@Lugubrious

Doom Slayer

Level 2 Doom Slayer

Location: Dead Zone

Word Count: 416

The Slayer's grip on the creature's rib cage seemed to loosen; enough for it to escape. Placing his hand where the creature's trident slash against his armour. “Lucky shot...wouldn't happen again” He thought now rushing towards the creature. Firing his shotgun trying to once again open it's rib cage. However his shotgun's was hindered by being torn apart by it's trident; enough so that he could feel the prongs starting to slash against his bare skin. Quickly switching to his pistol firing a few shots at the creature's eyes in a effort to blind it. But that didn't seem to work all that well; checking his surroundings of what he could use to his advantage. Watching the creature moving further and further away form him; The Slayer trying to close the distance but was not doing such a good job of it. Seeing the creature jumping away form him over a chasm; he was once again checking his surroundings for anything to get across.

Before he could do anything he had to deal with the flaming fish coming towards him; Swatting at them with the butt of his shotgun. Doing his best for none of them to burn his skin underneath his armor. Once they were all dealt with he looked over at the lamp post above him. It seemed to be the only thing that could get him across. Form the look of things he would have to spin on it to get enough momentum to fling himself over the chasm; Putting away his weapons and holding onto a long broken piece of a steel construction rod. Walking so he was far enough form the pole; He was lucky he took high jump and pole vaulting in high school. Running towards the light pole; using the rod to fling himself onto the stem of the light pole. Spinning himself and jumping off across the chasm with relative ease. Landing on one knee and flinging his arms shaped in a V; similarly to a cheerleader. He was sure if this was a competition he would get a ten out of ten. Turning his attention towards the strange creature.

Pulling out his chainsaw and revving it up; the sound of the chainsaw was almost deafening. “RIP AND TEAR” He screamed loudly. His eyes filled with anger and rage; comparable to a furious demon. Rushing towards the aquatic creature ready to tear out it's guts.

Cadet was still in the middle of marveling, and listening to the rest of the crew do some marveling of their own, when their latest addition made her way towards him. The girl introduced herself again, which was good because when she'd initially arrived there was a lot going on, and he might have missed her name the first time around. Sakura was cute, but despite her student's clothes she looked like she could give nearly anyone a good beat down. That, and... somehow she looked a little familiar, but the hunter couldn't quite place where he might have seen her before.

Lumbridge got a lot of travelers, must have been there, he dismissed easily.

"You mean the felynes? Aw man, girls are always more interested in the cats," Cadet laughed. "I'm the Ace Cadet! Nice to officially meet you!" The young man raised his hand to greet her, but quickly changed tactics when he noticed her posture. Instead, he tipped his head Yukumo-style.

"Yeah, the felynes are friendly. And soft, if you were wondering. When we get back to Lumbridge I can introdu--"

Speak of the Deviljho, the koopa prince stated his intent to go back to Lumbridge and slipped out of the building. Not to be left behind, Cadet snapped his mouth shut comically and turned to follow, only to spin again back towards Sakura.

"Sorry, let's put that on hold. I'm gonna head back there right now before the meeting!"

He hurried out of the building after Jr. and the Courier, warping through the painted portal last. He was started to get used to the feeling of teleporting. Once everyone got back to their own worlds, he'd have to see if that kind of thing would be possible in his own world. Back in Lumbridge, the trio made a beeline to the Guild Hall. It was great to see the Courier's robot safe and sound, but after reuniting with Euden - even before - the Cadet had little doubt that the palico recovered persons were still in one piece. More importantly, the Guildmarm was waiting at her desk as she normally did. The marm's smile was reward enough for the Cadet, and he was a grinning fool the whole time she explained that the town was indebted to them.

"Hellblade yeah, top adventurers!" he echoed. By now Lumbridge was the Cadet's home away from home, and it felt good to be part of the team that accomplished so much rather than mindlessly taking quests day after day. Now they just had to go through that kind of battle eleven more times and the whole fake-world would basically be saved!

"You should have seen it! First there was this giant canyon we had to cross, and the princess just..." the Cadet launched himself into a detailed explanation of how the final guild quest had gone, sparing no detail. By the end of it anyone listening would feel like they were right there with the party. The Guildmarm's patient smile was in danger of wearing thin, but just as Ace Cadet was wrapping up she was surprised by the final note in his story: "Next time I'll bring you a great souvenir!"

The Guildmarm blinked slowly, and then her smile softened. "I'd like that."

The Cadet's heart melted, then re-hardened with determination. He slapped his hands on the counter and set off, calling over his shoulder, "I'll find something perfect! Now I've gotta get going and resupply! See you guys back at the city!" He blew past the dark haired boy and Link without a second glance - after all, Lumbridge had no shortage of Links. His first stop was the smithy, where he dumped both massive tails in his possession and all the Tzitzi and fish scales in his pouch onto the flustered sister's table. With three woman as talented as they were, surely they could make something amazing out of the various pieces of monsters. New equipment always excited the Cadet, even if he wasn't the one to use it - whatever they could cook up he'd offer to whoever could get the most use out of it. Next was restocking his items. Herbs and other devices, whatever he could find. As usual the area around Lumbridge was lush with resources - and the locals were more than willing to give what they had to a "top adventurer."

By the time Cadet stepped back through the painting and arrived in Smash City again, he'd made plenty of room for items and arrows.



The Cadet stood amongst the crowd with his arms folded behind his head and a wide smile on his face. Smash City’s atmosphere was practically electrified with excitement and anticipation. For the hunter’s own part, the princess’ speech reenergized him more than any drink or pill could. Well, maybe metaphorically, but still!

”So radalos!” he remarked, ”It’s gonna be like a whole new research commission. I’m feeling more at home already!”

Nearby Cuphead was enamored with the speech himself, hanging onto every word. Oh. Oh. Now things were clicking and made a lot more sense! Wait, didn’t everyone try to tell him about the Lord of Light before and he didn’t believe them? Why was that? Oh wait, was he under Galeem’s spell then? Wowzers! This was a big deal!

Then Cuphead heard the Cadet nearby with his exclamation of excitement. ”Radalos? Hot dog, I like the sound of that!” he slapped his knee and ran up the Cadet’s back to sit on his shoulders.

"Ha! If you like that one I've got a bunch more!" The little cup-headed fellow had great taste it seemed! Without much more than a nod, the Cadet started pushing his way through the crowd towards the secretary, with Cuphead along for the ride.

"C'mon Cuphead, let's sign up!" he told his passenger. "Never saw a map of the whole fake world before, I'd been hanging out in the Land of Adventure for as long as I can remember after waking up. Where should we go next?"

The prospect of going anywhere new never failed to be exciting. Now to choose between an ocean of sand or sea... or the "Dead Zone" he'd only heard about in passing.

Cuphead’s eyes got rather big. Like, really really big. Like big ol’ balloons that were being inflated. He looked over the map with his eyes having grown so large they were physically touching the paper, darting all around, then shrinking back into his face. ”Golly, it all looks so swell! I could blow my wig over any of it. Hmm…” He started tapping his chin in a thoughtful expression, then snapped his fingers.

”I’ve got it! Why not let that special dame, Lady Luck, decide for us?” Cuphead closed his eyes and pointed his finger at the map. Was he… Was he about to randomly shoot the map?!

"Hold it," Peach extended her hand, obviously with some inkling of Cuphead's intention. A map with a hole in it was no good. "I understand the excitement, but please, now is not the time to destroy our map."

Isabelle looked between Cuphead and the princess for a few moments, but after she caught on she piped up with her best encouraging voice. "Um! If you're planning to shoot, the arenas might be better!"

"Aw," Cadet shrugged, jostling his rider a little. "I thought it was a good idea."

"We should think about where each of our strengths are best utilized..." Peach went on.

"Then what about all of them?" the Cadet questioned, "Not to toot my own hunting horn, but I'm kind of an A-lister. And I've seen this little guy in action close up, he's tougher than he looks! I'm sure we'd fit in with all the missions!"

”I agree!” Cuphead cheered. ”I’ve gone all over Inkwell Isle and taken on all kinds of meanies! There’s nowhere I can’t be useful! Dead Zone? I walloped a whole ghost train, the passengers AND the train itself! Ocean stuff? Cala Maria and Captain Briney Beard are A+ water acts I took down. Sandy place? Djimmi the Great is an actual magical genie that I knocked around!”

"Impressive!" Isabelle clapped her paws together earnestly, but the princess only sighed. "I have no doubt of both of your abilities, but unless you can split yourselves, that would be impossible. Ideally, we would scout multiple locations at once."

Yeah, that makes sense, the Cadet thought. He mirrored Cuphead's thoughtful expression from just before, scrutinizing the map as he did. "Hmm, then which would be best... maybe we should really leave it up to luck to blow our wigs after all..." Even as he expressed his desire for an easier way to choose, the hunter's eyes slid over to the opposite end of the map. The "Eryth Sea" - it was on the edge of the Land of Adventure and that great desert. On the far edge of the continent was the Edge of the Blue, where a portal in Lumbridge had taken them too briefly. It was there that the Cadet found himself staring.

"...actually, I'm kind of interested in where we met up with you for the first time, Cuphead. That casino was so not Ya-cool, but we never got a chance to explore the area."

Cuphead put up his right hand in a big “ok” gesture. ”I gotcha! That’s where I came from, so I can be a bit of a guide.” He hopped off of the Cadet’s back and leaned up against the counter. ”Put us down for the Edge of the Blue, canary.”

"Actually it's Isabelle," the furry secretary corrected, though she didn't look at all insulted by the slang. "Two for The Edge of the Blue!"

Ace Cadet give the little cartoon a thumbs up. "Countin' on you then! Feels good to be the first ones signed up! Bring it on, giant light bulb!" He thrust one fist into the air.

”Woo!” Cuphead cheered with the Cadet. He then pinched his nose closed with his fingers and blew hard, like one would do when popping their ears. Instead this sent bubbles blowing out the top of his straw in a long stream. After this unorthodox method of celebration he put his hands on his hips. ”With that out of the way, I’m feeling a bit peckish. Is there a burger joint around these parts?”

"Mm. Good idea!" The group's tiniest member was full of good ideas. Although after eating Bowser Jr. out of his hotdog supply it was hard to imagine Cuphead could pack anymore in, but regardless the Cadet whole heartedly agreed that it was time to grab some grub. After a rousing speech like that, what else was there to do beside eat and prepare for a mission?

"There are plenty of places to eat here in the Alcamoth!" Isabelle said.

"I guess that's our cue to explore." Ace Cadet shifted out of the crowd, giving those behind him the chance to give Isabelle their decision. Smash City was huge, but it was well organized for what it was. Although most were gathered in the lobby, there were still a few that milled in and out of the bright plant-lined halls. Some looked roughed up, and the hunter supposed that was the "smash" part of Smash City... but that wasn't important right now! As far as food went, Cadet would eat anything. He nodded to Cuphead and set off directly down a hall, wherever his nose would take them. It so happened that his nose took them passed a few rooms with various odd inhabitants, leading to various odd places, but Cuphead was definitely the one leading the way. The little, spry and wiry cup practically danced down the halls. He dashed between and around various people wandering the halls, clinging to walls and sniffing deep and big. Finally he came to a stop in front of a storefront that read, Mona’s Pizza and Pasta. ”Mmm! This smells like the cat’s pajamas! Come on, Acey!”

Cuphead darted in and popped up at a table from down below. He had a knife in one hand and a fork in the other and began to excitedly bang them on the table cheering, ”Pi-zza! Pi-zza!” That’s when he noticed the kitchen window and saw there was, in fact, a cat working in there! And it wore some kind of ninja outfit with a mask. ”Well whaddya know, Acey. The cat’s pajamas! Hahahahahahaha!”

Much like the others, Blazermate and Sectonia listened to the speech that the Princess gave to everyone attending, this area clear of Galeem’s corruption apparently to the both of them. While she didn’t like how Peach was the ‘leader’ of this party, from what Sectonia had seen of the now dark princess, she had powers that worked with the fabric of this world better than the bee queen’s own and riled up everyone to their cause, so she begrudgingly let her go about with her speech. Seeing this disgruntledness, Blazermate said. “Bowser is in love with Peach so it makes sense that he follows her around and doesn’t complain. I take it you have issues with her leading?” to which Sectonia nodded, looking the medabot in the eye as she dared to speak what was on Sectonia’s mind. “Well, I’m a medabot, so I’m used to following my medafighter which I’m missing, but still. Uh… where was I going with this….” Blazermate said, thinking. “Oh yeah, why don’t you see yourself as her medafighter? I’ve noticed Peach isn’t the… strongest of us and is more like me, there for support in combat. So yeah. She does stuff so you don’t have to?” Sectonia still looked at Blazermate, but the bots logic was sound and put the bee queen at ease for now.

As the two listened to the end of the speech and a few others of the crowd speaking up, one of them a big burly man that Tora seemed to know, about her ‘plans’ to retake the World of Light from Galeem, Sectonia got an idea as well. Teleporting herself to hover above the map, scepter in hand, she used it to point at said map ”I can’t speak for the others here.” the bee queen began ”But it would be more tactical for those of us with minions to send them out as well to scout and relay information. It's how I ruled Floralia.” With this, she glanced at Bowser and his family, knowing they had minions as well.

WHAT YOU LOOKING AT ME FOR? Bowser asked once he noticed he was being looked at by the queen

”Well, you would normally also do that sire” Kamek helpful pointed out

Well yeah. We would. But until we find my castle and all my minions we won't be able to do that. They’re all kinda stuck to us as strikers… well. Other than this lot now I guess The king said, before scratching his head, mulling over the idea and where they’d go next.

Soon after Sectonia suggested her plan to conquer this land, came some clapping and words from a dark robed figure in the crowd. Sectonia didn’t recognize him, but Peach did, and with the mention of his name, Sectonia was reminded of something. ”Master of masters…. Kamek mentioned him knowing how this world worked….” she muttered to herself, interested as she moved away from the map, letting others take their time with it.

”Ah, your majesty, I could not help but overhear your mention of my name,” Kamek said as he walked towards her ”Is there anyway i can assist you?”
”Yes you can Kamek.” Sectonia said, floating down a bit to get a good look at the koopa magician, with the unintended side effect of giving him a bit more respect than she showed most others as he was Bowser’s #1 minion, much like her Taranza. ”I remember you mentioning him and Blazermate mentioned him as well when she essentially ‘recruited’ me to rule over this little ‘elite squad’. What do you know of him? From what both of you have said, I surmise he knows much about how this “World of Light” works, maybe too much…” she said, trailing off at the end as she thought about all she had been told from Blazermate, Kamek, Peach, and now the Master of Masters himself.

The mage glanced back at the two other royals of the party when Sectonia mentioned her rule over the squad, but diplomatic avoided raising the issue. Instead he got right down to addressing her question ”The initial group freed chrome Galeem’s control, containing my king and Blazermate among others, encountered the Master very early on in their exploration of the world. He was, like the Guild master and his ally, seemingly already free from the light’s grasp, which I put down to their shared robes even if those are made to resist darkness rather than light. If i remember rightly, he claims to have a detached eye and he can see everything that eye will ever or has ever seen. Including explanations of how the world of light works gained from others who, I assume, learned it from him which he learned for us and so on indefinitely. Ah time travel. It does even my head in and I’ve done it.”

The mage shook his head, Sectonia joining him with an audible ”Ugh, time travel.”

”Agreed.” the mage said with a grin, before returning to the topic of the Master ”As I said, that explanation was before my freedom, so take it with a grain of salt due to it being a telephoned explanation, but I’ve had two somewhat lengthy conversations with the man since. Mostly about magic, which he is very knowledgeable about. I also got some information about the “organization 13” which the Guild master/king dice/Gneidxick is probably a part of and the Kingdom Hearts which is supposedly the core of all worlds which said group has sought in the past.“

”He has also been running around the world apparently, he mentioned investigating events beyond the dead zone, which is further than any of our group have ever been. Overall a very interesting individual. I can understand your suspicions, You are likely not the only one to harber them, but so far he has been nothing but helpful. Even if he is a bit, ah, eccentric“ Kamek explained

”So, like Taranza then… Wonder if he can play the piano?” Sectonia said, thinking a bit to herself before snapping back to it. ”Very suspicious all the same. Still, he did mention something that not even Blazermate told me, about gaining the knowledge of spirits instead of their power. Do you have any experience with that?” Sectonia said. Meanwhile, Blazermate, seeing the Master of Masters went up to talk to him.

”Hiya MoM, long time no see! Well, a few days but who's counting. Also your a guy right? Don’t think calling you mom works… uh….” Blazermate said, losing a bit of focus. ”Oh right! Lookie here, I got some new parts since we last met! They’re great! I can make people invincible, make zombies, command zombies….” Blazermate said, showing off her new medipack and suffering shield arm, its tongue just lulling out as if it was asleep. “But uh…. Why are these parts so temperamental? This one twitches and does its own thing sometimes.” Blazermate said pointing to her suffering arm. ”Do you know how to stop that? It's annoying sometimes. I can’t touch people with this arm anymore, because if I do, I get this super strong urge to turn them into a zombie. Meda parts aren’t supposed to do that.” She said.

Other than chuckling at the pseudonym given to him, the Master of Masters withstood Blazermate’s questioning in silence. Once she finished, however, he launched into an explanation with his typical laidback manner of speaking. “Well now, little miss ragdoll, these are spirits you’ve playing with after all. If I were you, I’d count my blessings, each and every one. Seems like you’ve got high Resonance, which sure is handy, but it’s still fusion. Every time you fuse with a spirit, a bit of its personality gets added to yours. So I’d chock up any fun little quirks you’ve been finding out about yourself to that.” He gesticulated with his arms out and palms up, as if showing Blazermate what he meant. “But hey, could be worse. Could be going loopy from contradictory beliefs and behaviors. If ya wanna keep the whole bein’ sane shindig, I’d be a little more careful about whatcha take in.”

”So essentially these are just glitchy parts that are way stronger than they should be. Like dark parts or something. Huh, well, as long as dark medals don’t exist I think things should be fine then. This whole thing is essentially what Medabots do on the norm.” Blazermate said with a weary smile before hopping off to the map, deciding where she should go as the dedicated medic of the team.

”Personally I have not… I’m not sure if anyone has, as it seems like the most drastic of the options available. But I was aware of it. Apply the spirit to the head instead of the heart and you will gain the skills, wisdom, or knowledge, of the spirit. It seems useful but, again, also more invasive than gaining physical aspects and power. Not that said powers do not also come with side effects as we saw with the tall teleporting fellows from the island filled void.“ Kamek said when asked about the absorption of spirit’s knowledge ”Also ah, intelligence and skill have not exactly been forthcoming in the foe’s we have faced, so it has not been much of a consideration either. The ability to gain the sniper’s shooting skills being a notable recent exception that none, not even I, considered till now.“ The mage scratched his chin thoughtful but then seemed to put aside the notion almost as soon as he had considered it.

Sectonia nodded. ”I haven’t been with you all that long, so I will take your word for it if you’ve only been fighting dragons or mindless drones or weapon users. Still, something to keep in mind if someone is physically frail, but has useful knowledge I suppose.” Sectonia said, thinking about the whole thing.

”Glad I could be of service your majesty“ Kamek replied with a kurt bow.

With their conversation more or less done at this point, Sectonia watched as a few of the others picked out what they would do on the map, listening in over why they wanted to choose those locations and what might be there. Soon however, she wondered about the other areas. Most areas seemed ok, but some, like the Dead Zone, didn’t sound very pretty. Although apparently according to Blazermate, they found Sectonia locked in a tube in the Dead Zone, although she only remembered awakening on a lab floor, very sore and annoyed.

Blazermate was equally as undecided, as she knew she was one of their strongest healers, so she would have to go with the biggest group. But she wasn’t sure who that was yet so both ladies stood back and waited for the others to make a decision; Sectonia hoping for something valuable and powerful and Blazermate just looking to be in the biggest group for healing, or go to the most dangerous area. Thinking ab

The Courier stood there for a moment, a big confident, self congratulating smile across his face. He took in the cheers, both the automated and the real, bathing in the feeling of a job well done, of a task appreciated by the people. Once it all died down he stood there, staring awkwardly at the guildmarm, his hands on the counter as though waiting for something. Once it became clear that nothing else was happening he grunted. ”Oh. I get it. This is one o’ those, ‘for the people, for fame’ rewards.”

He sighed, and Gaige-Tron shifted around. “Wait, so there’s no actual reward?” she asked.

”’Fraid not.” The Courier pursed his lips.

“UNACCEPTABLE! ANARCHY!” GT rolled to the nearest table and flipped it, then rolled around in circles flailing her arms.

”That’s enough, GT. Sometimes… Sometimes you just gotta live with the fact that helpin’ people is its own reward.” Though he spoke of altruism, he was clearly very disappointed. The Courier righted the table his robot had upended then approached the guildmarm’s counter one more time. He took a single bottle cap from his pocket, the currency of the wasteland in his world, and placed it for her to take. ”Fer the trouble, ma’am.” He tipped his hat then turned and walked away.

The Courier was then quickly accosted by a young man with messy black hair and a fancy black outfit. The young man didn’t have the red eyes of Galeem’s influence, which meant that he was probably saved by another of their group at some point. The Courier figured likely when they split up to head to the Dead Zone. He also showed familiarity with Link. Something about this boy didn’t feel right to him, but it was another ally in the war against the Light and he wasn’t one to turn that down.

”I reckon you had a run-in with our posse before. Yup, we got a method to get around fast. Was setup by the prince of the Koopas.” He gestured toward Bowser Junior, if BJ had joined him in the guild hall, and otherwise didn’t make any movements. ”Just might have made a whole mess of allies. Follow me back if’n you wanna join in the fun.” With that Courier 6 walked past Ren with a little gesture to follow, but not before calling out to Link. He went back to the paint portal that would place them back to Peach’s Castle, and then to the next portal back to Smash City.

Ren smiled, his expression just a touch more wolfish than the average high school student’s. “Excellent.” He followed the Courier outside, then paused as the draconian turned away. After a moment of waiting, he spotted Ryuji sprinting his way and a blonde girl with pigtails struggling to keep up with the former track star. Both his friends slid to a halt one after another as they neared him, and he pointed toward the receding back of the Courier once they caught their breath. “Hey, Ann. We’re heading after that guy. Ryuji can explain the mission on the way.”

Ann looked dubious. “You mean he’ll try and you’ll correct him, right?”

“Hey, you don’t have to say it like that!!” Ryuji exclaimed, indignant. “We went over it, like, a minute ago! No way I forgot.”

Together, the three hurried after 6. “So you’re saying it’ll be super embarrassing if you do forget,” Ann acknowledged. “Alright, let’s hear it. What’re we up against this time?”

Ryuji looked over the buildings of Lumbridge town to where Galeem shone against the sky, far and away. “Basically? This whole world.”

---

As the grand meeting dissolved, with its many listeners heading their separate ways in greater or lesser degrees of enthusiasm, Tora wondered what to do with his time until departure. A look at Poppi reminded him that he really wanted to complete her ultimate form, but was that an option right now? He looked around the atrium as if he expected to see a high-tech workshop just hanging around. Though not a Nopon known for his professionalism or fastidiousness, he wanted Poppi’s third form to be a special achievement, not a hack job mashed together on the ground or in the tradeyard of some primitive podunk. He needed a real worktable. More to the point, Tora needed real tools, or failing that, someone who could cobble together such tools from whatever happened to be on hand.

Feeling frustrated, Tora continued to look around until his eyes fell on the intimidating new wings of Courier 6. Their owner appeared to be marching in the direction of the Master of Masters, but the sight of him -and the recollection of his abilities- made Tora realize that the wastelander could be doing something far more important and productive than whatever he had in mind for the black-coated mystery man. “Meeeeh!” he called, running over. “Courier! Tora need Courier help!”

Poppi watched him go, then briefly stopped by Isabelle’s desk. “Hello, doggypon,” she greeted the floppy-eared clerk. “Please mark Tora and Poppi for desert. Want keep moving forward!” After that confirmation, she hurried after her masterpon, who’d just accosted 6 by running right in front of him and bouncing up and down insistently.

Courier 6 stopped in his tracks, eyes fixed on that hooded menace while his face was turned the other way (or at least his hood was facing off another direction, who knew what was under there or how he saw things?). Tora’s voice grated him in that moment, but he took a deep breath to calm himself. No, this was a good thing. It was too early to confront the Master of Masters, and especially not in front of all these onlookers. No doubt it would cause a scene. GT stopped alongside him and faced the nopon and blade duo, her screen briefly flashing a question mark in the place of Gaige’s face.

”Howdy, Tora-pon,” he greeted happily, his previous irritation having melted away completely. ”Appreciate ya not callin’ me ‘druggy-pon’ this time.”

“Tora want favor from friend Courier this time!” the rotund inventor explained, rather shamelessly.

He walked up to Isabelle’s desk near Poppi and heard where she signed up herself and her master to head out for. He gave a nod and said, ”Ditto to that fer me an’ my robot here. Seen a lot a places I never woulda thought I’d have seen in my lifetime, but gettin’ back to a desert would be good fer me. A bit of a nostalgia trip. Besides, if’n any a that desert is wasteland, y’all will need a real wasteland courier to show ya the ropes.”

“Ew, a desert? Really?” GT pouted, crossing her tube-like arms multiple times like a child would. “Alright, if you say so, boss. But if I get sand and dust in my mechanisms it’s your job to clean it out.”

He glanced back to her. ”Yer auto-repair nanites’ll take care of it plenty fine. Anyway-” He turned back to Tora. ”What’s this help you’ll be needin’ from me, hombre? An’ remember, my help don’t come free.”

Tora was ready and willing to spill all the beans he had up until the point where his quaint acquaintance mentioned payment. “Meh?! W-well, friend not expect payment for just hear Tora out, right?” Both he and Poppi looked at the Courier with concern, assuming that to be a real risk.

The Courier sighed. ”Time is money, as they say, but go ahead. I’m off the clock an’ I’ll hear what you’ve got to say. Bit’a advice though, anythin’ll sound a lot more appealin’ if’n ya get a drink in my hand.” He grinned and tipped his hat.

