Double

Disney & Dragons 5e

*sigh*

World of Light

Suoh

Concealed Atrocities

Word Count: 917
Level 7 Roxas: 9/70
Exp: +2
NEW EXP Balance--- 11/70

After they left Peach with the rebels, Roxas couldn't help but clam up. He replayed that conversation in his head over and over. It was clear he regretted what he said at the end. Even if the Power of Waking could help, he'd still have to find Sora. And Roxas couldn't even begin to think of where to start there. Last he knew, Riku and Kairi were tirelessly searching for their missing friend. They even enlisted the help of Aqua and the others to take the search into the Realm of Darkness. And as far as Roxas knew, none of them had had any progress in locating him. So how exactly was he supposed to do so while in this completely unfamiliar world?

Well whatever doubts Roxas had needed to be set aside. Next thing he knew, Luka was announcing a message he'd received from one his peers in the Otherlobe. Apparently their entire platoon now had an APB out on them, and that sounded like bad news. But among the cacophony of names getting dropped, Roxas actually managed to recognize at least one of them: Oleander. He was that coach guy Raz introduced Roxas to the other day. The one who Raz asked to let some of the seekers join the platoon, unaware that it was meant only for psionics. Had he really brought Sina and Dexio to Beacon Hospital? And did he know they were being controlled?

Roxas was equally concerned about hearing of Raz being injured and in hiding at Musubi's. He was just as eager to get over there and rescue Raz as the rest of the Seekers were. But then the alarms started blaring, signalling an Other attack just like the one from the other day, "What? Now? You can't be serious!" Roxas bemoaned, but then found himself agreeing with Luka, "You're thinking that someone did this on purpose?"

Roxas wouldn't put it past someone in the upper echelons of Midgar to orchestrate this kind of disaster. The problem was that Roxas had no earthly idea how this could even be done. But regardless, it looked like the Seekers would be fighting against Others again whether they wanted to or not. And thus the Keybearer was quick to leap into action.

At first things were more or less straightforward. Roxas hacked and slashed his way into a small group of five Rummies, and then lit them up with a Thundaga Spell to finish them off. And then Roxas suddenly heard what sounded almost like... hoof beats. He turned and yelped in surprise when a ram-like Wither Sabbat came charging past, nearly trampling him. It let out a snorting sound as it pounded its front hooves in preparation for another charge. Roxas turned and sprinted, but he knew he'd get overtaken unless he did something. So he ran for a nearby street-light pole and then hopped up and pushed himself off it.

The Sabbat crashed into the pole, but Roxas was already airborne. The Nobody flipped and oriented himself to land squarely on the Other's back. He immediately grabbed the creature's horns and held on with all his strength and for dear life as he was bucked around on the back of the monster. After what felt like a very long seven or eight seconds, the Wither Sabbat lunged into another charge with Roxas still riding its back and clinging to the horns some kind of desperate rider in a rodeo.

"Whoa! LOOK OUT!" screamed Roxas when he realized where the Sabbat was going. It was attempting to charge into a pair unsuspecting civilians currently firing at different Others. Roxas yanked the creature's horns aside as hard as he could to try and force it to turn a different. At the same time the two civilians heard Roxas' warning and dove out of the way. So that was at least a couple casualties averted. But Roxas himself was still kind of stuck on this Other's back. He could jump off, but then he'd just get charged at again. Meanwhile the Sabbat in question went into another charge, and so Roxas had to act fast. He tightened his grip on the horns and yanked at them again, once more trying to forcibly control it's charge.

The Keybearer managed to direct the Sabbat's charge into a trio of Rummies. At that point he finally ditched the creature and quickly leaped backward to put some distance between it and himself. He pointed both Keyblades forward and fired a Dual Shot, whose explosion manage to catch the Sabbat and the Rummies and finish them off, "Uh oh..." Roxas said to himself as he realized this maneuver had apparently separated him from his friends and allies. He hear their voices but they were a ways away and he'd have to make his way back where he had just been brought from. To make matters worse, a growing crowd of Rummies and Paws were slowly trying to close in on him.

After taking a calming breath, Roxas stared down the crowd of Others before him, "You don't scare me!" he shouted as he ran right for the enemies before him. He was determined to make it back to the others even if he had to fight his way there every step of the way.

World of Light

Despite the Pain

Midna’s @DracoLunaris, Sakura’s @Zoey Boey, Pit’s @Yankee, Roxas’ @Double, Luka, Yuito, Hanabi
Word Count: 3143 (+4)

Sakura gave a little embarrassed wave to Crenshaw. For some reason she kept assuming she wouldn’t see any of these people again, and it was weird when she did. She would probably have to come clean to Gemma soon about her Fusion, if he hadn’t figured it out already.

