Episode 21
Op: "We are Passion Heart Precure!"
"A world without love, A trip to the Kingdom of Amour!"
Together Adore, Merry, and Rose stepped away from the portal and onto the cold ground. The air around them was still, nearly lifeless as if time had froze in place. Adore stared at the unfamiliar surroundings, a growing fear pulling at her.
Adore jumped at the sudden touch of skin, but was relieved to see it was Merry taking a hold of her hand. Rose cleared her throat to speak, her voice barely above a whisper.
"So, any ideas?" She asked adding an awkward chuckle to her words.
"No." Merry said.
Yui pushed passed the girls with her mouth hanging open in disbelief. She could hardly believe this was once her home.
"It's all gone." Yui said, mouth trembling. "Look at it, these buildings can barely stand."
"Yui..." Adore whispered. She knelt down by the little fairy and rested a hand on her head. "What can we do?"
Yui shook her head with a heavy sigh. "I don't know, maybe we're too late."
"No." Merry said. "We can help, just tell us what to do."
"I-I don't know, but if we find the Queen then she'll know what to do." Yui explained.
"How do you know if the Queen is here?" Rose asked. "I mean, not to sound like a downer, but look at this place."
"True, Amour is in a terrible state, but if the Queen was really gone then the kingdom would be nothing but ruble." Yui said. "I know she's here, I can feel it!"
Adore stood up and faced her team. "I think the Queen is here too and as long as we're precure we have to help."
Rose nodded. "Alright than, let's save the Queen!"
"And Amour!" Merry added.
"Right!" Adore said with a hopeful smile. "Now, where do we find her Yui?"
"In the castle, it over looks the entire kingdom." Yui said. "That castle is guarded with magic by the Queen so it's the only place she can be safe enough to protect the kingdom, let's go!"
As the group stepped foot into the kingdom, they felt a strange chill wash over them. They continued down the road, but stopped as the ground began to shake. It was a low tremble that only shook the loose rocks around them, but the girls had a growing suspicion they knew who was behind the shaking ground.
"Maybe we're being followed." Rose said.
Merry raised her head, pointing towards the sky. "You might be right." She said.
Adore, Rose, and Yui all turned towards the sky focusing on the figure that was glowing above them.
"What is that?" Asked Adore. "It's bright and it's getting closer."
Merry's eyes went wide as realization hit her. "Take cover, it's an attack!"
The light soon burned brighter, the heat surrounding the group even though the attack was still far. Adore summoned her shield and held it out high towards the beam. An explosion of light blinded them, but it was gone within seconds.
"Come on we need to hide!" Adore said.
Rose pointed towards an old building, urging the girls to follow her. "Over here, let's go!"
They huddled inside, covering their mouths so that not even their breathing could be heard. Adore pulled Yui towards her, the little fairy trembling with fear. Merry turned her head from behind the building's wall, checking for any enemies.
"It looks clear." She said, beginning to stand.
"Hold on!" Rose shouted, pulling Merry back. "He could be hiding or something!"
"He?" Merry repeated. "Do you think it's Asphodel?"
"It has to be." Adore said. "He's always in our way. What should we do?"
"We have to run towards the castle, it's the only safe place!" Yui said. "There, Queen RoseMary can help us."
Merry laid her hand on top of Yui's head, patting down stray fur. "We will, but first we need a plan."
"That's a plan, we can just run." Rose said.
Merry shook her head. "No, if we run he can easily beat us."
"What do we do then?" Adore asked.
"We split up." Merry said.
"What? Are you serious?" Rose said with a gasp. "We can't!"
"We have to!" Merry insisted. "Adore can take Yui to the castle and you and I can stay and fight him!"
"We can't beat him!" Rose said, raising her voice.
"We don't have to, all we have to do is keep him busy long enough for them to find the Queen." Merry explained.
"But-" Rose uttered then sighed. "Is that our only option?" She asked. Merry nodded. "Alright then."
"Seriously?" Adore said, a bit shocked.
"It's already decided, now go!" Merry urged her.
"Girls, can you take him?" Yui asked.
Merry smiled, petting her once more. "Of course we can, now go save the Queen!"
Adore hesitated for a moment, but one look at her team made all her fears vanish. She tucked Yui into her arms, holding her closely towards her chest. Adore turned to the girls one last time, smiling to assure them that she would be okay as well.
Merry and Rose watched Adore run into the city followed by a flash of red light. Rose jumped from the cover of the building and with her sword deflected the attack. Merry ran from the building towards Rose.
"He's here." Rose said.
Sure enough, Asphodel was here in the kingdom. His hate filled gaze peered right into Rose's eyes. But he was not alone. Azalea stood by his side, looking just as menacing.
"Azalea..." Merry whispered with slight confusion.
Rose tightened her grasp on the sword, biting down on her lip. "Great."
"Look's like we'll have to fight twice as hard." Merry said.
"Don't worry, we can take them!" Rose assured her.
Azalea scoffed at the girls, a grin painted on his face. "You girls sound confident."
"Why shouldn't we be? We can take you!" Rose said with a confidence about her.
"See there's the problem, there will be no we." Asphodel said. "It's about time you girls split."
"What?" Merry uttered. "Hold on-" Merry's words were cut short.