Tora scratched his chin. He remembered seeing drinks in the pizza place he and Poppi visited for lunch, but he couldn’t take them with him. If they were going to the desert, though, he probably ought to get a water bottle to take with him. While he didn’t relish the idea of buying supplies for someone else too, if a drink was all it took to secure 6’s cooperation, he would have to. “Okay, Tora find drink for Courier later. But now, I tell about plans.” He spread his wings toward Poppi as if presenting her, and the artificial blade posed accordingly. “Tora wanting to finish new super-duper cool form for Poppi. Couldn’t in adventure land because there no good workshop tools. Tora not compromise on quality for Poppi, but wonder if Courier have any experience with makeshift tools?” The end of his sentence trailed upward, indicating a question.

The Courier ran his teeth over his upper lip. Apparently Tora hadn’t heard of sitting down for a drink for a deal? Well, not that it mattered at this point, they already sprang the question, in a dramatic and suitably cheesy way. In response the Courier waved his arms and flared up his wings to show off GT, trying to give her a cue to play along. She didn’t quite get it though and just stood there, scratching the top of her metal chassis like a person expressing confusion. “Uh… Why did everyone suddenly turn into Power Rangers?”

”Eh, whatever. This kinda posin’ is fer molerat brains anyway,” the Courier murmured under his breath, repositioning himself. ”Where I come from there ain’t hardly a better mechanic’n me, an’ there ain’t hardly anywhere with a good workshop. I once repaired a military food processor with a few bobby pins’n duct tape. So yer concerned about making the most out of what we’ve got for Poppi’s next upgrade and yer needin’ the expert opinion is what yer sayin’?”

“Uh, basically,” Tora confirmed. Following the 6’s speech wasn’t the easiest thing in the world, and he didn’t want to start agreeing to things he didn’t understand if money was involved. “If Tora can get hands on precision instruments and few high-class parts, can do job no problem. Parts maybe lying around somewhere, and can find spot eventually, but tools the problem.”

”Well that sounds mighty fine. I don’t mind helpin’ out with the classic art of robotics. For the right price, of course. What’s the job pay, hombre?” Shrewd as ever, it seemed the Courier wasn’t going to budge on it. Of course if Tora and Poppi had nothing, or spun a sufficient sob story then he’d (begrudgingly) wave the fee, but he couldn’t let others know he actually had a heart.

Tora gave a nervous laugh. “Well...have some money from mining job in adventure town…” Though reluctant, he thought about the current situation, and it took only a single step to arrive at a conclusion. “And it true nothing more important than this…” Feeling like he was betraying his heritage as a Nopon, but seeing no other option, he heaved a sigh and faced the money-grubbing courier with determination. “Tora give Courier whole savings if help make dream reality!”

”Whole savings?” The Courier was taken aback by this, and it showed. He was really willing to give up everything for this? That was, it, what, really? He couldn’t really take advantage of that kind of desperation, could he? This was one of those life defining moments, the kind that took a huge impact on your karma. But if this was really that important to this little nopon, then how could he deny it? On the other hand, Tora didn’t even attempt to bargain or haggle and instantly went all in on this. Did Tora actually have something up his sleeve, a hidden cache, while this was an enticing lie just to get the Courier to accept more readily? No, that couldn’t be it. Tora hadn’t displayed an ability to manipulate or lie whatsoever, more the inverse.

“You’re not actually going to take everything this little guy’s got from him, are you boss? How would that make you any better than a raider?” GT brought up a good point, but that wasn’t the end of it.

”What’s your whole savings entail?” he asked, genuinely interested. However Tora answered would likely determine the course of this arrangement.

With visible discomfort the engineer reached into one of his pouches and brought forth his wallet. When it clicked open, everyone present could see the bounty of zenny stashed within. “Tora not know exact amount,” he admitted. “Team got paid per shiny dug up from ground, then total split between us. Must be few thousand minimum, meh.” He left out that he possessed no idea of the currency’s relative worth.

Courier 6 eyed the wallet and listened to Tora’s story of acquiring it. He didn’t know the exact worth of the Zenny himself, but he did know the value of the sort of job Tora had to pull off to get it, and split between the different members of their group that had participated… This was a pittance. No other way around it. He couldn’t take such a meager amount away from Tora. That just wouldn’t be right. But he couldn’t let Tora know that’s why he had to turn the offer down, that’d he had for business! There was something else he could still get from this arrangement though…

”Gonna have ta turn ya down on that one, hombre. Such a meager offerin’ simply ain’t worth my time, much less my expertise.” He let that hang in the air a moment, just to give the illusion he was being harder than he actually was. ”But you got somethin’ else to pay me with. If’n we’re gonna do this then I want to copy Poppi’s schematics and diagnostics.”

He tapped his Pip-Boy arm mounted computer. ”I’ll be needin’ ya understand how she works to help anyhow, right? An’ I’m sure I can give GT some deathclaw sized upgrades with what I can learn from Poppi.”

The offer sent a chill down Poppi’s spine. Aghast she looked at her masterpon, hoping he understood what 6 was saying. For a moment Tora considered it, but the furrow of his brow suggested he wasn’t agreeable long before he piped up, his voice resolute. “Meh, meh, meh! No way! Poppi not just hardware to be copied and traded around! Poppi own person, and that that!” He put his nub-arms on his hips and glared at 6 accusingly. “Why Courier want to take Poppi? Why even demand pay, meh? Help when in need without reward is what friends do! What heroes do! Tora would do same!”

The Courier stood there as Tora tore into him, taking it with a blank face. ”You done, amigo? M’kay.” He hacked up a loogie then spat it out on the floor before continuing. ”First off, we ain’t friends. We ain’t had a single conversation together before now, so don’t expect no special treatment. You wanna be my friend, that requires effort, not just askin’ fer favors when it fancies ya. Second, I do help without compensation when there’s a need. You got a raider with a gun to yer head? You damn well bet I’m gonna step in and take’em out. I don’t wanna see nobody die that don’t have ta. You starvin’ with no money, no prospects? I’ll feed ya. This here? Ain’t no ‘need.’ It’s a ‘want.’ Where I come from, people die every day because they don’t have what they need to survive. Ya never know when yer eatin’ next, or how many monsters are over the next hill, or if’n yer partner’s gonna turn on ya fer a quick buck. I don’ know where you come from but I can tell you sure as shit don’ struggle like my people.

“Third, you’ll never find a bigger advocate for the rights o’ sentient robots than me, but that don’ mean her mechanical designs make her, her. Look at my hair, you think that someone else gettin’ black hair means part o’ me is in them? That’s brahmin shit. You want her to stay completely unique, keep her design a secret? Fine by me, but don’t fool yerself inta thinkin’ it’s fer some self-righteous altruistic cause, and don’t insult me. Fuck off, ya varmint. I ain’t the desperate one here.” He spat one more time, then turned round and began walking away before giving pause for just one moment. ”You know, I’m a Courier by trade. I deliver messages, packages, and letters. Consider that advice a freebie.”

As he walked away, GT rolled up to Tora and Poppi, her tv screen showing the static image of Gaige making a very awkward face. “Sooo yeeeeah… Sorry about that, guys. Maybe try again soon? Anyway have a nice daaaaaaay~!” she called rolling off toward her maker.

The two left Tora dumbfounded, his mouth wide open and his head covered in beads of sweat. It took a while before he worked up the strength to swallow. “W-well, t-that just bit extreme.” He glanced at his artificial blade partner. “R-right, Pop...Poppi?”

She nodded slowly, watching the transformed gunslinger heading elsewhere before she put him out of her sight. “It seem Courier strongly averse to favors. Poppi measure of stinginess based on masterpon undergoing recalibration.”

The reassurement left Tora feeling a little more courageous. He fixed the double spit splotches on the floor with a look of disgust. “Meeh...Tora understand people have it harder than him, but that no reason to treat like trash. How I ever think him friend, Tora never know.”

Poppi laid a hand on his head. “Thank you for not thinking of selling Poppi integrity to meany Courier, masterpon.”

A smile brightened the Nopon’s face. “No problem, mehmeh! Tora never betray friends. If he make tools from scrap, so can Tora! Just take little longer.”

The artificial blade looked around at the dispersing remnants of the crowd. “That good. Still, we learn valuable lesson from that conversation.” She glanced back at Tora’s curious face. “Even if we work with people and share same goal, that not mean friendship, or even we know each other. We should spend time with everyone and get to know them, so we don’t get rude awakening like with Courier. Poppi doubt he help us ever again.”

Tora concurred solemnly. “Mm-hmm! That druggypon not friend and not hero, even if Tora fight alongside and nearly become deadypon to protect him. Being hero more than deeds; it about character! So we definitely need find out character of others, meh.” He dug in his pockets for his wrench. “But for now, we ask around and find store-room. When Tora done, Poppi become so powerful that nobody can look down on us!” So saying, the Nopon engineer led the way out of the atrium and toward new horizons, not much older but a little wiser.

Traveling through a multitude of teleportation devices was...unpleasant, to say the least. Geralt found himself near the back of the convoy, partially out of his own reluctance to force himself to endure more of the arcane movement, and partially to keep his stomach from releasing its contents as he slowly trudged along, miserable. Truly, teleportation, portals or no, was the worst method of transportation. If only they had some other way to cross these islands, like that monk's flying machine that he had purposefully crashed into the dragon to try and kill it.

Sighing, Geralt finally stopped when the group reached their destination, taking a moment to collect himself. "Why does it always have to be portals and teleportation?" He grumbled, hurrying after the others in time to hear that the group would need to meet back up in an hour so that they could hold a strategy meeting. Well, that suited him just fine, he could finally hide in a corner and meditate a bit. He was feeling exhausted by everything that had gone on, the amount of combat they fought, and the rapid recovery from what could have proved a nasty wound earlier. Even with the help of Blazermate and his own accelerated regeneration, he was feeling a bit worn out.

While the others hustled and bustled about, Geralt found himself a nice little corner of the building and sat on his knees, toes pointed downward into the ground. His eyes closed and hands at his side, Geralt waited as the hour passed by rapidly, feeling no different than a few minutes. However, his muscles were much more relaxed, every trace of adrenaline was gone from his body, and he felt as thought he'd gotten a few hours' worth of sleeping in. Refreshed and ready to continue, he stood up as the meeting started and listened intently.

Of all the places mentioned, he refused to endure another desert. Just the short journey through that one world with Avallach was miserable, and he vaguely recalled Ciri having been saved by a Unicorn from the Korath desert back home. Not happening.

Geralt looked around, finding the dog-like lady who was acting as receptionist, and sought her out. Surely she'd know if Yennefer or Ciri had come through here.

"Hello there. I had a question to ask before putting myself down to go anywhere. Have you seen a young woman with ashen hair, green eyes, and a curved scar under her left eye? I'm looking for my daughter. I'm also looking for my...well, wife, I suppose. Long, black hair, medium height, smells of lilac and gooseberries." The look on Geralt's face wasn't quite pleading, but there was a quiet sort of desperation borne of the untimely separation from his family he'd endured.

Isabelle, still busy with her records and documentation, was glad for the brief rest Geralt's distraction allowed. She looked off into the middle distance and tapped her snout with her pen as she considered his question. “Hmm...light gray hair, green eyes, scar...nobody comes to mind on that account, I'm afraid. Corrin has red eyes, after all. But long dark hair, smells nice...that sounds a lot like Ms. Yennefer.” She glanced up at Geralt again, eyes wide. “Oh, is she your wife? I'm so glad! Lots of people haven't seen hide nor hair of their loved ones, so...oh, but you want to know where she is, of course.” The little dog screwed up her brows in concentration. “Ummmm! She's not a fighter, and I don't see her very much, so she's probably in the residential area! Go right until you see a hall, and then up the stairs are all the apartments.” She smiled, waving. “Good luck!”

Spotting an unfamiliar face, she waved a paw. “Hello! Welcome to Smash City Alcamoth. What can I put you down as?”

The boy she'd called out, a teenager with glasses and a mop of black hair approached to view her clipboard with a blonde girl in tow. “The desert,” he declared.

“Oh!” Isabelle said, realizing that he -like a number of other smashers here- had misunderstood. “I meant your name, for the reserves. Only the fighters who came in with Miss Peach are deploying to other zones immediately.”

Ren looked at her askew, making her balk and wonder if she'd said something wrong. “My friends and I aren't waiting in the background while others play the heroes.” He stared down the bridge of his nose. “We're moving out tonight.”

Flabbergasted, Isabelle ran over what he said in her head again. The idea that someone would refuse to cooperate never crossed her mind. Then again, if he intended to go alongside whichever heroes went to the desert, he was still cooperating in a way. “Oh! …Good luck!” she blurted out.

Ren stepped away to rejoin his friend and the pair made for an elevator. “Wasn't that a little cheesy?” Ann admonished. “You could have just ignored her. What if they come after us?”

“They won't,” the teenager assured her. “I took a look around. Other than Mewtwo and Bowser maybe, these are all a heroic or at least law-abiding sort. But if they do, we'll do whatever we need to.”

Ann looked around at the myriad characters as she stepped into the elevator and Ren pressed a button. “None of these people have red eyes, though.”

“But they're not real, like you and me. They're ultimately still shadows. Which means we can't count on them.”

“I guess. Hey, where's Ryuji?”

Ren watched the floor recede as the elevator rose. “I mentioned we'd be getting lunch, but someone wanted to spar, so he went off to check it out.”

After arriving at the second level, the pair followed the flow of people in a semicircle around Alcamoth. It took only a few minutes for them to catch an appetizing smell on the air, and after that they spotted the place easily. They might have kept walking to check more options if not for the name: Monas' Pizza and Pasta. They shared a glance. “It can't be that easy,” Ann said, but she walked its way nonetheless. Apparently a casual Italian restaurant, it seemed popular judging by all the patrons, including a chummy-looking fellow in elaborate armor and a little guy with an actual cup for a head. She and Ren, however, were far more interested in the feline visible though the kitchen window.

“Mona!?”

The cat's big, round head span around, and his blue eyes went wide. “Guys!” He dropped his cheese grater, sprinted for the edge of the table, grabbed hold of a broom, vaulted across the walkway, and landed on the windowsill. Then, without even a hint of delay, he launched himself toward Ann. “I missed yoouuuuuuuu!”

Ren caught him mid-flight, which turned his look of joy into one of disappointment, but when both his friends squeezed him in a big hug the next moment he decided he didn't mind after all. “Jeez, took you long enough! Where the heck have you been? I've been...uh, well...”

Setting him down, Ann got a good look at his apron. “You've been making pizzas?”

Mona coughed. “No! Well, um, I mean, yeah. But I had a good reason! I...I must have...”

While he tried to think of it, the other Mona appeared at the window. “Mona? What's going on?”

The cat put his hands on his hips. “These are my friends, Mona! The people I belong with. I'm sorry, but I have to do this!” He tugged off his apron, which took a lot more effort than it should have, and tossed it across the windowsill. “I quit! And by the way, you can call me Morgana now. Never knowing who people are talking to is so annoying!”

“But...” Mona looked overcome by it all. “But what about the restaurant? I can't run this place on my own!” She looked out across the tables, anxious. “Nobody around Alcamoth knows anything about pizza!”

One of the customers, a long-eared lady in silver armor, raised her hand. “You could always put in a request with the mercenaries. Once that's operational, I bet we could find someone who could help you. There's no way we're just letting this place, close, after all!”

The other veteran customers put up a murmur of collective agreement. Mona's eyes filled with tears of gratitude, washing away the sudden despair. “Oh, thank you! Yeah, let's do that!”

Morgana approached and reached up his little hand toward Mona to shake. “You were a good boss and a real hard worker, Mona! You're a great human, and I hope that someday I can be more like you. Good luck!” He then turned resolutely and padded away, obliging his friends to follow. When far enough he said, “So! What're we doing?”

“We were going to get food, but...we probably should go somewhere else,” Ann looked around. “Do you know anywhere?”

Nodding emphatically, Morgana pointed down the 'street'. “Sushi Striker! And while I'm eating, you two can tell me what you've been up to, and where everyone else is.”

Ann sighed. “We'll be eating too, you know.”



The devastation of Bathin, wrought both by and against him, left collateral damage across the battlefield. A weighty blow struck the hierophant, first getting its attention, and then knocking it down. It hissed in frustration, but sensing that it wasn't the object of the others' attention and not wanting to get involved in their fight either, it turned its attention back to the Slayer. A good look at the armored man nimbly swinging across the lava stream left the hierophant surprised, and in its haste to ready its trident it stepped back onto a piece of rubble that scraped beneath its foot. The poor footing meant that it couldn't escape the coming wrath. Roaring like a man possessed, the Slayer bulled forward and tore into the hierophant's clattering ribcage with his chainsaw. Its teeth sheared through the carapace like it was cardboard and messily tore into its organs, sending a shower of icky brownish blood to hiss and evaporate on the ground. Screeching, the monster struggled in vain to escape, but for all its effort it gained only a fleeting moment to watch as the Slayer cut its own heart out of its chest. Then the hierophant shuddered and went limp, turning to ash.

Its spirit floated to the ground, but a blue key beat it there. The device clattered off the ground and came to a rest by the lava stream. Together with the red key already in the Slayer's possession and the yellow key left behind by Bathin, he could unlock the barrier walling off a portion of the Gore Nest and get at the sentinel crystal within. Of course, stepping into that putrid hive was just the beginning; to truly eliminate the horrid growth, he would need to put an end to the gruesome heart beating in the facility below, a brief elevator ride away. According to his map, the second sentinel crystal lay down there as well, a just reward for ridding the world of such a malignant growth.

As he headed in, the survivors of the battle marshaled together. From the direction of the van came Nadia, fresh as a daisy and wielding a brand-new scythe of bone and lustrous metal and tailed by Pandemonica. V, Griffon, and their new acquaintance approached from the upper level of the battlefield, and from the direction of the half-ruined delicatessen strode Nero and Dante. They met near the center of the cleft arena, a comfortable distance from the burgeoning heat of the lava river running through it. Nadia, having sit out the brutal struggle and received a shiny toy for her efforts, was all smiles. “Hey guys, check out what Nico made me! Isn't it just so purr-fectly macabre? It's super adjustable, just like me!” She gave it a few swings, showing off the scythe's pivoting head and extendable spine, before planting its haft to take a look at the newcomers. “Making friends, huh? Well hiya, I'm Miss Fortune, but really I'm one lucky cat.” She eyed the unknown woman in particular. “Hey, another for the white-hair crew!”

Dante chuckled. “Not too far off the mark there, are ya? Well, despite it all, I'm Dante. Nice to meetcha.”

The sharp-looking man with a severe haircut sensed it was his turn and gave a stiff bow of his head. “While I do not have white hair, I am Raidou Kuzunoha.”

Clapping a hand on her nephew's shoulder, Dante explained, “Ol' Nero here's given me the works. I'm all for round two with tall, dark, and smelly hunkered down in the Qliphoth over there, but I don't do daycare. You kids gonna be able to handle yourselves?”

Nadia smirked. “Puh-lease. Nero was the same way when meeting the rest of us. You his mom or something?”

An indeterminate expression lingered on the legendary devil hunter's face before he coughed. “Ahem! Aunt, I guess.”

“Well, you don't need to worry about us. Besides, I'm only going as far as the next root thingy anyway.”

Dante shrugged. “Suit yourself. Just don't haunt me if things go sour, 'kay?” She turned back, giving those assembled a good view of the remarkable sword on her back. Nero waved to get Nico's attention and indicate that she should drive around the Gore Nest and accompanying pit to meet on the other side.

Getting the feeling the people were leaving while he was still under-informed, Raidous spoke up. “Hold on. I do not have these works of yours, I do not know who you are, and I do not know what you are doing. Please tell me.”

Pandemonica adjusted her glasses. “This group's endeavor is to challenge the great monstrosity lurking within monumental flesh tree yonder.” It didn't take any pointing from her for Raidou to guess what she was referring to. “Until such time as all its roots are purged, it remains inaccessible. Each root is connected to a somewhat notable adversary. You understand the chain of events.”

“We're not an organization or anything, just a few people thrown together by chance,” Nero clarified. “Dante, V, and I want to tear Urizen a new one, Nadia wants to beat the next miniboss, Pandy wants to get out of here--”

“Pandemonica.”

“And that guy...” he looked at the Slayer. “Wants to rip and tear. By the way, the whole city's gonna blow some time tomorrow, so you probably ought to scram.”

Raidou made up his mind. “I intend to. If you do not mind, I will travel with you. When we near the border, I will depart.”

Griffon flapped his wings for attention. “We ain't gonna help the crazy guy, right? He's hellbent on diggin' into this meat pile, so we're leaving him to it. Right?"

Thinking about it, Nero looked in the direction that the Slayer left. Logic dictated that he advance, but... "I'll help him out. Won't take long." Though Nadia rolled her eyes, she stepped up to join him, and so did Raidou. V, however, went after Dante, and Pandemonica followed.

Down below, at the bottom of the elevator, the Slayer found what had once been an energy facility. Its demon-filled corridors slowly but surely led to a central hub, where the heart of the Gore Nest throbbed in short-lived seclusion.

@Lugubrious @MULTI_MEDIA_MAN

Doom Slayer

Level 2 Doom Slayer/ Level 1 Isabelle

Location: Dead Zone/ Island off of the Eryta Sea

Word Count: 617

Isabelle finished speaking with a white haired man who needed assistants; something she was always glad to do. Helping people was something that made her happy; Although she did worry about his and Yennifer’s wellbeing. Watching him walking away she waved goodbye to him and wished him luck. Another person came towards her what zone he would like to venture to; the desert was a strange place to venture off to but she could not judge him for such a choice. Filling out some paperwork to indicate that he will be going off towards the desert zone. Her eyes darting over towards the clock; watching the time quickly moving. Opening the drawer of her desk; pulling out a small plastic bottle of apple juice. Pulling off the cap and taking a big swing of apple juice; putting away the bottle once she was finished continuing filling her paperwork.

Finishing all of her paperwork eventually; noticing the time she finished up her paperwork and cleaning up her desk. A thought came to her head staring at her desk; the bright light that engulfed her while she was at her desk working for the mayor. Appearing in this strange place; but there was work to be done here to help the others who appeared here. Walking out of her office and heading out to help the others; and find out why she is here. Making her way towards a small island on the Eryth Sea; taking a small boat form one of the piers to get there. She hated sand which seemed to stick to her paw pads; and it was coarse and rough which didn’t help.

As she explored the island she noticed Geralt speaking with others. “Mr. Geralt; funny meeting you here” She blurted out waving her paws for him to notice her. Walking over towards him and the other strangely dressed people. Her little bell rang as she made her way towards them. “Hello my name is Isabelle; and who are you?” She asked the others sounding quote polite for a talking dog wearing clothes.

------------------------------------

Meanwhile the Slayer set his eyes on the creature that angered him so much. Cornering the creature shoving his chainsaw into its ribcage. Parts of it’s bone and blood spraying all over his armor; the blood curdling screams from the Hierophant was music to his ears. Once the Hierophant was dead he picked up the blue key. Now he had enough keys to open the door to get the Sentinel crystal. Making his way towards the first Sentinel crystal grabbing it and breaking the crystal feeling the power coursing through his body. Turning his attention towards the location of the second crystal. Noticing the hallway and the demons that were guarding both the crystal and the way to destroy the gore nest.

Revving up his chainsaw once again feeling the bloodlust filling his head; Rushing towards them noticing that most of them were a mixture of lower and more deadly demons. The cacodemons were the first to notice him; screeching loudly and starting to notify the others. imps and zombie men coming towards him. Bobbing and weaving out of the way of the imp’s fireballs; most of the zombie men’s gunshots were hitting his amor. Finching form their attacks blowing the heads off of some zombie men. Some of the shots hitting his exposed flesh; this pissed him off more so then it should. His focus moving towards the Cacodemons who he was sawing in half with his chainsaw; closing the distance by using his pistol.

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Sakura would quiet down and would preemptively indicate for Ace Cadet to do so as well. She hadn’t realised that Peach was also royalty, which made sense. Could Bowser and Peach marry each other and create a kingdom? Maybe they already were. She really had no idea what to expect from this world.

The teenager would be greatly moved by the Princess’ speech, cheering and waving her hands in the air. This Smash City was a place where fighters came from all over to beat the heck out of each other and get better. Sakura, for one, could not wait to begin. Plans were beginning to be made about splitting up, but Sakura was already partially tuning out as she began to think of the possibility of sparring with one of these fantastical looking people in her general radius.

As soon as the speech ended, Sakura span and then literally cartwheeled away from the main group to get a better perspective.

”Okay, who wants to fight me!?” Sakura asked, challenging everyone in the room. She punched the air, her strong arm rocketing directly upward. This was an opportunity that had never presented itself. It was already a dream to fight warriors from around the world, but now she could battle warriors from other worlds. Despite how bad their situation was, there was no way not to find some joy in this for the young warrior.

A man, clearly in his late twenties to early thirties, raised his ornate armored hand. “Bit of a weird time, but I’m up for a fight. That’s the point of this city, right?” He walked up to Sakura and offered a hand. “Name’s Donovan. Yours?”

Sakura made intense eye contact, her raised fist going down with a slap into Donovan’s extended hand, shaking it. ”Pleased to meet you, Donovan! My name’s Sakura and- I mean- yeah! Let’s do it! Thanks! This is gonna be great. Do you fight with the armor on?” Sakura ended her rambling with a question, shaking his hand all the while.

Donnie retracted his hand (Sakura was shaking it for quite a while, honestly), and said. “Well, normally I do, but only for adventuring and missions. For a friendly battle, I wouldn’t. It’s enchanted. Improves agility, mastery, versatility in combat, the ability to find weakpoints in an opponent, and it’s incredibly durable in the first place. I’d probably need to take all of this off if we were going to use these ‘battle sims.’”

He looked around. “Speaking of which, we should probably go find out how to set that up….”

Sakura shrugged and glanced around, wiping her hand on her skirt that had become sweaty pressed against her fighting glove and the metal glove. ”Um, I dunno. Let’s go ask.” Sakura jogged along, looking for someone who knew like they were doing.

