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Here you go. Next chapter.
Momoka sat in a chair at a table with her father and mother and other scientists and important leaders that they had saved. It was another boring political meeting, like usual.
"We have continued to try to regrow plant life... But it seems everything we can do has failed," Momoka's father told the group. "No matter how hard we try, nothing will grow."
Momoka felt shocked. She had thought they'd be able to regrow the plants eventually. There was chatter among the crowd.
Nobody knew what to do.
There has to be someone who's able to regrow the plants. She knew the population was otherwise doomed. Her mind buzzed through all the possibilities of who could help.
Eventually, it finally stopped on one Keronian who had always had a green thumb - Dororo. But from what she had heard from Fuyuki, they hadn't heard a word from him.
But... someone did warn me of the danger Fuyuki was in. Someone sneaked into our fortress and warned me... Dororo knows Fuyuki and me. And he's kind. There was a chance it could have been Dororo.
And she needed him.
After the meeting, she met with her father alone. "I think I know someone who can help regrow the plants," she offered. "But I will need to locate him."
"Be safe," her father told her. "I have faith in you. You're a Nishizawa, after all," he grinned. Momoka hugged him.
She then went off to try to figure out how to find him.
She went to Koyuki first, knowing that Koyuki was the closest to Dororo. She'd most likely know where he was.
"Do you know where Dororo is?" Momoka asked.
"No. I don't even know he's alive," Koyuki admitted sadly. She fiddled with a geode in her hand.
"Where did you get that?" Momoka asked her.
Koyuki smiled. "Oh! I just found it in my room! There was a letter that said that someone left it for me and that my insides were just as beautiful as a geode. Sweet, huh?" she smiled.
Momoka frowned. She suspected who had given that geode if Dororo could bypass her security. "Koyuki..." she said kindly, "would you go check on something for me in the kitchen?"
Koyuki nodded. "I'd love to!" She agreed and bounded off. Momoka smiled, now that Koyuki was gone, she hoped Dororo would come out.
He didn't. So she begin searching the room for how he had entered it. Eventually, when she managed to push a bed out of the way, she found his hole.
"Gotcha!" she smiled. Grabbing a shovel from a place in the wall, she headed off into the tunnel he had most likely used.
She had heard a bit about the Keronians' mutations. And she had seen Tamama, Keroro and Giroro's for herself, but she still had to wonder what Dororo looked like.
The tunnel eventually came out into a cave that had many tunnel entrances.
It was dark, really dark, but Momoka could see a bright light that was the entrance to the cave and the sun. She headed toward it and saw Dororo basking in the light, perched on all fours.
His face was contorted in pain at the sunlight, but he still seemed to be making the effort to enjoy it.
He bolted up when he smelled her.
"Dororo," she spoke calmly.
"Get away from me!" Dororo hurried into the darkness of the cave. "Don't be near me... Don't even look at me!" he begged. Momoka let him retreat into the darkness, hiding his hideous appearance.
"I knew you were alive," she smiled.
"Who told you? Giroro?"
"No, I found you on my own. Through the gifts you've been leaving for Koyuki," she said. Dororo thought for a moment, and finally nodded, believing her.
"I'm not joining you in your fortress. I can't come back with you. Not when I'm like this," he said, his voice pained.
"I came here to ask you a question. Nothing more... How do we get the plants to grow?" she asked. Dororo perked up, but his voice still sounded depressed.
"You can't," he told her sadly. "The plants are gone for good. The spirits have left this planet. Without spirit energy, the planet can't live. It can't grow. The plants will never live again without them."
Spirits don't make plants grow. Sun and water do, Momoka thought to herself, waving off Dororo's explanation and just thinking it was superstitious.
"How do I get them to grow?" she asked again. "You must know a way. You're so good with plants, Dororo... Please, come back to the fortress with me and help me..."
Dororo shook his head. "NEVER!"
Momoka thought of how Tamama had been physically hurting Fuyuki when she saw him. He hadn't been in his right mind. It seemed that Dororo was at least somewhat similar.
She nodded. He wouldn't do any help like this.
"Wait," Dororo spoke. "Please... don't tell anyone I'm alive," he requested before she left.
"I would never hurt Koyuki that way. She mourns you everyday," Momoka answered him, denying his request. She left him.
Dororo just remained shocked.
