As Karen rose from the epicenter of his cryokinetic avalanche, Geralt’s Quake Rounds peppered him, but a much bigger problem was headed his way. “Armstrong!?” The sight of the huge man, not to mention what his presence here implied, left the psychic stunned just enough that he reacted instinctively. He fired off an icy blast like a cannon, but the senator armored straight through it and brought his heel down in an arena-shaking stomp. The shockwave shattered most of the ice spiked that remained, and also triggered the Tremor built up on Karen. “Urgh!” Left reeling from the impact, he gritted his teeth and worked to put together defensive measures.

His enemies were already coming to seize the opportunity, after all. Goldlewis thundered toward Travers, crunching fallen icicles with every fallen step. Yet he did not throw caution to the wind; his opponent was unbalanced, but far from helpless. Thanks to the toxic clouds that gnawed away at the Seekers and shored the Septentrion up, the deck was still stacked in Karen’s favor. Goldlewis jumped up, airdashed forward, and dropped on Karen with a flurry of blows from the UMA. With Blastokinesis and Sclerokinesis both offline, the psychic had only a couple options, and Invisibility wasn’t going to help here. He blinked backward without looking, putting his back perilously close to the edge of the platform with only a little Teleportation left. While his allies continued the pursuit, Goldlewis stopped to cover them with his Skyfish.

Blazermate directed her allies into the direction of where Karen was dodging, while she herself swooped along the ground to touch a crack and summon a purgatory ghost. Although she wanted this to zoom at Karen, it instead went for Tycoon as he was closer. This gave her a bit of an idea though, and she looked for and stood next to, but not touching, the next purgatory crack in a more defensive measure. She had gained a fair amount of uber as well, so soon Karen would be feeling a kritz… although who would be best for it?

Sakura ran forward full speed towards Karen Travers. A bead of sweat and a nervous smile flashed across her face. Feeling the daredevil, she leapt towards him with a flying kick that had more than enough momentum to carry her over the edge should he side step. Provided he did, she would swiftly turn around and use Mental Connection on the aggressive Geralt. She would swing herself around with her momentum and go to leap onto Karen from behind. ”Yattaze!” In a callback to a fight neither of them remember, she moved to lock her comparatively small but still very strong arm around his neck and grab his head, yanking back and squeezing as hard as she could.

Karin stayed back a short distance behind Karen, predicting he would teleport out soon and wanted to be in range to immediately engage should he do so.

“Urgh!” Already distracted by the gunfire coming from Goldlewis and the other foes approaching, Karen hadn’t spared Sakura any extra thought when her flying kick took her past him. Her Mental Connection and subsequent chokehold, then took him by surprise. He struggled with prodigious strength, his Cryokinesis soaking into his captor’s body, but Sakura held firm, and grappling him like this made escape very difficult. His eyes blazed as he activated Marksmanship, firing off a barrage of psychic lasers, but without any defensive powers available he could only do so much.

Geralt took advantage of the distracted Karen to fire another salvo of Quake Rounds into Travers, aiming carefully so as not to clip Sakura. Each shot was only a small nuisance to the Septentrion, but together, they were slowly piling on the damage and allowing all of the others to get a hold of the man. It was a different style of combat than she was used to, but its results could not be denied.

Blazermate saw that Karen was running out of steam or so she thought? He wasn’t moving around as much now, so maybe she could go up and do something. Her projectile shield wasn’t charged yet, but there were other things she could do. She kept her healing beam on whoever his psychic lasers were hitting as she zoomed around and came from Karen’s flank, shield raised. As she got close, she used the stunning scream from her shield to follow up with a bite from it to infect the guy with her undead plague. She then got ready to kritz whoever wanted to deal with him next.

Despite his relatively low mobility, Goldlewis managed to close to melee range first out of all the Seekers fighting Karen. He couldn’t go too hogwild with Sakura perilously close to their collective opponent, but Geralt’s carefully-aimed Quake Rounds set him up for success. When her pistol clicked empty, demanding a reload, it was a perfect chance for Goldlewis to make the most of this window of opportunity. Just then, however, the team medic got in the way, earning herself a volley of Marksmanship lasers in the process. Taken by surprise, Goldlewis slid to a stop, inches away from bashing the medabot in the back with his coffin held like a battering ram. “Hey, watch-!”

A horrific shriek from Blazermate’s twisted shield arm cut him off. It’s ‘stun’ was in truth more a side effect caused by the excruciating pain of the damage it dealt to one’s ears, and without any means of preventing friendly fire, both Goldlewis and Sakura took part in the auditory bombardment meant for Karen. They all reeled, and with the street fighter’s grip loosened, Karen bottomed out his Cryokinesis in an explosive burst, coating his foes -and filling the Suffering maw- with ice.

Still, that left him surrounded, without means of escape or defense. Yet within reach of an invaluable prize. The Septentrion had only a moment to act, but with the right power a moment could feel like a lifetime. He gritted his teeth against his pain and activated Hypervelocity. “Stupid.” In a gray blur, traced by pink afterimages, he stepped around Blazermate and delivered a barrage of punches to her chassis. He paid special attention to her elbow joints, his fists crashing into them again and again. “Shouldn’t have tried your luck!” He finished with a kick to her back as his time ran, sending her -and any loose parts- toward the abyss.

”Miss Blazermate!” Karin called out. Having been hanging back to catch Karen off guard, the other street fighter was in position to save her ally. She dashed forward and just put herself between Blazermate and the edge. ”Umph!” She took the impact and wrapped her arms around the mechanical healer, dropping to the floor.

”Are you alright? You don’t feel pain, do you?” She asked.

”Thanks Karin. And uh… sorta… it's hard to explain.” Blazermte said, holding her arm in the common anime pose of being injured. She had to call her healing drone over to heal herself alongside her own healing beam for a bit, the dents left by Karen slowly popping back out as she healed herself. ”Beaten up by Karen, and saved by Karin. Thats going to get confusing.” Blazermate said, trying to lighten the mood more for herself.

”Well, suck it up, my dear!” Karin said, giving her a hard but reassuring pat on the shoulder before rushing back into the fight.

As soon as Karen slowed back down, Goldlewis rounded on him. “Hey! You’re fightin’ me!” He whirled his coffin around as he advanced, step by step. The Septentrion tried to block the first mighty swing, but its raw power combined with Geralt’s Tremor blew his guard wide open. Before he realized what happened, another terrific wallop connected. It drew a spurt of blood from Karen’s nose, but also knocked some sense back into him, allowing him to duck under a third bone-cracking blow. “Gotcha, ya sumbitch!” When Goldlewis pivoted into an overhead smash, Karen swerved to the side and narrowly avoided its crushing force. His Pyrokinesis flared up as he lunged forward. A fiery palm strike slammed into the veteran’s heart, then detonated. Winded, ignited, and thoroughly agonized, Goldlewis fell back with a haggard gasp.

Just then, however, Sandalphon’s Angelic Wings radiated across the battlefield. Its divine light healed and cleansed the archangel’s allies, giving a maximum health boost to those who were purged of frost, poison, and flame. Goldlewis might have crumpled from the blow, but instead he planted his back foot and lashed out with a giant backhand. The Seekers hadn’t lost their momentum just yet.

Sakura joined up with her melee partners in crime. She followed up Goldlewis’ back hand with a kick into Karen’s ankle. ”Shunpu!” She canceled it into a spin kick. Thanks to Sandalphon’s ability, she was basically at full health. ”Come on, come on, get him!” She stayed right up close, minimizing any reach advantage by in-fighting with elbows and knee strikes.

As Sakura pressed her advantage, Goldlewis joined in. He complimented his teammate’s quick, punchy attacks with heavy blows of his own to fill the gaps in her assault. More cognizant of friendly fire now more than ever, Goldlewis made sure not to get so aggressive that he accidentally struck Sakura, instead working with her to create an immense amount of pressure that kept Karen on the backfoot. The Septentrion couldn’t pay either of them the attention necessary to shut them down without opening himself up to the other, and when one started a combo the other could chime in. ”Yeah, yeah!” Sakura cheered, feeling the rhythm with Goldlewis. After just a couple moments, Karen threw in the towel.

“Fine.” He leaped backward off the arena, activating Levitation to float over the open space and Blastokinesis to shield himself. Then he began to draw on the Phantom Ruby, creating an abundance of crimson-shrouded cubes that he hurled back onto the battlefield. Each exploded on hit, creating a quick ring wave of cubes that shot outward from the point of impact. That constant barrage forced his foes to hop or block rather than fire back, and if any worked up the guts to jumped out over the void, they’d be leaping straight into his fusillade of projectiles. Even worse, Tycoon unleashed Artificial Gravity during this time, turning the situation from bad to terrible as everyone had to seek safety amidst the storm or eat heavy damage plus Vulnerability Up stacks.

Sakura squinted at the cubes, and then locked eyes with Blazermate. She ran towards her and then reached out with Mental Connection, locking onto Blazermate’s stray thoughts. Then she zipped over at high speed, landing with practiced agility at her side.

Karen did not notice the streak of green lightning circling around the room’s periphery. A red-and-green blur leaped across the pipes, pumps, cables, and machines that crowded around the portals on the walls, maneuvering behind the Septentrion. Even Goldlewis, shorthopping like his life depended on it, barely recognized the intruder through the thinning haze. When he did, though, he realized that the Seekers’ ship had come in. The next moment, Giovanna cannoned off the outer wall, propelled by a sigil airdash and sustained by jets of steam. She shot straight toward Karen, and rather than try to strike his shield, she passed harmlessly threw it to lock her legs around his neck. “Going somewhere?” She zapped him point-black with her gloves, then twisted and hurled Karen back toward the arena, her airthrow strong enough to crack his shield on impact. She then used a Roman Cancel to refund her airdash and fly to safety, while Karen scrambled to get up.

Geralt, who had transformed back to her original Identity to try and dodge as many cubes as possible, found herself in a good enough position to intercept Karen. Her Quen shield was gone, but she herself was in good shape thanks to the relatively recent heal Sandalphon had gotten off before Mephisto’s demise. She’d managed to avoid much of the cubes Karen had sent their way, though Artificial Gravity had managed to hit her, hence the missing Quen. She descended on Travers with her steel sword at the ready, taking advantage of his own lack of shielding to dish out as much damage as possible. Karen was quick enough to avoid being caught off-guard, and his Electrokinesis empowered his attacks, but Geralt was relentless, flashing her signature blade out as quickly as she could manage, mixing feints in with her attacks to bait out a counter, then parry and punish it. She had the advantage of range, but Karen had versatility on his side, as he demonstrated by summoning duplicates to force her back onto the defensive. Used to being outnumbered, Geralt held out surprisingly well, but she could not find an opportunity to strike against the Seekers’ enemy.

Blazermate, instead of flying into the barrage of attacks outside the arena, instead just floated above the cubes and found a spot where the circles wouldn’t intersect so she wouldn’t get hit, saying. ”Hey guys, pretty sure this place is safe, at least from the circles.”. The spot didn’t have much room at all once the circles expanded, but Blazremate was safe from the attack at least.

color=f49ac2]”Wanna gimme the juice again, Blazermate-san?”[/color] She asked, turning towards Karen and widening her stance. She pumped her arms like loaded shotguns and activated her V-Trigger, Sakura Senpu. Her fists and feet lit up with flames. Now she would have an advantage in close quarters combat. ”I’ll say when!”

As soon as Artificial Gravity detonated, Sakura sprinted forward, slingshotting forward using her allies and Mental Connection, Blazermate able to handily keep up due to their medibeam link. Maybe she was crazy, but with her karate techniques, V-Trigger, and a properly timed Kritz that could lead into her Critical Art? She thought it might be best to bait all the duplicate Karen Travers into attacking her at the same time.

Sakura barrelled forward and opened up with a flying kick towards Travers and his duplicates. She backed up. All she needed was for one of them to whiff a hit, and for the others to come strike at her to cover for him. Just one moment. Sakura blocked ducked, weaved, and then finally side-stepped to dodge an attack. ”Now!” She shouted. Her leg snapped out in a light kick, a quick and long ranged kick against his knee. With Sakura Senpu, she instantly converted into a blazing fast spin kick with a blade of ki behind her hee. She span around to strike all the duplicates at once.

”Power and Skill!” She shouted, converting it into her critical art. She stopped on a dime and than span the other way, surging forward with her kicks and carrying her and her opponent a significant distance. With a yell she dropped and thrust her crackling fist forward before he could hit the ground. ”Sakura no Ame!” She plunged it against his stomach and then dragged it upwards into his chin. There was a plume of ki energy all around her that would blast the other duplicates as Sakura shot up into the air to send Karen flying.

Goldlewis whistled in admiration as Sakura’s offensive initiative paid dividends. When their opponent used Duplication to make every move in triplicate, he’d managed to fend off Geralt and keep Goldlewis at bay, but the street fighter had found a hole in his onslaught and made him pay for it. And with Blazermate giving her kritz, the damage she dealt reached a whole nother level. “You-! Graaaaaaaaaaaaaah!” he howled, only to get cut off as he slammed back down onto the arena. ”And that’s a wrap!” Sakura cheered, landing and balancing on one foot for a second before steadying herself. Yet even that wasn’t enough to put him down, and when his head whipped up, his eyes alight with rage beneath his disheveled gray mane.

”Bwah!” Sakura scampered back in alarm.

“Enough of this!” As his foes rushed in to finish him off, he activated Sclerokinesis. Protected from arm, he wound up and brought down a megaton punch that blasted back everyone within a few yards, and shook the entire arena. As the battlefield flexed perilously, Karen pulled the cord at his collar. His hood flipped up, hiding his face in a dark veil that then blazed with a set of orange jaws, and all across his outfit imaginary cables began to glow. Aglow with the power of Brain Drive, he lifted his hands once more. “This is what real power looks like,” he declared, ready to turn the tide.

Instead, he found himself staring upward like a rabbit at a hawk as Heavenly Wings swooped toward him in all her glory. With armored scales like interlaid tiles of marble and jet, her claws and crown of lustrous gold, she looked like the embodiment of divine punishment, and she hit like it as well. At the bottom of her dive she whipped around and lashed Karen with her tail, Its strength obliterated Karen’s emergency Blastokinesis shield and hurled him through the open air. Even before he slammed into the far wall, Sandalphon cast screens of holy light like gigantic stamps that buffeted his point of impact. Goldlewis joined in the bombardment, his Skyfish roaring as bullets pounded the area, along with bursts of fire from Geralt, who had transformed into a new form, complete with ethereal wings of flame, a few complimentary fireballs from Sakura, (and anyone else who can projectile can join in). After a few seconds, SandaIphon’s time as Heavenly Wings grew short, so as her final act she cast Celestial Skewer. Holy water around her frothed into raging rapids, and from the maelstrom flew a flurry of javelins that punctuated the Seekers’ assault.

Even before the dust settled, however, lightning erupted from the crater in the reactor wall. The smoke blew outward from the center, revealing Karen in critical condition. Most of his uniform had been destroyed, and wounds covered his body, especially around his chest. Having returned to her normal state, Sandalphon scanned his vitals, and her pupils turned to exclamation marks as she realized what had happened. “He defibrillated himself,” she reported, her deadpan tone tinged with a note of surprise. Though the Septentrion’s hood still obscured his face, she could feel his determination. “This is the final stretch,” she told the others flatly. She planted her gunstaff, creating a healing field, then swapped to the Eye of Sol with a flourish. “Brace yourselves.”

Sakura looked at Sandalphon, a hushed look of awe on her face. ”I-I’m ready!”

”As am I.” Karin rejoined with the others.

Karen yelled–no, roared. In one go, he activated Cryokinesis, Duplication, Clairvoyance, and Psychokinesis. He flung himself back toward the arena, landing in an explosion of ice. Debris of ice and metal, further compounded by Duplication, floated around him as both a damaging field and to glom onto his every move, in a manner that might remind Sakura and Karin of Oro’s Tengu Stone. More dangerous than ever with his powers amped up by Brain Drive, Karen Travers attacked once more.

Geralt stayed back, flinging balls of fire at Karen every chance she got while also summoning the Judicator to launch its own spectral fire at him. As Karen rushed at her, trying to take advantage of this form's seeming lack of weapons, she gave a devious smirk and ripped free the Hateful Flesh, crashing it violently into his outstretched arm and forcing his attack off-course, to which she followed up with a spinning elbow to the face, and a blast from Aard to further punish his hubris and give herself some space.

Before Karen could get his bearings, Goldlewis occupied the space that Geralt opened up–but not quite the same Goldlewis that the others remembered. When Karen had powered himself up one last time, full of fatal fury, the veteran had done the same. Producing the spirit of Jack-8 that he’d claimed after the remarkable robot’s defeat, he’d slammed it into his heart and transformed in a burst of prismatic light.



“Rrrrah!” Goldlewis blew through the floating debris and dashed in to deliver a heavy lunge punch, followed by an overhead Behemoth Typhoon. Karen backed up once struck, but rather than pick up his coffin again Goldlewis stepped onto it to land a near-instant overhead knee strike, then land into a brand-new Tyulpan Blast that fired his shotgauntlets with both hands to blast Karen back. This also activated Heat, and Goldlewis charged forward with an aura of white flame. The Septentrion scrambled to his feet with his arms up, using Cryokinesis to create a spiked shield of ice. Goldlewis hammered the spike wall to pieces with a barrage of punches. “You damn…!” Then he grabbed Karen’s guard and headbutted him to the ground. “Fool!” Reaching back for his coffin, he unleashed an upward Behemoth Typhoon to force a quick rise, but let go of the weapon at the peak of the swing to send it flying into the air. Karen struck back with a vengeance, his freezing attacks supplemented by Psychokinesis-propelled debris, but after a moment Goldlewis unleashed his Heat Smash, Meteor Raid. A quick open-palm strike knocked Karen off-balance before an overhead punch grounded him, setting him up for the coffin to land on him. As it exploded, Goldlewis added insult to injury with a powerful flex.

The next moment the Septentrion disappeared, courtesy of Teleportation. He warped behind Goldlewis, only to find Giovanna waiting there. “Sucks for you I’ve always got his back.” She countered his first strike with the upper-body invincibility of her own 6p, then jumped up and springboarded off Goldlewis to launch herself at Karen with her nigh-unreactable Tempestade drive kick. Together, she and Rei unleashed a flurry of attacks that culminated in Burning Kick, melting through the last of her foe’s Cryokinesis as he once again got pushed back.

Sakura winged the stumbling Karen in the side of the head with a push kick, and Karin came in from the other side with a wince-inducing kick to his knee. Sakura jumped on his back once again and drove her elbow down like a jackhammer into the top of his skull. Then she wrenched backwards, trying to force him to stand up straight. In just a moment more he could have shaken her, but Karin wasn’t going to give him that moment. His body and defences were weakened. Truth be told, the heiress didn’t know if this would finish the job, but she wasn’t going to hold back.

