It would not be a normal day in Royal Woods, Michigan. An inter-dimensional portal opened up in the sky, and a small ball of silver light came through. It went unnoticed as the town's populace busied themselves with their day. The portal closed behind it and disappeared. The sphere moved on, barely visible in the daylight; no one could pay it mind and would only think it a trick of their eyes should they spot it.
The strange, luminous creature hovered about the town, searching for one specific human. This being did not understand the intricacies of human culture, nor did it have the strongest grasp of human languages. But due to its mission briefing, it could listen in on various human conversations as they scurried about their business. And during its subtle infiltration, it managed to pick up on a word it recognized.
"Lincoln~"
The creature was pleased that its subterfuge had succeeded. That strange word was the name of its quarry. It was imperative that it find this 'Lincoln' as soon as possible. So whenever it found a human that mentioned the name, it would shadow them to track its target down.
Its quest made headway by finding a group of adolescents, some male and some female, who spoke of this 'Lincoln' and were on their way to meet him. The creature followed them to a building marked "Ar-Ca-De~." It was a confusing environment, filled with all sorts of noise-making machines - blinking lights and chiming bells, glass compartments of flashing images of warriors engaged in combat. The most barbaric of all was a glass prison in which small children would manipulate a crane to liberate small, furry creatures trapped inside, but the claw would not grip properly and drop them every time. The children engaged with these strange devices using metal circles in exchange for paper ribbons. Needless to say, this was the strangest of dungeons our shapeless wanderer had come across. It saw no point to this over-stimulation and found it disorienting.
Finally, it caught up with its leads. They congregated at a raised platform where children were engaged in a strange dance ritual - pressing their feet to lighted sections of the floor, instructions given to them from the glass frames before them. And there, he finally spotted his prize. A young human with white hair was engaged in this ritual - he wore an amber tunic and blue leggings. Admittedly, he did not look impressive, but his dancing displayed an unreserved confidence. His companions referred to him by the name; this boy was the eponymous "Lincoln" they had been looking for. Now, it was the time to wait and strategize their introduction, hoping the boy would hear their case.
--
"Nice moves, Lame-O~" Ronnie Anne said, lightly punching Lincoln in the arm.
The boy winced and gently eased the soreness of her strike, while returning a smile.
"Thanks," he replied. "These games sure are a workout~ It's getting late, and I gotta get home. I'll see you guys later~"
The boy separated from his group of friends. Soon, he walked down the street toward his home, alone; the creature pursued, and the boy was unawares.
"Hanging out with friends is great~" Lincoln said, breaking the fourth wall. "I meant what I said; those games can be great exercise...a bit strenuous, though. I like seeing my friends and all, but when it comes to treating sore muscles, there's no place like home~"
Lincoln rounded a corner onto Franklin Avenue, and his family home - the Loud House - came into view.
"-Thus comes the benefit of having ten sisters," Lincoln told the audience again. "Being our resident sports nut, Lynn not only has a surplus of soothing ointment, but she also knows every conceivable remedy for treating sore muscles. And with how caring my other sisters tend to be, times like this present the opportunity to get what Leni would call TLC. My sisters all have a rather caring side, and we even enjoy taking care of each other when we need to; Lola will probably make her relaxing tea, and Lana will probably recommend a soothing mud bath. Luan and Mr. Coconuts will seize the opportunity for some comedy, and Luna will provide musical accompaniment. Fortunately, nowadays, I know better than to take any of Lucy's herbal remedies and Lisa's homemade muscle relaxants. Leni can be a bit clumsy, but she means well, and Lori-"
"-Who you talk to?" the boy heard from behind.
Lincoln jumped when the voice interrupted him. He turned around and tried to find the source of the voice. But there was nothing there.
"Whose there?! Who said that?!" the startled boy demanded.
"Me," the voice answered plainly.
Lincoln looked up a moment and soon saw the floating ball of light, silvery-gray in color, and it rippled not unlike a bubble. Lincoln was astonished by this flying plasma sphere as it drifted just a few feet before his face.
"Wha-? What are you?" Lincoln asked.
"I come from different world," the sphere answered, glowing brighter with each syllable. "My kind, no physical form here - turn into this when here~"
The creature spoke brokenly, dropping participles, but Lincoln could understand. It kind of reminded him of how Lily would sometimes speak. However, this was far too incredible to worry about poor grammar; Lincoln was speaking to a real-life alien!
