Last time found our heroes meeting and learning the story of Alegra; a near immortal time traveler dedicated to battling the forces of darkness, and mortal enemy of The Puppeteer. She told our heroes that she saved the remnant of Tess's soul, all so Tess could strike back and destroy The Puppeteer once and for all. Alegra also admitted to being the one to bring in The Abarangers, Hurricangers, Goraigers and Gaorangers. But then The Puppeteer arrived and tried to destroy our heroes. Then Nadakai Mikoto, Abare Killer, appeared and helped drive the vile sorceress away. It was then discovered that the workshop of The Puppeteer lies within The Möbius Continuum. With Tron's help, our heroes and allies entered the primal darkness to confront and destroy The Puppeteer. But then The Lord of Illusions trapped everyone in four illusions, forcing them to try and survive different hostile environments. 'Nuff said, on with the show!
Chapter 10: A Balanced Soul
…The Workshop…
"Oh, this is splendid!" said The Puppeteer as she laughed viciously at the plight of our heroes. Currently, Sora and the others were divided into four groups, each trapped in a deadly illusion.
Sora, Alegra, Red, Silver, Nanami and Isshuu were in a rock-strewn valley that was in the throes of a major earthquake, constantly being shaken up and forced to dodge boulders that were big enough to crush them into a bloody mess.
Aiden, Naminé, Blue, Black, Kouta and Yukito were in an endless grassland, being chased by a tornado, with the deadly twister less than fifty meters behind them and gaining fast.
Malcolm, Roxas, Yellow, Yousuke, Ranru and Asuka were inside a large sealed room that was rapidly filling with water that was now up to their waists.
Riku, Kairi/Tess, White, whom had a twisted ankle, Ikkou, Ryoga and Mikoto, whom was carrying White on his back, were in a drought-afflicted woods with a raging forest fire at their backs. The line of flames was less than forty meters behind them and gaining fast.
"I've got them right where I want them, master," said The Lord of Illusions as he sat on the floor, his eyes closed in concentration as he projected the quadruple death trap. "They are aware that they are experiencing illusions, yet they cannot escape and that makes the illusions real enough to destroy their minds. It is only a matter of time before the agony of the illusions leaves them as brainless idiots."
"While leaving the remnant of Tess's soul mine for the taking," said The Puppeteer, "outstanding! Simply outstanding! Can you make it worse for them? I want those meddling brats to really suffer."
"Depends on how much you want them to suffer," said The Lord of Illusions. The trickster then focused his powers, unleashing his vile imagination on our heroes.
Sora's group now had to contend with spikes that erupted out of the shaking ground. Aiden's group now had to dodge bolts of lightning, while a shark had appeared in the flooding room, adding further terror to Malcolm's group. As for Riku's group, bursts of lava began shooting up from the ground.
"I'll bet they're regretting crossing me now!" said The Puppeteer as she laughed with vicious glee. "Make them suffer more! Give them a real living hell!"
"As you wish, master," said The Lord of Illusions. He then made the earthquake shake harder, the tornado grow even bigger and made the wind more violent, the waters rise faster and the fire hotter.
"Yes! Suffer, you fools!" said The Puppeteer, "suffer until you die!"
…Radiant Garden…
"It's done," said Quistis as she disconnected a call on her cell phone, "I had to pull a lot of strings, but my superiors in SeeD are rushing over a piece of equipment that will allow us access to the primal darkness. With Tron's program, we'll be able to jump right to where Sora and the others are."
"How soon can it get here?" Ansem asked.
"They're sending it via a transwarp courier," said Quistis, "something that's reserve for dire emergencies."
"What is a transwarp courier?" Yuffie asked.
"A very, very fast ship," said Selphie, "you think hyperdrive is fast? Well, transwarp is much, much faster, but also every expensive and dangerous. A transwarp drive uses a very powerful, very expensive fuel, raritanium, which is also very dangerous."
"Raritanium is very volatile when used in more than microscopic amounts," said Quistis, " a few molecules is enough to catapult a ship from one side of the known universe to the other within a matter of hours. Yet a single gram is worth enough to buy a small kingdom. I had to call in nearly every favor I have with my superiors, including the one they owe me for my helping save the world from Ultimicia. But it's done. The device will be here in a matter of minutes.
"Thank goodness," said Lara, "I feel that they really need our help."
A short time later a very small, very fast ship arrived in orbit and beamed down a device that looked like an old slide projector, only made completely of metal and covered in strange blinking lights and diodes.
"What is that?" Yuffie asked.
"I can't remember its full, scientific name," said Quistis, "but its code name is easy enough; 'Quantum Projector.'"
"It basically opens portals to just about anywhere," said Ansem, "provided you have the right time and space coordinates, which we have," he then proceeded to link his PDA to the Quantum Projector.
"Awesome," said Selphie. She then frowned, "but what's the catch?"
"The catch," said Quistis, "is that the machine is still in its prototype phase. It does open portals, but there's the chance that the exit will be somewhere else. We may wind up on just about any world, possibly in any time even."
"What are the odds of that happening?" Yuffie asked hesitantly.
"I can't remember the exact statistics," said Quistis, "about one in twenty thousand. But when it did happen in its experiments, instead of only traversing 100 kilometers, as the test intended, the portal wound up opening up in space. Fortunately only a robotic probe was used and no human lives were lost, but such an accident, on a much larger scale, can happen."
"Then why bring it in the first place?" Leon asked.
"Be cause it's our best chance of getting to Sora and the others," said Sylvia, "Alegra knew how to get to The Möbius Continuum, but, being the stubborn old bitch she is, she refused to allow anyone else to come, so now it's up to us."
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Yuffie asked Quistis.
"Mostly sure," said Quistis, "but it is our best chance."
"And it's ready now," said Ansem as he activated The Quantum Projector. The machine then shot out a beam of energy that opened up a portal that was only big enough for two people to walk through at the same time.
"I was hoping to avoid this," said Ansem as he checked his PDA, "the portal is stable enough for one crossing. After two people go through, it will close up and there won't be enough power to open another for at least fifteen minutes, maybe more."
"Only two?" Yuffie asked, "that's not enough! That's not nearly enough!"
"It may very well be enough," said Merlin as he walked up to the group and presented Leon a small, gold disk on a silver chain. The disks had various magic symbols engraved on both sides, "if my suspicions are correct, and they usually are, then this will help Sora and the others in more ways than one."
Leon took the disk, "I'll get it to them, no doubt about it."
"Damn right we will," said Quistis.
"One more thing," said Lara, "kick that Puppeteer bastard in the balls for me."
"Lara!" exclaimed a shocked and appalled Sylvia, "do your parents allow you to use such language?"
"Only when I'm not at home," said Lara as she smiled mischievously.
"I'll give him an extra hard kick," said Quistis.
"Then let's not waste any more time," said Leon as he readied his gun blade, while Quistis readied her chain whip.
"Good luck!" said Yuffie.
"We're all counting on you!" said Selphie.
"Right," said Leon. With that he and Quistis jumped through the portal and found themselves on the cobblestone road within the primal darkness. They looked behind just in time to see the portal close up behind them.
"Okay, we're here," said Leon as he and Quistis looked around at the massive expanse of nothing all around them, "so, what now?"
Just then Quistis looked and saw Sora and the others, laying on the ground, all of them with intense looks of fearful stress on their sweat-strewn faces.
"What's happening to them?" Quistis asked as she ran over to Kairi, while Leon checked on Sora, then they proceeded to check the others, finding them all completely unconscious.
"It looks like they're all in a really deep, really bad nightmare," said Quistis, "or…"
"Or a really terrifying illusion," said Leon. He then pulled out the gold disk that Merlin gave him. "Let's hope this works," he then held the disk over Sora and it began spinning on the chain, faster and faster until it was like a ball. It then unleashed a pulse of magic that not only touched Sora, but also the rest of the Keyblade Wielders and Sentai warriors.
To Sora and the others, it was as if the nightmarish realities they were in shattered into darkness, and then they woke up.
"Leon?" Sora asked as he and the others got up, "what…what happened? Last thing I knew, we were about to be crushed by boulders or fall into pits or stabbed by spikes." At that Alegra, Red, Silver, Nanami and Isshuu nodded in agreement.
"We were about to be killed by a tornado or struck by lightning," said Aiden. At that Roxas, Yellow, Yousuke, Ranru and Asuka nodded in agreement.
"We were either going to drown or be eaten by a shark," said Malcolm. At that Naminé, Blue, Black, Kouta and Yukito all nodded in agreement.
"We were just about to be burned alive," said Riku, "nothing special." At that White, Ikkou, Ryoga, Mikoto, Kairi, and through her Tess, all nodded in agreement.
"And my ankle was twisted," said White, "it's fine now."
"That trickster bastard!" snapped Tess, "he did this to us!"
"It won't happen again," said Quistis, "Merlin gave us a secret weapon," she then paused in thought, "but he didn't tell us how to use it," he looked at Leon, "just how did you figure out how to use the disk?"
"I…lucky guess, I guess," said Leon.
At that Quistis looked like she wanted to yell at Leon, but sighed in resignation, "alright, I'll give it to you this time."