Deep in the crowd, a really short teenage boy heard Sakura’s call for challengers and he raised his hand. ”Ooh! Me! I’d like to!” he called out, but he was too short to be seen over the much larger crowd around him. He hopped a few times trying to get attention, but to no avail. Her challenge was met by another man, a huge guy, and the two went off together. Darn it, Mag! he thought to himself. Why didn’t you use your airacomet to get attention? That would have made more sense. By the time he fought his way through the crowd, the two were gone. Darn, where’d they go? He took off toward the various battle chambers, but knew that unless he got lucky it’d take some time to find them.

Briefly, Sakura stopped by Isabelle’s desk. ”Hey, uh, I guess I’ll go to the island. I’m pretty good at swimming. Or just put me with whichever group has the least people, it’s all fine with me!” She said cheerily.

“Dead Zone, full stop.” Donnie said with a grimace at the thought of going back there again. “I can cure diseases and poisons with magic, and the Dead Zone is full of zombie plagues. Any group that goes there needs to have me with them.”

After a bit of searching they found an administrator who gave them the low-down on how all the fighting worked. They could go into some kind of magic/sci-fi arena that could give them a gazillion different fighting arenas to choose from, which was awesome!

”Come on, Mister Donovan, this way!” She gestured for him to follow. Eventually they found a large empty fighting room with a small screen next to the door that would allow them to choose their arena. Sakura began pressing buttons and switching through different options, clearly not sure what to pick, or even how to pick it. She was working that out on the fly.

”It’s like a fighting game!” She exclaimed in amazement. ”But in real life!”

“This technology is incredible!” the monk exclaimed as he poured through the stage select. “I don’t even think the Titans made things like this!” Donnie was experimenting with different button combinations to try and figure out how this thing worked. It was surprisingly intuitive. He just hoped it wouldn’t explode or fail spectacularly like so much Azerothian tech….

“You’ll have to show me a fighting game sometime. We don’t have things like that where I come from,” Donnie said as he fiddled with the console.

Sakura smiled, squinting over at Donnie. Going by the armor and him talking about Titans, he was probably from a fantasy world. Well, from her perspective, anyway. From his perspective it was her that came from a fantasy world. But in this case, she knew a little bit more.

”It looks like we get to pick stages to fight in. There’s a flying island, a big grassy island with a castle, a big factory with lasers.” She swiped from screen to screen. ”This is all great, but I kinda wanna fight you, not the environment.” She said. ”Some of this stuff seems kinda like casual party game stuff rather than real fighting game stuff.” She added dismissively.

”What about this one? Three floating platforms over a big floating platform.” She indicated the image on the screen, called ‘Battlefield’.

Donnie put a hand to his chin. “I mean, maybe, but those platforms look like you could easily smash your head against them at ground level, or, worse, break your neck if you hit the edge the wrong way. They probably have some kind of safety mechanism, but I’d rather not find out.”

He pulled up an even simpler-looking stage, basically a flat octagon floating in space with lots and lots of sci-fantasy decoration. “How about this one?”

Sakura stuck out her lower lip, evaluating the stage. ”Sure! I guess we won’t really fall into, like, infinite nothingness.” She said, figuring that it would probably only be a drop of a few feet.

Since that was the one that Donnie suggested, and she had no objections, she went ahead and pressed the start button. With that, the large room turned into a replication of space, and a big floating platform in the middle. Floating discs appeared just on the other side of the door frame.

Sakura whistled at the impressive display of technology. That was like something out of a TV show. Tentatively, she stepped onto the disc. When both feet were firmly on the circle, it whisked her away at high speed to the surface of the platform. She felt like she should have fell right off, but it kept her in place. Jumping off and landing on the platform, she looked back through the doorframe and waved at Donnie, who now looked like he was standing in a door frame in the middle of space.

”It’s beautiful up here!” She called out with a spin, taking in the vista of simulated deep space.

Donnie, for his part, was much more cautious until Sakura stepped on her disc. Years of adventuring experience had taught him not to trust incredible high-technology until someone else used it first. Odds were it would probably explode or otherwise kill you in some spectacular way.

He tentatively stepped on the disc, now that Sakura had proven it was safe, and was whisked up to the platform. This stage had been marked “Final Destination (Melee),” and it sure looked the part. “I know this is just a sim, but this doesn’t look safe,” he said as he stepped onto it.

”I’m sure it’s fine!” Sakura said with unwarranted confidence, jumping and stomping on the platform to assure him of its sturdiness.

“I gotta hand it to whoever designed this th--WHAT THE HELL?!” The stage began moving at incredibly high speed through the field of stars. It didn’t look like it was moving that quickly through the purplish space, but Donnie knew they must be moving at hundreds of thousands of miles per hour if they were in space. Worse, he’d been knocked off his feet as the stage began to rocket through the starfield. Weirdly enough, though, he wasn’t sent flying off to his doom, either a factor of gravity or a factor of the simulation’s weird physics.

Sakura yelped out and fell into a sitting position as she stared up, literally star-struck at the display. It was gorgeous! ”Sugoi…!” She muttered under her breath. She glanced over at Donnie to see how the monk was reacting.

Overall, the monk was dumbstruck as he got to his feet. He knew it was just a simulation, but usually he didn’t see tech this good outside of Titan installations..

“I’d give a part of my liver to know how this thing works…” the monk said, awestruck. “Anyway,” he said as he stopped looking at the sight. He turned to Sakura, in a fighting stance, before he realized something. “I...probably should have taken off my armor beforehand, actually. Just...uh...screw it, I can do it after, think fast!”

He moved significantly faster than a normal human could, as wind seemed to coalesce around his feet, allowing him to quickly start advancing on Sakura’s left side with a palm strike aimed for the side of her jaw.

Sakura had returned the fighting stance, but every once in a while glanced at the beautiful display around her. Donnie himself seemed unsure if they were fighting or not, and she didn’t get to do her bow before he zoomed straight for her. Think fast, huh? She can do that!

She glanced down at his boots, seeing the wind guide his jump. He came in with a palm, but despite how fast it was the attack was still fairly telegraphed. She ducked underneath it and exploded upward with a firecracker of an uppercut with enough force to stop the monk in his tracks. ”Shouoken!” She called out. Before he could hit the ground, she would quickly run under where he was about to land and launch another uppercut into his back. Despite the armor, her punches seemed to hit with plenty of force, and her knuckles weren’t damaged at all. Her Ki was focused!

As soon as the monk landed from the second uppercut she was upon him already, raising her leg high in the air and bringing it down in a floral kick.

Donnie saw the uppercut coming, but still got hit by it, and was sent soaring into the air. When he landed, however, he rolled out of the way to avoid Sakura’s floral kick, responding with a sweep kick from the floor, transitioning into a Rising Sun Kick (a chi-enhanced flip kick) as he rose and she fell.

Sakura’s leg was almost taken out from under her. She barely maintained enough of her balance to deflect most of the damage from the flip kick, but was still knocked stumbling backwards, not able to punish the kick.

While the fight progressed, it came under observation by a few spectators. Additional floating platforms appeared in the fighters’ peripherals, orbiting the stage at a respectful distance from beyond the boundary zones that promised to disqualify any participant launched through them. Their riders watched from afar for the most part, but a couple edged closer. One, a high-school-age boy with dyed yellow hair, looked hyped up enough to be practically jumping into the fray himself. “Let’s goooo!” he shouted after an especially solid hit landed, pumping his fist.

Next to him was another high school age boy, albeit significantly shorter. It was the same boy that had tried to get in on the fight from the beginning, but didn’t make it in time. He was just as excited as the other spectator and braced himself on the platform, pumping his bionic third fist, the airacomet, high in the air while he cheered. ”Yeah! I call next fight! WOO!”

Sakura and Donnie were once again squared up with each other a sizable distance away, but the japanese girl seemed briefly confused. Donnie had rolled to the left to avoid her kick. To the...left? Of course he did, duh, that’s a totally normal response. Still it...felt weird.

Shaking her head, she got back into a fighting position. Her back was to the crowd now. Sakura was extremely used to fighting in front of an audience and had learned to tune out most of whatever they said. Good or bad. One time she waved to a fan and got socked in the nose for her trouble.

Hand raised in front of her, Sakura asked Donnie, ””What’s that move called? You forgot to say it’s name when you used it.” Sakura reminded the monk.

“It’s called the Rising Sun Kick, but why would I say that in battle?” the monk replied. “It’s better to keep the element of surprise--”

”Watch, like this.” Sakura brought her hands in close to her body and leaned her shoulder towards him. Gathering in the middle of her cupped hands a bright blue ball of energy with a yellow aura formed.

”Hadoken!” Sakura shouted, firing the concentrated blast of fiery energy towards him at high velocity.

Donnie, taking advantage of the octagonal format of the Melee version of Final Destination, dodged to the right this time, out of the way of the blast, while responding with a projectile of his own. He moved his hands into the same position as Sakura, and in a fraction of a second, had gathered energy into his hands and fired off a Chi Burst. And if it landed, Sakura would notice that it went right through her and still hurt!

Sakura raised her hands to block the fireball, only to have it phase right through her arms and pass through her chest and out her back. Sakura gasped in surprise as the ghostly ball of pain casually phased through her body. Wow!

“In my adventuring career, calling out my techniques will just tell the opponent what I’m about to do,” Donnie explained, as Sakura could see the bruise under his chin from her Shoryuken healing before her eyes. “It’s a quick way to get beaten or even killed if my opponent knows what they’re doing.”

”Well, that didn’t seem to help you dodge my Shouoken,” Sakura teased, sticking her tongue out of one side of her mouth. It helped that she technically said it after she hit, but she got the gist of what he was saying.

Then, Donnie leapt forwards and rocketed towards her, spiraling through the air like a human corkscrew! When he got close enough, he jerked to the left at the last second and, once past her, aimed a chi-enhanced flying roundhouse kick right at her back! Sakura had intended to once again counter and interrupt one of his telegraphed lunges, but the mid-air maneuvering of the masterful monk caught her unawares, and the strike collided hard with her back. Sakura grunted from the hit and fell forward onto her face, but was back on her feet quickly and whirled around. Sakura lunged forward at the empty space, realising that Donnie wasn’t where she thought he was. Sakura turned around ahead, expecting he had somehow made it behind her. But he was nowhere to be seen.

”Uh, Mister Donovan?” She asked.

“I’m down here!” he yelled, from below her. Sakura looked over the edge and saw the monk clinging onto one of the purplish protrusions hovering around the ball of darkness in the center of the stage, rotating in a circle.

“How did I overshoot?!” he asked incredulously. “And how do we turn this thing off?!”

”Um? I dunno?” Sakura said, giggling a little bit. She laid prone on her belly and extended a hand downwards. ”Can you jump from way down there? You can fly a little bit, right?” She offered good-naturedly. It sure looked like Donovan was about to fall into the endless void of the universe, but if she remembered correctly it wasn’t that far. Still, you’d have to give Sakura at least two thousand yen to get her to jump into that illusion.

“I can dash horizontally or up a ramp, but not vertically,” he said as he continued spinning. “Though I suppose I could try it…” he said. “Or I could just jump down, I know it’s just a sim but I don’t know how far it is.. Not worth finding out.”

He then tried clambering up the stage. He was agile, but this would be difficult. He jumped diagonally off the platform, flipping in midair, and making sure he aligned with the edge, and then used another of that dash technique, managing to make his way back onto the platform.

“Okay, let’s just switch stages,” Donnie said. “I think I saw a boxing ring of some kind in the selection, how do we stop this?”

Sakura watched as the monk vanished from her view, her helping hand being rendered useless. She moved it and ran it through her hair, as if that was always her intention. Rolling onto her back she sat up and kept herself supported with her open palms.

Sakura looked at the spectators and raised a hand. ”Hey you floating guys!” She waved. ”We wanna get out of the Cosmos now. How do we do that?” She asked, blinking as suddenly they were upside down. Above them there was a cloudy sky and a distant landscape.

”Wuh~” Sakura made a strange noise and tried to dig her hands into the cold stone beneath her. Then she chuckled. How do people fight in these conditions? This was seriously intense visual noise.

Donnie was lucky he was a sailor’s son. As the platform transitioned into ever-more bizarre backdrops (was that a cylinder of land?), he knew that anyone with even a bit of motion sickness would be throwing up all over the place by now. Thankfully, Donnie wasn’t susceptible to seasickness, and it seemed like no-one watching was either, but this seemed like a major safety hazard.

“Hang on a second, I’ve got something I think we can try,” Donnie said. Summoning his magical Luggage from thin air, he unzipped it, reached inside, and pulled out a length of chain. You never knew when you needed to bind something, and the chain would stand out wonderfully against the bright backdrop. The girl made an impressed noise.

Walking over to the edge, he unspooled the chain and dropped it into the void to gauge the distance. Once it pooled up, he unsummoned the Luggage, causing it to vanish as quickly as it appeared, and then, knowing how far the drop was, jumped over the edge, landing safely with a roll.

And then an ear-shattering explosion-like sound blasted up from the floor and he was surrounded by the signature bright, color-tinged pillar of light of the infamous Smash blast box being set off, as an announcer yelled, “GAME!”

Sakura yelped and then scuttled over to the edge. ”You blew up!”

Donnie was instantly dazzled and disoriented so badly that when the light stopped, he was on the floor, covering his eyes. “I think it worked!” he called up to Sakura.

She nodded, still looking impressed, and then lowered herself over the edge. Kicking off, she landed effortlessly. ”I don’t get the appeal.” She said with a shrug.

After a moment the skybox started turning off, cell by cell. The stage itself descended to the floor and disintegrated, leaving just the room itself. At the same time the spectator platforms drifted down, depositing their occupants on the floor. The boy who’d been cheering earlier wasted no time running up to the fighters. “Hell yeah! Just watchin’ you guy’s got my blood flowin’!” He smacked his fists together, grinning goonishly. “You guys got any more fight in ya? I’m dyin’ to bust loose!”

“I do...after I stop seeing stars…” the monk said as he got to his feet, still covering his face with his hands as his ears rung. “Whoever came up with that explosion thing needs to be kicked in the crotch!” Sakura smiled and shrugged in ambivalent defence of the blast creators

. Mag Launcher came running up alongside Ryuji, his airacomet folded up in its carrier so it only looked like a big hunk of metal attached to his shoulder. He punched his steel-gloved hands together. ”Hello. My name is Mag Launcher. I tried to volunteer for your original fight challenge, but nobody saw me. They tell me I’m a pretty good fist fighter.” He flexed his right bicep, but the effect was lost thanks to his small body and how his thick jacket blocked any view of his (admittedly impressive) muscles.

Sakura looked at the new boys and bowed to them. ”Pleased to meet you both! I’m Sakura. This is Mister Donovan. I’m always up for a fight.” Sakura punched her gloved fists together. ”That wasn’t even a warmup!”

Donnie’s vision and hearing had recovered by this point and he shook his head to clear off the last of the disorientation, then nodded at Sakura’s statement. “I agree. We need a proper match this time! And not in an arena that looks like a fever dream!”

“Alriiiiight! Let’s pull up another arena.” The boy crossed his arms, glancing at Sakura. “Ryuji, by the way. Ryuji Sakamoto. Saw you back in that medieval town, remember?” He examined Donnie, wondering what he was from, as he waited for another stage to arise.

Sakura narrowed her eyes a little bit, it took a moment before she recognized him. ”Oh, yeah! I don’t think I got your name at the time. If I did,” She shrugged, looking a little embarrassed. ”Sorry. I won’t forget you once we’ve fought, though, I promise.” She did another little bow before jogging over to the control panel.

”Boxing, boxing...you wanted a boxing arena, right?” Sakura swiped through the various options. Finally she found what looked like the ultimate boxing ring- the World Circuit. Punch-Out!! She liked their enthusiasm. Straight to the point. With an eager little smirk she tapped the confirm button and turned around to see what would happen to the simulation room.

”I’ve got an idea. I’ve been here for a while so I can use the panel to setup a team match, if that interests you? Ryuji and I got to see what the two of you can do, so to keep things fair one of you can be paired with me and one of you can be paired with Ryuji. How does that sound?” Mag stepped up to the panel and began punching in new commands.

As he plugged in the specifications, the stage began to take form. Rather than become a sky, the walls of the simulation room changed color and texture to serve as the interior walls of a grand indoor stadium. Rows of audience seating cropped up from nowhere to surround a giant boxing ring that spray to existence with runways on either side. A huge metal scaffold with attached lights hung from the ceiling, lowered into place like a chandelier. The fighters stood outside the ring between it and where a few spectators were settling into the ready-made accommodations.

“Man, this is gonna be great!” With a wild smile Ryuji made for the ring and climbed inside. As for which team he happened to be on, he gave no preference, or even acknowledgement.

Sakura once again marvelled at the impossible technology on display. As Ryuji climbed inside, Sakura pondered the idea of a two on two battle. Like a tornado tag match, or something. It would be a first for her, but… ”Okay, little guy, you’re with me.” She said, nudging him on the shoulder.

”But, uh, are you sure you’re up for this?” She asked with a concerned smile. She didn’t want to insult his pride but she also didn’t want to see a kid get beat up. But at the same time anything was possible. ”Um-well, I guess, where I come from, little kids don’t usually fight. I don’t wish to be disrespectful.” She said honestly. When she was 14 people told her she was too young to fight all the time. But Mag Launcher really looked like he wasn’t even out of elementary school yet. She wouldn’t want to see a ten year old get beat up, even if he was super capable.

Donnie responded simply. “I mean, isn’t this a whole city that doubles as a fight club? I’d assume everyone in it is qualified to be here, and that includes Mag. Besides, there’s a difference between a friendly sparring match and an out-and-out fight. Kids learn martial arts the same as everyone else.”

Mag simply shrugged off Sakura’s concern. ”Don’t worry about me, I’m actually 16, and I took over my family’s adventure business 3 years ago. You might say that I’m pretty handy to have around, hahaha!” Man, that joke was going to hit them harder once he showed off his secret surprise.

“Well, you’re quite the entrepreneur!” Donnie said, visibly impressed, “I was still in monastic training at that age!” It was clear he didn’t find the joke funny though.

Still smiling at his own joke, Mag finished setting up the rules by determining the teams. ”Alright, team Smash, 2 v 2, Mag Launcher and Sakura VS Donovan and Ryuji. We’ll be Blue Team and they can be Red Team. Aaaand done!” The settings were entered and the match was confirmed.

“A team battle, huh? I’m onboard with that,” Donnie said as he climbed into the ring and readied himself for a fight, getting into fighting stance that screamed “kung-fu.” He didn’t take out the two small katar-like blades at his hips though. No need to slash and stab people he was just trying to have a friendly fight with. “Now that we’re in an actual arena and not a fever dream,” he said, with a fiery expression, “I can show you why I’m a Grandmaster!”

Sakura seemed relieved. ”Oh, great! Okay. Alright, Blue Team, let’s do it!” Sakura exclaimed. Then she ran over, jumped up and front flipped over the ropes with practiced precision. This wasn’t her first time entering a boxing ring. Then she cart wheeled over to a corner and stood up on one of the corners. She brought her hands to her lips and kissed them, then moved her hands outward in a display of showmanship several times in a row. There weren’t many people in the audience but it was fun to do. Finishing her routine, she turned around and hopped onto the mat, and with overt casualness leaned her back against the ropes.

Mag followed suit and hopped into the ring himself, situating himself a few feet in front of the ring ropes. He put up a fighting stance that was reminiscent of boxing, but clearly self trained. With a friendly smile, he waved at the competition.

Ryuji cracked his knuckles. The fellow paired up with him looked like he knew his way around a slugfest or two. On the other hand, finding out that little kid on the other team was 16 meant he and Ryuji we're about the same age. The possibility that he might be the youngest among those present made him fired up to prove himself. Anyone who looked down on him was in for a hell of a surprise--after all, how could they possibly anticipate the card up his sleeve? "Alright, tough guy. Let's show these dorks what we're effin' made of!"

With combatants all set, the countdown began. Ryuji lowered himself into a runner's stance, bracing to launch forward.

"THREE...TWO...ONE...GO!"

"Yaaaaaaaaah!" Ryuji bellowed as he literally exploded forward. From a blast of blue flame he ran forward, clad in a thuggish getup and skull mask. The former trackstar moved like lightning, crossing the ring in just a moment's time, a metal pipe brandished in his hand. He went for Mag Launcher first, winding up his arm only to lead with a stomping kick instead and follow up with a pipe swing.

Mag was impressed by his opponent’s burst of speed, it would definitely give him the edge in this fight and force Mag to battle defensively. What surprised him moreso was the pipe Ryuji pulled out!

”I thought this was a fistfight, not a game of Clue!” he joked. As Ryuji wound himself up for the foot stomp, Mag just flew backward as though pulled by an invisible force. He had activated the airacomet, but kept it behind him to stay out of sight and used it to grab the ring ropes and yank himself back, where he then slingshot forward with his normal fist extended like a rocket. The longer he could keep his ace in the hole a secret, the better. He lost most of the parts to his cyframe so it only had basic hand parts now, which won’t be too hard to figure out in the fight.

Elastic force propelled Mag at Skull quickly, but not quite quickly enough to take his opponent by surprise. Though his overhead swing missed, he saw no reason not to put his strength into a hefty backswing and clobber Mag across the chest as he came in for a punch. With the range of his pipe added to that of his lanky arm, he could land a solid whack before the short archeologist got close. “Get rekt!”

”Uh oh!” Mag tried to twist so that he’d minimize the impact and guard with his other hand, but that pipe still hurt! It hit pretty hard and Mag realized now that this opponent wasn’t someone to hold back on. As he took the hit the airacomet extended out of its holder and moved to grab Skull’s pipe arm at the wrist, then spin and slam him toward the mat.

Totally unprepared for a throw, Skull got bowled over with a yelp. He hit the ground pretty hard and lay there for a moment, but gathered his strength and wrenched out of the other boy’s grip. He got back to his feet and stood in a menacing low stance, hunched over. “Awlright, awlright,” he said, grinning. He then pushed off his bent knees, propelling himself forward again. He swung wildly with the pipe three times, moving forward with each, right, left, and finally overhead.

Mag’s opponent barely even registered the airacomet’s sudden appearance, apparently just rolling with the punches and coming right back. Alright, well there went the element of surprise. While Skull got back up, Mag did the same, and he was back on the defensive against a flurry of pipe strikes. Fortunately the airacomet had good range and was quite large, so the pipe strikes were all blocked by the bionic hand.

”Ryuji in the boxing ring with the lead pipe? I don’t think so!” he shouted. Using his right hand, Mag slammed down to the floor, his cyframe mimicking the movement and hitting the ground hard enough to shake the whole place. ”Mag in the boxing ring with the fist, that’s more like it!” He leaped forward with his right hand outstretched to punch Skull with his normal (albeit steel plated) hand. After all, the airacomet could accidentally paste someone!

The masked hoodlum stumbled back when the arena shook, calling out, “That all ya got?!” As Mag took to the air, he banished his pipe with a flick of the wrist and brought out a shotgun instead. He fired at the incoming fist, the force strong enough to nearly blow him backward, but Mag’s airacomet breezed through the buckshot and planted its hard edge straight into Skull’s mask. “Guh!” he tumbled backward, ending up on his forearms and knees with stars in his eyes. “Damn!” he groaned. “That thing packs a punch.” He got up once more, his shotgun in his hands, and emptied the remaining two shots at Mag. Then the firearm disappeared. He pulled out his pipe and pointed at his chest with his thumb. “But you shouldn’t be callin’ me Ryuji. Call me Skull. And while we’re callin’ stuff, lemme introduce ya to my second-best friend.”

The air seemed to flux, like the tide pulling out before a great wave crashes against the shore. Grinning, he bellowed, “Persona!”

Behind him, a blue flames exploded out of nowhere. From the azure firestorm emerged a leering black prow, then an entire pirate ship floating on air, and atop it a huge pirate skeleton with a cannon arm at the ready. The whole entity hovered behind Skull, riding the ship like a surfboard, awaiting Skull’s command. He obliged. “Shock ‘em, Captain Kidd!”

-to be placed when the flow is nice and good-

When the fight started, Sakura was eager to do as she usually did- attack! Ryuji had zoomed by to attack Mag Launcher, but she would prefer not to punch somebody in the back of the head. Even if it was a 2v2. That would be a first. Sakura always hit people in the front. Sakura dashed forward, going from a stand still to a sprint very quickly, making a bee-line towards Donnie. Once she was a few feet away from Donovan she jumped into the air in a spin kick.

”Shunpuu Kyaku!” She exclaimed quickly. She was spinning around very fast, her leg looking to slam into Donovan’s face with a powerful kick to the side of the head.

Donnie, meanwhile, hadn’t actually moved. He had been waiting for her to make the first move, which allowed him to brace for impact. Normally, he would try to dodge, but that attack would have been a nasty one to avoid. Instead, he raised his arms to block the strike. When the attack landed, the titanic force of Sakura’s kick connected with Donnie’s raised forearms. The impact of the attack was a difficult one to tank outright when he wasn’t in the forgotten Ox style of the Brewmaster’s discipline, and so his arm was shaking as it held back Sakura’s leg.

But now, Sakura was right where he wanted her. He made to grab her kicking leg, attempting a reversal by twisting it, which, if it was successful, would send her straight to the mat and open her up for a leglock, and from there, a submission hold.

Normally, Sakura’s opponents couldn’t stop her leg. At the very least she was always able to get back on her feet for their counter attack, but Donnie stopped her outright. Her other leg dropped to the ground, her right leg being held by Donnie’s hands. The last thing she wanted was to get into a wrestling contest with this guy, he would probably win.

Whichever way he twisted her leg, she would sense it and spin her entire body with it to bring her still free leg around to kick him across the face. Doing a 180 with the kick she would attempt to scramble away, kicking away at his grasp with strong if slightly un-coordinated force. With a leap she turned once again to land her back, channeling a small hadoken to fire at Donnie to give her more space to get back to her feet.

