Chapter 36

Messing with the plot... makes things confusing... for when I am writing the next chapter.

(Apologies if this chapter is a bit shaky; couldn't be listening to a video at the same time, so I had to use memory and the XenoBlade wiki for this one...)

"Hey, Shulk!" Riki waddled up to the blonde. "Wake up!" He hit him softly with his arm things that let him fly.

Shulk soon opened his eyes with a groan. "What...?" He let out a sharp gasp as his eyes pulsed blue. "Oh, no!" he exclaimed, getting back on his feet. "Ow..." He winced. "Ugh... it can't be!"

"Huh?" I grunted, and Shulk looked at me.

"The-"

There was a sudden loud siren as explosions began to rock the city.

"There's no time!" Shulk sounded strained. "We have to get out there and fight, now!"

There were several High Entians that approached us. "Please... come with us. His Highness, Prince Kallian, wishes to see you."

Shulk wobbled slightly, and kept a hand on the table. He took deep breathes. "Alright. Guys, let's go."

"Shulk, you and Andrew are still heavily injured!" protested the sniper. "Or, at the very least, are hurting so much that your combat effectiveness is low! Let me help you out a bit more!"

He grunted, and we waited briefly as she and Riki healed us.

"Let's go!" snapped Shulk, rushing off to the teleporter.

...

"Melia!" gasped Shulk as we entered the room, where the prince and princess were talking.

"The Imperial Staff is gone, as well... so Father has gone?!" she exclaimed.

"I..." Kallian looked down, hesitant.

"Kallian!" snapped his younger sister.

"The... Emperor has proceeded to Prison Island, alone. For the sake of the empire."

"Why did you let him go alone?!" demanded Melia. "Father...!"

"Is there going to be another law that would normally prevent us from interfering but we ignore it because we go by the logic of saying we're Homs?" I spoke aloud.

"Well... that... does see like something you Homs would do," admitted Kallian. "But we must respect Father's decision! We cannot interfere!"

"No!" protested Melia. "Kallian, I-"

"Everyone... we will go," spoke Dunban.

Everyone looked at him. "Dunban..." grunted Shulk.

"Respect? Destiny? We don't need rules or laws when we go to save the people we care for!" declared the hero of the Homs.

"You too, Melia. The Emperor, your father, he may-"

"Stop!" she responded."Don't... please don't say he's..."

"There is only one thing to do!" he continued. "Is everyone with me?"

"Of course!" replied Shulk.

"But... you can't!" spoke Kallian in disbelief.

"We are Homs," replied Dunban. "We do as we must."

But I'm human, I thought. And stuff... eh, whatever.

"You're laws do not concern us!" spat Dunban.

"My laws?" The prince's voice was quiet, deadly. "Hmph... my apologies, Dunban... hero of the Homs."

"There is no need for apologies," replied Dunban. "So, Melia... what is it going to be?"

"We go to Prison Island!" she declared.

...

All six of us gathered, just exiting Alcamoth and into Eryth Sea.

"Prison Island is just ahead," spoke Melia, before turning to the rest of us.

"Do we have to use a transporter?" asked Shulk.

"We do. But first, we must unlock twin seals," she spoke. "It would be fastest if we were to spilt up into two groups."

"Alright," spoke Shulk. "Sharla, Dunban, come with me. Melia, Riki, Andrew, you guys cover the other seal, alright?"

"Got it," responded the half Homs half High Entian princess, and we moved off.

Along the way were several enemies, all of which were quite easy, actually. Almost like the game knew we were tired but also knew that we were soon going to fight Mumkhar.

Finally, we pushed a button that did a pretty light and the path to Prison Island opened.

"Looks like Shulk and the others got to their seal before we did," mused Melia. "Now, let's go-"

I blocked a slash from an alligator thing on two legs. "Whoa...!" I used Whip Slash and cut it apart. "Huh... two more."

"SNEAKY!" shouted the Heropon as he struck another beast from behind. It fell, dead. "Heropon beat enemy good!"

