Whew! I'm on a roll here!

Anyways, this is the last chapter that isn't fully set in New Pork (unless you count Magicant). Time to wrap up and move on to the closing scenes!

I wanted to fit a Lucas POV into this chapter, but there wasn't enough room (it's really long haha). I will explain more about Lucas/Voice next chapter, I promise. :)

Also, This is the LAST chapter in quite a while that features a large Kumatora part. I like that character way too much for my own good (I think you'll see that about Ana in later chapters too)! xD

Speaking of next chapter, I think that I'm going to rewrite one of the parts, so I probably won't get it out by tomorrow. xD Hopefully I can crank it out by Saturday, though.

My goal is to get this story done with by two weeks from tomorrow, which is when school ends for me. With all of the work that I have to do, it's going to be a close call.

Review Responses:

A Fan: Sadly, I couldn't get the links to work (and yes I know to put in the youtube url before the link). :( I did look up the Ganondorf thing though. xD

YES! The stuff at the beginning of the chapter is Voice's! :D I'm SO glad that someone noticed! As for the compilation of all of those little messages, it will be in the next chapter with the Lucas POV.

I've never heard that saying about revenge, but I like it. :) Yeah... Kuma's in a pretty scary situation with her killing. :(

You're totally right; It's awesome how I can talk about stuff like religion with the Mother community! :D I wasn't planning on talking about religion so much, but it's a huge part of who Paula is... and I didn't mean for the prayer to be ironic, either! xD It was a total coincidence.

If you want to review my other story, that would be awesome! :) I'm putting that one on hold right now (trying to finish up this one!), but I think that I'll finish it up after school's out... that is, if I don't get too excited about the story that I have planned after that.

Guest (the one that talked about Ness): Ness wasn't even in these last two chapters, and yet he's still the topic of concern? xD Don't get me wrong, I'm not being critical (on the contrary, I LOVE it that people are emotionally invested in my characters :D), but I just kind of assumed that people would be more worried about Lucas at this point. ;)

I won't say whether Ness lives or dies, but I will say that his story does not end on a depressing note. I think that you'll be satisfied. :)

PK Love Gamma: Huh, I guess you and I are the only people who kind of feel bad for Fassad. :) I even got that guilt while playing Mother 3 when the drago beats the living crap out of Fassad. :( He's just so much of a jerk at other times, though! It's hard to feel like that guilt is justified. xD

And oh wow, Loren does sound like my Lucas. I promise that I didn't steal it! :x Anyways, I ended up really liking how Voice develops (not as much as Ness, but still...), so I hope that you can appreciate his character as well! ;)

Also, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon always infuriated me as well! xD I would lose after trying for an hour and be like "why in the world am I wasting my time here!?" xD

Guest (the one that talked about Voice and Paula): Hey, I really like Paula too! :) She's my... second favorite character. xD I was actually kind of surprised at how well she turned out because she's a LOT different than I am. Sometimes, I wish that I could be more like her. D:

Voice and Lucas explanations are coming next chapter (some of them, at least). :)

OrangeFlight of ShadowClan: Phew, I'm lucky that I caught your review before I published this! :D

I know that it's confusing and I really wanted to put a Lucas POV in this chapter (I really did DX), but it's just too long to fit. :(

Yes, there's more Ness! (hey, that rhymes) Sadly, I don't think that any of my other Ness passages are quite as good as some of the earlier ones, but I'll try my best! :)

I like the metaphor! ;) You know me, I make a ton of scenes where people reverse mindsets. Kumatora will have growth, I promise! :)

I'm not going to say anything else about the plot, but I'm glad that you like Paula! She's one of my favorite characters! :)

Thanks for the encouragement and thanks for the review!

Right as I regain control of my body, my freedom is snatched away from me.

I really am Tantalus, aren't I?

Claus appeared back in Onett, Poo and Dr. Andonuts at his side.

"I should go back to Twoson," Poo announced hesitantly. "I need to… have a talk with Lloid."

Claus smiled.

"That's a great idea," he said, patting Poo on the back.

