Chapter Two
Zeus stood before a large crowd. "I am sure a majority of you are wondering what sort of event Black Heart and I agreed to! For everyone's information, we are going to do the same things we did when fighting Polygon Man two years ago, only in groups against that Blue Heart! If we do it this way, we can regain our popularity by ridding of any forces or monsters, as it was lost due to false information being spread about us!"
He then slammed his fist into the stand in front of him. "You! Yes, you! You had some sort of system, didn't you? Come over here and explain it to us all." Nepgear trembled as Zeus directed to her. Getting up, she spoke carefully as something on a flat-screen was shown.
"W-well, these are called Lily R- I mean, Friendship Links! D-depending on one's chemistry with another character… They can become the most powerful, i-in terms of partnership! So, uhm… H-here's how it works for the most part!
"Those with 1/5 hates each other or barely cooperate.
2/5 is neutral.
3/5 is enjoy being around or friend.
4/5 is a really good friend!
5/5 is an inseparable bond!…"
She then revealed all the partnerships.
• Kratos & Zeus = 1/5
• Sweet Tooth & Mr. Grimm = 2/5
• PaRappa & PJ Berri = 4/5
• Fat Princess & Red Soldier = 3/5
• Fat Princess & Red Mage = 3/5
• Radec & Kratek = 3/5
• Radec & Cobar = 2/5
• Sly Cooper & Bentley = 5/5
• Sly Cooper & Murray = 5/5
• Bentley & Murray = 5/5
• Nathan Drake & Sully = 4/5
• Cole & Zeke = 4/5
• Ratchet & Clank = 5/5
• Jak & Daxter = 4/5
• Jak & Keira = 4/5
• Big Daddy Bouncer & Rosie = 2/5
• Heihachi & Kuma = 4/5
• Nariko & Kai = 4/5
• Sackboy & Sophie Sackgirl = 5/5
• Spike & Jimmy = 3/5
• Sir Daniel & Canny Tim = 4/5
• Toro & Kuro = 3/5
• Kat & Raven = 3/5
• Emmett Graves & Sydney Cutter = 4/5
• Isaac Clarke & Sgt. John Carver = 3/5
• Pupuru & Puni = 4/5
• Pupuru & Etanya = 3/5
• Neptune & Nepgear = 5/5
• Neptune & Plutia = 4/5
• Dart & Shana = 5/5
• Scorpion & Sub-Zero = 2/5
• Abe & Munch = 3/5
• Crash & Coco = 5/5
• Spyro & Cynder = 5/5
• Morrigan & Lilith = 4/5
• Gex & Alfred = 3/5
• Nikki & Fargus = 3/5
• Laharl & Etna = 3/5
"Wow, so some of them get more than one partner? That's interesting!" Toro mew'd. "I wonder though, what is going to be-"
"I REFUSE TO WORK WITH ZEUS! DIE GODDESS!" Kratos roared, charging himself at Nepgear, who jumped back in fear. Scorpion and Sweet Tooth instantly held him back by the shoulders.
"Trust me son, I'm not thrilled about it either, but it seems like neither of us have options." Zeus growled, then turned back to the frightened Nepgear. "Are you alright dear?" He asked in a flirting tone. "Wasn't there also a new system with the supers you wanted to bring up?"
Calming down, she nodded. "Th-that's right! Uh, some of your own supers will require assistance from your partners now. This isn't a problem for Ratchet, Nariko, Heihachi, Toro, or Sly. But those who prefer working alone like Rad-" Seeing Radec glare at her, Nepgear changed the train of sentences. "I mean, Scorpion! M-may have to switch things up for their partners!" The spector raised a brow at why he was mentioned instead, but shrugged.
After regaining a bit more confidence and composure, Nepgear continued. "For instance, Neptune is replacing some of her attacks! Level One is a cooperation attack with Plutia, called Boomerang! While Level Three is with myself, the Violet Buster! So, uhm… Th-think this one out! Don't throw away a super that's really good for your partner!"