”Kanzuki-Ryuu…” Voice rising, she stepped in and swatted him across the jaw and kneed him in the gut. Then her right hand sparked blue. For a moment, it was like there was a vacuum of air around her fist as dust kicked in and swirled around it. Super Combo. Fully stocked.

”Shin-! Pi-! Kai-! Byaku!” She thrust her hand, palm flat, fingers first, like a knife, targeting his liver. She stepped forward, pushing him back with her strikes, the ground literally quaking around her with the force of each blow. Each syllable was punctuated by a lancing, impaling strike like she was trying to punch a hole clean through his body. Liver, lungs, heart, stomach, liver, her hands indented him and Sakura felt the force in her own body as gusts of wind traveled out the other side. This move wasn’t nearly as flashy or fantastical as the one she used against Rufus Shinra, but that wasn’t the point. This was a technique meant to disassemble someone from the inside.

Karin stomped the ground and it cracked beneath her. ”Sei!” With a final cry she thrust her twisting fist into his center. He didn’t go flying away or explode. Typically, the victim would just crumple around the blow. Sakura had to let go, her hands numb and her body vibrating just from being attached to Karen. Karin withdrew her fist and took a few steps back.

For all his determination, Karen Travers could do little in the end. Finished in decisive fashion, he could muster no last words, nor final self-reflections. By the time his assailant’s technique came to an end, he scarcely felt the pain, instead comatose in a state of shocked numbness. His organs failed, his body failed, and he died. In the last moment he could still think, however, his thoughts were of Alice. The woman he’d been willing to turn back time to save, now just another footnote on the pages of history. Forever.

Karin lowered her palms and exhaled, shutting her eyes. She was a warrior now. Had been since she set out. It was the Seekers, collectively, that killed him. He was immensely strong and could not be held back on. And in the days to come, for Midgar’s recovery, far too dangerous and powerful to be left alive. Still. Sakura set a hand on Karin’s shoulder and looked at her. This wasn’t why either of them learned to fight. But they had the strength to do battle, and so they must. Neither of them needed to say anything.

As Karen’s body crumbled away, Giovanna and Goldlewis looked on, taking a moment to catch their breath. The secret agent gave her friend a smirk, nodding at his stomach. “You gotta tell me about this new crash diet of yours.”

Goldlewis rolled his eyes. “Wasn’t my aim. Honest! I’ve been tryin’ to lose the spare tire forever. But you know I’m partial to stress-eatin’.” Shaking his head, he turned toward the element in the room: Tycoon. “Anyhow, save your yappin’ ‘til after we’re done. This ain’t over yet.”

Sighing, Giovanna brushed her braid back over her shoulder and assumed her fighting stance. “Yessir.”

As she and her teammates sped toward their final showdown, streaking through the starlight sky of a dusky dreamscape, Nadia’s heart pounded in her chest. Her blood pumped through her veins. Once this was all over, she knew, all the fatigue of battling the infected, the Hollow Knight, and now the Radiance would catch up with her in one fell swoop, but as long as her adrenaline held out the catgirl felt like she could take on anything. Then again, the Guardian of the Underground quickly demonstrated that vanquishing it would take everything Nadia had.

Even the very first attacks from Absolute Radiance set the tone for this new phase of the fight. Starting with the rays of light, every one of her projectiles proved to be much trickier than before. Nadia veered away from the first laser and almost plowed right into a second, taken aback at the lack of delay between shots. When she misjudged another dodge a couple seconds later, the scorching lightbeam ripped a cry of pain from her throat as it floored her, body and mind alike seared by contact with the Radiance’s godlike emanations. She sprang up a moment later, freshly motivated to be more careful, but what came next wasn’t much better.

Obscene quantities of silver swordblades hurled through the air in perfectly level planes and grids, leaving so little space between them that Nadia couldn’t always solve the pattern like before. Enormous, Seeker-seeking orbs left precious little room for escape, until the feral realized that she needed to dodge toward them rather than away. This unusual battlefield atop the Magikrab’s train offered very little room to move to begin with, but fields of razor-sharp spikes limited it even further, and they made for a brutal combination with sweeping light pillars. Nadia found herself forced to jump out over the spikes, then airdash back to safety just to avoid those brilliant pillars. For a good while, her feet barely touched the ground, and 2,700 Pounds of Justice sure didn’t make all that airtime any easier. And throughout all this time, she couldn’t strike back at the Radiance even if she got the opportunity.

As frustrating as this felt, the cat burglar kept a tight rein on her emotions. She couldn’t let frustration bog her down. She and her teammates had an ace in the hole, after all: the Koopa Troop. Working together, they’d set up one hell of an opening gambit at the front of the train, and despite the Radiance’s complete and utter pollution of the dreamscape’s airspace with projectiles, the train was still gaining on her. They just needed to hold out until they caught up. So Nadia weathered the storm alongside her companions. Scrapes, gashes, and burns piled up, even with the buffs from the Kamek clones, but the feral knew she could grin and bear it. Finally, after what felt like forever but was in truth only about thirty seconds, the incredible train caught up with the fleeing Radiance. Though still technically flying at incredible speeds, it now seemed to float just ahead and in front of the engine, and the Seekers could reach it at last.

Right on cue, the Troop went to work. They bombarded the Radiance with iron spikes (giving her a taste of her own medicine), special shots that helped make her overwhelming output a little more manageable, and an unhealthy amount of darkness. Just as Kamek hoped, his clones’ dark beams worked wonders, and with the dark magic from both Sectonia and Primrose added in, the Seekers dished out a big helping of the Radiance’s least favorite food. Once the Troop doled out all the punishment their opening had to offer they disengaged in dramatic fashion. After that, it was Nadia’s turn. The cover provided by Sectonia tempted her, but without any reliable means of long-ranged attack, she wasn’t going to get anywhere by hunkering down. Moving in, she threaded the needle through the blizzard of swords. By diving forward like a pouncing predator, ears and tails tucked back, she could squeeze through the walls of evenly-spaced blades with just inches to spare at best, and a few fresh slices at worst. But what were a couple cuts to the likes of her? When much bigger attacks flew her way, Nadia busted out some emergency maneuvers. She could launch herself way up high with jets of pressurized blood, then use Charge to zip back down before she lost her inertia, gaining some ground in the process.

It wasn’t long before Nadia reached the front of the train, singed, scarred, and very eager to exact repayment. Again and again, she dodged one of the Radiance’s attacks, jumped up to land a quick air combo, then backed off before her foe could blast her. Now that she was here, blocking on the ground wasn’t the worst option, but if she got caught and forced to block in the air she would be pushed back into the blender. This wasn’t easy; even just being this close to the Radiance seemed to passively scorch her. It felt like a bad sunburn, offsetting her regeneration from the Life Gem. This was a ruthless game of give and take, but at least Nadia wasn’t alone. Despite his slow speed and unwieldy size, Ganondorf had reached the Guardian as well, and he used everything at his disposal to make the Radiance hurt. Still, there was no telling who’d win this war of attrition–until the Seekers’ resident warlord made one crucial call.

After mustering up all the strength he had for a magnificent Warlock Punch that knocked the Radiance downward, Ganondorf coordinated with the conductor to drive the train itself directly into their foe. Taken by surprise by the clever maneuver, the Guardian found herself unable to fly, and therefore, pinned against the train. All of a sudden, Nadia could see the Radiance eye to eye. Sure, her beams of light could now blaze across the entire length of the train, but now hitting her would be a breeze. “Hell yeah, Big G!” she cheered, dashing forward as the Radiance’s bullet hell resumed. “You got me all full of en-dorf-ins!”

From there, though, it only got better. At Ganondorf’s bidding, Magikrab steered the train back down toward the abyss, throwing off the Guardian’s aim in the process. Nadia threw herself into a Cat Slide down the sloped roof of the train, hopping the gaps between cars, one hardened claw held behind her to steer in a shower of sparks. A moment later the locomotive leveled out, dragging the Radiance through the surface of the abyss as it chugged along the surface. Immediately, serrated tentacles and limbs still more horrible reached out from the churning, writhing darkness to slash and saw into the Radiance as she passed, trying to drag her down.

Full of glee, Nadia closed the last bit of distance, and the sight of Primrose’s amped-up Moonlight Waltz blowing up in the Radiance’s face only elated her further. She and Ganondorf unleashed a close-combat beatdown, joined by anyone else to managed to make the journey. As the pummeling mounted, the Guardian became less and less able to fight back. “Hope you don’t mind me callin’ you a light snack,” she taunted, flipping into the air with a spurt of blood to bring down a transformed leg in a Fluffy Soft empowered axe kick–El Tigre. “‘Cause you’re about to dim sum!” As if that wasn’t enough, her mighty kick slash triggered New Moon, becoming a silver arc that left the Radiance reeling.

In the end, though, it wasn’t any of the Seekers that finished off the Radiance. As they beat her down, the train slowed up, and the writhing Abyss below could get a better grip. Tentacles lashed around her, and claws dug into her body, grasping tighter and piercing deeper. By the time the train came to a stop, the Guardian wasn’t pinned to the front of the train any longer, but any chance of escape was long gone. The hands of some nameless horror reached from the stygian blackness and gouged at her face, ripping it open so that its brethren could squeeze her light out. Nadia watched, more than a little horrified, as the Void dragged the Radiance down, motes of light flooding from the hole where her face had been. Unable to fight back, unable to flee, the entity began to scream. Her cries became shorter and more frantic, resounding through the dreamscape like the peals of some otherworldly bell, until with a final wrench the darkness dragged her under. A handful of light motes burst up from beneath, carrying with them the dazzling boss spirit of the Radiance, which alighted softly on the train engine’s roof.

With her passing, the dream world dimmed yet further, becoming knight. The clouds began to sweep in, burying the Void beneath them as the darkness receded, satiated. High overhead, the stars had ceased to move, but they hung over the Seekers in all their splendor. Nadia sagged down to the roof of the train, panting as her adrenaline faded. “It’s over,” she gasped, looking around at the others. “Right?”

“Seems that way.” Magikrab crawled up onto the roof, staring at the Seekers with his one red eye. “In a way, it’s kind of like the archangels. As long as someone’s around to remember her, she might not be gone for good. But she’s gone for now, and that’s what matters. The infection will follow suit.” After thinking for a moment, he gave the heroes who’d vanquished the Radiance a bow. “The Stagmer-line is grateful. Thank you for your help. If you meet the other archangels, I doubt they’ll be very friendly, but the lines will always be open to you.”

The idea that Robin Goodfellow’s brethren might still try to kill her got a chuckle out of Nadia. “Oh. Well. It’s something, I guess.”

Magikrab turned, staring off into the night. “With the Radiance gone, the dreams of the Underground are back where they belong. With the dreamers. Theirs to give shape, and theirs to make real, if they can.” He paused. “You’ll be going soon, I guess. But if you get a chance, come back and visit. Dreams…are a wonderful thing.”

With that, the unreal world faded away.

---

The Seekers reappeared inside the Black Egg in a massive burst of dream particles, the effulgent motes fading away as quickly as they appeared. Already, the atmosphere here seemed less heavy, not quite as laden with death and decay. All around, the glowing threads and pustules of orange mold had begun to turn gray, fossilizing en masse. Fortunately for them, the inhabitants of the Under, and possibly the whole world, it really did look like the death of the Radiance meant the end of the infection. But even more importantly, the prize the Seekers seized from the dreamscape hadn’t evaporated when they reentered the waking world. The Guardian’s spirit remained, painfully bright. Just as with Geralt and the spirit of the Orphan of Kos, the time had come for the Seekers to seal it, inside of one of them.

Nadia quickly realized that the Seekers weren’t alone. Her ears swiveled toward a gasping sound, and when she looked she found the Hollow Knight, doubled over near the back of the Black Egg’s interior. It seemed to be in bad shape, heavily wounded, but it gave no signs of hostility. A huge amount of noxious orange ichor had poured from its haunted eyes, leaving nothing but absolute blackness behind. It reminded Nadia of the squirming void in the dream, and she shivered. As she stared at the Hollow Knight, though, she wondered. With the dying of the light that screamed out from the afflicted one’s eyes, had it, too, been freed?

The next moment, however, a ring of white bullets appeared around the Hollow Knight. Before Nadia really processed what was going on, the bullets collapsed inward, striking the corrupted vessel. With a jolt, the Hollow Knight crumpled and died, disintegrating into ash.

A purple flash went off next to the dissolving corpse, and Consul F appeared amidst the particles.

“See? I never betrayed you! It was all a trick, see? I was waiting to kill him for you! You just needed the resolve to destroy the infection. Someone to push you forward! Those others, they were dead anyway. Not my fault! I don’t even care about the Guardians, or Galeem. I'm helpful, I can be useful to you. Keep the others off your back, you know? I promise I won't get in your way. I can help... I can... I can…”

F fell to his knees, his hands clasped. Beneath his sun-shaped mask, his eyes were wide with terror. “Please don't kill me.”

While C might have been happy to sit the rest of this out, and she was frankly thankful for that, she wasn’t going to just sit around after handling him. She still had carrots left in the saddlebag (or, as she might have said if she ever learned how motor vehicles worked internally and wasn’t mostly convinced they all worked like cluster trucks, juice left in the tank if she’d), and she was going to put it to good use.

She glanced around the room, getting an idea of the situation and it was, it seemed, good. Nox really must have been the linchpin of his own pre-reset victory, because things were going well. C’s team was gone, and all that still stood was the guardian, and it looked like it was on its last legs thanks to the team that had been focusing on it while she was busy with C.

”After everything it took to get here, we don’t even need a massive train canon for this one” she noted, before adding nonchalantly that ”Still, a big gun can’t hurt” before getting herself one of those.

Her (slightly bullet peppered now) warthog rose out of a portal in response to her will, and then its wheels touching down as said portal close beneath it. It wasn't going to be using those to go anywhere however, as she was interested in what was on the back: the big gun she desire. True, it was no railway mounted artillery piece, but the chain gun mounted on the back of the reconnaissance vehicle was nothing to be sniffed at.

The princess promptly hopped onto the back of it, grabbed the turret in all four hands, spun it round, and let her rip, filling the air with a steam of lead from a relatively safe distance from their foe, a plethora of tracers making it clear where her bullet stream was even as she did her level best to not put her shots anywhere close to her allies. That plan worked relatively well, at least until Roxas and Tycoon started putting on a competitive laser light show anyway, because that rendered her entirely blind. There was no way she was going to fire like that, the risks of hitting friendlies where just far to great, and so the princess promptly diving off of her turret and into the shadows to recover her sight.

With any luck, by the time it was back, the cause of its loss would have ended the battle in their favor.

The Radiance had been more scared than Sectonia had thought. Perhaps much like herself, she shrugged off pain until it got too great to ignore? That would explain how they were able, upon some of her allies approaching the front of the train, able to take it out without as many hits as the arena itself. Sure the Radiance was in a blind fury, out of anger or fear, and thus not stopping her void globules as often, but it was still a relief. Using her conjured gemstone barricade, Ganondorf and the other melee bruisers were able to get up close and send the Radiance down into the darkness below, which ended up finishing her off. With her dead, her spirit drifted to the train with everyone. A spirit that Sectonia was interested in and grabbed.

Sectonia, having grabbed the guardian spirit, was interested in it. It had great power, and it wasn't half bad with its looks. Plus it would be difficult to ignore her beauty with such control over light. And did she mention it was powerful? Much more powerful than the other spirits she had grabbed earlier. Besides the first spirit she grabbed, the others hadn't been too great in terms of power. But outside of one, which she used the respec orb to get rid of, the others at least had some beauty to them. And there could be some untapped power she'd have to figure out. She hadn't gotten a chance of doing so recently as of late. And with that thought done, Sectonia assimilated the Radiance.



After assimilating the spirit and having a Rumor Honeybottom spirit in her hands, unsure of what to do with it for now. With that done, the dream ended and they found themselves back within the hollow knight temple. That was when an interesting surprise appeared before them. A terrified F whom 'saved' them from a still moving hollow knight no doubt trying to attack Sectonia due to her taking the Radiance's power. Sectonia could only look at him with skepticism and doubt; what was he planning this time? But perhaps she could take advantage of his terrified state if it wasn't a game. "Hmph, if you want to be helpful, giving some information would be a good start." Sectonia said. "What are the details behind the flame clocks? Why did P vanish without a spirit? And do you Consuls have a leader?"

Sectonia trusted F less than she did Ganondorf, whom she trusted less now for some reason; even though he had shown that he was at least quite strong and useful when pointed at something to destroy much like his other king cohort. So she wouldn't let him leave, at least not until she was done poking his brain. She did momentarily think about mind controlling him, but she doubted that would even work.

For a moment, Sandalphon’s gaze lingered on the crumbling corpse of what many would have considered the most powerful man in Midgar. Though a soldier first and foremost, both in occupation and in attitude, Karen Travers had been made into a celebrity throughout the entire metropolis, and yet for all his fame she knew no more about the man himself than she did Nox. Whether lurking in the Valley of Ruin or serving the public, both had harbored secret plans fueled by grand machinations, so ambitious that they demanded the reversal of time itself. But why? What tragedies could have necessitated such an incredible step? The same went for Mephisto and, to a lesser extent, Samuel Rodriguez. Ultimately, it didn’t matter one way or the other, but in a way that only added to her feeling of vague melancholy.

As an archangel, an instrument of divinity, Sandalphon could not hesitate when it came to meting out justice. That did not mean she had to do so unthinkingly, however. Neither could she gloss over the intense battle with a moment of cordial levity, as Goldlewis and Giovanna did. They’d all seen plenty of death, she knew. For humans, be they soldiers or assassins, desensitization sets in after a while. But not for her. Life was a glorious gift, and Sandalphon would never take it lightly.

For now, though, her struggle was far from over. As much as they needed a breather, the Seekers who eliminated Karen were quickly forced to address the elephant in the room: Tycoon. Susie had been doing her best to tank its assault for a while now, but without any means of forcing aggro, her presence had been incidental at best. That left it up to her allies to make real progress, and to his credit Zenkichi had been doing an amazing job. Once Mephisto met his end, Roxas and Pit lent their aid. The more progress they made, however, the more the Guardian let loose, unleashing spell after spell addressed to ‘whom it may concern’. With enormous AoEs going off left and right, the others couldn’t sit back even if they wanted to. Goldlewis, Giovanna, Sandalphon, Sakura, Karin, Midna, Roland, Blazermate, and Geralt joined in to finish the fight.