Her first plan had failed to get the plant life alive again. Dororo was just too superstitious to give her answers.
But if it was science she was looking for... There was one Keronian who she could search out.
She needed her friends to help her, though. They had come across the mutated Kululu more than she had.
She approached Saburo, Koyuki, Natsumi and Giroro. Fuyuki was still recovering, so she didn't enlist his help. "I need to find Kululu to ask him about the plant life," Momoka told them. "Will you help me?"
"Why do you need Kululu?" Giroro asked curiously.
"He's a better scientist than anyone here. He'll know how to fix things. And without plant life we'll all die. I need him," Momoka stated. "So will you help me find and talk to him?"
Natsumi smiled nicely at her. "Of course. If it's to help this planet I'll do anything," she grinned.
Koyuki nodded. "Me too!"
"If Natsumi's going, I'm going," Giroro agreed. "And you'll need me to negotiate with him as another Keronian."
Saburo looked at the four and shook his head. "Sorry, guys, I have to bail on this one. Kululu... I can't talk to him." He shook his head. "I don't want to face him again."
Natsumi squeezed Saburo's hand. "It's all right. We'll take this one for you," she reassured. Saburo smiled. He was glad she was understanding.
With a quick nod from Momoka, they headed back to the outdoors again, together as a team.
Natsumi couldn't help but feel a bit worried about asking Kululu for help. He was so cruel, and their temporary alliance was dead. He had tried to kill them last time they had seen him.
"This way." Giroro led them to where Kululu usually stayed, trying to use his senses to get to him. He stopped for a moment. "Do you hear a ticking?"
"Our hearing isn't as good as yours," Natsumi teased, kissing Giroro on the cheek and squeezing his hand.
Koyuki pointed forward. "The... The town's no longer destroyed."
Natsumi snapped her head forward to see the town she once loved, not the image she remembered it, but huge, skyscrapers and factories all over the place. Steam filled the air, and the ground was covered by steel plates. The city was huge again, and new and giant robotic cranes seemed to be making more and more of it.
"It's amazing," Momoka smiled.
Natsumi saw movement - a humanoid figure moving in the city. She ran toward it, happy to see another human. But then she heard the ticking that Giroro had refereed to.
When she got close enough to view the human, she quickly realized it wasn't a human at all. Its stomach was filled with mechanical clockwork. It had a humanoid shape, but was quite clearly a clockwork soldier. Its eyes were lifeless, but it smiled at her nonetheless.
"Welcome," it told her in a cold voice. "Praise Kululu, our lord and master."
"Talk about gross," Giroro murmured under his breath. "He's made a new race to worship him as a god."
Natsumi saw that several of these lifeless clockwork beings were roaming the streets. Mutated rats were still there too, but these humanoid metal pieces had replaced the real life humans in the cities.
She wondered how many cities like these Kululu had made. He must have been busy.
"Ummm... we're here to see Kululu." Momoka shyly tried talking to the robot.
"Lord Kululu doesn't see just anyone. Are your parts malfunctioning?" the robot asked. "There's a repair shop." It whirled around and pointed.
Natsumi couldn't take her eyes off of all the clocks ticking in its stomach. "Wh-why... Why so many clocks?" she asked.
"Because time is meaningless. The future is in Lord Kululu's hands," it said in a dark voice.
"I think it would be best to find Kululu on our own," Giroro whispered to Natsumi, tugging at her hand to take her away from the mechanical soldier.
"Wait..." Natsumi paused to ask the robot another question. "How... How many cities like this are there?"
"Lord Kululu's shipped out parts to be all over the world. They're where every major city used to be. Lord Kululu owns this world, after all," said the robot.
After that Natsumi left, not wanting to hear how Kululu had colonized her dead planet any longer.
Giroro lead them through the streets. The clockwork people didn't bother them much, but eventually Giroro lead them to an elaborate castle. It had Kululu's face everywhere, so they knew it was where Kululu was staying.
He opened the doors and they all went down the long hall. Suddenly, all the lights switched off, making it pitch black.
"I can't see anything!" Momoka cried.
"Oh... not being able to see, what a travesty," Giroro said sarcastically.
"Can you lead us forward?" Natsumi asked, holding onto Giroro's shoulder. They were all at a disadvantage with the lights off, except for Giroro. They all relied primary on their sight.
