Brandy's Bizarre Adventure

by Von Reivanon

Brandy the Bandit lives happily with her king Oticat, her best friend Dan the Knight, and the rest of her fellow troops. But when the dark machinations of an evil King and an evil Clan start to tumble into motion, her life is thrown into chaos. Rated T for intense action, peril, heavy themes, and slightly suggestive content. And yes, there are lots and lots of JoJokes.

18. Chapter 17

Overall, the mood at Oticat's castle was that of a rather good time, or at least not as bad as it could have possibly been. It was far, far better than it had been during the time approximately a month ago, for obvious reasons. But the main cause of celebration, on that current day and time, was Oticat's tremendous, mostly uninterrupted, winning streak. He had managed to climb almost 400 Trophies in the span of only four days, a gargantuan boost for most Kings- let alone him. His mood was practically ecstatic, as he stood at the table in the festival to truly kick off the new season- Shocktober. The anticipation had been building for a while, and now that the season was finally here, there were many celebrations to be had. The happiest were, of course, those affected by the tremendous balance changes, most of all the Witches around the entire continent. Hardly an hour went by then one did not see a Witch hoist her staff into the air and shout a triumphant shout of praise, thanking the gods for this wonderful new balancing. Even if they were gone for the time being, Se'th and Dr'ew still received the message, in no small part due to the efforts of the Primal Witch Avaya.

The entire Ballroom of Oticat's castle, covered in purple and pink streamers, glitter, and light, was filled almost to the brim with overjoyed troops. The walls of the castle appeared to be a delightfully spooky purple, along with most of the tables and chairs. It was quite similar to the purple of Elixir- which worked out nicely with the brand new card, the terrifying Elixir Golem. Oticat personally did not get all the fuss, but the top ranking Kings were always talking about how it was the best card in the world right now. And Oticat, of course, believed them.

Spooky music, constantly being played by a live and tireless Skeleton band, floated throughout the halls on repeat. Or at least it would, until either Oticat or one of the Princesses got tired of it and told them to turn it off. Bets were being relayed through the castle on how long it would take- the current average wager was about 2 days, although some bet up to 5.

But right in the middle of the festivities was Oticat, one foot on the table, a glass of bright purple Elixir held high. His beard shone with his favorite oil, and he looked brightly around the room, at the majority of the guests. Spacekrakenx stood next to him, both their arms around each other's shoulders. They had done some 2v2s lately, with absolutely smashing results. But now, at the height of the party, Oticat had decided it was time to make a toast.

"Everyone!", he shouted, and hoisted his cup higher. "Lend me your ears!"

Song: Silver Twist

Had Skeletons had ears, one would have thrown one at him for the sake of a joke. But they possessed no such flesh, and thus the only ears given were metaphoric.

"Give him your ears, Brenda.", said Meg quietly, sitting sneakily on her girlfriend's lap. "Or do I have to grab them and give them to him?"

Brenda laughed, and her hands flew to her ears on instinct. "Only if I get to honk your nose, my little nutmeg."

Meg blushed at the usage of her favorite pet name, but her mouth turned upward in a smile. "Deal."

Meg suddenly reached forward, a single finger extended for both of Brenda's ears. Brenda could easily have dodged the blow, but she knew she shouldn't. She let her ears get gently grabbed by Meg's soft fingers, the tips massaging her earlobes.

Not about to let herself get outdone, Brenda reached her own hand around Meg's face, and gently squeezed the very tip of her nose. Meg gasped, her grip on Brenda's nose weakening as she felt the sensation overtake her. Brenda moved her other hand around to Meg's legs, giving them a gentle stroke as she continued to very gently hold Meg's nose, making sure to not cut off her airflow. That would have the opposite effect of what she was trying to do.

They had been getting more and more fully engrossed in their little ritual, when both a Goblin Brawler on their left and an Electro Wizard on their right both gave a little cough. Brenda coughed a bit from the sound, and Meg's face flushed as crimson as her origins as they realized what they were doing.

"Oh, uh, sorry…", said Brenda, and scratched the back of her neck. It had gotten hot. "Just enjoying the festivities."

Meg leaned back into Brenda's grasp, Brenda's hands settling on Meg's stomach as they both sat back to watch whatever Oticat was going to say.

"It's been a totally fantastic season so far!", Oticat shouted, and the crowd cheered along with him. "Sure, it's only been a new season for a day, but hey!"
"Fantastic season!", Spacekrakenx finished, and tipped his cup into his mouth. "Great year!"

The crowd cheered along with him, hoisting their own glasses of Party Elixir up into the air. One of the many Troops in the crowd, Nicholas the Electro Wizard, was sitting at the same table as Agatha and Bowza- unofficially labeled by several around them as "The Smart Table." When he raised his glass, his elbow knocked a spare one off of the table, it shattering on the ground below and spilling the Party Elixir in a neat puddle.

"Ah, shoot.", said Nicholas, and leaned down. He grabbed a small bit of a paper towel as he did so, intending to clean it up. "I'll get it. Just spilled a little E2O."

"Actually Nicholas-", said Bowza, looking down at the Electro Wizard. "That would be Elixir."

"Yeah, that's what I said.", said Nicholas, looking up. "E2O."

Bowza sighed, and straightened his cape clip. He got down on his knees, grabbed a paper towel of his own, and swept up the entire puddle of spilled Elixir with a single movement. He stared straight into Nichola's eyes, about to show him the difference between intelligence and wisdom.

"No, Nicholas.", he said. "You said E2O. That's just the same as Elixir, but you could have just said Elixir instead. Everyone already knows you're smart- you don't keep on having to try and prove it everytime you get the chance."

He took a look at the single drop of Elixir that still remained on the ground, and noticed the color that set it apart from regular Elixir. "And now that I look at it, this is actually Party Elixir, which has had special stuff added to it in order to produce a different effect when drunk. Making you not only sound overly pompous, but you're factually wrong."

Bowza rose to his feet, and gave Nicholas a single pat on the back. "Try to get it right next time, okay buddy?"

Nicholas stared at him, not a single word coming out of his mouth. His left eye twitched a tiny bit, but that was all the movement he was capable of after Bowza's words. Agatha watched him, then put her fingers on Bowza's shoulder.

"What was that all about?", she asked, and Bowza just smiled. They slowly walked to a different table full of Bowlers, leaving Nicholas behind.

"He tried to leave Electripowder in my shoes last night.", said Bowza. "That's why."

Kars slammed his fist on the table he was at, shaking the wood and almost splitting it right down the middle. His beard was so full of Elixir droplets that it could almost itself be drunk from. He laughed maniacally at his opponent in front of him, a slouching Barbarian named Drev. He had barely even managed to down 5 cups, while Kars had shot down 40. It made onlookers stare in astonishment at how Kars could even physically fit that much Elixir inside his body, but he would always just laugh it off and say something about metabolism. The truth was, even he did not know. Perhaps it was just a gift. An odd, mostly meaningless gift, but a gift all the same.

"Ya give up yet?", he yelled, and downed yet another glass. "Or do I have to keep drinking?"

Drev was a Barbarian that knew when he had been beaten. He hung his head and slowly walked away from the table, leaving Kars free to drink the rest of what he had left. Kars swiftly and efficiently drunk up the remaining Elixir on the table, slamming his hand onto the table again once he was done. This time, it actually did break, splitting evenly down the middle and falling to either side. Kars, of course, was so drunk he simply did not care. He just propped his elbows up on the table anyway, sitting back on the also busted chair.

"Who wants to go next?", he shouted, his words beginning to slur. "Who wants to take on Kars, the all time drinking champion?"

The crowd of Troops all around him only cheered. They wanted to make sure that he had their full support, but none of them actually wanted to take him on. Most of them had had their fill already, and did not want to risk damage.

"Oh, come on!", Kars yelled, swishing his axe around in dangerous swoops. The crowd stepped back, trying to avoid getting cut. "Who wants to take me on?"

Kars felt the strong, familiar grip of Webert grab him by the arms, and slowly lift him up. "Woah, bro.", said Webert, and grabbed Kars too tight to let him escape. "I think you've had a little too much there, buddy."

"No!", Kars yelled, and tried to attack, but his movements and speech were too slurred to properly do either. "I'll drink your Elixir, purplehead! Come on, let's go!"

Webert merely sighed, and walked off towards the edge of the room. He knew that Kars would fall asleep any second now- oh. There he was, out like a light right on Webert's shoulder. Webert continued walking, and set Kars down gently against the wall. He would wake up tomorrow with a splitting headache, as he always did.

Sadie and Elizabeth sat on the main stage of the Grand Ballroom, both of them busy digging in to the food they had ordered. Sadie had gotten a huge ice cream and caramel fudge sundae, that was most likely far too large for her. But that is what ordering from the Giant Troops side of the bar would get you. She had had to squeeze past a Goblin Giant and a Pekka in order to do so. It was anyone's guess at what the Pekka was doing at the bar.

Elizabeth, meanwhile, had grabbed a very tall, very thin, drink. It was made of the finest ingredients money could buy, or at least that's what the Goblin at the bar had told her. It was funny, actually- she had never seen him around the Castle before. Either he was new, or…

"I think that Goblin ripped me off.", she said, taking another look at her drink. It seemed an awful lot like canned fruit juice, with some seemingly random spices thrown in. "He said it was the finest ingredients money could buy, and- well, look at it."

Sadie flipped up her stylish sun visor to look at the drink, and frowned. "Well, I guess it's the finest that 50 Gold can buy. That's how much you spent for it, right?"

"Yeah.", said Elizabeth, and leaned back. "So not too much of a loss. And even if this is just canned fruit juice mixed with seemingly random spices, I guess that's not too bad."

"What?", asked Sadie.

"What?", asked Elizabeth. "What did I say?"
"That just sounded weirdly specific.", said Sadie. "Is that what that is?"
"Yeah.", said Elizabeth. "It just feels like it, I guess."
"I see.", said Sadie, and leaned back on her own chair. She took a scoop of ice cream into her mouth, savoring the rich flavor. She looked out over the thriving party, soaking in the wonderful atmosphere and the delightful spookiness of the place. Oticat's Builders always managed to cook something up, and tonight was far from an exception. And yet, as she looked harder, she could tell something was missing. Someone was not there tonight that really should have been. And that something was-

"Chloe.", said Sadie, and sat up. "Where's Chloe?"

"Chloe?", asked Elizabeth, and took another sip. "I think she's upstairs somewhere."

"Well, she's missing the party.", said Sadie, and sighed. "I think she'd love to be here."

Upstairs where Chloe was was a particularly quieter part of the Castle. The loud music, dancing, shouting, and random acts of friendly violence from the bottom floor had all but vanished by the time they reached Chloe's ears. They had settled into a low, quiet, somewhat rhythmic pulse of deep sound, perfect for soothing the ears and mind of a tired, young Princess.

Chloe lay in her bed, the blankets around her wrapped like soft cotton. The purple moonlight of the Royale night filtered in through her window, falling upon the bed and turning the light blue sheets into the color of the perfect lilac. Hardly any sound came from the quiet room, save the subtle noise of her soft breath. The light flickered through her room, falling upon the paintings and pictures on the walls. Decorations spun in the bare light, a peaceful scene by all marks.

It was in total and complete opposition to what Chloe was feeling at that time- a total devastating nightmare, one that tore at her mind and threatened to overwhelm her.

She could see herself in what looked like a wrestling ring, surrounded by a faceless, cheering crowd of Red Troops. She shivered in her torn Blue uniform, fear and sweat dripping across her face in equal measures. Blood coated the bottom of the ring from thousands of battles, the sorrow and pain almost physical sensations carried through the air.

Her opponent, a heavily muscled and tattooed Valkyrie, stood in front of her with a cruel jeer written upon her face. She flexed her massive biceps, and winked at Chloe.
"Oh, what a scared little Princess we have here.", she said, and tapped her foot against the ground. "Don't worry. You won't be scared any more."

Before Chloe had a chance to respond, the Valkyrie leaned down and began to charge forward.
"You're not scared when you're unconscious!"

Chloe shrieked in total horror, and tried to dodge out of the way. But before she could move, the Valkyrie had already grabbed her by the foot. Chloe was yanked up in the air in one swift movement, the bottom of her head not even going down to her opponent's waist.

The Valkyrie raised her higher, recoiled her head, and spat right in Chloe's face. Chloe closed her eyes and tried not to cry, the despair of the situation rolling over her like a wave.

The Valkyrie continued to yell and insult Chloe, but no words made it through Chloe's ears. She was trying desperately to block them out, trying to hold on to some faint hope that she would make it out of there okay. But as she felt the Valkyrie raise her over her head, that hope all but faded.

The Valkyrie laughed, ignoring Chloe's desperate cries for help. She brought up Chloe higher and higher over her head, until her arms had stretched as high as they could go.

"Please don't throw me.", said Chloe, with a voice so small and weak she could hardly even believe she had said it. "Please don't."

"Okay.", said the Valkyrie, shrugged, and slammed Chloe's back directly onto her head.

Chloe felt the pain before she heard the sound. She could almost feel the long thin line travel down her back, spreading all the way through her body. Then as the sound of the snap reached her ears, she started screaming in absolute, indescribable agony. The Valkyrie dropped her- and Chloe rolled all the way across the ring, her back broken in two.

The crowd cheered, and Chloe could no longer contain it. She started to cry, the tears flowing down her face and mixing with the blood dripping from her torso. She felt her stomach heave from the pressure, and her body buckled as a surge of vomit worked its way up her throat. She almost threw up- before she felt the Valkyrie place one hand over her mouth, clamping it tightly shut. "Uh uh uh.", she said, and smiled. "No throwing up on my boots."

But it had to go somewhere, even if it could not exit through her mouth. Chloe screamed in pain once again as the vomit surged its way up her throat and through her nose, burning the skin of her nostrils with things they were never meant to hold. The Valkyrie took her hand off, and the rest came out of Chloe's mouth. It splattered all over her body, and she fell to the floor. Chloe lay there, unable to move with her shattered back, hearing the audience cheer, covered in blood, sweat, vomit, and-

And Chloe heard herself scream, as she threw herself out of bed. She hit the floor from sheer panic, and tightened her grip around the first thing she could feel. She buried her head further into whatever it was- this time, it was Mr. Snuggles her stuffed Baby Dragon. She spun around, winding the blankets around herself, and sobbed quietly to herself, thinking that no one would hear. She thought she would have to keep the pain to herself.

But, fortunately for her, there was a figure outside the door. He heard her sobbing, and stopped the patrol around the Castle that he had been sent to do. He quickly ran a hand over himself, turning his entire body visible, and floated through the door.

"Chloe?", Chloe heard the voice of the Phantom say, and she looked up. "Are you alright?"

Song: Dawn

Chloe looked up from crying into her bedsheet, and saw the familiar form of the Phantom. Brenda and Meg had finally introduced her to him a few nights ago, after her curiosity about how Brenda "air-carried" her only continued to increase. She had been a bit scared of him at first, which was understandable. But now she considered him a friend, and a good guardian.

"No.", she said, and loudly sniffed. Holding Mr. Snuggles tightly in her arms, she slowly rose to her feet. Her tears still ran down her face, and her cheeks were still red from the fear of the dream. "I had another dream, Mr. Phantom. A real bad one."

"There's no need for such formality, Chloe.", said the Phantom, and knelt down by Chloe's side. He used one hand to brush her loosened hair from her face, and the other to gently wipe away her tears, lifting them directly from her face and casting them to the side. "Just Phantom is perfectly fine."

He put his white gloved hand directly on Chloe's forehead, using some of his special powers in order to directly push calm thoughts and relaxing feelings straight into Chloe's brain. "Now… why don't you tell me what happened?"
Chloe frowned, trying to think about the positive feelings the Phantom was giving her. But it was a difficult task indeed, with the intense panic of the horrifying nightmare still coursing through her mind. She swallowed a few times to try and get the gunk from her throat, the Phantom giving her a few pats on the head. "It's alright, Chloe. It's alright."

"I-", Chloe choked out, then broke down crying once again. She fell forward into the Phantom's grasp, and he made sure to hug her tight. "I was in a room and there was this big mean Valkyrie and she beat me up and she broke my back and I threw up and I was crying and I was gonna die and-"

"No, no, that didn't happen.", said the Phantom reassuringly, and gently stroked Chloe's back. "It was just a dream, nothing more. You're alright now."

Yet even as he said those words, the Phantom was deep in thought. This was the third time she had had such a dream, about being forced to fight in a horrifying situation. He wondered if it was really just a dream she was having, or if it had more to do with her life under the Red King.

The door burst open, the Phantom turning to see who it was a few seconds before. He could sense that it was Brenda, of course, for all Stands were tied to their users. But he did not know who else it was, other than that it was two other people. He guessed it was Meg, for she often hung around Brenda. He did not know who the third one was- perhaps it was Oticat.

As the door slammed against the wall with a loud crash and the trio rushed through, the Phantom made a mental tally. Both of his guesses had been correct. Brenda dashed right up to the Phantom and Chloe, a worried look upon her face. She wrapped her own arms around Chloe, passing straight through the limbs of the Phantom. Meg could not cross the room quite as fast as Brenda could, but she ran as fast as she could anyway. As soon as she reached the exact center of the room where the tandem hug was, she rested her head directly on Chloe's. She knew that Chloe liked being in the center of hug piles like this, and was happy to assist in any way she could. Oticat did not run, for he was not exactly built for things like that. But he was fully capable of walking to the center, and slowly, gently, wrapping his arms around all three of them. They all stood there for a moment, no sound coming from any of them except for the quiet sobbing of Chloe. Her little body heaved up and down, all her emotions pouring out of her and spilling all over the group's embrace. Yet as she did so, another of the Phantom's abilities went into effect.

He locked on to the very essence of Chloe's sorrow, tracing its exact reality signature and shooting it back to its source. And as his reverse emotion rope shot into Chloe's brain, it dug deep. It began to actively reduce the sorrow in her wherever it was found, cutting away her sadness and surgically removing her fear. It seemed to take quite a while from the Phantom's point of view, but for everyone else it was practically instant. And as the full effects of his special technique took hold, Chloe found her tears drying, her sobs lessening, and the black fog of despair clouding her heart break up and fly away.

"Thank you…", she said shakily, and took a deep breath. She sniffed a few times to try and clear her face up, and shifted a bit underneath everybody's arms. "Can I get out now?"

"Yes.", said Brenda, and shifted back. Meg haphazardly jumped a foot or so away from the group, allowing Chloe some breathing room. Oticat simply stood up with Chloe in his arms, and she wrapped her little arms fully around his torso. She could smell his Elixir and Pine based beard oil, a comforting scent for her. She may have not been with him for very long, but to Chloe, Oticat was the beloved father she had always had.

Their embrace was tender, and long. Chloe felt herself start to fall back asleep in Oticat's comforting grasp, as she should have been. It was just around 10 o'clock midnight, a time when she should have long ago been in bed. Her eyes closed, and a single soft snore began to escape her lips- when the door banged open once again, startling her awake.

There stood Dr. Jethro the Wizard, a paper clenched in one hand and a test tube in the other. The paper was held so tightly it was bent, and the test tube looked like it was about to boil over from Dr. Jethro's heated grasp. He was breathing heavily, apparently with some exciting news.

"Dr. Jethro?", asked Oticat, and blinked in surprise. "What could possibly bring you here at this hour? I would have thought you would be downstairs with everyone else."

"It's Chloe.", said Dr. Jethro, and pointed. His eye twitched with the signature of someone who was simultaneously a genius and mad as a Goblin. "I think we may have found a way to cure her."

"Cure me?", asked Chloe, leaning partially out of Oticat's grasp in order to give Dr. Jethro an odd look. "But I'm not sick."

"I mean cure you of your oddly intense youth.", Dr. Jethro said, and the eyes of everybody in the room shot open in shock. "We know how to make you a normal Princess again."

Song: Vita

Everyone was silent for a second, not quite able to believe what Jethro was saying. He and his research team had been working on such a thing ever since Chloe had been adopted ,with no sign of being done anytime soon. But apparently now here he was, with a solution.
"Normal?", asked Chloe, and shrank back in Oticat's arms. "But I'm already a normal Princess. I have two arms and two legs and a crown and a bow and-"
"No, no, not like that.", said Jethro with a wave of his hand. "I mean make you a big Princess, an older one, reverse whatever awful procedure was done to you inside of that Red Castle."

As the group watched, Jethro spread the papers out on a nearby desk. They were bent from stress and stained with spilled Hyper Elixir- he had been trying to keep himself awake for the last three days straight in an attempt to finish his work. But the words and charts upon them were still clearly readable- and that was the important part. Jethro looked them over with the intensity of a madman, and held them up to Oticat.

"See?", he asked, and furiously jabbed one part of the paper with an equation written on it that seemed more like the product of a random generator than anything else. "This is it, sir! This, right here, is the secret to both reversing and accelerating aging! With just a little more research, we could potentially unlock the mysteries of life or even time itself!"

"Er… good.", said Oticat, and nodded slowly. He had never been one for science, but he appreciated the thought. "So this will make Chloe better, right?"

"Oh, absolutely.", Jethro said, nodding frantically. He rolled the papers back up into his sleeve, and wriggled his fingers in excitement. "If Chloe would just come to my lab, we can begin the procedure at once."