”The conspiracy..? Oh, man. Another one?” Sakura asked, tired of all these shadowy groups. Sakura brightened, however, when Crenshaw revealed he could take them to Peach! ”So she’s safe? That’s amazing!” She exclaimed, relieved. ”Let’s go, let’s go see her!”

”When is there ever not a conspiracy?” asked Roxas with a deadpan tone, ”At this point I'd be more surprised if there wasn’t one.” He reached up and pushed back the hood of his black coat so it was no longer covering his head. Then with a relieved exhale he wiped his forehead with a gloved hand. These coats were necessary but sometimes they made warm weather feel a lot harsher than it actually was.

”Maybe we should start asking if there’s conspiracies inside the conspiracies then? Men behind the men, puppeteering once conspiracy to serve their own” Minda suggested, half joking, before realizing ”Actually that might just be the Consuls”

Pit rubbed his eyes, adjusting to the new area through the portal they'd taken. This was the facility that Peach was being held in. It seemed no less strange than anywhere else they'd been in Midgar. Speaking of, he wondered where exactly in the city they were. "Supernatural Life" they'd called it, so they could be back in the same sector they'd started the day in... if he recalled the layout of the plates correctly.

The interior was unlike any factory Pit had seen before, but to be fair he hadn't exactly seen many. What these rebels could possibly be using the brains for must have been on everyone's minds, though as before there wasn't much of an answer when Yuito questioned it.

"I hope we find out it's something good. Kinda hard to say you're the good guys when you're sneaking around with a bunch of brains," Pit said, eyeing the conveyor belts. This whole thing felt so... weird. Distasteful. Wrong, even, despite hopefully being for a good cause.

Sakura covered her eyes and prepared for take-off, and when it faded she tilted her head up and down and all around to get a good idea of the space. Only a few moments later did she gag and pinch her nose. ”Yeah, it’s weird. I still don’t know how those brains are even real.” Sakura said, her voice nasally. She breathed in through her mouth and then coughed.

Midna meanwhile just slipped her mask back up over her face, and though its filters only somewhat reduced the scent/taste, it was better than nothing.

”If you think that’s weird, try wrapping your head around the idea of creatures who exist without hearts.” Roxas replied, a subtle reference to some of the weirdness from his own world, ”Alongside other creatures who are essentially hearts that have been corrupted by Darkness, and yet those are the ones named Heartless rather than the former creatures. Did I mention my world was kind of confusing? Because it is.”

"Yeah you should definitely complain to whatever god is naming stuff there." This was of course coming from a proud citizen of Angel Land, a place where they called a lot of monsters by the name of which ever individual they happened to meet first, leading to species called "Micks" or "Phils." Pit wrinkled his nose as the smell finally started getting to him, though not quite as much as their street fighter friend.

”It wasn’t exactly a god that named them.” Roxas said, beginning to hold his nose in response to the smell, ”Just a guy trying to become one.”

”Ugh- I’m just tasting it instead! It’s worse! Bleh!” Sakura was eager to hurry out of the room.

She gasped in fresh air and was surprised when she saw the massive hallway.

”Do giants live here or something?” She asked in amazement, though she whispered it because the place was so quiet.

“In a sense,” Crenshaw muttered darkly.

When she heard the voice in her head, she stood up straight and gasped. She made eye contact with Luke because she knew that he heard it and he knew she did too. ”Peach-san!” She exclaimed, and began sprinting with Luka, trying not to get too far ahead of everyone.

Unable to hear the psychic voice, Pit nonetheless ran to follow Luka and Sakura. He wasn't quite dimwitted enough not to understand that when Luka had exclaimed "it's her" after hearing something, that he meant Peach. Pit had been informed of his fellow Smasher's fate, so he steeled himself for however they would find her - but he was still surprised once the group burst through the door. Sakura was hopping up and down as the door was unsealed, and she rushed inside and literally skidded on her heels to come to a stop as she looked up at a giant Other.

”Peach-san!”

"This is... Princess Peach?!" Pit asked, wide-eyed. She was huge, a mismatch monster like the 'Others' he'd seen before.

”It is now” Midna confirmed, the princess arriving just a bit behind the others due to having simply walked swiftly instead of running. She already knew what she was going to see after all.

Sakura turned over her shoulder and glared at Pit like he had said something offensive. Then she turned back and bowed in greeting at Peach. ”It’s- it’s really good to hear your voice again.” She said, folding her hands in front of her with a sigh of relief. ”I’m sorry you got shot like that. Must have been really scary.”