"No need. I'm here. Ku, ku, ku." They heard Kululu's voice at the end of the hall and stumbled forward to it. "You could say, look what the cat dragged in? Ku, ku, ku!"
"Turning off the lights won't help you. Especially since sight is all you have," Giroro hissed, knowing he was trying to get the three Pekoponians at a disadvantage.
Kululu laughed. "I have hearing too! Ku, ku, ku. And, I can see perfectly well in the dark. So no problem for me. Night vision goes with my super eyes."
Natsumi felt distressed. "Kululu... We came to talk to you..."
"Thank you, Giroro, for bringing them. Just like I told you to," Kululu spoke.
"Huh?" Natsumi let go of Giroro's hand. Had... Had Giroro been working for Kululu all along? Did he just fake having his memories back? "What do you mean?"
"He brought you here because killing you was on my to-do list. Can't have a Nishizawa ruling my world, after all. That's what the blue-haired girl is, isn't she?" said Kululu.
Momoka growled. "You betrayed us, Giroro!" She fell for Kululu's lies.
"No! No I didn't! Why would I work for him? I would never help Kululu kill you!" Giroro insisted.
"You helped me all the time though, Giroro. While I didn't know of my true powers, you never killed me. You always let me live. You even saved my life the very first time we encountered a mutated Keronian... I recall you holding me back before I attacked Tamama, which would have undoubtedly killed me. You saved my life, Giroro. Just like the loyal comrade you are," Kululu thanked him.
"I didn't save your life because I was working for you!" Giroro yelled.
"You saved his life?" Natsumi asked. "So... you do help him?" She backed away. Everybody stumbled around in the dark.
Suddenly, hands latched around Natsumi, Koyuki, and Momoka. They heard ticking behind them. The mechanical soldiers had been called out and had grabbed them.
"Kululu! We didn't come here to fight!" Momoka tried to struggle against the grip. "We just wanted your help... Plant life is unable to grow. We request you help us grow it. Without it, we'll all die. Even you."
"Not me. I can make artificial food," Kululu gloated. "And not even I can make the plants grow. They're dead. And this planet is dying, too. The core is sick. I've seen this planet explode in the future."
"What?!" Natsumi started panicking, hearing the news was much more drastic than she had thought. The plants weren't growing because the entire planet was dying? They'd die on it, then!
"However, with a mechanical core, I can keep it alive. Only machinery can save this planet that no longer has the life energy through natural means... Dororo's stupid hippie spirit energy. So basically what I'm saying is this planet needs me. Ku. Only I can keep this planet alive." He turned to Giroro, who was loading his gun to shoot Kululu. "So go ahead and shoot, Giroro. Killing me will be killing this planet."
Giroro's hand started shaking. He brought his gun down. "What do you plan to do with Natsumi?" He knew he wasn't captured. Kululu was still trolling everybody saying that Giroro was his ally.
"You know, Giroro. Yu're welcome to live in my new world, since you've delivered my enemies to me. Kuuu, ku, ku," Kululu told him. "They know they can't beat me. Fighting back means everything they love will die. So they're mine."
"What do you want with us? Are you going to kill us quickly?" Natsumi asked.
"Ku. You wish. I'm going to take your eyeballs." Kululu grinned. "That way... No one else will ever have sight. I'm the only one who deserves to see."
Natsumi saw a bright red light. A laser was above them.
"You first, ally of Giroro. Ku, ku, ku." He placed the lasers in front of Natsumi. Natsumi tried not to cry.
"NO!" Giroro jumped forward and let the laser shoot his eyes instead, or more accurately, his new glass eyes. His glass eyes dripped out of his sockets, melting on the floor. He made a mangled scream at the burning sensation. But he launched himself into the mechanical soldier, setting Natsumi free.
"Made a mistake, Giroro. Although I knew you would. Ku, ku, ku. Still funny to see you in pain," Kululu laughed.
Giroro wiped the melted glass out of his eyes. "I'll never work for you, Kululu. Not even if the planet is dying. A day of freedom with Natsumi is better than an eternity with you."
Kululu frowned. "Just because you're a Pekoponian now doesn't mean I won't maim you. I was going to wait until I killed Natsumi to kill you, but I suppose I'll do it now."
"So... you lied about Giroro working for you?" said Natsumi.