"What?", asked Brenda, Meg, Oticat, and Chloe all at once. The Phantom had already retreated back into Brenda. "You mean… like- right now?"

"Well, of course.", said Dr. Jethro with a shrug. "That is, if Princess Chloe is prepared."

But Chloe was not sure if she was. She stared at Dr. Jethro in trepidation, hugging on to the familiar grip of Oticat with worry. "I don't know…", she said. "I'm not sure."

"Oh, Chloe.", said Oticat, and gently brought her up to his face. "You'll be fine, I'm sure of it. Dr. Jethro has been my trusted doctor for years, and he hasn't messed up once."

"Wow, not even once?", asked Chloe, and her mouth dropped open. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely.", said Oticat. "Not even once."
That would have been enough to persuade most people, but Chloe was not most people. She was not yet ready to trust somebody she didn't know to operate on her body, for some reason that flickered at the back of her mind. She turned her head, and pouted. "I'm not sure."

Oticat wracked his mind, trying to figure out what could persuade her. His face lit up as he thought of an answer- examples! Surely some examples could help.

"Dr. Jethro helped Brenda when she had a flu.", said Oticat, and Brenda rolled her eyes. "It was back waaay back when she was just a little level 9 Bandit. That was probably before you were even born."

He looked to Meg, who only shrugged. Dr. Jethro had never helped Meg before.

"Aanddd…", said Oticat, thinking some more- then he had it. "He helped Brandy when she found out she was gonna be a mother. Or tried to help her, at least-"

Chloe's eyes lit up huge, and her mouth dropped open again. "Brandy's a mommy?", she said loudly, and Oticat nodded. "Yep. And Dr. Jethro helped her."

That announcement came as news to not only Chloe, but Meg as well. Meg looked at Brenda in shock, wondering why she had never told her this. Brenda gave her a look that said I'll tell you later, and Meg nodded in acceptance.

"Well… okay.", said Chloe, and nodded. She slid out of Oticat's grasp and onto the floor, walking over to Dr. Jethro. "If you helped Brenda and Brandy, then I guess I could let you help me."

Dr. Jethro smiled warmly, and held out his hand to Chloe. She took it without any real hesitation, and they both began to walk out the door into the hallway. Even though the party was still going on downstairs, they could barely even hear it.

"How come you never told me Brandy had a baby?", Meg asked, staring right into Brenda's face. "This is big news!"

"Well, I didn't- I wasn't- I wasn't sure if she had actually had it or not.", said Brenda, stuttering over her words. "I thought she had gotten rid of it- I mean, one day she was pregnant and the next she wasn't. And I I had never seen her walking around with a little baby in her arms, so-"

"Wait, when was this?", Meg asked. "Was it before I came? It would seem that it was."

"Oh yeah, it was.", said Brenda. "This all happened while you were trying to find your way here."

"Who's is it?", asked Meg, her eyes brightening. "It's Dan's, right? I mean sure they didn't get married until a few days after I had arrived, so-"

She saw Brenda's face get dark, and Meg's eyes fell. "Oh.", she said quietly. "It's… it's his, isn't it?"

Brenda nodded, and Meg pursed her lips. "Well…", she said, trying to think of a bright side. "I hope that whatever happened to it, it's out there somewhere. Living a happy life."

"I wonder what it is.", said Brenda, flicking her fingernails aimlessly. "Maybe an Ice Wizard."
"Ice Wizard?", asked Meg, and moved her fingers onto Brenda's mopey hand. "Why do you say that, thief?"

Brenda smiled, and scratched the part of Meg's head where her helmet brushed against when she walked. "Oh, no reason."

It had not taken Chloe and Dr. Jethro long to reach his lab. It was only a floor away from Chloe's bedroom, not too far of a distance to walk. He, of course, knew by heart where it was, even if Chloe did not. But all she had to do was hold his hand and follow him, and soon they had both arrived. Chloe took a deep breath as she saw the doors to his lab- she had never been there before. "Dr. Jethro?"

"Yes, Chloe?", asked Dr. Jethro, as he retrieved the key card from his pocket. He held up the small card to the automatic door, and it gave a small beep, the light above turning bright blue.

"Welcome, Dr. Jethro.", said the door, and seemed to smile. "And guest."

"I'm worried.", said Chloe, and shrank back from the door. Even though it had been programmed to seem warm and inviting, it seemed far too ominous for her. "I'm not sure I want to do this."

"Well, why not?", Dr. Jethro asked. "You want to become a big Princess again, don't you?"

"I do.", said Chloe, and forced herself to nod. "But I'm still scared."

"Don't be.", said Dr. Jethro. "This is going to be a quick and painless process. It'll be like taking a pill, and it'll be over before you know it. Okay?"

He put his hand right behind her crown, and rustled her hair. She could not help but giggle a bit, for that was the spot in which she was most ticklish. "Okay."

Chloe set her little jaw, a spark of true bravery welling up from somewhere deep inside her. She took the first step into the lab itself, past the guardian door. "Come on, Dr. Jetho.", she said, getting the name wrong on purpose. "Make me big again."

Dr. Jethro followed her now, as she walked faster into the lab. It truly was a state of the art installation, test tubes and microscopes on every counter. Blue slates of bright glass made up most of the walls, several beds arranged semi-randomly throughout. About a half-dozen Wizards were at various tables or counters throughout the lab, conducting experiments on everything from Electricity to Dark Elixir. A pair of Skeleton Assistants ran through the lab frantically, gathering whatever materials their superiors required. Jethro took a deep breath, happy to be in his zen spot once again.

"Morning, Dr. Jethro.", said one of the Wizards with a nod. "It is morning now, isn't it?"

"Yes, Jakko.", said Jethro, and began to move towards one of the beds against the wall. A ring of bubbling potions were arranged around it, and a light hummed overhead. Chloe ran after him, trying to keep up. "It is indeed morning, by about 10 minutes."

He automatically reached out and grabbed Chloe by the back of the neck, moments before she grabbed a test tube. Neither of them knew what she would have done to it.

"Chloe, we cannot get distracted.", he said, and sighed. "Now come over here, and you can finally fulfill your full self."

"Okay, okay.", said Chloe, and rolled her eyes. She slammed her arms down by her side and marched herself over to the bed, sitting on the side. "I just want to see what all these things are."

"I know.", said Jethro, and tapped the side of the the cupboard. He withdrew a single syringe, and wrapped his hand around a small bottle, full of mysterious liquid that shifted between blue and white. "But you can once you're older."

"But that's so far away!", Chloe whined, and slapped the sheets of the bed. "I wanna know now!"

"Oh, you can be older now.", said Jethro, and smiled to himself. Oh, Jethro, you sly Goblin.

"What?", Chloe asked, and stared up at him in surprise. Her small attention span had, evidently, not been enough to last all the way to the bed. "How? Show me."

"Why, it's easy.", said Jethro, and screwed open the bottle lid. He gently tipped the bottle's contents into the syringe, letting the batch of Time Fluid fill it up. "You just hold very, very still, and let me give you a shot."

Chloe's eyes widened in fear, as she suddenly began to reconsider. "Wait, a shot? Hold on Dr. Jethro, I don't like shots-"

But it was too late. She yelped in surprise and a little bit of pain, as Dr. Jethro jabbed the shot of Time Fluid directly into her arm.

Dr. Mansa, a level 11 Wizard and Dr. Jethro's right hand doctor, was suddenly startled out of his seat by the shock that spread through the room like a Tornado. He very nearly fell out of his chair, the bubbling compounds that he had been working with falling over and almost mixing on the ground. He managed to keep them apart just in time- all the while staring in awe at the magnificent light show that was streaming from where Chloe and Dr. Jethro had been just moments earlier. His pupils automatically contracted from the shining onslaught, his hands heating up from instinctual self defense. "Dr. Jethro!", he shouted, struggling to be heard over the deafening roar exploding outwards. "What is going on?"
Dr. Jethro had no way of hearing. His ears were completely blocked off by the wall of sound that emanated from Chloe like a toxic shockwave, blasting away anything that both wasn't tied down and weighed under 15 pounds. That included loose papers, several books, and a few Bats that had flown through the open window. But the sound was not the only thing created by whatever Chloe was currently undergoing- the light and heat were equally intense.

Most of the Wizards there closed their eyes, unable to deal with the blinding illumination. Even the Skeletons, who physically had no pupils, were forced to retreat. Dr. Jethro, too, closed his eyes- he was now lost completely in the maze of light and sound. And yet, just before he was cut off from the world, he thought he could see the lit up silhouette of Chloe, shining through.

"Dr. Jethro, what is going on?", shouted Dr. Jakko, holding his arm up in front of his eyes, trying to keep himself from being blown away. "I don't think any of us authorized an experiment of this caliber!"

The heat blew outwards, scraping against Dr. Jakko and very nearly burning his jacket. It ate away at the edges of papers, several heat sensitive experiments bursting into flames. The Skeletons ran around in blind panic, as the Wizards trying to stop it were forced to retreat. They were used to handling flames- but not a single one of them knew what this was. Dr. Jethro didn't know either. The only one who had any inkling of what was going on was Chloe.

She could not see any of the world outside the blazing corona that enveloped her. The only thing she could see was red hot fire, orange waves surrounding every bit of her vision. She could see bits of herself reflected in the heat, almost like looking into a cracked mirror. She heard the shouts from outside the blaze, but they were muffled and quiet- it was like trying to listen to crickets through a fortified door. The heat radiated outwards from her, coming directly from her skin- she could not actually herself feel that assault. The only thing that she did feel was pain. Agonizing pain that racked not only her body, but her soul. She could feel her limbs and bones getting stretched, her organs growing larger faster than they had any right to. But that was not the most painful part- no, the most painful part of the whole process was mental.

Memories flooded into her like liquid from a burst dam, spreading through every bit of her consciousness faster than she could possibly process them. She saw herself in the memories, yet hardly recognized- no. She soon heard another scream join the cacophony- and realized that it was her own. It was of a deeper pitch than she was used to, more rounded- older.

The door shook, with the force of someone attempting to get in. But it was locked, with the force of a King Tower blocking entry. They would either have to use a key card to get in, or gain access by sheer force. It only added to the chaos of the room, the fires, the screaming, the blast waves, the Wizards beginning to feel their skin turn to Elixir from the absolute overwhelming pressure, the-

Chloe let out one final scream, and the ongoing explosion soared in power. The Wizards were all thrown back against a wall, the Skeleton Assistants unable to handle it. They turned to splashes of Elixir against the floor, but began to reform almost instantly. It was their peaceful territory, after all.

Dr. Jethro slowly got up from the ground and stared forward, feeling around his forehead for his eyebrows. They were gone, as was to be expected. But that was not what he was staring at in total shock- no. The only receiver of his attention was Chloe.

There she stood, upon the bed, staring at her hands in abject wonder. She was a full foot taller and much more rounded, her facial structure changed dramatically. Some of her clothes had been burned off in the fire, but nothing too bad. Her hair flowed from the remaining force left in the room, now longer and much darker. A mysterious scar in the shape of a 3 had reappeared just below her ear, a single drop of blood still somehow dripping from it.

"You…", she choked out, not quite yet used to her new voice. "You did it."

She looked up, tears beginning to drip from her eyes. Her lip quivered, and she threw herself forward right into Dr. Jethro. The surprised Wizard stumbled back, barely able to keep himself on his feet next to Chloe's tackle. "You did it!"

She tried to pick Jethro up, failed, and instead just whirled around on one foot, allowing her skirt to fly up. "I'm me again!"

She jumped up into the air, allowing her dark auburn hair to flow freely. A broad smile of absolute joy crossed her face, and she closed her eyes and squealed. "I was trapped in that tiny body for… for… for who knows how long! I wasn't even really myself, I was trapped, I was-"

Then, she stopped bouncing. A slight bluish tinge began to come over her face, as the memories once again reached the front of her mind. "Oh.", she said, and gripped her heart. "Oh. Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no-"

Chloe stumbled back, attracting the alarm of every Wizard in the room. She slammed her back and head against a pole, seeming to not even care. Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she slowly began to fall to the ground, going limp. "Oh no-"

Every single major memory of the last time she was a regular Princess hit her mind at once, and she once again screamed. The exact way they had abducted her, seeing everyone she had known cut down right in front of her. The things they had done to her- oh, the things they had done to her. She screamed again, and the Wizards all rushed to her side.

"Wood chipper!", she yelled, off the prompt of one particularly horrible memory. "Digestion experiments… lead balloon… bloodbath… elixir...monster..."

Then she closed her eyes and fainted dead away, right in the arms of Dr. Jethro.

Or, at least, until she felt something being forced into her mouth. She felt her jaw being moved to chew and swallow whatever it was- it seemed like it was a pill. Her eyes shot awake, such actions being all too familiar to a large part of what had happened to her. "Get away!", she screamed in panic, and thrust out her hand to stave off the attackers.

But she saw only the smiling, now familiar faces of the Wizard group, one almost recoiling from her vicious slap. "Welcome back, Patient Chloe.", said Dr. Jethro, and gave Chloe a big thumbs up. "I wasn't sure what was gonna happen for a second there… but it looks like it all worked out in the end."

"Right.", said Chloe, and took a deep breath. "Right, it all worked out. Right, I just gotta breathe. Right…"

The Wizards stood around in their circle, letting Chloe have some room to breathe. They all knew it was the most important thing to do, them being doctors and all. After such a flashy and destructive transformation sequence, it was best to let everybody involved just recover a bit.

"Chloe…", said Dr. Jethro, and reached behind him. He rummaged around in a jar for a second, and yanked out a bright pink sucker. "Would you like a lollipop, for being such a good patient?"

Chloe stared, not sure what to do. On one hand- lollipop. She would never have missed a chance for free candy, particularly not her favorite- red flavor. On the other hand, she wasn't a kid anymore. She had just become an adult Princess, a real one, and adults did not take candy.

A quick thought process then told her just how stupid that assumption was, as she remembered the vast amount of adult Troops in her life that not only adored candy, they made sure to have it at every available opportunity. So she shrugged, winked, and took the lollipop. "Oh, okay."

She had just barely placed it in her mouth, when the door finally slid open with an agonized hiss. "I am sorry, User Jethro.", it beeped in a sad sounding mechanical voice, now seeming to be frowning. "I could not hold them."

"Oh, it's alright.", said Dr. Jethro, seeing the panicked faces of both Brenda and Meg. "I know these two personally. Add them to the Approved list."
As the door did just that, Dr. Jethro took a wide stride forward. "Well ladies, what can I-"

"Chloe.", said Brenda, and gave a flick of her hand. "Chloe, you're alright, right?"

"Yes!", said Chloe, jumping up from the ground. The lollipop stick only barely obscured her words. "I am! And I've never felt better-"

"Okay, good.", said Meg, with immense nervousness. "Because we got uh… we got a situation."

Downstairs, the party had all but stopped. All eyes and attentions had gone from their own separate activities to the Thing that had just entered the doorway, slowly but surely oozing down the middle of the crowd. All the assembled Troops automatically parted to let it pass- they had absolutely no idea what this oddity was. But they were sure they did not want to mess with it.

It stood about the height of a Bowler, or at least it looked that size. It was impossible to truly tell with the way it squished and jiggled, the top of its gelatinous body moving up and down by a foot or two every time it thrust itself forward. Its entire transparent body was a solid shade of emerald green, miniscule bits of a darker color floating within. It was mostly an oblong, or a square, or a long formless shape- it depended on the second in which it moved. The only variations on its body came in the form of two long antenna on the front, seemingly the only way it could sense. It had no eyes, ears, or nose, or even a mouth. As if to reinforce the fact, the antenna gently touched the ground as it slithered, tapping out some sort of rhythm. The only sounds it made were the soft squelching of its alien body, as it traveled through to the center of the room.

"What is that?", asked a Rascal Girl fearfully, hiding behind her sister, who hid behind their brother. "It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen."

"I don't know, Trouble.", said her sister, and grabbed her siblings a little closer. "I don't know."

Bowza stood at attention, ready to attack if needs be. He slowly took in a long, deep breath, gathering bits of Star within his lungs. He ran his fingers up and down his bow in anticipation, and felt Agatha gently squeeze his hand. A single Skeleton hid in the folds of her dress.

"What is that?", Agatha whispered, not wanting to take any chances of alerting the beast.

"I don't know.", said Bowza, and frowned. It certainly seemed alien at first glance, but he could tell there was something familiar about it. Almost as if it was a Troop- but that was impossible. There was no such thing as this, not that he had heard.

"Is it a new card?", asked Sadie, next to Oticat. "Is that an Elixir Golem?"

"No, no.", said Elizabeth, hands going to her bow. "The Elixir Golem is purple. And not shaped like that."

"Well then, what is it?", asked Oticat, leaning forward. He scratched his chin, noticing with no small degree of discomfort how it was coming straight for him.

But of course, nobody in the room knew. They had never seen a Forgotten in person before, and they did not know what one was. None of them dared to attack it, for none of them knew what it could do. All they could do was watch as it made its way to the stage where the two Kings sat, and plopped itself down right at their feet. It came up to their chests, from its imposing height. Spacekrakenx swallowed nervously, and looked around for who could help.

The Slime shifted, as if preparing an action. It reared up a bit further on its bottom, giving its front side a foot or two more of size. A horizontal split suddenly appeared in its front with a wet splurch, and moved up and down a few times. Oticat realized with slight disgust that it had made itself a mouth.

"Oticat…", the Slime said, in a voice that sounded oddly clear. "Oticat…"

"Er, yes?", said Oticat, and held a hand to his ear. "This is him speaking. What and who are you?"

"I bring a message.", said the Slime, its mouth barely moving as it said so. "From my master."

"Master?", asked Oticat, and blinked. "What do you mean, master? Do you mean King?"

"No.", said the Slime. Small bits of itself began to leak off, forming themselves into arms on the monster's side. "I mean the mighty Dragonlord Rakastamos."

Both Kings stared. Neither of them had any idea who that was. Oticat opened his mouth, only finding out what he wanted to say a few seconds afterwards. "Well, uh, he certainly sounds mighty. But why have you come here?"

"I have found out through very reputable sources that an evil Wizard named Askari wishes to visit you.", said the Slime, and bobbed up and down. "Do not listen to what he was to say."

Oticat nodded, but Spacekrakenx only furrowed his brow. Something about that name flittered through his mind, searching for a connection. "Okay.", said Oticat, and the Slime gurgled in satisfaction. "We can do that, Mr…?"

"Slime.", said the Slime, and slowly began to turn around, its work finished. "I am Slime."

"Wait.", said Spacekrakenx. "Askari… that's the name of the World's Protector. Isn't it?"

The Slime stopped in its tracks, and a low growl started to emerge from somewhere on its body. It had not wanted to use force like this. But now that the oddly placed second King had forced its hand, it supposed that it had no other choice.

Song: Capture the Target

"Killll!", it bellowed, and shot out a dozen tendrils in each direction. Each one aimlessly grappled for a Troop, attempting to drag them into the creature's body. "Kill you!"

"Woah!", shouted Oticat, and jumped away. He madly scrambled for the other side of the stage, trying to get away as quickly as he could. "Guys, run!"

Neither Sadie or Elizabeth had to be told twice. Both of them got up and followed their father as fast as they could, not even bothering to lay down covering fire. Spacekrakenx ran with them, grateful that he had put his Princesses on the other side of the room.

Bowza drew his bow, and let his breath flow out of his nose. The Star ran down into his shoulder, then arm, then arrow of light, heating it up gold. "Single Target…"

"Bowza, run!", Agatha said, and tugged at his arm. "We need to keep our distance!"

"Overdrive!", Bowza yelled, and let his drawstring fly. The Star-charged magical arrow shot directly through the Slime's body and came out the other side, leaving behind a small, but burning, hole. He took a look at how little damage it had dealt, frowned, and turned around. "Okay yeah, let's get out of here."

He grabbed Agatha around the waist and leapt, using a bit of Star to fuel his movements. "It seems like it would be vulnerable to heat. Let's let some Wizards handle it."

Agatha looked side to side, noticing something that alarmed her. "Uh, Bowza?", she asked. "There are no Wizards."

She was right. All of the Wizards were still upstairs in the lab, trying to clean up the mess. They had no idea that their talents of fire were going to be needed against a Slime this time of night.

"Well, Brave can do it.", said Bowza, leaping over a chair and landing on an elevated platform in the middle of the room. "He can shoot fire."

That, too, would have been a good plan. But Brave did not think so. The only thing that Brave had done was bravely fly away, somewhere out the window and to his favorite roosting spot in a nearby tree. "But where is he…"

"Killll!", Bowza heard the Slime bellow from right behind him, and he jumped up. But he was half a second too late- one of the thrashing limbs snagged Agatha by the ankle, and started to pull her from his grasp.

"Agatha!", he shouted, and yanked. The Slime pulled harder, the end of its arm tightening around Agatha's ankle. She groaned in pain, trying to keep her foot from tearing off. With one hand she grabbed on to Bowza tighter, and used the other to shoot the Slime with searing bolts of energy. Unfortunately for her, they seemed to do absolutely nothing.