”At least she isn’t being controlled or trying to blow herself up.” Said Roxas somberly. He was referring to Poppi of course, but didn’t yet realize that her fate would not have been reported to Peach just yet. Thinking of both of these situations just frustrated him. Like he should have been able to do something, yet instead was powerless to do anything.

”What… exactly have they been doing with you here, Princess? Is there… any way to reverse this at all?” It was especially frustrating in this case. With anyone else they could probably reverse the change with a Friend Heart. But Peach was already freed from Galeem so a Friend Heart would have no effect on her.

“I’m…just sorry it had to happen like this,” Sakura and the other psionics heard. Though Roxas posed the question, he could not hear Peach’s telepathic response. ”I’m fine…the people here are very kind, even to an Other like me…”

She paused for a moment. Not only did her mental voice sound distant, as if broadcasted through a low-quality radio, but also it sounded strained. ”But when I don’t take the ampoules, it really hurts…gets hard to think…and I can’t communi…cate.” The more she spoke, the more strained she sounded.

“We have no way to reverse it at present,” Crenshaw lamented softly. “I’m afraid that the ampoules merely treat the symptoms.”

”And we’ve just jeopardized the way you produced those, right?” Minda asked rhetorically, before adding ”Not that I wouldn’t do it all over again” with unknowing callousness due to not being tuned into peach’s state of being.

Crenshaw shook his head. "That hospital deserved far worse, and I dread to think what its denizens had in store for those brains. If need be, we'll find another way to make the ampoules."

"I can't stand them," Peach transmitted suddenly, her mental voice bitter. "Knowing where the 'medicine' comes from…why I need it…it's so horrible, it makes me sick…" A grinding noise could be heard as her huge, twisted limbs curled up beneath her in revulsion.

Sakura realized she should probably be translating what Peach was saying.

”Peach-san says the people are nice to her, and that, um, the ampoules let her communicate and think. But…” Sakura frowns. ”She doesn’t like where the ampoules come from.” She said, and received a nod of thanks for her efforts from Midna.

From those brains, right? Pit thought to himself with a grimace, putting the pieces together. He sympathized with the princess. He had been rubbing his arm awkwardly since the scathing look Sakura had sent his way, but now he raised both of them encouragingly.

"It's..." Okay? It really wasn't. It wasn't Peach's choice either, but she knew that. "...just for now. Temporary! Until you're back to normal!"

”Peach-san, you’re not an Other, you’re our friend. We’re gonna find the cure!” She exclaimed. ”For everyone. We have too.”

”I might have… something for that. Not a cure but-” Midna stepped in to say, before pausing to open a portal on the floor next to her ”Here let me just” and summoned from it her vibrava.

The dragonfly shaped, and now thorn covered, dragon fluttered up to land on Midna’s outstretched arms so she could hold it as she explained that ”This thing used to be a wolfos, but after applying 10 of the same kind of spirit it completely transformed into this thing. Or well. Almost this, I added a cactus monster later” The Psych-OSF soldiers present looked on in confusion, but kept quiet to make sure the Seekers had the space to talk with their unlucky friend.

”It’s drastic, and I’m not sure how much it affected this thing’s mind. Its still loyal, and knows how to use portals and such, so it’s not as if its mind got entirely overridden. But as with all fusion, it’ll twist you, I’m almost sure of it. Plus there’s no guarantee it will solve the inability to think issue. It depends on if it's inherent in being an Other, maybe?” She went on, having been thinking about this since Peach had been transformed, and now dearly hoping it would help.

[color=Gold”]Hmm…”[/color] Roxas looked deep in thought. Like he was considering a suggestion of his own. But he wasn’t quite certain if that suggestion would work. Even if it would, Roxas himself didn’t possess that power. And the only person he knew that did have it was not currently present. It might be best to keep it to himself and not give anyone any false hope.

Even as she made the suggestion, Midna knew just how long a shot it was. Ten of the exact same spirit might have worked for a generic kind of Pokemon, but what spirits did Midna have in mind now? Even if by some miracle the process of essence conversion mitigated or undid the damage done to Peach’s human mind, unless the ten spirits belonged to ten additional Princess Peaches, the being brought about by such a change would be even less ‘her’ than the monster that languished before the Seekers now.

”Please, don’t…in fact, just…go.” The huge Other shifted slightly, laying her head down. [i]”Yes. You all have…much to do. The Administration…Konoe…Zanotto…the Guardian of this place, and…and all the rest. You have…to carry on. Please…forget about me.”

