CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Ready for the Last Standoff
The realization that their only escape was gone, along with the gamers vanishing with the God and Lady of Games, hit everyone hard. They noticed it when they were no longer solid, therefore, had to start using up their own energy again. The exception being Bleu, Birdie, and Sei.
Blue Heart was already still on the task of eliminating comets, and Sei was using whatever magic he could. Birdie could not do a thing, and felt bad about it. "If only I wasn't so… normal. Then I could probably punch back one of these stupid data rocks!"
"There's no reason in not trying!" Little Mac replied, startling Birdie.
"Wha…"
"I didn't forget who you are, successor. So believe in me right now! When something looks dangerous, that's when it's most vulnerable!"
"I… don't get it." Birdie replied.
Perhaps Birdie's expectations of the world were too realistic, despite being from Gamindustri, not that Little Mac could blame him. The CPUs, minus Bleu, had all gotten tired out from making themselves solid, while trying to stop the comets. Sonic broke a Smash Ball that Pac-Man brought in, becoming Super Sonic, with Tails and Knuckles joining him like in their battle against Neo Metal Sonic. But as expected, their stamina ran out as well when the portal vanished.
Even Dr. Nefarious, Metal Sonic and Mars, despite being robots, could not keep themselves going. If they did, they would probably run out of battery and shut down. Yukari couldn't keep opening gaps, and started to take a power nap after becoming ghost-like, much to the annoyance of Satan and Gregg. But they could not do much either.
"No… we can't stop! If we all do that now, then the lives of innocents will be at risk!" Sabre exclaimed, while Blue Heart stared straight up at the vortex, which is where the never-ending comets came from. Without warning anyone, she began flying up towards it.
"Bleu!? Like, what are you doing!?" Pink Heart yelled.
"We just got you back!" Opal Heart cried.
"Do not sacrifice yourself again, Bleu!" Purple Heart shouted, tempted to go after her, but stopped by Mr. Grimm and Purple Sister.
The only ones still using up whatever energy they had were P-Man and Rin Satsuki. Madi and Sabre were unable to do much, since they would no doubt harm themselves, having no proper way of eliminating the comets from a distance. However, P-Man wasn't able to put up with it for much longer, his energy fading, and having to give in.
"I cannot… continue any longer I'm afraid. It has worn me out too much."
"You did the best you could." Madi replied. "I do not think there is much that anyone can do."
"But we can't stop! People are in danger, like Sabre said!" Fox pointed out.
"Rin!" Cooper called out, noticing that she was still there. "You'll hurt yourself, pull back already!"
Ignoring him, Rin continued trying to nuke the comets with the few bombs she had, even managing to save not only the frozen bystanders, but Voodoo Vince, who didn't see a comet nearly about to hit him earlier, before the portal had disappeared.
Now though, she was getting tired, unable to fly around and on her last bomb. Standing in front of a handful of comets, one coming her way. "Wind… Sign…!" Rin panted, trying to call out the name of her spell, but the comet came closer to her with each passing second. There wasn't any way this could end well, her consciousness was slipping, but Rin didn't know when to back off. Especially with the lives that needed to be saved.
"Divine… Bre…"
She blacked out.
—
"What are ye babblin' about!? Get the doc back already!" Scervo yelled, as Rez attempted repair the machine.
"It is more difficult than usual to do so, and none of you metal morons are of use!"
"It's not our fault that Nefarious prefers to do things himself." Clunk mumbled.
"Is Dr. Nefarious not coming back?" Dreadfuse asked.
"Unfortunately, I would be job-hunting if he did not return. So I actually hope he does." Lawrence replied.
Orbot and Cubot weren't of any use in this case either, Rez didn't know who else could help him, it seemed as if everyone was now stuck in the real world. Rez almost wanted to give up, and destroy the machine completely until nothing was left, out of sheer frustration.
"Buh! Buh huh huh huh! Do you need a hand there, cyborg guy?" Rez raised his head at the familiar laugh, one belonging to a lackey of his former ally.
Lord Crump stood in the doorway, accompanied by a few X-Nauts. Along with them, was also the Anglar Emperor, who had some sort of squid character with her. "I suppose you did not expect to see us again so soon, Rez? You were not the only one who turned away from that group, after all." The Emperor said.