Just as the Slime seemed about to yank Agatha into itself, a trio of flaming arrows struck it directly where it had sprouted the limb from. It shrieked in otherworldly pain and let go of Agatha's ankle, letting the hurt arm snap back into its body. Bowza looked up- and saw the new, grown up, Chloe running towards them, about to take another shot.

"We got this!", she yelled, and let fire. Another trio of burning arrows sank into the Slime's face, and it howled. "You guys run!"

"We?", asked Bowza, and looked past her. His eyes shifted from physical sight to metaphysical, sensing things that weren't quite there. The first thing he could feel was some form of energy swoosh right past her and stop right at the Slime, preparing to strike.

"Foul beast, you shall not harm anybody today!", said the Phantom, and whirled his sword around his head. He gathered his energy within it, hoping to gather enough to put the Slime right to sleep. "You shall fall right here, where you crawl!"

He stabbed his sword directly into the Slime's head, and Bowza could see a long thin line appear in the Slime's body. It groaned as the Phantom's spell took effect, its nonexistent brain somehow affected by the Phantom's command.

The Slime tipped over onto the floor, and lay totally still. The Phantom sheathed his sword, nodded, and was drawn back into Brenda, who landed right next to Agatha.

"Woah, woah, woah.", Brenda said, and looked around. "Is everyone alright? That thing didn't get anybody, did he?"

Bowza shook his head, and Brenda sighed in relief. "Oh, that's good.", she said, and kicked the Slime. "Now… what in Clash is this?"

Usually, somebody there would know the answer to such a thing. It would normally be one of the Kings, Bowza, Agatha, or one of the Wizards. But this time, there was no known information to go off of. This was the first time the Slime had been seen for thousands of years.

"I-", said Meg, then stopped herself from speaking. The odds of her guess being right were tiny, and she didn't want to embarrass herself in front of all these people. "Never mind."
"What is it, Meg?", asked Brenda curiously, and put a hand on her shoulder. "Did you say something?"

"No.", said Meg, and her face reddened. She tried to push Brenda away, to no success. "I didn't say anything. Good, at least."
"Woah, woah.", said Brenda, and gave her neck a tiny, tingle inducing squeeze. "Yes you did. Now tell everyone what you thought… Nutmeg."

When such techniques were used on her, Meg couldn't resist. She just shivered a little bit, then turned to address the curious crowd. "You all remember when Dan and Brandy fought that Giant, right? Bonoome?"

"Yeah.", said Brenda, and scratched the side of her face. "What about it?"

"Well…", said Meg, and turned away. She took a few deep breaths in order to collect herself, then forced a casual smile. "He didn't really look like a Giant. He looked like a weird, stronger one. And this thing doesn't really look like any Troop. So what if they're… I don't know… working together? Sort of? I guess?"
Everyone listening stared, and Meg felt her face go red again- but not the good way this time. Her fingers twitched, as she took in the looks of everybody there. "Or not, you know, I-"
"No.", said Bowza, taking a closer look at the Slime's body. Once he bent his face the right way, looking at it in the precise light, he could see what appeared to be the mark of a Dragon's head. "I think you're on to something, Meg."

"You- you do?", asked Meg, and her sorrowful face began to lighten. "You mean it?"

"I do.", said Bowza, and stood up straight. "I think we need to find out a little bit more about this Dragonlord Raktasmos… and these so called Lost Troops."

"Bowza?", asked Agatha, giving Bowza a little tap on the shoulder.. "He said Dragonlord Rakastamos, not Raktasmos."
"Oh. Right.", said Bowza, and closed his eyes. "I was just a little distracted, sorry."

As the two immediately went off to try and find some Wizards to talk to, Brenda and Meg continued to stare at the Slime. Chloe and the other four Princesses surrounded it with locked and loaded bows, aims at the ready, just in case it woke up. Some of the Wizards were going to try and find some more information on it, apparently by force. But such thoughts were not what occupied Meg, or Brenda.

"They're probably out there fighting things like that.", said Meg quietly. "There would be more of them, right?"

"Oh yeah.", said Brenda, and nodded, giving Meg's neck another bit of a squeeze. "There are probably way more of those Lost Troops."

"I wonder where they are right now.", said Meg, looking up at the sky. Through a small hole in the ceiling that was there for some reason, she could see the stars. "Probably out having some wondrous adventure, probably out battling hordes of those things. Probably gonna save the world."

"Most likely.", said Brenda, and pinched a nerve. Meg's head instantly fell onto Brenda's shoulder, but she fully let it. "They did always have a knack for doing those kings of things.
"Brenda?", asked Meg, and looked up. "Do you think we could go on a quest sometime like that too? I want an adventure."

Brenda smiled, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Oh, don't worry, Meg.", she said. "I think we're gonna go on an adventure too. Who knows… we might even meet up with them. I wonder what they're doing right now…"

Song: Dawn

At that particular moment, their group were all sleeping, because it was still just a few minutes after midnight, and they would not be awake for several more hours. Brandy had woken up about an hour after they had all gone to bed, realizing that there was no one keeping watch. She thought that she would be able to do it- after all, she only ever needed four hours of sleep a night. But then she realized that no Forgotten would ever dare attack them at night. No Troops besides Dark Elixir Troops would ever do anything at night in the wilderness like this, not this late. This late was when the Night Monsters prowled around. She almost panicked about those as well, before she had realized that they only ever attacked people who were awake. So she had quickly fallen back asleep, before one appeared. It might have been too much for her to deal with.

But soon, after mostly restful sleeps and truly bizarre dreams, the sun once again crept up behind the hills. The entire valley began to be filled with the sweet sounds of birdsong, and the trees rustled happily at the return of the light. As Brandy slowly blinked awake, she could see the entire lower valley of the section of the Continent spread out before her like a masterwork tapestry, the river shining from the light like a channel of melted sapphire.

"Ohhhh…", she groaned, and sat up. Pressing her hands to her back, she let out a strong yawn. She fell forward and smacked her lips together, her hands soon starting to try and fix her hood hair from the night before. "What time is it?"

"That's a Vision Bird.", said Trevor, as he sat up. He said it to no one in particular, but Brandy heard it. She saw him point to a bright blue bird on a nearby tree, singing its heart out in 23/4 time. "Common to the area. Not very bright, but they are reported to see the future."

"And it's giving its signature call.", Dan rumbled, in a voice so low it sounded more like deep ground vibrations that anybody's voice. "That's pretty neat."
"Dan.", said Brandy, and leaned back on his chest. "You're doing your rock voice again."

"Oh.", Dan rumbled, then cleared his throat. "Sorry, is this better?"
"Yes.", said Brandy, and hopped up. She put one hand to her brow, casting a look around the campsite. As far as she could tell, their campsite had not been attacked during the night. "That's better."

"It's early o clock, that's what time it is.", said Leon, and groaned awake. He pulled his hood down all the way over his face, only letting his chin be visible. His eternal lollipop was already in his mouth- in fact, he had not taken it out during the night. "It's too early to be up."

"Oh, Leon!", Bubble yelled right in his ear, and his head jerked back. "It's bright and it's a day and we're on a quest and I'm so excited and I found a little bug!"

"Yeah, wooh.", said Leon, and fell back onto his softish patch of dirt. "Jeesh, I feel like Sandy on a rough day."

"Sandy?", asked Annabelle, and moved a little closer to Leon. "That sounds interesting… who's that?"

"Brawler.", said Leon, Brandy, and Dan all at once. "Throws sand, sleeps a lot. Cool guy. Met one once."

Leon turned and stared at his parents in shock, but Brandy merely shrugged. Leon shrugged after a bit as well, and just chose to stare at the wondrous sunrise, slowly coming up over the clouds.

"Alright, who wants breakfast?", asked Brandy, and clapped her hands together. "We got- uh…"

She stared down at the ground, once again realizing that they had eaten all the food with them days ago. What food they had managed to forage had not lasted them long, and she could feel for the first time in a while just how hungry she was. Her diet had been nothing but unpredictable for the last few days, and she was truly starting to miss the huge, reliable breakfasts they had always had at home. "Shoot, we don't have anything."

"I have food, Mommy!", she heard Bubble say, and turned to look. There stood Bubble, with a huge basket full of bread, rolls, jam, and a few bottles of Elixir and fruit juice. "See, look!"

"I mean real food, Bubble.", said Brandy, and frowned. "I like that you try and make me feel better, but I need-"

"It is real.", Bubble pouted, then threw one of the bottles of Elixir. "See look."

Brandy reached out on instinct and caught the bottle in her hand. It made a solid sound upon hitting her skin. That was the weird part.

"Bubble?", she asked, more than just a little suspicious at the seemingly free food. "Where did you get this?"

"Night service.", said Bubble, and scrunched up her body mischievously. She pointed to the ground, where Brandy could see a small sheet of paper. "See, look."

Brandy, having no idea what Bubble could possibly be talking about, Dashed over to the paper. Bubble stumbled back a bit at the movement, but was otherwise fine. Brandy picked the paper up, held it up, and read what was written in a totally unplaceable script.

"Thank you for choosing the Night Service.", it read. "You will not be charged for your free continental breakfast, as we were frankly just happy to have customers. Thank you for not moving around at night- it makes all of our jobs easier. Your friends, the Night Service."

Below the writing was a small picture, which read "Employee of the Month". To Brandy's surprise, there was the Night Monster she had seen all those years ago- a mouth on four limbs, pale as white paint and sporting an eerie grin. According to the award, his name was Charles.

"Ah.", said Brandy, and looked up. Her mind swirled as she thought of something to say about the paper, but of course she could not come up with anything solid. So she merely folded the piece of paper into a tight square and tucked it into one of her interior pockets, then picked up the basket. "Well. I guess that happened. Now let's eat."

"Oooh, let's.", said Bubble excitedly, and clapped her hands. "I call the fish!"

"Fish?", Brandy asked, and took a closer look at the contents of the basket. "There's fish in here?"

To her surprise, there was. A trio of Piranhas had been skinned and lightly roasted, staring up out of the basket with dead eyes. Brandy tried to keep her stomach calm at the sight, and looked towards the river. She had guessed the Night Service had gotten them from the battle the night before. "Ah.", she said. "Fish."

"So can we eat?", Bubble asked, and pointed to the rest of the group. Annabelle and Trevor had already managed to get a fire going, even without Leon or Dan helping out. Those two were on the other side of the camp, Dan taking some deep breaths to warm up for the day. Leon stood next to him, watching intently.

"Sure.", said Brandy, and started to walk over to the fire. "But I get that prime Elixir bottle. I'm thirsty as all heck."

Bubble shrugged, and gave a little giggle. "I can't drink that stuff. What is it even, anyway?"

"Right, I keep on forgetting that you don't drink Elixir.", said Brandy. She stared a little closer at Bubble, noticing how her long blonde hair just really did not resemble any Troop at all. "I still think that's pretty weird. And for what Elixir is, well…"

She held up the basket, and quickly swiped her hand into the pile of food. She grabbed the bottle of Elixir within half a second, and opened it in even less. "I don't know, really. I guess it comes from underground, and it's an essential liquid. Plus, it tastes like fruit."

She took a swig, shivering a little bit from the excellent flavor. Whoever the Night Service really was, they got their stuff well. "So I like it a lot."

Once they reached the fire, Trevor held up a hand of greeting. "Hey guys.", he grunted, then resumed poking the fire with his sword. He had managed to start it going very well, but then it had started to die down again for some reason. He had just told Annabelle to go and gather some more sticks for it- an order which perhaps she had obeyed too enthusiastically. But it was not, as he noted with some happiness, a route that took her near Leon which she took.

"You want some food?", asked Brandy, and dug out what looked to be a sausage roll. "It's good and fresh. We got it from… uh… it's good and fresh."

Trevor took one look, and immediately grabbed the roll from her hand. He was starving. "Oh, yes I want one. Actually, how many do you got in there? I want a few."

"Oh, I got…", said Brandy, and quickly rummaged through. Her fast fingers grabbed onto about three, with a tightening grip. "I have quite a few, actually. Perfect."

She tossed them out in a flash, Trevor managing to catch all three of them. He set them down on the rock next to him- he would eat them once he was done keeping the fire going. "Alright. Thank you Brandy. For everything."

Brandy smiled warmly, and opened her mouth to thank him back. But she was interrupted by Bubble's excited voice, being excited directly into her ear from a distance of three inches.
"Woah, woah, Bubble.", said Brandy, and jerked her head back. "Don't shout in my ear like that, sweetie."

"Sorry Mommy.", said Bubble, and rocked back on the log she was sitting on. Not The Log, just a log. "Anyway, can I try on your mask?"

"My mask.", said Brandy, and turned this sentence over in her head. She put her hand to her chin and sat there in stunned silence, slowly blinking. "You want to try on my mask."

"Yes.", said Bubble proudly, and looked up with shining eyes. "It looks super cool, and I want to wear it too. I promise I won't break it please please please-"
Brandy winced, and gave Bubble a few preemptive head pats. If she was going to freak out, she could at least be calmed down beforehand. "Well, you can't. See, it doesn't come off."

It was Bubble's turn to stare, even as she took a bite of the seared Piranha. "It doesn't come off? Why does it not come off?"

"It's part of my skin.", said Brandy calmly, and sipped another gulp of Elixir. "That's why. Imagine if I wanted to wear your hair. What would you say to that?"

Bubble thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up. She grabbed the edges of her hair and pulled them as hard as she could- then all of her hair popped off like a wig. She held it out to Brandy, and beamed. "See? You can wear my hair. So I can wear your mask!"

Brandy just sighed, and reached out to Bubble's head. She rubbed her hand across Bubble's seemingly bare scalp- sure enough, she could still feel the smoothness of hair. "I mean really, Bubble. Not just an illusion."

Bubble stopped beaming, and slowly her face turned into that of a pout. She lethargically put her hair back on her head, it popping into place like a well-oiled machine part. She sat there on the log, her fish now sitting in the basket instead of hanging out of her mouth. It was odd that she should be that upset just because she could not wear a mask- but, then again, that was how little kids often were. She sat there and continued to pout- until, that is, Bubble's face lit up again. She closed her eyes and concentrated as hard as she could, scrunching her face up and flexing her arms to gather as much energy as she possibly could. Brandy took a look into the basket to see if there were any more bottles of Elixir, for she had finished hers- and that is when Bubble made her move. There was a soft popping sound, and Bubble vanished. In her place was an exact copy of Brandy- everything from the tiny flecks of purple at the edges of her eyes to even the scars hidden on the backs of her thighs. If Brandy had been looking, it would have been exactly like looking into a mirror. Bubble giggled quietly in anticipation, noting how even her voice had changed to sound distinctly more Bandit-like, and ran off towards Dan.

"Hey Dad?", asked Leon, and Dan looked down. He held in the breath that he had just been about to release, using it instead to talk to Leon. "Yeah?"

"What is that thing you do?", Leon asked, tapping the ground with one foot. "Like that breathe in and shoot electricity all over the place thing. It's pretty cool, and I think I want to learn it."

"Oh, you mean Star?", asked Dan, and smiled. "Well. Have I got some things to teach you."

He looked up into the bright morning sky, a slight tear coming to his eye. He remembered when Bowza had first taught him the art of Star, when he was still a boy rather than a man. He figured that it would make him tear up, now passing the art down to his very own son. Fitting, considering how much Bowza had almost been like a surrogate father to Dan himself.

"Uh… Dad?", asked Leon, and stopped moving his legs. "You're crying. Is something wrong?"

"Oh, no.", said Dan, and slapped a hand down onto Leon's shoulder. It hit the entire side of his body and some of the ground as well, Leon hissing in a breath. But Dan didn't even notice, from his vision so clouded with pride. "I'm just overjoyed to finally teach you."

"Well, okay.", said Leon, and picked at the back of his hood. He was starting to get a little hot in it- maybe he should take it off. But he banished that thought from his mind as soon as it appeared. He had never once taken off his hoodie before, and he was certainly not going to start now. "Then teach me, Dad."

"Alright!", shouted Dan, and leapt to his feet. Leon jumped with him just on instinct, not really looking where he was going. He landed shakily, and looked up at Dan.

"First, take a deep breath.", said Dan, and took a breath of his own to demonstrate. His was full and powerful, honed from almost constant use for the last week and huge amounts of intense training. Leon's was fairly ragged, but still usable. "Okay, good."

"Now, take a moment to sense the Star within your breath.", said Dan, closing his eyes. "For the Star is a force that exists all around us. In the air we breathe, in the Elixir we drink, in the heat and blood running through our very veins. Focus on it. Harness it. And become it."

Leon closed his eyes, as he noticed a soft golden light streaming from every inch of Dan's body. He tried to focus the Star, wherever it was, from inside his breath to inside his body. He felt a little dumb, looking for something that apparently wasn't there, but- wait. No. There it was.

"Dad, I feel it!", said Leon excitedly, and stood up a bit straighter. He put his arms out in front of him, trying to grab the shimmering, floating bits of golden light that he was seeing.
"Okay, good!", Dan shouted, and began the next step. "Now, bring it down into your arm. We'll try and start with a simple blast- that should do it for now."

"Okay.", said Leon, and reached out with his mind and soul, trying to grab the Star. But as soon as he did, as soon as his soul touched the Star that he had gathered within himself, something happened that neither of them had expected.

A bright blue spark erupted from Leon's body, sending him flying backwards with a sharp snap. He cried out in pain, small blue bolts of lightning wrapped around his body as he skidded back.

"Woah!", he yelled, feeling that every bit of Star he had gathered had left him in a second. He pushed one arm against the ground, trying to get up, but the pain still coursed throughout his entire being. His soul ached, and his heart and mind each felt like they housed a smoldering fire. "What the Fr'ank was that?"

"Woah, woah, what happened?", asked Dan, taking a single step forward and grabbing Leon by the back. "What was that? Did you breathe wrong? Did you breathe in too much? Wait, I bet you just-"

"It was my Stand, Dad.", Leon groaned, and let Hunter Killer materialize in his hand. It too sparked and sputtered, each flash of blue electricity around it mirroring one around his own body. "I think… I think the energies are just incompatible."

"Oh.", said Dan, and stood still for a moment. The only sounds that could be heard between the two of them were the electric bolts slowly falling off Leon, and the sound of Dan's hopes of a father-son Star attack dwindling into oblivion. "Wow, that kinda sucks."

"Yeah, it does.", said Leon, and held up his hand. Hunter Killer gave a happy whir, almost as if it had a mind of its own. But Leon knew it didn't- unless, somehow, it did. "Eh, whatever. I still got one."

"Right.", said Dan, and nodded. "Now, I think everyone else got some breakfast from some tippers or whatever. How does breakfast sound wait what the-"

That last bit came from Bubble disguised as Brandy suddenly landing on Dan's back and grabbing his neck, bringing her face around to Dan's. "Kiss me.", she said, for some odd reason. Perhaps she was trying to play a prank- even she did not know. "Kiss me, Dad."

"Uh… okay.", said Dan, and closed his eyes. He set Leon down on the ground with one hand and brought Bubble up to his face with the other- then stopped. His eyes popped open as he realized what Bubble had said. "Wait a second, Dad?"

"Oh no-", Bubble squeaked out, and panicked. Her illusion dropped, revealing her flushed face. She looked up into Dan's eyes and smiled, trying to save face. "Uh… hi Daddy."

But, to his credit, Dan merely sighed. He set Bubble down onto the ground as well, standing up all the way straight. "Bubble, don't do that.", he said, and looked forward into the campsite. Trevor and Annabelle had finished getting the fire upgraded, and were now cooking a pair of hotdogs. Brandy was busy working on downing another bottle of fresh Elixir, seemingly oblivious to what had just happened. That was good, he thought. He wouldn't want her to know. "You can't just go around imitating people like that, even if it is a very useful skill to have."

"Well, why not?", Bubble asked, and put on her most innocent face. "You just said it was useful. And isn't useful good?"

"Well, yes, but-", Dan said, and sighed. He thought about what he was going to say next, but was interrupted by the crash of flames from the campsite. His attention and vision were instantly drawn that way- to see the fire suddenly rear up, into a vaguely humanoid shape.

Oh sweet Dr'ew not again, he thought, and closed his eyes in exasperation. "Wait here, okay Bubble? I'll tell you after we have this thing sorted out."

And with that he ran off towards the fire, Star sparking in between his fingers, Leon following him in his wake.

Song: Clash

Brandy jumped back from the fire, as it suddenly roared and reared up. The flickering flames were transformed into a humanoid shape, with two tall arms and a jagged face. It had no legs- its stump of a torso merely bled into the fire below. It blazed with molten energy, the already hot flames apparently heating up even more.

"Behold!", it bellowed, barely able to be understood through its wispy, alien voice. "I, the Prime Fire Spirit, have been sent here to destroy you!"

Brandy stared at the "Prime' Fire Spirit. It was most obviously not a Primal, for many separate reasons. One was that there were three Primal Fire Spirits, not just one. Another was that all of the Primals were currently in space on the ship of the gods, so they could not be here. The third was that it had been sent to destroy them, which could only mean that it was working for Rakastamos. But the fourth and most important detail was that whatever this thing was, it barely even resembled a Fire Spirit at all. So what in Se'th's name did it mean that it was the Prime?