"So, what now?" Malcolm asked, "that illusionist bastard can hit us any time he wants and trap us in another illusion."
…The Workshop…
"Damn right I can," said an annoyed Lord of Illusions, "just as soon as I focus again…"
"How dare they!" snapped The Puppeteer, "how dare they! That guy with the big sword, how dare he deny me my triumph!" she glared at The Lord of Illusions, "destroy them! I want them begging for mercy before they die!"
"Yes, master," said the trickster as he sat down again to concentrate.
"I'll show them," said The Puppeteer as she paced back and forth, "I'll make them beg for mercy! I may just let a few of them live to be my slaves. But that big sword guy, Leon, he's got to die, and that eyeglass bitch, Quistis, yes, they'll die most horribly."
"Forgive me, master, for interrupting your rant," said the trickster, "but I find it most difficult to concentrate. If you want me to keep then alive, then by all means, rant and rave away."
"I'll rant and rave all the hell I want!" snapped The Puppeteer. She then sighed and calmed down a bit, "but you're right, this time. Work your mojo and give them hell."
"That I shall, master," said The Lord of Illusions, "that I shall." he then closed his eyes and concentrated.
All of a sudden the cobblestone road vanished and our heroes and allies found themselves inside an enormous, three-dimensional maze.
"It's like we're inside a giant cube," said Aiden as he an the others looked around at the massive labyrinth that was not only on one floor, but also on the sides and above them.
"He did it to us again!" snapped Tess, "I'll kill that trickster bastard!"
"We still have to get out of this maze first," said Yukito.
"And how are we going to do that?" Yousuke asked.
"Just keep turning right," said Ranru, "or left. Either way, we'll eventually find our way out."
Just then they all noticed that the walls of the maze was constantly shifting. One path would close up, while new paths would open.
"Oh, now that's just not fair!" snapped Nanami.
"Whoever said that villains played fair?" Alegra asked, "I've been fighting the forces of evil for a long, long time. Believe me, I know."
"Then how are we going to get out of this mess?" Sora asked. He then touched one of the nearby maze walls, "I know it's an illusion, but it feels pretty real to me."
"That's it!" said Malcolm, "that's how he's doing it!"
"Would you mind enlightening the rest of us?" Yellow asked.
"We all know that we're being attacked with illusions," said Malcolm, "well, knowing that what we're experiencing is an illusion should be enough for us to get out of it, right? But it's not, we're still experiencing what The Lord of Illusions is wanting us to. Why? He's manipulating what our hearts experience. The mind is one thing, while the heart is another. Yet the two are connected on many levels. By manipulating the one, you manipulate the other."
"I'm not sure I get it," said Sora, "are you saying that these are all illusions of the heart?"
"In a nutshell," said Malcolm, "yes. So what we need is a spell that will free our hearts of this falsehood."
"I think you'll need this," said Leon as he handed the disk to Malcolm.
"This is perfect," said Malcolm as he took the disk, "that Merlin really knows his stuff." He then held the disk out by its chain, closed his eyes and chanted a spell. The disk began spinning so fast it appeared as a golden ball again.
"Now," said Malcolm, "I need everyone to concentrate one a single thought, a single fact that we all know is real. It has to be simple, like a word or a phrase."
"Neba Giba!" said Black.
"Yeah, Neba Giba!" said Yousuke.
"Neba Giba," said Sora, "never give up. Yeah, that's simple and true."
With that everyone focused on the phrase Neba Giba, some of them whispering it, others silently mouthing it.
The spinning disk then unleashed a pulse of golden magic that shattered the maze, leaving our heroes back on the cobblestone rode.
"Well, that was easy," said Silver.
"Almost too easy," said Mikoto.
...The Workshop...
"You talentless derivative!" snapped The Puppeteer at The Lord of Illusions, "they broke out of that like it was made of tissue paper!"
"I…I don't know what to say, master," said the trickster, a thunderstruck look on his face, "that three dimensional, constantly shifting maze was one of my best constructs. It is inconceivable that the infidels would defeat it."
"Well, you'd better conceive it, Leslie!" said The Puppeteer, "and you'd better think of something better real fast, or I'm going to be in the market for a new minion! Got it?!"
"Yes, master," said The Lord of Illusions, a nervous sweat bringing to break out on his brow, "I understand. I shall use my most powerful, most devastating, most terrifying illusion. I will need time to prepare, and I will also have to be there in person to perform it."
"Do whatever you have to do," said The Puppeteer, "I want those brats finished. You don't have to kill all of them. Yes, the more I think about it, I would like to have a few still breathing. I think I'll keep Kairi alive after all, after I take Tess's soul out of her. Yes, Kairi, and Sora. Yes, I'll make them my slaves," she then smiled with vicious glee, "oh the things I'll do to them, oh, the things I'll make them do to each other!" she then glared at the trickster, "what are you doing standing around for? Get to it, man!"
"Yes, master," said The Puppeteer. With that he sat down and began concentrating.
"In the meantime," said The Puppeteer, "I think I'll shake things up a bit for the brats." She then smiled viciously, "oh yes, I'll shake them up so bad, they'll have a twitch!"
Just then a score of Neo Shadows appeared in front of our heroes.
"Oh come on!" said Aiden as he, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Roxas and Malcolm, summoned their Keyblades, "we don't have time for these drones!" With that the Keyblade Wielders proceeded to tear into the attacking Heartless.
"Need any help?" Red asked anxiously.
"No, we're fine!" Sora shouted as he stabbed one Neo Shadow, then decapitated another.
"We do this all the time!" said Kairi as she destroyed two Neo Shadows. "Hey, I think I'm getting the hang of using two Keyblades." She then blinked and her eyes turned blue and green.
"Don't get too comfortable," said Tess as she stabbed a Neo Shadow with both Keyblades, then threw one at another Neo shadow, "I don't plan on being in you forever." She then blinked and her eyes returned to normal.
"You don't have to remind me," said Kairi, "the sooner you're back in your body, the better for both of us."
She then blinked, "oh really?" Tess asked in a mock insulted tone, "and here I thought you were warming up to the idea of us being roommates."
She blinked again, "Not in this sense," said Kairi, "you're a really great friend, but there's only so much of you that I can endure."
By now the summoned Heartless had all been destroyed and everyone was watching Kairi and Tess argue with each other.
"And what's wrong with me that you can't stand?" Tess asked.
"Well," said Kairi hesitantly, "your taste in music is kinda annoying."
"What are you talking about?" Tess asked.
"What's wrong with her choice of music?" Riku asked, "she likes pretty much the same music that I do."
"Does that include disco?" Kairi asked.
At that Tess sounded like she was horribly shocked, "how'd you know that I like disco?"
"I can hear it," said Kairi, "ever since you wound up inside me, I've been hearing disco music in the back of my mind. It's like a major play list in your soul."
"I didn't know you liked disco," said Sora to Tess.
"It's…kinda a guilty pleasure," said Tess in an embarrassed tone, "I just like it, that's all."
"No, it's not all," said Kairi, "I know that secretly, you want to learn how to dance, and I'm not talking about waltzing and formal dancing. No, you want to go to a disco and dance, with Riku no less."
"I…yes!" Tess shouted, "I want to dance with Riku! Is that a crime? Because if it is, then lock me up and throw away the key!"
"Hey, it's okay," said Riku. He then walked up to Kairi and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "as soon as you're back in your body and you've gotten your strength back, we'll go dancing. We can learn together, and then we'll go to a disco. There's actually one in town back home."
"There is?" Sora asked, "I didn't know that."
"Well, there is," said Riku. He looked at Kairi, focusing on Tess's blue and green eyes, "I swear, we will go to a disco together one day."
"Oh, Riku!" Tess exclaimed happily. Without warning, she flung her arms around his neck and passionately kissed him full on the lips. Caught in the moment, Riku kissed back with equal fervor and love.
"Oh my gods!" exclaimed both Aiden and Malcolm, while Sora, Leon, Quistis and the others looked shocked.
But then Kairi opened her eyes, revealing their normal blue, which widened in shock. She then pushed herself away from Riku, leaving him standing with a confused look on his face.
"What the hell, Tess!" exclaimed Kairi, "that's Riku you made me kiss!"
She blinked, "I'm sorry, Kairi," said Tess, "I…I just…got caught up in the moment."
She blinked, "well, don't do it again," said Kairi, "or I'll rip you out of me and stuff you in a jar." She looked at Riku, "sorry about that," she then looked at Sora, "I'm so sorry, Sora, I couldn't stop her."
"I…it's okay, Kairi," said Sora, "you…you weren't in control."
"Don't ever do that again, Tess!" said Aiden, "you can do whatever you want when you're back in your own skin, but don't ever make Kairi do something like that again!"
Before Tess could retort, our heroes were confronted with a Darkside-type Heartless, only this one was much bigger than the ones Sora and the others had face before.
"Oh man!" said Sora as he stared up at the massive Darkside, "I hate these things!" He then rushed at the giant Heartless, only to be forced back by a huge beam of dark energy from the creature's eyes.
"That's new," said Sora.
