A/n: Hello, everyone, I hope you've had a great day! Even though it was a Monday...
"Great. Now, where are Nya and the others?" Jay asked after he and his friends had sneaked into the Gala. They'd gone in their dirty hoodies and ripped pants, because they didn't have time to get anything nicer. The guards didn't seem to notice, though, or they just didn't care. They were now standing in a giant ballroom that, for a palace made of dirt, actually looked very nice.
Lights were strung everywhere, there were tiles on the floor, and streamers hung from a pole in the center of the ceiling to the outer walls. Ghostly guests were dancing, and everyone seemed happy. However, there was no sign of their friends anywhere.
"Excuse me," Zane said, tapping an elderly ghost on the shoulder, "Do you know where Cryptor, or his personal guest went?"
"Oh, you just missed them." The ghost man said, turning to him, "Miss Skylar fainted, so-" He stopped when he saw Zane. "Zane!" He shouted, hugging the nindroid, "you're silver!"
"Father?" Zane asked, hugging Dr. Julien.
"Yes, what are you doing here?" Dr. Julien asked.
"We're trying to rescue our friends." Kai told him.
"Oh, I see." Dr. Julien said, "By the way, Zane, I met a very nice android girl you might like."
"I already have a girlfriend, father." Zane told him.
"You do?" Dr. Julien asked, surprised.
"Yes." Zane replied, "PIXAL and the rest of our friends have been taken."
"PIXAL's your girlfriend?!" Dr. Julien inquired.
"Yes, have you met her?" Zane asked.
"Yes! I met her earlier tonight. And I must say, I approve of your choice, Son." Dr. Julien said.
"Thank you father." Zane said, "But where is she?"
"Miss Skylar fainted, so PIXAL and Nya accompanied her to her quarters. Princess Hurumi, the leaders, and Misako left shortly after the announcement was given. Though, if you must speak with a leader, I believe Morro is still here somewhere." Dr. Julien told him.
"No, thank you." Zane said, "But what was the announcement?"
"I don't know, I wasn't here." Dr. Julien replied, "But, I believe it has to do with using your friends and allies to defeat you."
"Then we had better find their quarters and get out of here." Lloyd said.
Kai looked across the ballroom, and spotted Morro shaking hands with some of the guests.
"Maybe Morro knows where they are?" He suggested.
"Good idea." Zane said, and turned to Julien, "Thank you, father." Dr. Julien nodded, and drifted into the crowd.
"Wait." Lloyd said, "Before we rush over there, we should stop and think, first."
"Too late." Kai said, "Zane's already over there."
"Are you kidding me?" Lloyd groaned, "What's wrong with him? He's usually the rational one."
"He misses PIXAL." Jay said simply.
"Yeah, well, I miss Rumi." Lloyd said, "But you don't see me making stupid decisions because of it, do you?" Lloyd could tell Kai had something he was going to say, but thought better of it, and closed his mouth. The green ninja trudged across the dance floor, pushing guests out of his way. Jay and Kai followed.
"Zane, Lloyd, Jay, Kai." Morro said when he saw them, "What are you doing here?" He didn't look surprised, though, just worried.
"We're rescuing our friends." Jay told him, "Do you know where they are?"
"I think they're in their quarters." Morro answered.
"Yeah, we know that." Kai said, "Do you know where their quarters are?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't." Morro said, "I only joined The Overlord and his pawns so I could keep an eye on them. I think they know that, and they don't fully trust me, so they don't tell me everything." At this, Jay, Kai, Lloyd, and Zane slumped their shoulders. "But," Morro said, "I do know they aren't on this floor."
"Okay." Lloyd said, "How many floors are there?"
"Seven." Morro replied.
"Great." Lloyd said, "We can do that. We'll split up into pairs, and search every floor. Zane, you're with me. Kai, you're with Jay. Let's go."
:::::::
"Ready?" Hurumi asked. Her friends all nodded. They were about to execute the plan that would allow them to escape. PIXAL was the first to do her part, and left the room as quietly as she could. By now, the Gala had ended, and the halls were empty. She walked over to the palace's control room, which was just down the hall from their room.
