It's really been so long since I even updated this story... Well, why's that? Honestly, I kind of lost interest in making fanfiction. It was mostly getting in the way of my art. That, and I didn't want to end up with another story with twenty arcs kind of like some of my Paper Chopper stories.

The worst part is? I already had the Ava Arc done before I decided to stop updating! Another reason I stopped? Well, I thought about recreating this story as a comic. It'd be only half as long as this story would be, and rather than going through the multiverse, it's Chopper traveling around his universe.

Now, I know it may not be a good idea to upload these chapters when I plan to recreate this story as a comic...but I already have seven chapters done, and I feel bad for not uploading them earlier. So... Enjoy them!

Chapter 11: Shadows in the Desert

Unfortunately for Chopper and Flyer, their landing was just as bad as when they first entered Silvania. They ended up landing on the ground headfirst, and because of the soft, pale yellow sand, their heads were stuck for a moment. Luckily, they were able to push themselves out, and after shaking their heads to get the sand off, they were left gawking.

A vast desert with plenty of hills stood before them. They weren't sure how far it went, but boy, was this landscape bigger than they could've possibly imagined.

"Wow... This place is impressive..." Flyer gaped, taking out his Holomap.

"And we're in a whole new universe too!" Chopper cheered, raising his arms upward.

"Technically we're not," the Wingel said truthfully, making Chopper's arms lower in disappointment. "In fact, we're still in Starland Galaxy. This planet is apparently called Ava, a world comprised of desert."

"Oh... That stinks... Well, if a Silver Star is here... Then we might as well take a look around!"

"Yeah... Joy..." Silvera sighed.

"OK, then!" Chopper smiled, adjusting the cuffs on his gloves and getting ready to move on. But before he could take a step, he spotted three silhouettes ahead. "Huh? What's that?"

"What do you mean?" Flyer questioned.

"I see three figures ahead... Maybe we should check it out?"

"Do whatever you want," Silvera replied.

Chopper made a run toward the three figures ahead, with Flyer following behind. When he was several feet away, the antennae boy slowed down his speed until he came to a stop a couple of feet nearby. Now he could get a better look at the three, purple shadowy figures wearing striped hats.

"Huh? Who are they?" Silvera wondered, flying out of Chopper.

"I...don't know, but they don't seem to be paying attention to us," Flyer noticed.

"Maybe we should listen to what they've got to say?" Chopper suggested.

"Chopper, you know it's not a good idea to eavesdrop..."

"Well, I wanna hear what they're saying!"

"Oh, all right... But we should try to hide somewhere safe." Flyer looked at his surroundings until he saw a rock nearby. "That should do."

Once the three went behind the rocks, they took a peek at the three shadowy figures and listened in to their conversation.

"Mmmmwee hee hee hee! All right, lovelies, it's time to get to work! Vivian! You understand what we have to do, yesss?"

"Mm-hmm!" Vivian nodded. "We're supposed to find and do away with that Chopper Lord Maquano told us about, right? Should we just take him out quickly? Or do you have other ideas?"

"Oh, I wouldn't be concerned about how we'll deal with him, Vivian. But you're right about our goals. Now, if Lord Maquano was correct, Chopper should be around here soon. When we find him, we immediately ambush him!"

"I understand," the youngest Shadow Siren nodded. Beldam's eyes were about to look away from her, but then she noticed something on her wrist.

"Hmmmmm? And what is that thing you're wearing?" Beldam questioned.

"Oh! You mean this?" Vivian moved her right arm to inspect a thick, golden ring bracelet. "I found it near that rock over there a few minutes ago. Doesn't this look pretty? It was too hard for me to resist taking!"

"Hmph! Vivian! For shame! I never thought of you as one to take such filth off the ground! It's like those who dig into someone's trash! But enough of that! Vivian, bring out that photo of Chopper Lord Maquano brought us! Mmmwee hee hee hee!"

"Wait... Wh-What?" Vivian gasped, shaking nervously. "But I don't have it with me! You said it was too important for me to hold, so you took it. You should have it..."

"Don't be ridiculous! I don't have that thing." Beldam objected, glaring at her sister. "You were supposed to be in charge of it! I can't believe you would go this far to blame me for your own faults, you wretched worm!"

"B-But..."

"Wow... This is not a pleasant sight..." Flyer commented.

"Yeah... I feel bad for the one with the pink hair..." Chopper trailed.

"Didn't you hear them? They're looking for you, Chopper!" Silvera exclaimed.

Though her shouting wasn't enough to get Beldam and Vivian's attention, the large one, Marilyn, had turned her head and spotted the three peeking out of the rock. Gasping, the three immediately crouched behind the rock.

"Oh, crud..." Silvera gulped.

"Guh! Guh!" Marilyn grunted, grabbing Beldam's attention.

"Oh, what IS it, Marilyn?" Beldam groaned.

"Guh guh!"