"Excuse me?", Brandy said, and stood up off the ground. She took herself to her full height, and clenched her fists in anger by her side. A tiny flash of purple suddenly appeared in her eyes, but vanished as quickly as it had come. She stared at the Prime Fire Spirit, and the dirt below her slightly cracked. The fire trembled from the tremor, and the Prime Fire Spirit stumbled.

"You think that you can just bust in here and attack us, out of nowhere, this early in the morning?", Brandy asked in anger, and curled back her lips to reveal her bared teeth. "Well, I don't think so. We are trying to eat our fricking breakfast, and you are not helping!"

The Prime Fire Spirit stared at her in astonishment, before laughing maniacally. It sounded, truth be told, less like a laugh and more akin to a vacuum cleaner being sucked up through its own nozzle, but it was really the thought that counted. "Ha! Do you think I care?"
"Oh, you better.", said Brandy, and slowly leaned back. She crouched down low onto the ground, moving her fist into a position ready to strike. "Because I'm about to make you."

The Prime Fire Spirit held out its arms in an open gesture, as if mocking Brandy's attack position. "Do you really think that you can hurt me, or my master Rakastamos? Ha. Your puny body of mere flesh is no match for my perfect form of concentrated fire!"

"Wanna bet?", asked Brandy, and looked down at the wood and somehow charcoal that made up the flame base. "Because all fire needs fuel, except for Fire Spirits. But it does seem that you need it, based on the fact that you have not so much as moved from that spot this entire time. So what happens if I just…"

Her fist lit up blue, and she prepared to punch. "Destroy your fuel?"

The Prime Fire Spirit hesitated in his movement a bit, but once again regained his confident air. "Go ahead, try it.", he said, waving a hand in dismissal. "But don't expect it to at all work-"

His words were cut off, as Brandy lunged forward with a mighty yell. She stopped her punch just half a foot away from the fire's base, a huge shockwave erupting from her shining fist. It blew all the way across the entire campsite, taking the majority of the fuel with it. Bits of wood and charcoal blew all the way to where Dan and Brandy had been sleeping the night before, still flaming bits of ash going high into the air. Some of it landed in the bushes where it failed to catch, some of it landed in the river where it was immediately put out, but most of it landed strewn across the small plain they had camped on the previous night. And as for the Prime Fire Spirit himself, he was blasted backwards across the entire area, his base tendrils leaping from one spot to another as ghostly trails of flickering flame. He cried out as he was thrown, barely able to keep himself together from the devastating attack. But finally, after a few seconds, his body slowly stabilized on the largest piece of fuel, a stack of burning sticks a few dozen feet away from the firepit.

"Woah.", he groaned, in pain from the strike. "Okay. Okay. I see what you were trying to do there. But, unfortunately for you…"

He laughed again, and shot out his arms in two directions. Both of them grabbed another pile of fuel, and began to slowly drag them back to his location. "I can just reconstitute my main form's fuel source without limit! Your little maneuver did nothing."

He smiled, watching Brandy sit down as she thought of a plan. He kept on moving the materials to his body- then realized something. Brandy did not look like she was sitting down, upon a second look. It almost looked as if she was ducking. That was weird. Unless she wanted to try and avoid his attacks in the least efficient way possible, why would she-

"Hey, frick for brains!", he heard the shout of Leon from behind him, and started to turn around. There, to his horror, he saw Leon right on top of Dan's hand, the former angry and the latter dripping a huge amount of water from between his fingers. "Reconstitute this!"

Before the Prime Fire Spirit even had time to respond, Dan opened his hand. A huge charge of water dropped out and directly onto the Prime Fire Spirit's body. As it passed through his flames, they flickered intensely- but once they hit his fuel source, he screamed in steam.

The Prime Fire Spirit writhed and shook under the watery onslaught, his fuel and lifeblood swiftly disappearing. A huge cloud of steam obscured any view of him, as well as his own sight. He fell over onto the ground and clawed pathetically at Dan's foot, desperately trying to inflict any damage at all before he gave out. But it was too late- with one last burst of steam, the Prime Fire Spirit was gone, turned into a bizarre mix of Elixir and steam, a purple mist floating upon the air.

"Huh.", said Leon, and nodded. "Kinda reminds me of how what's his name died. Chad."

"Oh, that's what he looked like?", Dan asked, and his eyes lit up with pride. "All writhing on the ground like that, trying to get away but couldn't, and finally vaporizing into the air?"

"Yep.", said Leon, and grinned. "Exactly like that. Right under the light. And you know what I said to him right before he died?"

"What?", asked Dan, and gave Leon a bit of an elbow touch. "I bet it was something good."

"Well, it looks like you couldn't handle the strength…", said Leon, and stuck out his arms. He buried his face into one elbow crook, and flicked his lollipop around in his mouth. "Of either son."

He quickly un-dabbed, and sat back. "Cause like, you know- sun. Son. You get it?"
"Oh, I get it.", said Dan, and slapped his knee. "That's my boy!"

For a brief second, his mouth pulled down into a vicious snarl at the mere thought of Chad's name. His hair flared up, and a brief green and yellow aura appeared around his entire body. But just as soon as it had arrived, it disappeared.

"Woah.", said Leon, feeling his skin tingle a little bit from Dan's sudden outburst. He looked at Dan, and shivered a tiny amount. "Dad, what was that?"

"That?", asked Dan, and shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. I just do that sometimes. Honey, what's wrong?"

That last part was directed at Brandy, who was sitting on a rock, her head in her hands. She was frowning, her eyes half closed.

"We can't stop getting attacked.", she said, and sighed. "No matter what happens, or where we go, some new fricking Forgotten shows up to attack us. I mean-"

She gestured to the remains of the fire, and scowled. She let out a sharp breath, blowing her bangs out of her forehead. "We can't even build a fire without getting attacked! What'll happen next, we get attacked in our dreams?"

She put her head back in her hands, and let her entire body go a little closer to the ground. "This quest started off super fun. We got to go around and fight cool things, and find cool things. But now it feels like there are just too many monsters for it to be enjoyable anymore."

She felt the ground rumble, as Dan knelt down by her feet. She looked up into his smiling eyes, and he put a hand on her entire right side. "Brandy, I know that. I know that we've gotten attacked so frequently lately, and I know that all the monsters are getting exhausting. But you know what else I know?"
Brandy rolled her eyes, but played along. "What?"
"I know that every single Forgotten we've run into, every single enemy we've faced, every single fight that we've won, which has been all of them, has only made us stronger. Seriously, look at how strong we are now.", Dan said.

"Stronger?", asked Brandy. "What do you mean, stronger? I don't feel any-"

"Punch that rock you're sitting on.", said Dan, and Brandy stood up. "No Dash. Just punch the rock, and see what happens."

Brandy hesitated, but knew that she could always trust Dan. She drew back her fist, made a conscious effort to not concentrate any Dash into it, and punched the rock- and to her utter shock, the rock made a clean split directly in two. Her knuckles didn't even hurt.

"See?", said Dan, and gave Brandy a light pat on the back. "Before we got here, you were nowhere close to that strong! And I guess I've evolved too."

He leaned in closer, and Brandy shivered, still staring at her hands. "And if we keep on going through opponents at this rate, by the time we get to Rakastamos, he'll be nothing. We'll be invincible."

Brandy nodded, her down mood all but vanished. She looked up, seeing that the sun was about in the 8:00 position. She turned around to the rest of the group, and put her hands to her mouth.

"Hey guys, we're gonna leave soon!", she said, then looked back up at Dan.

"Thanks, honey-", she said, then shook her head. "No. Thank you… my love."

Dan smiled, and gently took Brandy into his arms. "My love… I like that. Although weren't we gonna call each other star and mountain? You were star, I was mountain."

"Oh right…", said Brandy, and closed her eyes. "Don't worry, mountain Dan. You can call me, Brandy star, anything I want."

"Brandy star…", said Dan, and thought. Something clicked in the furthest back of his mind, but it was nothing he could get a real grip on. "That sounds interesting. Almost like… you have two names. Like your King name, but… different."

Brandy scratched her chin, and tried to picture herself with that name. But she couldn't really do such a thing, and she just shook her head. "That would be cool. Probably not star though… something different. Something more… descriptive."

"Like Littlefoot?", asked Leon, and Brandy's ears perked up. "That's apparently the Primal Leon's second name. Primal Nita's too. Which would make it my second name… I guess?"

"Huh.", said Dan, and looked outwards. He searched for the right direction to go, which way the river flowed. "Yeah, I guess so. Although legally, your name would be Leon Oticat."
"Oticat?", asked Leon, and scratched his head. "Eh… I don't think that really fits. Why Oticat?"
"That's the name of our King.", said Brandy, and felt, for a brief moment, a tinge of homesickness in her heart. "And since you're our son, that would make it yours as well."

Leon nodded, and swished his lollipop around in his mouth. The eternally shifting flavor had changed during the night- it was now cherry, from watermelon. "I see. My Brawler house's name was different though. A lot different."

"Oh really?", asked Brandy. She was still quite curious about the way that Brawltopia worked. She would have to ask Leon sometime- but this was a good opportunity for information. "What was it?"

Leon took a deep breath, and tried to keep himself composed. It was a difficult task, with the name being what it was. "It was… xxxsuperpromegaultraman4u33uoxxx."

"Ah.", said Brandy, and nodded. "Yeah, doesn't fit."

"Trevor!", Dan shouted, and stuck out a hand towards the direction the river was flowing from, up towards the hills. "What does the map say about our next destination?"

Trevor nearly fell out of his standing position, and scrambled to get his map out of his pocket. He hurriedly unscrolled it in front of him, and ran his vision across it, trying to figure it out. "Uhh…", he said, then slammed his finger down into the correct spot. "Here it is, Dan. We're heading up northwest, following the Clashcrush River upstream. Ultimate destination, Clashcrush Peak and Dragonlord Rakastamos."

"Well, yes, I know about that.", said Dan. "But is there anything else in our way? Anything else we have to worry about?"

Trevor looked down his finger, and gulped. He took another breath, and calmed his throat. His eyes twitched, and the corner of his mouth pulled down. Brandy took a note of that- it always seemed to happen more whenever he was nervous. "Well, there's a swamp. A big one. And a huge, tall mountain, right in the middle of a super deep canyon. We'll probably want to go onto that rather than the canyon, just my advice. And before that, there's something called the… War Fields."

"Hm.", said Dan, then thrust his fist into the air. He didn't realize how much it looked like something else. "Well then, let us be off. Towards the mountain!"

"Towards the mountain!", shouted everyone else, and they all began to walk. Trevor, however, wasn't finished- he unrolled the map again.

"Also, there's some odd cave or tunnel.", he said, and squinted. "Above ground, tall, but not that long. So that's weird. And I guess there are some villages too, just an assumption."

"Ah, good.", said Dan, as the group began yet another leg of their marathon journey. "Cause I'm starving. I could really go for another pile of meat…"

"Can I have some ice cream?", asked Brandy, as they rounded the corner, and went around a bend of trees. "Cause dang."

Song: Magnetica

Far away, in a secret cavern tucked away deep in the middle of the Clashcrush Mountains, there was a particularly powerful, nasty, and notorious Forgotten. His name had been long lost to any sort of records, even the vast and crystalized ones of his one advanced mind. But his title still remained- that of the Cyborg.

His lair was one much different, much removed from that of his master Rakastamos. It too lay deep inside of a forbidden cave- but any resemblance ended there. Where the lair of Rakastamos was filled with ancient treasures and age-old murals of Dragon times long past, the Cyborg's lair was far more modern. Panels of fine steel lined the walls, reflecting off of the vast array of mechanical apparatuses in the cave. Where Rakastamos chose to leave the blood and Elixir of his defeated challengers as a warning for all others, the Cyborg had it cleaned up almost immediately, shipped off to his master to serve as fuel. Whereas Rakastamos had layers upon layers of hollowed out space for his many works, the Cyborg had but one. A place to keep himself, and to keep his backup computer just in case his main body were ever to be destroyed.

Rakastamos preferred to keep his lair dark, as a means of raw intimidation were anybody to come looking. Lit only by dragonfire torches along the walls, most mortals could barely even see their way through. But the lair of the Cyborg was clean and bright, modern lights on the ceilings casting pure fluorescent shine. It looked almost like a Brawltopia office building- but, of course, his lair had been built long before most of them had ever arose. And now that Rakastamos had risen once again, he was at long last able to inhabit it.

He sat in his mechanized throne in the dead center of the room, his eyes rapidly switching between the monitors that lined his evil lair. He was able to take in all the information at once, with the strength of his mechanized brain. For although his title was the Cyborg, he truly was all machine. There was not a single part of him that remained biological at this point- he had, truly, forgotten if there ever had been. Whether he had been a real cyborg, or if that had just been his name. But it was all behind him now- he was fully metal, a construct of terror and steel. And he was proud of that. He was proud of his granted title as Rakastamos's third finest warrior- but he was always trying to move up. Past his competitors, to secure his rightful place directly at Lord Rakastamos's side. And then, perhaps, he might even surpass him, enforce his own brand of justice directly on the world. No longer would the weakness of the flesh prevail over the truth of the machine. No, he would make sure that all the continents of the world would be ruled by their rightful owners. And he, of course, at the helm.

But, of course, he was not just sitting there for sitting there's sake. No, he definitely had something important to do. Rakastamos was soon going to contact him, with precisely the right mission for him in this situation. That was something he rather liked, being on a mission. It all felt just so right to him- the chase, the takedown, the satisfaction of a job well done- and most importantly of all, the ticking of a neat little box. One objective down, and the next to go.

The Cyborg slammed his fist down onto the side of his throne, instantly calling up a random minion in his lair. His mechanized voice crackled through several loudspeakers at various perfectly planned locations all around the cavern, causing everything there to look up. "Metals!", he shouted, using the name he had selected for all his chosen. "Get me Rakastamos. I'm tired of waiting for his call."

One hand stroked his cheek, for some reason. He had long since lost the sensation of pleasure, but the automatic action remained in his mind. He supposed that perhaps it meant he had been at least somewhat human once, a flicker of his long ago past.

"Sir?", asked a small Mouse Droid, rolling up to him on the hard floor. "Rakastamos? But you and we were specifically instructed to wait for his call!"

"And I have grown tired of waiting.", said the Cyborg, and frowned. "That is what I said. Those were the orders which I have given. Now go and carry them out, or you will be retired."

The Mouse Droid bobbed up and down, understanding. "Yes, sir.", it said, and rolled away. "Right away, sir."

"Good.", said the Cyborg, and looked around at the screens once again. They were, for the moment, mostly just forest. But there was a very specific group that Rakastamos had assigned him to find- one that had been of great sorrow to his master. One that he knew was responsible for the slaughter of a great deal of his brothers, sisters, and friends. He held a great hatred for them, although he knew that nothing in the world compared to the smoldering, blazing rage that was inside the heart of Rakastamos. He would take it out on the group once he found them- And the Cyborg would find them. Mark his words.

The lair of the Jester, although far different, was no less sinister than the Cyborg's dark dwelling. In fact, all things considered, it was most likely far worse.

It was not by any stretch orderly, like the lair of the Cyborg or even Rakastamos. Sheer chaos seemed almost to paint the walls, the tunnels deep within twisting and curving into impossible shapes. Non-conventional geometry flowed like water through the entire area, making caverns far larger on the inside, tunnels that should by all rights overlap themselves instead miss by hundreds of meters. Not even gravity could find the strength to remain normal in the Jester's evil presence- certain things rotated around endlessly, switching their base from wall to ceiling and ever back again. If one looked hard enough, but few ever did, they could almost see the reality strings flowing and twisting round one another in an agonizing dance of nonsense. The garish paint job covering the entirety of his lair did not help- sickening pinks and purples deeper than the brains of most mortals dripped down the harsh stone, blending together at the bottom in a color that defied description. Yellows and greens struck out savagely and blindly in random parts of the tunnels, polka dots and striped bars committing acts of pure hatred on any sense of reason whatsoever. But the color scheme and the endless tunnels seemed innocent and regular next to the absolute Hell that was the central cavern.

This was not the place that Jessie the Bandit and Sven the Lumberjack had fallen into the day before- no, this was far, far larger, and far far more terrifying. The place they had entered, his main Guest Room, was not merely the tip of the iceberg- it was the spot in the air birds flew before they landed on the iceberg. The Main Chamber was the location of his Circus of Chaos, his Magnificence of Mayhem, his Grand Park of Bedlam. It stretched no less than 5 miles from one end to the other, in almost a round, football shape. The top was composed entirely of curved spikes, still wriggling in anticipation of a fresh kill. It had been so long since the last one, and they did not know when another would arrive.

But far down below the cursed ceiling of the cave was the bottom- and that is where the most nightmares resided. A vast array of brightly colored tents lined the ground, shining with diabolical energy and glowing with evil light. Screams of horror and joy sounded with equal measure, echoing off the walls in a mad mockery of anything sane.

No one truly knew what happened in those places. No one that had ever gone in there ever made it back out. Or at least not with their minds intact. Often times one would come out- either their mind or their body. The other half of them would be lost to the Jester, swirling around deep inside of him forever. The tales said they were forced to crank the music upon his back, the nightmarish organ and trumpets that signaled his passage. Others said they were consumed directly, only adding to the nightmarish being's monumental power. But none truly knew, for such things- knowing precisely- were forbidden in the Jester's lair.

It was at that time that the Jester himself sat upon his garish, unholy throne, slowly slurping up a single strand of spaghetti. He had been working on that particular one for about 4 hours now, and it had long since run out. That, of course, did not stop him from slurping it up.

"Rakastamos…", he asked himself, suddenly serious, despite his nature. "When are you going to call?"

Then he slammed his hand down on the armrest of his throne, and laughed in a laugh that scraped at everything around him. "Oh, I know! I could always just ask! Because he's right above me!"

The armrest laughed, its face contorted in immense pain. The chair itself guffawed, muffled underneath the Jester's bulk. The pink stone patio around him laughed, buckling up and down. He laughed along with them, then held up his hand to silence them. They complied.
The Jester sucked in a deep breath, his chest inflating to almost unbelievable proportions as he did so. He let it out in a mighty yell, able to be heard all the way up his lair, through the endless tunnels up the mountain, and into the cave of Rakastamos.

"Yo, boss!", he shouted, and the entire mountain trembled. "When are you gonna call us?"

Rakastamos, who had been deep in thought, was suddenly shaken out of it. He had been sitting in his mediation form- holding so utterly still that one might think he was composed of stone. He had been needing such things over the last few days. He needed to keep himself sane, keep himself composed, with all the things that had been happening lately. With so many of his precious, beloved Forgotten meeting their ends at the hands of a particular group of Troops that, try as he might, he could not seem to get rid of. No matter who or what he threw at them, no matter what obstacles he made sure prop up in their path, they always managed to pull through.

And it infuriated him.

He shuddered from his anger, feeling the relaxation of his meditation form shatter off of him. He pulled back his teeth and snarled, barely able to contain his frustration. How dare a single group of mortals try and mess up his plans so badly? How dare a mere- what was it called- Mega Knight confound the likes of some of his strongest Forgotten? How was it that they continued to take the longest possible path, rather than coming straight to him? He knew full well that he could destroy them practically in a heartbeat, if only they arrived at his cave. That is how all the other assassination groups went. But these ones, who he had dubbed "The Tailbiters", refused.

He heard the Jester's shout of impatience once again echo through his lair, and he shook his head as he remembered he had to start the meeting. Then he remembered with a smile the reason why he had called it- to figure out how to get rid of the Tailbiters once and for all.

"Yes, yes, of course.", he muttered under his breath, and slammed one paw on the stone table next to him. He fumbled around for a bit, finally grabbing a large, ancient communicator. It wasn't very advanced, having only the most rudimentary vision technology and a total lack of surround sound. But it was the one that fit his unmatched size, and that was what truly mattered. "I'll start us off."

He pressed a single button on the device- it was the only one it had. The screen fizzed, popped, then split into two. One showed the image of the Cyborg, fully expecting the call. The other showed the surprised visage of the Jester, who had been getting ready for another shout.

"Welcome, welcome.", said Rakastamos, and smiled. "Now, shall we get started?"

Song: Glory Gods

Then Rakastamos noticed something. The screen had only been split into two- but he had been expecting a third. There were three of his most Chosen Forgotten, but this was only two.

"Hold on a moment.", said Rakastamos, and gave his device a light slap. "There's only the two of you. Where's-"

"Oh, he said that he couldn't make it.", said the Jester, and let out his huge breath. "For, you know. Some reason."

"Right.", said the Cyborg, his face not changing in the slightest. "Our third brother had other business to attend to."

"Hmph.", said Rakastamos, and the fire on his back jetted up. "Well, I do trust him. But I would rather he be here, even if he is doubtlessly slaughtering in my name."

The Jester looked up from his meat statue carving to the screen- and noticed something. Something about Rakastamos. Perhaps it was the way he held his own device, or maybe it was the way he was still partially hidden in shadows. But something about him definitely looked different. And from the way the Cyborg's eyes suddenly began to move, the Jester could tell that he was not alone in thinking so.

"Er, sir…", said the Jester, his accent slightly changing. "Did you do something with yourself? You look… different. Are those frills? Have you always had frills?"