Donnie didn’t really expect this tactic to actually lead to a tap-out situation. Sakura was clearly a skilled, if less-experienced, martial artist, and he knew she wouldn’t let a man twice her size get her into a situation where he could leverage his superior muscle mass to force a quick victory. Thankfully, the agility boosts conferred by Xuen’s Battlegear allowed him to react quickly to her kick, jerking his upper body backwards with inhuman speed and deftly avoiding her foot. However, this came at a cost, as it both distracted him and eliminated his leverage, allowing Sakura to easily slip out of his grasp.

Good. He wouldn’t want this to be over that quickly. Not after the letdown that was Final Destination.

However, what he didn’t expect was the Hadoken that came next. It smacked him clean in the chest, and the effect was not unlike being hit in the ribs with a mace. Donnie grunted in pain and was pushed back slightly, but he’d felt far worse.

“Very good!” the monk said. “Now, let’s kick things up a notch.” He ran forward, feinting with a right punch only to launch his true attack, a palm strike to the face with his left hand, and from there, he would unleash a full-fledged combo. A back fist, a right hook, a knee to the stomach, a Blackout Kick (read: chi-enhanced roundhouse kick) to the side of the face, a Tiger Palm (read: chi-enhanced palm strike) to the sternum, a sweep to the leg, and finally, a Rising Sun Kick to launch her up into the air.
Sakura had quickly gotten to her feet and smiled, but otherwise said nothing as the monk prepared his combo. Sakura took a step forward but realised he would be faster on the attack. Narrowing her eyes, the street fighter gathered her focus. High, high, high, high, high, low, low.

Blue light flashed with each deflected strike as the excess force from Donnie’s strikes was absorbed and released. With a focused and borderline serene, Sakura met and matched each and everyone of Donovan’s strikes. The Sun Kick glanced off her arm and as Donovan recovered from his ambitious Sun Kick, Sakura took the moment to channel the focus from the combo into a V-Trigger. Pumping her right arm like it was a shotgun, her fists glowed with a wild blue crackling energy.

Almost all of it was released right away with a devastating short range blast of energy, Sakura basically touching Donovan for maximum effectiveness. She went low and struck him in the knee, and released the rest of her burst of energy in a final move of the combo. "Direct hit!" She exclaimed, striking Donovan in the center of his torso and then working her way up to his jaw. A single uppercut that possessed the power of ten, the lone strike rattling like a machine gun against his armor.

Sakura followed through and span in the air, landing on the ground with a big dumb grin on her face. Donnie, for his part, saw the telegraphed strike and responded by holding out his hand, a strange bluish-white “X”-like symbol appearing over each of the fighter’s heads. And then he just let the massive punch connect.

The massive quantity of force imparted into his armor did send him flying, as was typical for Street Fighter super-moves, up into the air and right into the plywood floor of the ring. But a glob of green energy shot back from Donnie into Sakura, and it hurt like hell. About two-thirds of the amount of pain and damage her punch would have inflicted was being spread out across her body as Nature Magic damage over the next six seconds. The effect was not unlike literally bathing in punches.

Donnie sprung to his feet, utterly unharmed. “Touch of Karma. Classic monk technique. Redirects damage. Nice punch though. Who taught you that?”

Sakura’s smile had quickly faded and she just kind of sat there and frowned for a little bit as she absorbed the punch. It was also very disappointing to see her powerful strike hadn’t hurt him at all. A classic monk technique that redirects damage? The circle now faded, Sakura realised she had a lot of pent up energy she needed to unleash. With both combo exchanges and the Touch of Karma giving most of the damage back to her, she felt like she was just about to be able to pull a big move. An Extra Special move.

At his question though, Sakura beamed. "I’m self taught!" She declared proudly.

It was at that moment that the two could feel the pressure in the air and witness the arrival of Captain Kidd. No sooner had the ship-riding skeleton appeared, floating in the air behind his user, than Skull sicced him on Mag Launcher. Kidd raised his cannon-arm and released a blast of lightning that crossed the distance between the fighters instantly to pump Mag full of electricity. Skull pumped his fist. “Deeeerect hit! And let’s make a twofer! Get ‘em, Captain!”

The Persona leaned forward and rode outward toward Mag. Once close enough, a twist of his skeletal body brought his ship around like a board to clobber the boy across the front.

Mag shouted in pain as the electricity ran through his body. Having the airacomet grab the arena helped ground it out, but damn it still hurt! If only he had his Electric Parts, then he could have completely absorbed the current! There was no time to think about that though, because the skeleton pirate was headed straight for him!

Now this was something Mag didn’t have to feel bad about punching full force with his cyframe. As the ship came toward him, the bionic third arm pushed against the ground, and at the same time Mag jumped. The result was a powerful leap that sent him high up, where he flipped over the persona and unleashed a big wind-up swing at the thing’s back before landing on the mat! The Captain, however, barely flinched, and spun about to continue his pursuit

Sakura turned around, her jaw dropping, as Ryuji unveiled his secret technique."Nani…?" It was...a skeleton pirate!? Sakura had no idea what to make of it. Whatever it was, it was really gunning for Mag, essentially making it a 2v1!

The sound and light show of what was obviously some kind of magic got Donnie’s attention immediately. “Nice. Haven’t seen that spell before. You a necromancer?” the monk said casually, completely unfazed.

Sakura turned away from Donnie and sprinted toward the ideally preoccupied Ryuji. "Shunpuu Kyaku!" She cried out again, hoping to close the distance quite quickly. Like a wild helicopter blade she leapt the distance, her spinning form aiming to collide multiple times with Ryuji. Expelling some of her Extra Special meter, her entire body flashed yellow and her already powerful kicks now had an explosive after taste.

“Oh no you don’t!” Donnie said, running back towards Sakura and reaching out to grab her by the arm. He leveraged the enormous muscle mass that all human men from his world seemed to have for some reason and attempted to hurl her away, but her enhanced hurricane kick knocked back his grasping arms as she plowed heedlessly onward.

Her voice brought Skull’s attention, and as she spun his way he raised his pipe to intercept. Despite the strength of his swing, her leg knocked his bludgeon aside before proceeding to strike him in the shoulder and spin him away. “The hell!?” He charged at her and positioned his pipe for a backswing. Now that Sakura could get a good look at his fighting style, she could see that he fought like an amateur, without any real form or training, but with brutish aplomb.

Sakura, having knocked his pipe out of the way with an enhanced kick, still felt like she had the initiative. Landing quickly, as Ryuji readied his weapon, Sakura took a step inward and aimed a practiced jab right for at nose, looking to stifle his heavy swing entirely.

“Pfuh!” he yelped as her fist smushed his nose in with his mask and he took a step back. He swung anyway, trusting in his pipe’s range to make up the distance.

Sakura blocked the pipe, letting its momentum spin her backwards where she fired a hadoken back at Donnie. Then she completed the spin with a heel kick aimed at Ryuji’s- or Skull’s, or Captain Kidd’s, or whatever his name was, Sakura didn’t fully understand-, face.

Seeing the incoming foot, Skull rushed to guard his head with his pipe. “Hrk!” The kick bopped his head with the back of his own hand, causing him to stumble and fall on his back. As he hit the ground with a thud amplified by the construction of the ring, Captain Kidd faded away. Skull, however, was far from defeated. “Hrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaagh!” he yelled, springing to his feet. His Persona burst into existence again behind him, facing Sakura. “Zionga!”

Kidd extended his cannon arm and let loose a heavy bolt of lightning. No matter how good she was, Skull knew this girl wouldn’t be dodging that, and one couldn’t exactly block magic. He pressed his advantage. “Now, Tara-! Taruka-! Jus-just do it already!” His Persona knew what Skull meant despite him fumbling the word, and he struck a dashing pose with his cape flapping in the wind. Red swirls started to surround Skull flying upward, increasing his attack, but for the moment his guard was down.

Sakura went to dodge, but the Captain’s aim was true and she was struck by lightning. ’Aah!” She cried out, her vision flashing white. She was knocked into the air, flying back towards Donnie and unable to move. Slowly she began to climb to her feet, but it was incredibly difficult and she kept falling back to the ground.

Shouldering his pipe with a smirk, Skull stood at the ready with enhanced attack. “Hell yeah! Next!” He looked around to try and find Mag Launcher.

”All that style, but no class!” Mag called out as he revealed his hand (pun intended). While Skull was busy and focused on Sakura, he had ripped out one of the ring’s elastic ropes and tied it into a lasso, which was now flying midair and about to tether the Phantom Thief around the torso. If successful, Skull would find himself yanked through the air and toward an oncoming fist.

The rope closed around Skull’s body and one of his arms, and with surprising strength he found himself yanked off his feet. Gritting his teeth, he twisted himself to keep his head from taking the blow, but the ensuing punch still hit like a truck. After hitting the ground, he couldn’t immediately get to his feet. “Agh...that’s bad…” He could still call out, however. “Headbutt!”

Captain Kidd adjusted his foot forward on his ship, and the whole thing pitched Mag’s way. The Persona homed in to deliver a weighty slam with his body noggin, a blow that didn’t just hurt but also had a medium chance to inflict Forget.

”Uh oh.” Mag’s eyes widened as the ship came in with the spectral pirate in tow. He readied himself and dug his heels into the mat while the airacomet held out open handed. The giant hand grabbed and pushed back against the ship (which really seemed more like a surfboard from the size and use), with intent to knock the persona off course and away, but he miscalculated Captain Kidd’s intention. He wasn’t about to get speared by the front of the ship, but whacked on the head by the pirate himself, which knocked Mag back and stung.

”Ow!” he cried, bringing both hands up to his wound, but his cyframe didn’t mimic his movements. ”What happened?”

Donnie, meanwhile, hadn’t even had an opportunity to do anything. It turned out Sakura’s spinning kick behaved almost exactly like a monk’s Spinning Hurricane Kick but moving, and with a hell of a lot more force, meaning that getting close wasn’t really an option. He wanted to help Ryuji, but that would leave Mag free to do whatever he wanted with that gigantic robo-hand of his.

However, Ryuji seemed to quickly gain the upper hand just as Donnie hesitated and...did he just give Mag a concussion? Amnesia wasn’t good. But surely Ryuji wouldn’t actually have given him serious brain trauma. It had to be some sort of magic, since a mere concussion would probably knock him unconscious….

Screw it. He’d go with it, and get Mag checked after the match. Maybe if he was lucky it’d wear off.

Donnie ran back towards Mag and attempted a devastating Blackout Kick, aimed at the much smaller adventurer’s chest (not a good idea to strike the head after what just happened to him)...only for his leg to strike something else entirely.

’Bleh!”

He hadn’t even gotten a chance to see what he’d hit until he turned around and saw Sakura flopping against Captain Kidd’s ship.

“Ryuji, above you!” Donnie called, which left him open. Rookie mistake.

At the same time, Skull turned Donnie’s way, having not heard him straight. “What?” He looked up as Sakura hit his Persona and fell, still sparking. “Whoa, no!” Taken aback, he didn’t get clear in time to avoid getting landed on, and the impact spread the Shock status effect to himself, leaving him paralyzed. “Craaaaaap!” he moaned.

My Detox doesn’t work on magic, shit! Donnie thought, finally turning back to Mag Launcher.

Both opponents were bunched up together! That was lucky, even if Sakura was there too. That just meant he’d have to be careful, but it’s not like his cyframe was indelicate, it was capable of being extremely dexterous. ”Got ya!” And hey, he could move the airacomet again! With his right hand he wound up a big punch, but the airacomet didn’t mimic his movements like he wanted! It was on target to his Donnie as intended, but he couldn’t control the swing! It hit all three of them with the force of a semi truck!

”Oh no, that wasn’t supposed to happen!”

The weaponized arm sent all three flying like bowling pins with assorted degrees of yelling. It also transferred Shock to Mag, surrounding him with electricity and inhibiting his movements. As Skull soared over the ring’s boundary and over the liminal space toward the audience beyond, he attempted to twist himself and see his assailant. In the brief glimpse afforded to him he spotted Mag, paralyzed and wide open, and in that instant he came to a decision. “If we’re goin’, you’re goin’! Captaaain!”

Kidd manifested once more, appearing in midair just long enough to unleash a final attack-boosted blast of lightning Mag’s way. Skull saw it happen, but couldn’t get a view of the results before he passed the boundary and fell into the seating area. “Ow, jeez!” he bemoaned, lying sprawled across the chairs.

Still somewhat paralyzed from the last shock, Mag couldn’t defend against the attack in the slightest and was blasted back over the ring and toward the edge. ”Gotta! Grab!” He tried to snag onto the edge of the arena, but was too far away for his shorter arms to so much as brush against the ledge. In a last ditch attempt he tried to grab with the airacomet, and it worked! The bionic arm latched onto the edge as commanded… and then squeezed much MUCH too hard and broke the material! His last attempt at recovery a failure, Mag fell into the blast zone and reappeared next to Skull.

”Whew. That was tough, I should’ve gone all out against you from the start! Good showing!” He offered his fellow teen a high five… with his normal hand this time. Panting, Ryuji allowed his Phantom Thief outfit to disappear, and returned the high five.

Sakura had experienced a rough couple of seconds. There was a shock, a kick to the back, face plant against a ship, a fall, and now she had been sent sailing through the air. Right now she was at the peak of her arc towards the out of bounds, in that brief moment where she was completely weightless. Spinning, she saw Donnie in a similar situation.

Finally rallying, Sakura defied gravity and pushed herself through the air towards Donovan, raising both of her fists high above her head. Once within range, she would attempt to bring her hammer blow down on top of his head. Were this attack successful, it hurt. But the strangest thing about it would be that it would actually raise both Sakura and Donovan higher into the air instead of sending Donovan towards the ground as one might expect. This was a move called the Sakura Otoshi, or Sakura Drop. If the first blow hit, she had two more identical hammer blows coming his way in quick succession. ’One!” She shouted.

Donnie, meanwhile, had turned back to Mag only to be punched in the face by his airacomet, and sent flying. Donnie knew he was flying out of bounds, so he maneuvered himself in the air to use his Chi Torpedo...only for Sakura to engage just before he could gather his chi. The first hammer blow hit, which propelled him upwards for some reason, but he managed to stop Sakura’s second hammer blow in mid-air by catching her fists in his grasp. Keeping her hands close together with his arms, he struck her in the face with a headbutt (which his helmet greatly helped with) and then made to rapidly swing her around and send her flying into the stands. Unfortunately, he himself was close enough to end up in the blast box before he could finish this maneuver, and instead awkwardly reappeared above a random seat with his hands still in the grasping position. He fell down, splayed on two seats.

“GAME!” came the clarion call of the announcer.

“Well, that was...abrupt…” he said as he sat up, still a little discombobulated by the fall.

Sakura tumbled down the seats, having been in a curled up position. A second later she was doing a handstand, looking up at her fellow fighters. She let herself fall into a sitting position and then turned around. She sniffed and put a hand up to her nose, the pain of a metal-enhanced headbutt fading. Her heart was still racing but she wasn’t sure what to do now. ’Is it over? Who won?” She asked.

“THE WINNER IS...BLUE TEAM!”

The electronic billboards surrounding the arena flashed shots of Sakura and Mag, and the big screen spooled up a replay of the fight.

Sakura gasped, turned around and watched the replay. She gasped again, turning around and looking up at Mag. In a moment she had exploded to her feet and began to cart wheel up the stands. "YEAAAAAAAAH BLUE TEAM!” She shouted victoriously. In a moment’s notice she had scooped up Mag Launcher and put him over her shoulders.

Mag watched the playback as well, clearly impressed with Sakura and Donnie's martial arts skills. But when it came to that final moment when he caused a triple KO he winced. He turned sheepishly to Sakura, clearly embarrassed. ”Really Sorry about that. When that pirate hit me it did something that made it hard to control my cyframe.” But she clearly didn’t care, happily cheering and hoisting him up over her shoulders, which was a feat considering the airacomet wasn’t exactly made of plastic.

Sakura danced, sliding her hands back and forth in the air and feet back and forth on the ground, shifting her entire body side to side. ’Just do it on purpose next time! It could be our special Blue Team attack! You should come to the island with me! That’s where I’m going!” She exclaimed.

Ryuji watched as well, enchanted. Although a little bruised up, he seemed to be in good spirits, especially when it came to seeing himself kick ass. “Damn, that was pretty cool!” The recording allowed Ryuji to get a good look at the other half of the battle as well, and the martial arts prowess on display clearly impressed him. Although the sparring match had felt like a few seconds, the playback went on for a little while before freeze-framing on the finish. “Aw, we lost? That’s some ass.” He didn’t look too put out, and when he got to his feet from the seating, he waved before he turned to go. “Alright, thanks for the fight. I gotta see about lunch. See you guys later.”

Donnie, for his part, was suitably impressed. The enemy team, composed of an adventuring engineer with far less experience than himself and a self-taught martial artist, both half his age, had managed to best his team by a hair. Ryuji seemed like an unskilled teenager gifted with supernatural power, but instead, Donnie was the one who carried the least weight of the two.

It just went to show that you should never underestimate your opponents or your allies, even in a friendly brawl.

“Nice job, you two! I accept my defeat.” he said. He leaned back in his padded seat, hands on the back of his head. “Now, I wonder what else this city has to offer with tech this advanced” He turned to Sakura. “You mentioned fighting games earlier? I wonder if they have any for sale here. Or what they are.”

"What was that all about?"

A woman emerged from the restroom area of Mona's Pizza. She was slender, and her showy clothes clung to the curves of her body. When she moved in a certain way, the coins braided into her outfit made a pleasant sound, but when she spoke it was even more pleasing to the ear. Her curly brown hair bounced lightly on her shoulders as she moved towards a booth were a young mage was already seated. All in all, Primrose appeared as a delicate flower seen through a fence: unreachable, but nice to gaze at.

She slid into the booth, and Ashley looked up at the dancer with the last of her pizza still in her mouth. Primrose's eyes slid to the forms of a metal woman and her small furry companion on their way out the door, and Ashley followed her gaze just before shrugging. The ladies' table was silent save for the sound of the chewing. Primrose pushed the half melted ice around in the glass she left there, patiently waiting to see if the girl, the closest thing she had to a friend here at the Alcamoth, would give Primrose her thoughts. It wasn't that the people in Smash City were unfriendly, but they were strangers; each and every one. Some of them were even a little too friendly. Ashley was a young girl who was more interested in her own spells than the past lives of other people. Primrose took a liking to her, and she was pretty sure that Ashley secretly enjoyed her company as well.

Eventually, the little witch did speak up.

"A bunch of new people showed up, I guess. They're in the lobby." She sounded so disinterested as she told Primrose the news. Her familiar, Red, must not have been part of these new arrivals. "Apparently they're going to save the world."

"Is that so...?" Primrose looked back over to the door. That was a lofty goal, saving the world. Even if these new people were just overeager do-gooders with more enthusiasm than concrete plans, Primrose would be lying if she she said she wasn't interested to see what they had to say. Just recently, all of the people living in the Alcamoth woke up and discovered that their situation wasn't normal. None of them were in their own worlds, and somehow this wasn't a dream.

The brunette woman stood, and the witch looked up at her without even the slightest movement of her head.

"Going to check it out?"

"I think so. Care to join me?"

Ashley just sank lower into the booth and picked her book back up, cracking it open with a defiant huff. Primrose chuckled and went ahead to the lobby, leaving the rambunctious restaurant behind for now.

Tucked away in a corner of the lobby, Primrose listened to a princess give a speech. It would certainly be rousing, if Primrose were the type to be roused. After the princess finished, the room exploded into activity. People rushed forward to swarm that poor secretary, others shouted about fighting, and still others surrounded that large man to ask about the specifics of his mercenary plan. There was a dark robed man talking about "spirits" that interested Primrose, and she made a note of returning to ask him some questions soon, but for now she had a different destination in mind. While everyone was chattering away in excitement or heading off to the arenas, Primrose quietly slipped away to the residential area.

While the dancer wasn't roused into excited, optimistic action, she was planning to help. There was a certain man she had to get answers from, and to do that she needed this broken "World of Light" to disappear, so she could get back to Orsterra. If her contributions would make that happen even just a little bit faster, then she would do it. The current team working with the Princess were heading toward a few different areas. The Dead Zone didn't sound very appealing at all, something like a graveyard. Or Hell, for all she knew. The other two she would be better suited for. Particularly the Sandswept Sky, a desert area. Primrose spent the majority of her adult life up until now living and working in the Sunlands. She was used to surviving in a harsh environment like that, but there were a few things she needed: food, water, and protection from the sun.

She slipped into various unoccupied rooms in the hall. I wonder what Therion would think of my technique, she idly thought as she rifled through drawers. She recalled one late night in the field outside of Noblecourt when the thief shared his words wisdom with her. He laid on his back with his arms folded behind his head and one leg cross over the opposite knee. 'You can be quiet or you can be quick,' he'd said. 'but the most important thing is to be calm.' Calm she was, Primrose took what she needed and left as if she'd robbed a hundred rooms already and grown bored of it. She exited the last room in a long, light colored cloak with a waterskin strapped to her hip. After a stop in her own room to grab to her bag, she made her way back to the lobby.

Now, after an announcement like the one he made, it was no wonder that the man - dubbed the “Master of Masters,” which wasn’t pretentious at all - drew a crowd around him. So Primrose waited, leaned against the wall a short distance away in a stolen cloak. She wasn’t out of sight by any means, but while that robed man was occupied perhaps she was out of mind.

She studied him, but it was hard to tell what kind of man he was. Or even if he was a man under that hood. For a few long moments Primrose stayed by the wall, even when the last of the crowd dispersed. Subtly she opened the bottom of her cloak up, letting glimpses of her legs show. It couldn’t hurt, she reasoned.

While listening in, she got all the basics of “spirits” down. She still had questions, and if she really wanted to go through with this, leave the safety of the Alcamoth and help the world get back to normal just a little bit quicker, then she wanted to know the answers to these questions.

“Do they die?”

Primrose slid up to the Master of Masters, posing her inquiry as a casual one. “Spirit implies a certain meaning... but where I come from, when someone is killed, they don’t... do this.”

The dancer looked into the dark space under the man’s hood. “So... the people turned into spirits. Are they dead?”

“Them’s the breaks, kid,” the mysterious man sighed. Extending an index finger, the Master of Masters tapped it against the air in front of his head. “This doggone World of Light doesn’t dance to the tune of any world that came before. Pieces of other worlds make it up, but everything falls under its own logic. That can be both bad and good though, you see.” He held his hands up as if weighing pros and cons literally. “Those who lose their hearts, their ‘ka’, their binding spark of life, lose their bodies and become spirits.” A spooky wiggle of the fingers. “But a spirit is someone’s essence, their personality, everything about ‘em that makes ‘em their own special snowflake. Come across an empty vessel and--poof! The vessel’s moulded by the spirit. Gotta breath some life in there, but that’s where magic comes in. Fusion happens when a vessel already has a spirit in it, so both fight over the vessel’s form and eventually resolve a merged body.” Though he spoke with charisma, the Master of Masters certainly gave off the impression of liking to show off his genius.

The alpha type, then, Primrose thought to herself. Although everything he said would have sounded crazy, in context with everything else it made sense. "The ka, spirits..." she repeated. The notion of taking someone else's power as her own was so intriguing to Primrose. If it would help her in her quest, she would do almost anything. The confirmation that she'd have to kill someone just to have that power was humbling though. Could she do that?

"An empty vessel, hm..." She tilted her head slightly in thought. "You're saying a spirit can... regain it's "ka," is that right?"

The Master nodded. “Right on the money. There’s some necromantic types that can do the trick, I bet. For instance, that Cuphead guy can visualize others’ lives as ghosts, and he can slap ‘em back into their bodies. Revival spells, skills, artifacts. Other ways even I don’t know about, I bet Get this: if a really strong-willed person loses a heart in a certain way, their spirit alone can keep the body intact and moving. Isn’t that just fascinating?”

"Indeed." That was fascinating, and Primrose lifted a delicate hand to her chin as she took that information in. The "heart," "spirit" and "body"... sounded like the start of a romance tale almost, if that sort of thing included fusing with another person. In a literal sense.

What Primrose gathered from this so far was that although becoming a spirit meant someone died, they didn't always have to stay dead.

She still had a question or two, and the man seemed more than inclined to answer them, but perhaps she could use that to her advantage. Get the source of his information. Primrose smiled at the Master of Masters, a touch of coyness in her expression. "How did you get to know so much about this?"

“We-he-hell,” the cloaked man began, twirling his hand before placing it on his chest. “I happen to know a thing or two when it comes to such matters. In addition to being a magician, scholar, researcher, inventor of things both living and nonliving…” he said, counting each off on a finger as he did, “I’m so fortunate as to have a Gazing Eye, capable of showing me everything that it will ever see. That means everything done by my apprentice, his apprentice, and on and on and on, even after I disappeared. Pretty cool, right?” He clearly appreciated someone else having a somewhat playful attitude.

The dancer nodded, though she didn't think it was particularly 'cool,' it was interesting. She shifted a hand to her hip and said, "That sounds useful. A special ability of yours?" Although what she was really asking was, 'can I obtain something like that too?' She could think of quite a few uses for something like that.

Primrose’s response made the Master of Masters chuckle. “Useful, hah. That’s underselling it. I’d say more ‘twist of fate’ than ‘special ability.’ Either way, it’s a heck of a burden. Knowing the fate of the worlds, which missions will succeed and fail, who will live and die...some might call it a curse.” His tone took a sudden turn for the serious, his theatrical manner suppressed.

The Master's shift in attitude took Primrose by surprise for the briefest of moments. She could believe he was being genuine, but then again, this type of man enjoyed playing a part. 'The hero with a chip on his shoulder,' was that the role the Master was playing now? Primrose gave him the moment of silence she thought he was looking for before she went on. While the Master was going off script, Primrose stuck to her lines.

"A curse, hm? A burden." She leaned in a little closer. "Are you saying it's too heavy for you?"

No matter how close Primrose got, the darkness within the Master’s hood remained impermeable. His head tilted to one side, and he clasped his hands behind his back. “Hardly. After all, the future cannot be changed, so knowing what’s ahead makes no difference. But knowing that one cannot prevent tragedy, knowing the extent it will reach...that’s the rough part. Not everyone, I think, could live with that.”