"You're telling me you saw an antennaed figure, a winged figure, and a star-shaped figure? What nonsense are you telling me this time? We have more important things to take care of!"

"Whew... That was close..." Flyer sighed, he and the others slowly taking a peek again.

"Anyway, where was I? Oh, right!" Beldam approached Vivian with a scowl. "Vivian, you idiot! I can't believe you lost that photo! Lord Maquano's going to kill us now thanks to you!"

"But, Sis... I... It's not my fault... I never had that photo..." Vivian sniffled, shaking nervously at her eldest sister.

"SILENCE, YOU DITZ!" the smallest Shadow Siren yelled, and Vivian covered her face and found herself on the verge of crying. "How dare you talk back to your sister like that?! It's thanks to you that we have no photo, therefore we won't know what this Chopper looks like!"

"Please... Maybe you should check to see if you-"

"What have I taught you about talking back to your superior?! Obviously your kind don't understand respect." Beldam grabbed Vivian's right arm and yanked the golden bacelet off her wrist before backing away. "For your punishment, I'll be taking that bracelet you just found. Yes, so sorry. Maybe I might even put it on myself too!"

"But... But, Beldam..." Vivian sniffled, bringing her right arm up to her eye underneath her pink curl. "Oh, you're so horrid!"

"Gee... Why is that small one such a jerk to her?" Chopper wondered, feeling a little sympathy toward Vivian. "She should at least hold onto that ring."

"Quick! Let's get out of here!" Silvera suggested.

"I don't think they'd bother to attack us if we approached them," Flyer informed. "But I'd rather not risk it... We need to get going..."

"I guess so," Chopper nodded, and once Silvera flew into him, the two took off without the Shadow Sirens taking notice. Well, minus the large one, who watched them move farther away.

"Guh..."

"Wow! It's so easy for me to run around like this!" Chopper smiled, running up and down a sandy hill before them. Because of how much room there was, there was nothing limiting Chopper from bumping into any obstacles. Sure, a few rocks were in the way, but he easily vaulted over them while maintaining his momentum.

However, it wasn't all completely barren. There were plenty of tall, rocky surfaces around. Some were even to the right, forming tall platforms in a spiral manner.

Out of curiosity, Chopper headed for the right side of the field to the rock platforms. Along the way, there were a few Starries he was able to grab too. But the two were not alone. A few Darklings tried stopping them, but Chopper managed to stomp on them, while Flyer shot them with his Blast-O.

However, there was one enemy that stuck out in particular. It appeared to be a creature made up of diamond sporting shards on its head, along with red feet, and black, oval-shaped eyes. This enemy, named a Diamo, fired shards from its head near Chopper.

But Chopper easily took care of this and used his Inhale to catch it in his mouth. Upon swallowing it, Chopper's new hat had decorative diamond-shaped diamonds ranging from blue, white, and yellow on the front. Forming on the top of his head were several bluish green diamond shards.

Copy Ability: Diamond

Crush things to bits by transforming into whatever you become! Slide down slopes and take down anything that gets in the way! Grow into a larger diamond and smash things below! Throw a powerful punch with your Diamond Fist! Put up your Shard Burst to hurt enemies, or fire them out! Use your Diamond Rain to shoot shards above! Finally, turn into a ball of diamond shards with your Rolling Diamond!

"Diamond, huh? Well this should come in handy!" Chopper smiled.

"Diamond is considered to be the toughest gem... So it should be helpful!"

"Yeah... Let's test it out!" Chopper approached a wooden stake near a tall platform. By transforming into a diamond statue of himself, he smashed down on it, causing Starries to appear. As he turned back to normal, he collected them all before using a Side Somersault to get up. With a Long Jump, he reached the next platform. He continued to jump from platform to platform, with one revealing a Star Medal after smashing down a stake. The top platform, however, revealed some Hyper Energy after smashing the stake, which he happily took.

After leaping back down, Chopper and Flyer carried on. Thanks to his new Diamond ability, he was able to destroy Darklings and Tartara Grunts that got in his way thanks to his Rolling Diamond attack. This allowed him to roll into a ball of diamond shards and send many enemies flying away.

As they continued to travel, their sights took notice of a town not too far ahead.

"Chopper! A town!" Flyer gasped. "Perhaps we can ask the locals if they saw a Silver Star!"

"Don't get your hopes up," Silvera noted. "Nobody knows what a Silver Star is."

"It doesn't hurt to try!" Chopper smiled confidently, charging forward. However, his attention was quickly drawn to a red and black skiff floating off the ground. It flew past them and revealed several Tartara Soldiers piloting it. Two, meanwhile, were manning the turrets.

"Not so fast, Chopper!" one of the Tartaras growled. "You're not going anywhere!"

"Well I'm gonna go somewhere once I take you all down!"

"Tartaras! Open fire!"