"How did you know where to find me?" Rez hissed.
"The twisted wizard gave us a tip that we may need to help out one last time."
"What's that jellyfish here for?" The squid seemed rather offended by Rez's words.
"Zoldge is a technological genius. I was able to contact him again after he broke off with the Anglar Empire. Long story short, I was able to convince Zoldge to come back to my side." The Anglar Emperor explained, obviously not wanting to delve into any details on her past issues with hired guns. "Let him help you, Rez, along with those X-Nauts. I did not pay him for nothing."
Seeing no other option, especially with the machine broken once more, Rez gave in. He wasn't sure about trusting them, and the robots had no idea what was happening at all, but they were the best chance Rez had right now. Refusing their assistance would be idiotic.
At the same time, Rez couldn't help but wonder, while stepping aside to let the others help… what exactly happened to Wizzro? What was he doing this time?
—
The Dark Champion got as much support as he did. Many smaller parties from Lowee, Lastation, Leanbox, and Planeptune. "I did not expect you to go through with this." A voice said to him. The Dark Champion didn't even have to look at who it was, he knew it was his own brother; the Eternal Champion, who spoke just now. "You have changed so much, within just a couple of days… if you're curious, I requested assistance from Hell upon being thawed out, since I knew this was coming."
"You knew?"
"You were not aware of Samael's past involvement with the God and Lady of Games, but yes."
He felt like a fool for not listening to his own brother's warnings, a whole lot of this could have been avoided. It was too late now, and the Dark Champion was doing whatever he could to fix it. "Everyone is readying themselves, one in particular is going to give the signal, so Natalie and her friends can break free. They will do all they can, and so will I. Even if it means…"
"Brother… are you implying that you would throw away your existence, just for the balance of this world to be restored?"
"No." The Dark Champion muttered. "I would be doing this to save lives. And I do realize the irony of that."
Vanishing into a ball of light, the Dark Champion started to leave. The Eternal Champion did the same, hurrying so they could track down where the final battle would be taking place.
No CPUs, no mascot characters… but four gamers, with other allies.
—
The God and Lady of Games had the largest advantage ever, despite there being only two of them. Invincible, able to take the energy in the four gamers even when they made their bodies like that of a specter, and able to kill anyone in their way if they so wished. They were rather quick as well, Natalie didn't want any of her friends splitting up, so they all kept running together.
"Why do you run, children? Can't you embrace the ones meant rule over Gamindustri, and welcome them with open arms?" The Lady of Games murmured eerily. It was even more frightening than the Phantom God, because he was at least fueled by anger, and had weaknesses. This doll-like woman, showed little emotion.
It was almost like a horror game, being chased down by a monster who you couldn't fight off. Being caught would mean game over… except, this wasn't a game. The fear was real, as if they were running from either a serial killer, or an eldritch horror. It was a strange mix of both. Transforming wouldn't help them right now, as they would be caught and probably killed in an instant.
Michael felt his leg being grabbed by one of the tendrils. He gasped, watching the Lady of Games drag him over. Caela screamed, wanting to pull him back over, away from the Lady of Games, but Natalie and Nick stopped her. If Caela did that, she would surely get herself killed. The Lady of Games pulled Michael up to face her blank gaze, he didn't know whether to shout and kick, transform, or think of a way to escape. He couldn't though. Panic was overcoming him, his usual, spectral form was no longer safe. This was it, he was completely vulnerable.
But then, instead, something was thrown at the Lady's head. Both her and the God of Games looked at the ground, to see what it was.
A croissant.
Of all the things in the world, a croissant is what got their attention. The God and Lady of Games glanced to the side to see who was responsible.
"Y-you stay away…!" Stammering and shaking, despite being accompanied by many, was Glass Joe, of all people.
Along with him was Octoman, King Hippo, Zazan, Lip, Dillon, several residents of Lowee banded together. They may not have been Smashers, in fact, they were anything but, yet they knew that this was a dire time. One where they were needed. "The Emperor assigned one final mission for Octoman and I, which is assisting against a menace." Zazan spoke, readying a Demon Sniper Rifle. "Would that menace happen to be you two?"