Right away, a torrent of bullets pounded the Guardian from the chaingun mounted on Midna’s warthog. Staying at long range minimized the risk of friendly fire, and made it easier to see (as well as avoid) Tycoon’s delayed lasers, so Goldlewis joined in with his Skyfish minigun. Hadokens aside, Sakura, Karin, and Giovanna had a harder time contributing, but Geralt could put her stunning new identity to work with a majestic artillery barrage of fireballs that left Tycoon burning. Even so, Sandalphon gave her comrade a run for her money. Tycoon didn’t move much, which meant that the archangel could brutalize its head with her Eye of Sol, limited only by how much she could reload–and Tycoon’s own spells. It cleverly delayed its own Magitek Crossrays to coincide with the detonation of its Artificial Gravity, obliging the Seekers to take great care when they repositioned. At one point, it cast a spell that conjured a sort of crystal above everyone’s heads, as well as rings around them. When she saw that these harbingers moved along with her teammates, Sandalphon turned her mind to mitigation. “Spread out. Don’t let the circles overlap.” When the spell finally went off, everyone took guaranteed damage, but the archangel was ready with Angelic Wings to keep everyone in top condition.

And then, before she and the others even knew it, the fight was over. Roxas unleashed a dazzling shower of light pillars, outdoing even Sandalphon in heavenly radiance. After the boy’s Magic Hour, Tycoon’s time was up. The reverse-engineered god went limp with a resounding, mechanical groan, falling apart with the mesmerizing calamity of a demolished building. As the Guardian faltered, the whole reactor shook, as if responding to its death throes. All around the walls, the enormous magical portals, windows that offered tantalizing views of myriad realms, began to shrink. Their closure violently severed the pipes, pumps, cables, and other machines built into the portals’ housing. An eruption reaction of sparks, explosions, and Mako leaks ensued. For a moment Sandalphon feared that the damage might cause a chain reaction that engulfed this whole place in a destructive fugue, but nothing so dramatic happened. The fuses blew, the failsafes kicked in, and the downward spiral quickly devolved into a controlled descent. While the damage looked irreversible, the system probably wouldn’t fail until its fuel reserves ran dry. Probably.

Once it became clear that the whole place wasn’t going to blow and lead to an elaborate escape sequence, Giovanna let out a sigh and crossed her hands behind her head. “Welp. Another one bites the dust.”


Her casual attitude impressed Goldlewis greatly, given how exhausted he was. By now, the Seekers had defeated the Arahabaki response teams, three bosses in their own right, the long descent through Deep Ground, the horde of Akira clones, Moebius Y, Travers’ Time Travellers, and Tycoon itself. They might be in good health thanks to Sandalphon and Blazermate, but all those fights back to back had taken their toll. As he caught his breath, Goldlewis looked relieved, but not happy, and not just because of his fatigue.

“What I don’t get is…” he began, undoing his new shotgauntlets so he could deposit them into his coffin. “What in sam hill does this all have to do with the Ever Crisis? ‘Find the source’, that’s what Miss Xatow said. But that thing wasn’t an Other, or a doggone chimera, despite all that hogwash Y pulled. So what’s the deal?”

He looked to Sandalphon for answers, and he was right to do so. The archangel had been thinking since the moment she arrived, and now, with her pupils in the shape of spinning loading symbols, she felt confident enough to give voice to her ruminations. “After the reports from the battle outside Midgar, I believe the Guardian was unaffiliated with the Machines as well. Nox’s designs on it confirm as much. So I posit that its allegiance, if it can be called that, is to Midgar itself. The Administration, and to the Consuls.” The archangel paused. “Furthermore, I believe it is the ‘source’, but not of the Ever Crisis.” She leaned on her gunstaff, scanning the reactor’s interior. “Consider the debate the night before last. Shinra said something, innocuous at the time, that may have a high degree of relevance now. When addressing the threat posed by so-called terrorist groups like Avalanche, he said that Mako energy has no impact on the environment, and gave the existence of the flourishing Valley of Ruin and Kunad Highway as proof. Indeed, those regions possessed enough life energy Nox made stealing it his declaration of war.”

Sandalphon conjured a handful of screens, depicting the environment around Midgar before and after Nox, various Mako reactors around the city, as well as the Cornice itself. “The news reports from the Avalanche attack on Mako Reactor 01 indicated no destruction or power loss as a result. So in truth, most if not all of the Mako reactors lie dormant. But this place is clearly a reactor, and very much in use.” She gestured at the Seekers’ surroundings. “Nox alleged that Tycoon possesses power over time, which it demonstrated after a fashion. It was clearly sustaining those portals somehow. And consider the machines around them.” Their loading concluded, her pupils reverted to power symbols as she nodded her head. “I believe that the Administration was using this machine to siphon Mako from other places, if not other times, in order to fuel Midgar while keeping up the appearance of sustainability.”

A moment passed before Giovanna said something. “Huh,” she chirped, not sounding particularly interested. “And with the Guardian gone…”

“A citywide blackout,” Sandalphon confirmed. “Possibly even before nightfall.”

Goldlewis heaved a big sigh. He’d been trundling around as Sandalphon spoke, examining the machines arrayed around the reactor, but in the end he only made one discovery: another one of those teleport pads, near the arena’s connecting bridge and activated after the Guardian’s defeat. “Guess we better get movin’ then.” He turned and waved at the others. “Reckon this’ll take us back out?”

Giovanna trooped over. “It’d be impressive if there was anywhere further in that it could take us,” she snarked. “Hopefully it works better than the last one.”

After taking a generous drink from her canteen of coffee, Sandalphon screwed the cap back on. “If this is the facility’s bottom, then anywhere else is better,” she reasoned, clicking toward the two on jet-black high heels. “Let’s go.”

The destination that awaited the Seekers on the other side proved to be better than Goldlewis would have thought, but worse than he hoped. Rather than the Shinra Building, or even the open air, he and the others found themselves in the colossal, foggy expanse of Arahabaki. Things up here looked just as the Seekers left them, except for the warning lights and intermittent alarm tones throughout the place. When he saw where the team ended up, Goldlewis harrumphed. “Bah. Guess we’ve got more hikin’ to do.” Slowly, his eye slid over toward Midna. “Unless you got any more o’ them portals in your back pocket, miss. Though I don’t know where in Midgar we’d go, knowin’ what we do.”

Sandalphon narrowed her eyes. The teleporter had brought them to the threshold of Deep Ground, where Karen used Truman Zanotto’s disembodied brain to open the way to the Guardian. “This may be a blessing in disguise,” she told the others, eying a very elaborate, full-body terminal attached to Arahabaki’s central column. “Unless I’m mistaken, this should be the interface with Arahabaki itself, where Travers made his announcement to all of Midgar.” She turned to the others. “We may be able to use it to do the same. Though it was not our intention, our actions will leave all of Midgar powerless. Warning the populace would be the responsible thing to do.” She shrugged. “And if anyone has anything else you’d like to tell every citizen, that would be within your rights as well.”

On the snowy night streets of Edinburgh MagicaPolis, a small group long split off from the Seekers of Light fought their way through skeletal mobs until they had reached a dark and lonely plaza. Though they'd lost a couple of allies in the process, with their detective leading the charge the group led two threats into the makeshift arena in order to take them down away from the city's vulnerable populace.

On one end of the courtyard, Big Band and Lucia took on the Revenant, as well as a host of other skeletal horrors. On the other, Ace and Albedo faced off against the monstrous Darkbeast Paarl.

A monster hunter by trade, the Ace Cadet had originally taken the initiative against the lightning-wreathed horror by drawing its attention to himself, setting up the separate fights for as little crossfire as possible. As the beast took the lure and stalked toward him, its head creaked to the side slightly to note Albedo moving to stand together with the hunter. The alchemist was not as heavily armored or equipped as his counterpart, but he was no less determined to defeat this nightmare in order to find his lost friend. It was part of the whole reason they were out here in the first place: locating Linkle, the latest Skullgirl.

"As I use my skills, my Geo will react with its Electro," Albedo told Ace as the gaunt horror approached. The hunter didn't look his way, but nodded to let the alchemist know he was listening. "Pick up the purple crystals to gain shields. They'll help immunize you against lightning but are too weak to take physical blows." He could spare no further time for explanation, as Paarl attacked. It lunged forward at its chosen target, jaw wide open in order to crush the Ace Cadet between its hard yellowed teeth. Fortunately the hunter was ready for it.

"Got it!" he told Albedo as he stepped in to meet the beast's lunge. In one motion he twisted and slammed the shield of the Master Bang up into its chin. It was a solid hit, but only part way to a true Shoryugeki on account of the unliving beast reacting far less than either swordsman would have liked.

Albedo slammed his palm to the ground, creating a Solar Isotoma to send out pulses of Geo energy as Paarl reared up on its hind legs. It came down with a double overhead slash, deceptively quick. The trail of electricity left behind as its claws raked through the air made the slashes themselves harder to see, even under pale moonlight. Its attack scattered the two Seekers, nicking the both of them as they tried to get out of the way. Even the relatively small hit carried with it the darkbeast's full weight, letting them know just how deadly the skeletal monstrosity was. Albedo strafed the beast, moving around to its backside. It twisted its neck around to watch him until the clanging of the Cadet's sword beating against his shield drew its attention back to him. "Let's do this."

Darkbeast Paarl's main form of attack was its claws, which was immediately obvious. Sometimes it would snap its teeth at the Geo construct that continued to send waves of energy out, or raise a back leg and stomp to try and dissuade the attack at his back, but it preferred to use its long front limbs to slash. This suited the Cadet just fine. Paarl was powerful, but he was fairly confident he could withstand glancing blows, and probably a few direct strikes too. He tried to keep all damage he took from glancing blows though, relying heavily on his shield for both offense and defense at this point.

The crackling of electricity joined the harsh, breathless wails Paarl let out with every swipe of its claws. The lightning covering its body seemed to keep increasing, the scraps of hair left clinging to its bones rising up from the static. Where his shield had the physical damage mostly covered, the elemental shield created from the crystals Albedo's Isotoma created handled the electric damage. After feeling the first jolt of electricity from the beast, the Cadet tried to pick up the purple gems as often as he could get away with while under attack.

Things were progressing slowly but steadily when Paarl suddenly turned away from him, spinning almost 180 degrees to tear its claws into the pest slashing its back legs. The surprise attack landed, knocking Albedo to the ground. He rolled with it, managing to come back up to a kneeling position while he felt over his front, assessing the damage.

The Cadet covered him, stepping back and then jumping in to stab its radial bone and kick up off of it for a slightly higher vantage point. He smashed his shield into its ribs, regaining Paarl's attention.

"You good, Albedo?" the Cadet asked from behind the shield, withstanding the beast's ire as turned to slash at him.

"Still within my threshold," he replied, which wasn't really a yes but also wasn't a no. To his credit, Albedo recovered quickly. He retaliated with a series of wide, swift strokes of his sword, punctuated with a thrust that buckled the monster's leg. It screeched and struck out wildly, turning on a dime to swing at either swordsman.

It alternated between its right and leg arms, striking quickly as it crawled over the area, crushing marble monuments underfoot.

"This thing's a real one trick bony, huh?" the Cadet said. He was getting into a decent flow now,

Albedo's brow furrowed slightly. I wouldn't be so sure, he thought, noting the gathering of electricity in the darkbeast's core. Sure enough, the darkbeast paused its relentless attacks so it could turn and back away from its assailants. It was still close enough that with one movement it could cleave either one of the two of them, but if they wanted to return the favor they'd have to get closer.

Both of them knew it was baiting them. While Albedo kept his distance the Cadet dashed in, surprising the alchemist. The growing pulses of electricity hadn't gone unnoticed by the Cadet, and he had a good idea of what they were building up to.

He was too slow to stop the blast; lightning burst violently out of the darkbeast's center in an area around it. The Cadet's shield had been raised but the electric eruption still pushed back, his feet sliding over stone while the electricity not absorbed by the elemental shield crackling around his form. He grit his teeth, glad he hadn't taken the full force of that. He also wasn't surprised to see that Paarl looked to be in an even more super charged state. It's body was covered in constantly moving bolts of lightning, and its ragged fur stood on end, making it look even more ghastly.

There was no further warning before Paarl was back on the attack. It still relied primarily on its claws, and its swings were no less visceral than before, but now they discharged a lot more electricity. Every swipe sent arcs of lightning running over the ground in several directions, furthering threatening the fighters even if they gave the claws themselves a wide berth. As the lightning rushed between the cracks in the stone courtyard, one could almost swear that they veered towards Ace and Albedo as though they were alive. It was a much too dangerous situation to leave unchecked for long, but if the burst and charging up were within the monster hunter's expectations, it stood to reason that a hard enough hit to knock it out of its charged state would work too.

"Get ready!" the Cadet called over to his ally somewhat cryptically. Thankfully, Albedo was versed in interpreting such call outs. The hunter moved, taking Paarl's attention with him. The field shifted so that now the Cadet and Albedo were nearer to each other, and the alchemist stepped onto the Isotoma and was lifted up into the air where he awaited his cue. The Cadet veered then, rushing in toward Paarl and leaping over a bolt of lightning as he did. This time he followed through with his Shoryugeki properly, bashing his shield up into the beast and forcing its head to snap back. The hunter jumped up for the downward slam portion ad the same time that Albedo jumped from his platform with a plunging attack, the double hit knocking Paarl to the ground and prematurely ending its charged state. Static discharged from the beast entirely, leaving it dark and empty looking.

The Ace Cadet and Albedo looked at each other, a little hopeful that that would be the end of it. Unfortunately the darkbeast began to rouse, standing back up more quickly than they'd expected. It screamed that high pitched ghostly wail and slashed at the two men with fervor, splitting them up once more. The Cadet dutifully kept close to the monster, taking the most of its offense.

Albedo's eyes flickered from the darkbeast to his Isotoma. By his calculation, the construct would be fading away in a few moments. While he had the energy, and the Ace Cadet had the beast's attention, it would be prudent to use his elemental burst.

The alchemist banished his sword for a moment, gathering the power of Geo in his hand. With a wave of his arm he produced his Tectonic Tide, causing Geo crystals to surge forward and burst out of the ground. Though they disappeared just as quickly as they'd formed, each one that struck Paarl dealt a heavy blow to its bones. The beast screeched as it staggered, left with an opening that the monster hunter was all too eager to take advantage of. The Cadet transitioned from his shield-focused fighting style into a Sword Dance, incorporating the blades on his rigging for even more cutting ability. Being a technique designed for attack hard body parts, the sword cut chunks into Paarl. At the same time, the second part of Albedo's Tectonic Tide went off; Fatal Blossoms of Geo energy shimmered and burst in mid-air around the Isotoma, ensuring that the undead monster was taking damage from all angles.

Under the assault, Paarl vibrated with energy. The space between its ribs began to glow again, signalling its impending explosion of lightning. Albedo distanced himself quickly before it went off, snagging some elemental crystals as he went - then the beast arching its back and letting out a violent screech as the electricity erupted in a wave around it. This time unprepared for the surge, the force sent the Cadet flying until he landed on his back a little ways away.

Darkbeast Paarl turned to Albedo then, its posture low and menacing. To the alchemist it evoked the image of a grim feline about to pounce, which meant he anticipated what came next. Paarl jumped, not high into the air but forward fast. It leapt at Albedo with both of its claws outstretched to try and catch him, covering the distance between them near instantly. He thought he'd avoided it entirely by dodging to the side, but Paarl had already demonstrated that its strikes were faster than they appeared. The elemental shield protected him from the electricity, but shallow slices appeared on the edge of his shoulder and abdomen. When the darkbeast's next swipe came down it seemed even faster; the large skeletal paw slammed down on Albedo, sending him to the ground and pinning him between its claws.

He winced, wounded, as the beast let its jaw hang open. Fortunately he didn't have to think of any quick escapes from its teeth; in the next moment the monster hunter's clutch claw wrapped around Paarl's face, and then the Cadet followed it. He used his full weight to slam into the side of Paarl's head, knocking it off balance enough for Albedo to squeeze out of its loosened grip.

Paarl thrashed for a few seconds before it seemed to realize its hanger-on wouldn't be shaken off so easily. Lightning ran from its fur and around its bones, arcing off the hunter too. He glanced down at Albedo, catching the other swordsman's eye and evaluating his well being. The alchemist was much more fragile than the Cadet - most people were. If he took any more heavy blows it wouldn't be good.

The Cadet may not have fought this particular beast before, but he had a plethora of experience to draw on. Paarl didn't fight desperately like a normal, living monster would before death, but even so its body language had been slowly shifting as an animal's would the more the swordsmen wore it down. And after Albedo's Geo light show, he deduced that it couldn't be far from collapsing. He could handle the rest. He'd be an embarrassment of a hunter if he couldn't.

"I'll take it from here!" the Cadet called while clinging to its head. With his legs holding on and his rigging's blades sunk as deep into the bone as they could get, the hunter used his strength to yank its face away from Albedo, forcing its body to follow. "Don't worry - I'm - a professional!" he followed up with, his words punctuated by grunts of exertion as he wrestled with it.

Albedo lingered, seemingly weighing the pros and cons of leaving the Cadet to face it alone. Eventually he acquiesced after summoning a Solar Isotoma to leave behind, retreating to a much safer distance. Just after he did, Paarl threw its head back and then smashed it directly into the ground, cracking the stone under the impact. This finally dislodged the Cadet; he'd braced himself for it, but damn did that hurt. Especially without his sturdier armor on.

The blow seemed to have affected Paarl as well, as the skeletal monster swayed for a moment before finding its feet again. Unwilling to let it completely recover, the Cadet found his own feet and sprung up into attacking. He came at the beast by swinging his shield arm forward, the motion similar to a right hook. The edge of the shield slammed into Paarl's jaw, hardly enough to even turn the monster's head - but the Cadet continued undaunted. He pressed forward, driving the shield's face head on into Paarl's. He heard something splinter and kept going, bringing his arm back again to strike with an even harder bash against the side of its skull.

The darkbeast wailed, scooting backwards to avoid the finishing round slash from the hunter's sword. Then it came right back, reaching in with its quick and brutal claw swipes. Now the hunter was back on the defensive, fending off the physical slashes and relying on the dwindling elemental shield to prevent the worst of the lightning from affecting him. Throughout the fight the Cadet had been getting more used to the speed of Paarl's slashing, making them easier for him to block. What was really worrying was that electricity was starting to flash in its chest cavity again already, putting the Cadet on alert. If he wanted to prevent it from charging itself up any more, which he very much did, he'd have to act fast.