The Tartara Skiff's turrets fired out a long, red laser, which Chopper easily sped to the side. A few Darklings got in the way, and Chopper simply used a Diamond Fist to create a large fist made up of diamond to throw a punch. This managed to launch the enemies toward the skiff. Meanwhile, Flyer fired orange shots from his Blast-o to take down the Tartaras manning the turrets so they wouldn't get in the way.

"OK, Chopper! Let's eradicate that skiff!" Flyer declared.

"Yeah! Let's use our Whirlwind Launch Team Attack!"

Nodding, Flyer grabbed Chopper's arm and started to spin around like a tornado. When they were fast enough, Flyer released Chopper, who launched toward the Tartara Skiff. He transformed into a statue of Maquano before smashing into it. The next moment, the explosion sent Tartaras flying into the air.

"Yay! We did it!" Chopper cheered. "Now let's head for that town!"

Flyer agreed, and the two made their way toward the narrow path leading straight toward the town.

The town itself didn't appear to be as colorful and lively as Star Town. For starters, all of the buildings had matched the same color as the sand, only a bit lighter. They were also not very clean-looking, having some sand stuck to them. Some of these buildings were around five feet tall, while others were over ten. The conditions of these buildings weren't exactly the best either, but they were certainly not at the level of being downright awful. They were livable, but that was it.

Many on the townspeople roaming around didn't seem to mutter a word as they roamed around. Most of them were dressed in cloaks that hid most of their body and face. Those that weren't appeared to have gear with blades attached to their belts. Their heads were roundish, and their faces ranged from being a dirty light brown or gray. The ones in the ninja gear wore masked hiding the lower portion of their faces.

While the two were walking into the front entrance, Chopper was juggling a few of his Star Medals in the air. This was not unnoticed by a few figures wearing yellow hoods, masks, and ragged, pale yellow clothing.

"This place is pretty quiet..." Chopper remarked, exchanging looks between the town itself and his Star Medals. Meanwhile, the thieves were sneaking quietly behind him. "I wonder why there are people carrying weapons?"

"Maybe they're the guards of this place? You know, to keep the place secure? What do you think, Chopper?" Flyer asked, turning to his friend. However, when he saw the thieves tripping in his place, he blinked a few times. "Huh? Where'd you go?"

Turning to his right, Flyer spotted Chopper over by a stand, where there was another one of the people with a dirty light brown face, a brown mustache, a beige flat cap, and a brown apron. On the stand appeared to be many types of delicacies Chopper was gawking over.

"Cupcakes? Apples? Lettuce? Are you interested in them?" the merchant asked.

"Yeah!" Chopper nodded like an excited puppy.

"Well, it's yours, my friend! As long as you've got enough Avins, I can sell you one of these delicious delicacies!"

"Wow!"

"Though the Sanins normally deal in grains and wheat... There's nothing more refreshing than apples and sweeter than cupcakes!"

"Chopper!" Flyer flew over to Chopper with an annoyed look. "This isn't the time to be looking at food! We're supposed to be looking for the Silver Star!"

"He's right, you know," Silvera added.

"Oh... Uhhh..." Chopper looked back at the Sanin merchant. "Have you seen something in the shape of a star?"

"Ummmm... Nope." the Sanin merchant replied. "Never seen anything like that. Maybe you should take a look outside of Saninja Town."

"Outside of town... Chopper, we might as well check there." Flyer suggested.

"OK," Chopper nodded, making a run past several Sanins. Eventually he reached a branching path. The right had a gate wide open, while the left was closed. However, the right gate looked like it was leading to a cliff. Because of that, Chopper brought his attention to the left side, with all of the Sanins in what appeared to be beige ninja gear standing guard. "Hey... Let's check over there."

"Chopper... I'm not sure if that's a good idea..." Silvera warned, but Chopper ignored her and headed that way. The moment the Sanins saw him, they drew their katanas and got in a fighting position.

"Halt!"

One of them thrust their open hand forward, and suddenly a force of wind was able to knock Chopper off his feet, along with knocking away his Diamond ability. As he finally got up, he stared at the ninja figures awkwardly.

"Ummmmm... Hi." Chopper waved. "Can I go through?"

"You wouldn't want to go through there. That's Katanife territory."

"A Katanife? And what would that be?" Flyer asked.

"You've never heard of the Katanifes?" one of the Saninjas gawked. "I guess you two are new here..."

"I come from Clara," Chopper smiled.

"Clara? Never heard of it..." another Sanin ninja commented. "Anyway, the Katanifes are the deadliest of the clans out here in Ava. They settle north, while we Saninjas settle here. If I could give you two newbies some advice... I'd try not to stand out in the open. Eyes are watching you... And you could be suddenly robbed, especially by a Bandorm, one of our rival clans."

"But... We really need to go out there to look for something!"

"Sorry, kid, but no can do," the third Saninja stated. "You thought the Bandorms are an issue? Well the Katanifes will leave you on your knees! They have more equipment than us...and they've got more people to boot. And it's not just them to worry about. Thiebers are out there too, and they've managed to take some of our maps to those Katanifes. If you ask me, you're better off finding a safe place...or going back to your own world."

