Chapter 4: Faux King

Dimentio

The newly built Castle Dimentio's throne room was a bustle with activity. Dimentio himself sat again in his throne, his masked face surveying the scene with a heightened pride. Everywhere he looked his creations moved about, testing out their new bodies. It had been a while since he had first created the one standing at his side, and he had experimented with things other than the typical humanoid creature. There were ones that flew, ones that burrowed, ones that had blades on their arms, ones that were faceless, ones that looked perfectly human (but most definitely weren't), and some that didn't have a definite shape, but were certain amounts of dark energy with physical mass in a gaseous form.

'Ah ha ha...' Dimentio chuckled. 'My creations, they are as grand as a musical in a renowned theatre!'

'There is a lot of...of...' His original creation was fumbling with a word he didn't know. 'How can I describe this?' he asked.

'Hm...variety, perhaps?'

The creation clapped it's hands together. 'That's it!'

The jester chuckled again. 'Building your vocabulary? That's a good sign.'

It turned back. 'Why did you bless only me with intelligence?'

Dimentio smiled and spread out his arms. 'Why would I want all of these badgering me with words and questions when I can have my right hand do it by himself?'

It gave a look of surprise. 'Thank you Master,' it said, the honour it felt apparent.

Dimentio rested his head and closed his eyes, the sounds of his creations slowly disappearing. After so long, he finally felt on top. Maybe not completely. He had only half of the Chaos Heart, after all, but at least he had an army of minions now. He had his own castle. He had a right-hand...thing. And the Heroes? Nothing. The Pure Hearts were gone with the Chaos Heart the first time. Now he had a new one. There was no way to stop him now, not without a new Purity Heart, and there was no way in the Underwhere they could get one.

A new Purity Heart...

Dimentio's head bolted up and his eyes snapped open. 'A new Purity Heart?!'

His creation turned. 'Master? What is the matter?' Dimentio hadn't heard. Up until now he hadn't even considered it, but now that he thought of it, it was possible...

A new Chaos Heart was created...couldn't a new Purity Heart be created as such?

Thoughts were racing through his brain as he thought of all the possibilities. Merlon? Merlee? Descendants of the Tribe of Ancients still existed today throughout the dimensions. He wondered if the Mushroom Kingdom had prophets and sorcerers powerful enough to accomplish such a task. He wouldn't doubt it.

If they create a Purity Heart...everything is ruined!

'Master?!' His creation was growing worried. Dimentio still ignored him, almost falling out of his seat.

Why did I not think of this before?! Dimentio gritted his teeth; his heart had sunk to his feet in sudden dread and he wondered why he had wasted his time sitting around.

'MASTER!'

His creature's loud bellow brought him back to reality. His head spun to face it with such a sudden, unexpected movement that it jumped back a bit. 'What?!' Dimentio snapped.

'Uh...' It was at a loss for words. 'What is the matter?'

'The matter...' Dimentio pounded his fists on the arms of his throne. 'My plan has a weak point, like a great, circular space station with an exhaust pipe only two meters across!'

'A...weak point?'

'Something that could spell our doom!' Dimentio was frantic, clutching the arms tightly. 'A new Purity Heart could be created to counteract the Chaos Heart...and if that happens...' Dimentio hung his head. 'We're finished.' The creature just stared.

'Master...I could stop them—'

'No.' Dimentio waved his hand, dismissing the idea. He sat, silent, for a few moments. He stared forward. 'Captain Valex,' Dimentio finally said.

It took the creature a moment to realize that his Master had just addressed him by a name. 'Yes?'

'You aren't strong enough, not by yourself. We need others. Others more skilled, smarter, deadlier than my creations. More importantly, those who know the weaknesses and strategies of the Heroes.'

'Who do you suggest?'

'I have no idea, but there are many villains in the Mushroom Kingdom.' He looked at Valex. 'Take a few of them and find villains. Tell them my plan. Make sure to try and persuade them. We need as much help as possible.'

It nodded. 'Yes Master. I will summon them as soon as they are able.' The two of them looked at the various creatures. 'I do not believe they can move well at the moment.'

'Nor do I,' Dimentio said. He got up. 'I will retire for now. Do not disturb me.' He floated off.

As Dimentio floated through the halls, the possibility of a weakness still assaulted him. How stupid had he been? He should have eliminated the Heroes as soon as he could, and he let them escape simply because he thought that they couldn't deal with him. The sounds of the bustle of the throne room slowly got quieter, until he could no longer hear them. Going down the hallways, he entered a door to a long room.