It was not just a handful of Loweeans however that had arrived. The God of Games found his attention brought to those from Lastation next. Zarok, Specter, Calypso, Kuro, Lammy, Zeo Uyghur, Demitri Maximoff, Miss Etna, along with many others.
Leanbox's backup came in the form of El Diablo, B. Orchid, Jago, Arbiter Thel 'Vadam, Maggie Monday, Ms. Splosion Man, Gruntilda Winkybunion, and ironically, Hoodlums, after what he had done previously.
"This wasn't part of that damn plan we originally had," Hoodlums spat, "that angel made zero mention of these two!"
"Amigo, why are you surprised?" El Diablo questioned. "Either way, this is your chance to be redeemed."
Finally, amongst the Planeptune side, was Schezo Wegey, Shadow the Hedgehog, Larcen Tyler, Ax Battler, Tyris Flare, Ryo Hazuki, Mobo and Robo, Gum, and more.
To top it all off, Wizzro appeared before the God of Games, smirking at him. "Unfortunately, I don't think someone as twisted as me can let you take their power or kill them." He cackled, pointing at Natalie. "I still owe her a favor unfortunately, and I will return it, even if it's against my usual character!"
With zero hesitation, everyone began attacking, in whatever way they could. The Dark and Eternal Champion arrived onto the scene just in time to assist, using attacks based off of natural disasters and mythical creatures respectively. Neither the God nor the Lady of Games were worried, knowing that they still had the advantage.
"Oh dear, an ambush. Whatever shall we do?" The God of Games said sarcastically, swatting Lara Croft out of his way.
"Pitiful, do none of you inferior creatures realize we are invincible?" The Lady of Games asked.
None of them said a word back to the two, doing whatever they could to try and inflict some kind of wound on any of them. The fully recovered Flandre Scarlet flew towards the battle, accompanied by her sister, Remilia, and the chief maid, Sakuya, who stopped time. Flandre began to focus her power on the couple, crushing their "core" from afar. Once Sakuya started time up once again, they exploded into ashes.
"Huh? Is that it?"
"Wow, that was easy."
"So much for invincible!"
"Wait, I don't think it's over!" Lip exclaimed, pointing at the ashes.
They began to reform, Sakuya attempted to stop time, and Remilia wanted to seal their fate, but each time they tried to do something to pierce the shapes that reassembled, it only quickened. "No, that's impossible! No one can withstand having their eye crushed so easily, especially when…!" Remilia began to shake, both her and Flandre now hiding behind Sakuya.
"Did I not say, we are invincible?" The Lady of Games muttered, towering over the vampires and their maid. Time stopped yet again, if only for Sakuya to get away from her, and fling knives. They pierced the Lady of Games, yet they did nothing. "How sad, you run for your worthless lives."
The both of them were so focused on everyone opposing them, that they didn't realize at all that Wizzro and Hoodlums had actually went ahead and got the four gamers out of their grasp, cloaking them with magic, then running away from the area. "Why are you two helping us?" Nick wondered. "And in your case, a second time?"
"Like I said, I had to return the favor." Wizzro replied, while Hoodlums simply pouted. "The Dark Champion contacted many willing to put their lives on the line, just to stop those… things, which even I do not want taking over this world."
"Even a weak coward like Glass Joe?" Michael asked.
"He was first to step up along with Octoman. Ironic, isn't it?" Wizzro laughed.
Maybe Michael was being a little harsh in that regard. He did remember the french boxer giving him a hard time in the Title Defense of Punch Out! for the Wii. "Either way, you all need to do is recharge, and gain New Game Plus energy or whatever the hell it was. Otherwise, you stand no chance. The Dark Champion suggested that it may be the only way to fight back against those two freaks! And we need to be fast about it, otherwise those other guys will probably die, not that I care!"
Ignoring that last part, they all knew what they had to do now. Whatever remnants of New Game Plus that remained, they had to have. "Good news for you though, I have some." Hoodlums continued, taking out a bottle, shaped in a comical, Rareware manner. "I had been saving up, in case it was needed in our schemes. This is the only one left… although, I am unsure if it is enough."