"It's The Puppeteer," said Alegra, "she called that thing forth!"
"Then let's send it back to the darkness form where it came from!" shouted Malcolm. He then rushed at the oversized Darkside, dodging the creature's eye beams. He then sidestepped as the creature reached down to grab him, then jumped onto the arm of the giant Heartless, ran up to the shoulders, jumped up over the head and stabbed the creature in one eye. As he fell down, Malcolm kept attacking the oversized Darkside, dealing more and more damage. He landed on his feet as the giant Heartless self destructed.
"Malcolm, I think you just passed your probation," said Kairi.
"You really think so?" Malcolm asked.
"I know so," said Kairi. She then blinked.
"So do I," said Tess. She then looked up and shouted out to The Puppeteer, "is that the best you can do?! Is this all that the great and terrible thief who stole my body has to offer?!"
Just then The Lord of Illusions appeared in front of our heroes. His eyes then flashed dark purple and all of our heroes, sans Alegra and Mikoto, were left standing stark still, a look of utter terror on their faces.
"What happened?" Mikoto asked as he and Alegra looked at the faces of their friends, "what's did you do to them?"
"I trapped them in my greatest illusion," said the trickster, a look of strained concentration on his face, "fear itself."
"Fear?" Mikoto asked.
"Of course," said The Lord of Illusions, "no flashy images or sounds, no misdirection, no lies, just fear."
"Night terrors," said Alegra, "they're in waking night terrors. They're experiencing the sensation of fear and nothing but it, and it's slowly killing them!"
"Correct!" said the trickster, "it's only a matter of time before they're hearts give out by the strain of that much fear! But, there's something amiss. Why haven't you two been affected?"
"I had night terrors as a child," said Alegra, "and sporadically as I grew up. I've had time to learn how to deal with them."
"And I'm dead," said Mikoto, "no dreams or nightmares for me. So, what now?"
At that The Lord of Illusions looked as if he was now afraid.
"I get it," said Mikoto, "you can't do anything else right now. You're putting all your mojo into keeping my friends in their waking nightmares." he then smiled eagerly, "which means you can't attack us or defend yourself." He then rushed in and punched the trickster in the face, knocking the vile man down and breaking his concentration.
Almost instantly, Sora and all the others gasped in relief and collapsed to the ground.
"What happened?" Red asked.
"Our color-changing friend had you all trapped in a waking night terror," said Alegra, "but he failed to take into account that some people would be immune to his so-called greatest trick."
"Is that so?" Tess asked. She then walked over to The Lord of Illusions, "well, it seems that your best isn't good enough!"
"I say we find some rope and string him up!" said Aiden.
"No, we're going to get an axe," said Tess, "we couldn't behead The Trix, so I'm feeling a bit cheated."
"And just where are you going to get an axe?" Kouta asked, "we're in the middle of a great nothing!"
"I'll take care of him," said Mikoto, "you all go on ahead and deal with The Puppeteer."
"How come you get to deal with this bastard!?" Tess snapped, "do you have any idea what he's done to me?"
"Nothing as vicious as what The Puppeteer did to you," said Yukito.
"Well…that," said Tess, "but I still want to destroy this trickster bastard!"
"If you're going to vent your anger on anyone, do it on sick bitch who robbed you of your body," said Alegra, "leave this small fry to Mikoto, he knows what he's doing."
"But why?" Sora asked.
"Because he reminds me of the old me," said Mikoto, "a brilliant mind twisted by evil." He looked at The Lord of Illusions, "just what happened to you that made you side with The Puppeteer?"
"She pays well," said The Lord of Illusions in a matter of fact tone, "and she allows me to indulge in all of my fantasies. I can bring anything I imagine to life! Nothing is beyond me!"
"You're nuttier than a fruitcake!" said Aiden.
"Don't try to reason with him," said Mikoto, "he's so far into the darkness, there's no way back for him."
"You came back," said Ryoga.
"That's because I had you guys to show me the way back into the light," said Mikoto, "that and I learned the truth of Dezmozoria's manipulation of my entire life. But this guy, he's evil and relishes in it. He's severed all ties with the light."
"I get that," said Sora, "but why does it have to be you who fights him?"
"Because I'm the best one whom can counter his illusions," said Mikoto, "and, being dead, I've learned a few illusions myself from other dead people."
"The Great Majority," said Riku.
"Exactly," said Mikoto, "so, if any of us can defeat the trickster, it's me."
"Mind if I stick around?" Silver asked, "I'd feel better if you had some backup."
"You're welcome to stay," said Mikoto, "assuming the others agree."
"Kick his ass!" said Ryoga, while Red nodded in agreement.
"Just don't underestimate him," said Alegra, "illusions may not be his only weapons."
"I'll keep that in mind," said Mikoto.
"Good luck!" said Sora.
"Kill him," said Tess, "kill him good."
"Will do," said Mikoto.
"Hold on!" said The Lord of Illusions, "you're not going anywhere!"
"Oh yes they are!" said Mikoto, "I'm your opponent now! Or are you too afraid to face a dead man?"
"I fear no creature, alive or dead!" snapped The Lord of Illusions, "you want a one on one battle, a mind bending contest? So be it! We'll see who breaks first!"
"Good luck!" Sora said again as he and the others rushed ahead on the cobblestone path, leaving Mikoto and Silver to face the trickster.
"Alright," said The Lord of Illusions in a malicious tone, "let's get this over with!" he then glared at Mikoto, "you want to compare illusions? Let's compare!" He then focused all of his dark power on Mikoto, causing him to gasp in fight.
But then Mikoto recovered and glared back at the trickster, "nice try, but that wasn't scary at all!"
The trickster then flinched and swatted at his arms and legs, as if trying to rid himself of bugs. He then relaxed and laughed it off, smiling viciously, "ants, big ones, nice, really nice. Now, try this!"
At that Mikoto gashed in horror, but then relaxed, "snakes and spiders, not too shabby."
"It's about to get worse!" snapped The Lord of Illusions.
Mikoto then gasped in pain and clutched his chest, but then blinked and relaxed, "oh, making me think I've been shot. Swell, but you've got to remember, I'm already dead!"
"Oh, right," said the trickster, "I guess fear for your life isn't enough. But I know what you're truly afraid of!"
All of a sudden, Mikoto looked up and saw something absolutely terrifying, "no, it can't be! He's dead!"
"What are you doing to him!?" Silver demanded.
"I'm bringing his worst nightmare to life," said The Lord of Illusions, "I'm showing him a fully revived Dezmozoria," he then glared at Silver, "and now, I know what you're truly afraid of. Remember when you gave in to the darkness and put on that cured mask? Remember becoming Rouki? Remember being betrayed by your friends and sealed away for a thousand years? Remember being revived and tormenting the Gaorangers? Remember corrupting all those power animals? Well?! Do you remember!?"
Silver did remember all those terrible things he did. He then saw himself as the wolf Org Rouki, hurting his friends in the past and future, seeing himself rampaging across the world, allowing the Orgs to corrupt and destroy everything in sight, and it terrified him down to his heart.
The Lord of Illusions laughed viciously as both Mikoto and Silver fell to their knees in horrified despair.
"I win!" said the trickster, "and now you all will die!"
But then a green silhouette appeared, "not so fast!" exclaimed the silhouette.
The Lord of Illusions looked up at the green shape approaching the area, "impossible!" he exclaimed.
"I hope those two will be alright," said Sora
"There was no need for Mikoto and Silver to stay behind," said Riku, "we could have taken that trickster jerk together. He wouldn't have stood a chance."
"I know," said Alegra, "but it had to have happened this way. Trust me, in a little while, everything will make sense."
"Just what are you up to?" Kairi asked. She then blinked
"And does this have to do with any more aces up your sleeve?" Tess asked.
"Oh, I've got a few more aces up my sleeve," said Alegra, "but I'm waiting for the right moment to play them."
"What could they be?" Aiden asked.
"You brought in Mikoto," said Malcolm, "that's one."
"And then you used that machine that opened the door to The Mobius Continuum," said Riku, "that's two."
"Assuming she's playing with a full deck," said Quistis, "and I sincerely hope she is, she's got two more aces."
"Maybe I do," said Alegra in a mischievous manner, "maybe I don't."
Just then there was a teleportation flash and The Puppeteer stood before our heroes, looking extremely angry at Sora and the others.
"If you want something done right," said the vile sorceress, "do it yourself."
"Give me back my body!" snapped Tess as she summoned both her Keyblade and Kairi's.
"You want it?" The Puppeteer asked as she summoned her dark Keyblade, "come and get it!"
Screeching with fury, Tess rushed at The Puppeteer with both Keyblades raised. But the vile sorceress countered the two Keyblades, then struck back with her dark Keyblade with equal fury. The two of them exchanged blows, both of them doing their best to strike the other down, yet they seemed equal as they kept blocking each others attacks.
"This is intense," White.
"Way too intense," said Nanami.
"We've got to do something!" said Sora, "we've got to help Kairi and Tess."
"No!" Riku insisted, "this is their fight. Believe in Kairi and Tess, they can win!"