"Indeed," smiled Melia, with a chuckle. "Summon Bolt! Manifest yourself!" The beast fell, dead.

"Let's hurry back," she told us, and so we did.

...

"ARGH!" Shulk was sent flying through the air. "Ow!" he winced. "Ugh...!" He got back up.

"Shulk?!" exclaimed Melia, rushing to him. "What... ah. Another foe to defeat."

That thing... a Skyray, I thought. "Well." I blinked as Sharla and Dunban were sent crashing into Riki and Melia respectively.

"OW! BIG FISH!" exclaimed Riki.

"Uh... isn't it more like a bird?" I let out a howl as my form shifted, rushing up close. "I'll end this fast!" I used Aura Wave and Whip Slash together, the aura shockwave condensing around my sword as I slashed.

The beast screamed as I cut its wing off by launching the shockwave at close range.

"Huff!" panted Shulk, rushing in. "Yah!" He cut off the other wing, and I reverted to normal. "Compressed... Buster!" He used Back Slash and cut it cleanly in half. "Phew... thanks, guys. That was... pretty tough, actually."

"Well, there's going to be even tougher things ahead," I replied.

"Yeah." Shulk nodded. "I bet."

"This beast... I believe it is one of the oldest creatures on Bionis," spoke Melia. "I... have only seen them as fossils around the capital. To find that they were trapped on Prison Island..." She shook her head.

"Doesn't matter right now," grunted Shulk. "We have to go to Prison Island and save the Emperor!"

"Right," nodded Dunban, and we rushed through the path before us.

There was soon a transporter that we took, and we were in front of Prison Island.

And there were a few Skyrays that attacked us. Because we have to warm up before Metal Face, apparently.

...

"Huff!" panted Shulk. "Thanks, Riki," he spoke as the Nopon healed him. "That was brutal... and we're not there yet. Close, but..." He paused. "Let's go." He ran off.

Finally, we were just behind a large door.

There was also a shiny yellow light coming from it, indicating that YOU SHOULD GO UP TO IT.

"Ah, Dinobeast!" yelled Riki, before moving towards a statue of a Telethia.

"Hey... there's an engraving," mused Shulk. "And... they look similar to the Monado's symbols... maybe there's a connection?" He took out the blade and looked at it.

"These... are old High Entian runes," spoke the princess. "I should..."

I let out a grunt. "Does that really matter right now?"

"I suppose not," answered Melia. "But... where is my father?"

She touched the door, and it faded into... nothingness, I guess.

Sorean and Zanza were beyond it.

"Father!" exclaimed Melia, before she raced forward.

Shulk gave a slight gasp, and I turned to see the blue light slowly disappearing from his eyes.

"Hey, everyone..." He reached out, but the rest of the party were moving after Melia.

"What is it, Shulk?" I sighed.

He looked at me. "I..." He hesitated. "I saw a... a giant... with the Emperor." He moved forward.

"Hm...?" The shackled god looked at Shulk. "So you... you are the wielder of the Monado."

You don't say, I thought.

"Y-yes, I am," responded Shulk.

"I am Zanza," he told the blonde. "The creator of the Monado.

"Unlock my shackles... and I will unlock the true potential of the Monado for you."

He gasped, taking the blade off his back and looking at it. "The... true potential?" he repeated. "Could it hurt faced Mechon?!"

"Indeed it could," answered Zanza. "Cut these shackles... and that power will be yours."

"Shulk, you can't be thinking of doing that!" spoke Melia. "It..." She paused.

"Melia... I have to," he replied. "I have to get vengenace... for Reyn and Fiora."

Instantly he ran forward and let out a roar as he cut the shackles.

Zanza was free.

"I thank you, current wielder of the Monado," he spoke. "Now... there."

The Monado began to glow, and in the glow, the blade was very slowly changing into the Monado II.

Long slightly curved claws screeched from the sky impaling Zanza, who gasped and collapsed, quickly dying.

"What?!" came out multiple voices.