"So... There's nothing we can do to get through?" Flyer wondered. "Not if we said we were capable of taking care of ourselves?"

"I beat an evil demon a few times!" Chopper mentioned.

"No means no, kids, even with your dumb fairy tales. Now leave us. We need to keep guard of this place."

Chopper frowned as he turned around and slowly walked away from the Saninjas. Flyer flew after him, giving the antennae boy a sympathetic look.

"Don't be so upset, Chopper," Flyer said. "Sometimes you can't always have things go the way you want..."

"But... We really should go through there..." Chopper sighed. "If only there was a way to get past those ninjas..."

"Why not just fight them?" Silvera suggested. "I'm sure you can take them on."

"But I only fight bad guys. I'd feel bad if I hurt them..."

"Psssst! Hey!"

Chopper's antennae perked up to the sound and turned to his right. Standing next to a staircase going to a house was a figure wearing beige clothing and a brown cloak and hood shielding his face, except for his orange eyes.

"Huh? Who're you?" Chopper asked.

"My identity is none of your concern..." the cloaked figure answered in a deep voice. "But I heard that you wanna go through that gate, right?"

"Yeah!"

"Well... Lemme tell you a little secret... Sure, there's the Saninjas and the Bandorms, but there's also another clan. They call themselves the Scarvanas. Those guys are far beyond those two. Even the Katanifes are cautious about them."

"Really? How come those Saninjas didn't mention them?" Chopper questioned.

"That's 'cause they were wiped out," the cloaked figure answered, making Chopper's face fall. "But only one remains... But, he's no pushover, and the other clans are cautious around him. I saw him go through that gate several times. He calls himself Kiwi."

"Kiwi? Well... Thank you for the information..." Flyer said politely. "But where can we find him?"

"There's a narrow path past this building. Go there, and you should find his house. But I must warn you... No one dares to go near that house. Not even the Saninjas and Bandorms bother to get near. He's not exactly the most welcoming of people coming to his house..."

"Well that's fine! I'm gonna go there now, whether he likes it or not!" Chopper cheered, and the cloaked figure suddenly blinked in surprise.

"Wait... What?!" the figure gasped, not sounding as deep. "Er... I mean, hold on..." he started, his voice deep once more. "Just think about it for a moment... This is Kiwi we're talking about! He could give you a pretty nasty beating if you get near his house! He's got traps set up to keep intruders away!"

"Well... I'm not afraid of him! Ten-year-olds like me shouldn't be scared of those kind of people!"

"OK... But don't come crying back to me if you get hurt."

"Come on, Flyer! Let's go see this Kiwi!" Chopper declared, making a run past the building and to the narrow pathway to the left. Flyer followed behind, only a bit more cautious.

"Hmmmm... Well, what do you know? Apparently I had the photo with me this whole time." Beldam realized. After a small search through her inventory, she ended up discovering the photo Maquano had given to her.

"Beldam! I TOLD you! Blaming me for losing the photo...and YOU had it!"

"Pipe down, you twit! Now's not the time to get hissy with me! It's time we studied this photo!"

"Guh! Guhhhhh?" Marilyn grunted.

"Now then..." Beldam took a look at the photo, and her two sisters took a look down at it as well. "What? This is it? This is the Chopper that Lord Maquano was looking for?! He's so...small! And what's up with those antennae?"

"He looks pretty cute," Vivian commented.

"That's because you find anything small cute, worm."

"Guh! Guhhhhh!"

"What? You say you've seen him before? And he had left a few minutes ago?! Gah! Then we've already missed him!" Beldam gawked, putting away the photo. "I must say, Marilyn... Thank you for this vital information. At least you're obedient and get the job done, unlike unlike our younger sister! Vivian, all of this is your fault, you know! Expect a strict punishment coming your way later, my dearie!"

"What?! But that's not fair!" Vivian cried. "You're the one who had the..."

"Silence, you squirrel-brain! Don't you cop that insolent attitude with me!"

"Ugh! This is NOT fair..."

"And about that bracelet... I was thinking about returning it to you, but I've changed my mind now!"

"Awww..." Vivian sniffled.

"Not only that, but since you've caused this problem, you have to figure out how to find that Chopper!"

"Uhhhh-guh..." Marilyn grunted, while Vivian tried her best to keep her tears from showing.

"So, Vivian... Care to give us an idea of where Chopper could be?" Beldam asked, narrowing her eyes angrily at her sister.

"O-OK... Well... I...guess we should look for a town?" Vivian guessed.

"Then we'll start by looking there! Maybe we can get something out of the people there... For now, let's get a move on, my lovelies!"

With that, the three slipped into the shadows.

Several traps had sprung out along the way to Kiwi's house. Some included boxing gloves springing out of the walls, logs hanging from trees swinging forward, and even some boots to kick people out. But for Chopper, he easily maneuvered through them without harm. Flyer easily flew around these obstacles.