"You're right!" said Sora. He then shouted, "come on, Kairi! Come on, Tess! You can do it!" with that the rest of our heroes and allies began cheering their friends, shouting words of encouragement.
Hearing their friends and loved ones urging them on, Kairi and Tess fought harder against the vile sorceress, forcing The Puppeteer onto the defensive, pushing her back several paces.
But then The Puppeteer was too slow to block Kairi's Keyblade, which landed a solid hit on the sorceress' left arm. This slowed her down even further, allowing Kairi and Tess to get in even more hits.
"They're winning!" Sora shouted, "they're winning!"
Finally, Kairi and Tess scored a double hit that forced The Puppeteer to drop her dark Keyblade, then followed with another double hit that knocked the vile sorceress down.
"They did it!" Riku shouted, while the others cheered happily.
"How?" The Puppeteer asked as Tess and Kairi advanced on her, "how could I have lost?"
Kairi blinked, showing her normal blue eyes, "because you were fighting two instead of one." She blinked again and her eyes turned blue and green.
"Alright, you sick, twisted, sadistic bitch," said Tess as she advanced on The Puppeteer, "you've got two choices; either leave my body willingly, or I'll rip you out."
At that The Puppeteer laughed viciously, causing Tess to look at her with confusion.
"What's so funny?" Tess asked.
"You," said The Puppeteer, "you're the funny one! You think you've just won?" She then glared viciously at Tess, "well, you haven't! I've won!"
There was a flash of dark magic and all of our heroes and allies collapsed to the ground in agony. It was as if every inch of their bodies had been on fire, frozen solid and torn apart at the same time.
At this sight, The Puppeteer laughed with vicious triumph, "you fools!" the vile sorceress exclaimed, "you fell into my trap like the pathetic mice you are!"
"You…you let me win!" Tess groaned through the pain as she struggled to get back up, yet found neither she nor Kairi could make their shared body rise again.
"Of course!" snapped The Puppeteer, "I had this whole 'climatic battle' between us set up."
"Then why go through the pretense of a battle if you were going to curse us?" Malcolm demanded.
"Why?" The Puppeteer asked. She then smiled with demented glee, "because it amused me to do so. The look of victory on your faces when you thought I was defeated, only to be replaced with horrified, agonized defeat, it was worth taking a fall, oh yes, totally worth it."
…Radiant Garden…
All of a sudden, Lara gasped in shock, her eyes fully dilating and she fell to her knees.
"What happened?!" Yuffie asked as she and Selphie rushed over to help.
"I know what this is," said Sylvia, "Lara's having a vision. I sometimes get them; they can be either of the past, present or future."
"This one is happing right now," said Lara as he eyes returned to normal, "and it's of Sora and the others. The Puppeteer's got them in a dark magic trap. They're in pain…so much pain, and none of them can do anything about it! The Puppeteer is going to win!"
"The hell she is!" said Selphie. She then looked at the portal projector that Quistis brought in, then at Ansem, "get that thing going again! Seriously, we have to help our friends!"
"But how?" Yuffie asked, "if we attack The Puppeteer, she'll just hit us with the same dark mojo trap and we'll be helpless as well."
"Not necessarily," said Merlin, "I know the curse The Puppeteer is using on Sora and the others, and I know the proper counter curse."
"Then tell me, for the love of the light!" said Lara, "I've got to go there and help Sora and the others!"
"Hold on a moment!" said Sylvia, "up until now I've had no objection to you being involved in this mess. Heaven knows I've been fighting the darkness for almost since I was your age, but I never did anything this serious when I was little."
"What's your point, grandma?" Lara asked.
"My point is that you're not going to The Möbius Continuum," said Sylvia.
"But I have to!" said Lara, "I had a brief flash of the future as well as seeing what's going on right now. I saw myself there, helping our friends. I have to be there, it's destiny!"
"Don't get me started on destiny!" said Sylvia in a stern tone, "I've been traveling through time with Alegra long enough to know that the future isn't always set in stone. Things can be changed, and one thing that will change is you going. You're not! I just found out that you're alive, so there's no way that I'm letting you throw yourself in front of that monster!"
"I'm not afraid of The Puppeteer!" said Lara, "I can handle myself in the primal darkness!"
At that Sylvia glared at Lara, "you're just like your father, stubborn to a fault."
"Yeah, I did get that from dad," said Lara.
"Oh for crying out loud!" exclaimed Yuffie, "Leon and the others are suffering and here you two are arguing like chickens over a few pieces of corn!"
"We're not chickens!" snapped both Lara and Sylvia.
"We don't have time for this," said Selphie. She then glared at Lara and Sylvia, "I'll settle this right now. I'm thinking of a number between one and twenty. Whoever guesses right or is close enough can have her way."
"Fine with me," said Sylvia, "eleven."
"Eighteen!" said Lara.
"Fifteen," said Selphie, "Lara's close enough, she can come!"
"Yes!" Lara shouted happily, while Sylvia looked like she was angry, disappointed, hurt, proud and frightened at the same time.
"So, when do we leave?" Lara asked.
"Not just yet," said Ansem, "the portal projector needs a few more minutes to recharge."
"Can't you get it working faster?" Selphie asked.
"I can't change the laws of physics," said Ansem, "the machine needs time to power up."
"We can use the time for Merlin to teach me the counter curse," said Lara.
"But in the meantime," said Yuffie, "The Puppeteer can have her way with our friends."
…The Möbius Continuum…
The Puppeteer then looked at the disabled Kairi, "now, to claim Tess's soul. I was going to kill you all, but now…now I feel that it would be amusing to keep a few of you alive, including Kairi and Sora. The things I have planned for the two of you shall curdle your souls into cottage cheese!"
"You freaking psychopath!" snapped Ranru, "you won't get away with this!"
"We'll stop you before you can touch them!" shouted Red as he tried to get back up again, "come on, everyone! Neba Giab!"
"Neba Giba!" shouted the rest of the Gaorangers, as well as Abarangers, Hurricangers and Goraigers, while Roxas, Naminé, Riku, Aiden, Malcolm, Leon and Quistis shouted as well. They all gritted their teeth as they began to stand up, furiously enduring the pain wracking their bodies.
"Oh shut up!" snapped The Puppeteer as she flicked her wrist, doubling the pain afflicting our heroes and forcing them back to the ground.
"Can't you morons get it through your pathetic, mortal heads?" the vile sorceress asked, "I've won! So why bother resisting and make things more painful than they already are?"
"Because we're stubborn, that's why!" Sora shouted as he managed to stand up, "because even in the darkest of hours, even when everything seems hopeless and there's no chance of winning, we still won't give up!"
"And why's that?" The Puppeteer demanded.
"Because even in the darkest of darkness," said Sora, "there's a light that never goes out, ever!"
"Ah yes, the fabled 'Kingdom Hearts is Light' argument," said The Puppeteer, "I have no patience for such balderdash!" she pointed a finger at Sora, "kneel!" she shouted.
Sora gasped as the agony increased, nearly knocking him down, but he endured it and remained standing, "no!" he shouted.
"I said KNEEL!" exclaimed The Puppeteer as she increased the dark magic attacking Sora, "kneel before your master!"
Sora shouted in pain as the dark magic sapped his strength and forced him to his knees, yet he glared defiantly up at The Puppteer, "I'll never call you master! Never!"
"You will when I've absorbed Tess's soul!" said The Puppeteer as she walked over, then shoved Sora to the ground. She then walked up to Kairi.
"I never thought I'd agree with Maleficent on anything," said Kairi, "but she was right; you're nothing but a spoiled brat who only cares about amusing herself, and a bully to boot."
"Keep talking like that," said The Puppeteer, "enjoy your voice while you can, before I make you cut your own tongue out. Or, I could make you just shut up and only say what I want you to say. The possibilities are endless. But that can wait," she then summoned a knife made of dark purple, almost black crystal, "this will keep you alive while I take Tess's soul from you."
Kairi then blinked, causing her eyes to turn blue and green, "keep that thing away from me!" Tess shouted.
"As if you can stop me!" said The Puppeteer. She then looked and saw something that pleased her greatly, "ah, I see that you were successful after all, Leslie."
Sora and the others looked and to their horror, saw The Lord of Illusions walking towards them.
"Oh no!" exclaimed a shocked Red, "Silver!"
"Mikoto!" shouted Ranru, while Ryoga shouted, "Dr. Nadakai!"
"I take it that the interlopers have been destroyed?" The Puppeteer asked.
"They've been reduced to quivering masses of terrified jelly," said The Lord of Illusions.
"Excellent," said The Puppeteer. She then looked down at Kairi with vicious glee, "where's your great hopeful light now?" she asked as she raised the crystal knife.
But then The Lord of Illusions reached into his pocket, pulled out a baseball, winded up and threw it at The Puppeteer. The baseball hit the vile sorceress right on the nose, breaking it and forcing her to stagger back and drop the crystal knife. It hit the ground and shattered into countless pieces.
"NOOO!" shouted The Puppeteer as she held her bleeding nose with one hand. She then glared at The Lord of Illusions with venomous, hateful eyes, "how dare you, Leslie! How dare you betray me! That knife was one of a kind! It was the only thing that could have allowed me to recover and absorb Tess's soul!"