The Cadet raised his shield up to stop an overhead slash and slipped out from under the darkbeast's claws, sprinting underneath its body toward the Isotoma on the other side of it. Paarl shifted, lowering itself to spin around in a flash. It dragged lightning through the air with its claws as it lashed out, this time managing to catch its prey. Blood splashed over the ground, ripped from the Cadet's arm and back. It was all he could do to keep upright and not go sprawling to the ground. When he made it to the Isotoma he stepped onto it like he'd seen Albedo do before, and a flower-like construct ferried him up into the air. Paarl's eyeless gaze followed him, and from the new vantage point the Cadet could really see the number he and Albedo had done on the beast. Splinters and fractures littered the bones of its skeleton, especially in areas where entire pieces had been broken off. The sight encouraged the Cadet, and he leapt off the small platform. He practically dove toward Paarl with a helm breaker, his sword held overhead in both of his hands. When the blade struck it shook the monster enough to knock it back out of its charged state, and the hunter drove it down toward the ground. Its skull cracked against the stone, rattling its whole body.

Paarl fell, collapsing into a heap. It didn't move even as the Cadet, who had landed on top of it, climbed off of the pile of bones. It didn't move, but neither did it disintegrate, keeping the Cadet on edge. Is it dead? Re-dead?

A chill ran down the red head's spine. Slowly, the beast started to rise. It dragged its head up off of the ground, the whole skull titled at the wrong angle on its neck. Its body made a horrible grinding sound as it tried to stand, not that the hunter was going to let it. The Cadet raised his shield, bringing it down hard on the split that was starting to spread through its skull thanks to the continued abuse from Albedo and himself. The steel acted like a hammer and wedge in one, crumbling the bone.


At great length, the Darkbeast Paarl hit the ground for the final time, the horrendous creaking of its fractured bones falling silent as its uncanny electric aura sparked its last. That monstrosity had just refused to die, a far more dogged nightmare than its Revenant counterpart despite the other terror’s high-tech equipment. Band, Lucia, and Albedo looked on warily from a distance, waiting to make sure that the undead werewolf would actually stay down this time. All three were beat, tired and sore from fighting with no dedicated healer to take the edge off. It had been only hours since the not-so-silent night had fallen over Edinburgh MagicaPolis, but with no end to the skeletal hordes, it felt like forever. Even Ace was feeling it by now, and if he wanted to prioritize his own well-being with what minor healing he possessed, Big Band couldn’t blame him. The Cadet was not that kind of man however; he was happy to share what he had with others, even in dire straits. Maybe especially in those times.

"Nothin' to it," the Cadet joked, his voice cracked and quieter than normal, as he wiped the blood from the side of his face. After collecting the mighty beast's spirit and grouping back up with the others, he offered them the last of his potion stock before indulging himself. Band graciously declined, as did Albedo, and though Lucia’s denial was less believable, she did the same.

Of course, the four didn’t believe for a moment that their opposition ended with Paarl. As their battles raged within the circular monument plaza, more skeletons had trickled in. Rather than interfere with the fights, they watched eerily from afar, forming a scattered perimeter around the plaza’s edges. With them around, the place seemed even more bleak and lifeless. This area seemed like a historical district, unpopulated but preserved for its religious or other ceremonial significance. What few workers or residents remained couldn’t possibly be sleeping after all this commotion, but none dared to poke their heads out their doors or peer through their shutters. The Seekers were surrounded and, except for one another, alone. When it became clear that Paarl was well and truly defeated, however, the skeletons recoiled. They remained at a respectful distance, giving the fighters who’d just felled some of their strongest brethren a wide berth. In that uneasy moment, everyone could hear subtle whispers swelling against the background noise of polar winds, whistling across the faces of buildings and through the wrought-iron fences.

“Hmph,” Band grunted after a moment, easing up just a touch. With his heart rate slowing, the cold was setting in, and with each breath he took his instruments gave off puffs of warm mist. “Looks like they know what’s good for ‘em, after seein’ all that.” He wasn’t about to let his guard down though. These skeletons weren’t attacking, but they weren’t retreating, either. In fact, it seemed to him as if they were waiting. Probably for reinforcements. Hopefully for the Skullgirl.

It wasn’t long before Band got his answer. One of the buildings attached to the plaza, antiquarian enough in design to be anything from a museum to a temple, gave out a loud creak as its front doors pushed open. Barely illuminated in the feeble light of magic lamps, a very small skeleton sidled through the gap, his little purple cape fluttering in the frigid breeze. He jogged down the steps and took hold of the wrought iron gate at the bottom, which he pulled ajar with great effort. Some of the nearby skeletons came over to help, and after their combined efforts opened the gate, the little one waved to the Seekers, beckoning.

Band pursed his lips, his nose wrinkled and his eyes narrowed. “Much as I don’t like the look of that, it seems like someone wants to meet us.” He slowly looked over at the others out of the corner of his eye.

“A truce, maybe? They mighta realized they can’t drive us oahff with brute foahce,” Lucia reasoned. As much as they’d worked to earn a little satisfaction, Band hoped her boast wasn’t pre-emptive.

Albedo remained deadpan. “Or, for the same reason, it could be a trap.”

"I don't think so," the Ace Cadet said. His gaze was on the dark passageway beyond the gate, focused, apprehensive. "This is Linkle, remember?"

Cursed or not, there was no way the monster hunter believed that Linkle would set a trap for them. She'd been helping them out too, or trying to, despite her affliction. Albedo had traveled with her, surely he knew that too and was just trying to be objective. It was a good thing, because the Cadet couldn't be. He wanted to help their friend. His hands closed into tight fists.

Regardless, they wouldn’t achieve anything backing down now. This was the best chance the Seekers had to do what they came for, and walking headfirst into dangerous territory was nothing new. The four readied themselves and heeded the little skeleton’s summons, advancing toward the building. As they approached, the other skeletons shrank back to let the team pass, and the little one turned to guide them onward. After ascending the stairs, they entered the cathedral.

It was quiet. Ominous. Every wall was a gallery of recesses separated by pillars, most with eerie, larger-than-life statues of unified material and theme, if not composition. Though the darkness in here made it tantalizingly difficult to make out the details, Band felt sure that none of those marble figures, no matter their forms or postures, were quite human. He tried not to let his eyes rove through the huge interior space too much, though the vaulted ceilings invited him to turn his gaze to the balconies high above, where many more empty sockets stared down at him. He kept his focus on the very front of the cathedral, where in place of an altar, there sat the statue of a hooded woman with a bronze, mechanical figure sprawled across her lap. Moonlight poured through the tall glass window behind her, as well as from the domed skylight above, and snowflakes drifted through the broken glass. There, sitting on the marble curve of the saintess’s robe, nestled between the limp arm of the bronze machine and the side of his torso, sat the Skullgirl.



She wore a tattered cloak of dark green, its hood over her milk-pale face. The hair that lined her face and spilled from her hood in twin braids blazed a bright blue, like frozen flame. From two holes on either side extended plumes of the same icy inferno, resembling rabbit ears. She wore a faded burgundy suit of what might be leather, with sleeves and legs that flared out over metal gloves and greaves. Beneath her choker, what little skin would’ve been visible seemed to be blue-tinged and transparent, allowing the newcomers to see her spinal cord and collarbone. This gave her face the unsettling appearance of a mask, a false shred of humanity worn on a lifeless body.

“She’s too far gone,” Band whispered beneath his breath, almost imperceptibly.

The Skullgirl’s eyes slid open. They were a radiant, nightmarish scarlet, each iris containing half of a skull. For a moment her face tightened in an expression of instinctual annoyance, as if she’d just been awoken from a pleasant slumber. Then her eyes filled with sorrow. Misery. Regret. When she spoke, her voice was slightly hollow. Resonant. As if fathomless masses backed her voice with the faintest of whispers.

“Why… are you here?”

It was a few moments before anyone spoke. It wasn't easy to reconcile the visage of the person in front of them with that of their lost friend. The Skullgirl was uncanny, and the haunting, almost mystical look about her unnerved the Cadet. He could feel his palms perspiring and his throat tighten. At his hip, the scoutflies that would normally remain their neutral green while safe in their cage slowly began to emit a reddish glow in the presence of the Skullgirl - though it was already obvious that she was dangerous. But underneath the eerie blue and bone motif, there was a heroic girl hurting. Her eyes said as much. Linkle was still in there.

Wasn't she?

The Cadet swallowed the lump in his throat and took a step forward.

"Linkle... Long time no Ceadeus, huh?" he started, though even he could barely spare a smile at his icebreaker. He continued then, spreading his hands in front of him. "We're here to help you."

A certain party member had alternative reasons for seeking her out, though the Cadet remained ignorant to them for the moment, the optimistic spark in his heart a little too bright to see them.

"We've been looking for you since you disappeared from the Dead Zone. Nadia... Ms. Fortune told me what happened there, and Albedo filled us in on the rest. You've been fighting that curse alone, right? But you don't have to! We'll find a way to break it together. Okay?"

Before it's too late. Before more people get hurt.

Linkle turned her downcast eyes to the floor. “I’d like that. I really would. But…”

Lucia and Band kept quiet, whether out of apprehension or deference. As Ace spoke, though, Albedo stepped forward to throw his support behind the hunter’s words. “Linkle. I only had the pleasure of meeting you after whatever happened,” he began. “But I’ve seen your courage and kindness for myself. Even in this state, you went out of your way to help people. Like Treat, Tuley, and Skadi. It doesn’t matter what you look like. You have the spirit of a hero. But saving the world is too great a burden for any one hero. Please, don’t give up on us.”

Well said. To Band, it sounded rather like he’d been workshopping this speech. Once he finished, Band finally spoke up. “Don’t let the Skull Heart win,” he urged, holding out a faint hope that there was anything left but the Skull Heart to address.

“I don’t want to!” Suddenly Linkle looked up, her lips pursed and her eyes narrowed as she stared at her four visitors. “I’m fighting back as hard as I can, I really am. Every single day. But I’m only human. The voices…they’re wearing me down. Like sandpaper on my soul. And the more they strip away, the more I understand.” She paused, her expression one of pity. “Listen. At first, I was convinced that I had to run away. That I would only hurt you if I lost myself. But maybe that was the Skull Heart talking, because things got so much worse so fast…I realized it was my friends who were keeping me, well, me. And I want you back. Even if the old me is gone, I think I can keep from sinking any deeper as long as I have friends.”

Despite her hollow timbre, Band could hear the powerful emotion in her voice. He got the sense she’d been wanting to say this for a while. As for why she’d been so hesitant to do so, he suspected that she was about to say.

The detective’s guess was right on the money. “But I don’t want to lie to you, so there’s something you need to know. About how bad things really are. I was planning to take it to my grave, since I figured it’d be too much for anyone else. But if you really want to help me… I can tell you.” As she prepared herself to ask a question she already knew the answer to, Linkle put on a wry smile. “Will you listen?”

"Of course!"

The Cadet knew they were far from out of the woods yet regarding Linkle's condition, but the fact that she was still herself in part - that she wanted help and was willing to let them do what they could for her - came as a real relief. He was glad that Albedo had come with them and spoken up, agreeing with all of the alchemist's words. Now he didn't know what Linkle was going to tell them, she made it sound grim and heavy, but he was more than willing to hear out anything she had to say. If she wanted her friends back she'd have them. "What else are friends for, right?"

Linkle took a deep breath in through her nose. “Well…alrighty, if you insist.” Then gathered herself up and jumped down from the statue, animated by a trace of hopeful energy. Despite the long shadow she cast, Albedo noticed that the Skullgirl was actually the shortest person here now that she stood before him. Her slight smile turned wry, a little sheepish even, which was an odd expression for an undead abomination to make. “This is…well, it’s gonna sound creepy no matter what, so there’s no avoiding it. I can sort of…sense…the dead. All around me. I don’t hear their voices or anything, but still, it’s almost like they’re calling me. Begging me to be revived. As to why that’s a problem, beyond the obvious I mean, well…”

After fidgeting uncomfortably for a moment, she crossed her arms. “I guess I should start at the beginning, since none of you were there. The first thing I remember is about a week ago, showing up on this hillside way, way south of here. I was still brainwashed, and for whatever reason I was attacking this poor little guy named Kirby. There were others, too. Bowser, Blazermate, Courier 6, Michael, Tora, Geno. At first I thought that’s when the World of Light got made, but the farther we went, the more people we found with memories that went back longer. Like Peach, she said she’d been cooped up while the Rabbids and the robots were fighting for…months, I think?”

That matched up with what the Cadet knew. He had spent more than a few weeks living in Lumbridge until the Seekers had swept through. Before that things were fuzzy, and before that all he recalled were memories from his original, home world. He nodded at Linkle, encouraging her to continue, but... well, he had sort of braced himself for some awful revelation regarding her curse. It had started like that, but he didn't know what her tangent had to do with it. The hunter realized that he must have misinterpreted what she meant when she said "how bad things really are."

Linkle ran her hand over her head, slicking back her own rabbit ears, which popped up again the moment she let them go. “So…what I’m saying is, memories aside, there’s no telling how long the World of Light’s been around. Except that…you know, as time goes by, more and more people die. A city’s population might stay the same, but the dead just pile up, and up, and up…” She narrowed her eyes. “You…you see what I mean, right? Even while constantly trying to suppress my power, I’ve been raising the dead without even meaning to. There’s just so many of them. I can feel them, everywhere. You don’t get that many dead people in a week or two. Or in months. Or years.” She swallowed. “Or…decades. To me, it feels like people have been living, fighting, and dying in this world for…for centuries.”

For several long moments, no one in the cathedral spoke. Even the muted bone rattling of the undead around them quieted down in the face of the Skullgirl's confession. Ace's eyebrows shot up in surprise. That was the last thing he had expected her to say, and it took him a bit to process it.

"Centuries? That can't be, I mean- that's... that's crazy, right?" Though he said that, at face value he believed Linkle's words. He had no reason not to, and with her curse giving her special insight into the dead, what she'd said was just about the only theory that made sense if there were really that many souls calling out to her.

He cast a look at Band, Lucia, and Albedo. "That Galeem thing has been abducting people- whole planets- for hundreds of years...?!"

The others were having as much trouble grappling with it as he was. Lucia had one hand on her hat, a dismayed look on her face. Albedo kept his expression impassive as he wrote in his notebook, noting down every detail but saying nothing. Big Band was shaking his head, his wide eyes showing just how flabbergasted he was. After a moment he swallowed, and opened his dry mouth to speak. “It’s crazy alright. I wanna say it ain’t possible, but to tell the truth, I got nothin’ to back that up. Just lemme think…” He scrunched his brows together at Linkle. “You said the first thing you remember’s a week ago?” As she nodded, he took a long, slow breath. “Well, for me…let’s see. One thing at a time. I joined y’all back in the Sandswept Sky in Al Mamoon. Peacock and I arrived by train ‘bout a week before that. Took the Owl Express outta the Forbidden Kingdom, veerin’ south past the Valley o’ Ruin. Before that we spent a couple months in Snowbelle City. Before that…” He paused, uncertain. “Anythin’ further back than a year, and it’s hard to say.”

“At least ya got that fah, I can’t even remembah back a full yeah,” Lucia chimed in, looking a little horrified. “That’s supah weahd. The hell’s wruong with me?”

Albedo lowered his notebook, thinking. “So the working theory is that Galeem is attacking different worlds and pulling their people into the World of Light over time?” He crossed his arms. “We would need to corroborate a shared timeframe with two freed individuals from the same world. Before that, though, there’s something to consider. Galeem itself.” From inside this cathedral he couldn’t see the night sky, but when the clouds had parted earlier, he’d seen the World of Light’s architect. “I haven’t been watching constantly, but whenever I look toward the continent’s center, I can see Galeem there. I believed it to be inactive. However, it could also be a fake.” He put his hand on his chest. “As for me, I can remember events over a year in the past. Plenty of people have come and gone during that time, but I didn’t think anything of it.” He shook his head. “There’s too much we don’t know.”

“You know who probably does, though?” Band interjected suddenly. “Those damn Consuls, L and N. We get our hands on one, and we can grill ‘em for all they’re worth. Forget all this worryin’ and fussin’, so what if the world’s been around a long time? Our goal’s the same.”

Centuries. The Cadet's mind was still reeling even as he processed what Band said. Missing persons case, tales of people being spirited away, ships and caravans that vanished and never reached their destination... could it have been the result of "this"? Being brought to a weirdo patchwork world? Or maybe it was possible this was some kind of shared after life? The hunter absolutely did not want to consider those kinds of implications. He shook his head subtly, then put on his best determined face.

"Big Band's right. There's still a bunch of people and places to set free from Galeem's mind control. So whether that ball of light up there's a fake, or it's been kidnapping people for hundreds of years... we can get the answers as we go.

"And the Consuls trying to stop us from getting those answers? We'll deal with 'em. It'll be better with you fighting with us again, Linkle. And it’ll be easier to help you when we’re with you."

The Cadet looked at her again. Her appearance, and the feel of her overall presence, was still surreal. He smiled though, an expression that read everything is gonna be okay. They'd find a way to purge her curse as part of the answers they sought. He extended his hand toward the Skullgirl.

It was the monster hunter’s bright smile that seemed to shine through the last of Linkle’s doubt. Her dreadful news clearly hadn’t been the deathblow to the heroes’ morale that she thought it would be. Ace, Band, Albedo, and even a new face like Lucia all appeared to be as determined as ever to right the world of light’s wrongs. Linkle took a deep breath. “Now I feel bad for doubting you guys.” She leaned forward to reach down and accept Ace’s hand, then hopped down from the statue, landing among the others.

Compared to all of them, even Albedo and Lucia, Linkle was surprisingly short face-to-face. Too young and too kind a girl to bear such a heavy burden, Band reckoned. Right now though, it wasn't melancholy that the detective felt. How could it be, when they’d managed to get through to Linkle, and bring her back from the brink and into the fold? It almost surprised him to realize that for a moment, he’d forgotten all about the monster she was destined to become. In that moment he’d seen only the poor girl who’d nearly lost herself, but refused to succumb. Their eyes met briefly, and a flicker of knowing passed between them. Linkle had no future. That was an inescapable fact, and she knew it. Yet somehow she resolved to carry on, and fight for a brighter tomorrow that she’d never see for herself.

“You’re strong,” he told her, his voice low and his respect clear. “A whole lot stronger than me.”

Despite everything, Linkle smiled. “A hero never gives up. If I’m gonna be one someday, neither can I.”

The Cadet chuckled incredulously at the girl's humility and patted her on the shoulder. As far as he was concerned anyone that had been part of the campaign so far was one, especially Linkle, despite her present condition. He withdrew his hand from the Skullgirl's cool frame and crossed his arms, the metal pieces on his coat and gauntlets clinking together softly.

He was immensely glad that they didn't have to do battle with Linkle, and even more so that she decided to give herself a fighting chance. Or so he thought; it was impossible for the monster hunter to know the inescapable consequences of accepting the Skull Heart. Still, after getting separated from Nadia and the rest of the Seekers, learning the fate of Smash City Alcamoth and the allies they'd left there, and challenging Consul N and losing... the good guys really needed a win. Linkle did too, after what she'd been through. Coming together like this was that win - and it was only the first part. Together, they'd tackle the Consuls and her curse.