Everyone seemed to understand now. Radec was clearly going to have a bit of trouble, as he had two partners, yet liked handling weapons on his own. Sly had everything sorted already, as did Pupuru surprisingly.
Jak seemed a bit puzzled on what Daxter could help with, but Keira was instantly assigned to Level Two, as no one wanted to abuse anymore Dark Eco, and she could convert it to other colors. "Ah, yes, while I'm at it!" Zeus then smirked. "Purple Sister, does one goddess as lovely and innocent as yourself have plans other than being with elder sibling?" He asked, making her cringe.
"U-uh… I'm afraid not! Sorry about that Zeus!" She instantly bolted to Neptune's side, which annoyed Zeus quite a bit.
Converted/changed Supers:
Kratos (Zeus)
Level One: Lightning Clap ("It's my attack, but I deserve a better spot, such as Level Two or three!… Either way, it's a powerful strike of my power!" - Zeus)
PaRappa (PJ Berri)
Level Three: "I Gotta Believe!" ft. PJ the DJ (It's much more catchy when you have a proper DJ around. Still, it's a cutscene…)
Sweet Tooth (Mr. Grimm)
Level Two: Death Spawn ("The fires of souls take over the body of those in the way, like a murder of crows!… Don't worry, I won't eat them this time." - Mr. Grimm)
Colonel Radec (Vyktor Kratek, Tendon Cobar)
Level One: Kratek's W.A.S.P (Nothing changes, but Kratek takes control of this super.)
Level Three: Take None Alive ("All of those against the Helghast will perish! If Mael thinks that pathetic jet-pack is worthwhile, I shall show the power of my tanks!" - Cobar)
Nathan Drake (Sully)
Level One: Crate Drop ("I'll just drop this on over and hope it lands on one or two people bothering Nate. Bound to work." - Sully)
Cole MacGrath (Zeke Dunbar)
Level Two: Dunbar Beam ("This straight-forward baby uses high UV rays to burn down the Corrupted! Pretty sure it will work on other enemies Cole runs into." - Zeke)
Jak (Daxter, Keira)
Level Two: Eco Conversion! (Keira changes dark materials into those of different colors then shot off in one direction like Radec's Arc Cannon.)
Level Three: Light Jak ("Hey now, I can help out if I want to! Just ask me to stun 'em for Jak, alright?" - Daxter)
Big Daddy (Rosie)
Level One: Rosie's Rush (Better to keep the Little Sister safe, so Rosie takes her spot with the forward attack.)
Sackboy (Sophie Sackgirl)
Level Three: Let's Do This Together! (Both LittleBigPlanetians run around the bubbled enemies to pop them. One is AI controlled I guess. After all, it wouldn't be right to do this alone.)
Spike (Jimmy)
Level Two: Other Protagonist's Turn (Jimmy is taken control of for a short time with the stun-clubs. One hit from this is a kill.)
Sir Daniel (Canny Tim)
Level One: Lightning Arrow ("I'll put a little extra effort into this shot, has a much better chance of hitting someone and keeps going for quite a bit!" - Canny Tim)
Kat (Raven)
Level One: Gravity Bind ("It has a bit of a better chance of hitting than Kat's version." - Raven)
Isaac Clarke (Sgt. John Carver)
Level Three: Open the Hatches! (Really the same as 'Dead Space' Level Three, all Carver does is just help safely trap enemies while Isaac deals with them.)
Pupuru (Puni, Etanya)
Level Two: Puni's Fiery Aura (A lot like the large fire spell Pupul already uses, but a bit more extensive.)
Level Three: Misfortune from the God's ("I think I can both easily contact those we need a bit of help from. Pupuru needs it anyway…" - Etanya)
Neptune (Nepgear, Plutia)
Level One: Boomerang ("I'll hit you using my stuffed animal like a boomerang…" - Plutia)
Alt. Level One: 'Extra Service' ("How about I seal and bound you powerless for a moment? After this, you'll be addicted…" - ?)