"Changing how I think is hard," Poo said glumly. "All of my past tendancies won't go away easily. Sometimes I wonder if I should even be trying."

"Of course you should try!" Claus said supportively. "All that you have to do is to keep an open mind. Little by little, you'll improve. It won't be easy, but it's doable. Besides, do you really want to back down from a challenge like this?"

"Heh," Poo replied with a grim smile. "You have me there. I'm not one to back down from a challenge, as unorthodox as this one may be. I'll improve Claus, just watch me!"

"That's the spirit!" Claus encouraged.

"Erm," Dr. Andonuts cut in nervously. "Do you kids have a place where I could stay? I know that I shouldn't be asking, but…"

"Maybe you can go to Twoson with Poo and meet Lloid," Claus suggested. "He's a techy person like you. I'm sure that you two can surprise us with something cool."

"Hrm…" Dr. Andonuts mused. "Yes, that's a good idea. I think I'll do just that. Maybe we can create something that will give us the edge against Porky."

"What are you going to do, Claus?" Poo asked, seeming genuinely concerned.

"I'm going to stay at Ness' house and wait for Lucas and Paula."

"Jeff, is everything all right?" Ness asked in the meeting room.

"I… honestly, no," Jeff replied, looking distraught. "My father has gone missing. Connection with Saturn Valley has been lost."

"Oh," Ness replied, not knowing what else to say.

Ness wanted to be supportive, but he never knew the right thing to say. As much as he liked to think that he was an expert at self-reflection, Ness had to admit that dealing with someone else' issues was foreign to him.

Sometimes I hate the fact that I'm an introvert, Ness thought.

"I know that you told me that I shouldn't be worried about what happens to my father because he doesn't care me, but-" Jeff was cut off.

"I just said that you shouldn't worry about him more than you would anyone else," Ness corrected. "If you don't care about random people, then yeah, I guess that's what I'm saying."

Jeff flinched.

Okay… maybe that was a bit harsh, Ness thought. I'm still so bitter about… that incident.

"Sorry, Jeff," Ness apologized quietly. "I didn't mean to sound like a jerk there."

"It's fine," Jeff replied with a sigh. "I do get what you're saying, Ness, but… It's just so hard to forget about someone now that I started thinking about them. I think that the discovery of danger itself rather than the fact that Dr. Andonuts is my father spurs my worry. So… I guess that I do agree with you."

Ness nodded.

"Okay. And you obviously don't have to take my advice if you disagree. You have your own thoughts and your reasoning is probably superior to mine."

"I… am blind to social interaction, I feel," Jeff said glumly. "The conversations between us humans, the way that we put different values on different people based on how much they mean to us… how can anyone keep up with that? To me, that is a much greater challenge than learning quantum physics or calculus."

"I'm just going to pretend like I know what 'quantum physics' or 'calculus' is, if that's all right with you," Ness replied with a playful grin. "I know what you mean about social interaction. It can be… difficult to track. However, I feel that is a separate realm from morality, which is what we are discussing."

"I suppose," Jeff replied, "But I still feel like your moral beliefs are more sharply honed than mine."

I had to contemplate suicide to get my morals straight, Ness thought but said nothing.

"Well, the fact that you are willing to listen to what I have to say means that I'm not all that concerned about your morality," Ness said, trying to be supportive. "Normally, evil people are locked in their own little world and can't see outside of it."

Jeff nodded slowly. A beep sounded from the computer behind him, causing Jeff's eyes to jolt wide open. He turned to the computer to feverishly type something.

"I'm sorry if it seems like I'm not paying attention to you, but I think that I might be onto something here!" Jeff exclaimed.

"What is it?" Ness asked.

"Just wait a sec…" Jeff continued to type words onto the computer. "Let's see… aha!"

On the computer screen, a video appeared. It wasn't particularly exciting; likely it was simply the view from a surveillance camera.

"Yes!" Jeff exclaimed. "I finally got this stupid machine to let me see from cameras on other levels!"

"Levels?" Ness asked.

