie fog and the sounds of air raid sirens reach them as a pair of jets fly overhead. The group watch as missiles are fired into the fog only to exit again a moment later destroying the jets in turn. Up ahead coming out of the fog they see evacuees of the town, heading past them to safety. Billy checks in with the being in his mind and is informed that it, is just a part of him as is the power to perceive the truth of the reality around him. When Billy turns around to look at his friends he sees something is wrong with Skye; that she is out of time as if she’s stretching back like a rubber band. He voices this to Skye and the idea that she could go back and fix everything. The group quickly figure out, with a small help from Clarence explaining time runs differently in the Grotto, that Skye time jumped when Mickey pulled her forcibly back into her body. With the need to know more, Skye brings up finding and talking to her mom, as the group discuss what the consequences of Skye time travelling will do to the current timeline, erasing it for a new one or if both will exist.

Continuing on, at the edge of the town they are stopped by a military blockade demanding to see their identification which are missing from Billy’s disguises. Marcus steps out of the ambulance and gets close enough to use his power on their leader, and a well-timed distraction by Sayaka gives him his opening, mixing up the memory of the guard having already cleared them through. Once past the blockade Nick wakes up and they inform him of their plans to go back into the town. They arrive at Skye’s house without trouble, seeing the torn apart and burning debris of the town as they make their way through the remains. Marcus has a brief aside with Skye about her nerves meeting with her mother after learning the Hawkins’ roles in Synchroniety’s operations, but they go ahead. Skye’s father opens the door and ushers them into the cellar where her Mom is sitting. She greets them as a story plays on the television that draws their attention. The camera’s show a group of Stone Masons keeping up a force field around the mirror against military assault, as Clarity Prime arrives from a portal in a tree and seemingly invites the six representatives from the other universes into The Grotto. The camera pans to see the now empty lake, revealing a large orange orb pulsing with light, absorbing any nearby metal, only for the ground to shake and a white light blind the camera before it returns showing the orb broken as if something hatched before the feed cuts off.

Back in the basement the group discuss with Skye’s mom her situation and how it came about. Mrs Hawkins has had experience in time dilation thanks to an experiment Clarity gave her with a coin that though came from few decades ago, was hundreds of years old. With her understanding she confirms that Skye has had three days and that she will snap back, but even she is unsure what will happen to the timelines or to her. They come up with several options for Skye to attempt to fix time when she goes back, but Tibby speaks up when they talk about killing Lexi. As the group continue to talk Clarence returns upstairs to sit with Mickey, unable to descend and feeling out of place being with her friend’s family.

She confides in him that her parents died, something she hasn’t even told her friends, and that her own plans to fix the past included killing Lexi, that she has nothing now. Clarence argues that she has a lot, that in all the years he has wondered alone, even though he has a mother, he was still alone and that he would give anything to have the friends she has. Mickey asks him for a favor, if he would be willing to change his form to that of her dad, so she can see him one last time. Clarence relents and changes his form to that of her father and Mickey has him kneel so she can touch his face. In that moment she uses her powers to find another Ego of her dad, finding one mid meal with another version of her, and places that ego inside of Clarence. Mike Jones, now in Clarence’s body, is shocked at his current surroundings and that of Mickey’s condition. At that moment Nick, who was still in the room voices his own shock at what occurred.

The yelling brings the group back upstairs and they realize what Mickey has done, she calms her dad down and ask him to wait downstairs with Skye’s parents and she’ll explain later but as he starts for the cellar, a crash from below makes him pause. The voice of Marcus’ father comes up from the dark and he starts walking downstairs to see the bloody face of his father in the swaying light. Skye follows Marcus calling out to her parents but they do not answer as those upstairs hear a crash from the front and see long spoke like fingers covered in blood protruding from where Nick should be. Nick’s death renders him visible as a creature steps in from around the side of the door, a long wolf like body but with the face of Marcus’ father. Down in the cellar Marcus distracts the first beast as Skye reaches for a power to help and to destroy the creatures but finds she can only heal.