With that, Primrose agreed. There were certainly times she wished she could see into the future, to the end of her journey - but if she had the power, she might be afraid to look any farther. Not to mention seeing the lives of everyone around her, if what the man claimed was true. The robe he wore gave Primrose no clues either way. She stood back up straight and crossed her arms over her chest.

"It would take a strong person to be able to," she agreed. Her subtle compliment to the man was only habit. Primrose went over everything he'd told her, and the people before her, and she smiled again. "Alright. I have one more question for you."

A subtle shake of the head greeted the dancer’s conclusion that his ability to bear the burden came from strength. That line of conversation did not linger, however, and Primrose offered a lead-up to her final inquiry. “Well, spit it out then,” the Master told her, spinning a hand in the ‘carry on’ motion.

"And here I thought we had a connection," she sighed. Primrose followed the motion of his hand before her eyes flickered back up to the darkness where a face should have been. "Make that two questions, then I won't take up anymore of your time."

She didn't aim any hostility the Master's way, but her smile gradually turned from coy to cold. A more serious expression to match the tone the conversation had taken, even though she was bringing it back to the start.

"A strong enough spirit. Can it survive, even fused with someone else? And... if you return a spirit to a vessel, return it to life..." she trailed off, pausing to collect her thoughts. In the wake of all the things she was learning, her mask slipped just a little, and her next words were softer than the last. "...is it really the same person?"

The Master of Masters folded his own arms. “Spirits are not alive. They’re more or less just data. But even once fused, a spirit can be unfused. Miss Peach over there can do it, thanks to fusing with that soul-stealing scallywag, Mr. Grimm. And if a spirit is restored to a body, it’ll be just the same as it was before. Like picking up a book where you left off.”

An edge crept into his voice, as if he were speaking through a smile. “Before you go, allow me to share something with you, as a wise scholar of hearts. Well, a couple somethings. The first is that the flow of time is convoluted.” He looked out toward where the speech had taken place. “Remember Vandham, our big mercenary friend? He knew that li’l Tora guy. Tora remembers him dying, but here he is, right as rain.”

He returned his gaze to Primrose. “The second is that there is someone in the Under who can deal with lingering regrets. A Confessor. For the right price, she can summon lost spirits.” With a short laugh, he shrugged. “At least, that’s what I hear. Never been myself. Regret doesn’t do me much good.”

As the Master spoke, Primrose's brows grew furrowed and her hands gradually crept upward, holding each of her arms as if that would protect her from the Master's unseen eyes. Those "somethings" hit a little close to home.

"How generous of you," she said. She turned away, but didn't move on just yet. She was processing what the man just told her. Nebulous time, and a woman who could call back the dead - or something to that effect. Her first thoughts were of her father, and Yusufa. Her next were of Obsidian. While there was a pleasure to be gained in killing those men again, if the world was fixed and she returned to her own realm while they were still alive, it would only create problems. But, if she could bring someone back with her... Primrose gripped her arms tighter, dispelling that small hope. For now, she had to focus on one thing at a time.

She would remember that though. The Confessor, in the Under.

"Thank you," she said quickly. She looked back at the Master, her brows still pinched together turned her gaze into a glare. The look on her face was in contrast to her words. "That was helpful."

“Sweet, that’s more than I usually am.” The Master seemed upbeat, no matter what face came his way. “Bye bye now.”

After leaving the Master of Masters to his own devices, Primrose approached the counter. There were still a few people milling in front of it, so while in line she used the time to sort out more of her thoughts. Spirits were like bookmarks, in a sense. Or rather, the pages of a book... that took a little of the reservations Primrose had away. Ideally she could amass the power she was missing in order to get back to her own world and complete the goal she'd been working towards for the past ten years, then return the spirits she used to life. Although when the worlds all separated, there was no way to know if those spirits would return to their own universe. If time would go back to normal in each place. Well, until then Primrose had to use whatever was available to her, including "spirits." Gaining the knowledge and ability of another.

Ashley came to mind. Frustratingly, Primrose couldn't use her magic for some reason. She felt it, deep inside, but she couldn't bring it out. If she fused with Ashley, would the girl's witchcraft bring Primrose's dark magic to the surface? Although the thought crossed her mind, Primrose shook her head to send it away. She didn't think she could convince Ashley to willingly do something like that, and even if she could restore a spirit to life, killing a child was out of the question.

This will take a lot to get used to, she thought to herself. Once her turn at the counter came up, instead of signing up for a certain area she gave the secretary a list of seven names.

"If any of these people show up, please let them know that 'Primrose' was here."

With everything else sorted, Primrose chose a spot in the lobby where she could see as much of the space as possible and sat down. She pulled the cloak's hood up and kept an eye out for the desert team. When they left, she would steal away with them. All that was left to do was wait... something that Primrose was well practiced at.

---

The more Link listened to these kids talk the more unsettled he was by them, particularly the blonds self assured declaration that they could take any vehicle they wanted from the "shadows," a category in which they seemingly placed everyone but themselves. If you could steal from a shadow with impunity what else might you be allowed to do to them?

He was about to bring up this point, but was interrupted by the sudden appearance of his companions from the battle before which drowned his precious thought in sheer curiosity. By the looks of the Courier alone it was safe to say his previous assessment about the state of the battle had been correct, but how in the world had they gotten back so quickly from a point Shulk had described as the far end of this land? Maybe the dragon had some previously unused teleportation ability, just like the other creatures that lived in that inky darkness?

The locals, though, paid no mind to such questions and instantly switched into a celebratory mood and the Redhead leaped into the story of the dragon’s defeat while the Courier's guardian flipped a table in rage at this being the quests only reward. He felt for it, honestly. The warm fuzzy feeling that accompanied solving a problem was worth a lot, but receiving something practical in return was like getting dessert after a three course meal.

After the cheering wound down and the other the dark haired boy approached the Courier and helpfully asked the question Link had been thinking, the now draconic man beckoning them to follow, leading to the fast travel network that Koopa Prince had set up for their use. He watched them go through the strange mark, spotting their forms retreating into what looked like the hall of a castle. He took out his Sheikah Slate and took a picture of the portal, registering the mark in the Hyrule Compendium. He didn’t follow through, at least not yet. He still had to wait on his shield, after all.

---

Linkle had never ever seen anything even slightly like Alcamoth. Even her wildest dreams, when she imagined the floating city The Hero of Twilight was said to have navigated, she never came close to the sheer scale of this city nor the marvel of how it was suspended above the beautiful blue sea.

She looked out over the vastness of the sea, drinking in the horizon laid out in front of her from her perch. She had spent a lot of time up here, just looking. Alcamoth was big but it was nothing compared to that body of water. She hadn’t had time to appreciate it on the way in, worrying more about how to escape their falling island or not getting distracted by monsters as they navigated the floating reefs. Up here though there were no distractions. Just her and the two biggest things she’d ever seen.

Of course as the minutes trickled by and she could feel the appointed hour approaching, she found one flaw with this magnificent perch she’d discovered: she could not, for the life of her, remember how she had discovered it. She replayed the events that led her up here in her mind, trying to retrace her steps since the cute little dog had cut them loose to explore this cool city. Try as she might it was all just highlights, without the time walking between them. First she’d discovered the magic of the moving walkways, riding them up and down between the first and second floor, racing down the down walkway at double speed while laughing like a maniac and trying in vain to sprint back up the thing once she reached the bottom. She’d stopped that when a person with bird wings growing out of their head had come over and told her that it was against the rules to do that, so she had moved on.

Next she remembered a big mural with a pool of water in front of it in some sort of opulent hallway. She’d taken that opportunity to water her girls and scrub off some of the charred bits on their feathers, at least until she was informed that that was also against the rules.

She had stumbled into one of the teleporters and had ended up at some kind of big fancy house surrounded by a field of flowers, the whole thing encased in the same sort of glass dome as the big atrium. She’d let herself in, like a real hero would, but hadn’t found anyone inside or anything that caught her eye. It was just a lonely little house, but at least the whole room smelled nice. She relaxed there for a little bit, but moved on before someone came along and told her this was the princesses room or something.

After that there might have been a hallway? A teleportation or two? A corridor, maybe?

She could feel it getting later and later. What if she got left behind?

As nice as this was, she decided, it was really time for her to be getting back. She broke her view of that sparkling sea and made her way back into Alcamoth itself. Five minutes later she walked right back out again and marveled at how the city had two great views like this.

Eventually, Linkle had a great idea. If everybody was going to the same place in an hour like the dog had said she just had to follow people and they’d show her where to go.

---

Link listened intently to Peach speak, new heater shield attached firmly to his back, as he took the opportunity to snap a picture of the map of this strange new world. The full explanation of the world's state was helpful, and he found it a lot more understandable than whatever a “cognitive world” was supposed to be.

“Hey, there you are!” came a familiar voice to his right as people began to disperse or make their way to the desk in order to register where they were headed. He looked down from the viewfinder to find Linkle standing there. “I knew you’d make it. Us heroes always seem to end up where we’re needed, huh?” She elbowed him jovially. “So, see anyone you recognize?” She asked, jerking her head eagerly in a certain direction. He followed her gaze and spotted Zelda. The other Zelda.

He shook his head sadly. “Yes, but not for the reasons you think.” Linkle looked confused, so he continued. “I met her on the cliff. She’s one of the Smash Brothers, not my Zelda.” His face twisted up as he thought about what Peach had said, about how Galeem had blown past them and proceeded to carve up all the worlds into this disjointed mess. He’d failed, and Zelda had stood alone in the face of annihilation. Again.

Even Linkle could see she’d somehow hit a sore spot. “Sorry.” She said quickly. “I’m sure we’ll find her. It’s what we’re made to do. It’s destiny.”

There she was, saying strange things again. Maybe now was the right moment to get some answers to the questions that hadn’t been answered by Peach. “Linkle?” He asked. “Who are you?”

“I’m you.” She answered confidently. “Maybe from a long time ago. Maybe from far in the future. Who knows.”

The revelation only gave him a moment's pause. After all, he’d already met other versions of himself among the fighters that had gathered on the cliff. She wasn’t even the strangest incarnation he’d met. At least she was a regular person and not some cat eyed drawing version of him.

“Can I ask a question now?” She asked. “Who are you? What was your adventure like? I’ve never heard a legend about a hero that wore blue, or had something like that.” She gestured to the slate hanging from his belt.

Link took a moment to consider, before shaking his head. “Sorry. No can do.”

“WHAT!?! Why?”

“If you’re from the past telling you stuff about the future might be bad.” He said.

“Oh right. Good call. We could break time.” Linkle said. “I never even thought about that.”

Link was happy she accepted that explanation. It wasn’t entirely untrue, but a creeping fear gnawed at the back of his brain that if he gave away any details of his time to a Hylian from the past it would inadvertently influence the events leading to the fall of Hyrule. Maybe the only thing that gets passed down through history is the fear of Calamity Ganon or that the Hero fails the first time or the idea of the army of guardians without the catastrophic consequences of constructing them. Any one of these facts could result in the idea that what Hyrule really needed was an army of laser spitting octopus machines somewhere down the line. If he just kept his mouth shut than he knew that he wasn’t any more responsible for the fall of Hyrule than he already was.

---

Before the two of them knew it, they were at the front of the line and ready to pick where they would be going. For Linkle this was a no brainer. One of these places was where evil lurked in great abundance and where even now their allies were still fighting. “Dead Zone please.” She said.

Link, meanwhile, weighed his options while staring at the map. “I’m not dressed for the desert heat, so that’s out.” He said. “I think I’ll head for the Edge of Blue. If we run into the Zora there I could have a in with them.”

”GAHAHAH, CLASSIC WALUIGI“ Bowser replied when told about the shifty gent in question’s behavior. A couple of the others actually introduced themselves to the princess while Daxter went about petting Isabell like the adorable dog she was, leaving her somewhat flustered but not enough to stop her announcing that there’d be a meeting in an hour about relaying the state of the world to the other smashers, leaving the team sixty minutes to kill.

As some of the others wandered off to explore the rest of the complex the king and his resting advisor remained in the lobby waiting for Jr to get back. The boy returned fairly quickly, complaining about the lack of any kind of concrete reward for the final quest other than the admiration of the town (which he admittedly seemed pretty pleased about receiving even as he whined about it). After they’d caught Jr up on the plan the troop had a brief poke around the city to doubly confirm that the building was indeed the safe-haven it seemed to be they felt safe enough to go exploring the city.

Of course, in a city filled with smashers, conflict was never far away.

---

“Mimi!” Mimikyu squealed, before hiding behind Jr’s head. The boy had been roaming the halls on foot, with the mascot mimicking mon riding his shoulder as she now so often did, when something had spooked the soft spook.

”Huh? What?” Jr glanced around in alarm, but couldn’t spot anything unusual in the area, just a few people hanging around discussing the circulating news about their newly arrived team and the meeting that had been called as a result of their arrival. Or at least that’s what Jr assumed they were talking about. The main group in the area were all pokemon, so it was hard to tell.

”I don’t see anything. What's the matter with you?” Jr asked Mimikyu belligerently, and received a tentatively pointed finger slinking past his vision and indicating to the head of the poke-gang. The one, the only, the most iconic Pokemon of them all. Pikachu. The electric rodent was sitting casually on a park bench and was speaking, unintelligibly to Jr, with Jigglypuff and a few others.

”What. Pikachu? What about them?” jr asked as he turned around to face her, the mon scooting round him to avoid coming into line of sight of the mascot before jumping down onto Jr’s hand once he was looking directly away from the group of mon.

Mimiktu was the picture of nervousness, or as much of one as a ghost hiding under a homemade Pikachu doll could be.

“Mimi, kyu kyu mi kyuyu” the mon tried to explain incomprehensibly

”What, are you scared of them?”

“Kyu kyu” Mimikyu replied, unclearly communicating a mixture of confirmation and rebuttal of that statement.

”Uh.... Well. want to leave?” he asked, to which Mimi resolutely shook her head, before peaking round him to look at Pikachu again before flinching away when he seemed to look her way

Jr frowned at this, then rolled his eyes. ”You’re being weird. We’re just going to go talk to him now Ok, so you can stop being weird about this” Jr told her, before turning and striding towards the Pokemon and calling out ”Hey Pikachu!”

Mimikyu panicked, but, not wanting to look like a coward or a fool now that Jr had gotten the attention of the group she sat stock still on Jr’s palm as she was brought closer.

”Hey, uh, little guy. Cool to see you.” he said, earning a little wave and a “pika” from the mon before he introduced his own ”This is Mimikyu, say hi Mimi”

Mimi looked at Pikachu sheepishly. She had earned a few strange looks from the other mon for both her mimicking outfit and Spaak modifications warping her form, but the famous Pokemon took the entire situation in stride, smiling warmly at her and even holding out a paw to shake in greeting.

Mimikyu reached out a hand to shake the legend’s paw, but failed to maintain any semblance of control over the stretched limb. The over eager noodle-arm rushed the distance separating them, overshot the mon’s own outstretched paw and smacked Pikachu straight in the face.

A look of shock crossed ever-mons face, including Mimikyu’s own. Before she could recover or attempt an apology Pikachu wiped off their own shocked expression and nodded seriously.

And it was this way that Mimkyu found herself facing off against the living legend in a smash arena.

---

“Oh wow, this is so exciting” jabbered the young shorts wearing boy who had ended up being the one who would referee the upcoming match, “you know I’m a trainer too. I’ve been wanting to have my Rattata compete on one of these stages, but I always get turned down when I ask for a match. I think they're all worried I’ll show them up. See, my Rattata like, in the top-”

”Oh would you just stop talking and start them already!” Jr barked back at the boy, who’s name was Joey. The two of them were standing in a spectator stand overlooking a large and for the moment empty room where the bout would be taking place.

“Ok ok. Sorry jeez,” the boy replied before heading for the controls of the room, “Touchy much?

The other mon Pikachu had been speaking with were scattered among a few spectator balconies along with a few others who’d heard of the fight, including, Kamek, Bowser (which was half of what was giving Jr nerves) and an intense looking Pokemon trainer clad in red (who was the other half).

While his father wasn’t actually doing anything to deserve Jr’s unfounded fear of disappointing him (after waving and yelling some supportive words down at him the king had spent the setup period lounging on a large chair eating a pizza he’d gotten from somewhere) the trainer in red had only ever taken his unnerving gaze off of jr to look down at the combatants.

Mimikyu and Pikachu stood a few meters apart, the mascot waving at his fans and stretching while the mimic looked like she was trying to hide under their cloth disguise even harder than she normally did. She didn’t have to stew in her embarrassment for much longer however, as Jr’s snapping at the ref had finally got the chatty boy to fire up the stage. Various machines around the darkroom fired up, forming first a softly white shimmering bounding box and then pulling the stage into existence.

Rising up into existence out of the floor, the pokemon stadium ascended, raising the two mon into the air atop it till it hung above the floor in perfect view of the onlookers and, of course, of Jr, who gripped the banisters of the referee box as the ref stepped forwards to start the match.

“Alright. Let’s start this thing!” the Joey called out, getting everyone’s attention before beginning a count down.

“3”

”You can do it Mimikyu! Don’t let me down!”

“2”

Mimikyu had been busy regretting basically their entire life up until this moment, but Jr’s yelling brought her focus back to the room just in the nick of time.

“1”

The trainer in red nodded at Pikachu as the mon squared up to fight

“Go!”

Pikachu burst off of the metaphorical starting block with frightening speed, a streak of yellow racing across the artificial grass as they charged the startled Mimikyu. She lashed out in response with her noodley shadow arms, trying to block more than she was trying to strike her incoming opponent. With peerless skill Pikachu dodged over the first limb, and then under the second, breaking past her guard in seconds. He skidded to a halt before her, leaving her staring at him with panic for what felt like a moment frozen eternity before Piachu’s paw came down and slapped Mimikyu’s face. Her actual face, not the false decoy sat atop her body.

She blinked in surprise, stunned by the move and lack of follow up.

“Pika” the mon said, smiling with surprise warmth before making a come at me action.

They were even now, Mimikyu realized, everything else after this was just for show. Saving face. An accident turned into a show of bravado. Mimikyu felt her embarrassment die, nodded and furrowed her brows as she properly got into the swing of things. She quickly reeled her long limbs that had fallen to the ground back in trying to grapple Pikachu, only for the mon to quick attack upwards, escaping her bind. She looked up, seeing him hanging there with an energetic smile before he dashed away again to land back at his starting point.

Now the fight could begin for real. Nothing on the line, just the thrill of battle that burned within the hearts of all Pokemon.

Pikachu came in again, but instead of panic and sit in place Mimi moved, grappling an arm up to one of the floating platforms hovering above the stage, swinging themselves upwards. Her hand sunk into the platform as she landed atop it, stretching her shadow out in the process. It raced forwards towards Pikachu, dashing under him as he turned towards her escape route and then rising up as a shadowy copy of her that lashed out with its own dark claws.

Pikachu darted to and fro, dodging claw after claw and gaining only the smallest grazes as a result before electricity sparked from their cheeks and he hurled a ball of lightning up at Mimikyu, forcing her to move and dispel the shadow sneak. She hit the ground running, or scooting, but Pikachu was right on her tail, getting in close again despite her best efforts at warding him off. She backpedaled, bringing her tail stick up to block his own tail swipe while driving her other claw up in an arch and then down at him, trying to spike him with strikes from above. Pika narrowly dodged to the side of this swipe before driving his head forwards in a skull bash, the impact launching her towards the edge of the stage.

She hit the ground but rolled back to her feet as pikachu came at her again. The melee that would likely have played out the same again was changed as the stage suddenly began to morph, flat artificial grass turning to hard stone that rose into the sky, transforming the stage into a tableau of a quarry. Mimi was raised into the sky, while Pikachu was left at the bottom with a series of platforms they would need to traverse to reach her.

Or so she thought. Instead the mon launched a barrage of sparks at the cliff face, each electric ball striking the ground and then bouncing forward, and upwards, the lightning racing up the mountain towards her. She dodged to and fro to avoid them but Pickachu wasn’t done with such puny sparks and instead brought the thunder. With a cry from the electric mouse a stormcloud formed above them both, down from which a bolt of pure lightning hurtled, its impact obliterating the mountain top as Mimikyu half jumped and half was thrown from atop it towards the center of the stage.

Rather than plummet down into pummeling range she grappled to a steel platform, swinging over and then under it, coming back into vision of Pikachu while charging an electroball. She hurled it at the surprised Pikachu, who took almost the full brunt of the shock attack and vanished beneath a shower of dust.

“Oh wow! I didn’t think Mimikyus could learn that move. Or any electric moves.” Joey shouted excitedly.

”Yeah? Well mine’s special.” Jr gloated as he grinned down at the stage

“Shame it’s not very effective though.” Joey said, right before Pikachu dashed out of the dust cloud, quick attacking left, then right and winding right next to a bamboozled Mimikyu before delivering a kick to her face. Mimikyu fell from the steel platform right as the stage morphed again back to its flat grassy field.

She picked herself back up, tiring but ready to fight back, as Pikachu kicked things into high gear, using quick attack to circle round her in 6 point dashes, looking for openings to strike. She was unable to keep up, and once he was sure of this Pikachu started harrying Mimikyu, darting in to strike with foot, paw or tail before darting away again. Mimi cried out as she was struck again and again, and her clawing, shadow sneaking and electro-balls all failing to strike back at the fast moving mon.

Practically crushing the banister under his claws as he tried to keep up with the action Jr called out ”Stop letting him walk all over you! Use copycat! see how he likes it!”

For a moment it looked like she hadn't heard as she was struck again in the back, but when Pikachu darted away again, Mimikyu suddenly lurched off in the opposite direction. Pickachu paused for a moment at the end of that dash, helpful giving her just enough time to re-orientate herself, before a lightning fast battle commenced. Every dash Pikachu made, Mimikyu copied, the two dancing around each other in near perfect unison, darting in to exchange flurries of blows before darting back out to resume circling. It looked like it was going to be a stalemate or at least an endurance match, Pikachu having a slight advantage in always making the first move, but Mimi’s range advantage let her keep up with her opponent. This all changed when the stage started to morph once again. Fans opened up beneath them, hurling both fighters skywards for an arial battle

Mimi gripped the edge of her doll disguise, clinging to it so that it wouldn’t be blown off her cloud like body. Neither of the lightweight mon was able to maneuver very well in the billowing winds, but here Mimi had the advantage, her long limbs and electro balls far better at crossing the open air between them and warding Pikachu away from her, preventing him from getting stuck in in melee where he had the advantage. Pikachu attempted to get close, paddling through the air slowly, but was repeatedly slapped or shocked away. He glanced to the side at the man at red and, after a silent communication, began to rapidly charge themselves with electricity.

”No No No!” Jr panicked, recognizing the attack as a Volt Tackle. Even if by the looks of things the attack wasn’t going to be anywhere close to the final smash powered shock, Jr knew how dangerous the fast moving shock attack could be. ”Quick, Copycat again!” He called out in a panic, hoping she could match him dash for dash like she had with quick attack.

“Mimik!” the ghost cried out in response and began to charge with power too.

The two mon finished charging mere moments later, and around the two spheres of electricity flared. Though weaker than the final smash fueled variant, the two powerful electric attacks still coursed with destructive energy, raring to be unleashed. Without a moment's hesitation the two rammed at each other with joyfully determined looks on their faces, the two balls crashing together. Electricity to spark around the room, causing the lights and even the hard light stage itself to flicker as lighting raced through the metal fans covering its floor. They zoomed apart after a moment and then came racing back in and slammed together again, and then again and again before drew back again for one final head on blow

The two spheres of power sparked in a crescendo of power, and then the stage died beneath them, shorted out by the climactic final clash of their roaring electrical discharges. The pair’s charges died a moment later, causing them to sail lighting free through the short distance between them before mundanely bumping into one another. With the light show cleared, it was clear who had come out worst off from the battle.

Lightly smoking, Mimikyu had suffered greatly from Piachu’s electric type synergy with the move, while the mon himself had resisted the worst of her own tackle’s damage thanks to that same typing. In the end, that final collision was too much for her, causing her to faint and they bumped into one another. While this might make Pikachu the winner, the now rather large drop below them threatened to put a damper on that victory. He grabbed Mimikyu as she started to fall, intending to try and protect her from the fall as best he could, but instead her cloud-like body softened his own descent, slowing it enough that Jiggly puff could get into position to act as a crash-mat. Pikachu bounced off of the balloon like Pokemon and then landed on his feet on the ground just as Jr came running, having jumped down from the balcony as soon as he saw Mimi falling.

Picakchu held Mimikyu up for Jr to retrieve, giving him an approving nod as a judge of her performance as the boy, both concerned and frustrated at having, indirectly, lost to him, snatched her from his hands. Holding Mimikyu close, Jr glared at Pikachu, saddening the mon’s expression, before turning and fleeing, the gaze of the trainer in red following him as he fled.

Jr scurried to Lumbridge's Pokémon Center, protecting the exhausted and fainted Pokémon from further harm.

---

Mimikyu awoke in a place unfamiliar to her, but that would have been a familiar sight to many of her kind. The warmly lit beige and red walls of the Lumbridge Pokemon center greeted her as she blinked her eyes and the events that had led her to be unconscious came back to her. First embarrassment and then excitement flashed across her expression, before she suddenly became concerned and glanced to and fro cautiously till she found Jr looking down at her, along with his elders.

”See, she’s fine. Tough little minion you’ve got there Jr“ Bowser told his son while ruffling the boy’s hair.

The prince bore the gesture with a mix of embarrassment and affection, but once it was over a complicated expression came across his face that worried Mimikyu.

”We’d best be going if we want to get a set of seats of the meeting Sire. We’ll go ahead, but make sure to not be a late young master.” Kamek said, giving Jr a look, before hoping down from the stool he had been seated on and heading for the door with Bowser, leaving Jr and Mimikyu alone at the little table in the corner of the center that Jr’d brought Mimikyu out onto after healing her at the main desk.