At that point, Yuito couldn’t stay quiet any longer. “No! We can’t just leave you here,” he exclaimed, partially translating for the mentally inept. “There’s got to be something we can do. We can get you out!”

”Um…” Roxas was about to say something, but was interrupted.

"None of us are gonna abandon you here!" Pit said, his voice firm. Though he couldn't hear her voice, he got the gist of just what she was saying thanks to Sakura and Yuito's translation. She had to know there was no way they'd go on without her, not willingly at least.

”Thank you, but…there’s no way I’d be able to have…a life, out there. I’m an Other now.” Her voice momentarily dispersed through a hiss of pained static. ”Agh…the ampoule…it’s running out.”

Crenshaw narrowed his eyes. “The ampoule.” He pointed at the injector in Luka’s hands. “Use it on her!”

Though Luka began to move straight away, Peach’s voice gave him pause. ”Wait! I…I don’t want it. I don’t want to…to live like this. It’s not…awful here or anything, but…if this is how it’d be…for the rest of my life…I don’t want that, either. It’s…not living. I’d rather…you put me out…of my misery. When I lose it…I’ll attack you again…try to e-eat your…your brains, so…just kill that monster…and let me rest.”

Bristling, Crenshaw gritted his teeth. “Absurd. We can’t afford to let you die.” He urgently motioned for Luka to finish the job. “Do it!”

"Die?!"

”...Th-the Power of Waking!” Roxas suddenly blurted out. And then he swallowed hard, immediately wishing that he hadn’t. But it was too late now, ”It… it’s a power that exists where I come from. I’ve seen it used to bring back someone who was struck down and killed. It might cure this…” There was clearly hesitation in his voice. It wasn’t hard to figure out that there was probably a catch to it, ”...It’s just that, well, I don’t possess that power. I know the person who does, but… he isn’t here with us right now. We’d… have to bring him here.”

Sakura looked between Peach and Roxas, on the verge of tears. She approached Peach and set a hand on her. ”I’m really sorry. Pl-please don’t give up hope, Peach-san. Not yet. Can you let us leave and come back? To try and save you?” She beseeched the Princess. ”It might not be the rest of your life. A lot can happen in a day.” She looked to the others desperately, hoping they could back her up on this.

”Such as cracking open the conspiracy that did this in the first place and making them spill all of their secrets” Midna offered

Pit nodded vigorously. No matter what method they could find, or when they found it, no one was just going to give up on Peach.

"If there was a way to turn you into an Other, there's a way to turn you back! I know there is." With no actual evidence he was only speaking from a place of blind hope, which he had in spades. Tora would find a way to fix Poppi, and they would find a way to fix Peach. And it only made sense anyway; if it was magic then they could find a counterspell, if it was science then the eggheads could reverse whatever had changed - and they already had some limited degree of success, as macabre as it was. "You gotta stay strong! For your kingdom, and the world, and yourself."

While Roxas and Midna hastened to try and come up with plans of action, Luka rushed forward. He joined Sakura beside Peach’s monstrous form and laid what he hoped would be a reassuring hand beside his former squadmate’s. “I know it hurts,” he began. “And that it seems hopeless. Like you’re trapped, with no way out. But you can’t just give up, not so soon. Have faith in your friends. In a world like this, anything’s possible.”

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, switching to Brain Talk so that only the psionics in his immediate proximity -Sakura and Peach herself- could hear him. ”Before joining the OSF, I was… a dud. No matter how hard I worked, or how I acted, I would always be deprived. Cut off from others. An analog boy in a digital world. But as the younger brother of Karen Travers, I was lucky enough to receive a special, experimental treatment. It was rigorous, and painful, but in the end my brain began to produce the psychic hormone, and I became like everyone else. Even if I may lose it all some day.” He furrowed his brow. ”I don’t mean to compare what I went through to yours. Just to say that there’s always a flicker of hope. So please…”

“...Don’t throw in the towel just yet, Peach,” he finished. He still held the ampoule, clutched tight in his hand. “May I use this?” he asked her for permission.

Sakura compressed her lips and shut her eyes, hoping Peach would say yes.

Heartened somewhat by Luka and Sakura’s support, as well as Roxas and Midna’s commitment to finding a solution, Peach relented. “O-okay. If you guys…think there’s a way…I’ll try and hold out here for a while longer.”

Luka nodded, and injected the ampoule. The pink slurry within flowed into Peach’s body, and its muscles began to relax. Hanabi, clearly rattled, gave a sigh of relief. “Thank you for letting us help you,” Yuito told Peach. “We might not know one another, but I can’t let this injustice claim another innocent life. I promise we’ll find a way.”