Eventually Chopper had slowed down when he spotted a building up ahead. The house itself wasn't all that big, appearing to only be fit for about two people. Sure, there was a second floor, but not even that was big compared to the first floor.

When Chopper reached the front door, he spotted a symbol of a scarf on it.

"So... This is where Kiwi lives, huh?" Silvera wondered, flying out of Chopper.

"We better be careful," Flyer warned. "If this Kiwi is really dangerous... Then we should try not to be so rude. After all, we got past his traps."

Chopper didn't waste time in knocking on the door, although his knocking was more like banging instead. But when he stepped away from the door, footsteps could be heard until the door opened a smidge.

"Visitors? It's been a while since people have come to my house..." a deep voice spoke coldly. "Especially since I've planted lots of traps around..."

"Remember, Chopper... Let's try to be nice..." Flyer whispered.

"OK," Chopper nodded before turning to the door. "Ummmm... Hi! We were told to come to you..."

"You have a lot of nerve going through my traps and coming to me... Why would they tell you to find me?" Kiwi questioned. "Don't you know of my reputation?"

"Well we're not from here. I'm from Clara!"

"Clara? That makes sense... What's your name?"

"Oh... I'm Chopper!"

For a moment, Kiwi made no response. However, after a few seconds passed, the door fully opened, revealing a figure around Chopper's height, except an inch or two taller. A beige hood and mask covered his face, with an opening revealing white oval-shaped eyes. A brown, tarnished cloaked was covering most of his body, while his arms and legs were gray. Meanwhile, he had brown gloves and boots.

"You're Kiwi? But... You're small..." Chopper trailed.

"Well he's still a little taller than you..." Silvera noted.

"You..." Kiwi took a look at Chopper for a moment before quickly shaking his head. "No, I'm probably just thinking too much. Why did you come here?"

"We're trying to go through the left gate of this town," Flyer explained. "Unfortunately, these Saninjas are guarding it, and they will not let us through. Someone informed us that you could get us through."

"Why would you want to go through there? That's Thieber and Katanife territory."

"Well we're trying to look for something called a Silver Star, like me," Silvera explained. "If we don't get them all, every universe is in grave danger."

"Every universe? Hmmmmm... I'm not sure whether to believe you or not... However, since you people aren't from Ava, I'll roll with it. If you want to go through that gate so badly, then I guess I might as well help you out, but you'll have to do something in return for me."

"Oh... Well, what do you want us to do?" Chopper asked.

"Those Katanifes... They've stolen something from me." Kiwi started, putting his hands on his hips. "I would get it back myself, but unfortunately, going in there alone is too dangerous. They're real good at detecting intruders, and while I might be able to take them... It'd be too difficult, even for myself. Now, I don't know too much about you three... But maybe you might be able to help me out, since no one wants to even approach me."

"You want us to help you get back something from those Katanifes? OK! I can do that!"

"Are you sure, Chopper? We need to find the Silver Star here..." Silvera reminded.

"I thank you for agreeing to help. Just give me a moment to grab something before we head off."

Kiwi headed back into his house, closing the door behind him.

"I...didn't think this Kiwi would hide behind a mask..." Flyer commented.

"But masks look cool," Chopper said.

Kiwi had come back a few seconds later, only his eyes were widened, and his body was shaking.

"Huh? What's wrong?"

"This is not good..." Kiwi gulped. "I can't believe I dropped it!"

"Dropped what?" Chopper wondered.

"My gold bracelet! Oh, man... This isn't good..."

"A gold bracelet?" Flyer spoke, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes... It's something very important to me. It was the last thing I was given before..."

"Can you tell us what it looks like?"

"Well, I can show you..." Kiwi pulled out a thick, golden bracelet. "It looks like this. I'm supposed to have two, but apparently one is missing."

"Hey, wait a minute..." Chopper took a look at the bracelet carefully, and for a moment, an image of a similar one popped in his mind. "Flyer, didn't one of those purple ghosts have one?"

"Oh... Oh right!" Flyer realized, a similar image popping into his head. "One of them found that!"

"Wait, you know where my bracelet is?" Kiwi gawked.

"Uh huh!" Chopper nodded.

"Then... Would you take me to the person who has it? If you can help me get it back, then I'll be nice enough to help you find that Silver Star you're looking for too."

"We can do that! Come on! Follow me!"

Once Silvera flew back into Chopper, he made a mad dash forward, creating a wind that left Kiwi with widened eyes.

"How fast is he?!"

"You haven't seen nothing," Flyer replied before he followed behind. Kiwi followed as well, and to the Wingel's surprise, he was passing by him. "Whoa... I didn't think he'd be faster than me, especially on foot!"

When Chopper had come back to the main part of Saninja Town, he started to look around, while Flyer and Kiwi were able to reach him and stop. They followed where Chopper was looking, but then their attention was drawn to three purple figures right by the cloaked figure they saw earlier. To their shock, the large one was holding him up, while a few Saninjas a few feet away were encapsulated in ice.