Level Three: Violet Buster (Neptune and Nepgear EXE coupling skill, cutscene.)
Dart (Shana)
Level Two: Star Children (Beautiful stars around Shana gather, then fall towards the direction Dart is facing, hopefully towards the enemy.)
Level Three: Red Eyed and White Silver Dragons (Both dragons descend from the sky to attack all enemies.)
Scorpion (Sub-Zero)
Level One: Freeze Kick ("I'll crush your very… No, that sounds too brutal. Don't take it personally, I'm just freezing you and kicking you into shards, alright?" - Kuai Ling)
Abe (Munch)
Level One: Munchies (Jumping out, Munch will just ram into anyone close by like an ankle-biter. But then again, he's better in water than land…)
Crash Bandicoot (Coco)
Level One: Shockwave! ("I have multiple attacks, but I'll just use the one powerful enough to rid of enemies if my brother really needs it." - Coco)
Spyro (Cynder)
Level Two: Divebomb (Exactly what it says, Cynder does that to enemies horizontally.)
Morrigan Aensland (Lilith)
Level Three: Eternal Slumber (Morrigan and Lilith cover the screen with a light pink curtain and… Uh, 'attack' the other All-Stars? It's a vague cutscene…)
Gex (Alfred)
Level Two: Allow me, Sir (Alfred takes this one over for a bit, using a DualShock controller to fire off a charged shot that only goes vertically.)
Nikki (Fargus)
Level Three: Expert Spell…? ("I didn't do it! I promise! It was Sid's idea!… Didn't expect a big monster to show up and eat people at all!" - Fargus)
Laharl (Miss Etna)
Level One: It's Prinny Dood! (Etna literally just tosses one of those penguin-like creatures... Don't know why she just didn't want to use her own abilities.)
"So from what I'm getting… Sly, Ratchet, Princess Plump, Emmett, Heihachi, Nariko, and Toro don't change anything up because their partners already help in some supers?" Spyro asked while reading the changes over. "Question is, where do we start and how do we even go about this? Did Zeus even have a plan for that?"
Heihachi then grinned. "Glad you asked, puny reptile!" The dragon growled at the name. "Zeus said we would be going around places we already had traveled before and battle! Such fights could get bystanders excited and want to support us again, since that Bleu person made us look bad! For instance, Kuma and I shall head to the volcano from Sorcery Saga! Any fellow All-Stars, will be challenged!… That being said… Who wishes to challenge me?!" He stamped his foot, trying to look intimidating.
Of course, Spyro wasn't going to be insulted twice in a row. "Cynder and I will gladly take you on then, a volcano could be at our advantage anyway!"
"Sounds like fun, doesn't it Nikki? Volcanoes means… Fire… Pretty, pretty fire!" Fargus the jester chanted, in which everyone gave him a strange look.
Nathan Drake pondered it for a moment before raising his fist. "Hey, maybe there's some treasures in that place, I'm in!"
Then Zeus summoned a lightning bolt while standing beside Kratos. "We shall head for Columbia! Any challengers?" Toro, Sweet Tooth, and Gex raised their hands. The gecko just mainly wanted to see if he could go up against a god possibly, thinking highly of himself.
Laharl was last to speak up. "Hey! I'm the Demon Lord here! Why haven't I gotten a say in anything?!" They all turned to him, as if everyone had forgotten. "I'm gonna choose my own opponents who look the most worthy! Lesse here… You!" He pointed to Scorpion, who almost wasn't paying attention. "You… and you!" Both Big Daddy and Dart had their attention grabbed by him.
"He can't really force us to go, can he?" Shana wondered.
"No. But it might be best to humor this guy for now." Sub-Zero mumbled back.
Kat seemed to be pouting as she was waiting for a possible destination to head for. "I really don't like that Morrigan character. She's a demon, a monster. Takes away the souls of others… If we're given the chance Raven, I'll fight her!" Raven ignored the comment, however, Pupuru was listening.