"Gargwawesome. We should all probably rest and plan our next move. But..." The Ace Cadet glanced up and around at the skeletons that still lined the cathedral before looking back at Linkle. "What can we do about all the boneheads skull-king around? You said you can't help raising them?"

Linkle pursed her lip and inhaled, nodding. “Yes, but they’re loyal. Mostly. I’ve been trying to keep them out of trouble, but this isn’t a good power, and plenty of bad things have died around here. They’re not all bad though.” As she spoke, the short skeleton with the purple cape came over to stand next to her, his presence -small but determined- reassuring. Linkle patted him on the skull, which seemed to please him. “They’ll help us when it’s time to fight. I need to avoid using my powers if I can, I think they’re tainted the Skull Heart now. So it’s skeletons and crossbows for me.”

While Band wasn’t sure that he bought the idea that any of these reanimated monstrosities could be good, he knew that he and the others needed all the help they could get. If Linkle had an idea of what did and didn’t worsen her condition, that was a good start. An Anti-Skullgirl soldier workin’ with a Skullgirl, huh? he thought with a sigh. Really is rainin’ cats and dogs. “Right, y’all. We made ourselves an unlikely friend. What’s next?”

Albedo stood with his arms crossed, clearly already thinking about the team’s next course of action. “Our current goal is the Consuls. It stands to reason that they pose the greatest threat to our overall mission, and they also possess critical information. Given N’s demonstrated might, we must assume that L is at least as powerful. Fighting them one at a time would be our best course of action. We’ve already been to what I assume is L’s home, but I highly doubt she’ll be waiting there for us to challenge her.”

Furrowing his brow, Band recalled a couple choice words. “The Flame Clock. Sounded important to L at least. Ring any bells?”

“Flame Clock…” Linkle repeated beneath her breath, thinking. “Sorry, I haven’t seen anything like that.” Her eyebrows rose suddenly. “But my skeletons might. I’ll have them search the city. Uh… as quietly and not-scarily as possible.”

“That wahks,” Lucia remarked. As much as these skeletons sent shivers down her spine, she’d rather them be working for her than against her.

Band nodded. “She’s probably long gone by now, but if the Flame Clock’s where they go when the goin’ gets tough, we’ll know where to find ‘em.”

“One other thing,” Linkle piped up. “Last night, I fought N. We ran into each other after nightfall at the magic library. I guess we were both looking for you. His power’s nasty, but…well, to keep things brief, it was a stalemate.” She forced herself to smile. “So when we do find him, I’m sure we can defeat him together!”

Unfortunately, her confidence did not leave Band reassured. If the Skullgirl could hold off the man who took his team four-on-one, she might already be too strong. But for now, he had to trust her. Or at least in the fellow heroes that trusted her. “...Right.”

"Definitely," the Cadet said, agreeing with Linkle. He clapped the detective on his broad back, hoping to instill some of the optimism he currently felt. Especially since the last day or two had been nearly devoid of it. "If we can get through that weird power of his."

In general the Cadet was of the same mind as Lucia - the skeletons creeped him out, but he would let Linkle handle them as best she could. He put his focus back onto the Flame Clock that Band brought up, seeing as that was the best lead they had at the moment.

"I hope that Flame Clock's a 'we'll know it when we see it' kind of thing." The hunter could only really conjure an image in his mind of a regular old clock on fire. Or one that was filled with fire. Actually, that reminded him of something... After a brief moment of thought, the Cadet turned to Lucia with raised eyebrows. "Hey, didn't you say there was a big yellow clock at the top of the pumpkin? It couldn't be that, could it?"

Linkle’s own brows shot up as she whirled to face Lucia, followed by the gaze of everyone else.

For a moment, the policewoman just blinked at them, her eyes wide. Then she let out a breathless chuckle. “Well, I’ll be dahned. That’s proabably the one. In Edinburgh it don’t get moah high an’ mighty than that.” She scratched her neck, slightly mortified.

“On top…?” Band’s eyes widened as he peered through the church’s frosted window toward the snowbound city’s most incredible landmark. With the Eiffel Tower forming just the peak of the witch’s hat atop the pumpkin that contained the whole Nyakuza Metro, its size was astronomical to the point of absurdity. Despite everyone’s relative proximity to it, it towered to such heights that the pinnacle would’ve still been visible above the hat’s gear-shaped brim if not for the cloudy sky. He whistled. “Hate to say it, but that’s a high note I don’t think I can hit.”

Albedo crossed his arms. “I’m sure there are other ways up. But they could conceivably take so long that if we attempt to pursue a Consul there, he or she may finish with the Flame Clock long before we get there.”

“If only we had a choppah oah somethin’,” Lucia remarked, nodding sadly.

“Well, that’s one problem solved!” Linkle piped up. The irony of the Skullgirl being the ray of positivity alongside Ace was not lost on Band. “Once we figure out a way up there, all that’s left is to take the fight to the Consuls.”

Once again Albedo stepped in to help. “We can use their overconfidence against them. They believe they have all the power, and may not hesitate to step into a trap.”

Band snapped his metal fingers. “What about L’s ‘collection’? She said she ‘curated’ those poor folks from all over in order to keep ‘em forever. I bet she wouldn’t sit idly by if we went and smashed the place up. And N said he doesn’t give a rat’s ass about her stuff, too.” His eyes narrowed. “It’ll leave a bad aftertaste, I know, but in the end there ain’t anythin’ there but frozen ash.”

“And when we defeat her, we can get the secret of the Highland’s Guardian out of her,” Albedo said, skirting around the issue of L’s ‘specimens’.

Ace Cadet looked back and forth between the small gathered group, smiling at the newfound energy. After a long and harrowing night it was impossible not to feel the weariness really starting to set in, but one goal completed and a new one to work towards kept the worst of it at bay.

"Alright, this is sounding like a plan!" he said, bringing his hands together in one enthusiastic clap. If they pulled this off, the catharsis alone would be worth it in his opinion, not to mention everything they stood to gain by succeeding. "And now we know where to start."

Of course step one of investigating the massive pumpkin's clock and securing a quick way up would have to wait until after some rest. Still, progress was progress, and it was about time things swung back in the heroes' favor.

A man of mysterious origins and steely cold calculating eyes, set out from the desolate Dirtmouth, his heart heavy with the burden of his past. Before he descended into the ominous Chasm, and the darkness enveloped him, echoing the shadows of his own soul lingered in his thoughts.

Memories of his imprisonment haunted his every step as well as the night he lost everything, driving him forward in search of the heroes who could help him break free from his chains both physical and emotional still bound by an ill influence and maybe use them to find Harvey - the man who took everything from him, the thought of his former colleague made Osvald's knuckles cracked as he balled them up into tight fists.

Ozvald's resolve was tested time and time again. When bandits attempted to ambush him long before his descent, his magical prowess shone through. With a flick of his hand, he cast a spell that ignited the would-be thieves burning them and causing most of them to flee leaving a few stragglers for the scholar to deal with.

They used rusty, dull blades the five of the highwaymen though seemingly capable fighters fell easily to the scholars magic, pitiful as it was he was thankful that when he faced the couple left they were not as difficult to take down as he would assume they would in a group, taking one out with a solid punch to the stomach while the other came at him with a short sword the burly man barely had time to move getting caught by it his arm gushed blood - so much for not a difficult fight.

Enraged the scholar incinerated the last of the thieves and fell on his side repressing the urge to hiss in pain, holding down the gash on his arm he clenched his teeth bringing a hand over the wound a small flame appeared in the center of his palm seething in agony as he burned his own flesh to cauterize the injury.

In the aftermath he salvaged what he could from their assortment of glowing spirits, stripping himself and donning the burned tatters of whatever clothing he could as he crushed an orb. He hesitated to do what he recalled the knight did, absorbing spirits seemed to have dramatic effects so he crushed only a few too cautious of the effects.



A mix of determination and compassion flickered in his eyes as he stowed his newly acquired blade at his side, a silent acknowledgment of the harsh realities of survival in this unforgiving world, though it was a necessary evil and breathing a shaky breath as he got to his feet the scholar muttered "A worthwhile endeavor."

Besides those men - If they even were men any more fought like mindless zombies attacking him with their swords and daggers wildly. He perished the thought looking onward, he limped forward continuing on his way down through the dark with only the light of a flame in his hand to guide him.

This deep chasm extends for an immense distance below the surface, offering a gateway to hidden realms below.

At the base of the Chasm lie ancient ruins that Osvald was determined to reach hearing traders and miners alike speak of something down there he expected he would likely not be far behind the "Seekers", embarking on a perilous descent using mining shafts and peculiar square waterfalls the scholar made his journey deeper below closer to his goal.

By the time Midna had blinked her sight back, it was all over, and whatever machine had been built around Tychoon began to fall apart. The gateways which she hadn’t really paid attention to due to being focused on fighting collapsed, tearing apart the machinery that had been going through them.

”Huh, I wonder what that was all for?” Midna asked nobody in particular, and then, much too late, got a very bad feeling about this. C had, after all, just said that they had no idea what the consequences of their actions were going to be, and he was very much right. Well. That she didn’t know anyway. Sandalphon worked it out in short order, and it was very bad news.

At least that’s the impression she got, she didn’t exactly know what a ‘citywide blackout’ was exactly, but she could infer that it wasn’t going to be a good time.

”How much of the city’s… everything is going to stop working? Is there nothing else they can use in its place? The actual reactors maybe, if they are off?” Midna asked. Not that she was exactly in favor of draining life from the world or however those worked, but ”It only has to keep running till we win, seeing as this is going away once we do” she suggested.

For Sandalphon, Midna's first few questions were a matter of guesswork, but she tried to provide perspective as best she could. "I am no electrician, but I can only imagine that the power needs of this city are truly staggering. Even if we could get the systems running in time, the region might not have enough life energy left to meet those needs, thanks to Nox."

Speaking of both Nox and power sources, the man had abandoned his at the start of the fight, and her eyes ended up drifting over to where it now lay, the untold amounts of life force it had held spent to undo his own victory and nothing more. It had also driven him mad, despite being just an energy storage device according to Sandalphon which might have dissuaded others from picking it up.

Midna on the other hand, who was presently wearing a madness inducing artifact as a hat, was fairly sure she could handle it. Just to be safe however, she formed and used her shadow hand to pick it up, the great orange glowing limb pinching the cube between thumb and forefinger, and then bringing it close to inspect.

It felt heavy in her hand, though not so much with mass but with import. It also seemed to have a lingering mote of power as well, she could see, as she brought it close to her face. She moved a hand to slip aside the mask she was wearing, the lens was damaged and getting in the way of a detailed inspection, only for the fracture lines along it to close back up, fully and perfectly repaired without so much as a hint of fanfare.

”What?” she asked, slipping off the mask and turning it around in her hand, confirming its repaired state with her own eyes. She made a little surprised sound at the sight, before hanging the half mask around her neck and then saying ”Well, aren't you a handy little thing?” to the cube.



In short order she’d used it to repair her broken tree spear, failed to find enough bits of her pistol to repair it, and then realized she could use this to fix the caved-in armor on her darknut.

”We really need to find a way to make you more durable, don’t we thing?” she said as she was patching up the undead knight ”Nearly everything we’ve faced that’s dangerous just ripped through you. That mech was way better… oh! Well there’s one way to solve that isn’t there?”

At this point they’d moved up through the one available teleporter out of the generator, and ended up next to the mainframe computer that controlled the city. She didn’t really have the know how to use it however, so instead she just answered and asked a few questions.

”Think it can tell us how much time the city has left power wise, and if there’s a way to turn on the other reactors? Also anything else we can really use? Such as why the regime was making Others in the first place?” she asked first

The archangel could make no suppositions about the inner workings of Shinra's power infrastructure. "I am unsure. Given the sheer scale of this facility, not to mention the city itself, restoring it to its original configuration could be an infeasibly gargantuan undertaking." When Midna mention Others, however, Sandalphon seemed to be at a loss. "Making Others...?"

Goldlewis realized that, as a member of DespoRHado down in Detroit, the healer must have seldom, if ever, interacted with an aspect of the Ever Crisis that mostly concerned the psionics of the plates above. "Uh, to be specific, she means targeted metamorphosis, not all Others." He stroked his whiskers. "I reckoned it was a way to assassinate their enemies all stealthy-like, turnin' 'em into monsters nobody'd think twice about killin'." The veteran's brows furrowed. "Now that I think about it, though, we never figured out how to stop Others droppin' from the Extinction Belt. That ain't good..."

”Still a strange thing to have developed in the first place, right?” she replied, but she had to admit, that even if they did work it out, it wasn’t a solution. None of the questions she’d asked had solutions, it seemed.

She did at least have one of her own, and that was ways of how to get out of here: ”I’ve got enough power to make one more, but I did also make one down in the guardian’s room to escape the massive explosion attack. If we can get back down, we should use that”

”As for places we can go in the city, that’d be the entrance of this place, the S.O.U. Building, the Seiran Clinic, two in the city of glass, and one in the underway subway tunnels out in the outskirts. Only useful one that doesn’t just put us back in the desert or up a mountain is the virgin victory, which is out in Port Meridian west of here. If it’s fixed, we could fly it anywhere, assuming it doesn’t get attacked again” she wasn’t exactly for that however. They’d come to solve the ever crisis, and by all accounts, they’d just made it worse by undermining the city at every turn, regardless of how corrupt it had been.

Questions asked and answered, she got back to the whole improving her darknut situation, resummoning it and applying the spirit of Roadblock to its chest.



”Well would you look at that, I’ve been needing a replacement shield-” Midna commented as that one appeared, grabbing it with two hands before it could fall on her foot ”- bit heavy though. Still, if it works it works”

Among the other items produced there were some additional useful oddities. The icy knife was bizarre in form but felt swift and deadly in hand to Midna, though her analysis was that it would be good to sneak into weak spots rather than specifically into the back. The Psi Stone meanwhile might have been awkward to use for some, but she figured she could blast with it, and then chuck it into a portal to free up her hand, which would work rather well.

As for the last bit of equipment she ended up asking ”Anyone need a helmet? It is nice to see all your pretty faces but it would be wise to protect them” in a bit of hypocrisy given she was basically only wearing a helmet for protection. Maybe, she thought, she should change that.

Then finally the geode, weird eye and card were stashed for when she could work out what in the world they were for. Or, more likely, worth.

With that all out of the way, all that was left was to try and avoid going blind from any and all other flashes of fusion going on, as well as sit back and see if anyone who knew how to work the computer would find any value in doing so. That and see if anyone was going to be the bearer of bad news to the city. Their premier hero and leader were both dead, their power about to fail, who knew how bad the machine attack had gotten outside without them. Things were not looking good.

”Only thing we can hope for is that Nox’s giving up puts a damper on the machine army. Do we think that without their leader they’ll just, well, stop?” she asked, very much hoping that it was a take of the king of evil’s head and his armies melted away sort of situation.

When Midna asked about the Machines, Sandalphon nodded stiffly. "Not Nox, per se. While we made our way through Deep Ground, the Machines clashed with Midgar's defenders just outside the city. I've been receiving reports from YoRHa operatives the whole time, and according to them, the loss of two humanoid units -known as Adam and Eve- left the enemy force leaderless and unable to fight. By now, their extermination should be nearing completion."

Goldlewis gave a sigh of relief. "Guess that's one third of the Ever Crisis that oughta be over with. If the OSF's busted and the city's shut down, though, the Others could still finish the job." He crossed his arms. "After seein' just how rotten Midgar really is for myself, I really wondered if there was any savin' it. Just too many people all crammed together, everythin' dug in too deep. I thought to myself, maybe it'd be better if we all started over. If the city's fixin' to go dark, maybe a mass evacuation'd be for the best."

”But where would we evacuate them too? This place is so isolated. Plus where can you even support this many people?” she asked, before pausing, and finally thinking out loud ”... there’s no farms here. There were ones where the Virgin Victory is parked, I think, and that’s nearby. So that’s probably where they get the food from. If they can get the food to here, they can get the people to where the food is the same way?”

Sandalphon opened a map screen. "Options nearby include Gutsford, the Satisfactory industrial zone, and Everdream Valley, where Meridian is located. New settlements could also be established in Kunad Highway or the Valley of Ruin, now that the Machines are no longer a threat. However, it is doubtful that 'we' have the means or time to evacuate them, beyond delivering a message. Chaos and panic will set in soon, if they haven't already. Many will no doubt refuse to leave, even with the continued threat of Others and Chimeras, and many will fight over the scraps now that the tenuous rule of law has shattered."

Giovanna shrugged. "Even if we took this chance to, I dunno, stick Vernon in the power vacuum, it'd be meaningless at this point."

"Midgar was already a hellhole," Goldlewis grumbled. "And now it's been dismantled from the bottom up."

”Living under a monster spawning sky and in a place where dimensional rifts kept opening was probably not the best idea in the first place, yes” Midna agreed plainly ”Not that anyone decided to do that I suppose, its all Galeem’s fault”

Sitting down upon the defeat of Tycoon and all of C's 'friends', Roland gave out a sigh of relief with some of the others. "Phew, that was a rough fight. Do you guys get into big scraps like this all the time?" Blazermate, sitting nearby and healing everyone's wounds with her medi beam, said. "Uh... its not usually this bad. But yeah, its usually something big and scary. Like the first one was this giant flame breathing flame winged turtle guy based off one of our other friends who isn't here. Hes a big teddy bear even though he acts tough. Maybe you'll get to meet him?" Blazermate said, looking over the other spirits of everything they had fought.

Roland followed her glance, and noticed that all the spirits, besides Tycoon's, had turned into books much like those at the library. "Huh... Well, I guess the power of the library is following me around now? I don't know how that works, but thats useful I guess." Roland said, moving to pick up said books and look them over to be sure. And from opening one up... yep it was exactly as he thought. The story of Karen laid before him, or at least a snippit of it alongside pages for his powers and everything. He did notice though that a couple books were... damaged? That was odd, but when examining those books, he just found that the snippit portion was missing but the power addendum was totally ok.

While Roland was messing around with the books, Susie had moved over to Tycoon's spirit. Considering how big the robot had been, and how strong it would be as it was a guardian with apparent time travel capabilities, perhaps it would make for a great upgrade to her business suit? So far things hadn't been all that wonderful in a technological city such as this, except for this, the beating heart of the city. Hopping into her business suit, she fused it with Tycoon...



Well... after fusing, she saw that the weak point in her business suit was basically all patched up now. She was in a full mecha, instead of a strong yet pretty mech suit. And it had quite a bit of new functions which were really good. "Hmm... So I see why these guardians do so much, quite a strong spirit." Susie said, noting her new business suit and the affects it had.

"Huh... I was thinking I could take that, but I guess its a good idea I didn't. I can't imagine not being my cute small self, nor being that heavy and unable to fly... And I don't wanna know what it'd do to the rest of you." Blazermate said.