It was covered in tapestries, all depicting some form of Dimentio and his life. The same ones that were in his throne room were here as well, along with many others.

A great heart shining, one half black, one half white.

The classical theatre icon, featuring the masks of Comedy and Tragedy.

A strong, yet oddly unintelligent-looking military general.

A female vampire glaring, a serious expression on her face.

A dark prince with dark blue skin.

And...a gigantic spider with a human girl dangling from its head.

As Dimentio moved through the hallway at a slow walk, he took it all in. So many parts of him, to stay with him for eternity. His smile had disappeared; jokes and similes had no place here.

'A room of dreams and memories...' Dimentio muttered to himself. 'My dreams and memories.' He stopped and looked up at another tapestry.

An angel with pink eyes and hair in a flowing lavender dress, her white wings spread wide.

He stared at it. 'Rosabella...how are you enjoying the Overthere?' It wasn't longing, but a literal question. He knew she was there. How could she not be? 'Enjoy it while you can. It won't exist soon.' His hand went over his chest as his heart beat savagely in protest, the whines of the Chaos Heart echoing in his mind. 'Hurk...' He shook his head. 'After-effects of the energy...' He shook his head once more and continued on down the hall. The only sound he could hear was the muffled footsteps of his feet, covered by his soft jester shoes. He remembered a room in his old home, the castle in his home world, that this place reminded him of.

Dimentio walked into the room, trailing behind his mother. He was very young, around five years of age. He looked up at his mother, his yellow and grey eyes sparkling with admiration. She had long black hair that flowed down to her hips. Her skin was a vibrant whitish colour, smooth and almost glowing in the light. Her beautiful green eyes scanned the room with a distant gaze, as if she were staring into a portal into the past.

Dimentio's eyes drifted from her to the room. It was long and dark, with grey stones making up the room itself. Torches hung from the walls, casting an eerie glow across the hall and bathing both of them in a light that Dimentio wished were brighter. Tapestries hung from the walls everywhere he looked, showing pictures of powerful gods and beautiful goddesses, grisly wars and flowering towns. All recounting something involving the kingdom's history.

Dimentio didn't like it.

'Mommy...' He tugged on the woman's pant leg. 'I don't like this place. Why are we here...?'

His mother, Raphaella, turned to look down at her son, a soft smile on her face. Dimentio's fears subsided, just a little. 'Dimentio, try to think of the place as just a room. There are no ghosts out to get you.' She laughed; Dimentio didn't. She motioned around the room. 'This room is known as the Hall of Recollection. The tapestries hanging tell us stories. Battles. Deities. Treaties. Everything significant is here, in this room. You are looking into the past.'

Dimentio looked again. He stared at the tapestries and realized that he had heard stories about some of them. His mother often told him stories about gods and goddesses that triumphed over the demonic forces of the Underwhere in great battles. He saw familiar faces. 'You're right...' he whispered, suddenly feeling the need to be quieter. He did indeed feel like he was looking into the past.

Raphaella smiled and picked up her son, putting him on her shoulders. She had had to be both a mother figure and a father figure to Dimentio, as his real father, Ganter, seemed to ignore him. The boy had never thought anything of it, but it broke the woman's heart to know that he would grow up without a real father in his life. 'See? There they all are, looking at you.' He was mesmerized, a broad smile growing across his face. 'Maybe someday you'll be up here.'

His eyes widened and he peered down at his mother. 'Really...?'

'Haha. You never know. You might grow up to be the world's greatest hero!' Instead of laughing too, Dimentio looked determined.

'I'll do it mommy!' he proclaimed with the innocent confidence of youth. 'I'll be the best hero ever!'

Dimentio focussed back on reality to realize that he had stopped walking. He stared hard at the floor, fists clenched at the memory.

Ba-bump! Ba-bump! His heart beat painfully in his chest.

The jester grimaced and put his hand to his heart. He half expected sadness and longing to come forth, accompanying the deep, respectful love he felt for his mother, the only parental figure he had ever had.

Nothing.

No sadness. No longing.

And no love.

Nothing.

The Chaos Heart had erased all love from his being, and even if he wanted to feel it, he couldn't. His head sunk.

'Mother...' he whispered. 'Someday...I'll find you. Even if I don't love you...I promised you I would visit once a season. I intend to keep that promise.' It wasn't love that made him think of her, but respect and his own conscience. She hadn't been in the castle...she hadn't even been in the kingdom when he had slaughtered everyone. She was alive, and he knew where. Things hadn't permitted him to visit for a while, however. He shook his head again for the umpteenth time and walked to the end of the hall, modelled after the one in his old home.