"Which goes to show you that you should always have a backup plan, baby!" said The Lord of Illusions as he smiled cheerfully.
At that The Puppeteer was slightly taken aback, "baby? You've never called me that, even when I was in a female body. Wait a minute! You're not Leslie, so who are you?!"
"Who am I indeed," said the grinning trickster. He then pulled out another ball, but this one made of green and golden metal.
"That's the Shuriken Ball!" said a shocked Yousuke, while the other Hurricangers and Goraigers also looked shocked, but all of them looked like a new day had dawned for our heroes.
The Lord of Illusions raised the ball up, "Tenku!" he shouted as he brought the ball down and held it in front of him with both hands, "Shinobi Change!" he then pressed a hidden button on the ball and the inner works began spinning.
The trickster was then covered in golden transformation light as his voiced changed to one that was very familiar to the Hurricangers and Goraigers, "I am Ninja of Ninja!" he said in engrish.
Sora and the others briefly forgot the pain as they saw Shurikenger standing before them.
"The Green Lightning Bolt! Heavenly Ninja: Shurikenger! Sanjo!"
"But…but how!?" The Puppeteer demanded, "how did you defeat Leslie?!"
"I'd like to know that myself," said Asuka.
Just then Silver and Mikoto walked from behind Shurikenger, earning surprised smiles of delight from their respective teammates, "it wasn't easy, that's for sure," said Silver.
"That trickster had us right where he wanted us," said Mikoto, "terrified of the ghosts of our pasts and completely helpless. That's when our green friend showed up."
"My third ace," said Alegra as she sat up against the pain, "right on time."
"I'm always there when I'm needed," said Shurikenger. "Anyway, I showed up just in time to startle that trickster, borrow his image and kick him off into the darkness."
"Oh, apparently," said Mikoto, "if you leave this cobblestone road, you'll end up falling forever in The Möbius Continuum. An interesting fate, horrific, but still interesting."
"You mean…The Lord of Illusions is gone?" Sora asked as he looked out into the endless black of the primal darkness?"
"Hell No!" exclaimed The Lord of Illusions as he walked towards our surprised heroes, an irate expression on his face. He then glared at Silver and Mikoto, "a word of the wise. If you're going to toss someone into an endless abyss, make sure he doesn't hang onto the edge and make himself appear invisible!"
"Oh, well, that's one against me then," said Mikoto.
"That it is," said The Lord of Illusions. He then looked at The Puppeteer, "Master! Together, we shall finish these infidels!"
"I'm afraid not, Leslie," said The Puppeteer. With a wave of her hand, the cobblestones beneath The Lord of Illusions vanished. He then fell through the hole but grabbed onto the edge, barely able to hold on and stop himself from falling into the primal darkness.
"Master!?" exclaimed the trickster in a horrified tone as he held on for dear life, "Why?!"
"Because you've been nothing but a failing ass for the past few days," said The Puppeteer, "I'm a patient soul, but there's only so much failure I can endure before I have to make certain sacrifices. You've been a good subordinate, Leslie, I shall miss you, but it's time you've been put out to pasture. Goodbye, Leslie."
More of the cobblestones vanished and The Lord of Illusions fell through the hole, now truly falling through the endless black of The Möbius Continuum.
"Your own comrade," said a horrified White, "and you murdered him."
"No," said Silver, "He's suffering a fate worse than death. Out there, alone in the dark, falling endlessly through eternity, I can't think of a worse punishment for any villain."
"Well," said an annoyed yet viciously satisfied Puppeteer, "I guess you really can't find good help anymore."
Just then a portal opened up and from it emerged Yuffie, Selphie and Lara. Before The Puppeteer could react, both Yuffie and Selphie ran up to the vile sorceress. Selphie delivered a hard attack with her nunchucks, while Yuffie struck with two knives, forcing The Puppeteer back several paces.
"This is for hurting my friends, you ugly, bodysnatching fiend!" snapped Lara. She then raised her hands and chanted a spell. With a flash of white magic, the curse that was hurting Sora and the others was broken. They all sighed with relief as the pain vanished from their bodies.
"And now you can't hurt us anymore," said Lara. She then swayed to the side and nearly fell over, only to be caught by Aiden, whom was the first of our heroes to get his second wind, then joined by the others
"I guess I should have let grandma come after all," said Lara before she passed out.
"She's exhausted again," said Kairi as she checked on Lara, "that spell really drained her."
"Not surprising," said Alegra, "that counter curse is one of the strongest of its kind. The fact that a magic user as young as Lara here could even do it is simply astounding."
"Let me guess, your fourth ace?" Riku asked.
"Nope," said Alegra, "I'm keeping that up my sleeve for now."
"I won't let you use it!" snapped The Puppeteer as she glared hatefully at all of our heroes and allies, "you may have cost me my chance to absorb Tess's soul, but I still have her body and all of its powers, as well as my own! I'm going to make you all suffer so much, you'll be begging for me to send you to hell!" With that she cast a spell that made the cobblestone path expand to a wide plaza, then summoned a horde of Neo Shadows.
"We'll see who goes to hell first!" said Aiden.
"Malcolm," said Sora, "you and the others, you take Lara someplace safe, we'll deal with this."
At that Malcolm was about to argue, but relented, "alright, we'll keep her safe."
"I don't know where," said Yuffie as Leon picked Lara up in his arms, "this big road in the middle of nowhere, it's all there is here."
"Then get as far away as you can!" said Riku, "one way or another, this ends, here and now!"
"Right," said Leon.
"We'll keep her safe," said Selphie.
"Wait!" said Sora, "Alegra, you never told us how to get The Puppeteer out of Tess's body!"
"Oh, I don't think that'll be a problem," said Alegra. She then looked at Kairi but spoke to Tess, "when the time comes, you'll know what to do."
"You're not going to explain things, are you?" Tess asked.
"Sorry," said Alegra, "but that's how it has to be. But you will know what to do in time, I promise."
"Good luck!" said Quistis. With that she, Alegra, Selphie, Yuffie, Leon and Malcolm, took Lara and ran as far as they could back down the cobblestone road.
"Now that that's taken care of," said Aiden as he pressed his wrists, "alright, lets' do it!" With that he, Sora, Riku and Kairi activated their armor.
"Everyone!" shouted Red, "let's do it!"
"Yeah!" shouted all the warriors. With that they all powered up in the manner of their respective teams.
"Bakuryu Change!"
"Ninpu! Shinobi Change!"
"Jinrai! Shinobi Change!:
"Face Change!"
"Gao Access!"
"Summon: Spirits of the Earth!"
With that all the warriors stood together in a line and introduced themselves, with Sora and the others adopting a Sentai name of their own.
"Enormous Energy: Aba Red!"
"Bursting Seriousness: Abare Blue!"
"Dashing with courage: Abare Yellow!"
"The Invincible Ryujin Soul!: Abare Black!"
"The finest example of excitement: Abare Killer!"
"The Ubiquitous Dino Guts!"
"Bakuryu Sentai…Abaranger!"
"Wind Hows, Skies Rage. Air Ninja: Hurricane Red!
"The crimson lighting flash. Horned Ninja: Kabuto Raiger!"
"Water dances, waves jump. Water Ninja: Hurricane Blue!"
"The azure thunderclap. Fanged ninja: Kuwaga Raiger!"
"Land howls, flowers sing. Land ninja: Hurricane Yellow!"
"The Green lightning bolt. Shurikenger! Fire mode!"
"Facing and slashing the shadows!"
"Facing and slashing the light!"
"Denkosekka Goraiger! Kenzan!"
"Unknown to the people…"
"Unknown to the world…"
"We hide in the shadows to strike at evil!"
"Ninpu Sentai…"
"Hurricanger! Asando!"
"Blazing Lion: Gao Red!"
"Noble Eagle: Gao Yellow!"
"Surging Shark: Gao Blue!"
"Iron Bison: Gao Black!"
"Belle Tiger: Gao White!"
"Sparkling Wolf: Gao Silver!"
"Wherever there is life, there's a roar of justice! Hyakajuu Sentai…!"
"Gaoranger!"
"Keyblade Red: Sora!"
"Keyblade Blue: Kairi!"
"Keyblade Black: Riku!"
"Keyblade Yellow: Aiden!"
The four of them then spoke as one, "Battling the darkness to protect the light. Keyblader!
"We are…" said Gao Red, then they all spoke as one…
"SUPER SENTAI!"
"Fools!" shouted The Puppeteer, "I'll see you all dead for this insolence!" she then addressed the summoned Heartless, "Destroy them!"
Without making a sound, the hordes of Neo Shadows rushed at our heroes and allies. The Keyblade Wielders, Gaorangers, Hurricangers, Goraingers and Abarangers rushed ahead to meet the oncoming dark creatures, meeting in the center of the new plaza with a mighty crash.
Sora vaguely saw his friends through the red haze of battle as he hacked, slashed and stabbed Neo Shadow after Neo Shadow. He and the others knew that this was a battle more serious than any they had fought before, for not only were their lives at stake, not only the fate of the realms and all of existence, but now the very soul of one their own was on the line.