Roland meanwhile explained to everyone what these books were, explaining that they were the same as the spirits they had been gathering, but more advanced. He showed them how they worked and explained what he knew about them and everything. There was a reason that the library had attracted the biggest of the big when it came to denizens of the city. Knowledge was indeed power with these things.

Then came the discussion of the city losing all of its power. Susie was a bit confused and concerned that the entire city's power supply came from one point of failure. That was just stupid of their planning design. Roland meanwhile, only sighed and put his hand to his face. "So we caused another Smoke War. Hope someone picks up the pieces quickly." Well, that was someone elses problem it seemed. And there were some people on Shinra's board who could pick up those pieces well. Or a few on their team, from what he had been told but hadn't seen yet.

When they reached the top from the teleporter, they found themselves in a strange area which the three were informed was where Trevers had made their announcement earlier. Sandalphon informed everyone that they should probably explain to the populace why there wasn't any power or anything and own up to their mistakes, but Roland shot that down right away. "People don't even KNOW about us, and you want to take all that heat? Thats a horrible idea. Just blame it on the guys we ran into when dealing with the 'guardian'. They were the leaders of the Ever Crisis as it was anyway, so it'll be much more readily accepted and not make us public enemy number 1." Susie clapped for hearing this from Roland, saying. "Thats a great idea! And I could take over Shinra since their president is gone and run this city far better than he could. At least until I get someone under me who I deem is competent. Now... I'll just have to think of what could generate enough power on a large scale..." Susie said, thinking. She didn't have the access ark, as that would fix everything right there. But perhaps there was something else. Considering tycoon had ran the city like it did, maybe there would be a way to automate that process without needing such a colossal machine? Or was there another method?

"Well if thats your plan, then I'd suggest talking to Binah assuming shes not got orders to take us out." Roland said. "The old hag used to be an Arbiter where I came from, one of the strongest people in the City. And she used to work at L corp, the energy producer for the City. And each Wing needed insane amounts of power to run their own singularities, so I'm sure even a fraction of what she knows how to generate would meet Midgar's needs... maybe." Roland scratched his chin. "I don't know her full story, nor do I know what she used to do in L corp. And shes a real pain in the ass to talk to, so get ready for that. Even then its a longshot." Roland said.

Blazermate looked at the others and said. "Whatever doesn't make everyone hate us is fine with me."

”So… it’s over?” Roxas asked, gasping to catch his breath. His health wasn’t in great shape and he’d just burned all of his MP on the Limit Break he used against Tycoon. But luckily for him, Blazermate and Sandalphon were around and he could get the healing he needed from them. After that he looked around at what was left of the platform they’d all been fighting on. Namely at the four Spirits that were now laying around the area.

”So many people… gone.” he said with a shake of his head. He understood that some people simply needed to be stopped… but that didn’t make the impact any less staggering. ”I wonder what happens now?” he asked himself. Shinra and Armstrong were both gone, so… who would be in charge now? Could anyone even be in charge now? He was sure some of the others would probably be able to answer that question better than he could.

Roxas began looking around more closely at the Spirits. Strangely, they looked like books instead of how Spirits normally looked. He wasn’t sure what was up with that, but he did notice that some of the other Seekers were able to use the books as they would any normal Spirit, so Roxas could safely assume they still worked the same way. He picked up one of the books, titled Infinite. Its pages contained snippets of Infinite's story. Something about a mercenary that was later fused with something called the Phantom Ruby. But everything beyond that was incomprehensible fragments. But there were intact sections that detailed Infinite's powers. He was pretty powerful from what the pages described. If fighting Mephisto and Tycoon had shown him anything, it was that Roxas was still a relatively small fish in this ever growing ocean of combatants and factions. In other words, he frankly needed to step up his game. Fusing with Spirits had made Roxas nervous before, but things had worked out well enough with RocktTrans, so maybe…



Roxas gave off a brief localized flash of light, the telltale sign of a fusion. He’d picked up the book for somebody named Infinite and pressed it against his forehead. He looked around at how his outfit changed, noted the appearance of a necklace around his neck that contained a triangular ruby jewel. Not to mention the fact that his helmet had become more like a silvery mask with long pointed jackal ears, and that his now-pointy shoes were steel-toed at their tips. He also ran a hand through his now slightly-longer hair which took him a moment to realize now had white tips.

It also took Roxas a moment to notice that the right eye of his mask was covered by an opaque visor of some kind. And when he closed his other eye, that visor began to display HUD information, even showing an active ticking timer for his recharging MP, ”Whoa, that’s… different.” he noted to himself, then suddenly had the instinct to try something. He waved one of his hands and suddenly a row of 1x1x1 foot cubes appeared directly in front of him. They were crimson red, and looked dangerous to the touch, but Roxas found that he could touch them with no harm. Then he proceeded to vault off of them and summon a new platform of cubes underneath his feet to vault once again off of. But when he tried to do it a second time, it didn’t work and he instead went tumbling back to the ground.

Roxas then ignited the energy blade of his StepSword and noticed that the blade’s color had changed. Previously it was a bluish color, but now it was more of a crimson red tint. After he was satisfied with inspecting himself, Roxas rejoined the other Seekers to exit the arena and found himself in a mainframe room.

Around him, he listened to Midna, Goldlewis, and Sandalphon discuss and speculate on what this room was used for and what was going to happen to Midgar now, ”Are any of those cities even able to take in so many people at once?” he asked in reference to the evacuation options that Sandalphon provided, ”There were a lot of people living in Midgar… maybe even too many. Is it possible to divide the population into groups that go to different places? Without splitting up families, obviously.”

Sandalphon shook her head. “The places I mentioned are all just outlying support centers for Midgar itself. There’s no chance any one could sustain the whole population. They would have to split up, if they even consent to go.”

Of course, even that still sounded like a massive undertaking as well. Roxas got the feeling that no matter how the Seekers sliced it, this was going to be a very difficult time. ”And… are we still fugitives? Psych-OSF and the Administration are broken apart, but… how many people out there are going to be angry at us for doing this, even if it was for their own good?”

The more he thought about this, the more Roxas was starting to think that they may have just made the Ever Crisis even worse than it already was.

Goldlewis scratched his head. “Chances are good folks won’t know we had a part in it, ‘cept Luka, Yuito, an’ the like. Guess it’s up to y’all how much you wanna say in your announcements, if you say anythin’.” The big man had some ideas cooking, but he seemed reluctant to take the stage. As a longtime political aide, he knew firsthand the ramifications of public address. Something else occurred to him, though. “That is, unless the Consuls step in. Seems like Y’s history, but the rest’re bound to be more pissed than ever. They could really weaponize the storm that’s comin’. Skippin’ town sounds better by the minute.”

”I hate to just leave the city in chaos like that.” Roxas said, which actually kinda surprised him. As much as this city had rubbed him the wrong way at various times, it turned out he still grew to care about it in spite of that, ”But I guess it really does sound like we don’t have much choice. Not unless we can somehow put together a new Administration that can fix things…”

But where would anyone even begin to do something like that? Roxas was certainly clueless about that sort of stuff. He wouldn’t have even had any ideas for potential candidates, much less be able to do any of that himself.

“People haven’t trusted the government in years, but thanks to Public Security, they got kept in line,” Goldlewis. “And thanks to how Shinra handled the Machine invasion, I figure we’re at rock bottom. Broke beyond repair. We’d have to be a helluva lot worse than Shinra to uphold rule of law now, and I ain’t fixin’ to be.” He shook his head. “Shinra and the Machines were what kept folks here. With ‘em gone, there’s gonna be nothin’ in Midgar but anarchy. Every man for himself.”

Giovanna chuckled dryly. “Guess Armstrong got his wish after all.”

Roxas could only look down at this, having nothing left he could offer to say. Despite their winning the battle… he was feeling pretty defeated.

—

Having taken another life and rounding to finish the job, the battle was won. The Tycoon machine was destroyed. And in the aftermath, grim implications for Midgar. The Seekers, of course, had to move on. Their war against Galeem was paramount.

”...Then, I’m afraid this is where we part ways, Seekers.” Karin said. ”Even if this world is temporary, I cannot abandon these people. Not when I have the power to help.” Karin glanced over at Susie. ”Miss Susie, I believe you and I could lead people here to safety.”

”If none of you wish to address the people, then I shall do so. I must come up with some kind of plan. But what the people need right now is hope.” Karin said.

”Midgar provided little value to anyone by itself. There is quite literally no reason to live here. It has no resources, no real infrastructure, only constant natural disasters. Galeem just constructed a populace and then dropped a corrupt power structure right on top of it. It’s not a real city. It’s a prison, an artificial facade of one, at that. A prison that can now be escaped from. ” Karin said.

”I- I’ll stay, too!” Sakura exclaimed. Karin raised her eyebrows and looked at Sakura. Then she smiled. Sakura continued, ”I want to help. And…” She looked at the scattered ash on the ground.
”I’m really sick of killing people. Even if it’s for a good cause. It’s not what my parents or Ryu-san would want for me. I don’t want to lose myself. I- I want to go back to helping people. And helping people find refuge while beating up opportunistic bad guys sounds like something I could help with.” She walked up to Karin and set her hand on her shoulder. ”Besides. You’re strong, sure, but together? No low-life criminal organization or gang or leftover corrupt politician could even come close to getting in our way of doing what’s right.”

Karin, for once, was the one who brought Sakura in for a hug.

Karin cleared her throat, pushing them apart just a few moments later. ”Miss Sandalphon. You said there are nearby places available for settlement. We’ll need to lead the refugees in the direction of at least one of these places. Once we’re out of danger we can reorganize and divvy up the populace. I’m certain I can get some noteworthy and trustworthy individuals among the populace to help manage the crowd.”

”Like Wallace-san!” Sakura exclaimed happily.

”...Sure.” Karin said with a very unsure tilt of her head. ”Once we get the refugee train going, it’ll be as simple for everyone as following the person in front of them. It won’t be easy. And we’ll be here a while. But we can do it.” She set her fist in her palm.

”...We must.” The heiress said, her will set.

”My mind is made up. The rest of you may speak, but I will be delivering the message so the people know my face and my name as someone that can be trusted.”

Karin beheld the terminal and knew she would be seen before all Midgar. But she wasn’t worried. Sakura, on the other hand, stood off to the side, nervous even though she wasn’t going on camera. Before it started, she looked back at her friends. She wanted to say goodbye to them, before they split. The thought of letting them go made her tear up, but she couldn’t doubt herself now, of all times.

Karin cleared her throat, glanced over her shoulder to make sure everyone was ready, and then activated the broadcast.”Greetings, citizens of Midgar. My name is Karin Kanzuki.” If the other Seekers had anything else to say, they could. But Karin had come up with the outline of a speech in her mind that would hopefully convey the idea.

”This message comes to you from the heart of Arabahaki, and the city. We are the Seekers of Light, here to battle against the corruptive influence of Galeem. Having pulled the root of its power from the city, your minds are all now free from its influence. Behold the truth: this place is a prison, constructed by the mad tyrant Galeem. Oppressed by monstrosities from the outside and above and by your very own leaders, your suffering has gone on long enough. The time for freedom is at hand. President Shinra, Senator Armstrong, and Karen Travers have all perished in the vain attempt to hold onto control over this city.” Karin said.

”During the struggle, Galeem’s puppet was destroyed. This city and its power over you were unsustainable frauds, and as a result, the Mako reactor was destroyed. Before tomorrow, the city of Midgar will be without power.”

”I urge you not to panic. The times ahead will be difficult, but this trial will lead to hope. No longer will you have to hold up those who wish to exploit you. Instead, you must hold each other up. I, Karin Kanzuki, will do my best to personally ensure the safety of the people of Midgar.” Her orange eyes, almost golden, were unwavering.

”This is no placating broadcast to keep you in check. This is no mad call to violence. This is a warning, and an opportunity. Midgar has no resources of its own. It has little to offer you. If you wish to flee and seek a new life, I urge you to head east. I will be there, gathering strong and noble defenders. We will head to the Satisfactory in the east. The most vulnerable among us will be safe there. After that, we will spread out and head to places such as Gutsford, Port Meridian, or even build new establishments in the newly liberated regions now that the Machine threat has been dealt with.” Karin said.

”If you wish to stay, you may. The opportunistic parasites will want power over this carcass of a city. They will surely fight each other for the scraps. Let them have it, I say. Good riddance. You needn’t be a part of that. But ultimately, the choice is yours. To those of you who will be joining me in the east, I wish you good luck. And I shall see you soon. Remember to help each other. We are our greatest strength.” Karin said. She stepped aside, looking over her shoulder at the other Seekers. With that she ended the broadcast.

”...Is there any way to make that repeat?” She asked Sandalphon.

The archangel blinked, recalling and extrapolating data. “After a fashion. Being neither psionic nor an adept programmer, I am not able to interface with ‘brainpunk’ technology and cannot force the city itself to rebroadcast, but as far as I know all forced transmissions like this will be saved to local storage for the psionics who received it, and from there it should be able to be replayed, copied, and proliferated among the people.”

”...I see. Well. I’m sure it will be fine. We’ll spread the word on foot, as well.”

”Miss Midna. Given that we are in the center of Midgar, I’d ask you to teleport us back to the SOU building. We’ll head east and pick up any refugees along the way.”

Sakura looked over at the other Seekers. ”Well. I guess this is goodbye, for now.” She said, unable to hide the quaver in her voice. ”Thanks for helping me, everyone. I know we’ll meet again someday. I know you can win.”

She stepped over to Geralt. ”And thanks for looking out for me, Geralt-san.” She went to hug the witcher. Then she stood on her toes and whispered into the witcher’s ear. ”I hope you find Ciri. Please don’t tell anyone why I started fighting.”

She looked at Roxas. ”Don’t give up hope, Roxas-kun. You’re a good guy, y’know?”

She looked at Blazermate. ”You’re a lifesaver. It makes me feel better knowing you’re with the Seekers.”

Next was one of her newer friends, Zenkichi. ”Zenkichi-san, I’m happy you joined us. I’m not sure if we would have made it with even one less person, let alone someone as strong as you.

She addressed the semi-formally dressed pair that met them in this region. ”Giovanna-san, Goldlewis-san. You two are a good team. I think you should stick together more often! Without you both we would have been lost over and over again. Like, literally lost. As in not knowing where to go.”

Next up, the big angel lady. ”Sandalphon-san. You’re really nice. Thanks for helping us. I don’t know what I would do if I were you. I hope it all works out. I'm sure it will. You're strong.” Sakura said.

”Roland-san...” She looked at him. She didn’t really know anything about him. ”Um. You’re pretty strong, so, good stuff on that! Keep it up!” She pat him on the shoulder and skipped away.

Finally, she walked up to Midna, who would be portalling them away from the others. ”Thanks for everything, Midna-san. It was fun to hang out with you. Especially that one time in Gutsford?” She laughed a little.

Karin addressed the others. ”I wish you all the best. Your battle is an important one. It was truly an honor to fight at your side.” Karin said. ”I can’t imagine I’ll be terribly hard to find, should you ever need me again.”

”Man. I’m kinda bummed out I never even got to fight any of you! We better meet up again. For real. ” She wiped her eyes.

Karin looked to Midna. All business, now. ”If you would be so kind, Miss Midna, as to guide us to the SOU building. I am ready when you are.”

If the Radiance hadn't been a being made of pure light, its demise would have been a visceral sight. When its spirit was ejected from the remnants of its ethereal body, the Seekers knew the fight was won. Therion let out a sigh of relief and Primrose caught her breath. The both of them approached the front of the train where Ganondorf and Ms. Fortune had been fighting, joining the others as they regrouped to make sure things were really finished. Magikrab joined them as well, mentioning that with the Radiance gone, the infection in the Under would slowly disappear as well - an unexpected but welcome result of beating the Guardian.

It was also fortunate that it seemed their exit from the dream realm would come automatically, and they wouldn't have to search for a way out. But when they did reappear in the real world the group found a surprise awaited them. Instead of the Organization member that had appeared to help facilitate their way into that dream world in the first place, they could Consul F slaying the Radiance's former host and... Therion's eyes widened in surprise. Was he really trying to chance sides now?

"Never betrayed us?" Primrose asked, bewildered at this turn of events. She had expected the Consul to run if he was scared, not to grovel for forgiveness. Even so, she was not about to grant it. "You were never on our side in the first place, you wretch."

The dancer raised her arm, summoning her magic. She had a mind to bring this chapter of the Seekers' story to a complete close, leaving the Under with no Guardian nor either of its Consuls. She was stopped only by her friend stepping forward, holding out his own hand to block her.

"Wait," Therion said. He stared (practically glaring) at F. As far as he could tell, the Consuls weren't bound to the light of Galeem like the rest of the world. If they were, how could they exert control the way they'd shown they could? He also couldn't imagine someone like F being press ganged into joining these 'Consuls,' which just meant that every evil he'd committed was his own choice. Therion was under no illusion that F wasn't a villain. And he, like Primrose, was still pissed at the Consul for everything he'd thrown at them. But executing someone who was pleading for their life, even someone like F, felt wrong. He wasn't sure if he would have cared as much before, but now he knew it would at least leave a bad taste in his mouth. He glanced at Primrose, and then the rest of the Seekers in turn. "Let's... hear him out first. At least."

Primrose pursed her lips, but ultimately let her arm fall back down to her side. She did not release her hold on her magic, though Therion didn't mention it. He didn't trust F either. But if he was willing to give them information in exchange for his life, it was likely he'd be telling the truth - and then they could all get some insight into the group opposing them.

Queen Sectonia, physically embodying their victory against the area's Guardian, wasted no time in trying to gather such information. She asked about the Flame Clocks and the Consul's hierarchy, important questions to be sure. Primrose and Therion let her speak and F answer. But there was something else that both Travelers had been wondering for a while, something they could only really speculate on until now.

"What do you all get out of this? Protecting Galeem, ensuring the world stays like this..." Was it just to enjoy feeling powerful, reigning over their own little chunk of this weird world? There was no answer that would reverse Primrose's opinion of the Consul or make her rethink the Seekers' mission, but she wanted to know all the same.

”It is done, then.” Ganondorf declared, after the Radiance finally appeared to die for good. Of course, that wouldn’t be confirmed until she was fully reduced into a Spirit. He imagined a Guardian’s Spirit would confer a great deal of power to whosoever claimed it. He was tempted for a moment to claim it for himself, but chose not to. That Radiance creature reeked with pure light, and that was not something the Warlord wished to have within himself. And besides, it wasn’t as if Ganondorf wasn’t also becoming more and more powerful in other ways…



Instead it was Queen Sectonia who ended up claiming the Guardian’s spirit. Considering they were both insect-like creatures, it was almost fitting in a way. Regardless, Sectonia’s newfound connection to pure light was something Ganondorf himself would have to be wary of going forward. There was a reason why the warlord had held on to the Holy White Sword all this time despite him never really using it. After all, what better way to prevent it from ever being used against him?