”So.” Jr said, before pausing for a long drawn out moment before finding his words, ”You lost, and you made me look bad,” Jr said, causing Mimikyu to shrink down under his gaze before he continued ”But… I’ve been there. A lot. There's this plumber called Mario, and Pikachu’s kinda like your Mario I guess? We’ll get stronger, and then beat him next time, ok?”

The boy held out a hand. Mimikyu, lacking the context or the words to explain how fighting her idol had not been the plan and that the situation had nothing in common to the koopa’s constant battle against the Italian plumber, nodded enthusiastically, then hopped onto Jr’s hand to be raised back up to her regular spot on his shoulder. One thing Jr had said rang true however. She would get stronger.

Together, the two hurried after and caught up with the rest of the troop, before the four of them headed for the meeting in smash city, regaling Mimikyu with tails of their misadventures battling against the Red clad plumber.

---

For the Troop more or less everything in the meeting was old hat. Baring some quiet grumbling about the unsurprising rejection of the idea of forming an army in favor of the traditional heroic party and Kamek being called up to put their map on display there was little for them to add till it came to choosing a place to go.

For another however, all this was new and yet also also familiar.

Same song, different songstress Midna thought for herself as the Princess told them about what had happened to the world. It was Cia all over again, though this time it was different worlds rather than different times. Like a certain dancer, Midna had little interest in sitting idly in the reserves. She had a kingdom to reclaim and a people to lead. So she hitched a ride in Primrose’s shadow once she spotted that she was one of the people going down to the front table where discussion of deployments were ongoing.

Though she’d only meant to ride her coattails to the front desk to learn about where the heroes were heading out, but she stuck around long enough to listen in to her talk with the self proclaimed Master of Masters. The hooded figure and her chosen chauffeur discussed the magic involved with Spirits with far more depth than the short briefing he’d given to the general audience. It was unsurprising that there was more to learn, she imagined those without any magical aptitude would find the extended details a bore. To both the dancer and her shadow however, it was an interesting set of extra details. The ability to cheat death and the battle of spirits that resulted from a fusion. The cursed princess was certainly considering the prospects of being able to use this feature of the warped world both as a way to gain power and, perhaps, to reduce the indignity of her impified form by taking on the spirits of those with more dignified shapes. She’d never get her true one back, that would require taking the spirits of her own, and that was abhorrent, but an approximation could perhaps be achieved or at least something less fragile.

As for the rest of the Master’s words, his ability was interesting and offered up some philosophical questions on the nature of time, but it was his last two comments that he offered that struck Midna almost as hard as it did his intended target, though for very different reasons.

The dead coming back for Midna was nothing but trouble. It had happened before and the prospects of a repeat of the return of Zant and Gannon did not bode well. As for the Confessor, well, the knowledge of him and the presence of a Link among the party raised some prospects that she wasn't sure she wanted to consider. She had made her peace with her decision, and yet this place now offered temptations she did not know how to process. She was trying to sort through these feelings in the dark when the dancer joined the line for the counter. To distract herself she listened into the babbling of the group behind her, which consisted of a curious collection of humanoid turtles discussing where they’d go.

”How about the dead zone?” Bowser was asking

”Pass. That place is nasty” Jr said, while Kamek agreed ”I concur. It was quite a brutal place. Full of demons, eternal darkness and hordes of undead. I would not recommend it.”

”So the toughest place then? The one that needs the toughest guy to take on?” Bowser replied

”Perhaps, but how about this windswept desert?” Kamek instead suggested

”Sounds like a pain too.” Jr interjected ”Sand everywhere, it’d gum up my car. The Blue seems like the best one. It was nice looking, least from the casino. You can go wherever you want, I’m going there”

”Then so shall I” Kamek concluded as soon as Jr had made his decision before looking over at Bowser, wondering what the King would decide ”Sire?”

”Hmmm” The king said, scratching his chin and clearly undecided.

Midna took her focus away again when the dancer reached the end of the nine, and was surprised to hear her leave a list of names instead of attempting to forcibly sign up to a mission like the gang of masked teens had done. Still, a shadow tells more than some would like to let on. A fixation on a spot on the map told her all she needed to know. Midna gambled on her intuition being correct and it seemed to pay off as the Dancer left the hall to find a spot close to the exit to wait. It was perfect. Either she could ride her into the desert party or she could jump ship if the dancer failed to live up to her expectations.

For what was essentially a mass conference on the end of the world, the overall reception to it was certainly more positive than expected. Not that there was much to expect, but among such things wasn’t boisterous, cheerful applause of enthusiastic consent. Peach’s eloquence in conveying the matter may have been in part to thank for that, along with the seemingly natural, foolhardy inclination to fight back against tyrannical divinity to reclaim dominion over their own lives, or perhaps to prove they had it all along. Whatever reason they went with, no one already fighting for it could blame them. They never needed a better reason to save the world; why should anyone else?

Aside from the ‘Alcamoth Mercenaries’ being spoken for by their apparent leader, other volunteers promptly set to signing up for any one of the four available missions. Well… locations, rather. With the shortage of information, there wasn’t much in the way of mission parameters or a plan; just destinations. Regardless of what they needed to do they simply knew that it needed to be done, and that any were so eager to act in the face of the unknown was, in its own way, admirable. Such came with the territory of heroism after all.

Soon after the meeting’s end, Banjo and Diddy managed to find each other within the crowd for a joyous, long overdue reunion. He knew Diddy for almost as long as he’d known Kazooie, whom he reminded in a whisper to be mindful of her manners. The two (Banjo and Diddy) went as far back as either of them could remember, all the way back to the start of a proverbial “Golden Age” where they both got their starts. Some may not remember it, but Banjo in fact got started by joining Diddy to aid a friend in need on a vehicular adventure. Ironic, considering his and Kazooie’s last known exploit marked something of a soft stop to their career. In a way, his known life began and ended (or paused) in the driver’s seat--a fact that came up in conversation some shorts ways into it.

Conversation largely consisted of catching up, with subjects including how they had been before the end of the world, what they had been up to then and now, and even the making of an atypically reserved, almost shy introduction of Kazooie to Diddy, and vise versa. Hers was a reservation borne of Banjo’s request to be more polite this time--a request she genuinely wanted to honor, even if it meant overcorrecting a bit. It didn’t take her long after to perk back up and level out her demeanor, as the discussion soon segued into the good news: they were officially part of the Smash circuit now. Diddy, of course, was ecstatic when Banjo presented him the letter as confirmation, and quickly followed it with a request to the overjoyed Kong that he temper his excitement before he could erupt into raucous cheer and draw undue attention their way. Now, Banjo thought, wasn’t the time for ceremony, or the unfulfilling lack thereof. Not that it kept him and Kazooie from imagining it in their future, daydreaming of it in the moment.

An extended second of silence passed with the duo staring musingly, reminiscently at the letter in Banjo’s hand. Their attention was brought back to the present when Diddy caught them spacing out, reminded them where they were, and asked if they wanted to make use of their new status with an exhibition match or two, volunteering himself as a 2v2 partner for them. As tempting as it was, they both had to respectfully decline for the time being, but tabling the standing offer for later. Their celebratory initiation and any accompanying parties would have to wait for a better time, when the world didn’t need saving… or at least when they had nothing better or more important to do. For one who previously held a premature endgame party/cookout for their first adventure, and even tried to lazily, irresponsibly duck out of the final showdown on the second, this sense of priority was a new showing from Banjo.

On the subject of saving the world, Banjo thought to ask Diddy about the part he planned on playing in that, and returned an offer in kind to join them on their crusade--be it to return a favor from the past, or just for its own sake. He similarly declined, however, clarifying an ordered need to keep a ‘reserve’ force filled out, and that he’d already been selected for it. They took this to simply meant that he would go wherever he was needed, whenever he was needed there, so it didn’t entirely rule out the possibility that they would/could run into each other in the field at some point. This marked a decisive stopping point in conversation as both parties made their friendly, parting salutations. At which point Banjo and Kazooie left to make their preparations, which mostly just involved taking the newly established path of graffiti portals to Lumbridge and back to resupply themselves by sneaking into the Cucco pens to pilfer a full stock of Eggs and Feathers, not knowing in their prior absence that they could have probably just asked for it at no charge to them, as per the quest reward.

After finishing their supply run of unnecessary criminal misconduct (hopefully unnoticed/-acknowledged by anyone) they returned to the main atrium to select a mission for themselves. The Dead Zone was among the three options, and they meant to return there eventually, given what they knew about it, they both had to admit that either one of the other two sounded more appealing--especially if they stood a respective chance of containing a beach or exotic oasis. The thought of it had them considering what they would be missing out on versus what they would be getting for their troubles...

“Hmmm. Sooo… I’m sure they don’t need our help in the Dead Zone, right?” And like that, Banjo was back to old habits, trying to find an out for a task he quietly promised to undertake for lack of wanting to return to the region.

“The people who’re already there fighting for their lives?” Kazooie emphatically exaggerated. “Probably not… but what can you live with?” Kazooie dryly tacked on a false line of guilt to poke at her partner and influence his decision making, signifying an obvious motive on her part.

“Nice try, Kazooie, but I don’t think they’re gonna bite it because we’re not there.”

“You’re probably right, but what about that ‘Skull Heart’ the hairballing pun machine mentioned?” She reminded Banjo of Nadia’s declared intent from when they initially left the Dead Zone, which they just happened to pick up on. “Weren’t we going to help find that? That’s kind of our thing, after all, and it sounds like something we’d probably rather not leave alone.”

“*sigh* I was afraid you might say that,” Banjo conceded as he begrudgingly approached the reception area to sign the respective roster.

“Don’t worry, Banjo,” she started as she leaned forward out of Banjo’s backpack and over his shoulder to sign them on. “I’m sure there’s something good in it for us,” she continued, more or less admitting a degree of underlyingly self-serving intent.

“I should’ve guessed as much.”

---

While everyone else was figuring out their headings and preparations, Hat Kid snuck off back to the castle through Jr’s portal to take care of some things of her own at ‘home’, but not before signing her name to a mission roster--ALL of them. She gave no thought or respect to procedure or protocol. She would go wherever she felt like whenever she made an honest decision to. It was in writing now, so no one could dispute it, she (incorrectly) figured, even if they could read or at least decipher said writing (in which case they definitely couldn’t dispute it ;p). Any way Administration took it, she wouldn’t be getting left out, so she needn’t concern herself with it further until the time came… maybe. In the meantime, she had a separate, long-term affair to attend to.

The child rematerialized at the bridge just outside of the castle’s front door, conveniently within reach of her water-bound ship, and made a direct path for it. She was slightly surprised at first to find a number of Toad servants within upon entering, one of whom apologized for the intrusion and explained that they simply came out to help tidy up the home of a recognized ally to the royal house as a courtesy. He clarified further that she needn’t worry about compensating them, since they were “used to it,” which the child took as good news, even if it did lend some unintentional insight on how the Princess regards her subjects. Even aside from any of that it was of little concern to her. If you leave your house parked outside of someone else’s unattended with the front door wide open for an extended period, you didn’t exactly get to complain if and when someone found their way in, but truth be told she didn’t care who made themselves at home if they were helping out in some way, as they were. She’s certainly had worse intruders aboard before, and even he sold her a map to help her on her adventure. Come to think of it, she should probably look into installing security some time.

Back to her business, she approached the command console and began running some quick diagnostics. As it turned out, the ship was definitely busted, and probably wouldn’t move any time soon without extensive repairs. After being blasted down by a dragon, crashing into a castle and nosediving into a watery moat, who would have guessed that? She had a lot of work to do, and virtually no time to get any of it done before heading out. In the absence of competent, knowledgeable helping hands, going around repairing every little mechanical and cosmetic flaw in the ship by hand between outings was going to take an eternity and a half. The idea hit her that she still had a Time Piece on her person, and three more in the vault that she could use to systematically rewind the damages a little at a time. Sure, it would dramatically reduce repair time and monetary costs, likely affording her completion in under an hour, would she potentially burn out a Time Piece to accomplish it, or inadvertently affect more than that doing it? While the former was a significantly more likely consequence, that was the problem with harnessing raw, unrefined Time power. If you weren’t careful with how you directed it, things went wrong everywhere--and everywhen--in a hurry.

She sat for a moment in intensive thought, trying to figure out a way to make this, or something, work. Then, it occurred to her: the ship. She already had a means of refining the temporal energy that she used regularly. She had never used it in this way, of course, but if she just cyclically rerouted the energy already available to her and ran it in reverse, it might keep the outputted energy from escaping past the ship and make a full correction to the damages in one move with next to no consumption. It was a bit of a stretch, but who ever accomplished anything by taking zero risks. She thought no further of it and decided to put her hypothesis to the test, punching in the according command sequences and engaging the ship’s main drive.

The vessel rumbled and whirred to life as if readying for takeoff, and with a forward push on the throttle, it ‘boomed’ into motion, but not. The ship itself could be best described as running in place, but everything that happened to it ran backwards… visibly. To any possible onlookers within or around the castle, only a swelling flare of blinding white could be seen emanating from the source, followed by an implosive flash of bright blue to signal the ship’s disappearance. From Hat Kid’s perspective, events quickly replayed themselves before her in rewind; from Toads entering, to watching herself get thrashed around by turbulence and hit with Rumbi, all the way back to when she initially came under fire by MegaDragonBowser, a moment she couldn’t previously recall. Brightness slowly encompassed her vision, obscuring (or perhaps representing) everything up to that.

After a moment, her view cleared up, and the next thing she knew, her ship sat inert, fully repaired as hoped. She perked up at the realization, but before she could get too excited about being right, she glanced back at the vault to be sure everything was still in place. The display read ‘x3’ just as before, and further inspection within the vault confirmed the same. She sighed with relief at the reassurance before exiting the vault and shutting it behind her. With her work here done, she began to make her leave, but not before stopping at one of the restored, empty relic displays, examining it thoughtfully, and pulling out the two golden jigsaw pieces she found back at Spiral Mountain to place within the display’s magnetic field to float aimlessly. It would have made more sense to put them on display in the art room, but that was something to address later.

It was when she turned back to leave that she got her first good look outside, noticing an immediate, if not terribly dramatic change in scenery. She swung the door open and peered down over the side to see that she wasn’t over water anymore. In fact, she was actually behind the castle now. That much became clear to her as she hopped out of her ship (shutting the door behind her this time). She turned back around to gaze proudly up at her good work with smug satisfaction. She not only undid all of the damage dealt to it previously, but also managed to park in a better spot without even having to try. What’s more was that it took pretty much nothing on her end. And to think she almost acquiesced to a more conventional approach to repairs and relocation. Completing simple, necessary tasks the right way was for chumps!

…

…

So what did that say about her? What did it speak of her that she would so soon suspend her own standard--to never abuse such power to meet her own ends as she saw fit--the second it became the slightest bit convenient for her? Her bright smile gradually descended into a discouraged frown as the realization began to set in for her. Did this one time infraction on her own morals doom her to a future of lapses, or could such an action be re-promised against and forgiven; reconciled as a necessity for the future in service to the greater good? Or was that just proof of fallacy; a handwave of conduct as the genesis to justified ends? Would they do the same? Was she really no better than those she distrusted, and for the same reason? Did it stand to reason that she could truly be just another… “bad guy”?

She shut her eyes and clapped both sides of her head to snap herself out of her stupor of internalized dread. All this low-hanging ethical existentialism was making her head hurt. She was too young to be having these sort of thoughts anyway. Figure out what you can now, and take care of what you can today! Learn from the past; look to the future; ACT in the present! And on that, she remembered she had something more present to figure out: her mission destination. Before she could let her young, curious mind dangerously wander again, she refocused on the matter at hand and started going over the destination list in her head as she made the portal trek back to Alcamoth so that by the time she got back, she could decide where she wanted to go… for real this time.

---

“You sure I can’t count on you for this one?” Fox asked of his wingman. Him and Falco spent the better part of the period following the conference conversing pier-side, overlooking the bustling city proper as they went over what was discussed earlier. The initial apocalypse, what they remembered between then and ‘awakening’, the implication of ‘Spirits’, what it all meant, with an assurance from Fox that it wouldn’t be getting any easier, and an unexpected declaration from Falco that he wouldn’t be joining him or any of the main force on their mission.

“Sorry, Fox, but I’ve got places of my own to be,” Falco replied as he faced about to head off. “I’ve got people counting on me here, and between you and me, those guys look like they could use a ‘fearless leader’,” he said somewhat mockingly, gesturing headways to what he could see of the main force. “You should go be that for them. I’m sure you can handle it.” Though low-key backhanded the complementary endorsement was, it was evident in his tone that he meant it. Even his occasionally rivalrous attitude toward Fox didn’t detract from or diminish the genuine respect he held for him.

“So what will you do?” Fox asked in regards to Falco’s preoccupying affairs, expecting he wouldn’t remain idle.

“Probably cover the skies wherever I’m needed,” he answered with a shrug and a head shake. “But if you ever need a bail-out, I’ll be there.” Fox lightly smirked at the remark, delighted at how some things just never changed.

“Good luck out there… wherever you go.”

“Keep some of that for yourself,” Falco replied casually as he started taking his first steps away. “You might need it.”

“Take care, Falco,” said Fox in parting, responded to by Falco with a simple blind wave back. With that, Fox made his way over to reception and started looking over the available options, weighing them to the best of his ability. Knowing (or in the case of one, remembering) as little as he did about any of them made it difficult to make a valid assessment as far as where his talents were best suited. The most he could do was hazard his most educated guess based purely on name, location, the current lineup for each mission, and his assumptions about all of them. After a brief minute of consideration, he came to a decision, approached the respective mission roster, and signed on for it...

It took a couple tries, since the High Entia administrators did not show any particular favoritism despite Tora also having wings on his head, but eventually the Nopon successfully sequestered himself and Poppi inside the Item Room. There he bent to his task, carving up the plentiful ray guns, laser swords, smart bombs, and turrets to suit his purposes. From their components he put together precision cutters, welders, manipulators, and other such tools, and Tora spared no expense in giving his creation the parts she needed. The afternoon passed in a blur, the young engineer's mind completely occupied, his wings and hands alike moving in a constant state of activity. He tapped into the blueprints left behind by his father and grandfather before him, using the schematics to create new and improved frame. Only once did he sneak out of the item room, in order to plunder the Costume Room, where a number or recolored outfits for different veteran fighters hang. Throughout it all Poppi slept, unaware of the modifications to her chassis and system, held against the wall in a brace.

It was in the early evening when the intercom came on with an announcement, delivered through Peach's no-nonsense voice. “All fighters, please make your way to the atrium. Vandham will be selecting three teams from the reserves for scouting missions. The advance teams will depart in five minutes.”

Tora fell over backward, hitting the ground with a thump. “Five minutes?!” he complained, writhing on the floor. “Meh, meh, meh! That not nearly enough! Without Ether Sword, new Poppi is not done.” After bouncing back to his feet, he jumped back into his chair. In front of him, in the middle of a huge pile of discarded and unusable electronics and components, lay an essentially complete Poppi. “Okay, okay, think Tora,” the Nopon told himself. “Not need be at one hundred percent so long as can rejoin friends. So just keep ether sword in back pocket and head down to...” he looked back at his artificial blade, realizing something. “Down to...” With one wing he poked her, but she didn't stir. A moment of pitched silence passed before he yelled aloud. “MEEEEEH! Tora prepare preparations, but need super zappy jumpstart, right now!” He leaped off his chair so quickly that it toppled over beneath him, landing him flat on his face, but he didn't seem to care. Instead he rolled to his nubs and burst out of the Item Room as fast as his legs could take him.

“Need lightning! Lightning, lightning!” he sang, sprinting down the halls. “Can anyone help? Tora need lightning right now!” He made it about thirty seconds before Mewtwo stopped him, but whatever admonishment the psychic pokemon had in mind got buried beneath an avalanche of gibbered explanation and pleading. “Can friend help? Surely big smartypon knows someone who can give Tora lightning?”

Mewtwo heaved a telepathic sigh. “Pikachu, come here, please.”

“Pikachu?” Tora had no idea who that was. Given the importance of the situation, he didn't spare a moment to think about how he was conversing with someone who could talk straight into his head. “This Pikachu give Tora lightning?”

“Yes, now would you settle down?” Mewtwo put a hand against its head.

After a couple moments, a cute yellow critter with long ears and a jagged tail bounded around a corner. He looked between the two with cheery, shiny eyes. “Pika?”

Mewtwo extended a hand toward him. “Pikachu here can generate vast amounts of electricity. He can help you so long as you promise to shut u—hey!”

Pikachu's eyes bugged out as Tora grabbed him up and ran away with him. He moved slowly enough that Mewtwo had no trouble catching up to him, but rather than interfere the psychic pokemon simply followed, incredulous, once he made sure Pikachu was unharmed. Tora led Alcamoth's boss all the way back to the item room and to where Poppi Alpha slept. A couple others filed in afterward, either curious or worried. Without even a second's hesitation, Tora started shaking Pikachu like a glow stick, which left Mewtwo flabbergasted at the audacity of it. Pikachu, at least, seemed to think it was a game. “Pi-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-ka-aa-aa-aa-aa!” After a few moments, Tora ceased his shaking and smushed Pikachu against Poppi's torso, which was about the time he stopped being amused. “Pika...CHUUUU!”

A blast of electricity filled the entire Item Room and rolling outward, knocking out power across Alcamoth for a brief moment. Tora got zapped and flew away like a beach ball to land amid the junk, though not seriously hurt. As soon as he could feel his limbs again, he climbed up onto his feet and stared into the smoke surrounding the brace where Poppi had been held. A half-dozen dumbfounded eyes looked on as the smoke cleared to reveal a woman with long lilac-colored hair in a bizarre, revealing yet technological outfit. Her orange eyes slid open, as did Tora's mouth. “Woohoo! Success! Look! Glorious birth of Poppi QT Pi!”

Poppi stretched, sighing. “Uurgh...ah. Good morning, everybody,” she greeted, her voice calmer and huskier than before.

Mewtwo looked out the window at the first rays of sunset. ”Morning?”

“Why is she dressed like that?” came a whisper from the onlookers.

Tora coughed. “Ahem! That is fairly standard Blade outfit. More elegant than most, even. Friend must not know very much about Blades if willing to criticize such amazing Poppi second one after new birth!”

Since that couldn't exactly be refuted, Tora waited all of two seconds before continuing to talk. “Come, Poppi! Give us demonstration of new power!”

“Roger roger, masterpon.” After a moment of thinking, Poppi walked forward and picked Tora up like a teddy bear. Though hardly the first time he'd been picked up, now that Poppi stood much taller than him, she could handle him much more easily, and without much dignity. Tora attempted a weak struggle, protesting. “W-whoa, Poppi! Masterpon has own legs!”

Poppi smiled. “Masterpon have very short legs. Much more efficient like this when Masterpon travel with Poppi.”

Tora was not amused. “This very silly! And big disrespect to your Masterpon!”

“But Masterpon,” she said, her expression feigning innocence. “We have negative two minutes until it time for departure with Peach.”

Tora's eyes widened. “Negative...!? Meh-meh! We need go right this instant!”

“Poppi's thoughts exactly.” New and improved thrusters on Poppi's back burst to life, carrying the pair through the door and down the hall with enhanced mobility, and leaving a bunch of thoroughly confused and put upon spectators behind. They rocketed into the atrium, past where Vandham was organizing the scouting parties, out the front door without so much as a 'goodbye', and after the party headed for the desert.



After leaving Alcamoth and setting foot on solid ground again (for the first time in a while) by the Eryth Sea, the Yellow Team braved a relatively short trek between two of the mountains that formed the sea's cauldron. Tora and a nigh-unrecognizable Poppi joined them halfway up the trail, and found a motley crew awaiting them. Sectonia they spotted from a distance thanks to her large size, but there was no mistaking the newly distinctive silhouette of the Courier either. Since the pair hoped not to run into him again for a while, that left some mixed feelings, but they got by without saying anything else to them as they joined. That left a pretty stranger who Tora soon learned was called Primrose, Fox, a group of three teens in light clothing, and a cat with a big, round head. Not a big group, by any means; if it took a huge team to beat the Ender Dragon, could this group really challenge something more difficult? Then again, more wasn't always better, and they did have Poppi QT Pi on their side. Tora insisted on moving under his own power now that he and Poppi caught up, so his companion reluctantly put him down to continue his journey.

At the top of the trail, the view remained blocked by the terrain, so the group couldn't do much except start sliding downhill on the sandy trail. At the bottom lay a brief walk through a narrow canyon, with whatever lay beyond the crack at the end a mystery thanks to the blinding sunlight. The group made good time, and in short order squeezed -or warped- through the crack at the end to reach the open air. They took their first steps into a powerful dry heat, and onto shining sand. What Tora saw took his breath away.



Before them, an ocean of rolling sand dunes stretched all the way to the horizon, shimmering in the sun. One couldn't tell where the earth stopped and the clouds began, but above even the highest clouds loomed a great split peak. A brilliance shone from within, but occasionally, the serpentine outline of some colossal flying creature infringed upon the radiance. Something was up there, something big, at the top of the mountain on the other side of the desert.

Tora said what the others were thinking. “That the champion?” he squinted, trying to see. If so, that made finding it easy. Getting there, however, would be the hard part. Standing here in the open, in the middle of such a vast place, with so far to go, made Tora feel very, very small. The sound of the wind was constant, threatening to drown him out. He took a deep breath and whispered to himself. “Okay. Tora can do it. Tora can...because Tora is hero.” Poppi placed her hand on his head and patted him, looking out across the distance herself.

After a period of silence, the cat spoke up. “Okay, gang,” he said, clearly talking to the teens. “Pile in.” He jumped into the air and disappeared into a smoky poof. With a meow, a car plopped down into the sand, and the trio climbed inside. After getting over his initial surprise, which took all of a couple seconds, Tora waddled over toward the front and waved his wing. “Meh! Can we get in? We might not be good friends yet, but it pretty rough to walk while teammates get landship.”

Ren blinked as he looked at Tora and Poppi, thinking about it. He glanced between his friends for their opinions, but while he did Morgana himself replied. “The AC doesn't work, so it'll be hot, and room's limited, so the fliers should use those wings of theirs. If that's fine, be my guest.”