There were two guards posted at the doors, which she hadn't planned for. This was stupid, she thought, of course there would be guards. Still.
How was she supposed to get in? She could ask nicely, but that probably wouldn't work. Suddenly, one of the guards spoke.
"What do you want?" He asked roughly. Panic overwhelmed PIXAL, but then she heard Skylar's words echoing in her head. When in doubt, either pretend to cry, or pass out. PIXAL decided to go with the first option, and burst into tears, clutching her still bandaged stomach.
"It's…" She whispered, "My stomach. I was stabbed yesterday, and the pain is overwhelming!" She collapsed to the ground, sobbing. The guards looked at each other, not knowing what to do.
"Can we help you in any way?" The second one asked, looking genuinely worried.
"In the control room, I need a Neural Drive. It's like an android pain killer." PIXAL said. Of course, this was completely wrong. A Neural Drive was a hard drive in her head that held her personality. It wouldn't help her with the pain. But, the guards seemed to buy it. They let her in, and closed the door behind her. As soon as PIXAL was in the control room, she turned off the security cameras.
"Cameras down." She whispered into her communicator. Next, she pulled up the castle blueprints. "Misako, you need to take the elevator to the first floor, and turn right. There will be a door on your left. Open it and it should lead you to the dungeon." She said.
"Noted." Misako answered.
"Hurumi, Skylar, got to the fifth floor, turn left, and there will be a door on your left." PIXAL said.
"Got it." Skylar replied.
"Nya, go to the third sixth floor and wait for me to arrive." PIXAL ordered, "I will alert you if I see any guards headed you way."
::::::
Everyone did as they were told. As soon as Skylar and Hurumi stepped out of the elevator, they saw Chen and his comrades' room. There were three guards posted right outside, and they looked intimidating. Hurumi took a deep breath, and marched over to them.
She flashed her prettiest smile, but was met with no reaction. The plan was for her to distract the guards with her beauty, or in any way possible.
"Well, hello there." She said sweetly. The guards didn't respond. Instead, they turned their heads to Skylar, who dropped down to the floor.
"Where is that contact lense?" She muttered, pretending to search for it. The guards looked back at Hurumi.
"So…"She said, "How about that whether, huh? I mean, there isn't any!" The guards did not look amused. "Do you have a girlfriend?" Hurumi asked the first guard. No response. This was taking too long. Behind the guards, Skylar mimicked fainting, and pointed to Hurumi. "Oh" the princess mouthed.
She started blinking rapidly, pretended to be dizzy, and grabbed the wall for support. Next, she fell flat on her back. It hurt, but it distracted the guards long enough for Skylar to slip into the room. Apparently, crying and fainting were becoming their go-to distractions, because they were so reliable.
Inside the room, Skylar saw four beds. She heard the familiar sound of her father's snoring, and tip-toed over to his bed. He was out, cold. She unlatched the necklace, and carefully took it away. Walking over to the next bed, Skylar saw Kozu lying there.
She easily unlatched his necklace, and then went to Morro's bed. He was lying there, looking peaceful. She took his necklace, and then proceeded to The Overlord's bed.
She took his necklace, and started walking back to the door. Suddenly, she stepped in just the wrong place. She heard the creak of a floorboard. They just HAD to have wooden floors, didn't they? Skylar thought angrily. Someone stirred behind her, and then the room went silent. Skylar opened the door, and slipped out. Hurumi was still on the floor, upon hearing Skylar, she opened her eyes and sat up.
"I'm fine." She said simply. She stood, surprising the guards, and walked with Skylar to the elevator.
"Smash them, already." She said as soon as the doors closed. Skylar took the necklaces out, and threw them to the floor. When they didn't smash, she stepped on them. The crystals crushed beneath her foot. And then, nothing happened.
"Well?" Hurumi asked.
"It didn't work." Skylar said, picking up a shard. It was plastic. "They're fake!" She realized it at the same time as Hurumi.
"Then that means…" The Princess trailed off.
"The others are walking straight into a trap!" Skylar yelled.