Then there was Metal Face, all healed up from any past wounds.

"Heh heh heh... these new weapons using the effects of lethal Ether... magnificent!" he laughed, floating in the sky.

"Metal Face!" spat Shulk.

Sorean raised his staff, and cannons fired upon the faced Mechon, bombarding him with relentless attacks.

Smoke was thick around the Mechon, and the mechanical buzzing was gone.

"Father!" Melia ran forward into his arms, and he warmly embraced her.

I grunted, awakening from my half doze of not doing anything. I moved in front of the two, just in time foe Mumkhar to lunge, silent and deadly.

I used Defensive Reversal as I used my Soul Trigger, blocking his attack.

Or so I thought.

I was sent flying into a wall as his claws sank into my body, while Metal Face lunged at Melia and Sorean.

The Emperor gasped, shoving Melia away from him.

Claws from the Mechon sank into the both of them.

"NO!" shouted Dunban and Shulk, both of them rushing forward.

"Ugh..." He's so much stronger then after the Ether Mine! I thought. Did he train up or something?! Crap!

And those claws of his, dipped in that Ether... disrupts the flow of Ether around me, too, to top it all off!

It's basically an anti-Outsider weapon!

Finally, the mystical glow left the Monado, fully revealing its new form.

"Dunban!" yelled Shulk. "Get Melia and the Emperor back from there!"

"Sharla, Riki! Heal both of them!"

He turned to me. "Andrew..." The beam of the Monado burst outwards. "Ready?"

I groaned, moving up beside the wielder of the Monado. "Ow... yeah," I responded. "Let's go!" I used Time Slow, and the world around me faded to gray as it usually did. Too bad it also seemed to be making me colour blind.

"We have to hold him off! UGH!" He raised the Monado and blocked the next attack. "His claws... they're dipping with Ether!" he exclaimed.

"I know!" I flew up as the faced Mechon's claws came out, detaching from his body. "WHOA!" With Whip Slash I deflected them. "That's some strong stuff..."

"Speed! Double Speed!" declared Shulk. "LET'S GO!

"I WILL DEFEAT YOU... FOR FIORA!"

I grunted, as the claws of the foe came back. "Damn...!"

Shulk blocked another strike. "Stream- GWAH!"

He was impaled with multiple claw points.

"Shulk!" exclaimed Dunban, rushing up for him.

"Dunban, stop!" I raced in front of Metal Face and blocked his claws as they rushed at Shulk. "RRGH...!"

Even being near them is weakening me...! Zanza, you douchebag!

Or is it Egil?!

OR SOMETHING!

All three of us slid back.

I panted. "Huff..."

Dunban coughed up blood, and I saw a claw stuck in him.

Shulk was bleeding out.

Melia and Sorean were dying swiftly.

Riki and Sharla were trying to save them.

"Is that all you've got?!" laughed Metal Face. "See?! Even if the Monado could hurt me, it won't do any good if you can't hit me!"

"Huff..." I winced as I spread my wings. One of them was broken at a twisted angle. "Ow..."

"And you, Red Coat... seems you've figured it out," mused Mumkhar. "These weapons... they're designed to kill you!"

I groaned, falling to one knee. "Huff..."

"Give it up!" His claws detached, rushing at me.

"Ugh!" I blocked both somehow. "Shulk... I'm not sorry for this."

In my left hand I grabbed the new Monado II, and the beam pulsed out of it.

"What? Andrew, you can wield... ugh... the Monado?!" coughed Dunban.

"Huff... we're gonna find out," I panted, before running at the larger foe.

"Heh! C'mon, then, Red Coat!" shouted Metal Face. "I'LL SHOW YOU!"

Sparks flew as his two claws met with the Monado and my blade.

I gasped. My form reverted to normal as claws sunk into my body. The flow of time also returned to normal.

I fell to one knee. "Huff...!"

Metal Face reared back, claws ready. "See you, Red Coat! GAME OVER!"

Thanks for reading!