But after all that was finished, the Seekers all found themselves reawakening at the familiar sight of the Black Egg. Nearby, the Hollow Knight knelt… battered and weakened. But before anyone like Ganondorf himself could move to do anything, several white bullets circled around the defeated shadow creature and closed around it, finishing him off. And that was when the weasley Consul finally saw fit to come out of hiding. But now he was scared, sniveling and groveling for his life. Sectonia was the one who moved to question him first. But before she did, Ganondorf took her moment of distraction as an opportunity to request something of her.

”Might I borrow that curious Hat of Avarice, but a moment?” He asked her. And surprisingly enough, she handed it right to him without a second thought. Perfect. She was currently too distracted by F and her newfound powers to notice or question who it was that was asking for the Hat. Ganondorf inspected the Hat for but a small moment, before putting it on his head in place of his helmet. Then he scooped up the nearby spirit of the Hollow Knight.

”Let us see how well this Hat works…” Ganondorf said to himself under his breath as he squeezed the Spirit in order to crush it…



”Curious...” He said, inspecting the dark cloak that he acquired as a result of crushing the Knight’s spirit. It definitely had some kind of charm or enchantment on it, but what that was exactly he’d have to find out for himself. Although perhaps someone like Kamek would be able to identify it? Something he’d have to consider a bit later. For now, the matter at hand was the sniveling Consul who for all intents and purposes was now at their mercy.

Sectonia was asking the questions, all things Ganondorf himself wanted to know as well, so he had no reason to ask any of his own for the time being. The two Orsterrans on the other hand, did speak up. Primrose in particular. She seemed surprisingly content to simply end the Consul’s life here and now, and that it was her thief friend who had to stay her hand. Curious, given their backgrounds one would think the roles would have been reversed.

By now, Ganondorf had put his shadowy helmet back on. He stepped forward to join in on the grilling, handing the Hat of Avarice back to Sectonia as he did so, ”Thou had best consider thy answers carefully.” He advised the groveling Consul. He then drew the White Sword from its scabbard and appeared to be looking it over and inspecting it. Almost certainly, the Consul would have recognized this as the sword that was intended to be used to execute the Warlord, and yet here he stood with it now in his possession. A subtle little reminder of just who it was they were dealing with and that he was not to be trifled with or taken lightly.

”My compatriots here do not appear to be in a very patient mood.” He added, then pointed the sword’s tip in the Consul’s direction, ”And I, even less so.” At this point Ganondorf’s message was loud and clear. The Consul could either cooperate, or find himself run through by the very sword that was intended to keep its wielder in check.

”Come on, come on! At this rate we aren't gonna get back before-” Jr shouted at his family as they raced back up the train, only for he feared to come to pass and for them to not be able to reach their foe before the darkness took them down, prompting a disappointed ”awww” from the prince before he huffed about the tentacles being ”rotten kill stealers”

”Now we have to hope that the darkness is satisfied with just blotting out the light” Kamek said, not at all sad about the final phase being, if not trivial, then at least a swiftly done thing. The run back had not exactly been a fun time, what with it involving dodging through the endless piles of indiscriminately launched sword power coming their way, something they’d only really made it through thanks to Rika’s shot slowing power.

Bowser in particular was flagging, and was not going to be much help if they had to fight the ocean of darkness next

Fortunately, Kamek’s concern was unfounded, and, having taken down its sworn foe, the void was satisfied and retreated, leaving them to wake back up in the egg.

They were not alone however, as the hollow knight still kneeled where it had fallen when they entered its dreams. Now, in response to the death of the Radiance, the corruption both within and without it withered and died, leaving its long watch finally over.

As jr cheered about how they’d saved the underground (which only he really cared about among the Troop members) Bowser raised a claw and waved at the big bug, beginning to say ”Oh, uh, hey there buddy. Are we good?” only for F to appear and cut down the knight before anyone could find out what it would have done with its new, and likely entirely unexpected, duty free existence.

”Well now, that was quite uncalled for” Kamek commented, having been rather curious about what was about to happen as well.

”Yeah I had that” Rika agreed, tilting a raised gauntlet a few degrees from where she’d been ready to casually execute the knight herself to instead point it at F ”and now you” only for Kamek to raise a hand and lightly press her gun hand down, saying ”Now now, let’s see exactly what this fool expected, throwing himself at the mercy of villains” with a sneer on his beak.

”Yeah, what’s the big idea you sniveling shnook? Gonna help us till you can stab us in the back huh? Already gotta keep an eye on this guy for that” Bowser agreed, jabbing a thumb at Ganondorf before bringing the hand back and punching it into his other palm and telling F that ”So you better start talking and make yourself real useful before I decided to just beat the answers out of your sorry mug” while repeating the motion intimidatingly.

”Yeah like, where are the other guardians and and what they are and… and…” Jr piped in to add to the demands, before faltering for a moment while trying to think of more before suddenly launching into ”.. and give us all your treasure! Bet you got all sorts of cool stashed away somewhere, right?” in the exact tone a bully would demand some kid’s lunch money.

While all the others were demanding to know about things that would be useful in the future, Rika ended up looking back and asked ”Also why you haven't just done that time thing Kamek said you could do and undone everything we just did?” while scratching her cheek thoughtfully with an oversized finger while doing so.

After they managed to defeat the Guardian, Jesse was feeling pretty good.

All right. That's done. I think it's fair to say we've done my tour of duty. Two Guardians? I'm sure the Seekers can handle the rest. At the very least we should return to the Oldest House and see what the others are up too. And shoot all my friends in the kneecap so I can friend heart them. That'll be a day. And if there is a Guardian up there, we'll need to work on that, too. Somehow.

But when they got outside, Jesse was greeted to an unpleasant sight. Consul F, pleading for his life. For her part, Jesse didn't buy it for a second. The others, however, seemed interested in hearing him out. Jesse kept quiet, standing at the back. Her Service Weapon was out and she was charging up a Pierce Shot, but it was behind her back. With everyone else in front of her, only a faint glowing red light would give her intentions away.

Jesse would give him a few more moments to speak, to see what he would say to the others. But she was not watching just him. She was looking around the room, glancing about. She looked at her feet to check for opening pitfalls, and the walls for springing traps, and the ceiling for crawling monsters. And she watched the Consul himself. Waiting for him to slip-up. Any break in the facade, any seeming break in the act, she would put a bullet in him while she had the chance and get the fight started. There was a coldness in her eyes. Anyone standing at her side or behind her could see Jesse was giving off violent intent.

With all of the added support coming in the wake of Karen and Consul C's defeats, Zenkichi was able to slow down a bit and space out his last few attacks, conserving a small amount of energy for later. Even Tycoon's most desperate barrage of attacks couldn't stop the Seekers, however, and before too long, the Guardian of Midgar collapsed, starting what could very well prove to be the end of the city itself. The myriad portals around Tycoon closed, severing the flow of what Sandalphon theorized to be Midgar's energy source. Taken, as Avalanche had claimed, from the very planet itself...just not their planet. Not their current planet, at the very least.

Time travelling energy. What a concept. Zenkichi chose to ignore the horrifying implications for the future, while Geralt wasn't entirely convinced that this thing had such power as to make and keep open portals to the very same world, years if not millenia from now. Such a thing...did they even fight Tycoon at its true power if that were the case? Or was this merely a shell of what it could have been? She supposed it didn't matter. What mattered was what came next. She and Zenkichi went to collect Spirits from the fallen, though the latter had much more reverence for what he took in his hands.

"Sumimasen, Konoe-san. I couldn't save you. But I promise, I won't let your death be in vain." With a low bow and a sad sigh, he crushed the Spirit of his twice-rival, Akira Konoe.



"I can't say I'm too surprised at that, actually. It was a really cool sword. I'll have to make use of it sometime. Thank you, Konoe." Dematerializing the sword to be resummoned at a later time, he looked to the others, particularly Geralt, who had bravely chosen to fuse with Karen Travers.



"Gotta be kidding me..." she groaned, looking herself over. "Still a woman...but at least that damn horn is about gone. Less heavy in the front, too. Lost a lot of armor, too, though. Damn. I'll have to find someone to make me some more. And some money..." She sighed. Still, she was more normally sized now, and a quick feel of her face revealed that she seemed less monstrous, as well. All in all, it could have been worse. Though, she was curious as to what abilities she'd gain from this. She had a feeling it had to do with the sheer number of abilities he had.

With their business concluded, the Seekers escaped via teleporter to the expanse of Arahabaki, particularly where they'd met Karen Travers, and where Zenkichi had foolishly trusted the man to take custody of Konoe. With Midna having a series of portals all over Midgar, they'd be able to get to plenty of places, including what sounded like an airship of some kind.

The news that Sandalphon gave about the defeat of the Machine army was welcome, but given that Midgar itself was up a creek without a paddle still...it didn't get any champagne bottles popping, that was for sure. The others pitched in a few ideas, but Zenkichi...he was done with Midgar, and he said as much. "I'm gonna be honest with you, I'll be happy to see Midgar in the rear view. I feel like all I have of this place is bad memories." Still, Karin and Sakura's decision to stay and try to lead the people to a better life was admirable. Susie...he was less sure about her motives, but he genuinely doubted she could be even a fraction as bad as Shinra and his cabinet were.

Karin gave a speech to the people of Midgar, explaining the situation, before her and Sakura turned to give their goodbyes to the Seekers. Sakura gave personal, heartfelt goodbyes, while Karin was quick, concise, and businesslike, as befit a woman of her supposed stature.

Geralt squeezed Sakura close, and smiled as the younger girl whispered in her ear. "Thank you, Sakura. And I won't tell anybody, don't worry." She gave Sakura a small smile and nodded as she went around to the others.

"I'm happy I found you guys, too. I don't wanna think about what I'd still be like if you never knocked some sense into me." Zenkichi replied with a smile.

As they were getting ready to leave, Zenkichi ran after Karin, waving frantically. "Oh, I gotta go with you! I need to get Akane!" If Midna was already gonna head to the SOU building, he was going with and getting his daughter!

Geralt watched him run off with a shake of her head. But she could hardly blame him; if Ciri were a portal away...even she'd run to it. "We'll have to try to find the others once we're done here. Though, don't take that to mean we need to rush. Another Guardian down...but we can't rest just yet. Still plenty more to go."

Tycoon's defeat was signaled by its entire machine body collapsing. Pieces of it fell to the ground, followed by its metal legs buckling and the whole chassis crumpling before crumbling. The arena shook, and Pit stayed his bow. It was over, right? With the way the place was quaking, Pit wouldn't have been surprised if there was yet another phase to fight through. That ended up not being the case, and the shaking died down soon enough - and the machine god's body had dissolved, leaving its shimmery spirit behind.

"We did it!" he whooped, jumping and throwing his fist up in a quick cheer. Never mind the last few days, just today had been crazy. But the boss was done for, and the whole city hadn't collapsed on top of them. It was a win for sure.

Though Pit had been playing the role of a hero for basically his entire life, helping defeat a Guardian now felt like a big step forward for him. He was elated, but when he turned to the other Seekers he quickly found that the mood wasn't exactly one of celebration. Many of his allies expressed concerns over the fate of Midgar's power supply - if Tycoon really was powering the entire place. Oh, guess I never thought of that, the angel realized. He reigned in his enthusiasm over the victory, but even the uncertainty of the city's future couldn't put a real damper on it.

Goldlewis then brought up something that had been pushed to the back of Pit's mind what with all the fighting they'd had to go through. "Oh yeah! The Ever Crisis!" To be honest he also didn't know what Tycoon had to do with it. If it was a giant power source, then maybe... "Maybe whatever was sending the Chimeras and Others here were after the Guardian, like Nox was? Now that it's gone, they might stop!"

It was his best guess. Sandalphon confirmed that Nox's faction, the machines, were no longer a threat at least. Pit bounded over to her, peeking around her tall frame to look at the screens she conjured while the rest of the Seekers fiddled with the spirits (or... books?) of the fallen. A lot of the rest of what the archangel said went over his head, but he understood what a blackout was. He grimaced. Technically, taking out the Guardian was the best thing for the people in the long run. He just hadn't known what kind of collateral damage it would cause. Hopefully the situation wouldn't end up as bad as some of them were expecting.

What's done was done, and whatever would happen would happen - that's the way Pit saw it. He was, usually, a helpful ally for humanity at large on behalf of the Goddess of Light, but it was never hands on. Organizing rebuilding, strategizing for an evacuation, all of that was beyond his capabilities. He could lead a platoon of Centurions, sure, but sympathetic as felt for the people of Midgar he had no desire to stay and coordinate their future. So when Karin volunteered to do just that, Pit was surprised and impressed. After the Seekers arrived back in Arahabaki amid Roland's book explanations and further talk of what the city's inhabitants would do, the girl geared up for a speech.

It was the consensus of the Seekers that evacuation was the best bet. He hoped everything would go as smoothly as possible. With that determined look in Karin's eye, Pit had no doubt that she'd follow through on the words she delivered. Sakura and Susie were going to be staying to help out too it seemed, and though Pit couldn't imagine giving up the greater mission he did admire them for wanting to help the people.

"That was awesome," he told the Kanzuki heiress when she was finished. Was awesome even the right word? The point was, it was a good speech. While the girls staying behind gathered to get started on their new mission, Pit waved goodbye to them. "Good luck you guys! We'll meet again soon!"

Which left the rest of them to carry on. As Geralt pointed out, there was still a lot to do for the good of the world at large. On the topic of where to go next, Pit piped up with another suggestion for the pile.

"We need to check on Princess Peach too!" he reminded the rest of them. "Now that the Guardian's defeated, we can help look for a way to turn her back to normal."

Or if they couldn't, at least a way to stabilize her during the imminent black out. All of the victims turned into Others would have to change back before they could safely leave with the rest of the citizens, he guessed.

As soon as Sandalphon pointed out what the Arahabaki main terminal could be used for, Goldlewis felt a great weight settle over him. From the beginning, he’d known that the satisfaction earned from his team’s victory over Tycoon would be fleeting. Though important, it formed just one incremental step in the campaign against Galeem. Yet even in all his pessimism, Goldlewis hadn’t imagined just how short-lived that hard-earned triumphant feeling would be. Learning that they’d inadvertently cut off the Midgar’s main power source and doomed it to a citywide blackout had been bad enough. Between the losses of utilities, transit, refrigeration, medical services, and communication, the Seekers could scarcely fathom the scope of the catastrophe soon to befall the city. Only a precious few hours remained before the impending disaster struck, and right now, their location in Arahabaki meant that the Seekers had a chance to warn the people.

Of course, they really had no choice. Even if they -and the city itself- had been set up for failure, they heroes needed to take some semblance of responsibility via immediate action. The only real decisions to make were what to say to the people, and who would say it. Though Goldlewis understood why the others might look to him, he balked at the opportunity, reticent almost to the point of outright refusal. “I heard all kinds o’ politicians and all kinds o’ speeches in my day. All kinds of folks with big plans on how to lead America forward,” he said flatly. “But that ain’t me, no sir. No matter how many stars they pinned on me, I’m just a soldier in the end.” He shook his head. “It ain’t that I don’t care, mind you. In fact, I reckon it’s the opposite. I take the lives of my men mighty serious. Out there in the trenches, ain’t nothin’ more important. Those lives weighed on me like nothin’ else. Their deaths…” Goldlewis swallowed. “Even more so. And now, we’re talkin’ hundreds of thousands of people. I ain’t the right man to call the shots for all those lives. My shoulders ain’t broad enough to carry that weight.”

Despite his size, Goldlewis almost seemed crushed, bent over like someone forced to carry a heavy burden. Compared to him Sandalphon seemed a lot more composed, but she appeared no more eager to make the all-important announcement. “While I could report on the facts of the matter, and will if necessary, doing so is admittedly not my preference. I am only just now beginning to awaken to my emotions, to the warmth of humanity. Right now, I don’t have the words to reassure, or calm, or unify, or inspire. If we are to salvage this situation, the people need someone like them. Not a heartless angel.”

The Seekers discussed the situation, and what to do about it, for a few minutes. Susie wanted to take over Midgar for herself, and Roland mentioned someone who could solve the power crisis, but the idea of any administration fixing things at this point seemed far-fetched, not to mention doomed. The team’s victory over the Guardian hadn’t put an end to the Ever Crisis, but with the Machines and the Shinra Administration gone, the people could flee the Others, the Chimeras, and all the cruelty that Midgar embodied, from corruption and oppression to inequality and crime. Karin’s assessment rang true. Held captive by the Ever Crisis and maintained by the Consuls, the metropolis had been the perfect system for grinding countless lives into dust, and it was time to bring this cycle of suffering to an end. In a bold move, Karin volunteered not just to deliver the speech, but to stay behind and do her best to personally lead the people of Midgar to a brighter tomorrow.

Sakura quickly signed on, and Goldlewis found himself nodding in appreciation. The two were an excellent duo. They possessed not just strength of body, but strength of character, mental fortitude, and unwavering determination. For Karin in particular, her mental acuity and forceful personality made her uniquely suited for an undertaking of this scale. “Good on ya, kids,” he told her, his face and tone of utmost seriousness. “We’ll miss ya somethin’ fierce, but I figure you’re makin’ the right decision. I haven’t known ya for long, but after seein’ ya in action, it seems to me like there ain’t anythin’ you can’t do once you set your mind to it.”

As she considered the plan of action, Sandalphon unknowingly let a trace of her sadness slip through in the shape of a slight frown. Imagining the hardship in store for Midgar’s people brought her great pain, and she wanted to help, but from a purely logical perspective her skillset would be far better used for the Seekers’ continued support than managing the mass exodus. At the same time, though, it wasn’t like she couldn’t do anything. “Miss Kanzuki. I urge you to seek out the Lateran Church in Sector 01, Piltover. I worked for them for a long time, and Pope Yvangelista XI is as wise as he is kind. They are well-equipped for crisis relief in terms of resources and experience, and their Apostolic Knights can be trusted to ensure safety. At the same time, I will share with you my authority over YoRHa. The androids’ prime directive is the good of humanity. I hope they will be of use. Given the substantial number of key Psych-OSF figures present for the final defense against the Machines, there is a high probability of securing their help as well. I recommend contacting Fubuki Spring while psynet is still online.”

Even if Karin and Sakura would be the only Seekers staying behind they would not be going it alone.

With the extra information out of the way, Karin could enter the terminal and begin her address. Goldlewis waited with bated breath, soaking in her every word. Right now, psynet was broadcasting the young woman’s speech from Arahabaki to every vision screen, TV station, and psionic in Midgar. The pressure must be immense, yet Karin appeared to be the very picture of perfection, never once misspeaking or even hesitating. Her composure was nothing short of inspiring, and the sensibility of her suggestions reassured even him.