Skye begins to heal her parents feeling for a moment exactly what Tibby feels when he heals, as the creature lunges at Marcus. Through the claws digging into his flesh Marcus sees flashes of the creatures’ memories, images of his own mother, it being birthed in a lab and of Clarity giving orders to find and to stop them. Seeing Empegg caught between both situations Skye calls out to her to not use her powers. Em drops her journal and asks Skye if they have ever watched Home Alone, but before Skye can complete her sentence, Em stops time. In the silence of the frozen time Em takes a moment to think knowing she has three years, and heads outside. Then she hears the padded feet of the creatures and the mimicking voice of Marcus’ dad as they leave the house, seemingly adapted to her powers. Em runs and jumps inside the armored van but the vehicle refuses to start as the creatures tear apart the wheels and passenger door. Em gets out and leads the creatures to her house, down into the basement, slamming the door behind her. She loosens a gas line, removes her sweater and prepares to set it on fire with her lighter as the creatures make their way into the room. In her last moments she closes her eyes.

Time restarts for the group as an explosion rocks the neighborhood, Skye runs out into the street and looks in the direction of Em’s home, and the smoke cloud rising in that direction. Mickey confirms with her powers that Em is gone, as the others take a moment for Em’s sacrifice to sink in Skye reads a letter left to her in Em’s journal; her last words telling Skye how she felt, how proud she was of her family and asking Skye to find her parents and to tell them that.

The group try to figure out what to do next as Tibby heals Marcus and the sounds of gunfire and something else comes closer. The ground begins to shake. Looking out front they see a large robot figure made from salvaged metal, dripping wet and covered in moss. The robot introduces herself as Devina, that she awoke from the lake and the soldiers started to shoot at her. Through her sensors she detects that Sayaka is no longer human but energy, they befriend Devina and she is willing to protect them as she once tried to protect the human she loved. Marcus points out the large mirror and ask if she can help them deal with it but before she can reply Devina falls in anguish as more soldiers arrive and attempt to incapacitate her with electricity and surround the house. Thinking quickly Sayaka draws the electrical energy from Devina and blasts it out across the street, vaporizing the soldiers, but leaving Devnia drained. As a side effect of using so much energy Sayaka’s physical form begins to break apart, choosing to protect J.A. she focuses her energy form into the bracelet around his wrist and vanishes from sight.

Having seen three of their friends die around them the group splinters, Tibby wanting to be captured so they can save Lexi and Mike, but Mickey informs the group that she already killed Lexi after everything she did after they left Portland. The group argue over the ethics and Mickey reveals in a moment of anger that Billy tricked Tibby into healing Marcus’ mom from death. Tibby starts to leave the group but Billy apologizes seeing the pain that he caused his friend and hands Mickey a folded-up dollar before sending himself into a coma with his powers. Billy’s actions stun the group and then a high pitch whine that grows louder starts to incapacitates them, the last thing they see is a scarred soldier with one eye walk in from the back garden, telling them not to fight it before they succumb and fall unconscious.

## Cast

### Main Cast

* Andre Meadows as Marcus Bennett
* Lucas Eubank as Billy Baker
* Meghan "Strawburry17" Camarena as Skye Hawkins
* Shelby "Shubble" Grace as Mickey Jones
* Zac Lim Eubank as The Driver

### Guests

* Ai Yoshihara as Sayaka Omari
* Mika Midgett as Embeth "Em" Pegg

## Rumors

1. The end will be swift, painless.
2. The end will be slow, painful.
3. The end will be forever, a loop.
4. Nothing ever really ends. (winner)

## Notes

As Em Pegg was being chased by the monsters bearing Marcus' dad's face, chat donated 20 tokens for her. Since she was unable to use them, the other four players at the table were allowed to take and use them.

This episode features the most individual characters using their powers. Skye, Billy, Mickey, Marcus, Em Pegg, and Sayaka all used their powers at various times.

Mickey completes the second planned action of the series, retroactively killing Lexi on the helicopter she was a passenger in. Unlike Billy (Lucas) in Episode 17, though, Mickey (Shelby) had only discussed this intended action with Zac prior to the show. Because of this, Zac allowed Shelby to have Mickey do this action.