"Duh," Kululu answered. "And you fell for it! I could see your distress and distrust!"
Giroro tilted his head down. He could hear her distrust, too. He supposed almost killing her still wasn't forgiven.
Koyuki and Momoka continued trying to struggle, but the mechanical soldiers placed hands over their mouths so they couldn't even plead for freedom.
"I'll kill you first," Kululu said to Giroro. "You're going to have to die for your disrespect." He got up out of his chair, and although Giroro couldn't see him, he could hear him.
He could also hear the laser placed toward his heart. Four lasers were now aimed at Giroro. Natsumi was on the floor, but her legs tensed up, ready to spring at Giroro to defend him.
"No! Don't kill Giroro! Not like how you killed Tamama! You'll lose even more of your platoon mates!" The voice that had warned Giroro about Natsumi filled his head again.
"You killed Tamama?" Giroro gasped.
"Why... uhhh yes... Ku ku ku. But that doesn't have anything to do with the situation now. How did you know?" Kululu was slightly confused, but Giroro wasn't going to distract him.
Tears flowed down Momoka's face at the news. Natsumi gasped.
"The voice," Giroro said simply.
Kululu shrugged. "Well, that voice isn't going to save you now. Say good-bye. Clickie-poo!"
"No! Kululu, don't!" The voice screamed. Giroro's muscles twitched at the voice that only he could hear. It was so farmilar. A voice that he hadn't heard in over a year.
"Mois!" He finally put his finger on what the voice sounded like.
Kululu's own finger hovered over the trigger. "What?" he paused and dropped the button for the lasers. "Wh-what... What did you say?"
"That's right!" Natsumi remembered. "We haven't seen Angol Mois at all! Where did she go? Tamama survived the bombings long enough... So where's she? Is she with you, Kululu?" Natsumi asked. She suspected she wasn't, or else Kululu would have mentioned it.
Kululu was silent for a good long time. "Ku, ku, ku, ku, ku!" He started laughing an incredibly large amount. "You think she's with me? No way! She's dead!" he reminded Natsumi.
"Wh-what?" Natsumi didn't want to think another of her friends were dead. It couldn't be. "No... No, she can't be dead!"
"She is. Tamama ate her. Remember, Giroro? You were there when we learned," said Kululu.
Giroro frowned. "I'm calling your bluff," he spoke proudly. "That can't be true. I just heard her speak."
"YOU DID NOT!" Kululu's voice was no longer calm and collected. Instead, he screamed. "Sh-she's dead! I've never heard her!"
"I'm the sense of hearing, though. I can hear more things than you," said Giroro. Kululu shivered.
Giroro heard him crank up a knob on his new headphones to increase his hearing. "M-Mois... Y-you there?" he whispered so that he didn't hurt his ears.
Giroro smiled. He then let out a loud battle cry that managed to topple Kululu over in pain from his ears.
He doesn't have real hearing, only replicated, Giroro thought. Giroro rushed forward to Koyuki and Momoka's sides with Natsumi and pulled the soldiers away from them. They didn't have any orders from Kululu, since he was holding his ears, so it was easy enough to free them.
They got on their feet quickly, out of fear.
Kululu also desperately got to his feet, still stumbling from the sound. "It doesn't matter... It doesn't matter if she'll only talk to you, or if you're delusioned. She's gone from my life. She's gone for good," he hissed. "How dare you bring her up." He grabbed a knife he had under his chair for emergencies and rushed forward to Giroro as Giroro's back was turned.
Giroro whirled around, but Kululu was frozen, he wasn't moving.
Natsumi, Momoka and Koyuki backed away.
Kululu tried to tug out of the clutches of the invisible force that was holding him back. "Wh-what's going on?" he asked.
"Leave. Please. He's angry. You seem to be the only one to hear me, Giroro. So listen to me... I'll hold him back for now. Please get away," Mois's voice ordered softly.
Giroro nodded. "She says she'll hold him back and to leave," he told them.
"She? You mean Mois?" Kululu desperately tried to struggle free. "Sh-she's in here? Let me go!" he begged, but he wasn't let go.
Giroro turned away and left with everyone else. They had the information they needed, and they weren't about to fight Kululu when they didn't need to. It was better to leave him alone.
Soon enough, they were gone from his city.
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