"Where did you come from? Why are you here?" the boy could hardly contain his eagerness.
"I explain later," the ball answered. "-On Mission; I seek one called 'Lincoln.'"
"Lincoln?" the boy asked. He was too excited to question the ramifications of why an extraterrestrial life form was looking for him. "That's me; I'm Lincoln~"
"I found you, at last~" the ball bobbed gleefully.
The ball did something surprising - though not sure exactly what Lincoln would have expected from a being as strange as it. It immediately dropped down to the ground, to Lincoln's feet.
"Your Majesty~" the ball said, still addressing Lincoln. "I search for you; bring you word from home. More rivals coming to this world, looking to fight. Me offer strength to your services."
Lincoln was confused by the creature's words and addressing him as royalty.
"Uh, what are you talking about?" he asked.
The ball floated up to eye level again.
"Looking for King," it answered. "King came to this world, chased by enemies; bonded with human-host to survive; human hostname 'Lincoln.' Lincoln has King~"
"Uh, sorry, I don't know anything about this," Lincoln defended, shaking his head and arms. "I never met anything like you before; I don't have your King."
"You, Lincoln, yes?"
"I am a-Lincoln, yeah~" the boy defended.
"Lincoln...'Shawnson'?" the creature gingerly inquired.
"No," Lincoln gave a sigh of relief. "Loud - Lincoln Loud."
The ball seemed to deflate a bit and lowered.
"Ugh," it groaned. "Lincoln a...common title?"
"Well, I wouldn't say it's common, but there's more than two in the world," the boy said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.
"Shawnson-boy hail from Calm Coves; you know it?" the ball asked.
"Calm Coves? No-sorry, never heard of it," Lincoln said; admittedly, he was starting to feel guilty and a bit disappointed that this creature hadn't been looking for him.
"Calm Coves near West Coast; is far from here?"
"The West Coast?!" Lincoln exclaimed. "Oh no, friend, you've come to the wrong place. We're in Royal Woods; the west coast is on the other side of the country."
The ball's light actually began to dim.
"Me disgrace," it bemoaned. "Me...failure."
"I'm sorry," Lincoln said. "But now you know, you can get on the right path and find your Lincoln and your king."
"Too late; I grow weak," the creature said, falling to the ground. "This world, no physical form, we lose power. No power soon...I die."
"What? No~" Lincoln asked, kneeling down to it. He took the spherical creature and cradled it on his lap. This creature was a unique alien being, and it chose to talk to him; regardless of mistaken identity, he didn't want it to die. "You can't die; there must be something I can do to help~"
"Need bond human host to survive," the creature said.
"Bond? Host? What do you mean?" Lincoln desperately rushed.
"Me shelter inside human body; hide until strong again."
"Okay, you've got me~" Lincoln said. "Use my body; bond with me~"
"You volunteer to host?"
"Yes," Lincoln pleaded. "I couldn't help you before, so please, let me help you save your life~ Just tell me what to do."
"Hold me close to chest, push in~" the creature said.
Lincoln did as ordered and brought the amorphous creature to his chest. He hugged it tightly, pushing it into his chest as ordered. The creature sank into his skin before popping, spreading the light across his entire body.
"Thank you~" he heard the voice say - now inside his own head.
Lincoln felt warmth surging through him. Strange images flashed before his eyes. Visions of running through the jungle, leaping large gaps over cliffs, swinging from trees, and strange animal calls. He gasped when they subsided.
"Uh, did it work?" Lincoln asked, looking down at himself.
"Yes, I am here~" the voice said.
"You're in my head?"
"Yes, I can communicate through your thoughts~"
"Okay, so what happens now?"
"As my host, we are one," the voice said. "The longer I stay, the more we join together. Soon, you will share my strengths and knowledge, and I yours."
"Wow, cool~" Lincoln said.
"In time, I regain strength to survive on my own again."
"Well, until then, you're welcome to stay, my friend~" the boy said excitedly. He winced, finally realizing. "Uh...what do I call you? Do you have a name?"
The voice was silent for a moment.
"...Kiko," it answered. "Call me Kiko~"
"Well, Kiko," Lincoln said. "Let me be the first to welcome you to our world. You stick with me, I'll show you around~"
Lincoln was excited. He had his own alien friend hanging out in his brain. He wondered how his sisters would react to the news.
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