With a simple snap of his fingers, Asphodel's powers soon shook the very world around them. The ground began to split and from the cracks it created a bright light pushed through. Feeling panicked, Rose reached out towards Merry in a desperate attempt to save her.
But within seconds Merry was far from Rose's reach, the space between them engulfed by the light. They where torn apart by the light, a growing heat blazed through followed by a powerful flame. Rose screamed for Merry but her shouts were muffled by the roaring flames.
Then, a heavy mist hung around Rose and she knew then she was not in the kingdom. She waved her hands through the mist as though to clear it up. It was quiet where she was and the ground beneath her was cold.
"Hello?" She said out loud, her voice shaking. "Merry..."
"Pathetic!" Azalea's voice ripped through, startling her.
Rose could see a purple glow through the mist, it grew brighter and brighter. It was an attack! She raised her sword, the metal meeting with the blast. Rose stumbled back as the attack made a forceful impact.
Azalea appeared from the mist with a scornful look on his face. He narrowed his eyes at the sight of Rose, a feeling of pure hate emanated from him. He was the first to attack, catching Rose of guard.
Rose steadied her feet as she was pelted by punches. Azalea was making it very clear he would not hold back. He jabbed at Rose with forceful blows, that sent a shaking pain running through her body.
Rose stepped back and lunged at him with her sword pointed forward. Azalea barely dodged the attack. He was taken back by how quick Rose was able to land a kick to his side, knocking the air right of him.
"I'm not backing down!" She shouted with anger, sinking her fist into his jaw.
Azalea jerked his head to the side, his jaw throbbing with pain. "Idiot, neither am I!"
Azalea wasted no time and quickly began to over power Rose. His hits were swift and powerful, each punch he threw burned each time he hit her. Rose tried to block his attacks, jabbing at him with her sword in a sloppy fashion.
Azalea snapped his fingers, his fist engulfed by a flame and began to unleash a row of fire balls towards her. Rose was quickly overwhelmed by the speed of his attacks. She stumbled backwards tripping over her own feet and falling to the ground.
"Don't you get it, it's over." Azalea said with a cold tone. He opened his hand, his palm glowing a deep purple.
The glow soon grew bigger then the palm of his hand, towering over Azalea and Rose. Rose's gaze was fixed on the massive light, she could feel the immense power it held.
"Goodbye, Cure Rose!"
She was consumed by the blast, everything around her was. One massive purple light flashed and then vanished. Followed by nothing, but silence.
Merry dug her heels in the ground, pushing forcefully against Asphodel. She gripped his fist with both hands, his strength over powering her. The two were locked in a heated battle and it looked like Merry would lose.
"You're strength against mine is useless." He said with a cackle. "You can barely even hold back my fist."
Merry gritted her teeth, her face red with anger. "I wouldn't be so cocky if I were you!"
She pushed back against him with force, but he would not budge. Asphodel raised his head and cackled. He clasped her wrist with his free hand and with ease tossed her aside like a doll.
"See, you're weak." He said, looking down at her. "There's no need for me to drag this on any further."
Merry snapped her finger and summoned a bell. "Don't think I've given up!" She shot up to her feet and began to sway the bell, unleash a deafening echo.
Asphodel covered his ears, looking more annoyed then defeated. "Please, don't bother! Those little bells of yours are more annoying then powerful!"
Merry bit down on her lip, she raised her arm and with a loud shout sent the bell flying right towards Asphodel. The bell crashed right onto his head, releasing an even louder chime then before. Asphodel bit his lip, his hands pressed against his ears at the sound of the terrible chiming.
"I think they get the job done." Merry said with a smirk.
Asphodel clicked his tongue and rose to his feet. He snapped his fingers, his hand swallowed by a burning red light. He shot his hand onto the ground and unleashed the blast, braking the ground around them.
Merry lost her footing as the ground broke beneath her feet. She was toppled by loose gravel and rocks, lying in between a pit that was once the ground. Asphodel walked towards the edge of the pit and peered down at her.
"See, it is the end for you." He said.
One quick snap of his fingers and another blast was sent hurling towards her. Merry summoned her gong mallet, driving it into the center of the blast. The burning red light of Asphodel's attack collided with the golden stream of Merry's gong.
The two attacks pushed against each other exploding in a show of lights, smoke and dust filling the air. It was hard for Merry to see past the smoke and her body ached all over. She tried to summon her bell, but she could feel her powers weakening. She could hear foot steps echoing in the air, growing closer. Merry grabbed at her skirt and squeezed her hand around it, she felt a wave of anger wash over her.
Asphodel emerged from the smoke and his eyes locked with Merry. Merry laid helpless on the ground, she was to weak to even stand. Everything around her began to fade as Asphodel unleashed another blast, consuming everything with a burning red light. Merry watched as they world around her went red and soon everything was silent.
Ed: "Lovely Girls, Lovely Dreams"
Next Time:
Yui: "We're almost there!"
Rei: "I can see it, the castle! But, wait what's happening?"
Yui: "The castle's being flooded by darkness!"
Rei: "We habe to hurry, let's go!"
Next Time on Passion Heart Precure:
Episode 22: " Aster, The Great Monarch!"