Rakastamos moved back a bit from the screen, then laughed a low laugh. He moved his claws to his head, his face still hidden in the deep shadow that streamed from the top of his lair instead of light. "Oh, these? Why, no. I seem to have acquired them after I… drank the Blood Elixir."

The Cyborg's face suddenly ceased up, a motor in the far back of his cave breaking down and shooting sparks. The Jester shot out his cheese smoothie and looked up in Rakastamos in utter shock, unable to believe what he had just heard. "Wait, what?", he asked. "Sir, you drank-"

"Oh, no, no.", said Rakastamos. "I didn't drink all of it. I had merely a sampling, a trifle. But now…"

He grinned, and clenched his fist.

The Jester could hear the shockwave before he felt it, but he felt it almost instantly. It rumbled through the entire mountain range like an earthquake, shaking up the entire ground. Even the Cyborg could feel it, merely a taste of Rakastamos's strength spreading so far.

"Oh.", said the Jester, and tipped his hat. "Well done sir. That is truly amazing."

"Yes, yes, I know.", said Rakastamos, and shook his hand. "However. I did not call you thre- two, here today to speak about my newfound strength. Rather, I wish to talk about the group that is coming towards me at a madding pace, that- that-"

He sat there fuming for a few seconds, the Jester and the Cyborg merely watching in awkward silence. The rock around Rakastamos melted, dripping into the spots between his scales.

"That group.", he said finally, and cleared his throat. "Cyborg, they will enter your territory next. I'm leaving it up to you and your group to defeat them- or, as you would say, delete them?"
"I don't say that, sir.", said the Cyborg, with no trace of humor whatsoever. "But yes, I will destroy them for you. Me and my team will make short work."

"Good, good, thank you.", said Rakastamos, and softly clapped. He looked towards the Jester, who set down his lava macrame. "Now, I don't expect the Cyborg to fail. But if he does… you will step up to the challenge. Do you understand?"
"Yes.", said the Jester, and saluted with one of his many arms. "I do, Lord Rakastamos."

"Good.", said Rakastamos, then seemed to brighten up. "Now, discussion question of the day, to keep our spirits up. Are robots alive?"

"Well, I would like to think so.", said the Cyborg, hiding his annoyance. "Otherwise, what would I be?"

"Oh, well, I didn't mean you.", said Rakastamos. "I mean other robots. Such as these mouse droids around my lair."

Rakastamos aimed his camera downwards, to show a small group of four or five Mouse Droids skittering past. "Those ones."

"Hmm…", said the Jester, stroking the back of his nose. "Well. I know my robots are not alive, in the technical sense. However, they do seem to at least perform well at simulating emotion. So I wouldn't know."

"Interesting, interesting.", said Rakastamos, and smiled. So far, his day had not been terrible. "Cyborg, would you care to elaborate more on your positon on the matter?"

Song: Calm Sightseeing

Not overly far away at this point, there was another group having a similar conversation. It was not about robots, but it was in the same vein. It was, to be specific- "should Hog Rider be nerfed?"

"No.", said Dan, and shook his head. "I don't think Hog Riders need any sort of nerf. I mean, sure they deal a lot of damage if they're not countered, but that's true for basically anything four Elixir or above. And the poor guys have so many counters anyway."

"Yeah, but so many of them are just soft counters.", said Brandy, and huffed through her nose. She did it when she was flustered- there was a difference between flustered and angry. "Like everyone always says oh, just add Tornado to your deck! You can counter Hog Rider easily! Like no, it still gets damage off. And every time you play it, it gets damage off. And there's no counterpush potential whatsoever with Tornado. I mean what are you gonna do?"

Dan listened to her vent, and smiled. It was cute, he thought. The way she expressed herself like that. He took a particularly large step over a boulder, and Brandy bounced up on his shoulder. She grabbed his neck, interrupted in her sentence, and sucked in a breath.

"What was that?", she asked, and looked around. "Are we getting attacked?"

"No, no.", said Dan, and rolled his eyes. "I just took a big step."

"Oh.", said Brandy, and smoothed herself off. "Well, in that case-"

"I think Hog Rider needs a nerf.", said Trevor, cutting into the conversation. "Cause a win con that gets basically guaranteed damage with the most rudimentary of support just isn't fair, you know? I think Hog Riders are mostly nice guys, they just need a nerf."

"Now, hold on a second.", said Annabelle, looking up from doodling on her hand with a stick. "You said, mostly guaranteed damage with the most rudimentary of support. By saying that, you say that Hog Rider itself isn't bad, it's only with support."

"Yeah, but they're always with support!", said Trevor, stretching out his hands. "You never see a Hog Rider without a Log or a Wizard or even just Bats with him. You always have to take that into the equation."

"Well sure, but then you have Elixir to counter that entire push too.", said Brandy, flipping her bangs back into her hood. "Otherwise, you've been battling badly. That's what I heard Ash say once."

"Okay, so we have two for needing a nerf and two for not.", said Dan, and looked back onto his broad, muscular shoulders. "Leon? Bubble? What do you think?"

Bubble looked up from doodling on Dan's shoulder with a crayon. Dan hoped it was illusionary, because it sure looked permanent otherwise. Leon stared straight ahead, and coughed.
"How are we supposed to know?", Leon asked, and Bubble slowly nodded. "I don't even really know what you guys are talking about at all."

"Ah.", said Dan, and nodded. He turned back to in front of him, realizing his mistake. "Yeah, I guess you wouldn't. Ah well, guess it's tied."

"Right…", said Brandy, and leaned back. She snuck a look at Annabelle, who had returned to doodling on her hand, and tried to see what she was drawing. Her heart and eyes lit up as she saw that it was a Barbarian's sword. Brandy grinned mischievously- this was good news.

"Hey.", she said, and gave Annabelle a soft elbow bump. Annabelle looked up, clearly a bit annoyed at having been interrupted. "What's that you're drawing?"

"A sword.", said Annabelle, and returned to drawing. "I am drawing a sword."

"Yeah, I can see that.", said Brandy, and rolled her eyes. She leaned in a little closer to Annabelle, and grinned. "But that's the sword of a Barbarian."

"Yes.", said Annabelle, not wanting to talk about it. She looked away, and calmly began to shade the blade. "So it is."

Brandy frowned, and internally scratched her head. This was going to take a little more work than she had thought. But that was no trouble- for no thing worth having ever came for free. Except for the occasional Gold Chest in the shops back at home. Those sometimes came free, and were certainly worth having. She remembered that Meg had been unlocked from a Gold Chest once, and she was one of the best people Brandy knew. Then Brandy realized what she was doing, and snapped herself back to reality. She could not get distracted.

"Is it Trevor's?", Brandy asked, and glanced over to where Trevor sat. "I bet it it…"

Annabelle huffed, and looked away- but not before Brandy saw that her cheeks turned just a little red. Brandy grinned to herself- score.

"Is it?", asked Brandy, and tapped Annabelle's knee. Is it? Come on, you can tell me in here.

Annabelle blinked in surprise, and looked around. "Woah-", I mean, woah. How can you do that?

Witch training, thought Brandy with a shrug. Now tell me. I know you've been trying to hide it, but the eyes and ears of a Bandit see all, and hear even more. What do you think of Trevor?

He's… fine, thought Annabelle, and Brandy's eyes closed a bit. But that's all.

Oh really?, asked Brandy, and tapped her cheek. Then why did you blush so much? Surely a "that's all" wouldn't warrant such crimson cheeks, right?

Annabelle sighed, then looked up at Brandy with watery eyes. Brandy shivered, ready to hear what Annabelle finally had to say.

Okay, fine, Annabelle thought, and Brandy almost squealed. He's always been almost like a cute little brother to me, but now that we're like all grown up and stuff and on this quest with you guys and not much to do but talk and fight and stuff, I realize that he might be more to me but I really don't know cause all our lives we've really just been friends and I don't know if I should take it further or if it would ruin stuff and I don't know how he feels about the whole thing and I-

Woah, woah, slow it down, thought Brandy, and put her hand on Annabelle's thigh. I know how those feelings are. Not knowing what to do with a friend that becomes more than that.

Annabelle audibly sniffed, and Trevor looked over for a second. You- you do?

Brandy smiled. Yes, I do. That's how I met Dan. We were friends, and then- well, we were lovers. And if you think that can happen between you and Trevor, then go for it!

But- what if he doesn't feel the same way?, asked Annabelle, then closed her eyes. I'm sorry, that sounded dumb. That sounded like a movie. Like one of those cheap Goblin Stadium Productions romance films where you guess the outcome during the opening credits.

No, no, it's fine, Brandy thought, and bit back a laugh. He likes you back.

Annabelle had expected Brandy to say something about her oddly specific usage of the example, but what she had just gotten was far better in every way. Her entire body perked up, pulled to a sitting positon off of Dan's shoulder. "He-", she said, then shook her head.

He does?

He does, thought Brandy, and held out her fist. Annabelle cautiously bumped it, then attempted a weak grin. Now next time we stop, you can tell him exactly how you feel.

Annabelle winced, and looked up into the sky. Well… not right now.

Why not?, asked Brandy in confusion. If you feel that way, then tell him.

I just don't think right now is the right time, thought Annabelle, and scratched at her arm. But once the time is right, I will tell him.

Okay, Brandy thought, and nodded. And don't worry, I won't tell him before you do.

And also, don't tell him before I do-, Annabelle thought, then rolled her eyes. Thank you, Brandy. You're a lifesaver. Both of you. I mean, if you hadn't shown up at that base when we were there, we probably would have-

Hey, it's what we do, thought Brandy, and beamed. Me and Dan, together. We help people.

A thought occurred to Brandy, and she looked at Annabelle in suspicion. So, if you truly do feel about Trevor in this way, then why were you seeming so intent on Leon?

Annabelle bit her lip, and scratched her arm harder. Well, I… I don't really know. I wasn't thinking all that great. Maybe I wanted to make Trevor jealous, I don't know.

Brandy nodded, and gave Annabelle a single tap on the top of her head. Heh. Not really how I would roll with it, but I guess you do you.

Right, thought Annabelle, and took a deep breath. Brandy could feel the mental room fade, and they both lay back onto Dan's back. "Good talk, Brandy. Good talk."

"Talk?", asked Bubble, and Annabelle stiffened. "What did you talk about?"
"Uh…", said Annabelle, trying to think, but Brandy cut in for her before she was forced to say anything.

"Flowers.", said Brandy, and made some gesture with her hand. It didn't mean anything, but as long as it got Bubble distracted, it worked. "Elixir wine. You know, adult stuff."

"Oh.", said Bubble, and pouted. She blew her long blonde hair out her face, and crossed her arms. "Can I talk about adult stuff?"

"NO.", said Brandy and Leon, who had just gotten up, at the same time. "When you're older. But not right now, okay?"

They took a mildly surprised look at each other- only mildly. They were mother and son, it made sense they would soon begin to copy each other's sentences. "When you're older."

"Hey.", said Dan, his immense voice cutting off any other direction the conversation would have gone. He pointed forward, everyone following his gaze to where a huge cave towered above the deadened plain. It was blackened and scorched with evidence of fire, but there was a path clear through. It was certainly not a cave formed by any normal means.

But that was not why Dan pointed to it- no, that was for the two strange Troops that sat at its base. One sat in a cross legged position, and the other was quietly singing some odd tune to himself. Dan arched an eyebrow. "You think those two think Hog Rider needs a nerf?"

Leon cupped his hands to his mouth, and shouted along with Dan. It was lost in his father's immense sound, but it was the thought that counted. "Hey, you guys!", they yelled together, totally destroying the mysterious duo's concentration. "Do you think that Hog Rider needs a nerf?"

The one that had been mediating looked up, his long hair flowing in a wind that wasn't there. He stroked his luxurious mustache, which flowed evenly with his soul patch. He moved gracefully in his bell bottoms and deep sleeves- in total contrast to his partner, who stumbled over his own feet. But as the partner opened his mouth to apologize, his voice was that of angels.

"I'm sorry.", he said, the voice carrying along the wind and lifting up the grass. "I let myself get distracted."

"Ayy, it's alright.", said the agile one, and put a single foot on the ground. He pushed off with his other, bouncing himself into the air and coming up closer towards the group. "As long as we reach them."

"Uh…", said Leon, and slowly reached into his sleeve for a spinner blade. "They didn't answer the question."

"You're right.", said Dan, and frowned. He almost sucked in a breath- but something about the two convinced him not to. They seemed so talented and graceful, it was hard to believe that they could possibly be enemies. Perhaps they were not. Perhaps he had just found two more allies. But, to Leon's credit, they had not answered his question.

"Oh, yes!", said the first, and leaped up onto the top of the hill. "It's been a while since I kept up with the news of the Arenas, but I do believe Hog Rider was quite strong last time I visited."

"I, as well.", said his partner, reaching the top of the hill in an exhausted state. "They were far too powerful. Nerf, indeed."
"Huh.", said Leon, and let his spinner blade retract back into his pocket. "Maybe they do need a nerf, then. If the vote is like that."

Song: Death by Glamour

"Hey.", said Brandy, staring at the two with suspicion. She suspected that they were, of course, Forgotten, but Dan had not attacked them. Maybe they were not. "Who are you guys?"

"Who are we?", asked the first, and thrust his hands up into the air. He immediately performed a triple backflip, landing on a single toe. He spun around in a halfpipe move, and landed in a perfect split. "I am the Dancer, Alitray!"

"And I…", said his partner, and took out a beautiful guitar from behind his back. It was inlaid with Gems, Gold, bits of Dark Elixir in glass, and everything in between. He gave a pluck on the ivory strings, and grinned. "Am the one known as the Singer. Fortussa."

Alitray spun around on a single finger and cracked his knuckles midair, landing again on his head. He spun around on the top of his scalp, his hair somehow supporting him off the ground. With a rush of wind from his high-speed spinning, he once again jumped into a standing position, and spread his arms out open wide. He jumped from one foot to the other, as if daring the group to try and attack him. "My agility and speed are unrivaled throughout all the land. No matter your abilities, you cannot touch me!"

Fortussa opened his mouth, and let out a single note. It rang through the air, what remained of the grass and bushes trembling when the sound wave reached them. As the group heard the sound, they felt a bit of a sensation fall over them- the sensation that they no longer wished to fight, that they just wanted to head home. But it was only a small sensation, and did not affect them that much. "And I am Fortussa, the singer. I said that already. But my voice's magic shall command you to do my every, uh… command. Haha!"

As the Dancer jumped around, a grin on his pale face, and the Singer strummed his fancy guitar, Brandy felt a strange feeling slowly creep over her. Her hands began to tremble from sheer fury, and her eyes snapped to full open. Her hair stood a little off of her head, and her hood automatically fell back. Her mouth opened in both a vicious snarl, and what was about to be the most vicious tirade of her life. She had never really been one for swearing, but this was just finally too much.

"Are you f- serious?", she screamed, and the entire group turned around to stare at her. The Dancer stopped his movement, and the Singer's voice was given pause.

"We really cannot go five e- minutes without running into more d- Forgotten, can we?", she continued to yell, her hair flaring up more every time she spat. "No. No, no no. Every time we round a bend, there's more t- pieces of pathetic h- who attack us!"

She clenched her fists, and the muscles in her arms gradually began to swell as she continued to scream. A faint purple fire sputtered to life around her entire body, the rage within her beginning to be released. "No matter where we go, there's just more m- Forgotten!"

Leon and Annabelle each slowly reached over, and placed a hand over Bubble's ears. Bubble tried to draw her head back, but the grip of the two was too strong. She had been having lots of fun hearing these new words, but apparently these two wanted to ruin it for her.

"And they're not even fun anymore!", Brandy screamed, a purple spark echoing around her like a storm at sea. "They show the f- up, we beat the f- out of them, and then it's on to the next. How many have we even r- beaten so far? 12? Well, looks like it's about to be 14! Ha! s- 14!"

Dan had been about to butt in, and tell her to stop. But he saw the things that her rage was doing. He saw that her rage was rising out of her body, her muscles swelling to high proportions. Her voice was growing deeper, longer, and much more powerful. A purple light burned in her eyes- and he could tell it would soon be released. So he stood there, and let her rant.

"When are we gonna run into one that's actually d- strong?", she screamed, and slammed her hands together in the air. "Never! Because i- doesn't even j- with a f- p-!"

"Mommy?", asked Bubble, struggling to hear between her sandwiched ears. "What are you doing? Can I join?"

"Not now, sweetie, Mommy's busy.", said Brandy quietly, then continued her rage. "And we've been walking for q- knows how long, and all we've run into are these h- b-!"

The Dancer and the Singer looked at each other, entirely unsure how to handle this. Their expressions were those of awkwardness and confusion- but those turned to fear, as they saw just how large the purple aura around Brandy had suddenly gotten.

"That is it!", she screamed, and her eyes flared a deep violet. "I have had it with these m- Forgotten on this m- QUEST!"

She gave one last scream, and her Rage erupted.

The blast of purple energy tore out of her body like a summer storm, blowing away the grass, the wind, and the energy of compliance that the Singer had summoned. Their eyebrows were blown away as well, torn utterly asunder by the force of Brandy's annoyance. But this was no ordinary annoyance. It was a terrible, thundering annoyance, one that broke the ground with its intensity and burned the skin of anyone near. For there Brandy hovered in the air, held aloft by her Rage, it burning around her like a shield. Her hair floated above her head, spiked and glowing a lilac hue. Her muscles were far larger than they usually would be- on par with a Knight's or Valkryie's. Her eyes shone with pure purple energy, and her mouth was open in a permanent snarl. But no one was able to see her- for next to her now incredible speed, it was as if everyone else was holding totally still.

Brandy yelled in frustration, and jetted forward like a beam of light. Grabbing the Dancer by his foot- for even in her anger, she didn't really wish to hurt such an individual-, she spun around as fast as she can, his body coming along for the ride. His mind barely had time to process what was even happening- first the girl had gotten angry, then started cussing them out like an old seasoned sailor, and now all his vision was spinning like he was in a washing machine. It abruptly stopped, and he rejoiced- only to realize that it was because he was flying straight up into the air at speeds he had never before achieved. Brandy had thrown him, and he was now on due course to exit the atmosphere.

The Singer had faster reflexes than his partner, but he was totally unable to prevent what was coming. He could feel Brandy grab on to his face, the same way she had grabbed the Dancer. Her nails dug into his skin, drawing blood, as she whirled him around and around. He screamed for a second, trying to escape- then he too was free. Free as a bird, provided that bird had no wings, no real sense of direction, and was hurtling towards the upper sky at a speed that most animals could only ever attempt to match.

Brandy stood there for a moment, huffing and puffing. As she saw her two opponents turn to nothing more than faraway twinkles in the bright blue and purple sky, she felt her Rage subsiding, retreating back into her once more. She groaned, as the energy that had fulfilled her to her physical limits and far beyond vanished, back to wherever it had came. She took a step forward and coughed, sparse purple dust flying from her throat. "Ohhh…"

She saw time go back to normal, Dan reaching out an arm to catch her. She had no worries about him doing it- he would catch her. He always did. Which is why, as she fell face forward towards the ground below, she hit his soft, warm hand instead of the cold hard ground.

"Brandy…", he said, and gently brought Brandy up to his shoulder. "What was that?"

"Uhhhmmm…", Brandy moaned, face down in his hand. She tried to get up, to push herself- but her muscles were totally exhausted from her enraged outburst. "Hehe. I don't know."

"You need to take a nap, honey?", asked Dan, and gently stroked her back. "You seem pretty tired."

"Oh.", said Brandy, and let herself relax. "Nap. Yes. That… nap. SOunds good…"

Then she was out like a light, in half a second. She promptly began to snore, a habit she often denied. But Dan always knew the truth. He snored too.

"I guess we should stop here for a bit.", said Dan, and sat down on the ground. It broke underneath him, the soft dirt crumpling underneath his weight. "We gotta wait for Brandy to wake up, after all."

He looked forward, at the mysterious tall cavern. It stood in stark contrast to the river, standing tall and menacing while the river flowed wide, clear, and bright. He thought that if he looked at it the right way, it almost looked like a face. The tall bit of stone at the top, the two crumbled edges at the side… yeah, he could see it.

"Hey Dad?", asked Leon, and Dan looked down. "Yeah?"

Leon held out his arms, and Dan gently put Brandy's sleeping form into them. Leon huffed a bit from the exertion, but Brandy didn't weigh too much for him- only just a bit over 100 pounds. He turned around and looked for somebody to hand her off to, before realizing that the best option was just to put her on the ground. He looked up again. "Wanna go explore that cave with me?"

"Sure.", Dan said, and shrugged. "Sounds good to me."

He stood up, and started to follow Leon towards the towering stone structure. He noticed out of the corner of his eye Bubble playing patty cake with Trevor and Annabelle, Brandy peacefully snoring just a few feet away. He smiled with his eyes, and took a deep breath with his mouth. He was slightly disappointed that he had not gotten to fight the Dancer and the Singer himself, but he guessed that it was better for Brandy to work herself out. He often wondered just where it was that power came from. Was it just part of her? Had it been somehow bestowed upon her by her life's experience? He didn't know. Perhaps he would ask, when she woke up.