"This is a tall building, Ness," Jeff replied. "Of course there are levels. I now have access to all of them except for the 100th floor."

"100th floor… are we in the Empire Porky Building?" Ness asked.

"Yup," Jeff replied. "There's no other building tall enough."

"Anyways, what are you going to do, now that you have access to all of these security cameras?" Ness asked.

"Well, I think that I can determine the location of that monkey's girlfriend…"

"That's great!" Ness exclaimed, putting his hand of Jeff's shoulder. "Really, Jeff, you're a genius!"

"It's nothing," Jeff replied sheepishly.

"Oh come on. There's no point in being modest! Admit it, Jeff! You're a genius."

Jeff shrugged.

"I still wouldn't say that. I'm just good with computers after years of experience."

"Whatever. How long do you think that it will take to locate Samba?"

"Samba?"

"Salsa's girlfriend," Ness explained.

"Oh," Jeff replied. "It could be a couple of hours, or it could be a couple of days. This place is big. You should probably go and tell Salsa."

"Can do," Ness agreed jovially and turned to leave.

"Wait!" Jeff exclaimed in alarm.

Ness turned around to see Jeff staring at the computer screen in horror. He typed some more words in and a shot from the brainwashing room appeared.

Lucas and Paula were floating in capsules of green liquid, tubed masks covering their mouths and metal helmets obscuring their hair.

They were being brainwashed.

"Paula!" Ness exclaimed, rushing up to the computer screen like it would do any good. "Lucas!"

Of course, the screen didn't respond.

"Oh, Paula, what are they doing to you?" Ness whispered in horror.

Ness flew through hallways, only caring about one thing.

He had to reach Lucas and Paula.

As Ness turned a corner, he saw Kumatora walking nonchalantly down the steel corridor.

"Out of my way!" Ness snarled.

"I don't think so," Kumatora rasped.

She held out her axe to stop Ness from darting past her. Ness raised his baseball bat in reply, prompting a scornful laugh from Kumatora.

"You really must wish to die if you want to fight me, Ness!" she jeered. "These robotic upgrades make me next to invincible!"

"You…" Ness whispered venomously. "You let Paula and Lucas go!"

"No," Kumatora rasped. "They will soon feel the same emptiness that we will."

"I'm not empty anymore!" Ness shouted, louder than he probably needed to. "All that you need to do is find something to live for!"

"Nothing is worth living for!" Kumatora snarled.

"Maybe it isn't for you, but you can respect other people's wishes!" Ness countered.

Kumatora didn't even seem to listen.

"I thought that you understood," she rasped. "Did you ever really feel the emptiness? You should know that nothing can fill that void!"

I think I've already wasted enough time talking to someone who won't listen, Ness thought bitterly.

He took off in a sprint and rolled under Kumatora's axe. Without looking back, he turned another corner and kept running. I'm so close!

Ness arrived at the brainwashing room. He tried opening the door, but it wouldn't budge.

Of course it's locked! Ness thought, kicking himself.

He tried to bash into it, but the door was thicker and heavier than Ness had remembered.

I swear that this thing was pretty weak the last time that I checked… what happened?

"Such an irrational child…" Kumatora mused, turning the corner and causally walking towards Ness. "Did you honestly think that we would just let you waltz in there and save the girl like a stereotypical hero? Sorry kid, we're the bad guys. We have no intention of allowing you to go in there."

Ness felt himself fall into a crimson rage.

"Paula is not going to be brainwashed!" He shouted in denial. "And neither is Lucas!"

"Now you deny the truth that you once accepted?" Kumatora asked in disgust.

Right as Ness was about to launch himself at Kumatora, the door to the brainwashing room opened. Paula stepped out, her eyes glazed over with emptiness rather than death.

"Who… are you?" she asked Ness in a detached curiosity that nearly broke Ness' heart.

"Paula!" Ness shouted in horror. "Don't you remember me?"

Paula closed her eyes and wearily shook her head.

No! Ness thought. I can't go through this again! I was almost destroyed when Ninten was brainwashed… this will be the nail in my coffin!