”Thank you! You won’t regret it.” Sakura said, setting a hand on her heart and letting out a breath.

"Alright, if we're gonna help her then we can't waste any time!" The sooner they kept their promise, the sooner Peach wouldn't have to suffer anymore. Pit looked around at those gathered. "Let's find the people responsible and get some answers."

“Yes, let’s,” Luka agreed, his face serious. “I suppose our first order of business is to make our way back to Suoh, then. Chances are, we’ll find those answers in the Otherlobe.”

Crenshaw crossed his arms. “My Transport power’s just about worn out for today, but I can probably muster up enough for one more trip. Not as far as the Otherlobe, but I should just be able to get you back to the plate.” Yuito and Hanabi nodded, ready to go.

Sakura nodded, still solemn after what Peach said. She adjusted her fighting gloves, and tightened her headband.

World of Light

The Under ~ Kingdom's Edge

Word Count: 555
Level 5 Ganondorf: 36/50
Exp: 1
NEW EXP Balance--- 37/50

As expected, Ganondorf found himself among the last to arrive. But it appeared he didn't miss much of anything. A dark colored ghost conversed with Nadia about how to get into the "NecroDancer's" lair. He claimed it was easy, and all it required was their signatures on a contract. Some Seekers were quick to sign, probably eager to get this over with. Others tried to read the contract only find themselves lost in legalese. Ganondorf was one of the latter. Though written in seemingly understandable words, it still may as well have been another language entirely. But while others may have given up on trying to understand and chose to sign, Ganondorf did not.

"You expect me to sign this thing without even fully comprehending what it says?" He demanded, wadding the contract up in his fist and burning it to ash with his dark magic. Afterward he let the ash slowly slide from his hand into the underground air, "What kind of fool do you take me for?"

He then overheard Kamek insisting on being allowed to read the contract before signing. And while Bowser and Jr. may have been foolish enough to not wait, Ganondorf was not so foolish. Sure, Kamek wasn't doing any of this for him specifically, but that didn't prevent the Gerudo from simply waiting to overhear whatever the wizard had to say about it. Honestly, why did Bowser even bother having an advisor like Kamek around if he was just going ignore the wizard's advice? And say something Kamek eventually did. Mentioning the Seekers' souls in a frantic voice and then teleporting away, presumably to warn them or something.

"Well, well, well." Ganondorf said to himself in a low voice, "Looks like I was right to hesitate." He added with a smug expression. Well, he doubted likely wasn't anything he could do about it from the outside. And if these contracts really did refer to souls as Kamek had frantically indicated, then the others would just have to figure out a way to break the contracts from the inside. In the meantime, Ganondorf decided to find something else he could assist with. And that was when he spotted her.

It was Jesse, floating up above the lightroot for reasons Ganondorf could only guess at. An alternate route perhaps? Or maybe another lead entirely? Either way it was bound to be better than standing around here and waiting for the others to come back. With an arcane gesture, Ganondorf summoned the phantom steed and climbed up onto the saddle. With a click of his heels the horse galloped upward in the direction that Ganondorf had spotted Jesse going.

The wind blew in the Gerudo's face as the horse galloped with its ghostly whinnying. Its hooves somehow made noises as if they were thundering powerfully on the ground. Soon enough, in the distance Ganondorf spotted what he thought might have drawn Jesse's attention: a shrine whose purpose was unknown. Was it at all connected to the Guardian or the Mask Fragments? Or was it something else entirely? There was only one way to find out.

World of Light

The Under ~ Holograd

The Climb

Word Count: 453
Level 5 Ganondorf: 32/50
Exp: 1
NEW EXP Balance--- 33/50

After getting mildly distracted by the conversation with the black coated little girl, Ganondorf decided he was no longer interested in her and proceeded to get ready for the climb he knew was coming. But before that, he made sure to double check that he had binded the Spirit he picked up and ensured it was a Striker as intended.

For Ganondorf

New Striker spiritbound:
Blast Hornet
A battle-ready reploid with a lower-than-average cooldown. He can perform three attacks: fly up and then divebomb with Stinger Attack, fly up and unleash a sextet of bee drones that drill into surfaces with their stingers before exploding, and Search Attack, where he targets an enemy for a second with holographic crosshairs before unleashing three seeking bee drones at a time, up to a maximum of 9 before the attack finishes. Blast Hornet takes (and confers) extra damage from gravity/force attacks

Ganondorf also decided he had no need for the Orb that Nadia found. He noted that the others were able to use to undo their Strikers and Fusions and effectively reuse the Spirits in other ways they saw fit. Certainly such a thing could be useful in the future, but for now the Gerudo accepted his Spirits the way they currently were. Well, no more putting it off, it was time to start climbing. The man looked up at the cloud platforms he would have to make use of and rolled his eyes.