"Is there anything particularly interesting in the cave you want to show me?", asked Dan, ducking under the branches of a bare tree. "Or you just want to do something with your father?"

"Both.", said Leon, and jumped over a rock. He landed at the base of the Cavern, hands on his hips and in his pockets, staring up at the huge onyx structure. "Kind of both."

"Oh.", said Dan, and stepped over the rock. He clapped his hands together, and looked into the strange chamber. The overall structure of the cave reminded him somewhat of a Crown Tower, its proportions and thick build telling. "Well, I'm happy to provide both."

They took a look at each other, and stepped into the chamber.

But something odd indeed happened once they did. The light, though it had been streaming down just a few seconds earlier, suddenly grew very dim. The world outside grew from a clear view to one looking like it was seen from within a foggy window, cracks up the glass.

The constant drone of the low wind and chirping birds had been replaced with the subtle incantations of mysterious voices, coming from all around. The air itself seemed thicker, as if this place was not meant to be disturbed. Both Dan and Leon felt as though they were being watched from every possible angle- even inside of their own bodies.

"Woah, this is freaking me out.", said Leon, and folded his arms. He promptly vanished, and Dan could hear his footsteps as he speed walked towards the entrance. A very thin trail of smoke rose up behind him, no doubt boosting his speed. "Never mind-"

"No.", said Dan, and reached out his hand at the furthest footstep. He felt his fingers grab Leon by the hood, and yank him back with a meep. "Hold on a second. Something about this place isn't right."

"Yeah, I know.", said Leon, and rubbed his shoulder. "There's all this creepy stuff everywhere-"

"No.", said Dan, and suddenly threw a rock. It reached the entrance in a matter of milliseconds, vanished, and came flying out the exit upon the ground. "We can't leave. This place wants us to stay."

Song: Rubicon

"Oh boy.", said Leon, and took a deep breath. His Stand automatically slid into his hand, and he held it up in front of him. "That isn't good. Are we trapped? Shoot, we're trapped."
"Leon, calm down.", said Dan, and looked up. He exhaled a bit of breath, lighting up the tip of his finger like a candle. The low Starlight fell upon the ancient, cracked walls, revealing what appeared to be a mixture of ancient hieroglyphs and runes.

"Woah.", said Leon, looking up. The beginnings of his claustrophobia induced panic attack had been swept away by the utter wonder he was suddenly experiencing. "What are those?"

"Well, they look very old.", said Dan, and furrowed his brow. Moving his light from one end of his reach to the other, he was able to faintly make out what some of them said- if he could remember his 4-day course in Ancient Languages correctly. "I think it says… beware the grounding wire. Fatal nothing occurs if not left untouched."

"Ah.", said Leon, and looked down at the ground. "You see a grounding wire around here?"

"No.", said Dan, and kept on walking down the cave. "But I don't think we need to watch out for one. This place looks older than any place I've ever been. Any grounding wires would have rotted away long ago."

Leon was about to say something, but he decided that the times for such things were probably long past. So he decided instead to be quiet, look up at the runic inscriptions, and think.

Dan walked along rather quickly, on account of his tremendous size. Leon had to keep up a light jog for even pace, while trying to read the writings. It was a mildly hard task, but he was able to do it. He stared at the runes, not understanding, and stared at the hieroglyphs instead. Those were easier to make sense of.

The one that Dan was looking at now depicted a heavily stylized Dragon, locked in roaring combat with one even larger. The larger one was a deep red and gold, vicious anger burning within his eyes. A single purple crystal made up his eye, and Leon could feel himself shiver from the artistry of the work. The smaller Dragon shone blue and red, purple mixing in the cracks in his scales. Although he was the smaller, he appeared to be winning.

The second set of carvings made up a far stranger scene than anything Leon had been thinking he would see that day. A large, multi-faceted crystal on legs sat on the ground, motion lines coming off of it. A bunch of Barbarians and Goblins were bowing to the people that emerged- very tall, thin people, unlike anything he had ever seen before. From the tiny flecks of primitive paint that still remained on the ancient stone, Leon could guess they had been quite colorful.

"Huh.", he heard Dan say, and he looked over. Dan stood close to the wall, his face almost touching it. He squinted as he read what had been written there, trying to understand.

"What is it, Dad?", asked Leon, glancing behind him. There was nothing, just a Bat.

"It appears…", said Dan, and moved back. "This place used to be some sort of… teleportation array? If I'm reading that correctly."

Leon's eyes widened, and the tail on his jacket stuck straight out behind him in surprise. "Teleportation?", he spat, growing excited. "Well, does it still work?"
Dan took another look, scratching his bearded chin in thought. He tilted his head a little bit, and tapped the stone just below the writings. It sparked a flash of blue, and he stood back. "It looks like it."

"Well then, let's use it.", said Leon, a plan already formulating in his head. "We can just teleport to Rakastamos right now, or in the middle of the night when he's asleep, and kill him! We won't even have to walk the rest of the way."
"No.", said Dan, and shook his head. Leon's face fell. "Besides the fact that we're still not quite strong enough, this one will only teleport us to the nearest station upriver."
"Oh.", said Leon, and let his eyes close. "Well, how far away is that?"
"About 10 miles upriver.", said Dan, and placed his hand on an ancient keypad. "Which, you know, isn't bad, but it isn't great either. Whatever though. I'll take it."

"Right.", said Leon, and turned around. "Now, we just need to get everyone else and-"
But his words stopped in his throat, as he saw the rest of the group already standing behind him. Brandy was half-awake, her arms wrapped around the shoulders of Annabelle and Trevor. Bubble gestured at him with a sharp stick, then dropped it once she realized it was just her brother. The stick dissolved.

"Teleportation…", said Annabelle, and looked up at Dan. "Is that true?"
"Yep.", said Dan, and punched in some more numbers. "At least, according to these runes. I mean, it's not like teleportation is really that tricky of a science to master. The Arenas got it down easily."
"See, exactly.", said Brandy, and laughed. "You just like, put the thing over there."

"Indeed, honey.", said Dan, and flipped a switch. The entire cavern lit up as blue as an azure sky, and a loud whoop began to be heard down the whole chamber.
"Please, keep all of yourself within the teleportation array at all times.", they heard a soft, feminine voice echo from the walls. "Failure to do so may result in imminent death."

"Wait, what?", Bubble screamed, and leapt right at Dan. She assumed that he would be standing on the teleportation array- and she was right. As soon as Dan realized it, he quickly gestured for everybody else to get on.

"We are teleporting you in 3…", said the voice, and Brandy suddenly snapped all the way awake. She Dashed to the pad, grabbing Annabelle and Trevor with her. Leon had already grabbed on to Bubble, and jumped onto the pad with her.

"2…", said the voice, as Leon and Brandy tumbled on to the pad. They all clung tight to Dan, who sucked in a breath for protection. He let it out as a brightly glowing shield around him, shimmering with golden energy. "1…"

Brandy glanced down- and noticed that Bubble's foot still hung off the array. She panicked a bit, and grabbed for the foot to try and grab it before they were teleported.

"0… teleporting now.", said the voice, and the entire group began to flicker and disappear. Brandy managed to grab on to Bubble's foot, just as they vanished into nothing. The voice continued speaking, to the empty room. "Thank you for using Moorlein brand teleporters, have a nice day…"

For the next passage of time, they swirled. It was probably just seconds, but they had no way at all to tell. For the group, it was as if a thousand years and 3 seconds were passing simultaneously, and there was no way to tell which was which. Or even, in truth, what that concept meant. Which was which. It was a silly phrase. Phrases in themselves were silly, weren't they? Or at least that is what Annabelle thought, as she felt the sum total of her being flung through the Aether like spare luggage. Brandy just tried not to feel any of it, and Bubble thought it was like that feeling you got when you stood up too fast. But this one was longer, far more sustained. Or at least she thought- there was no way to tell what amount of time passed. They kept on spinning, like the group hangers on of an empty universe. They were the lost Elixir bottles at a busy airport, the single sock waiting out in the rain, the last collector cup on the shelves of the third floor of a mattress store. For as long as they spun around in the infinite nothing of the void, they were the last few seconds spent in a building, the abandoned playground in the corner of a field. They were a single clay tablet floating on a Jellyfish's back through the thundering deep of the waves, they were a single level 1 Skeleton lost in a forest a hundred miles wide. They were a single atom of heat in a pot of bubbling water, they were-

They were tumbling out of an identical teleportation field and into the grass, having just emerged from a far different cave. They rolled down the hill almost as one, Dan madly scrambling to keep all of them together. They all screamed and yelled in the chaos, almost drifting apart but managing not to. Dan made special care to make sure his huge bulk did not squish anyone, rolling around and under everyone else instead of on top of them. They kept on falling, down and down the huge hill- before Dan jut his arm out and dug his fingers deep into the soil, bringing him to a halt and everybody else sliding to a stop on his torso.

"Whew.", he said, and cracked a grin. "That was pretty intense, wasn't it?"

Now that they had stopped rolling from their immense momentum with the launch, Dan could see that the hill was actually not particularly steep. He slowly let go of the ground, only falling forward a little bit from the release. The rest of the group all shakily stood up- except for Bubble, who lay there staring at the sky, a weird grin upon her face.

"Let's never do that again.", said Brandy. "Seriously, that was weird."

"Oh, don't worry.", said Dan, taking a look around. This new station was, thankfully, still in very close proximity to the Clashcrush river. That was good- if they lost it, it would be almost impossible for them to get back on their tracks. And the hills still loomed above them, the Clashcrush mountains towering even higher in the distance. But, Dan noted, that distance was no longer so far away. They were slowly becoming more defined, feeling more obtainable. Dan knew that with every step or skip his group took, the final battle would only ever draw closer.

He looked to his left- there was a very respectable rock pile, presumably built to commemorate something. Perhaps a battle. But that didn't make sense. Only villages would build something like that, and there were no villages around. Or- or were they? A quick glance to the right, then a rejoicing stare to the right solved that question. There was a village, just a few hundred feet away. It appeared to be a bustling, well-upgraded Town Hall 12 Village, no doubt full of high-level defenses and Troops. Dan let out a sigh of relief- at last, a place to get a decent nap.

"Hey, is that a Village?", he heard Brandy shout from below him, and he felt her climb up onto his thigh, then his shoulder. She pointed forward for emphasis, and shouted with joy. "It is a Village! Finally, yes!"
"Oh, thank Se'th.", said Annabelle, and rolled her head around on her shoulders. "Finally, someplace I can actually get a shower."

The thought of that kicked around in Trevor's mind, and would not leave for a while.

"Yeah, me too.", Trevor, and looked up. "I'm gonna take a shower too. In the Male Troop's room, of course. Not the-"

Shut, he heard Brandy say inside his head, and he dutifully obeyed.

"Maybe they have some food there.", said Leon, and flicked the end of his lollipop stick. "I haven't gotten a real good meal since yesterday."

"Heh, welcome to the clan.", said Dan, and his stomach rumbled. "I hope they have all the food. We have enough Gold to pay for it right- eh, who am I kidding. They're a high level Clans village, they have enough Gold. I bet we could pay them in services though."

"Okay, but they better not ask if we're their Clan Castle troops again.", said Brandy, and huffed. "That got really annoying, really fast-"

Something happened inside of Brandy's mind. Blue lights flickered into being behind her head, and she fell limp onto Dan's leg. Dan was about to shout- then head her softly talking to herself.

Brandy stood in the middle of the Village, in pain and terror. She saw a huge metal limb slash overhead, plowing right through a Barracks. A Villager ran by in terror, only barely missing getting cut wide open by a pair of snapping steel jaws. A Cannon shot at a huge metal hand, before being crushed asunder by the powerful grip of whatever it was. It was clear that the village's defenses did not pose any threat or challenge to whatever monster was besieging it.

Brandy snapped awake again, the blue lights fading back into her head. She looked once again at the Village, now horrified with her new information.

"That Village is going to be attacked. By a huge metal monster.", she said, and gulped. "We have to go save it. Right now."

"Wait, what-", said Trevor and Annabell simultaneously, but were cut off by Dan's deep inhale.

"You sure?", he asked, and began to warm up his muscles. For some reason, he did not bother to throw everybody on his back this time.

"Absolutely.", said Brandy, and nodded in worry. "That was a Dreamer dream. It was accurate." "Right.", said Dan, and turned directly towards the Village. He started to run off, leaving Trevor, Annabelle, and Bubble totally confused as to what Dan and Brandy had been talking about- The Dreamer. What was that?

"Thanks for the tip, Brandy.", said Dan, as his feet pummeled the ground. His shoulders bore Brandy, as his hands sparkled with golden light under the purplish sun. "Now let's go save that village."

Song: Throwing

The group ran along the packed ground, turned into hard cement from the overpowering height of the sun. It was unusually hot for October- that should have been a warning sign that something was wrong. But no one picked up on it- they were all too busy trying to run as fast as they could towards the Village, intent on saving it.

"Alright.", said Dan, and took a deep breath. Star flickered down his arms and legs, concentrating in his hands with a sparkling flare of pure power. "Here's the plan."

He nodded towards Leon, who nodded back in automatic agreement. "Leon, go fast. You're gonna run through the entire village, rescue every Villager and Builder you see. They're the helpless ones. The Villagers are the women in the dresses, the Builders are the short guys in hats with hammers. You got that?"

"Yes.", said Leon, filing the information away in his head for the mission. "I do."

"Good.", said Dan, and turned to Brandy. Almost no words were needed- none, in fact. Had it just been those two, Dan would not have spoken anything at all, relying on their connection with each other to relay information. But they were in a group, and everybody needed to know the plan. "Brandy, round up everyone else. We're probably gonna need a lot of help to take that thing down- and a Village's army is the best thing to do it."

"Right.", said Brandy, and saluted. Truth be told, she rather enjoyed following orders like that. She didn't know why. Perhaps it was just the fact that it was Dan giving them. "Will do."

"Bubble.", said Dan, and jumped over a rock. He landed on the other side with a boom, everyone riding on him bouncing a few times. But Leon and Brandy, being the fastest on their feet, still ran behind. "You need to distract that thing, whatever it is, when it shows up. Brandy described it as a huge metal monster. Shouldn't be too hard to spot."

"Okay, Dad.", said Bubble, and huffed. She began to spin blue energy around in her hand, no doubt preparing to cook up some quality illusions. "I'll distract it so much it'll feel like it's on drugs."

Dan stifled a laugh at the ridiculousness of that sentence, but finally turned to face Trevor and Annabelle. "Trevor.", he said. "Annabelle. You two have the most important mission. Find the monster's weak point, and break it. Just about everything has one, and I expect this one to be no different."

"Okay.", said Trevor, and placed his hand on the grip of his sword. Finally, he would get a chance to use it. He narrowed his eyes and flexed his muscles in anticipation- it had been far too long.

"What about you?", asked Annabelle, and gently grabbed her bow. "What are you gonna do?"
"Oh, don't worry.", said Dan, and snarled. "My job? It's beating the living crap out of whatever we find."

"Ah.", said Annabelle. She was about to say something else, but her words were lost as Dan jumped over a small stream. She landed on his shoulder again, shook her head, and blinked.

"Okay, we're coming up on the village now!", Dan shouted, and slowly began to rear up. Leon put a bit more power into his legs, wishing that he could use his Smoke Trails right then. But unless he wanted to waste a Super, he would just have to be content with his current speed.

Brandy crouched a bit, then leapt straight up. She landed on Dan's arm, taking a stance. She had been running next to him, but she felt sort of uncomfortable not beng on him.

"Have your stuff ready.", he said, and a powerful golden glow started rotating around his clenched fists. "There's no telling when that monster will appear."

"This is a Forgotten, right?", asked Annabelle, and carefully placed a pair of arrows into her bow string. "Just making sure."

"Yes.", said Dan, and nodded. He began to slow down, as they reached the line of trees that surrounded every village. "Weird, powerful monster right in our path? Of course. It could be nothing but."

"Here comes the village!", Leon yelled, and crosses his arms in front of his body as Dan shattered the treeline with his powerful body. A pair of trees flew both in front of him and behind him, a square of dirt torn up along with their roots. The damage to them was not great- they could easily be replanted. Dan gave a mighty battle roar as he jumped into the clearing, took a stance, and saw-

Nothing. Nothing except a calm, perfectly ordinary, if sparsely populated, village. From the looks of the empty Army Camps, no army was currently trained. It also seemed as though the Gold Storages and Elixir Storages had been filling up for quite a while, and the Dark Elixir Storage was curiously empty. But, Dan thought to himself as he surveyed the area, that could explain why he saw no Heroes among the buildings. Their tall figures must have been put down for a few day's nap, all the Dark Elixir the village had used to upgrade them.

"Huh.", he said, and slowly let his tensed-up shoulders drop. "Okay, uh… never mind then. I guess we were early. Everyone, spread out. Get ready for the thing to arrive."

The Village itself was a beautiful, mostly upgraded Town Hall 12. A blue color scheme covered most of the buildings, much to Brandy's delight. Blue was still the most comforting color for her- except, of course, Seagreen. That had always been her favorite.

The shining Eagle Artillery in the middle of the village shone with a brilliant light, the canister of Dark Elixir on the side filled to the brim. The same was true for the Inferno Towers it bordered, their blue and white construction in stark contrast to their normal appearances. One had been set to Single Target, a single eye- like circle burning with an unmatched flame. The other had been set to Multi, a crimson icosahedron burning like a sacrificial alter.

But beyond these fancy defenses were the more basic parts of the village- the Barracks, electric horns sitting atop them. The Dark Barracks, covered with magical, non-melting ice all along the back. The Spell Factory and Laboratory sat in equal glory- but, oddly enough, neither of them semed to be running. In fact, the only things that seemed to be operational within the entire village were the defenses.

This seemed odd, but not particularly alarming. Perhaps the Chief of the village had not been there for a while. Such things happened sometimes.

"I guess so.", said Brandy, beside him. She looked out, to see the other members of the group slowly taking their places. They wanted the element of surprise for when the monster arrived. "Although, what does a Chief look like? We've never seen one, unless you count Spacekrakenx. But he was a King, so I hardly think it counts."

Dan realized that his thoughts must have been running through a communication channel, and he closed his eyes. He liked to talk out loud. "Yeah, and I don't know anyone who's seen one, either. I wonder what they look like…"
"Maybe sort of like a King?", asked Brandy, and stared out over the village. They were still on the outskirts, nobody in the village having come to greet them. "That would make sense."

"Yeah.", sad Dan, and nodded. He thought it was just a touch odd that the Villagers among the buildings seemed to be following the exact same paths, over and over again. Usually they were indeed creatures of routine, but jumping over the exact same wall piece and making the exact same turns every single time seemed… excessive. And as he watched, a growing suspicion seemed to arise in him.

"Brandy, could you go check that out?", he asked, and pointed at the nearest Villager, who was clapping at a small flower. "Something doesn't seem right-"

Before he could finish his words, Brandy had already Dashed off in a puff of smoke. He felt the tingle of a kiss upon his cheek, and smiled. Brandy was fast. Sometimes, it seemed like she didn't even know how fast she really was.

Brandy touched down on the ground about 50 feet away half a second later, almost stumbling over herself in front of the Villager. She stood straight up, and flicked her finger off her forehead in what she hoped was a friendly gesture. "Hey!", she said. "What's happening?"

But the Villager, for whatever reason, failed to respond. She merely continued to clap at the flower- ending in exactly 7 claps, no more, no less. Then she straightened up and progressed to the closest tree, no doubt going to clap there as well.

"Hmph.", said Brandy, and blew her bangs out of her face. "Rude. Oh well, I'll just try someone else."

She Dashed over to the next closest person she could see- a Builder, who was hard at work upgrading a Bomb. Deciding to take a more direct approach, she placed her hand directly on his shoulder. "Hi.", she said, with a less sincere grin. "What's going on here?"

But the Builder, too, ignored her. He merely continued to wack at the Bomb with his all purpose tool, the green light around it slowly fading, millimeter by millimeter. To Brandy, it looked like a hammer. She didn't know how it upgraded things- but that was not what was important at that moment. What mattered was finding out just what was going on. Why none of them were talking to her, why none of them seemed natural.

"Hey.", she said, her friendly voice dropped in favor of a much harsher one. "I said, what's going on here? Why aren't you responding?"

The Builder didn't even register that she had said anything. He just continued to wack at the Bomb he was upgrading, in the same infuriatingly exact rhythm.

"Hey!", Brandy shouted, and grabbed the Builder by his shirt. She huffed from her nose, angry at the man. "I said, tell me what's going on!"
But then, as his hat fell away from the force, Brandy could at last see his face. And what she saw made her gasp, recoil in terror, and look around in total shock.

"Oh, of course.", she said, spinning around to try and take in as much information as possible. She Dashed her way around a building, trying to see more- and saw the Barbarian King alter totally empty. No King prowling his territory. No King laid down for a nap, soon to be stronger. There was not even a sign that read "Gone Attacking", as what usually appeared whenever a Barbarian King was thoughtful enough to leave a note.

One might have just thought it was because the army was off attacking- but Brandy knew that could not have been the case. There was no army training. There were no spells brewing, or even a laboratory upgrade cooking. There was no sign of activity, except for the bristling defenses, ready to fire. Those things in themselves were not worrying- except for when combined with what Brandy had seen on the face of that Builder.