Yet the throngs of Heartless seemed to be endless. Not only where there Neo Shadows, but also Dark Balls and Invisibles, as well as Behemoths and other larger breeds of Heartless.
Yet none of our heroes and allies refused to back down. They fought on with Keyblades, swords, claws, blasters and special weapons. They fought with their hearts and all the courage they had, striving to free the body of their friend and rid existence of a great evil.
Finally, all the Heartless had been defeated. Yet the real enemy, The Puppeteer remained, and she was an enemy on an entirely different level. Now that she wasn't faking it, the vile sorceress was proving to be a far more formidable opponent than she had been during her earlier duel with Kairi and Tess, easily blocking and deflecting all attacks that came at her from all sides.
"How can she be moving that fast?" Hurricane Yellow asked after a failed sneak attack.
"Dark magic," said Riku, "she's augmenting Tess's body with dark magic; it's the only thing I can think of."
"I feel even more violated than before," said a disgusted Tess.
"How can we keep up with her?" Gao Black asked.
"You can't!" snapped The Puppeteer, "my power is unlimited!" she then seemed to vanish and before our heroes could react, they were all struck several times within the space of a few seconds, each hit dealing damage sparks that left them severely unbalanced.
The Puppeteer laughed viciously as she reappeared, "can you not see it now?" she asked, "I am invincible!"
"No!" Tess shouted defiantly, "you're just really strong! But that doesn't mean you're going to win!"
"You stupid little girl!" snapped The Puppeteer, "I won the moment my mark was placed on your body!" she held up her hand that had the black Keyblade birthmark, "victory was decided at your birth!"
"If I could," said Tess in a disgusted tone, "I'd cut that hand from my body!"
"I happen to like it, thank you very much," said The Puppeteer. With that, she vanished and attacked our heroes so fast they could not block her. Again, they were dealt a lot of spark-inducing damage, which knocked then all to the ground.
"Just give up already," said The Puppeteer as she reappeared again, "you're only prolonging your suffering."
"You call this suffering!?" Kabuto Raiger shouted defiantly, "this is nothing!"
"But we really are in a lot of trouble," said Kuwaga Raiger, "at this rate, she'll tear us to pieces!"
"If only we could catch up with her speed," said Gao Red, "she's moving so fast, like…"
"Like Dio Brando!" said Riku, "of course!" he then stood up and shouted, "Clock Up!" with that he shimmered and vanished.
Slightly taken aback, The Puppeteer failed to prevent the accelerated Riku from attacking and scoring several spark-inducing hits, forcing the vile sorceress back several paces.
Riku then reappeared beside Sora and Kairi, but then gasped in pain and nearly fell over. He caught himself and used his Keyblade as a cane for support.
"That's what you used to fight Dio Brando," said Sora.
"What is this now?" Aiden asked, "it's the first I've ever heard of it."
"Apparently," said Kairi after her eyes turned all blue again, "our new armor has a lot of special features," she glared at Riku, "which some of us haven't told us about."
Her eyes blinked and turned blue and green again, "yeah, why didn't you tell us that we can go super speed?"
"I was worried about you," said Riku, "I'm sorry if I didn't go into a detailed lecture, explaining every single nuance of our new armor."
"You can explain later," said Malcolm, "but right now, you're not looking so good."
At that Riku nodded, "I guess I'm not used to moving that fast. My body just can't deal with the acceleration and G forces."
"If you can't take it," said The Puppeteer as she recovered for another attack, "then don't even try!" with that she vanished.
"Clock Up!" shouted Sora. He instantly found that everyone around him was standing still, as if time had frozen. He then saw The Puppeteer rushing at Riku. Sora got in front of Riku and deflected the dark Keyblade.
"So, you can do it too," said The Puppeteer, "but how long can you endure the speed?"
"As long as it takes to stop you!" shouted Sora as he struck back at the vile sorceress, yet she blocked his every attack.
"It doesn't matter how fast we're going!" said The Puppeteer, "you can't win!"
"I can still try!" said Sora. But then the speed boost wore off and he returned to normal time. Sora gasped in shock as his body endured the effects of accelerated fighting.
"Sora!" shouted Kairi as she ran over, only to be attacked by the still accelerated Puppeteer and knocked to the ground.
"Enough dicking around," said The Puppeteer as she slowed down and stood in front of Kairi, "time to finish this!" she then walked towards Kairi, her dark Keyblade ready for the kill.
"NO!" shouted Aiden as he and the others tried to stop the vile sorceress, yet all of their efforts to stop The Puppeteer were repulsed by a shield spell.
"I'll kill you and Tess's soul!" said The Puppeteer as she reached Kairi, whom was just getting back up but was in no condition to defend herself. The Puppeteer smiled with vicious glee as she raised her dark Keyblade to stab Kairi in the heart.
But then Alegra ran in and got in front of Kairi, her arms held out as the dark Keyblade stabbed her instead. Alegra gasped in sock as the vile weapon penetrated her chest and exited her back.
Everyone was shocked by this sudden act of sacrifice, even The Puppeteer, whom just stood there with her dark Keyblade still in Alegra.
"You…won't be killing…any more…innocents…bitch!" snapped Alegra, "my fourth…ace…ME!" she then grabbed the handle of the dark Keyblade with one hand and punched The Puppeteer in the face with the other, forcing the vile sorceress to stagger back and release the dark Keyblade.
Alegra then collapsed to her knees as the dark Keyblade began to dissolve, eventually vanishing, leaving a large hole in her chest that was bleeding profusely.
"Why?!" both Kairi and Tess asked as they knelt down beside Alegra, "why did you do that?"
"It was…the only way to…get rid of that thing…" gasped Alegra, her strength waning fast as her life blood poured out from her. "The only…way to…deprive the enemy…of her weapon. Don't try…to heal me…it won't work…trust me."
"I still have to try!" Kairi exclaimed as he held her hands over the wound in Alegra's heart and poured every ounce of healing magic she had into the effort, yet nothing happened, the wound refused to heal.
"Don't…waste your energy," said Alegra, "right now…my heart is…containing the dark…Keyblade. When I die, it'll be destroyed, forever."
"You planned this all along," said The Puppeteer, "you wanted me to kill you."
"Is…is this true?" Tess asked as she barely held back her tears, "you wanted to die?"
"I'm over…thirteen-hundred…years old," said Alegra, "and have been…fighting the darkness…almost as long as I've…been alive. I'm tired…so tired. Is it so…hard to understand…that I wanted to stop…to finally rest in peace? If I am…to die…then let it be…for something…grand," she grasped Kairi's hand and spoke right down to Tess's soul, "for you…so you can truly life. Swear that you will live…that you will love and be happy."
"I swear," said Tess.
"Thank…you," said Alegra. And then she died.
All of our heroes and allies solemnly lowered their heads, morning the passing of one who had done so much and sacrificed so much in the endless struggle between good and evil.
But then the moment of silence was shattered when The Puppeteer began laughing cruelly, "at last!" she exclaimed with vicious glee, "at long last, the bitch is dead! Alegra is dead and I have won!"
At that Kairi stood up and glared at The Puppeteer, her eyes, blue and green, glared with unadulterated hate, "you! Why?! Why must so many suffer for your amusement?!"
"Because they can," said The Puppeteer, "because I will it. All of existence is my plaything! And now, now Alegra is dead! The one person in all of time and space who ever had a ghost of a chance of defeating me, she is dead! Now I shall rein supreme! Now…I am utterly invincible!"
"The hell you are!" shouted Tess, "I'm going to stop you right now! And I'm starting by taking my body back!"
Kairi gasped as Tess's soul left her body. But this wasn't the tiny spark of a soul from before. This was a complete soul, which had taken the shape of Tess.
"What!? How!?" exclaimed The Puppeteer, "I dismissed you into a microbe! A smidgeon! An insignificant little firefly!"
"This firefly has teeth!" said Tess's soul. With that she rushed at The puppeteer and dove into the body. The Puppeteer gasped in shock and convulsed in pain as her dark soul and Tess's grappled for control.
"I think Tess is winning!" said Riku.
"I can see that," said Abare Blue.
"But how did her soul get back to normal?" Hurricane Blue asked.
"I…I don't know," said Kairi, "she…she felt so angry, so hateful, at The Puppeteer, it must have revived her somehow."
"And here I thought it was love that conquered all," said Aiden.
"You can't have love without hate," said Malcolm, "I think I understand now. We already provided the love, our love for Tess. But the soul needs balance, balance between good and evil, light and darkness, love and hate. We gave her love, while The Puppeteer provided the hate."
"Balance, of course, balance," said Abare Black.
"Yes, you can't have good without evil," said Gao Red.
Just then The Puppeteer gave a horrible scream as she flung her arms out wide and the sorceress' twisted, black soul was forced from the body, which collapsed to the ground.
"Tess!" shouted Riku as he and the others ran over, finding the body completely unconscious.
"Was it all for nothing?" Abare Yellow asked.
"No, I…she's coming around," said Riku. "Tess? Tess? Can you hear me?"