"I kinda know how you feel. That Nikki person Gex invited bothers me. They say that she had cut a few corners in order to become a supreme sorceress! Besides, there's only room for one cute magic girl, one who isn't drunk on wanting unlimited power!" She then growled. "And if that lady even thinks of getting near Mael…"
Eternia cleared her throat. "It is quite a pity to see someone throw their selfless natures away for absolute power over the universe. Either way, Pupuru, it's silly to so defensive over-"
"Ah! Those are his friends, aren't they? I should ask them a few things, since Radec isn't around!" Pupul gladly skipped over to Kratek and Cobar while Kuu was in her arms. Etanya groaned, while Puni let out a sigh.
Kratek was first to notice the young girl approaching them. He directed Cobar's attention to her, who scowled. "Of al the ridiculous things we've been seeing here, now one of these freaks comes to us? This had better be worth our time or at least amusing." Tendon mumbled.
While her heart seemed to be skipping beats, Kuu just gave them both hateful stares, mad that he wasn't around the girls anymore. "You two, you're Radec's accomplices for this event, right? C-can I ask a few questions that you might only be able to answer?" Taking note of Pupul trembling, Kratek decided on going a bit easy on her.
"You know about Colonel Radec or have spoken to him? What business would he even have with the likes of you, child?!" Cobar hissed. "He didn't tell you everything about Helghan, did he?! If it was me in his shoes, I would have made sure every last one of you were slaught-"
"Now now, Tendon. she's only wanting to ask a question." Oddly enough, she wasn't frightened by Cobar's threat in the slightest. "Give your identity first, young lady."
"Uhm, it's Pupuru. The english-speakers call me Pupul because it's a bit easier or makes more sense. And this is Kuu-chan!" Lifting up the little creature, it gave a glare to the two, especially Cobar. "Oh Kuu, don't be so mean! Sorry, he doesn't like male company too much." She then cleared her threat. "So, did Radec ever talk about me around you guys?"
"Er, I'm afraid not?… He's never mentioned you to us." Part of Kratek was wondering why this girl wanted to know that of all things.
"Does he lie often or hide things?"
"I can easily answer that with a yes. He had a habit of hiding these weird action figures of artillery, Helghast, and ISA. Said it was war planning purposes when he didn't want to use screens, but I'm pretty damn positive he was playing with them behind everyone's back." Cobar replied.
"W-what about emotion wise? Stahl told us that he liked denying things…"
"Yes, he gets scared and won't show i- You people have met Stahl?!" Tempted to pull out a rifle, Cobar reached for his sides.
"Got two more questions, then I'll leave you both alone. Is he a virgin?"
"… WHAT?" Kratek questioned.
"Yes." Cobar responded while trying to stifle any chuckles.
"D-did he ever bring up wanting kids? For someone to continue his work? Because I don't mind!" Pupul then began giggling with a red face.
"WHAT?!" While Kratek remained in shock, Cobar couldn't contain his laughter much more. Thankfully, Eternia showed up and grabbed Pupuru by the shoulder.
Dragging her off Eternia grumbled. "Come on, you're freaking them out… There's a time and a place for everything, you know." She didn't even struggle, as if Pupul had gotten enough answers to begin with.
Cobar tried to collect himself after all of that. "That's enough to tell me she isn't a threat. As much as I dislike how colorful and cutesy some people here are, that made it worthwhile. Is it bad that I want to know what crap Mael has been doing when he was here?!" Remaining silent, Kratek walked away from the scene that had just occurred.
((This chapter isn't so much long as it looks… Just looks that way due to the lists of partnerships and changed/replaced supers. :T
We also get a few more introductions to characters that didn't get much info the first time… Such as the off-his-hinges jester known as Fargus, egotistical Demon Lord Laharl, gothic-fortune-teller Etanya, and Tendon Cobar… Who makes Radec's personality look like a decent person.
Also, yes, the thing of Radec playing with figurines is a reference to JaredtheMan05's stories and Memoski's drawing of Mael playing with a Sackboy.))