"What a joke." Ganondorf muttered under his breath. But there was no other complaints beyond that. He knew it was better to just grit his teeth and get it over with rather than stand around grumbling. He had to jump from cloud to cloud, sometimes his weight kept him from jumping high enough and he'd have to grab an edge and pull himself up. He could already tell this was going to be slow and that he was definitely not going to be among the the first to arrive.

He was able to occasionally mitigate the climb by re-summoning the phantom horse and using it gallop upwards a distance. But its duration wasn't long enough for Ganondorf to ride it all the way up. Inevitably he did have to resort to the usual jumping and climbing rigmarole. All this blasted climbing served to remind him how much he hated it down in this Goddess-forsaken Under. The Gerudo was going to be glad to leave this hellhole and never come back.

World of Light

Suoh ~ Beacon Mental Hospital

@Lugubrious Painwheel | @DracoLunaris Midna

Word Count: 466
Level 7 Roxas: 2/70
Exp: +1
NEW EXP Balance--- 3/70

Everything turned to chaos all at once. The people Roxas and his group followed turned out to be Dexio and Sina. And then they turned out to be under someone else's control as they attempted to eliminate everyone in the basement laboratory. And that was about when Roxas became lost as far as who was doing what down here. He had no clue whatsoever who Brain Drain and Painwheel were. Really the only thing that the Keybearer did understand was that Painwheel was fighting Midna, Sina was targeting Luka, and that Sakura was going after Dexio.

That would just have to be enough information to go on for the time being. Roxas didn't want to stand around in confusion any longer than he already had. So when he noticed that Pit ran off to help Luka and that Gemma was backing up Sakura, Roxas finally had an idea of where to go. Though delayed, he at last sprang into action and ran in the direction of where Midna was holding off Painwheel. Just in time to see her fire some darts from her arm and then seemingly dash between them at high speeds. Roxas wouldn't be able to get there in time to help stop the assault entirely, but when he did get there he joined the fray in the only way he thought would be of use at the moment.

"Thunder!" cried the Keybearer, thrusting on his weapons upward and calling forth a downpour of lightning bolts around himself and Midna as soon as he put himself in front of her. The Thundaga spell would at least act as a makeshift defensive barrier against Painwheel's dash attacks, and give Roxas just enough of a chance to follow that up with a second spell, "Heal!" he cast the Curaga spell in order to undo whatever amount of damage the Twilight Princess had endured so far.

Roxas then dispelled one of his Keyblades and used his newly freed hand to call out his recently-acquired Striker. Burn Rooster appeared in a fiery flare and immediately used his powerful legs to launch himself into the air. The Reploid propelled himself into a fiery dive kick aimed for Painwheel. Even if she dodged him, the Reploid would simply kick himself off the wall and aim for her again until either his attack managed to hit her until he landed back onto the ground.

"Did I mention that I have no idea what's going on here?" Roxas relayed to Midna, "Did these people have anything to do with Peach or something?"

Disney & Dragons 5e

Action: None | Bonus Action: None

Shang simply pretended not to hear the question about why they would arm themselves. Instead he chose to continue addressing the peasant, "Maybe it would be wise to have some company for your trip? There's safety in numbers and I wouldn't want another mishap like this happening." he offered. Obviously the summons was for that man in particular and no one else, but that didn't mean the man had to travel potentially unsafe roads alone.

With a sigh, he reached into his own pocket, "Here," he said to the two other men with his hand held out. In it was two gold pieces, "It's what I can spare. You're welcome to it."

World of Light

Suoh ~ Beacon Mental Hospital

@Lugubrious Luka | @Yankee Pit

Word Count: 439
Level 7 Roxas: 1/70
Exp: +1
NEW EXP Balance--- 2/70

Roxas was very relieved to see that his plan had worked. Yuito was restored, and freed from Galeem's influence as a bonus! Yuito was rightfully confused, and while Roxas could answer the questions he probably had, now was not the time. "Shh, get down!" Roxas whispered to Yuito, "I'll explain everything later. Right now we need to get outta here."

"I used a Friend Heart on him." he said to Pit in a whisper in regards to Yuito while they were in the hallway, "Not sure if it would work twice, but at least we know it can save people from that fate at least once."