They all smiled, especially Caela. "I didn't think you would really turn over, after doing it out of fear for your life before."
"Sh-shut the hell up! I'm doing it because the Dark Champion and this power-drunk idiot wanted me to help, plus I won't be able to be the rat's enemy if some god wannabes take over Gamindustri! I'm not doing this for you!"
… No one knew exactly how to respond to that. Michael couldn't help but be a little annoyed, Nick and Wizzro found it funny, while Caela and Natalie were confused. There wasn't any time to question Hoodlums' true character though, they had to recharge their power, and use it, Gamindustri needed to be saved.
—
Through the colorful vortex, Blue Heart saw it, something that made her blood turn a little cold for a second.
A dark-colored core, pulsating like a heart, yet its shape was similar to a giant piece of hardware found in a computer. A mixture of technology, with something organic, was unsettling to Blue Heart. It wasn't natural to look at, and she wondered how much of this represented the God and Lady of Games. Especially the latter, with her uncanny appearance.
The sound of heartbeats echoed in her head, each one sending down a comet to the world. Every second that passed, there was a comet being emitted from the hardware, like blood pumping throughout one's veins. Blue Heart could not be entranced by the sight though. Clicking the revolvers in her hands, Blue Heart pointed at the hardware, constantly wondering if this would work.
Multiple shots at the core were fired, Blue Heart watching as each bullet, the finisher having water-based properties that she hoped would short-circuit the hardware. But instead, nothing happened, her attacks were brushed off. Blue Heart knew she couldn't give up on this, and instead tried to use a special.
"Cubique… Bords!" She muttered, firing four sets of cube-shaped bullets from the revolvers, watching to see if any damage was done. Once again though, nothing pierced the core, and voices start to come out of it instead. All of them were whispering, so Blue Heart could not recognize them, yet it sounded like something that happened in the past.
"Like, Bleu!" Pink Heart called out to her, holding a gun as she tagged alongside the other CPU. "There you are, I totally didn't think you would go and fly up here!"
"Huh… Neya," Blue Heart murmured, smiling softly, "you still like helping me out… in dire times?"
"Of course! Even though we were rivals, like, in the old days, I considered you my bestie!"
It was true. Out of everyone back then, Blue Heart did not get into fights with Pink Heart very much. When she and Geya were disposed of in the old Console Wars, it upset Bleu quite a whole lot, wanting to bring those two back to life, along with the other lives that had been lost. Things like that were the reason she started her quest for the New Game Plus a couple years ago.
"Neya… I know this world is in danger right now, but… can you hear what I am hearing?" Lowering the revolvers, Blue Heart began to listen to the voices. Pink Heart didn't understand, her sister flying into the scene right as they stopped talking.
"If you take this in, you will learn the truth of this world… don't you two want to understand how this world works?" The voice of a young man hissed, much like a snake. "You two can become gods yourselves one day, much like him!"
Him?
Blue and Pink Heart thought for the longest time, the original CPU, the one who was true and created everyone… was known as the 'True Goddess'. Were they lied to? Did something change? Who was it that was talking for that matter?
"A rebellion… Arfoire will start a rebellion, and take the place of the True God. We will help her." That voice belonged to the Lady of Games, no doubt. "She is not just a deity who sins against Marron, she is one finding the free world. One overriding all conflict that he may create."
The voices began to fast-forward, as if they were being played on some kind of recording device within the hardware. "Arfoire became the True Goddess, thanks to us. But now, Marron has split into several smaller gods… Bronze Heart, is going to keep living on." The God of Games said next. "Now that we have ascended ourselves, they are the only things in our way. All deities, from the Free World, must try to fight back."
"No longer is this a single nation known as the Odyssey, but… Gamindustri, containing many. Many to be slain." There was a long pause. "If Arfoire cannot reach the top of it all, then— AAAAAAAAIIIIYEEEEEE!" The Lady of Games screeched, making the CPUs wince.
"Stay down, ASIC!" The voice of a CPU retorted. Blue Heart could tell it was most likely Vert's, accompanied by others, murdering the Lady of Games. It became even worse when Green Heart herself entered the scene, joined by everyone except Purple Heart and Sister. It was like an event she didn't wish to relive.