Just the sight of this made Chopper put on a determined look and clench his fists.

"All right, spill it out!" Beldam barked, showing him a photo of Chopper. "Did you see someone named Chopper? He looks like this!"

"Errr... Well... I might've seen him..."

"Where?"

Before he could answer, two feet suddenly struck Beldam in the head, leaving her in a small daze. Marilyn had let go of the cloaked figure as she and Vivian watched Chopper do a somersault in the air while landing back by his friends.

"Ungh... Whoever did that is going to pay with their..." Beldam stopped herself when she spotted Chopper. "Well now... It seems that luck is on our side, because Chopper is standing right in front of us!"

"Are they the ones you mentioned?" Kiwi asked, and Chopper gave him a nod. "Good. You there. You've got something that belongs to me."

"Why would I ever take trash from someone? That's more Vivian's style. But as for you, Chopper... Lord Maquano doesn't want you snooping around his business, so we're here to fix that."

"And who are you three supposed to be?" Chopper asked. "You're unlike anything I've run into in the past."

"Mmmmmmwee hee hee hee! Oh, you want to know who we are? Very well! It is only fair that you get to know of us as well!" Beldam cackled. "We are..."

"The Three..." Marilyn added.

"Shadow Beauties!" Vivian squealed, and Chopper's serious look became more bewildered.

"Huh? The Three Shadow Beauties?" Chopper found himself scratching the side of his head.

"Vivian, you nincompoop!" Beldam yelled, startling Chopper, Flyer, and Kiwi. "What are you babbling about? It's Shadow SIRENS! I don't see three beauties! I can say that for two of us, but you? You're the ugliest thing I've ever laid my eyes on!"

"Chopper..." Flyer whispered. "I just want to let you know that you're the best friend I've ever have."

"Oh... Uhh... You too...?" Chopper replied, though he looked more confused than happy, especially with what he saw.

"I'm sorry, Sis..." Vivian sniffled, wiping away a tear. "It's just, you always call us 'lovelies,' and..."

"It's just a figure of speech!" Beldam growled. "Ooh... You've got a fierce punishment coming your way!"

"Aw, gee whiz... I hate being punished..." the Shadow Siren cried, falling on her "knees".

"But that'll come later... Right, now, we must take care of this Chopper and his friends!"

"If I have to fight to get my ring back, then so be it. But let's not fight here." Kiwi advised. "It'll only get us in trouble."

"Very well then..." Beldam took a look at the open gate to the right. "Then we shall leave town and settle it there! Come, my sisters! Follow me!"

When the Shadow Sirens sank into the shadows, Chopper, Flyer, and Kiwi hurried toward the open gate on the right pathway. Once they were out of town, they were right before a sandy field with a cliff ahead. Many rocks were everywhere, and to the right was a sandy slope going to the bottom of the cliff.

Once the three stopped in the middle of the field, the Shadow Sirens emerged from the ground. Beldam took the time to scan her surroundings while slowly nodding.

"Yes... I think this will do nicely. There's plenty of room to fight here. Now then..." Beldam brought her attention to the three, who got into a fighting stance. "It's time we settled this! Let's do this, my lovelies...or rather, my lovely and ugly! Marilyn! Vivian! The might of The Three Shadow Sirens will be more than enough to win the day!"

"Oh, OK..." Vivian mumbled.

"GUUUHHH!" Marilyn grunted.

"All right, then let's settle this," Chopper declared.

"At least it's three against three," Flyer noted, aiming his Blast-O.

"You're about to find out what happens when you refuse to give me back my ring," Kiwi said, drawing two beige hammers and twirling them around.

Mid-boss: The Three Shadow Sirens

Beldam the ice sorceress... Marilyn the thunder sorceress... And Vivian the fire sorceress... With them working as a team, they're more than a match for anything that stands in their way. Beware of Beldam's magic and Marilyn's strength...

"It's such a shame that our sights are set on you. Well, a shame for you, of course." Beldam stated, her hands conjuring up ice magic. "Marilyn! Vivian! Let's show them precisely what we can do!"

"Guh!" Marilyn nodded.

"Yes, Sis!" Vivian replied in an unhappy tone.

"This is a good chance for me to use my Star Spin!" Chopper smiled as Beldam fired ice magic their way. He leaped in the air and landed in between the three Shadow Sirens. He spread his arms out and started to spin rapidly so sparkles covered his fists, while a green trail was left behind. Beldam was the first to get hit in the face, throwing her back. Marilyn had been thrown back, but her weight made her travel not as far. Vivian's knockback was in between Beldam and Marilyn's.

While Beldam was in a daze, Chopper charged toward her with a Star Dash. But before he could land a kick, yellow lightning struck from above, knocking him onto the floor.

"Mmmwee hee hee! Excellent work, Marilyn! Now..." Beldam aimed her hands at Chopper and started conjuring up a blizzard spell. "Time to give Lord Maquano his ice sculpture!"