Her speech also revealed one important detail to him and Sandalphon both: that the destruction of Tycoon somehow freed everyone in the city from Galeem’s influence, inviting pandemonium as the populace realized that this place -their very lives- weren’t at all what they believed. Hopefully, Sandalphon thought, Karin’s outreach would be enough. It would have to be. As the heiress wrapped up, the archangel added to Karin’s message of hope with a hopeful prayer of her own.

Then the speech was over. Untold thousands of people out there had heard those words, and if the entire populace didn’t know who Karin Kanzuki was now, they would learn soon. The Seekers couldn’t mull over her message or its ramifications, though; they had places to be. As Midna prepared to take her teammates to their various destinations, Sakura had just enough time to give her goodbyes.

When she spoke to Goldlewis and Giovanna, the two gave one another a dubious side-eye. “Well thanks, but this is probably where the two of us part ways,” Gio said. “The other old man’s gonna need someone to sort out his pills and stuff. I’d feel bad if he went and fell down the stairs or something, you know?”

Goldlewis smirked, putting his hands on his hips. “Leavin’ all the real work to me, eh? Why ain’t I surprised?” He waved a hand at Giovanna. “Go on then, git. If you end up causin’ problems for Miss Kanzuki, I’ll tan your hide.”

“I don’t think it gets any tanner,” the secret agent joked, dashing forward. Before Goldlewis knew what hit him, Giovanna had hugged him around the middle. “Try not to die out there, old fart.”

Chuckling, the big man tousled her hair. “Heh. Well, if you insist.”

By then, Sakura had reached Sandalphon and humbled her with her compliments. The archangel bowed. “You are too kind. Please take care, and if you need me, know that I am only a call away. There is no distance so far that I cannot reach you.”

When Pit mentioned Peach, Sandalphon said nothing, but her eyes turned to loading bars. Through Karen’s broadcast last night had been her first exposure to the idea of metamorphosis, and she hadn’t been privy to the discussions surrounding Peach or the Supernatural Life Research Facility, this new information allowed her to make certain inferences about the Others fielded by the Seiran Garrison during Midgar’s defense. Later, the archangel reasoned, she could speak with the others about everything that had happened. For now she held her tongue.

Once everyone said their farewells, Midna could begin the task of transporting everyone. She took Karin, Sakura, Giovanna, and Zenkichi to the SOU headquarters, then after a short delay returned with Zenkichi and Akane. Then everyone else could proceed to their next destination, one by one.

---

For the Seekers, of course, their next destination was a function of what they planned to do next. After half a week spent in Midgar, embroiled in constant and nerve-wracking conflict against monsters and machinations of all kinds, it went without saying that everyone needed a break from the action and some comfortable distance from the most complicated, hotly-contested locale in the World of Light. In terms of Midna’s portal network, that left them only a couple options. More than half of her portals linked to other parts of the city, and of the other four, three let out back in the Sandswept Sky. Among those, two were non-starters, and though the team could do worse than Tostarena Town, the allure of possible allies drove them to visit the Virgin Victory. Of course, that begged the question: where was the Virgin Victory?

One by one, Midna deposited the Seekers in the airship’s engine room. Not knowing what to expect, Goldlewis couldn’t help but be impressed. Even in a place where function ought to rule over form, everything was sleek, shiny, and futuristic. Being an interior chamber, the room had no windows to see out of, but just a moment after Goldlewis arrived he realized that this ship must be at sea. The subtle rocking of the structure beneath his feet said as much. “Huh.” Between his time in the Dystopiascape and the Sandswept Sky, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d so much as laid eyes on an actual body of water, other than the despicable Seiran reservoir. There seemed to be no engineers here maintaining the place, and when he poked his head into the hall he saw no crew members in either direction. Curious, and even somewhat eager, he cleared the way for the next arrival by moseying toward the door to find his way through the vessel to wherever he could see the sea for himself. It took a little trial and error, but after a few minutes spent officiously sauntering about, the veteran finally stumbled upon the upper deck.



The Virgin Victory currently floated at the end of a wharf belonging to a large port town. Though originally old-fashioned in appearance, the town gave off the impression of extensive modification, turning its once-humble waterfront into a much more massive, more modern shipping dock. Likewise, while many of the more historical buildings had been preserved, the place also featured a number of newer, more industrial buildings, including a fertilizer plant, a husbandry center, a hydroponics lab, greenhouses, and immense granaries. Judging by the sun, it must be close to noon.

Beyond the town buildings and imported palms lay rolling hills blanketed by agriculture, from rustic farmsteads to sprawling acreages. Immense fields of golden wheat, orange pumpkins, verdant leaves, and towering corn stretched all the way to the neighboring mountain range, and various animals were much in abundance. Plenty of round sheep, fowl, and bees could be seen in the ranches, as well as two kinds of cows: those with no snouts, and those with huge snouts. While strange pink farmers appeared to be the primary workforce, various creatures seemed to be working the fields as well, including flowery sprites as planters, penguins as waterers, depressed cats as harvesters, and so forth. All told, the lush valley of plenty made such a stark contrast to Midgar that Goldlewis just stood there, staring, for a few seconds.

While he took in the pastoral landscape, Sandalphon swept past him. Pragmatic as ever, she managed to put aside the lovely view when she noticed someone on the Virgin Victory’s deck, a short old man with a huge beard, goggles, and snow-white hair shaped into a sensational question mark. Though lounging on a deck chair with a cooler close at hand, he was more than perceptive enough to notice the statuesque archangel as she approached, followed by the rest of Sandalphon’s entourage as they emerged from the airship’s bowels. His gaze held for a moment on the newcomer’s glowing halo, then drifted down to her unusual eyes. “Well, howdy, ma’am. What can I do you for?”

“Good morning. Please excuse our sudden entrance.” Sandalphon gave him a polite nod of her head. “My name is Sandalphon. I met the contingent of Seekers who made their way to Midgar, and offered my full support. This morning we engaged and defeated the Guardian hidden deep beneath the city. We just arrived here, thanks to Princess Midna. I understand that the Virgin Victory and its crew are allies of the cause.”

Having been sipping his drink when he heard the news, the old man spit performed a comical spit take. “Defeated a guardian? Well, I’ll be darned! We got word from Bridges y’all made it to Midgar alright, but it’s been radio silence since then, and what with the whole Alcamoth situation we we fearin’ the worst. But it looks like y’all pulled it off! The others’ll be happier than hogs in mud to hear it, we sure needed some good news.” He practically bounced out of his chair in excitement, offering Sandalphon his hand. “Oh, where’re my manners? The name’s James, James Shirogane. This here bucket o’ bolts is my invention.”

The archangel knelt down to shake the inventor’s hand. “My pleasure. You must be an ingenious inventor indeed to have created such an incredible vessel.”

Her hospitality seemed to tickle the man. “Aw, shucks. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”

“May I ask where we are?” asked as she stood to her full height.

“O’ course!” Followed slowly by Sandalphon, Shirogane scuttled over to the railing and swept his hand across the western scenery. “This here’s Port Meridian, and beyond is Everdream Valley. It’s pretty much Midgar’s breakbasket, growin’ all kinds o’ crops an’ shippin’ ‘em to the city.”

He directed her gaze back eastward, and through the atmospheric haze Sandalphon realized that she could see Midgar’s distant outline. Its immense bulk darkened the horizon, and not even from this far away could it ever seem small and insignificant. “We’re closer than I expected,” she murmured.

“It’s a real nice place, all things considered. Atmosphere’s tense today ‘cause we got word Midgar’s bein’ invaded, but it’s s’posed to be pretty peaceful ‘round these parts. Machines ain’t ever made their way out here, I guess.” He crossed his arms. “If y’all just beat another Guardian, I reckon you’re downright pooped. Why not head down into town and take it easy for a spell? We ain’t ready to fly just yet on account o’ the tussle we got into on the way here, but we’re gettin’ close. Once my lunch break’s over we’ll be in business before ya know it!”

Sandalphon nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Shirogane. That sounds like a good plan. I’ll let the others know.”

“You’re welcome, take it easy out there! I’ll call Laurence and Alice, let ‘em know what’s goin’ on. And if ya see that lizard-tailed punk in yella, tell ‘er to get ‘er sorry butt back here on the double! Them bathrooms ain’t gonna fix themselves!”

“...Understood.” Sandalphon hurried back to her allies, then shared what she learned, along with Shirogane’s proposal. After what everyone had been through, they certainly deserved a little time to rest easy.



F’s appearance resulted in immediate hostility from Nadia Fortune, her teeth bared and her ears flattened as she hissed. By this point, his many crimes against the Seekers hardly bore repeating; his repeated attempts on the lives of Nadia and her friends, not to mention his many acts of wanton cruelty, had more than earned him a kill-on-sight order in her book. The needless execution of the Hollow Knight, who the Radiance’s demise might have freed at last, formed only the latest crime on his long, long list of charges.

All the same, the feral kept a hold of herself just long enough for the Consul to start blubbering out pleas and excuses, which stunned her completely. Though some part of her (probably Kronya) took a certain sadistic, gleeful pleasure in his pathetic petition, she mostly just got angrier and angrier as the vile child rattled off the least convincing lies possible, then finally dropped all pretenses and begged for his life. “You’re kidding. Right? I knew this guy was an oddball, but I didn’t realize he was so odd-acious!” When she looked at her friends, she saw Primrose even more eager to pay F back for his evil deeds than her. It took Therion to talk the dancer down, reasoning that F could be of some use. Nadia shook her head, indignant to the point of bewilderment. Even if his enemies didn’t execute him straight away, in what universe did this blithering idiot think that he’d come away from this with the Seekers’ forgiveness? “You little…how dare…ugggh, give me a break.” Utterly unable to articulate, or even properly express, the scorn she felt in this moment, she settled for sidling around the Consul to make sure he’d be surrounded and unable to get away. Her friends could handle F’s denigration.

Newly infused with the spirit of the Guardian F failed to protect, and radiant with newfound power, Sectonia made for quite the intimidating figure. She seemed understandably doubtful, but she kept her emotions in check and posed the Consul several questions. Primrose followed up with one of her own, practically inviting F to spell out justification for his own downfall. Ganondorf offered no addendums, but in the hopes of keeping F in line did what he did best: being a menace. While most of the team kept a relatively level head, Bowser and his kin stepped up to season their pointed inquiries with some richly-deserved verbal abuse. All the while, Nadia stood at the ready, her claws sharpened and her muscles coiled as she prepared to pounce. From the looks of it, she wasn’t the only one ready to end things, either. Primrose’s pyromancy flame still smoldered in the palm of her hand, and the cat burglar’s keen eyes could see Jesse up to something as well, her expression downright murderous. As much as Nadia hated killing, she felt about the same right now. If F tried something, or started to teleport again, his goose would be well and truly cooked. When Junior demanded money, though, Nadia still found it in her to laugh. “Yeah,” she chimed in. “Come on, spit it out. You’re paying up one way or another!”

For a few seconds the Consul just stood there beneath the deluge of questions and belittlements. After a moment, he came to some sort of realization, then relaxed somewhat. He stood very still, his hands held up in surrender, the eyes of his sun-shaped mask dark. “The Flame Clocks…” he muttered, his tone serious. “They tell the time. How much time is left. Time’s always ticking, eh? Heeheehee. If you’re in our little ‘life service’, then you’re on the clock. Take someone’s life, and their time is yours.” He paused, still motionless. “P…well, he made a bet, didn’t he? That one life was all he needed, and that he could beat you without losing it. Didn’t pay off, did they? Heeheehee…”

He seemed to consider Sectonia’s third question for a moment. “Leader…? Not really. If you want to know who’s a big shot, probably D or Z. But if I were you, I’d be scared of A. Go after him, and you’d better be ready to pay the price.”

Primrose’s question made him laugh. “Heeheehee! What do I get? Silly! Just, you know. Everything. Forever. A toy box the size of a universe, and it’s mine.”

His undisguised megalomania made Nadia give the others a weary look, as if asking can we take care of this creep already?

Junior and Rika asked more questions, but F seemed to ignore them. When he spoke again, his voice sounded louder but oddly muffled, as if issuing up from the ground around them.

“You know, I misjudged you guys.”

At the break in the act, Jesse whipped out her Service Weapon and fired. Her Pierce shot blasted straight through F’s mask, shattering it into fragments. There was no viscera, however; the Consul’s helmet was empty. The force of the shot caused the suit of armor to fall over backward, revealing a round hole in the underside of one boot, as well as a fleeting glimpse of something green as it disappeared into the earth. Nadia slid to a stop where the Consul had stood, looking around in bewilderment. “What the ‘F’, how’d he…?”

“Sheesh. You all coulda killed me, you know. That was probably your best chance too, I don’t know what came over me. But you couldn’t do it, huh? Even a couple so-called villains. Well, I’m not afraid. You idiots really haven’t learned a thing. In this world it’s kill, or be killed,” he chided, as if talking to a misbehaving child. “Y’know, it’s funny. You’ve been happily slaughtering everything in your way so far, just to see what happens next. And bad things just keep happening, huh? Yet you chose to spare me, like that'll change a thing. You know, this world’s really nothing like mine, but it’s so, so interesting, isn’t it? I guess this is all just to say…thanks for enabling me!” He paused, snickering. “Well, bye for now. Keep at it, I guess. Keep shooting for that happy ending. Just know that I’ll be there to take it all away! Ha ha ha!” F’s laughter echoed through the Temple of the Black Egg, shrilly inhuman, until the last echo faded away.

Nadia facepalmed, groaning. “What a dick.” Beyond tired of the scumbag's maddening antics, and worn out in general thanks to all the fighting, the feral let her head hang backward as she closed her eyes. “I don’t get all that psychobabble that nutjob was spouting, but I guess we’ll be seeing him again. Hopefully it’ll be a good long while though. F that guy.” She elected not to give her thoughts on humoring the Consul, instead sitting down with her head resting in her lap as her tails swished behind her. “So, where to now?”

Basking in the sheer power the Radiance spirit gave Sectonia, she didn't really mind too much who was going to use that helmet to crush the hollow knight's spirit. And before she even noticed who it was, the helmet was already in her posession. But coming down from that and her little bit of domination over F, she'd both scold and laugh at herself for letting her guard down. Although for a self proclaimed 'king of evil', it seemed that title only existed in the monsters he kept around him. Still a royal was a rival, time would tell how their kingdoms interacted if they should ever meet.

Well... Sectonia wasn't expecting F to be forthcoming with information, but even in his own insanity he let slip quite a bit of information. Although with him getting his second wind and trying to retreat, Sectonia attempted to stop him with a holy ray alongside the gunshot from Jesse, but it didn't matter. F had managed to retreat with an ominous message. "Hmph, seems like he is a quite the weakling. He'll just pull pranks and tricks on us, but its clear he can't challenge us directly." Sectonia said, almost as a taunt, and also reassurance.

Sectonia mulled over the information F had given them, and said. "Even with him using that time we gave him to get his second wind and retreat, through his own insanity... he gave quite a bit of info even if he didn't mean to. I'm sure Kamek caught onto it as well. But I'll explain what I heard from him, paraphrased." Sectonia started, before giving her own royal little speech on what they had gained by letting F a chance to escape. "First the flame clocks. It seems that what he said is that by taking the spirits of others, you can extend your own life force. The Flame Clocks allow this to be applied to a wide area, or so I assume. but its good to confirm what they are used for and in a way, this whole spirit system we find ourselves in."

Holding a hand up, she put a single finger up to show what they had learned, then put a second finger up to empesis the next point. "Now the information I think F didn't mean to give us in his jest of P. Its clear some of the consuls don't like each other now. But the important information is it seems that through some means unknown to us, they 'break free' of the entire spirit system and gain power over those that are Galeemed in the process and possibly some form of immortality. But as they are no longer spirits, they can't interact with them either nor gain power from them. A double edged sword so to speak as we have seen what happens when they are defeated." She then thought, and presented a question, almost absently. "Hmm... does that mean these consuls were previous seekers, or are we some sort of divines in the world and they found other means?" But she wouldn't linger on that and continued.

Raising her third finger bringing up the next point, Sectonia stated. "Without there being a 'leader', if what he said was true, that would mean that the Consul's secret power is possibly a communal secret or something made by the letters he mentioned. A, D, and Z. He mentioned D and Z the most, so its probably with one of them. But with his fear of A, perhaps that is the strongest of them all but is more... lazy with that strength. So out of all of them, those three are likely to have the most info on what is actually going on. That is if we can even take him at his word. The only thing I'd say is trustworthy is probably his dislike for A. Often fools say their lie first, then yammer truth behind it as a backhanded statement."

Letting that aside, she then gave her fourth finger, although this one she was a lot less enthusiastic' to share as she thought it was a pointless question. "And whatever power they gained allows them to essentially do whatever they want. I figured that was clear but I suppose that needed repeating..." And with that, she was done speaking. "A bit of a shame he'll be a thorn in our side, literally. But I suppose thats what getting information about the bigger picture gets you."

Then the question of where to go next was... an interesting one. Sectonia already had something in mind. "Some rest and relaxation would do everyone some good. I don't know about you, but I'd rather forget that nasty infection business, possibly with the help of some hot springs and honey. And I'd rather it be some place not here in this underground, the lack of sunlight down here is quite annoying."

---

Raising her fired gun, Jesse gently knocked over the armor with her boot. Her expression relaxed, and she exhaled. "Alright. Well. You did get some information out of him, at least. But I imagine that's it, for me." She waved her gun away and rolled her shoulders.

"I'm gonna get back up North to where my Headquarters are." She said. "In a giant, creepy city? I won't tell you the exact location because a certain asshole is still alive but, if you ever swing by, trust me, we'll find you." Jesse said. "I'm going back to the metro. Maybe I'll get lucky and F will try to stop me. I doubt it, though." She said, confident that there was nothing that blubbering psycho had in him capable of stopping her.

"Take it easy, Fortune. Considering you're not the leader, I sure did find myself following you a lot. Primrose, you got a good head on your shoulders. I hope to see you again." She said. "Therion...you ain't so bad, either."

"I'm sure the big ones will get along, but, maybe next area you should divvy them up a little." She wryly looked between Sectonia, Bowser, and Ganondorf. "I'm sure as you all stick together you'll be just fine, though." She pointed at the little contigent known as the Koopa Troop.

With that, her little goodbyes were over. Nobody could accuse Jesse Faden of being overly sentimental. "Welp. See ya." With that, she headed off away from the Seekers. They were probably going to have to head in the same direction, though. Hopefully that wasn't too awkward. Either way Jesse would wave goodbye once their paths finally diverged, be it at some point in the Under or at the metro itself.