With that she opened her eyes, revealing the normal blue and green. "Riku?" Tess asked in a weak tone, barely above a whisper, "you're standing on my hand."
"Huh?" Riku asked. He then looked down and saw that he was standing slightly on Tess's right hand, which was now free of the black mark. He hastily backed away, then knelt down to help Tess sit up.
With a shimmer of magic, Tess's clothes returned to normal, "oh, thank goodness," said Tess as Riku and Aiden helped her stand up, "I can't stand wearing all black. That look is good for Carmen, but not me, I need colors."
"Are you sure you're alright?" Sora asked.
"Alright? I feel great," said Tess, "much better than I did before."
Just then Sora saw something horrible, "uh, everyone? I don't think it's over!"
Everyone looked and saw the dark soul of The Puppeteer condense into a solid form. It had taken on the shape of a average height human male with dark purple skin, but with no face save for a pair of black eyes.
"You fools!" snapped The Puppeteer, the dark soul resonating with pure evil, "how dare you steal my body!"
"You mean my body!" Tess said triumphantly as Kairi handed her Keyblade back.
"It was mine from the moment you were born!" snapped The Puppeteer, "and it shall be mine again!"
"I don't think so!" said Tess as she held up her birthmark-less hand, "you've got nothing on me anymore!"
"He can't take a body without marking it first," said Kairi, "and he can't mark another one for another hundred years. He's stuck like this!"
"How long can he last without a body?" Gao Black asked.
"Long enough to destroy you all!" exclaimed The Puppeteer, "behold! My ultimate puppet!"
A very large portal opened up above them and from it emerged the biggest monster our heroes have ever seen. It was similar to Godzilla, only with dark gray scales and two pairs dark red eyes, fangs the size of spears, four arms that ended in razor-sharp claws and a tail that could crush a building just by swatting it.
"I picked up this creature on Metebilis V," said The Puppeteer, "I call it, The Deathstalkersaurus; nasty piece of work, isn't it?" as if to punctuate the words, the creature, the Deathstalkersaurus, roared in fury at our heroes, then shot red beams from its eyes down at them, causing them all to dodge the deadly bolts.
"Makes me wish that I had stayed safe inside of Kairi," said Tess as she activated her armor.
"Sorry, but your free ride is over," said Kairi.
"I know," said Tess, "I'm just jerking your chain!" Everyone then had to dodge a massive dark fireball the Deathstalkersaurus shot at them.
"At this rate," said Gao White, "we're done for!"
"Not this decade," said Abare Killer. He then spoke into his Dino Brace, "anytime you're ready, Top! Just where are you anyway?"
Just then his Dino Brace spoke, vocalizing with a high pitch cry, "right above you, human!"
Everyone then looked up at the sound of the same high pitched cry. They all saw a white and black Tupuxuara dive down and strike at the head of the Deathstalkersaurus, forcing it staggering back.
"Top Gailer!" shouted Abare Blue.
"That's your Bakuryu partner?" Riku asked Abare Killer.
"We have…a mutual understanding," said Abare Killer.
Just then Tyranno's voice spoke from Aba Red's Dino Brace, "humph! He's still a jerk, tera!"
"You can say that again, kero!" said Tricera.
"And a complete heartless brat, pura!" said Ptera.
"You guys!" said Abare Red happily.
Just then everyone heard Brachio roaring as he strode towards them on the cobblestone path from a large portal.
"Even in the darkest of darkness," said Brachio, " a light will always shine, bura!"
"Brachio!" Abare Black said happily.
Just then Hurricane Red's Hurricane Gyro beeped and the Hurricangers heard Oboro's voice, "everyone! I finally figured out how to get through to you! I'm sending the Shinobi Machines right now!"
A large portal opened up and from it emerged Hurricane Hawk, Hurricane Dolphin, Hurricane Leon, Gorai Beatle, Gorai Stag and the helicopter form of Senpujin.
Just then everyone heard a familiar lion roar.
"Gao Lion!" shouted Gao Red, "everyone, the Power Animals are coming!"
Just then a third portal opened and from it emerged Gao Lion, Gao Eagle, Gao Shark, Gao Bison, Gao Tiger, Gao Wolf, Gao Hammerhead and Gao Ligator.
"They've come to help!" shouted Silver.
"Everyone! Combine and fight this evil!" shouted Shurikenger.
With that all the giant creatures and robots combined to form their respective giant robots, which the Sentai warriors boarded and were ready to fight.
Tyranno, Tricerra and Ptera formed Abaren Oh, then Top Gailer attached himself to the back of the robot so now it had wings. All five Abarangers then boarded the warrior robot.
"Complete! Abaren Oh Gailer!" they all shouted.
The Hurricangers then formed Senpujin, the Goarigers formed Goraijin and Shurikenger formed Tenkujin. All three of them then summoned three Kakruiballs that revealed three machines that combined into a large bird, Tricondor, which then combined with all three giant robots to form one massive robot that was controlled by all six ninjas.
"Tenrai Senpujin! Suisan!"
Gao Lion, Gao Eagle, Gao Shark, Gao Bison and Gao Tiger formed Gao King, while Gao Wolf, Gao Hammerhead and Gao Ligator formed Gao Hunter Justice.
"Okay, now things are getting interesting," said The Puppeteer. He looked up at the Deathstalkersaurus, "break them into atoms!"
At that the giant monster roared with vicious fury as it rushed at the good robots, moving much faster than a creature its size could, attacking them with fags and claws and delivering massive amounts of damage to them.
"Oh man, this is bad, really bad!" said Sora.
"Then let's help our friends," said Riku, "like before!"
"Together!" said Kairi.
"You betcha!" said Aiden, while Tess nodded in agreement.
"Count me in too!" said Roxas.
"And me!" said Malcolm.
"No you don't!" shouted The Puppeteer, "Crucio!" all of a sudden Sora and the other Keyblade Wielders collapsed to the ground in pain.
"The torture curse," said The Puppeteer, "you will experience increasing amounts of agony, so long as I will it! Soon you'll be driven mad by your own suffering!"
"NO!" shouted Naminé as she shot her spheres of white magic at The Puppeteer, "stop it! Stop hurting my friends!"
But the white spheres merely bounced off of The Puppeteer, whom was laughing viciously, "a pathetic effort from a pathetic creature! Come now, little Nobody, come and return to the nothingness from whence you sprung from!"
"I came from the shared hearts of Sora and Kairi!" said Naminé, "as did Roxas! Sora's sacrifice to free Kairi's heart allows us to live. We came from his love, something you can never understand!"
"I don't need love," said The Puppeteer, "only that which amuses me!"
Just then Selphie showed up, behind The Puppeteer, and struck him on the back of the head with her nunchucks, "amuse this!" she shouted.
Quistis then delivered a massive strike with her chain whip, followed by a flying kick from Yuffie, then Leon finished up by striking with his gun blade, pulling the trigger at the moment of impact and dealing twice as much damage from the blade vibrations, all of this knocking The Puppeteer to the ground.
With the concentration of the vile sorcerer broken, Sora and the other Keyblade Wielders were released from the torture curse and got back up. At the same time, the Deathstalkersaurus seemed to lose its own concentration and backed away from the giant robots.
"Now!" shouted Sora. With that he, Riku, Kairi, Aiden, Tess, Malcolm and Roxas, all shot beams of golden energy at the Deathstalkersaurus, causing it to roar in pain and back away even further.
With that all of the Sentai robots recovered and began powering up their ultimate attacks. Both Gao King and Gao Hunter Justice shot multi-colored beams of energy, Tenrai Senpujin summoned a giant whirlwind from its chest blades, while Abaren Oh Gailer delivered a flying drill strike, all of which hit the giant monster and delivering devastating amounts of damage.
The creature roared one final time as sparks erupted all over its body. It then fell down and exploded.
"They did it!" shouted Lara as she ran into the area.
"And now we finish it," said Sora as he and the other Keyblade Wielders advanced on The Puppeteer.
"You may have defeated my monster," said The Puppeteer in a vicious tone, "you may have defeated all of my plans so far, but you haven't defeated me yet!" with that the dark, solidified soul vanished.
"He's getting away again!" snapped Tess.
"No, not this time!" said Gao Red as he, the Gaorangers, Hurricangers, Goraigers, Shurikenger and the Abarangers, all ran up to them from their giant robots, which had separated into their respective components and had exited through one big portal.
"We'll get him this time!" said Aba Red.
"We'll chase that murdering psychopath until the ends of the universe," said Hurricane Red, "to the end of time even!"
"My thoughts exactly," said Riku.
"Leon," said Kairi, "you and the others, stay with Alegra. She…don't leave her alone."
"We'll keep her safe," said Quistis, "don't you worry."
"Just get that freak before he does something else!" Yuffie.
"We will," said Sora. He then looked at the others, "let's go get him!" at that they all shouted in agreement and ran ahead on the cobblestone path, leaving Leon, Quistis, Yuffie, Selphie and Lara to keep watch on Alegra's body.
…The Workshop…
"Those stupid, meddling brats!" snapped The Puppeteer after he teleported into his lab. He then grunted in pain, the saw that part of his hand was cracking, "oh no, it's starting!" he shouted in terror, "My soul is falling apart! And there's no time to find another host! I'm done for!"