Over a minute passed, they thought that was the end of the voices, but then they began to hear the God of Games again. "My Lady…? No, who… who did this to you?… I'll have my revenge, don't you worry! I'll ask that angel… he'll help me again."
He sobbed for a good couple of minutes, before his emotions dried up, revealing his anger. "Even if it takes hundreds of years, and I have to… play along, pretend I am on their side… Yes, that is exactly what I will do."
That's how it all started.
"I think we waited around to hear this long enough." Opal Brother spoke.
"He's right, we need to focus on destroying this thing!" Black Sister agreed.
"I attempted such already." Blue Heart replied.
"Did you try an EXE Drive attack?" Green Heart asked.
"Oh… not yet."
"Then we'll use as much power as we can to crush this piece of junk!" White Heart exclaimed.
They would eventually realize though, that more power may be needed in order to destroy the core.
—
Rin started to wake up, unharmed somehow, despite passing out in front of a comet. Her vision was a bit blurry, but it didn't take long for her to see that she wasn't in the same place as before. "You're alright." Sabre sighed in relief, standing there with Madi. "You may have not been harmed, yet, I was still worried. After all, the three of us are a team, aren't we?"
She noticed Cooper and Kasumi surrounding someone else, and struggling with something. Cooper was holding duct tape, which seemed funny at first, but he looked desperate. Voodoo Vince was standing near them as well, showing emotion that wasn't unimpressed or smug… he seemed distraught, unable to say a word.
Madi helped Rin back onto her feet, explaining what had happened. "You failed to set off your spell in time and were vulnerable, but that one puppet shoved you away before the comet could strike. He took the hit for you, and…" she bit her lip, trying to say the words. "He's in pieces now." At first, Rin wasn't sure what to say, feeling as if it was her fault that happened. That was, until someone began shouting.
"I'M ALREADY DEAD YA IDJITS!"
"He's still animated, I almost neglected to mention that part." Madi said, Rin was happy to hear that at least. Kasumi and Cooper backed down, as the broken apart puppet— save his head and some parts of his body— was revealed now.
"Aren't you in pain!?" Vince questioned.
"Yes, but tapin' me together won't help. I can't make myself solid anyhoo—"
"Oh thank god, cherry lady, can you use healing powers to fix him!?"
"I'm surprised ya care this much, Vince."
"Because you're my friend, idiot!"
"Okay, okay! Calm down, both of you!" Rin snapped, taking out her erhu.
She began to play it, but it didn't do a thing, even when Rin tried making herself completely visible, albeit for a short moment. "I don't think this is gonna work, cherry pie. Like I said, can't make my body solid. I appreciate the thought though." The Gunstringer tried to smile at her. "Don't worry about me, that whole world's gonna be crushed, unless Vert and the others hurry it up."
This was true, they couldn't just stand around, even if most of them really couldn't do anything about the comets, thus why they were pulled away to a place somewhat safer. "Go on, the whole lotta y'all, even if ya think ya can't do much, no point in not helpin' out there. I'll be fine." Nodding in agreement, Kasumi and Cooper took their leave, while Vince was a little more reluctant to do so.
Madi, Sabre, and Rin all looked at each other, knowing that they had to be more careful now. Before she left though, Rin looked over to the Gunstringer. "Um… Mr. Gunstringer, thank you."
"Huh? What fer?"
"For everything. Telling me the truth about the past, helping me trust in everyone else, getting rid of… him, when I couldn't do it. It's like you're always looking out for me."
"Uh….well, of course, cherry pie. I'll always be glad to be there ta look out fer ya and help with whatever ya need…..uh, I mean, well….." The Leanbox residents started to look at the Gunstringer, with surprise and amusement on their faces. Rin, however, was confused.
"Wait, what do you mean by that? You sound like you're trying to say something and not say something at the same time."
The Gunstringer was put on the spot. With everyone else clued in and Rin not looking like she wanted to drop it, he knew he couldn't change the subject or make something up. Gathering his courage, he spoke up. "I….have somethin' ta tell ya. But I don't think that you'll like it."
"What do you mean?"