Before she could fire the spell, a hammer suddenly hit her in the head. Turning around, Beldam spotted Kiwi tossing up a hammer and catching it.

"If you give me back my bracelet, I might go easy on you," Kiwi informed.

"Bah! As if I'd listen to you!" Beldam sank into the shadows and rose in front of Kiwi to throw an ice punch. He jumped back and swung one of his hammers at her.

"Don't worry! I have an endless supply of these hammers!" Kiwi assured, landing a combo on her, but as she was about to slam his hammers down, the eldest Shadow Siren went back into the shadows and then emerged from behind. With an ice punch, Kiwi was thrown forward.

While Kiwi was taking on Beldam, Flyer had flown over to Chopper to help him up. But then the largest Shadow Siren emerged in front of them and clapped her hands in an attempt to crush them. The Wingel managed to pull Chopper back and fire shots from his Blast-O. Marilyn put up her arms to block them, but she didn't expect Chopper to strike her with a Slide Kick to break her guard.

"Chopper, I should be able to handle her," Flyer assured. "She may be the strongest... But luckily, I have brains!"

"OK! You've got this!" Chopper nodded, leaping back.

Marilyn raised her arms and summoned more lightning, but Flyer easily flew to the side and started shooting electric shots. One managed to strike her, and she found herself paralyzed for a brief moment. This allowed Flyer to fire an ice shot that exploded upon impact, throwing her back.

"This should be easy," Flyer smiled. "As long as I'm in the air, she won't be able to get me!"

Marilyn went into the shadows and emerged near Flyer, and to his shock, her ghostly tail extended so she was able to reach him. Throwing her two fists down, the Wingel was knocked into the sand. He managed to get himself up and avoid Marilyn's next lightning strike before it could sizzle him.

"OK... This might be tougher than I thought..." Flyer sighed. "Remember... I must use my head."

"I guess they seem to be doing well..." Chopper commented, watching Flyer and Kiwi face off the two Shadow Sirens.

"Hold on, Chopper..." Silvera spoke up. "Wasn't there another?"

Chopper's antennae suddenly perked up when he noticed something glowing red behind him. He jumped in the air and noticed a fireball pass below. Landing, he looked behind and saw the youngest Shadow Siren with her hands shaking and surrounded in fire.

"Oh... It's her..." Chopper realized, and a sympathetic look was on his face after what he remember seeing. Well, until another fireball came his way. He acted quickly, inhaling it and spitting it back in the form of a yellow star. Vivian gasped and managed to get out of the way just in time. "I guess I have to take her on..."

With a Star Boost charged, he dashed toward Vivian, who quickly went into the shadows to avoid him. He came to a quick halt and turned around to face Vivian emerging. Only this time, her finger was raised. With it sparkling, fire suddenly shot near Chopper, who recoiled in response and charged again. Like before, Vivian hid in the shadows and emerged behind.

"Why is she avoiding me?" Chopper wondered, but his antennae picked up a flaming punch coming his way, so he did a Backward Somersault, following up with stomping on Vivian's head.

Of course, this did not go unnoticed by Beldam.

"What are you DOING, Vivian?" Beldam shouted, noticing Chopper easily dodge one of her punches. "You twit, I'll never forgive you if you lose!"

"S-Sorry, Sis..." Vivian stammered, throwing in a fiery punch, but as before, Chopper easily dodged it. But to her luck, her next punch managed to hit him, knocking the antennaed boy back a foot.

However, to her shock, it didn't look like it fazed him that much. But when she got a much better look at him after quickly recovering from the hit, she blinked in shock. Instead of Chopper standing before her, someone in his shape with a green, conic hat and blonde hair was in his place for a brief moment.

"You... No, it couldn't be..." Vivian gasped.

"Huh? Why are looking at me like that?" Chopper asked, but when he looked over at the other two, they seemed to be in trouble. "Uh oh... I might need to help them... But I need to speed this up. ...Wait, I have a Fire Shield Star, don't I?"

Taking out the Fire Shield Star, Chopper absorbed the Star Energy from it and gained a Fire Shield. This helped protect him from another one of Vivian's fire attacks, which didn't seem to do a thing to him.

"Oh no..." Vivian gulped, shooting a few more fire spells, but they only disintegrated upon hitting the barrier. "My fire attacks aren't doing anything..."

"What are you waiting for? Take her down!" Silvera shouted.

"Oh... Right." Chopper nodded.

With a Star Dash, he was able to knock Vivian back, all the while running toward her. Chopper put his Star Spin to use to do some additional damage, then when Vivian had finally stopped sliding across the sand, he leaped above her and landed a Super Stomp.

Once he bounced off her, Vivian could take no more and collapsed.

"Sorry, Sis..." Vivian moaned, struggling to even stand up. Chopper had smiled and held up two fingers in victory, but the moment he saw her shed a tear, his sympathetic look was back.