He stuck with the rest of the team as they crept their way out of the cafeteria and eventually regrouped with Luka, Hanabi, and Pit in a janitorial closet. Roxas half expected to be questioned heavily about how exactly he had been able to save Yuito. But for the time being it seemed like Luka - and especially Hanabi - weren't too concerned over the details just yet.

"Oh, Yuito?" Roxas said, holding out the Scarlet Guardian's sword for him to take, "I'm guessing you're gonna need it."

After that was said and done, Roxas only now started to look around. "Where are we now?" He asked, unsure what part of the hospital they had fled to, primarily because he had been more focused on escaping from Anima. But now that that tension was eased, he had to admit to himself that he was afraid they might have gotten themselves lost. Of course this was about when the murmuring voices could be heard.

Roxas put his ear against the closet door to try to hear them more clearly. But it was obvious they were going to follow the voices if they wanted to know anything concrete. The Keybearer slipped out of the closet and crept down the hallway toward where the voices were coming from. But unfortunately, by the time he might have caught up to them they disappeared into an elevator that was going down. All the way down to the basement.

Roxas looked around at the others, "Should we follow them down?" he asked. On one hand it seemed obvious that they should. But on the other they had no idea what was actually down there and could have been walking into some kind of trap for all they knew.

---

The Under ~ The Hive

The Wasp Queen

Word Count: 382
Level 5 Ganondorf: 31/50
Exp: 1
NEW EXP Balance--- 32/50

As it turned out, the "wasp" Queen turned out to be a fake, in more ways than one. Not only was the wasp itself just a mechanical contraption, it was also being operated by a Bee of all things. Well at least it seemed like her army of wasps were no longer swearing their fealty to her at least. But then she broke the floor and managed to drop the lot of the Seekers down into a hidden chamber with a lake of honey waiting at the bottom of it. The Gerudo managed to sheathe his blades away in midair, and good thing too because he would need his hands free for what he did next.

Ganondorf channeled his dark magic and used it to summon his Phantom. Or rather, his Phantom's horse. The phantom stallion appeared directly under the falling King and Ganondorf effortlessly positioned himself on the ghostly saddle. Then with a rear the horse in question began to gallop in midair. Meanwhile, the Bee had transformed herself into some kind of flying vehicle that flew around dropping bombs. Ganondorf drew the White Sword from its scabbard and spurred his mount into a charge through the air.

This benefit would only last a minute, and so the Gerudo would have to make sure he made it count. He attempted to keep pace with Bee, effectively challenging her to a midair dogfight where he on his flying phantom steed would trying to take swings at her with his sword with each time they passed one another. Either that or in a few other instances he would instead try to fry the bee with his Violet Flare flame breath.

Either way, Ganondorf could only keep this up for a minute at most. After that the phantom horse summon would pass its time limit and dispel. Then Ganondorf would have even fewer options to fight this enemy with. The rest of Seekers had better have tricks of their own to deploy, because Ganondorf was not going to be able to keep up this tactic for long.

World of Light

The Under ~ The Hive

The Wasp Queen

Word Count: 522
Level 5 Ganondorf: 30/50
Exp: 1
NEW EXP Balance--- 31/50

The big bad Queen, as it turned out, was little more than a gigantic robotic wasp. She commanded an impressive enough looking army, but then again, so did the King of Hyrule. And Ganondorf had reduced that army to cinders. These wasps would be no different. The Gerudo brandished his blades as the Wasp Queen offered the usual spiel about how she could never be defeated. Honestly if Ganondorf had a rupee for every monarch he had ever fought and dethroned, well, he'd have quite a few of them to say the least.

As the wasp swarms attacked and took their various shapes, most of the Seekers were quick to spring into action. Ganondorf, on the other hand, was content to take this more slowly. Instead he just calmly walked forward and let his lips curl into a wicked smile as a seeming storm cloud of wasps hovered above and began to close in on him. What happened next was a massive explosion of dark energy that Ganondorf had been building up in his swords ever since the Seekers first began their invasion of this hive. The wasps buzzed around him as they became engulfed in black fire and burned to ash. And at the center of it all stood the mighty King of Evil who began to laugh an ominous laugh, "HAHAHAHA!"

His sinister laugh thundered at the center of the remains of countless wasps now burnt to ash. He brandished his swords and only now did Ganondorf finally break into a run. He ran for a ledge straight ahead of him, slicing and cutting at any wasps that got in his way. At the edge he bent his knees and pushed himself into a powerful leap. Luckily for him the Potion of Jumping he had consumed during his fight with Blast Hornet had not yet worn off. The potion's effect allowed Ganondorf to make a great leap for the Wasp Queen herself. He even sliced his way through a sword-wielding heavy drone along the way.