Ness waited for despair to overtake him, to bring him to his knees and cause him to tear at his skin, spilling gallons of blood on the uncaring floor.

It didn't come.

Obviously, Ness felt despair and sorrow. He would have to be a robot not to. But… it didn't assault him. Ness accepted the pain and despair, for both him and Paula.

He became one with the suffering.

There's no way that I'm giving up now! Ness told himself. There has to be a way out for Paula! And even if there isn't… what kind of friend would I be if I didn't at least try?

Ness sneaked a peek into the brainwashing room, covering the glance by burying his head in his hands in fake anguish and separating his fingers, looking through the slits. Inside, both Paula's and Lucas' capsules were empty.

Damn! Ness swore to himself. Lucas' brainwashing finished too. I wonder where he is, though… But first, I have to focus on getting out of this place without Kumatora taking my head off. Think, Ness… Aha! I can just play into her game of emptiness. I'll pretend to be devastated. After all, I probably should be.

"All right," Ness said to Kumatora, panting heavily and forcing tears to come to his eyes.

Huh, Ness thought. It's actually pretty easy to fake this after I've had personal experience with this crap.

"The harsh reality comes to me," Ness lied in a resigned tone. "The emptiness… is returning."

"I am glad," Kumatora rasped with a smile.

That might be the first time that I've ever seen her smile… Ness realized. There's no denying it. She's truly happy that she thinks that I feel the same pain that she does. That's… pretty sad.

What must Kumatora feel so that the only way to experience happiness was to see other people suffer?

"I… need to think more," Ness said and walked away, resisting the urge to break into a sprint.

Luckily, Kumatora didn't try to stop him.

Jeff didn't know what caused him to try to go on a life-threatening mission alone. He tried to contain his anxiety as he walked off the elevator on the 54th floor of the Empire Pork Building. He was wearing his white scientist uniform. Nobody would question him… right?

Jeff took a deep breath and walked by the cages of chimeras. Jeff had always been disgusted by chimeras, for they looked stupid as well as deranged. He saw the newest prototype standing in a little white cage in the white room. The chimera was a hippopotamus that held missiles in its poor, taxed mouth. From what Jeff understood, the hippos were designed to be able to hold more missiles in their stomach and then regurgitate them in order to fire them. Thinking about that made Jeff want to regurgitate something.

Jeff had to think about something, anything, in order to avoid looking at all of the helpless, destructive chimeras. His mind shifted to the many worlds theory, something that he had recently read while studying quantum physics.

The many worlds theory stated that every time a decision was made, multiple universes were created, each of them where the outcome of the decision was different. According to the theory, these "decisions" applied at the subatomic level because quantum particles provided the only truly random movement in the universe, but Jeff liked to imagine it on a macro scale.

According to the theory, there's a universe where I chose not to do this, Jeff thought. There's a universe where Ness took the suicide pill. There's a universe where Kumatora wasn't reborn into a cyborg… and a universe where she didn't even die.

There's a universe where we defeated Giygas.

Jeff thought about what that would be like. Giygas had ruled so much of his life… or so it seemed. In reality, he, Ness, Paula, and Poo had only spent a few months together trying to lift the dark shroud that surrounded their land. It was going so well, too, but one bad fight was all that it took. It wasn't a fight that they had expected to be challenging, but in the end… Jeff shook his head, dismissing the painful memory that popped up. He still hadn't figured out what happened to Giygas. The incomprehensible monster just seemed to fade away.

Were we lied to? Jeff wondered. Was the world ever in danger in the first place? Was Giygas even real?

With a start, Jeff realized that he had arrived at his destination. He stood in front of a cage containing a monkey that was wearing a ribbon. Jeff had assumed from Salsa's reaction to being shown a picture of this monkey that it was the one that Ness wanted to rescue.

Samba, he thought. Her name is Samba.

Samba looked up at him with large, sad eyes, not caring enough to move around.

"Hey!" Jeff shouted to one of the scientists patrolling nearby. "I need to preform tests on this monkey!"