He reached the end and looked up. At the end of the hall, an enormous tapestry covered the entire wall, depicting the most blatant reference to him in the castle besides himself.

A man was sitting on an extravagant, dark throne. He had pale skin, his eyes were a bright yellow and a dull grey, and his hair was long, just above his shoulders, half black and half white. He wore what was essentially a purple, old-fashioned jacket, the sides hanging beyond his waist. The cuffs were buttoned on to the sleeves and were a pale yellow in colour. He wore darker purple pants and a regal-looking cape, purple on the outside and pale yellow on the inside. On his hands he wore dark yellow gloves. On his lap sat a black and white, Comedy-esque mask. He wore a smug, knowing smile on his face, like he knew information that could save your life or kill you. He looked so in control, so on top, so powerful. It was an evil, sadistic smile that Dimentio couldn't help but match at this moment.

'Another personification of me...' Dimentio thought it conveyed other aspects of his personality well, that were hidden beneath the layers of jokes and similes.

The room was deathly silent and Dimentio felt a familiar chill travel up his spine. He had visited the room in the castle various times throughout his childhood, and he had always felt the same chill. This was no different, even if it wasn't really the same room. He almost wished someone were here with him, even if it was one of the Heroes. Silence could be deafening.

He turned and began to walk out the door. Passing by another hallway, he took a look at the spider tapestry. His heart gave another painful pound as he remembered Mimi, the love that he used to feel completely gone, replaced by only hate. 'I'll have your head in my hands soon enough Mimi...or I could keep you whole, and have your body as my ultimate trophy.' He couldn't hold it in. 'Ahahahahaha!' He laughed, not paying mind to the silence that he automatically kept, or the chills going up his own spine as it was disturbed, echoing off the walls and reverberating into his brain. Hearing it from another source, it almost scared him. Almost. 'AhahahaHA! Your death will be the savoury sweets on my gourmet dinner tray! AHAHAHAHAHA!' He hadn't laughed this hard in a while, and he very much enjoyed it.

He stopped and waited, giggling a bit before falling silent. He stared up once more, and the pain subsided. He smiled devilishly. 'Ah ha ha...just wait. Your misery isn't over quite yet.' He walked out of the room.

His bedroom door opened and he walked in and closed it tightly, the lock closing with a click. It was completely untouched from what it had been before, still modelled after Dimension D...his second greatest accomplishment. He removed his hat, mask, poncho, shoes, gloves, and shirt and snapped his fingers, making them appear on his coat rack. He flopped onto the bed and closed his eyes, the day's exhausting trials of creating life finally catching up to him. Life was so difficult to create, and it required a incredible amount of mental and physical strength. While Dimentio had mental strength to spare, he wasn't exactly strong physically, which was why he was so tired. The Chaos Heart certainly helped...if he didn't have it in his possession, he probably would have killed himself trying. His thin, pale chest rose and fell in unison with his breaths, and he was grateful to have such a stronghold. A castle that reminded him of home...and a comfortable bed.

...

His eyes opened. What was that? Some sort of sound...?

...monster...

The jester sat up and looked around. 'Who are you? Show yourself!'

...you're a...monster...

Dimentio's head darted around frantically. He'd heard this voice before...but it was too faint to determine what it was. 'Show yourself!' His heart was being, and he could feel the Chaos Heart's rhythmic pulses inside of him.

You don't...deserve...a perfect world...

Amidst this voice, he could hear something else: a girl crying. 'Who...who are you?!' He was honestly frightened now, and had begun to sweat; never before had this happened to him.

Go...away...you...

A sharper beat made his hand twitch.

Monster.

SMASH!

Dimentio's heart pounded against his chest with an intensity that he had never felt before, and a fiery pain exploded in it. His hand immediately went to clutch at his chest and the only sound in his mind was the shattering of glass...or, more specifically...of a Rubee. The Chaos Heart pulsed in his mind at the same time as his powerful heart beats. His vision blurred and he fell off the bed onto the floor in a heap.

'Ack...engh...GAH!' He felt like he was having a heart attack multiplied by 100. Tilting his head to look at his chest, he stared at the area over his heart, seeing that a black, glowing symbol was shown there: half of a symbolic, dark heart, pulsing and beating just as his own did. He felt like electric shocks were coursing through his veins and all of his limbs and body parts were in agony. His brain thudded under the stress and stars danced before his eyes. He moved his head to face up and saw his mirror. Without knowing why, he looked into it.

His eyes widened.

Staring back at him were eyes that were not his own.