“Thanky thanky!” Tora squeezed inside and into the back seat, his rotundity a little much for the dimensions of the vehicle. Mumbling something about temperature regulators, Poppi hopped up to sit on the top, which provoked some kind of indeterminable reaction from Morgana. Whoever else both wished to and could joined them, and then the vehicle got rolling.

Though incredibly huge, the desert was by no means empty. It took only about a minute of riding before the passengers could see odd totems scattered around, sticking out of the sand like tombstones. Some featured ribbons tied around the holes in their tops, fluttering in the wind. At one point the car steered around a whole bunch of them, after which it struggled to get up a dune. At the top Morgana took a break, his passengers already overheating. For the couple of miles covered, however, the mountain looked no closer at all.

A few hundred feet down the dune, a cloaked figure leaned sat with her back against a totem. Yellow-orange eyes peered out from between long strands of whitish-blonde hair, all beneath a white military cap with folds that resembled cat ears. She watched the newcomers with a vacant expression.

The expanse ahead, meanwhile, featured sand seals, and farther still, something big moved beneath the surface, kicking up sand.



A series of portal jumps awaited those with a seaside adventure in mind. First they needed to navigate Bowser Junior's warp paint to return to Lumbridge, and then a brisk walk through Lumbridge brought them to the guild castle. There they found what had once been a large hole in the floor, now mostly built over with fresh planking and graced with a large lift ready and able to lower them down. A brief but confusing journey through Gneidxick's cartoonish rift in space brought them down into the Devil's Casino, where Moneybags had been hard at work getting the casino staff to clean things up. While at first it really did seem like the entire casino took place in a basement below Lumbridge, a quick stroll out the main door and through the foreboding cave known as Inkwell Hell brought Blue Team into dazzling sunlight. Once their eyes adjusted, they found themselves staring out across some train tracks at a cheery-looking coastal town and the archipelago beyond. They were not in the Land of Adventure any more.



The hustling, bustling seaside town had a life all its own, from theater to glitzy hotels to a rambunctious wharf, but it seemed unlikely that a champion of Galeem would be here. At least, Peach figured as much. She made her way to the wharf to get a good look at the sea, once not obscured by the mountains that surrounded the wrong side of the tracks. There, she and her whole group -if they chose to come with her and not look around he town- could get a grand view of the Edge of the Blue.

The continent's western edge sported a long and beautiful coastline. Inland the terrain sloped upwards, crowned by mountains and swaths of pine trees that looked to keep the shore quite isolated from the mainland proper. Directly ahead lay an enormous bay, and within it Peach could see some sort of city that seemed to rise from the ocean itself, although the distance was too great to make out much detail. To the south, a titanic mass of trees that could only be the tail end of the Dark Forest carried on to the very edge of the ocean. Farther beyond the forested coast, another town could be dimly made out. Some sort of miasma hung over it, and farther still in the sky above, a strange moon sneered down upon it.

“Princess.”

Peach blinked, having gotten too focused on the distance. She turned toward the sound of a soft female voice to see a black coat like the Master of Masters', seated in a rocking chair with her legs crossed. Peach's eyebrows narrowed. Unless the Master could change his voice and his figure, however, this wasn't him. Her mind went to Gneidxick. “Who are you? What do you want?”

“Nobody.” Her voice featured a smooth, eastern European accent, unrecognizable to most. “Although my organization and I share your goal of ending the tyranny of Galeem's light.”

Peach frowned. “Is that so? Your friend Gneidxick seemed more interested in killing us.”

The coated stranger betrayed no emotion. “The die is no friend of mine. He didn't know to leave well enough alone, and has paid the price.”

A chill went down Peach's spine, but she maintained her composure. “If you're here to help us, then help us.”

“Very well.” She looked out across the sea. “Your target, the thing chosen by the enemy, is to the north across dark and turbulent waters where vile things dwell, the Bottomless Sea. Only one craft can brave those waters: the Maw.”

Her voice eerie in its softness, she spoke as if telling a legend. “The Maw arrives every so often. Always at the same time, but never the same place, it creeps and crawls and buries its claws deep beneath the glistening water. And there it sits in vast silence. Waiting.”

“Soon after, they start to arrive. The guests. The monstrous, sweating, hungry guests. All seams bursting, bodies bulging, eyes dead with boredom. They shuffle up the gangway and into the mouth of The Maw. And then they are no more.”

“With enough prospective guests, it will arrive. Then you need only stow aboard this uncanny cruise liner, stay alive as it drifts unbothered through the Bottomless Sea, and escape when the time is right. See that town, there on the water? It is Limsa Lominscuttle Town, called Limsa by most. Its navy often fights against the things that issue forth from the black sea. Aid them, curry their favor, explain the righteousness of your mission, and convince whom you must to desire a pleasurable stay aboard Maw. At least ten plus your team should do it.”

That chill returned. Despite how this stranger phrased it, this plan was anything but simple. It involved treacherous waters, naval battles with an unknown enemy, surviving aboard a vessel that apparently never once released a guest, and worst of all, tricking innocent civilians to serve as bait. “There has to be another way.”

“You would die seeking it,” the stranger told her.

A pirate who'd been waiting nearby with his arms crossed for a while, looking between the two, raised his hand. “Arrr ye lot gonna get on m'ship 'n go t'Limsa, or what?”



Stepping into the foyer of the Argent Tower meant coming face to face with a slew of horrific, mangled bodies more than happy to rip apart and infest the Red Team members who appeared there. Gurgling and gibbering, the Flood ran the heroes down, some firing various weapons clutched in their less-mutated hands. Without Nico's van blocking the wide-open door or the Slayer protecting it, new tenants appeared to have moved into the building in force. From the second the first heroes warped in, they were obliged to fight for their very lives against the swarm. The wide-open door afforded the heroes a view of the city beyond, and additional enemies that heard the commotion entered therein.



During the fight, one such reinforcement - a big zombie on fire- came in from the outside and ran for the heroes, arms extended. Before it got close, however, a flash of light froze it in time, leaving it open to attack. “What took you so long?” a voice called. From the darkness stepped a black coat. “I was starting to think you all had given up on this place.”

Further banter, however, would have to wait until the Flood were dealt with.



Deep within the bowels of the Super Gore Nest, the Slayer trudged through the demon-infested hallways, making quite a mess. Imps, cacodemons, zombies, and more all fell like wheat to the scythe. This proceeded for a while as he got lower and lower, leaving only scraps for his more thorough colleagues to deal with. As much as she wanted to try out her new scythe, Nadia didn't know how to use it, so the odd imp made for decent practice without much stress. Raidou felt no need to call on any of his own demons, sticking instead to his main weapons. Nero busied himself crushing the spirits left behind by the Slayer, tossing away or kicking aside the junk while pocketing the few things that looked useful. A couple times he got material he figured Nico could use, but once he got lucky and from a Prowler spirit manifested a prosthetic arm, black with red trim. “Punch Line, huh? Not bad.” He attached it and flexed the mechanical fingers. “Not bad at all.”

He, Raidou, and Nadia caught up to the Slayer at the edge of some stairs to a lower area, where flesh had overtaken the walls. Down there, some sort of green muck coated the ground, and Nero waved a hand in from of his face in disgust. “Phew! Don't wanna step in that.” He shot out his new arm, which extended to fold out little stabilizers as it flew on miniature rockets. When it came back to him, he jumped up and landed on it, spinning it like a hoverboard. After that he cruised down the halls without an issue, flying past the rad suit pickup that floated in the air. “See ya at the bottom!”

“Hey, wait for me!” Nadia ran past the Slayer and jumped. Her ankles half-detached and let out spurts of high-pressure blood that directed her into a wall. She sprang off it with another jet to reach the opposite wall, then continued blood-dashing to follow Nero.

Raidou glanced at the Slayer and shrugged. He pulled out a tube and opened it, summoning the demon Tsuchigumo to his side. After that he simply climbed atop the spider creature and rode it onward.

---

After registration had been completed Linkle spent most of her time remaining before departure sitting by one of the big fountains in the atrium talking with Link. With the rule Link had established between them about speaking of their different times the topic focused on their time in the World of Light, though really it wasn't so much a conversation as Linkle regaling him with everything that she had experienced since she had been freed a few days ago and Link listening patiently while occasionally stopping her when he needed something clarified or to enter a log into his Slate. Together they traced the path Linkle had taken during her journey with the help of the picture Link had taken of the map earlier, a map that Linkle had seen for the first time today. To the best of her knowledge she described every place they had passed, every battle she had fought, where members of the group had been found and where they had parted ways.

Just the story was illuminating to Link. It heartened him to know that the star of hope that Peach had spoken of during her speech was in fact a fellow Smasher, and if Kirby had somehow managed to elude Galeem's light that meant he might not be the only one. Perhaps even this Master of Master, the man that had made his presence known at the end of the presentation, who Link wasn't surprised to hear they had known almost since the beginning given how casually the man spoke to them though Linkle insisted he just talked that way to everybody. She laid out how the man could see the future and they were supposed to be on the lookout for his eye, along with his masked apprentices. He added that to his list of objectives, tapping the quest into the Sheikah Slate and making a note to keep an eye out.

His expression shifted into suspicious curiosity as the word "Persona" passed her lips, and he pressed her to tell him exactly what it was beyond a "big monster you summon that's really tough to beat." The crash course he got on what they were and what it was like to battle with one was derailed slightly when she described the devices used to summon the creatures ``like a gun, but it doesn't kill you,’’ and her further elaboration led to her repeating Micheal's lecture on guns and gun safety and pointing out the big rifle the Courier had carried into battle as an example. To Link that certainly gelled with the sound he heard before stumbling upon the dark haired boy. He asked if she knew where a Persona came from, if someone could become a Persona, and this time it was Linkle's turn to ask what he meant. He described the dark haired boy and the strange scene he had stumbled on in Lumbridge, sharing his reservations about what he'd witnessed. This led to a large disagreement, Linkle insisting that Ren was a good guy and even if he hadn't come along to fight the dragon with them like he'd agreed to she hadn't gotten the impression he was a bad guy. She told him Ren was still hoping to save an enemy that had betrayed him, hoping he was lost somewhere in this weird world, and someone like that couldn't possibly be bad. Link countered that he only seemed to consider his friends real people, so that fit with Link's impression of the boy. Linkle told him he was worrying over nothing, that maybe just agreeing to be a persona made you a persona, and he was messing up the story besides because they hadn't even made it to Lumbridge yet. He backed off at that, seeing that if he pressed too far he was headed for a real fight, but the both of them agreed to learn more about this Persona stuff when they had the time.

Back on track, he enjoyed her description of the race track junkyard and how they had pulled a bunch of karts together to cross the wasteland. It reminded him of when he had first met Bowser, Peach, and the residents of the far flung Mushroom Kingdom that had appeared and invited him to take part in what they called the Triforce Cup. He distinctly remembered the feeling of speed, the wind blowing through his hair as he wound around the corners of an expert recreation of the Hyrule castle town in it’s prime. Zelda, of course, had loved the picture's he'd brought back from the experience. She'd spent hours looking at the town that had been built around the racetrack, but more than that marveled at the technology in the karts. Those he had made sure to lovingly photograph from every possible angle just because he knew she'd have such fun dissecting them in her mind and theorizing on how they worked.

This part of the story led to another stop as he recognized the description of the bike she had ridden and it’s ultimate fate chewed up under the tires of the enemy that now inhabited Peach. “He crushed my Mastercycle?” he asked, aghast.

“That was yours!?!” Linkle said, equally aghast. “I am so sorry. I left the parts with a man in Hammerhead, right here. See.” She pointed out a rough area where she thought Hammerhead Garage was, a little closer to the Land of Adventure than Peach’s castle. “If we go back he might sell it to us, but first I have to pay off the damage I did to his shop.”

“What happened to his shop?” Link asked.

“Well, after the monster kart tried to kill us…”

She went on, describing the split in the party and the further splitting as they arrived in Lumbridge and each headed after a different quest. The battle with the fish creatures and the eerie night on the hilltop caught between an earthy monster and a decidedly unerthy one. The prophecies they had been given, and the fall of her friend Din back into Galeems hands.

“That can happen? How?” He asked urgently.

“I’m not sure.” Linkle said. “It just sort of happened. She’s okay now though.”

“You freed her?” He asked.

Linkle started to speak, but she couldn't find any words that she wanted to say on the matter. She looked away, down toward the Cucco’s milling about near the water. Not long ago they had been under the influence too, and Linkle had just been willing to let it sit. If they hadn’t been freed when they beat the dragon they’d still be trying to attack Bowser, and with the bubble popped a whole swarm could have been called down. They would have attacked until there was nothing left, one way or the other. That grim though forced the words she didn’t want to say out of her mouth. “No, I couldn’t do it. I didn’t want to fight her, even when I was mad. I thought if we beat the boss that would do it.”

Link thought back to his time in Lumbridge and the red eyes of the people there. “Well, that wouldn't have worked.” He said plainly.

“I know, I know.” She said quickly, trying to get off this topic. She knew it wasn’t a matter of strength that had staid her hand back then. If she’d wanted to she fully believed she could have beaten Din easy. Led her away, to somewhere no one could see the short fight, or even just acted like it was a friendly duel like with Ryu. She just hadn't been able to work up the courage to strike her friend, even if it was to save her. “I won’t let it happen again.” She said somberly. “Anyway, when I woke up the next morning…”

The Guildmaster, apparently the secret owner of a prominent Casino where Link was headed and a traitorous blowhard to boot. A group of people dressed in black, apparently free, with an agenda all their own. The trip out of Lumbridge, and their encounter with the snipers. Link requested a play by play of the encounter, nodding grimly as Linkle described every action she had seen him and the team placed on that tower by the Master Hand take. He found one thing odd about the encounter, though.

“It sounds like some people would have died if Master Hand had given us real weapons.” He said. The trophy shooters seemed good in theory, if you outnumbered the group were shooting at. In practice they turned kills into something you could recover from. He tried to picture using it to face down a group of moblins, just a half-dozen of the things, and found another problem. “Why announce what you’re doing?”

“What?”

“Imagine you’re shooting at a group of monsters.” He continued. “You don’t walk up and tell them you’re going to start shooting at them now. You’re going to hide and pick off as many as you can before they realize what’s going on.”

The look Linkle gave him when he said that was disquieting to say the least, a mixture of judgement and disbelief that told him at a glance that she had never once considered that you shouldn't fight your enemy head on while screaming. He decided to spell it out for her.

“Imagine if we had already been hidden in the canyon, waiting for you guys to show up, and the moment you came into range we all fired on you at once with no warning.” He said. “Now imagine that we did that while using weapons designed to kill you.”

He watched as that scenario played out in her head, her face growing more and more nervous by the moment. “That would have been really bad.” She said, sounding slightly sick. “Whew, good thing he’s a bad guy. They love to gloat. He was probably planning to put us all up on a shelf in his house. Or his glove. Maybe a pocket? Whatever a hand lives in.”

Link, for his part, leaned back and stared out of the giant windows of the atrium at that burning bright ball of light in the sky. “Maybe.” He said. He didn’t believe it though.

All fighters, please make your way to the atrium. Vandham will be selecting three teams from the reserves for scouting missions. The advance teams will depart in five minutes.”

“Yosh!” Linkle said, hopping up and stretching. “Just in time, too!”

“Yeah. Thanks for catching me up.” He said, standing next to her. “There is one last thing before we part ways.”

“Sure, name it. Just make it fact.” She replied, glancing at the people already gathering with a jittery energy.

“Call out your striker for me.”

Linkle nodded. “Imani!”

In a burst of smoke the cyclopian sniper suddenly appeared before the two, a scowl of disappointment shooting Linkle’s way. “I didn’t think I’d need to tell you twice, love, but-”

“Imani.” Link suddenly cut in with a loud, clear voice that drew the woman's attention immediately. She stared the boy down, no recognition in her face. It didn’t surprise him. For his part he had also never seen this woman before, even though they had fought alongside one another but a short while ago. Still, there was something he felt he had to say. “I’m not sorry that we lost, but I am sorry that I let you down.”

Imani and Linkle both looked at him in confusion, but something familiar in the boy's eyes spoke to the old verteran. The snipers expression softened, and she inclined her head slightly toward him as she vanished. This did nothing for Linkle, who understood the context of his actions but not the emotions that prompted them. Instead she shook her head and pointed at him, “Okay, now you have to do me a weird favor.”

---

Linkle, go getter that she was, practically jumped into the teleporter to the fabled Dead Zone she had heard so much about and it immediately surpassed all her expectations. The first thing that hit her was the smell, a putrid mixture of brimstone, rot, and mildew filled her nostrils and made her want to gag.

It was easy to see where the smell came from. The welcoming committee was nothing like they had gotten anywhere else. Grotesque little plant monsters rused at her the moment she stepped through wiggling their arms eagerly, the vanguard of a force of much larger creatures. Linkle stepped forward to meet them, intent on clearing out some space where the others could enter the room semi safely. The tips of her crossbows flashed green as she held them forward and poured a stream of bolts into the oncoming horde. The sick little things popped like balloons as bolts bored into them, exciting those around them into exploding as well in a chorus of sick, organic ruptures.

They weren't the only ones hit by the stream of bolts. Behind the initial rush of wigglers came fat, bulbose sacks that trundled forward into the stream as though it wasn’t there. Bolts buried themselves into the skin of the creatures as they advanced without a care until they could take it no more, skin ripping under their strain as they exploded. This wasn’t a victory though, as with their death they shot more little wigglers at Linkle as her stream of arrows began to die down from over exertion. She jumped before they landed, twisting in the air to look straight down where they had landed and firing again. The bolts fell like rain, forcing another string of organic pops as the group was obliterated.

As she fell back to earth she rolled in the air, her hair flashing blue as she holstered the bows in midair and landed palms to the ground. From the floor erupted a long sparkling wall of ice, jagged and sharp, that might slow the flow of the larger forms of whatever these awful plant things were. She heard the familiar crack of gunfire as well as the cracking of ice as the shots slammed into her defensive wall, but the monsters were already trying to clamor over it despite how it sliced into them. She jumped back, reflexively throwing out her hands toward the monsters and seeing shards of ice shoot out and bury themselves into the creatures Some fell, but not all, and she could hear the clamor of them coming round the side of the wall. It was working as intended though. It worked as a delay.

Then there was a heavy cracking sound as a large tentacle smashed its way through and came whipping at her. She tried to sidestep but got clipped and thrown back even then by the creature's sheer brute strength. She rolled back as she hit the ground, popping back onto her feet as the thing widened the hole it made by just stepping through it. It’s head, it’s entire upper body in fact, looked like a cauliflower made of human faces. It was the biggest of the things, and the lesser creatures were already pushing between its legs or climbing over it in their eagerness to get at them. One, that looked like it had been a man once but was now a garden for these things, lunged at her with an arm that looked like a tree root. She dodged to the side, spinning and bringing her heel around toward the man’s head. As she spun, instead of catching fire, frost covered her boot as a thick ace head of ice formed at her heel. As she slammed it into the man’s head the ice shattered like glass, sending shards flying with the force of a shotgun blast and taking the man’s head with them.

She had taken out the man, but that didn’t stop the monster. She realized that the man's head probably didn’t matter all that much as the thing took another swipe at her. She ducked it, but another thing had gotten close in the meantime and slammed down at her with a deadly axe handle from the side. She rolled past the first monster as the second slammed down and dented the floor in.

She spun, drawing her bows as she did so. The tips flashed blue as she unleashed a pair of ice arrows into the fleshy bits of the pair of them, the ice spreading out from their tips until most of the creature's bodies were covered in it. Nodding, she turned her attention back to the hole in her wall. It had widened significantly as the big one swung its arms and marched forward, the smaller pouring in like water through a broken dam around it. Linkle scowled as her hair returned to normal, her bow tips now flashing red as she swung her arms forward and rained a series of four bomb arrows around the giant creature, mulching monsters in a series of firefly explosions. It still didn’t seem like enough.

Things only got worse as the noise of the fight drew the attention of monsters outside. A giant burning beast stepped through the doorway and charged at them, but a stroke of good fortune came out of the blue as there was a sudden flash and that particular problem stopped dead in its tracks. Or maybe it wasn’t good fortune, as a figure in a black cloak revealed himself.

“Master!” Linkle called out angrily, more as a warning to the others than anything. It was the first word that came to mind. After all, the other two guys she’d seen dressed like that were both masters. She didn’t have time to dwell on his presence, though, as more of the lower forms launched themselves at her while she was distracted. She jumped forward to meet them, landing feet first on one of their chests and backflipping off of it to get back to a safer distance. As she fell back she peppered her pursuers with bolts.

---

Linkle’s “weird favor” had been twofold. First, since he had to go by the Guild Castle to get to the Casino, he may as well deliver something for her. Linkle knew that the dead zone was full of diseases, and cucco’s certainly couldn't tell you if they were sick or how bad the sickness was. Besides, the girls seemed tuckered out from their hard day’s work and deserved a rest as much as anybody. That was how Link ended up carrying three jittery, flapping birds in his arms through the warp point Jr had created earlier and handing them off to a short, bespectacled young man who immediately began fussing over the burn marks on the things like a mother hen.

The other was also bird related. Linkle had reached into a sack and shoved some foul smelling green leaves into his hands, telling him that there was a very patient chocobo waiting at one of the gates for his reward and warning him to be careful to find the right one because Lumbridge had over two dozen gates. Just from his short time there Link didn’t believe that to be true, and that was only confirmed when he excused himself from the team for a moment and found the place within a minute. The bird was big, the biggest non-person he had ever seen, and as he approached it looked up eagerly from where it had been scratching at the ground. It looked even happier as he produced the greens.

All birds accounted and cared for Link hurried back to the Guild and joined the others in the lift.

---

As they crossed to the right side of the tracks and down the roads of this lively village to the wharf Link, almost unconsciously due to some royal guard instinct carved deep into his soul, stuck close to Princess Peach as she surveyed the island and the continent beyond. He also tried to commit the geography of this area to memory, mentally comparing it to the map to try and pinpoint exactly where they were just in case that had to make their way back without the convenience of fast travel. That stopped when the woman in black appeared, and he focused all his attention on her.

He only knew what Linkle had shared about these people in black, and some of that was just stuff she’d been told after the fact, but the way she kept talking made it clear she was probably the mysterious woman that had shown up to finish the battle with Gneidxick. If she were the one he’d heard about then she had already aided this group once, but she didn’t go out of the way to make herself trustworthy the way she talked. Gather a group of sacrifices to draw some kind of evil ship that they then had to stow away on? Could it be a metaphor, esoteric instructions on summoning some kind of giant sea creature to ride across the turbulent ocean to where the guardian was waiting?

“Couldn't we just slip aboard when it comes for the usual guests?” He asked the strange woman. “If they’re as monstrous as you say they should stick out like a sore thumb. Do you know where to find them?” He fully expected them to be seals or some sort of big fatty fish.

Bowser insists on going first through the portal to the Deadzone, and that was probably for the best for everyone except the king himself, who wretched at the sight and smell of the Flood. His son and advisor, the king thought, had not been over exaggerating when they said how bad the place was when compared to the last two locations. Or, at least the outset of them. The king didn't really have time or inclination to examine the fact that horror seemed to have lurked around every corner since they left the delightful grounds of Peach’s castle, and instead focused on what was important. Namely not dying and clearing the way for the rest of the team.

As the gibbering hord of warped flesh began to charge the invader in their mist the king inhaled, and then let the fire flow. Bowser’s flame breath swept forwards across the front ranks of the incoming undead, flash frying the smaller faster multi legged once in an instant, their round bloated bodies bursting like flaming popcorn kernels. Bowser swept his flame breath across the foyer, cleansing it clean of the little runners as he drew in dark magic and increased further in size till he stood a head taller than even the largest of the abominations. It made him a very obvious target.

As Bowser’s flamethrower sputtered out due to the king having expelled his lung capacity in his opening attack those flood still capable of wielding weapons and who actually had them at hand began to return fire, bombarding the large and obvious target of Bowser with an inaccurate hail of small arms fire.

”Gahhh!” the king roared in pain as a bullet stabbed into his face, perilously close to his eyes. He brought his mecha-mit up to shield himself, the small orange shield allowing him to withstand the onslaught for a few moments longer. His suit, so recently patched up by Sectonia’s ant minions, had no such luck as it began to be perforated by their gunfire.

”GET IN HERE AND HELP” Bowser called back as larger masses of flesh closed the distance, trampling the scorched bodies of its allies as they went. With a hammer of his fist the king struck forth, scaled fingers crunching into the torso of the first of the monsters with a massive secondary clawed hand growing over its first, sending it flying backwards, its crippled body colliding with several others, sending them all sprawling. Then he grabbed another up in front of him to further act as a shield, only for its still writhing form to launch disgusting feelers from where its head had once been, attempting to infect him with its taint even as the other combat form’s weapons tore into it’s back to shreds. The king hurled it aside before kicking another with his steel capped boots. Yet even with his devastating blows the swarm were numerous, and before he obliterated or burned them away their clawed hands slashed against his scales, leaving gashes and bruises in the softer flesh hidden below.

Linkle was the fastest and most obvious of the squad entering the fray, her bombs and rapid fire crossbows tearing into the swarm, while her ice formed barriers to shield her from the infected’s fire. Between their aoe, the pair had put a significant dent into the first press of foes trying to reach them, but as the sound of battle echoed out into the dead zone, it drew more and stronger foes towards them from inside and out. A titan of flood power had lumbered into the fight, its massive tentacles smashing a hole in Linkle’s ice wall and refused to go down even as its lesser allies fell around it as they tried to swarm the breach.

Bowser moved to assist, taking a short run up, shoving combat forms aside with his weight, before diving forwards onto his belly and retracting his arms and legs inside his shell. Spinning like a top, the spiked turtle shell plowed through several lesser minions before colliding with the tentacled beast, smashing it backwards and into the wall of the building. The wall cracked with the force of the impact, but the beast was still intact, even as it batted the spinning shell away, but it was clear of the ice wall. For now.