"But-" The scientist sputtered.

"That wasn't a suggestion!" Jeff shouted as confidently as he could.

Inside, he was suffocating from anxiety. Surely, the scientist wouldn't let himself get pushed around by a kid…

"Who are you?" The scientist asked incredulously.

"I'm Jeff Andonuts! My father, Dr. Andonuts, has requested that this monkey be used for testing. His new invention requires a mind that has not been… tinkered with."

"But Dr. Andonuts is-"

"I know he's gone," Jeff said impatiently. "I have this document with his signature." Jeff pulled out the forged letter of approval and showed it to the scientist. "I am also aware that this monkey is being held under special conditions under the orders of master Fassad, who is no longer alive. I assume that there is no conflict?"

"I suppose…" the scientist said reluctantly.

He pulled out a key and opened the cage.

Yes! Jeff thought. I can't believe that worked!

Jeff picked up the monkey as gently as he could. The poor thing was shivering in fear.

I just have to get out of here and take of this persona… Jeff blinked as he noticed that the monkey was holding something.

Jeff nearly dropped her in shock after seeing what she held.

The sound stone! Jeff realized in shock. But how…? Ness lost that thing in the Lost Underworld!

Jeff looked at it further.

Oh my god! It has the last melody! Ness could still go to Magicant!

Jeff's quest with Ness had been to store the eight melodies in the sound stone and travel to Magicant so that Ness could discover an inner power that would let him beat Giygas. The fact that the sound stone was right here… Jeff wasn't sure how to feel about that.

But one thing was for sure: he couldn't act suspicious now. Heart pounding in his chest, Jeff walked back through the chimera halls acting as casual as his overexcited body let him.

"Poo?" Claus called. "Lloid? Lucas?"

Claus strolled through the streets of Twoson the next morning. Lucas and Paula hadn't shown up over the night, so Claus was going to see if Lloid had any leads on them. As he walked, Claus feet his clothes radiate heat from the gentle rays of sunlight that struck them. A calm breeze flowed through Twoson, causing Claus to relax. He walked up to the Lloid's house (or was it Poo's or Paula's?) and opened it.

Inside, Poo and Dr. Andonuts were lying dead on the ground, slash and stab marks on their bodies that charred the flesh that they covered.

Claus blinked. The dead bodies were a trick of his mind. They had to be a trick of his mind.

When he opened his eyes, they were still there.

What the hell? WHAT THE HELL?

Claus took a step back, smelling the sickening stench of the corpses. Poo's body was so pale… and it was lying in a puddle of blood!

Just like the other man in Onett!

Was this Kumatora's doing as well?

No… the slash marks that look like they flaming sword… that's not Kumatora's weapon!

Suddenly, Claus realized that Poo had scrawled words in blood next to where he lay. They read: "Needl New Pork."

Needl New Pork… the last needle must be in New Pork!

That is, unless the murderer had left those words to trick Claus. It did seem suspicious… and for that matter, where was Lloid? There was no sign of him. Claus turned to look at the computer that Lloid was using to find the locations of the needles. It had been slashed in two, bearing the same burn marks as Poo's and Dr. Andonuts' bodies.

Claus took another step back, feeling the urge to barf. That nausea was quickly replaced by rage.

WHO DID THIS? Whoever it is… I will show them the true meaning of PAIN!

Claus snarled, letting out a bestial, guttural sound, feeling an indescribable urge to smash something.

Was the needle really in New Pork? Claus had no way of telling for sure, but that was his only lead. Besides, the murderer was probably working for Porky and would reside in New Pork.

Claus left the house and took off running, not even bothering to deal with the corpses. He would go to Onett and stock up, and then he would travel to New Pork as swiftly as he could.

Poo and Dr. Andonuts both realized the error of their ways and started becoming wonderful people… but they never had a chance to improve! All of what we tried to do… was for nothing! In the end, they're both dead and their change in mindset WAS WORTHLESS!

Claus would find the person who caused this horrible fate to Poo and Dr. Andonuts.

And he would kill them.