"Dan!", she screamed, and Dan stood up. Bubble, who had been sitting on the far side of the village, looked up from her bubbles. "We need to get out of here, right now!"

"Why?", asked Dan, flicking his Star charge back into his hands. "What's wrong with the village?"

"It's not real!", Brandy screamed, turning the heads of Trevor, Annabelle, and Leon. "There are no heroes! There's no army, or spells, or upgrades! And look!"
She grabbed a passing Villager by the shoulder and turned her around, letting what she had seen clearly shine through. "They're made out of metal!"

Dan stood there for a second, trying to take in this new information. It swirled around in his mind, formulating a plan. Once he had it, in all its glory, he opened his eyes.

"Shoot.", he said, and scratched his head. "Well, what does that mean!"
"The monster isn't going to attack the village!", Brandy yelled, and leapt up. She Dashed in the air towards Dan, and he caught her with an outstretched hand. She looked absolutely panicked, sweat dripping down her face.
"It isn't?", asked Dan, and looked up. "Well, that's good."

"No!", Brandy yelled, as the ground began to quake under their feet. She jumped up on to his shoulder, and pointed at the center of the Village, something started to emerge from the ground on iron legs."The village is the monster!"

Song: Magnetica

"What?", Dan shouted, but it was too late. The Village's transformation had already begun.

The azure Town Hall stood straight up, rotating around on a massive screw. The top of its roof cracked open with an aching boom, revealing a sparking level 5 Mega Tesla. It hummed with massive amounts of electricity, far beyond that of what a regular Tesla or even a Sparky could unleash. It swiveled around on its axis like an eye, as if searching for the group.

The shining Eagle Artillery of the village rose on the dirt and steel back that was breaking out of the ground, automatically arming itself through some dark technology. The top slid back to reveal a shining golden cannon, pulsing with a miasma of incandescent light. It too rotated, but was fortunately unable to aim downwards- for now, at least.

One huge metal arm reached downwards, past a metal Villager running out of the way screaming a pre-recorded scream. It grabbed a Cannon, and yanked it straight out of the ground- and Brandy realized that is where her vision had come from.

The Inferno Towers of the village yanked themselves out of the ground, sliding up onto the mechanical beast's shoulders and head. One spun into place on the right, the single beam beginning to blaze. One clicked into position on the left, the fractured orb crackling with fire. The third one that had been missing slid into the right spot on the top of the monster's emerging head, still dripping dirt and stone. It hummed and spat for a few seconds, trying to decide whether it should be single or multi-target- then, somehow, it turned into both.

A pair of X-Bows slid onto the robotic titan's hands, one taking up residence on top of it and the other sliding down into its palm. Its fingers were made of the village's Cannons, each of them swiveling automatically, but leaving a path for the X-Bows to shoot. The X-Bows themselves made various popping sounds as they were loaded, locked, and aimed each at a different member of the group.

"Holy…", said Leon, and backed up. He grabbed Bubble from where she was on the grass, and started running off towards the treeline. Blind panic coursed through his mind at the sight of such an unimaginable monster rising up before him- he didn't think about where he was going at all. Bubble screamed, both at Leon for running away and her own terror of the beast. But Leon seemed to not even hear her, as he tore off through the dense foliage.

The Archer and Wizard Towers screamed with metal and stone voices, as they were horribly compacted into smaller versions. Most of their size was torn away, only the mechanical Archers and Wizards themselves remaining. They were slapped onto the side of the monster, as it emerged from the ground. Most of it had broken free of its dirt and stone prison, the glowing yellow eyes of the head now becoming visible.

"What is that thing?", Trevor gasped in fear, as more and more parts of the village rapidly loaded themselves onto the growing body. There went the Barracks, sliding themselves into bits along the torso to form scale or carapace-like armor. There went the Gold Mines, sliding deep into the gullet of the bizarre lifeform- if it could even be called that. There was a flash of light from both the spot where it had been torn from and the mouth, as the gold was melted.

"I don't know.", said Annabelle. "It doesn't even seem like it's real. Nothing can be like that."

"Well, it has to be a Forgotten.", said Brandy, and grit her teeth. She stuck out a fist behind her, her eyes and mind rapidly going over the monster, trying to find a weak point.

"Which means that we have to take it out.", said Dan, and greatly inhaled. The Star rushed down his body, and flowed into his hands. "Everyone, circle. On your marks."

The Elixir Storages and Elixir Collectors were tossed into the glowing maw, the sound of breaking glass coming from within as they were melted down and processed. The beast let out a low roar, and shook its head. The last of the dirt fell off and broke apart, revealing a head not unlike that of a metal Dragon. It shook its arm, and the village's Spell Factory slid up its arm, sliding into place right on its lower jaw. It hummed to life with a loud zap, ready to fire destructive spells at any target.

"Wait.", said Brandy, and looked around. Her face turned white at the realization, and her breathing went faster. "Bubble? Leon? Where did you guys go?"

There came no answer. The only thing that happened was the titanic steel behemoth absorbed the last of the village into itself, the Dark Elixir buildings, the Laboratory, and the Builder Huts slotting into the final places on its body. The Army Camps, for whatever reason, were left alone, and it was easy to assume that all the Traps were still underground.

"Bubble!", Brandy screamed, turning in a circle. But there was no answer, and Brandy began to fear the worst. "Leon!"

"I'm sure they're fine.", said Dan, and put one hand on her shoulder. It blazed with warmth, the Star flowing gently down her body and hitting the ground. "Leon can run fast, and I guess they could both turn invisible. They probably just retreated. Don't worry."
"Yeah, but what if they didn't?", asked Brandy, a shock running through her chest like white lightning. She took another glance at the technological terror in front of them- it had begun to turn around.

"They did, okay?", said Dan forcefully, and took his hand off her shoulder. His eyes narrowed, and he started to hold them up in front of himself, taking aim right at the beast. "Now let's go kill this thing."

"Right.", said Brandy, and crouched down low, trying to control her breathing. Leon and Bubble were safe. That's what she had to tell herself. And besides, Dan had said they were alright. So that was true. Or she hoped- no. It was true. That was the truth, and that is what mattered.

"Hey!", she heard Dan shout, and looked up to see him rushing at the monster. "Take this!"

He put his hands together, and yelled. "Super Blast Overdrive!"
"Dan, wait!", Trevor yelled, running towards him as fast as he could. "Wait for backup-"

The blast hit the face of the monster right on, throwing up a huge explosion that sounded like if metal could scream. The mechanical dragon stumbled, and gave a low growl as it tried to right itself. Yellow smoke rose from its mouth, and bubbling liquified Gold started to drip from in between its whirling, drill-like teeth. "You fool…", it growled, and blinked. "You did not give a chance to introduce myself."

"Oh, shut up!", shouted Dan, and took another deep breath. He was surprised that his first attack had not worked- this one must have been made out of something far stronger. "We already know who you are. You're a Forgotten, working for Rakastamos, here to kill us before we reach him, yada yada yada. We get it."

"Oh, it's not just that.", the thing said, and laughed. It boomed a single musical note across the entire valley, shaking the trees and utterly destroying what little remained of the leaves. The entire river trembled nearby. "For I am The Cyborg! Third in line of Rakastamos's personal lieutenants!"

"I see.", said Dan, continuing to build up the charge in his hands. If he could use this moment to get information out of The Cyborg, then he would gladly take it. "Who are the others?"

"You're trying to get me to betray my master?", asked the Cyborg, and its eyes narrowed. "Although I suppose I can tell you about Bonoome… you've already met him after all."

"Yes.", said Dan. "What, was he the first in line?"

"Oh, no.", said the Cyborg, and its throat began to swell as the molten Gold built. "He was the fourth- and out of us, by far the weakest."

Dan jumped back, and the Cyborg attacked. It opened its mouth wide and spat a river of liquid, bubbling Gold that arced through the air like a stream of death. Dan shouted and unleashed the force within his hands, shooting it straight at the oncoming stream. But it had been a mistake to shoot such electricity into the perfect conductor- for both of them. As soon as the beam of Star hit the stream of gold, a bolt of powerful electricity launched out of both ends, striking Dan in the chest and scraping the Cyborg all along the left side of its face. Dan grunted and the Cyborg hissed, its eyes rolling around in its head as it switched to a different weapon.

Dan once again took a breath, noting that any damage to the head seemed to effective. "Guys!", he yelled, looking to see which of the Cyborg's weapons were currently active. "Where's my backup?"

But there was nobody to be found. Dan hoped they were all just in their positions, and narrowed hs eyes. Huge amounts of Star built up in both his arms and legs- he was going for a combo move like he had used against the Charger. But as the Cyborg built up his own attack, Dan worried that it might not be enough.

"You're too annoying.", said the Cyborg, the Inferno Towers starting to glow. "Too effective. Now die."

Dan let the energy in his feet jump up, manifesting as two golden spheres upon the air. He gathered the energy in his arms into right between his hands, drawing his arms back to fire. "Super…"

The Inferno Towers all shot at once, a multi-faceted blast of pure flame shooting right for Dan.

"Leg Day Double Overdrive!", Dan yelled, and fired off the shot. Once again, as the energy from his hands hit the energy from his feet, it was multiplied into a gigantic beam that streaked forward with unstoppable force. It slammed into the Inferno Towers' mixed beam with a bang, sending a huge shockwave throughout the entire area. The Cyborg grunted, and Dan let out a shout.

"What a ridiculous name for such a feeble attack.", said The Cyborg, and spun around the Eagle Artillery on his back. "It matters not that you can barely stop my Inferno Towers, for I have a far stronger attack."

"Shoot.", Dan spat, and tried to reach Brandy. He sent out his mental link, scanning the entire area for her mind. Brandy!, he thought as loudly as he could. Where are you?
I'm here, don't worry, he heard Brandy say, and sighed in relief. I'm sneaking up behind the Cyborg now. There's a wire that looks like it'll deal a lottt of damage if cut.

Good, thought Dan, and saw a shadow of energy above him. "Bad."

In the fraction of a second that followed, several things happened at once, most of them done by Dan. One was that he shut off his beam, letting the Inferno blasts freely fire. The other was that he dodged out of the way with a Lightning fast motion, the Inferno fire carving deep into the ground where he had been. The thing that followed afterwards was the blast volley from the Eagle Artillery slamming into the dirt, reducing much of the area to a smoldering crater.

Dan rolled over onto his feet again, and instantly started to recharge another blast. He held his hand up, channeling some leftover and extra energy into it to keep up a personal shield.

"My, my.", said the Cyborg, and raised its hands off the ground. The X-Bows ratcheted into place, all of them taking aim at Dan. From all the energy he had put off in such a short time, he was beginning to get a little winded. "You're a strong one, Dan. I can see why all the others had such trouble against you."

The Cyborg's Spell Factory lit up, and his mouth once again swelled with boiling, burning Dark Elixir. The Eagle Artillery once again took aim, and the Inferno Towers started to swivel. "But! There is no mortal soul in the world that can defeat I, The Cyborg-"

Right as he said that, he felt a popping sensation right in his back. Brandy, arriving at his body, had just suddenly cut that wire she said she had found suspicious. The Cyborg hung there motionless for a few seconds, before its entire upper body suddenly fell limp, hanging to one side.

Brandy jumped over a low spot on his tail, and ran up to Dan, the bit of wire in her hand. "Whew.", she said, and tossed it away. "That was close."

But, of course, no sooner had she said these words than the Cyborg's eyes once again flashed to life. There was a torturous groaning sound as his upper body regained control of itself, leaning upright again. Hs eyes now burned with hatred, and the huge assortment of weaponry on hs body all flashed at once. "Oh, that is it.", he said, and raised his hand. "Everybody dies."

Song: Burning Colosseum

The Cyborg roared, and held its arms up into the air. Everything aimed directly upwards- the Eagle Artillery, the Inferno Towers, the X-Bows, the Mega Tesla- everything. Brandy watched in confusion as they all fired upwards, shooting straight up into the sky.

"I- I tore out that wire!", she said, and started to build some Dash in her hand. "Why didn't it work?"
"I don't know.", said Dan, and closed his eyes. He began to take in one long breath, as deep as he possibly could. He knew that he would need such a thing in order to defeat the Cyborg.

"Okay, we couldn't find a weak point.", said Trevor, suddenly standing next to Dan, hands on his knees. Annabelle was now there too, wiping oil off her forehead. "You guys find one?"

"No.", said Brandy, and looked up. She yelped, and jumped upwards over Dan's head. Throwing up her arm, she tried to create the largest Dash shield she had ever made- she had to. Dan hadn't made a shield yet, and a combined hit from all that weaponry would certainly kill Annabelle and Trevor. She could not bear to lose them.

As Brandy screamed in both effort and pain, a huge Dash shield appeared over the group's heads. The combined blast of the village's defenses slammed into it not a second later, sending out a deafening shockwave for miles around. Brandy screamed in defiance, feeling the immense weight push against her. But after a few tortured, agonizing seconds of pain and pressure, the blasts faded after failing to hit their target.

Brandy screamed again, out of pure pain this time, and fell right into Dan's arms. Her entire right arm was sparkling with blue energy. There were several spots where the skin had burst open, blood slowly dripping out. Her face was contorted in pain, and she coughed.

"Brandy?", Dan asked, and Brandy slowly opened her eyes. "Shoot.", she said, and coughed. "That… that took a number on me. Hold on."

"Take her somewhere safe.", said Dan, and handed Brandy off to Annabelle. He gave her back a little shove, and she ran off towards the treeline- much to Brandy's mumbled support. But Dan knew that the block, although very helpful, had let her too injured to continue fighting. Leon and Bubble were still gone, and Annabelle had just left. That meant only him and Trevor were able to keep fighting- so, really, only him.

"You are truly impressive.", Dan heard, as the Cyborg began to move towards him. Every metal step boomed upon the ground, its sharp feet making a crater every time they impacted the dirt. "I can see how you were able to take down each and every one of my friends and coworkers thus far. However…"

They Cyborg raised its hand again, each Cannon on its fingers gathering swirling energies deep within it. The Eagle Artillery slowly reloaded, and started to prepare one last shot. The Cyborg's eyes beeped and spun, trying to get exactly the right shot angle to hit Dan where it would hurt the absolute most. "I am not like those others. They had weakness. They could be defeated. I can not."

Dan snarled, and suddenly lashed out with his right hand. "Oh yeah?"
Before The Cyborg could move to block, a thin beam of pure Star shot out like a perfect Spear. It hit the side of the Cyborg's head clean on, piercing straight through and coming out the other side, like a sharpened chopstick stabbed right through a bread roll. The Cyborg let out a cry of shock and pain, one eye exploding from the sudden injury.

A mixture of oil and Elixir began to drip from the side of the Cyborg's head, onto the ground below. It lowered its arm, the light in its working eye sputtering madly, trying to keep on going.

"You- you hit my braiiiiiin.", the Cyborg whined, its damaged head messing with its voice. "How- how- how0- how did yo udo that?"

Dan exhaled, and set down his hand. He could see that the edges of the Cyborg were beginning to fall off, onto the ground below. "Whew.", he said, and clapped his hands in a mighty sound. "That was a tough one, alright."

"You think you have beeat n me?", the Cyborg groaned, its words garbled through its rapidly melting head. It raised the Inferno Tower on its head to try and strike- but that, too, was damaged. It had gone from both modes at once to neither, sparking just as much as its one working eye. "I,,, the Cyyyborg?"

"Yes.", said Dan, and breathed in again. He held up his finger, about to try another shot. He didn't know if it could regenerate or not, but he bet that it could. And he was not going to take any chances.

"Well, sorry to disappoint you. But…", the Cyborg began. "I always have a back up plannnn-"

But before he could say what that plan was, another beam from Dan shot straight through the top of his head, bursting out through his other eye.

The Cyborg gave one last tortured cry, and fell. Its entire body twisted like a gigantic metal rubbish heap, collapsing onto the ground with a sound that defied description. Its mouth fell open onto the ground, melted Elixir and Gold running together and slowly dripping out. It was hard to tell if it would turn into Elixir or not- it had been a village come together.

Dan almost turned away- almost. But he saw something slowly creeping towards the Cyborg's head. He leaned a bit closer to look better- and saw a small collection of writhing metal pipes, all crawling towards the gaping holes in the monster's head.

Unbeknownst to Dan, those were the pipes and tubing left behind by the Jesterbot 2.0, when Brandy had put a fist through its torso. Those had dropped off on command, going to the exact, perfectly planned spot in space and time where they were needed most. And that happened to be right there, right then, when the Cyborg needed help.

The tubes slowly slid into the Cyborg's head, and its eyes started to blink back awake. A metallic creak issued from deep within its throat, and its shoulder started to move.

"Shoot!", Dan shouted, and jumped back. He looked behind him, to see that Brandy was starting to get up. That was good- she would still be a valuable fighter. Trevor and Annabelle looked ready to fight as well. That was also good, as he was going to need all three of them for what was coming next. "Guys, we're all going to have to strike together on this one!"

"Okay.", Brandy said, and breathed in. She grabbed her aching side, and grit her teeth. "I can do that. Let's go."

"You insolent little wretches!", screamed the Cyborg, and raised its hands. The Eagle Artillery on its back did not even wait to fire- it simply exploded right into the air, launching an entire volley of powerful blasts right over the group's heads. As Dan looked at it closer, he noticed that the Cyborg's entire body, all of the absorbed defenses, looked quite different. It was almost as if they had been upgraded. But that was impossible- a Town Hall of 12 was the highest Town Hall. At least that Dan was aware of. Was there one higher? He didn't know. But if anyone had the capacity for higher, it was this mechanical monster.

"Brandy.", said Dan, and gestured to something he had noticed, on the Cyborg's head. "You see that thing? I need you to-"

He stopped talking, and looked around. "Brandy? Honey, where'd you go?"

But Brandy, for whatever reason, had disappeared.

"There's not time to say goodbye!", the Cyborg yelled, and raised both its hands. Every bit of firepower on its entire body glowed at once- the Archers, the Wizards, the Cannons, the Bomb Towers, the X-Bows, the Mortars, the Inferno Towers, the Eagle Artillery- even the Air Defenses turned to fire. The Spell Factory on its jaw lit up as well, preparing to fire a Lightning. "This is the end, you pathetic mortal scraps!"

Dan took a step back in a carefully prepared stance, trying to get enough energy together to deflect the blast. But his foot slid deeper into the dirt than it should have logically gone- and he felt it touch the unmistakable textured surface of a Giant Bomb.

The traps that had been buried in the ground went off all at once right underneath Dan, washing flames of fire and a huge explosion over his entire body. The Spring Traps did nothing against his mighty weight, but the Bombs and Giant Bombs covered his entire body with a huge explosion. He yelled in surprise and some pain, closing his eyes to ward off the smoke. But the purpose of the Traps had been, of course, not to damage him. No, they had been to take his mind, eyes, and attention off of the real threat.

"Ha!", the Cyborg shouted, and let his entire volley fly- or he would have, had something not come flying straight out of the forest like a guided missile, hitting the Cyborg directly upon the head and smashing the jewel that had been placed there to bits.

The Cyborg screamed in pain, its weaponry firing at random. Huge streaks of arrows and pure flame slashed across the entire area, some ending up hitting Dan dead on. But he crossed his arms and held his breath, trying not to let any shot get past him. Which, fortunately ,they did not.

The cannonballs and arrows strafed the entire area, a great deal of them slamming into Dan's body. But he held firm, even though the pain was beginning to get through his already damaged armor. He took a breath in, preparing to use the Star even though he was exhausted and his lungs were suffering tears. But before he could, the shadow of pure destructive force fell over him. He looked up, and saw the firepower of the Eagle Artillery coming down straight on top of Annabell and Trevor.

"Oh.", he said, and dove towards them. "I had forgotten about that."

The full force of the blast came down directly onto Dan's back, sending out lesser shockwaves in every direction like the peal of a great bell. He groaned in agony as the raw damage and power hit him, cracking what armor he had left into bits. It fell off of him, smoking and broken, revealing his equally smoking and torn back. He coughed a single bloody cough, as the impact of the beyond-max-level Eagle Artillery slowly settled within his bones. "Ow…"

Trevor and Annabelle ran out from beneath him, as Dan dropped to his knees. He was far from out, but he was, for now, down. He would need about a minute to recover, before he could fight again. But someone had finally joined them- or, to be precise, two someones.

"Come on!", Leon yelled, and flicked another few spinner blades out of his pocket. He took careful aim at the speed in which he was running and launched them, arcing and cutting through the air, headed straight for the Cyborg's eye. "Come on, just try and hit me!"

Bubble, riding on his shoulders, said nothing. She merely closed her eyes and concentrated, bending the air around the two. To the Cyborg, as long as they were standing right behind Bubble's illusion, they were totally invisible. But she had to keep it up.

"What?", the Cyborg roared, and randomly swiped out. He missed the two by a mile, and they kept on sprinting at top speed. "Who the- what the-"

Leon grimaced, and shot a look at the main group. He saw Brandy leaning against a tree, going through her pockets for some reason. He saw Dan face down on the ground in a huge crater, struggling to stand. He saw Trevor and Annabelle desperately trying to dodge the continuous shots of the Cyborg, and panic started to set into him like quick-acting cement. But he refused to be scared- he gave a ferocious shout, and sped up. He drew Hunter Killer out of his pocket, and aimed it right at the Cyborg's head. Even if something had managed to rejuvenate it, one more clean shot through the head would most likely finish it off.