Uncontrollably, the king spun on, leaving a trail of devastation as he plowed through the lobby till, eventually he came to a stop next to a doorway. He popped back to his feet and almost immediately let loose another gout of flame, incinerating yet more flood fodder with his fire.

Surprisingly, it wasn't just the Red Team who came to back him up, but also another mysterious hooded figure akin to the Master of Master and the former King Dice who came in and flash froze a flaming zombie in time before complaining they were late. The team had their hands full, and Bowser was done wasting breath when it could be used for frying their foes.

Suddenly, steam filled the air. A torrent of putrid water struck the king’s flames, extinguishing several flood forms and forcing the flames back, before punching through the king’s fury breath, hitting him in the mouth. The king gagged and coughed, cutting off his attack as he tried to block the water. Then when it died he growled, trying to identify the source. Said source charged right at him, firing concentrated streams of water from it’s shoulder mounted cannons as it did so. It was a hulking, if smaller than him turtle, flood forms extending from its slack mouth, unable to push its rigid scaled head aside. The infected Blastoise cleaved at him with massive oversized claws growing on its remaining hand. Bowser turned his back to the side, blocking its blow with his own shell, before driving his own mecha-mit claws into the creature.

Something about the turtles constitution seemed to shrug off the heat damage of the weapon and, worse, Bowser now saw that the infected pokemon wasn't alone, as a writhing mass of tentacles pulled themselves through one of the tower’s doorways right beside him, ripping the hinges aside as it forced its bloated head into the room. As Bowser tried to fend off the Blastoise the Tentacrule, flood tendrils poking out of a missing eye, grappled him, dragging its massive lower pincer towards him, locking the colossal jaw around his shell before beginning to crush the thoroughly trapped turtle like a nut in a nutcracker.

”GAAAAH!” Bowser roared with fiery rage, yet as his flames licked at the giant squid it seemed to be as ineffective as the mecha-mit had been on the other undead water Pokemon. As to add insult to injury a muscled human flood dressed in a sailor’s uniform joined the battle, the dead trainer clawing at the king alongside his infected Pokemon.

”MINIONS! HELP ME!” Bowser roared, summoning every striker he had. Mallet, Sledge and Heel all appeared inside the writhing scrum and were immediately waylaid by tentacles that wrapped around them. The two hammer bros and the Rabbid supporter did not go down easily however, hurling hammers and bombs at the Tentacruel, causing it to loosen its grip just enough for Bowser to free an arm and punch it hard in its missing eye where the flood core lived, while Carri the Trowlon swooped under the Sailor, hauling them into the air and slamming them into the ceiling, pinning him there and drawing the Ire of the Blastoise.

The turtle disengaged to chase after the Trowlon, blasting it with a hydropump, destroying it and causing it to drop the infected trainer to the ground while the Tentacruel was smashed away from Bowser by his desperate blow. Bowser was free, but was deeply wounded, cracks marring his shell and both the fire resistant flood were still at large.

”Blazermate! Heal me!” the king demanded loudly, failing to hide the pain in his voice as he pushed himself to his feet to face the flood closing in on him.

Sakura let Mag Launcher down off her shoulders, lifting him up and setting him down. The time for a real fight had come, the fight to save the world! Save the world? Yeesh. That sounded daunting but...she was sure they could do it. She brushed a strand of hair out of her face and bowed respectfully to everyone around her.

"Maybe next time, Donnie! Okay, I guess I'll see all you guys later. I'm going to the Edge of the Blue. Bye! Good luck! See you later! Sayonara! So long! It was nice meeting you! Thanks for the fight!" Her goodbyes grew more and more distant as she quickly jogged back to the lobby to meet up with her group. Island vacation time. Travelling with her was Ace Cadet, the strange cup headed person, a heroic looking blonde man, two of King Bowser's associates, a kid, and Geralt. And, of course, Biker Princess Peach, who Sakura immediately gravitated towards as a center of authority. Sakura felt she could count on the Princess, and since she was going in pretty blind on this whole heroing business she figured she better follow the leader. "Let's go, Blue Team! Woohoo!"

Following behind, trying not to get too dazzled by the wild landscapes they travelled through, they made it to their destination. The teenage fighter wanted to wander off and start exploring this gourgeous coastal town but decided against it. Fortunately for her there was plenty of stuff to look at off in the distance. It was a beautiful view- this place- this world that Galeem had created- it was...impossibly majestic. Like something out of a surrealistic painting, only real. She couldn't deny it's aesthetic appeal, even though evil hid in every stretching shadow. It was so beautiful it was scary. Some things were awe-inspiring and sent shivers down her spine. A sneering moon glared angrily down at some unknown point off in the distance. How big was it? It was hard to tell.

Sakura perked up as someone called for the Princesses' attention. Another hooded person. She looked like the person Sakura forgot to ask about spirits (shimata!) only it was a woman, apparently. Overall it was a very identity-less outfit.

As she began to descibe their task ahead, Sakura felt her confidence waver. This all sounded very ominous. Scary, even. She had passed by some scary stuff during her travels, but she had always gone out of her way to avoid it. Now she was going to be plunging right into danger. But her biggest worry was the idea the hooded woman presented. To sacrifice innocent people? That just felt wrong. So wrong Sakura had to speak up after Link presented his idea.

"Maybe you would die trying!" She said, pointing at the hooded figure. "We're gonna find another way because that's what heroes do. And how would you like it if I called you monstrous and sweaty?" Sakura "shot back" defending the honor of the village folk. Perhaps Sakura was trying to convince herself they could find another way, but as she crossed her arms and shifted her weight, steadfast, she seemed pretty determined. Secretly though, she had no other plan. Bottomless Sea? The Maw? Could no other ship get across it? This was the first time Sakura had to make a moral choice like this in her entire life, so she decided for now to not make it and assume there must be more to the story than what this weird witch lady had to say. They could find a way across! Right?

After selecting their missions, Blazermate deciding to help finish what she started in the Dead Zone and it being the most dangerous region, while Sectonia was reluctantly forced to head to the desert, not wanting to get wet in the ocean nor go to a place that was said to be filled with horrible, ugly monsters and disease. "I really hate this Galeem. For a creature of light, he has no taste of beauty." Sectonia said at the table pointing at the Dead Zone in particular when she was given the brief about it. "Yeah, but he has a sense of... what would you call it... hatred? I mean, we found you IN the Dead Zone, which is... well, its like finding a diamond in a swamp." Blazermate said, sighing at remembering her time there and all the death. Sectonia was impressed with Blazermates almost nonchalant compliment, and even more annoyed with Galeem. "But I'm the best to go there. Medabots can't get diseased so no chance of me becoming a zombie. Plus, I can control them with this arm which is very, very helpful." Sectonia nodded grimly, both thankful she wasn't going there, and almost feeling sorry for those who were going there.

With their roles set up, both ladies went to explore Smash Tower some more. Blazermate ending up to be the local healer for all the people who were sparring, declining the opportunity to spar as it was 1 on 1, which was something she didn't care for as a support medabot. And thanks to constantly healing everyone who came by, she quickly got popular among the routine fighters as they didn't need to go grab heart containers or maximum tomatoes and could jump back into the action much faster than making their way tot he item armory. At some point when she had some time to herself instead of healing people, she summoned Dell to help clean and maintain herself, even if she was just going to get super yucky form the Dead Zone, it made her feel happy. Although Dell wasn't the most... gentle mechanic she had work on her with his wrench being as big as it was. She wasn't as vain as Sectonia, but still, a shiny medabot was a happy medabot. After her little 'spa' session, she went back to work healing, waiting to be called forward for her mission.

Sectonia meanwhile was in somewhat the same boat as Blazermate. She wasn't interested in fighting if it didn't get her anything, after all, thats what minions are for! But even then, many of the fighters basically ignored her crown or were royalty themselves, but considering they seemed to do this for everyone, even Bowser and Peach it didn't sting too badly. Still, she used this time to relax like she hadn't been able to do since, well, she was back on Floralia. And, mirroring Blazermate although in a more conventional manner, Sectonia found a private room to herself and had a spa day of her own, summoning her minions to do the work. After all, a queen must always look her best! This was over a bit sooner than even Sectonia expected however, as besides the problems with the outdoorsman she was relatively clean, keeping her beauty on the battlefield as it should be.

Having this extra time to herself, she looked for a place to eat. Moans's Pizza was the only major eatery of the smash tower it seemed, or at least the most popular. Deciding to see what made it so good, Sectonia entered and was perplexed by 'pizza', as that didn't exist in Floralia. But her fascination would turn to disappointment in the end as while tasty, it wasn't food that really helped beauty all that much, so she was forced to eat the pasta instead. "This place needs some fruits..." She muttered to herself while lazily sucking down a pasta noodle. She wasn't going to eat one of those Maximum Tomatoes either, she knew where they came from.

The two ladies having concluded their business, rejoined the meeting to move to their respected areas soon enough, a little before the 5 minute call. Sectonia noticed that Tora seemed to be panicking, asking for electricity, and after bugging the tallish psionic using creature, took a yellow creature back with him to his little area. The whole ordeal was a bit confusing, but there wasn't much time for that as she and Blazermate were sent to their respected areas. Although, before everyone left, Sectonia sought out Kamek one last time and told him that, as a fellow magic user, he at least deserved to know the way to summon the queen if things went badly or he found something of interest. She then 'casually' dropped the wand of pocus that Kamek had given her earlier in plain view of the koopa, seemingly ignoring it. She found she couldn't really make use of it anyhow, so it was best that someone at least use it.

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While the 'best' of the 3 options, Sectonia still wasn't too happy with this assignment. While the trail to the desert wasn't that eventful, Tora eventually catching up with everyone with his companion, the mechanical lady that, honestly, unsettled Sectonia far more than Blazermate even with her demon arm, having a complete makeover. Much like the others once she got to the desert, she was also protesting the heat, although in silence unlike some of the others. One of their new companions from the Smash Tower, seeing the expansive desert that lay before them, Tora commenting on it, used their powers to summon a car for some of them to ride in.

While she wasn't going to ride in that deathtrap of a car after her previous experience with land vehicles, she was curious about this 'AC' and why it not working was such a huge issue, but not one that didn't make the vehicle inoperable. Through a few context clues she caught from the nearby conversations she figured it was some device that cooled everyone down. Wait... That did give her an idea. Waving her hands, she summoned a few small blue antillons. While they could be used to clean, they were primarily good at using ice magic, a school of magic Sectonia herself wasn't very proficient in. Using one as a hand cooling fan, she suggested. "These minions of mine can keep you cool. I don't want you to be exhausted if we have to fight another dragon." With that said, the remaining blue antillon offered its services to those in the vehicle, able to sit in the lap of someone and act as AC for everyone in the car.

With all that being set, Sectonia flew above the car, following its lead as she didn't really know where to go herself while their ally in the car did.

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Bowser, being the tank he was, ended up being the first to go through the teleporter. Since it was level 3, it took a few seconds before the next person could be teleported. Blazermate ended up being the second to last to get teleported, as their more beefy members went first in case something bad was waiting for them. And oh boy was there something bad. A whole horde of those things that took over her zombie minions from yesterday were infecting the tower! "Ew, I HATE these things!" She said, noticing that Bowser had already begun taking damage from the hordes of various things here, but also having roasted a good chunk of them himself. If it wasn't for them being in combat, Blazermate would've found it hilarious that, as she was making her way to heal Bowser, he called for help.

"Of course I'm going to heal you silly." Blazermate said with a bit of a laugh, trying to fly so that she could land on Bowser's back and hold on to his shell, being at relative safety and covering the koopa king's back at the same time. Seeing as she was in the Dead Zone again, Blazermate used her Suffering Arm to try to call to any zombies she could control to destroy the Flood and assist her as she rode Bowser into battle, healing him all the while. Thankfully her healing so many fighters let her start this encounter with a hefty amount of Medaforce. She did notice the black cloaked person, but these evil zombie controlling things came first.

The plans made and teams organized, there was little more left to do other than to bid farewells. The Troop’s was short and sweet, the unearned confidence of father and son meaning neither was particularly worried about the dangers of going their separate ways, while Kamek made the more serious promise to ensure the young prince's safety no matter what. Peach’s name was also added to the list of people to protect before Bowser headed off to join the deadzone crew.

More unexpected was Queen Sectonia seeking out Kamek again, both to tell him how to summon her via portal should he need her aid or find something magical to discuss and to not so subtly return the Wand of Pocus he had given her to gain her aid in hauling Bowser out of the Devil's Casino. The mage retrieved it with a nod of acknowledgement and decided, optimistically, to treat it’s return as a sign of respect for a fellow mage rather than a rejection of the gift.

With the wand safely stored next to his own the mage joined an impatient Jr and together the pair headed for the Edge of the Blue along with the rest of their party, hoping through Jr’s portal network and then riding down through Gneidxick's portable hole on an elevator to the Casino. After brazenly walking past the cleaning crew who were picking up the mess they’d left the place in they made their way outside and found themselves on a lovely chain of islands they’d soon learn was called the Inkwell Isles. After hopping across a railway track that did not seem like it had anywhere to go on the island they found themselves in a lovely seaside town. A quick investigation of the place led them to conclude that it was not home to one of the guardians and, baring a junkyard Jr made a mental note of, lacking in anything really useful store or facilities wise.

Sticking with the rest of the group the Koopas found themselves down by the docks taking in the view when they, or rather Peach, was ambushed by another hooded figure dressed in leather robes like the Masters who decided it was his palace to start doling out questionable advice on how they should proceed despite their negative run-in with Gneidxick.

”Nobody is what you are, not who.” Kamek noted when the hooded figure speaking with Peach failed to divulge a name, unable to resit flaunting the knowledge he’d gained from the Master of Masters. The Nobody recommended they travel to the town across the water, help them fight some monsters and then to trick a number of its citizens into acting as bait for a sinister cruise ship.

Unsurprisingly, Peach and some of the other heroes voiced the fact that they were not too fond of the idea of using live bait for some kind of malevolent ghost ship. Kamek was mostly nonplussed by the suggestion, as using bait was classic bad guy stuff. He’d even acted as on at least one occasion by dressing up as peach to lure the Mario Bros down the wrong oath, but he could see the way the wind was blowing and decided against trying to convince the party to just use fools as bait. Instead, he decided to try and think o f ways to make the idea more palatable.

”If we were to try to lure the ship, then perhaps I may be off assistance. I may be able to devise a way to disguise individuals, either something more expendable or much more dangerous (the best kind of bite is the one that can bite back after all), as these, ah, repulsively described Guests. It would take some time to recall the correct spell of course, It would be the one used to disguise minions as Lord Bowser which we haven't used in quite some time, and then I would need to modify it to suit the correct appearance.” Though as the mage thought about it, the king would have fit the hunger bit of the gust’s description to a tee. It was, he thought, perhaps a very good thing the King had not come with them.

Jr meanwhile was equally as instances and the other party members, but not by the suggestion they use innocent bait, but rather about the idea of sneaking onboard ”Stow aboard like rats?! Yeah right, not happening. Either we storm this place and take it over or its not worth the effort of getting it to show up.”

“Mimi kyu kyu” the boy’s little ghost mon agreed from its perch on his shoulder, before flexing its noodle arms.

Jr grinned at his minion’s response before suggesting an alternative. ”Besides, if they're being plagued by sea monsters over there then there's plenty of way’s that’d let us make the trip ourselves. Either we absorb some sea-monster Spirits or we capture and tame some and use their powers to take to the sea” he said before patting Mimikyu’s pokeball where it was stored on his bandolier with one of his wrist horns for emphasis.

Although not that far geographically from the quite bearable climes of Eryth Sea, the desert was potently hot. Even with no humidity, the sun beat down ferociously, and from the minute he clambered inside the Morgana-car with the other kids, Tora really began to feel it. He held his wings off his body to try and delay underarm sweat, but it was a losing battle. “Ugh! To think area with no enemies so far hardest area yet,” he complained.

The thieves agreed. “That stinkin' sand burned the hell out of my feet, right through my shoes, just like last time!” Ryuji moaned, wiping his brow. Already the three had removed their outerwear, leaving just their shirts and legwear. Tora figured that to be a good idea and proceeded to remove his overalls, leaving him as bare as he'd been on the hovering reef. The act drew him a few looks, but he gave no hint of an abnormality to his action, so the thieves gave him no grief about it.

Luckily, the situation wouldn't last for long. Even before the car got a move on, Sectonia whipped up a cool solution. Some of her summonable minions appeared to possess the power of ice, and just having one nearby made for a refreshingly chilly experience. “Hooray!” Tora cheered. “Buggypon is very best!”

“You can say that again!” Ryuji echoed as he rubbed himself on the nearest antlion. Although composed enough to offer the queen bee his thanks, Ren clearly appreciated the cooling too, and for some reason or another Ann looked even more relieved.

The trip got underway with morale high, though Tora reflected that he probably should have thought more about what a journey through a desert would entail. “Oh, right!” he mumbled to himself. “Poppi have ice core. Can definitely keep masterpon cool when time comes.” He would have greatly preferred her company to an oversized bug as well, but he kept the criticism to himself. Instead the Nopon looked out the window at the scenery, but what little he saw didn't exactly thrill. Mountains, sky, little totems, and sand, sand, sand. It was awesome in its vastness, sure, but not very interesting in the long term. As such he soon looked inward, and took it upon himself to make some introductions.

“Well, now we all in cozy catty box with wheels, we might as well get know each other, yes?” All smiles, he glanced around the car. Although sadly bereft of Linkle, Blazermate, that Mym lady, or even Sakura, Tora had the pleasure of the company of that fetching young lady in red. These student-types seemed interesting too. “Am Tora, and lovely companion up on roof is Poppi. Tora from Torigoth, which city on Gormott. And Gormott is Titan.” As he said it, he knew that the others almost certainly knew nothing about Titans, but he struggled to put such an obvious concept (to him at least) into words. “Titan is like...super, super giant animal that walk around in Cloud Sea. Everyone in Tora world live on top of one! Who are friends?”

“You can call me Joker,” the boy in glasses replied, setting the pace for the rest of his cohort. Skull and Panther introduced themselves as such in succession, and the car itself took the chance to declare himself as Mona. The others, however, could respond as they pleased.

Up above, Poppi sat atop the herky-jerky Morgana-car as it jolted across the dunes. If not for the bumpy ride the experience might have been peaceful, meditative even. She couldn't feel at ease due to the terrain, however, and to try and take her mind off it she too turned to her comrades. With Sectonia and Courier 6 on hand along with Poppi, Yellow Team boasted the lion's share of the heroes' fliers, but Poppi was not eager to bandy words wit the draconic gunslinger. Instead she called up to Sectonia.

“Although from here it appear to be straight shot to goal, Poppi quite certain that not case,” she declared, pointing toward the mountain in the distance. “Poppi zoom feature in eyes unable to measure distance, but that mountain only seem small because it really, really far. It actually gigantic.” Shielding her eyes against the sun, she took another look. “Poppi run out of ether long before get there if take off now. Plus, likelihood of concealed terrain behind sandstorms very high.” She turned Sectonia's way, curious. “Queen Sectonia very good flier and adept with strange ether called magic. Could you reach mountain?” She asked the question for the sake of conversation, since reaching the peak itself meant little unless whoever reached it could challenge the boss dimly glimpsed circling it.

It was at about that time that the Morgana-car drew to a stop atop a dune, and the woman in white fixed the vehicle with a steely stare.



Clearly the heroes did not take her plan well, but the black coat kept her silky voice even. “There are no usual guests in Limsa. Not anymore. The Maw snapped them up long ago. That is where the convincing comes in, young one. A new group must come to desire a time aboard the ship, or at least harbor a consummate desire for entertainment, or plenty. They need not necessarily come from Limsa—perhaps in your travels you have seen others, listless and idle in lives of emptiness, desperate for fulfillment? Those who have not heard the tales would surely be easier to convince.”

With a harrumph the pirate turned and walked away to attend to something or other, throwing his hands about indignantly. The woman then turned toward Sakura, her patience in her tone. “My words merely reflect reality. Little girl, if there was an easier solution, it would be yours. I have been exploring this region for months, seeking the best way to put things right. Can you say the same?”

The egotism of the shelled child, however, earned him her attention. She chided him in that eerie, soft voice of hers, herb verbiage trending toward poetic. “You are bold, my child, and so very, very young. You are peering into the sea whilst standing on the shore, claiming it is not so deep while its depths churn farther down than your nascent imagination could ever take you. You and your company came here on a straight path, plying the strength of your hand against every branch and stone. But not everything will be so simple.”

She gave Kamek what might have been a curious glance, then looked out across the ocean. “In some waters, when you begin to sink, you will never again see the light of day. Some dreams from which one can never awaken. Will the things of the deep be the ones that are tamed, or will you? Devour them that lurk below, if it please you. Share in their heedless fantasy, and allow your self to drift away. With loving arms the sea will accept you. Once the deep becomes your home, never will you rise.”

With a sigh, she addressed Peach directly. “Only terrible things swim through those waters. But good things can hide inside them, sheltered from the nightmare without. Of the few options, the Maw is the best. With the others, it will be a constant struggle to avoid being consumed. With the Maw, you need only avoid consuming. Provided you can bring it to port, of course.”



Though taken by surprise, the heroes sprang into action. Bowser and Linkle scattered the first wave with arrow volleys and roaring flame, gaining enough ground to allow backup to enter without a telefrag incident occurring. Bowser's flames reduced the Flood to ash, removing the dead biomass from play. Linkle's projectiles filled the air, only a little less dense but a lot more painful than rain, but against the Flood combat forms her attacks lacked permanence. Piercing damage served to rupture vital organs, causing death with a minimum of bodily harm, but while that worked for infector forms, the hosts of the vile parasites cared little for such means of attack. Catastrophic damage to a body part, enough to physically remove it, was necessary to render it unusable; so long as a Flood continued to pull the strings, the repugnant corpses danced on.

When Bowser's fire faded, Linkle stepped up to keep the Flood at bay. She manifested a frozen wall high and long enough to give her party room to breath, keeping the next wave out long enough for those remaining on the heroes' side to wipe them out and seize a brief chance to rest. But the relentless horde came again. They circled around the wall on either side, and clambered over the middle, using their jumping ability and one another to avoid sustaining much damage on Linkle's wall. The simple but effective pincer attack forced the heroes to split their attention and trust the others to protect their backs, but a few invariably got through. The moment an infector got close enough without being burst, it would invariably leap for it's target's chest to start tearing in with its tendrils. Worse still, the combat forms felled but not destroyed rose again when new infectors arrived to squeeze inside. Witnessing this taught the heroes a quick and important lesson: while killing the infector nestled in a combat form's heart would fell the thing, it seemed the biomatter needed to be useless to render it completely harmless.

One of the abominations that came at Linkle was a combat form with a shotgun. With its arm outstretched like a manniquin's, the Flood rushed at her, firing again and again with better aim that one would expect. The buckshot didn't do much more than sting from afar, but even amid all the chaos she couldn't afford to ignore it for long. A close-range shot went off that blasted apart some ice not too far from her, suggesting that if this thing got close enough, it would kill her, no questions asked.

While being healed by Blazermate following his fierce skirmish with the infected trainer and his team, a particular combat form closed in on him. It ran at him with impunity, a dual-bladed sword of blue light in hand, for the corpse that comprised it harbored a cloaking device. Practically invisible but for the glow of its blade, it moved in to hack off a limb from the Koopa King.

The deterioration of the scenario continued to accelerate as a rumbling noise filled the building. Something could be seen plowing up the avenue through the hole in the ice wall, but nobody could feasibly spare the time to look. Whatever it was arrived all the same, skipping up the steps to the Argent Tower, through the front door, through the time-stopped Fleshburster and the explosion that followed. It slammed into Linkle's wall and demolished it in a massive spray of ice, although the impact stopped it as well. When the diamond dust cleared, the heroes could see a heavy-duty vehicle, part ambulance, part backhoe, and all tough as nails. In the driver's seat was none other than a flood.

Electricity sparked from the turret on the vehicle's back as it moved into position. A moment later, a blast of lightning flew into the middle of the party. The start-up time meant it could be avoided by all except the teleporter, which blew up in a spray of debris.

The black-coated man messily gutted a Flood-infested Empusa with his knife only for five more to converge on his location. His eyes widened as they jumped for him, but before the monsters could grab him he disappeared in a blue flash. Another flash the next second heralded his arrival by the heroes, and a look at him revealed that his hood had fallen down in the process, exposing a sharp, middle-aged face. “This is getting out of hand. “ Winding up, he threw his knife at the driver of the Shockdozer. Another combat form jumped in the way, taking the blow harmlessly with its lolling head. “They're coordinated. This Flood will not stop.”

Sakura deflated under the woman's shadowed gaze. Turning a shoulder towards her she took a step back and touched her index fingers together anxiously, casting her eyes down at the ground. "I-I mean...no..." She trailed off in response to the question. Turning away, she watched the cartoon pirate storm away in an indignant huff. It was hard to believe it, but this mysterious, enigmatic person was an ally.

(She's just trying to help. But still...I don't...I'm not comfortable with her plan! I've never even saved anyone before! How am I supposed to be so sure of my heroism that I'm willing to throw ten people under the bus!? What if we fail? And what's the point of being a hero if we don't try to save everybody? This wasn't what I was imagining at all.)

Sakura listened to the cloaked figure talk to everyone else. There was no point in arguing with her, she was steadfast in her belief. She had done the research and came to this conclusion. The Maw plan was the best way to cross. She was also hard to listen to, her manner of speaking was flowery and full of detatched, odd, and unnerving wisdom.

"...Maybe the best way isn't always the right way." Sakura muttered to herself, disengaging from the conversation. Stones and dirt were scraped away by Sakura's softly kicking sneakers. What would Ryu-san do? She wished he was here. Instead someone (probably her now that she was beginning to put things together) had beat the crap out of him and she was whisked off for adventure. Only it wasn't an adventure, instead Sakura just felt...clammy and uncomfortable. Maybe someone else could figure out a better plan. All Sakura could do was toss around a couple fireballs and uppercuts.

To help regain her composure, Sakura went prone on the grass and began to do perfect form push ups. She had pulled back from the group and occasionally glanced over to the ocean on her left.