But instead of panicking, The Puppeteer calmed himself enough to think clearly, "no," he said in a tone of cold resolve, "I'm not finished, not just yet. I can still survive until a new host can be chosen. I just need time to prepare." With that he began working on one last piece of dark magic
"But I won't have time if those meddling brats get here," said the sorcerer as he furiously worked to put a potion together, "I can still finish them off! I'll destroy those Keyblade Wielders and Super Sentai fools! It may just well be the last thing I do, but I'll destroy them!"
He then poured the ingredients into a cauldron, used a spell that accelerated the brewing and poured the contents, a sickly yellow liquid that pulsed with vile energy, into a small crystal sphere and corked it. "There," said The Puppeteer, "let them come to their doom!"
Just then our heroes and allies burst into the workshop.
"Finally!" said an exasperated Aiden, "I thought we'd be running on that path forever."
"I let my guard down a bit," said The Puppeteer, "I should have kept that path going on endlessly, but I'm feeling a bit under the weather." he then gasped and clutched at his left arm, which was now cracking even more and starting to flake bits of his being off.
"I get it," said Tess, "you're coming undone! And not a moment too soon!"
"Yes, I'm dieing!" said The Puppeteer, "after countless centuries of life, The Puppeteer is about to die! Alegra got her wish, it cost her life but she got it! But I refuse to die alone!" he then grabbed the crystal sphere and held it up, "you see this!?"
"Yeah, so what?" Sora asked.
"It's udosian acid!" said The Puppeteer, "harmless when brewed, but once it has cooled down to room temperature and exposed to air, it rapidly turns to a highly corrosive vapor that can dissolve a human down to the bone within seconds." He raised the crystal sphere up higher, "I doubt that even you Super Sentai in your flashy armor can survive it."
"I'll take that chance!" said Aba Red.
"You may want to think that over," said The Puppeteer, "just imagine how great a loss you will be to you world," he then looked at The Keyblade Wielders, "and to the realms of light."
"He's bluffing!" said Kabuto Raiger.
"Am I?!" The Puppeteer taunted. He then grunted in pain as more of his soul cracked and flaked off. He nearly dropped the crystal sphere, causing our heroes to back away.
Bu then The Puppeteer recovered and held up the acid-filled sphere again, "not just yet, not until you've heard my offer."
"You've got nothing that we want!" said Tess.
"But you have something I want," said The Puppeteer, "a chance for me to recover and be revived someday. You will hear me out," he the loosened his grip on the crystal sphere, "or I drop this and we all die!"
"I don't think he's bluffing," said Malcolm.
"I agree," said Gao Silver. "Alright, sorcerer, what's your offer?"
At that The Puppeteer chuckled slightly before speaking, "It'd be a shame, really, if you Super Sentai were to die here, or rather, it'd a mercy, since your world is doomed."
"What are you talking about?" Gao Red asked.
"Oh, I forgot, your universe runs on a different time frequency than the Realms of Light," said The Puppeteer, "well, allow me to explain it. While you've been fighting me, quite a bit of time has passed in your home universe, and during that time, a great and terrible darkness, worse than the Orgs, worse than Jakanja, worse than Evolion, far worse than anything your world as ever faced before, is rapidly approaching with dark intentions; The Space Empire Zangyack."
"Space Empire Zangyack?" Hurricane Blue asked.
"Never heard of them," said Abare Blue.
"That's because your world hasn't met them yet," said The Puppeteer, "but they will, they will soon enough. Zangyack is an empire spanning entire galaxies, having subjugated hundreds of thousands of worlds and destroyed hundreds of thousands more. All those whom are encountered by Zangyack either submit or are conquered, and those who resist conquest are destroyed, and now they wish to take your Earth, either to add it to the empire as a conquest or destroy it. All those who resist Zangyack are eventually destroyed!"
"The hell they will!" snapped Hurricane Red, "we'll stop them!"
"How do we know he's telling the truth?" Gao Yellow asked, "he's just telling us a load of crap so we won't destroy him."
"No," said Naminé in a distant tone, "he is telling the truth…I…I can sense it."
"I lowered my mental defenses enough for you to know that I'm not lying," said The Puppeteer, "Zangyak is real, and they will come for your world."
"We'll still stop them!" said Hurricane Red.
"Oh, you might just do that," said The Puppeteer, "for a while. You Hurricangers and Goraigers, Abarangers and Gaorangers, you and the other Super Sentai, you might be able to resist them for a while, maybe defeat one or two waves of the invasion. But Zangyack is vast, drawing upon the resources of hundreds of thousands of worlds. They have warships and soldiers beyond counting, and their enforcers, their Action Commanders, are pretty vicious fighters."
"We'll still fight them!" said Aba Red, at that the other warriors shouted in agreement.
"You still don't get it," said The Puppeteer, "Zangyack has such vast, countless resources, they can afford to throw away wave after wave of invasion forces against a planet who resists them. Their emperor, Akudos Gill, to him the loss of a few war fleets and a few armies, it's just a minor inconvenience. In the end, your world and its defenders will be worn down by sheer numbers. Your days are numbered! Unless…"
"Unless what?" Sora asked.
"Unless you let me live," said The Puppeteer, "I may not be able to take another body, but I have contingency plans that allow my soul to hibernate until a new body can be chosen. Spare me, allow me to go into hibernation, and I'll give you Super Sentai the means of defending your world against Zangyack. I may even just throw in the means of destroying Zangyack, just because I feel like a good sport."
"Let me get this straight," said Sora, "you want us to let you go, so you can go to sleep and one day come back to spread more misery, so you can be amused, and in exchange, you'll help our friends defend their world from space invaders. Is that right?"
"You better believe it," said The Puppeteer. He then looked at the three Super Sentai groups, "so what's it going to be? Help me and I help you? Or we all die here and now, thereby depriving your world of some much needed defenders? Not that you will make much difference against Zangyack."
"You really think that we'll let you live, after all you've done," said Hurricane Blue.
"You've got to be stopped," said Gao White, "before you hurt anyone else!"
"And don't worry about Zangyak," said Abare Yellow, "we'll deal with them when they come."
"Then you are fools!" shouted The Puppeteer, "and you will all die!" With that he threw the acid-filled crystal sphere to the floor.
"Clock Up!" shouted Tess. She then vanished and reappeared, having caught the crystal sphere before it could break.
"You meddling little girl!" snapped The Puppeteer, "I'll destroy you!" he pointed at Tess, "Avada Kedrava!"
But then Tess vanished before the deadly green light that shot from the finger touched her, reappearing in front of Riku.
"Sorry, but your days of killing are over!" said Tess.
"Everyone, let's finish it now!" shouted Gao Red. At that all of our heroes shouted in agreement.
The Gaorangers then combined their weapons to form the Hyakujuuken, while Gao Silver converted his Gao Hustler Rod into its Break Mode. The Hurricangers and Goraigers combined their weapons into the Victory Gadget, while the Abarangers combined their weapons, with Abare Killer adding his Wing Pentact to the Super Dino Bomber to form the Superior Dino Bomber.
At the same time the Keyblade Wielders charged their Keyblades with the golden energy that they used earlier
"Wait!" pleaded The Puppeteer as our heroes and allies prepared to finish him off, "I can help you in your struggles! Just let me live and I can make all of your problems go away!"
"Go to hell!" shouted Tess.
"Superior Dino Dynamite!" shouted the Abarangers as their fired their weapon.
"Victory!" shouted the Hurricangers and Goraigers as their fired their weapon.
"Jaki Taisen!" shouted Gao Red as the Gaorangers swung their big sword and unleashed a beam of cutting energy. At the same time, Sora, Riku, Kairi, Aiden, Tess, Malcolm and Roxas all threw their Keybaldes at The Puppeteer.
The combined attacks merged into one massive blast that hit The Puppeteer head on.
"No!" shouted the vile sorcerer as more of his soul cracked and began emitting sparks, "this cannot be! I cannot die! I am…forever!" with that, he fell down and exploded.
Almost immediately, the various magical equipment, scrolls and books in the workshop, began to vanish, followed by the furniture.
"What's happening?" Sora asked.
"It's The Puppeteer," said Kairi, "he must have been keeping this whole place in existence. But now that he's gone…"
"It's fading away back into the primal darkness," said Gao Blue, "we've got to get out of here, now!"
"Otherwise we'll be left floating in the Möbius Continuum forever," said Abare Black.
They all ran out back onto the cobblestone path, which was also beginning to vanish. Sora and the others didn't need to run for long as they soon came upon Leon and his group, whom were carrying the body of Alegra.
"I already called Ansem," said Quistis, "he's about to open the portal back to our world."
But then the rest of the workshop vanished, while the cobblestone plaza was beginning to vanish as well.
"Any time, old bear," said Quistis nervously.
But then the portal did open, large enough for all of our heroes and allies to run through. Without any further word, they all jumped through. The portal closed up just as the plaza vanished, leaving The Möbius Continuum empty as it was before.
The end of chapter 10.
It's not over yet, fellow readers and writers, so stay tuned!