Then with all his strength the Gerudo buried his blades into the Queen's armored thorax. Whether this did significant damage to the Queen, Ganondorf did not know. But he began to use his swords as makeshift climbing tools, stabbing them repeated into the insect's body in order for the man to traverse upwards in a climb that he aimed to eventually let him reach her head. Of course, the Queen's wasps wouldn't just be standing by and allowing this. But most were hesitant to attack, as if they were afraid of accidentally damaging their queen. But those whom did attack were simply met with Ganondorf's Violet Flare breath attack.

"Did you honestly think that you could rule forever?" Ganondorf taunted the Queen, regardless if she could actually hear him or not, "Monarchs rise and monarchs fall! I've seen it for myself, and YOU will be no different!"

World of Light

Suoh ~ Beacon Mental Hospital Residential Wing

@Lugubrious Luka | @Yankee Pit

Word Count: 805
Level 7 Roxas: 4/70
Exp: +2
Friend Heart used: -5 exp
NEW EXP Balance--- 1/70

"What the-? Yuito!" cried Roxas as he helplessly watched him be... devoured(?) by Anima. Right after this was when the real horror show started. Anima let out a shrieking cry of victory that caused all the tables to float up and then drop back down to form a maze of sorts. With the horrific monster floating about them above, this left the Seekers as well as the remaining Scarlet Guardians little choice but to hide until a better opportunity presented itself. By pure chance, Roxas spotted Yuito's sword on the floor near to his position. After what happened, Yuito's psychic control over the blade must have been broken resulting in the levitating weapon being dropped on the spot. The following victory cry and resulting shuffling of the tables must have knocked the weapon to its current location.

Hold on, Yuito. Roxas thought to himself as he scrambled forward and snatched the weapon up along the way. He now scurried in a low-crouch, making sure to keep himself well behind the tables to avoid being spotted by Anima. He'd dismissed both his Keyblades and was now only holding onto Yuito's sword, the hilt of which he clutched tightly in his hand. I'm not leaving this place until I figure out a way to save you. He solemnly promised himself. Just after this the tables rose back up only to drop down in a new formation. That meant that even if Roxas did start to get a sense of direction, Anima would likely just change it all up and effectively reset the entire board. Was navigating this "maze" really going to be so impossible? Or maybe Roxas was just thinking too linearly.

When the tables shifted next, Roxas was able to use the opportunity to glance around and gauge where everyone else was. He briefly glimpsed Luka across the room and the sobbing Hanabi in another position entirely. He also spotted where Yuito's body was shambling. All just before the tables came back down. If he wanted to regroup with someone without having to reorient his sense of direction every time the maze changed, then he needed to change the timing of when he moved! Luka! Roxas loudly thought in his head, hoping Luka could hear. We can track each other's position during the periods when the tables are floating. We can use that time to move closer to each other. Otherwise we'll just be wandering around this maze of tables forever!

After this Roxas made a point to glance around and double check where in the room everyone was during those brief moments when the tables were moving. It wasn't a perfect solution, but at least it was something. At the same time, Roxas began trying to think of a way to stop Anima. He had a feeling that Yuito might return to normal if Anima was defeated and destroyed. But even if that idea was no good, he did have another thought percolating in his mind. The other day during the return home from Suoh, he and some other Seekers had that brief run-in with the demons born from the redshift. Roxas could recall saving one specific individual from the infection by using a Friend Heart on him. Would it work on Yuito, too? He had no idea, but Roxas wasn't about to give up without at least trying.

So for the time being, Roxas focused not on regrouping but instead on closing in on Yuito. He knew he'd have to get closer to try using a Friend Heart on him after all. This was a huge, if it didn't work then Yuito's shambling body could just as easily attack him or worse, alert Anima to the Nobody's presence. Roxas was really hoping at this point that his black coat was doing its job in helping him stay undetected. He never thought he'd have to rely on it for a mission like this before. It wasn't too terribly long before Roxas spotted Yuito after a table shifted position. This was it. It was now or never.

Roxas moved toward Yuito from behind, remaining crouched and hopefully still out of sight from Anima. Roxas swallowed hard as he formed a pink Friend Heart in his free hand. Then he just held his breath and threw it at Yuito's back. This was either going to work, or result in a catastrophe. But Roxas promised himself he was going to save Yuito. If not with this Friend Heart, then perhaps by defeating Anima if necessary.