But his attention was brought back to Flyer, who had just been grabbed by Marilyn and was already crushing him. Clenching his fists, he rushed toward the large Shadow Siren and struck her with a Star Dash. With his Fire Shield on him, his attack did some additional fire damage as well. Flyer had finally been released, allowing him to fire a few ice shots at Marilyn.

"Guh..." Marilyn grunted, returning to the two and throwing in thunder punches. Chopper easily maneuvered past them and kicked her belly. She heaved in pain, allowing Flyer to shoot an explosive fire shot at her.

"Marilyn! Do not give up so soon! Let me give you support!" Beldam insisted, using her magic to make Marilyn grow bigger. "Mmmwee hee hee! That should help you out! Hit them, Marilyn! NOW!"

"Guh!"

Adding more of her power to the mix, Marilyn brought her fists down, causing the ground to shake temporarily and lift Chopper and Flyer off their feet. However, this wasn't stopping Chopper from hitting her with a Star Spin. However, the punch she delivered was just as deadly, knocking him back toward his best friend. Thankfully, his Fire Shield prevented him from taking any damage, although it was now gone because of that attack.

"Chopper, we should finish her with a Whirlwind Launch," Flyer suggested.

"O-OK... Good idea." Chopper mumbled, getting himself up. Once Flyer flew up, Chopper grabbed his arm, and both swung around rapidly. Eventually the Wingel released him and let Chopper charge forward. Meanwhile, Marilyn raised her arms to summon lightning. While Flyer was struck, the antennae boy was too fast, and with one Star Dash, the largest Shadow Siren found herself on the ground.

"Ugh-guhhh..." Marilyn moaned, she too struggling to get up. The spell Beldam cast had worn off, returning her to her normal size.

"Nice work, Chopper!" Flyer complimented, giving his friend a high five. "Now we just have the leader left..."

Unfortunately for Kiwi, he was in a bad situation. With his feet covered in ice, he had no way of moving. For Beldam, this made it easier to fire ice spells his way. But to her dismay, he seemed to be able to block them with his hammers.

"Gah! Why won't you just give up?!" Beldam growled. "You can't move your feet!"

"Well, I can still fight back without moving my own legs," Kiwi countered.

"No matter... My blizzard spell should do the trick!"

With that, she fired a blizzard spell his way, causing Kiwi to shiver. But before Beldam could freeze him, Chopper had jumped in and stomped on her head, then landed by Kiwi.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaack! You're tougher than I thought, Chopper!" Beldam grunted. "I guess Lord Maquano was not bluffing when he said you were a thorn on his side..."

"At least he knows not to mess with me," Chopper replied, breaking the ice around Kiwi's feet.

"Thank you, Chopper," Kiwi sighed in relief. "Now... Let's finish off this hag."

With his two hammers gripped, he charged at Beldam with full force and started striking her with many hammer swings. Each one seemed more painful than the last as he started swinging both hammers at once.

"You will give me back my bracelet!"

"Gah! Why are you going after me?! Vivian's the one who found it in the first place!" Beldam cried while being struck each time.

"But you took it from her," Chopper mentioned, running behind her to kick her forward.

As Beldam came back toward Kiwi, he swung his hammers upward. As she was launched into the air, a golden bracelet had dropped right in front of him.

"Yes!" Kiwi smiled, scooping the bracelet off the ground. "OK, Chopper! Go ahead and finish the job!"

Nodding, Chopper leaped into the air once Beldam fell, and with one Super Stomp, it was enough to make her collapse on the ground.

"Mmmmwee hee haaaaaaaack! Oooog. Maybe we were a tad overconfident..." Beldam moaned, struggling to even push herself up.

"That's what happens when you try to hurt me and my friends," Chopper declared. "Maquano learned that when he destroyed my old homeworld, Mondrao."

Kiwi had blinked in surprise as Beldam finally stood up, sneering at the other two Shadow Sirens that were getting up.

"Marilyn! Vivian! You lumps! We would've won if you two pulled your weight! You two prepare for a world-class punishment session when we get back home!"

"Guhhhhh..."

"Y-Yes, Sis..."

Rather than escape via the shadows, the Shadow Sirens bolted away from the three, leaving Chopper to sigh in relief.

"Whew... Well that takes care of them!" Chopper smiled, raising a fist as a sign of victory. "And I didn't even need to copy an ability to beat them!"

"Well, it's a good thing we had Kiwi on our side," Flyer noted. "Without him, it wouldn't have been so easy."

"Yeah! Thanks for the help, Kiwi!" Chopper turned to Kiwi, but the stare he was giving him made him confused. "Kiwi? Are you OK?"

"Chopper... I don't believe it... It really is you..." Kiwi gawked.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

Chopper and Flyer blinked in surprise when Kiwi grabbed his mask and removed it. What they weren't expecting, however, was a female, pink face with black, oval-shaped eyes.

"It's me, Choppy! Your old friend from Mondrao, Berry!"