"I…...I like ya." Rin's eyes widened. "I…...I guess ya could say I saw a kindred spirit in ya. We were both betrayed by the ones we trusted the most. But ya were still willin' to give the benefit of the doubt, when I couldn't. You've been hurt, but ya didn't go down the path I did. Ya still stay by yer friends, even when somethin' don't seem right. That's a good sense of loyalty. Also, yer a lot nicer than that miko, when ya think about it."
Reimu was severely tempted to punch him, but he was wrecked enough and she didn't want to ruin the moment. Before Rin could say anything the Gunstringer held up his hand. "I may be conveyin' my feelings, but I'm not trying to start anythin'. I've walked down a path of no return, my hands are too stained fer anythin' nice to happen ta me. Ya don't want to be with a monster like me. I probably shouldn't have said anythin' ta begin with. I'm sorry." The Gunstringer looked down to the ground as the Leanbox characters looked back and forth between the two. Reimu was a little dumbfounded, never seeing this kind of sensitive side to the Gunstringer before.
Rin broke the silence and surprised everyone by picking up her erhu and closing her eyes. She began to play it again, but it was different. The notes seemed more harmonic and flowing, as if a missing part was put in. The Gunstringer's parts started to move about, floating towards him and coming back together. When the Gunstringer was whole again, Rin stepped forward and grabbed his hand.
"I don't see a monster." The Gunstringer was taken off guard by that. "You have stuck with your friends through all of this, and even helped save me from myself when Samael was defeated. A monster wouldn't have done that. A monster would have abandoned us long ago. Whatever you see in yourself, I see the opposite. You're a good man, and I know it."
The Gunstringer was speechless. He hadn't felt like this since when he thought The Lady of the Dead was trustworthy. He could have almost sworn he heard his heart start beating again. The Leanbox characters heads were spinning from what was happening. Reimu looked like she was about to faint, refusing to believe something that shouldn't have been possible. The moment was broken, however, by a loud rumbling overhead. They looked up to see a big comet coming at them.
None of them were able to move or defend in time. It looked like something beautiful was about to end permanently. That was, except for the fact that Birdie saw the scene unfold, and recalled Little Mac's words. "When something looks dangerous, that's when it's most vulnerable." He repeated the words to himself, noticing that there were a few cracks on the comet. Putting on his gloves, He ran towards it, ready for action.
Concentrating on his latent power, he delivered a Super Punch that blew the comet off-course, deflecting it from the Leanbox team. Smiling as he finally remembered how to fight in the game world, he laid a series of fast punches on the cracks, spreading the all over the comet before delivering one last Super Punch, shattering the comet and making the pieces go everywhere, landing harmlessly on the ground. Everyone that was ducking started to slowly get up, only to start giggling at an amusing sight.
"Uh, Gunstringer, the comet is gone." The Gunstringer opened his eyes to realize that he was still holding Rin close. Very close. Letting go, he was glad he didn't have skin so no one could see him blush.
Looking up at the skies, still having comets fall down, Purple Heart spread her wings. "They are taking a long time. We need to go up there!" Purple Heart was about to fly off towards the vortex with her sister, but then was stopped by Mr. Grimm. She looked at him, and gave a sympathetic smile. "Grimmy…"
"I… I can't let you! What if you and your sister do not return? If they are taking so long, then who knows what is going on up there?"
"Grimmy, I understand your concerns."
"Please, Neptune, give them more time— or send someone else up there! If I could fly, I would go in your place!"
"If only they could give a signal that they were okay in that vortex." Purple Sister muttered, ready to take off anyway.
"If Angela and I lose you, then… what will happen to Planeptune?"
Purple Heart stared at him for nearly a minute, and he could tell what she was thinking. He had to believe in her, as dangerous as this all seemed. "I will never leave you, and you know that. If I perish, I'll find a way to remain by your side. I can feel it though… they aren't harmed, and the others need our help." Embracing him gently, Purple Heart let go after a few seconds, then began to fly upwards.
Mr. Grimm just had assure himself that this would all be fine. They all knew what they were doing. All the SEGA characters were definitely putting their trust in Planeptune's CPU, even if they were a bit scared as to what may happen.
Faith is what was needed to power the CPUs, after all.