"Leon, slow down!", Bubble screamed, pushing her hands around in fear. "I can't keep up with you! He's gonna see us!"

"What?", Leon shouted, and slowed down. But that too was off- he had slowed down too much, and was now out of the way of Bubble's illusion screen. And that was when the Cyborg saw him- a double target, to be utterly destroyed.

"Die!", the Cyborg yelled, and swiped his free hand. Leon crossed his arms, and Bubble tried uselessly to throw up a shield- but neither of their defenses mattered against the blow. Five gigantic Cannons slammed into Leon, throwing him far away into the air. He felt a sharp, excruciating pain in both his legs, and screamed in agony as he tumbled through the air.

Song: Third Bomb

"Leon!", Brandy screamed, as she saw them fly through the air. "Bubble!"

Dan looked up, having finally managed to push himself to his feet. He stretched out his arm to catch the two, but his blurred vision caused him to wildy miss. Leon flew over his head, past Trevor's waiting grasp, and slammed directly into the ground. This caused another loud crunch, and another scream of intense pain. He skidded along the ground like a thrown ragdoll, and slammed into the treeline. He couldn't move, only continue to scream.

Bubble missed Dan's grip as well, but managed to fall into Brandy's. Her face was streaked with a mixture of tears and blood, both her's and Leon's. Her arm lay in an unnatural position by her side- Brandy could tell at once that it had been broken, along with both of Leon's legs. Brandy began to gasp in horror over and over again- they had run out of Heal spells.

"Bubble…", she said, and gripped Bubble closer to her. "Don't worry. It's all gonna be okay."

But Bubble did not respond. She merely lay there, looking towards the sky, her mind gently shutting down from total shock. She could hear and feel nothing.

Dan groaned, and forced himself to stand up straight. He took another deep breath, trying to gather as much Star into his hands as possible. He thought that perhaps, if he just shot one last blast, he could finish off the Cyborg for good. He didn't know if he would survive the process.

"Shoot…", Trevor said, and looked at Annabelle. They weren't sure if they should run or not. They were both in pretty good shape, but stood absolutely no chance against the Cyborg. They questioned whether it would be better to live, or die alongside their friends.

"It's over, useless mortals!", the Cyborg shouted, and plunged his fist into the ground. The entire valley began to shake, and faraway screams were heard. Trees far away shook and fell, as a huge golden Dragon emerged from the ground, taking flight towards the group. "I hardly will bother to finish you myself… no, that is what my servants are for. Although..."

Brandy closed her eyes, and knew what she had to do. She Dashed over to Leon, and grabbed his legs. Setting Bubble down on his chest, she concentrated on where his legs had broken. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, despite the situation, she placed one hand on his joints. She thought about the pain, exhaled- and swept it away, into the open air. The damage was still there, of course- but the pain did manage to subside a bit, enough for Leon to form words.

"Mom…", he groaned, and looked up. His face was bleeding, the blood mixing with tears. "What are you doing?"
"I'm helping the pain.", said Brandy, and did it again. Leon swallowed, unable to believe it. "What?", he asked. "Why? We're all gonna die…"

"No!", Brandy shouted, and looked up towards Dan. "We're not gonna die. Just hold on."

"Hey, Dan?", asked Trevor, looking up towards the Dragon and the Cyborg. The area around them was shaking, everything building up towards what felt like an explosion. "What are we gonna do?"

"I don't know.", said Dan, and brought up his shaking, shining hands for one last blast. "Maybe this. Maybe this will work. Just hold on."

"Hold on?", asked both Leon and Annabelle, with expressions of desperation. "We can't just hold on! We're about to die!"
"No.", said Brandy loudly, and Dan quietly. Brandy hugged Leon as tight as she could, bringing in Bubble even closer. "Just hold on, hold on, everything's gonna be okay-"

"Get behind me!", shouted Dan, and held up his hands together. A quiet determination sparked in them, fueled by a desire to live. "I'm gonna blow him up with one shot!"

"It's over, mortals!", shouted the Cyborg, and the entire group fell back. The terror of his voice blasted out for miles, as he aimed all his weaponry straight at Dan. "Time to die!"

"No!", Dan yelled, and a green aura flared up dozens of feet above his head. His teeth grew longer, and his pupils less visible. He let out his charged up blast, with a sound that felt like an erupting volcano.

"Yes!", the Cyborg yelled, and unleashes his fullest strength. The two forces charged towards each other, each carrying enough energy to transform a small city to ash. They twisted and spireled in the air towards each other, increasing as they went, until-

Until a single voice rang out above them all, from the clifftop below. It sounded like justice and terror all rolled into one, a perfect balance. "Sutah Platina! Za Warudo!"

Song: Diamond is Unbreakable

At those words, time froze. Well, not so much as froze as torn apart, ripped asunder by the powerful abilities of the one who spoke. A horrible screeching note rolled across all of reality, the entire world turning grey to the vision of all two who were capable of seeing it. And as the man in white touched down upon the ground, he stared at the scene of intense combat down below.

But it did not invoke feeling in him. There was no fear, or anger, or even confusion. Merely a sigh, an adjustment of his hat's brim, and a trademark "Yare yare daze."

With the smallest of thoughts, he summoned his legendary Stand to his side. The mighty Star Platinum hovered in midair, its long hair flowing in the wind, awaiting its master's orders.

"Star Platinum…", said Jotaro Kujo, and continued to observe the scene below. "Anata no atarashī kunren sa reta chikara wa koko de yakunitachimasu. Sorera no 2tsu no mokutō o nyūshu shite kudasai.

Star Platinum nodded, and temporarily faded away. Jotaro waited a bit, feeling deep within him the sensation of his stopped time beginning to fade. He had only three more seconds- but for him, such a time was an eternity. His reflexes were faster than anybody he knew.

But, soon enough, his two companions emerged from the thin air. They too could move in his world of stopped time, for he had personally allowed it. One carried a comb in his fingers, flipping it through his immaculately styled hair. He tugged at his collar, and looked around.

"Oiii, Josuke!", shouted his other partner, and put his hand on his brow. He stared into the valley with wide eyed wonder, hardly able to believe what he was seeing. "Doku ni iru no?"
"Wakarimasen, Okuyasu.", said Josuke Higishikata, "Jotaro-san ni doshitara I ka kiite kudasai."

Jotaro pointed, the force of such a pose known to many as a destructive maneuver. He pointed out the group down below, right on the brink of being blasted into oblivion by the Cyborg's full power blast. "Okuyasu.", he said, and Okuyasu perked up. "Za Hando o shiyō shite, jama ni naranai yō ni shite kudasai. Anata ga sore o hikidasu koto ga dekirunara."

Okuyasu saluted, and Za Hando appeared behind him. With a loud, enthusiastic cry and a swipe of pure Stand energy, space itself vanished. A hole was opened in reality between the three and the group down below, one that would not activate until time unfroze.

"Josuke.", said Jotaro, and frowned. He always did that. "Karera wa kega o shite iru yō ni miemasu. Sorera o iyasu tame ni anata no kureijīdaiyamondo o shiyō shite kudasai."

Josuke gave a thumbs up, and was about to say something. But he was cut off by the all-encompassing sound of time slowly beginning to work again, the greyscale of the world turning into color, and the movement starting to creak back into existence.

"Toki wa no mukidas.", said Jotaro, and closed his eyes. Time began to move again.

As soon as it did, a whole lot of things happened, some of them even good.

The entire group was yanked away by the force of erasing space, the Cyborg's combined blast shooting right past them. It continued on into the ground, carving away the rock and melting the dirt for thousands of feet until it smashed against a tectonic plate, far down below. The entire valley rumbled, but it was too far away and too gradual to be noticed by anyone.

At that same time, the group flew up towards the cliff where Okuyasu had slashed from. Of course, not even the force of that small vacuum was enough to bring them all the way there, and they ceased their travel around halfway through.

Dan, however, kept firing. His shot rocketed past the Cyborg's, continuing on through the air and shooting straight for the Dragon. The Dragon jerked its head back to avoid the shot, the suddenness of the movement causing it to lose its sense of direction. It was forced to bank and take a low landing in the trees to avoid a crash, vanishing somewhere below the firs.

"Wh- what?", he said, as he noticed they they were now, in fact, flying through the air. Not wasting even a second, he spun around, grabbing everybody he could reach. Tucking them close to his body in a flash of quick movement, he prepared for the crash against the cliff. "Everyone, hold on-"

But the crash never came. With another grating blast of sound, Okuyasu struck again. A vacuum opened up in space, yanking the group upwards, over the cliff, and directly behind Jotaro.

As they rolled to a stop, Brandy couldn't quite believe what it was she was seeing. The three men- well, boys, really. Although the one in white was a man- in front of her hardly resembled anyone or anything she had ever seen. And behind the one in the blue jacket, there was-

"A- a Stand?", Brandy gasped, as she rolled behind Dan's arm, and into a different field of vision. "What?"

The Cyborg raised his assortment of weaponry, and took a close look. The area he had hit harbored absolutely no sign whatsoever of the group anymore. They had either been entirely disintegrated, or somehow moved out of the way. And judging from the state they had been last time he had looked, the Cyborg was going to go with the first option.

"Excellent, excellent.", he said to himself, one hand leisurely heading for the communication button on the side of his massive body. "I'll just tell Rakastamos, and-"

But then, his right eye became aware of an odd-looking figure standing on a rock in front of him. He seemed, to the Cyborg's highly advanced vision, to be coated with some kind of totally alien energy signature, unlike anything on record.

He looked to be unlike anything in the entire world, even far different from the ones up on the rocks. His bright blonde hair stood straight up, crackling and sparkling with lightning. His orange clothes flapped in the wind, and his fists lay clenched at his sides. His proportions suggested him to be a child, but his overwhelming power suggested anything but.

"What…", the Cyborg said to himself, and took a closer look at the warrior. He began to extend a special probe, towards the child's head. "What are you?"

"Ka…", said the boy, and moved his hands back. His eyes narrowed, making sure he could get a good target.

"Ka, hm?", the Cyborg asked, "That is an interesting name. I don't hear it often."

"Me…", said the boy, and moved his hands together. A slight glow began to sparkle in between them, the Cyborg's energy readings going so far off the charts they had entered a new one.

"Me?", the Cyborg asked, and began to ready a needle deep within his body. This youth had incredible power- perhaps he could steal that power for himself. "What are you-"
"Ha…. me…", said the boy quietly, and his hands started to fill with immense amounts of light.

"Oh.", said the Cyborg, and only then realized what was about to happen. He crossed his arms in front of himself, trying to protect upon the absolute onslaught that would soon be released. His Dragon enforcer chose that precise time to point its head above the treeline, staring right at the small thing in front of the Cyborg that seemed to be causing it so much terror.

"HAAAAA!", screamed the boy, and threw his fists forward as his energy beam was unleashed.

The blast was not merely large, or only extraordinary powerful. Such adjectives would be folly before the sheer might that was unleashed at the boy's command. The beam seemed not to be made of just semi-physical energy, but a solid chunk of matter. That was its presence it commanded as it punched through the Cyborg's entire body, utterly annihilating every part it touched like a hole puncher bit through onionskin. The beam was a magnificent gold in color, similar to the ones Dan shot- but this was beyond anything even he had managed to conjure up. This was on another level of strong, one that Dan could only stare at, in abject wonder.

The beam continued on, the mere aftereffects of the blast tearing what little remained of the Cyborg's body into pieces. The Cyborg could not even make a sound as his body was punched into dust- there was no time. Hardly a second had passed from the time the boy fired and the time the beam had shot across the forest.

It streaked off like a shot from a Cannon, firing all the way out of sight. The width of the beam fluctuated, going from thin to wide to thin again in a fraction of a second. All the trees for hundreds of feet were bent back, what little leaves remained on them disintegrating from both the pressure and the heat the beam gave off, even from that distance. The boy snarled, his hair flying in the wind he created as he fired the beam, until he was sure his opponent was no more.

Once he was sure that the Cyborg had been utterly wiped from existence, the beam began to weaken. Its golden glow faded to a mere yellow, until it slowly faded from the air, becoming just flicks and flecks of dust upon the light. The boy took a deep breath, then closed his eyes. His previously golden hair turned to black, and fell limp down onto his shoulders.

"What…", Dan breathed, hardly even able to believe what he had just seen. The one that had shot the Cyborg out of existence was just a boy- there was no way he was that strong. And yet, that beam was one he could hardly even believe existed. It was like he was… was… Dan didn't even know. There wasn't a metaphor he could imagine for that kind of strength. "...was that?"

"Who are you people?", Brandy asked, and jumped up from the ground. She landed on Dan's shoulder, and looked around at the assembled group of three. "I mean, thank you for saving us, but-"

Then, a thought occurred to her. She dug her hands into her pocket, looking for something. Once she found it, she brought it up, out, and into the light- the Ring of Three Wishes.

The second band had been broken, soft smoke coming from off of it. Brandy looked around at the group, who stared at the Ring with only curiosity. "Did… did this summon you? I know that when I pressed it the last time, some weird people came, so I thought that-"

"Yare yare…", said Jotaro, and once again adjusted his cap. He did that a lot. "Dō yatte koko ni kita no ka wakarimasen. Watashitachi wa shitte imashita."

"Uh…", said Brandy, staring at him. She tried to make sense of who, or what he was. With his long white coat, odd mix of hat and hair, and strange symbols all over his body, Brandy thought he resembled an unbearded Wizard. "What was that?"

"Oi, Josuke!", said Okuyasu, an expression of extreme worry crossing his face. "Nihongo wa hanasemasen! Dō suru?"

"Good grief.", said Jotaro, and sighed. He took a step forward, and grudgingly stared at Brandy. She shifted back, not really liking how standoffish he was. "I speak English. Let me talk to them."

Josuke nodded, and Okuyasu nodded as well after a second of staring. Dan got up from the ground, and rubbed his head. "Good morning, sir.", he said, and extended his hand. "Who, and what, are you?"

Jotaro looked at Dan's immense form, and made a small movement with his finger. Star Platinum emerged from his body to shake Dan's hand, causing Brandy's eyes to almost pop out of her head and Leon's tail to stick out all the way from his jacket.

"Woah!", Leon shouted, staring at Star Platinum in shock. "That- that's a-"

"A Stand?", asked Jotaro wearily, and nodded. "Yeah. This is Star Platinum."
"Star Platinum…", Brandy breathed, and looked it up and down. "What an incredible Stand. I wish mine was like that. What can it do?"

"Brandy, what are you looking at?", asked Dan, and looked out across the group. "Is he-"

"You're not a Stand user?", asked Jotaro, his face not budging. "Hmm. How many of you are?"

Brandy and Leon raised their hands, and Jotaro made a mental note. "Anatagata futari. Sutando o hikidashimasu."

Josuke and Okuyasu both nodded, purple and blue light flaring around their bodies. "We're all Stand users.", Jotaro said, gesturing slightly to his two companions. "Watch."

"Woah…", Brandy gasped, as Crazy Diamond and The Hand appeared behind Josuke and Okuyasu. "Those… are… amazing! What are they called? What can they do?"

"This is Crazy Diamond, and Josuke Higishikata.", said Jotaro, and gestured. Josuke grinned, and waved. "He can heal things. Like how he healed the kid's legs, and the girl's face."

Leon startled, realizing that his legs did, in fact, not hurt anymore. He looked down, to see that Bubble was sleeping peacefully, the blood gone from her skin. "What? When? I didn't even see him!"

"During my stopped time.", said Jotaro with a smile, allowing himself to take some pride in his abilities. "That's what Star Platinum does. That, and punching."

"What about that one?", asked Brandy, looking at The Hand. Okuyasu kicked a rock, looking around at the scenery. "He looks impressive."

"That's The Hand, and Okuyasu Nijimura.", said Jotaro. "He's kinda stupid, but pretty dependable. Okayuasu? Miseru."

Okuyasu looked up, and grinned. "Heh.", he said, and spun around, preparing to pose. If he was to properly present himself, then he would have to put in effort.

"Za Hando!", he shouted, and pointed to a nearby stump. There were a lot of them around.

"Sono kirikabu o keshi nasai!", he yelled, and Za Hando attacked. It swung its hand downwards, a loud bass sound erupting from the motion. A large blue shape appeared in the air right where the stump was- then it was gone, along with the stump. Absolutely no trace remained of the wood, save a single Gem, spinning upon the ground.

"Holy Se'th.", said Brandy, staring at the three Stands in wonder. They were so powerful, she wondered if- no. There was no way. They probably had their own lives to attend to, and-
"Wanna come with us?", asked Trevor, and Jotaro looked down. "We're going on a quest to save the world from a Dragon. We need all the help we can get."

"Yare yare…", said Jotaro under his breath. "We're busy. I don't know about the other kid though, you might want to check with him."

"Other kid-", said Dan, then realized who Jotaro was talking to. "Oh, right!"

Dan leapt off the cliff, to the spot where the blonde boy had been. He needed to find out as much as he could about his extraordinary power, and how he could attain such majestic might for himself.

"Now.", said Jotaro, and whirled around, his long white coat adding to the effect. "You said you had Stands. What are they?"

"Uh…", said Leon, and held out his hand. He concentrated a bit, as Hunter Killer swirled into view, its gunmetal barrel glinting with soft metal light. "This is mine. Hunter Killer."

He held it out in shooting position, softly switching between its different modes. "It shoots stuff."

"And, uh…", said Brandy, and trailed off. She didn't really know how to explain The Dreamer to any of them. It wasn't a physical Stand like Leon's, and it certainly wasn't a floating, bipedal spirit like the three. She had even been steadily using it less- she wasn't sure what to say.

"The Dreamer.", said Leon for her, Brandy turning to glare at him. "My mom's Stand is called The Dreamer. She can see the future with it, I guess."

"Hmmm….", said Jotaro, staring at the two. They both possessed similar abilities to Stands he had encountered in the past, although not fully realizing it at the time. They also bore resemblance to Stands a close friend of his would run into sometime in the future- but of course, he also had no idea such Stands were a reality. To him, Hunter Killer and The Dreamer were interesting, but nothing more.

"So what are they named after?", he asked, and Brandy frowned. "Huh?"

"What are they named after?", he repeated, and leaned forward a bit. "All Stands are named after something. Star Platinum was named by my grandfather's friend, after one of the Tarot cards. Crazy Diamond and The Hand are both inspired by those two idiot's favorite songs and bands… but what about you? What's your inspiration?"

Brandy and Leon looked at each other, wondering what Jotaro could possibly be talking about. "Uh…", said Leon, and shrugged. "I don't know. Hunter Killer just sounded cool, I guess. Could be a music name or a Tara card or something. Whatever."

"And I just named it The Dreamer because that's what it does.", said Brandy. "It dreams. I mean I had no idea it had to be named after something. No Stand I know is."

"What other Stands do you know?", asked Jotaro, suddenly curious. "Tell me."

"Uh…", said Brandy, and almost sat down. She was getting a little intimidated by Jotaro's menacing aura, and needed a little break. "My friend has a Stand. It's called Phantom of the Opera."

Jotaro almost laughed, but of course managed to keep it hidden. After that one Sun incident, he swore he would never laugh again. "I see."

A loud crash suddenly sounded on the side of the cliff, Star Platinum swinging around to attack. But it instantly relaxed when it saw just Dan, and the boy that had had blonde hair. Dan looked incredibly excited, while the boy just looked embarrassed to be there.

"Hey, everyone.", said Dan, and looked down at the boy. "This is Gohan. He said he didn't really know how he came here, just that he was suddenly here, and-"
"And then there was a robot.", finished Gohan, and sighed. "So I killed it, because I figure that's what everybody wants me to do. Nobody cares that I can find the square root of numbers that don't exist, they just want me to break stuff."
"Yeah, but you break stuff well.", said Dan, and leaned in. "Seriously, how did you do that?"

"You.", said Jotaro, and pointed towards Gohan. "What sort of power did you use?"

"Ki.", said Gohan simply, and left it at that. He didn't know what else to say.

"Ki…", said Jotaro, trying to remember what that was. He knew that his grandfather had used Hamon, but the beam the boy had unleashed was far beyond anything he had seen anyone do.

"Was that Star?", asked Dan, and his hand flared up in excitement. "Cause you have to tell me how you used that much."

"Star?", asked Gohan and Jotaro, both at once. "What's Star?"

"This.", said Dan, and held up his hand. "You know, ancient martial art?"

"Hamon?", asked Jotaro, and raised an eyebrow in a rare show of caring. "Is that what you call Hamon here? Wherever here is."

"I don't know.", said Dan, and let his hand drop. "What's Hamon?"

"Everyone!", said Annabelle loudly, and they all turned to look up, Annabelle standing upon a rock. Even Josuke and Okuyasu, who had gotten bored with a conversation they could not speak in and were just staring at the view, hands on each other's shoulders, totally just two friends.

"We're getting nowhere.", she said, and pointed to Jotaro. "You said you were super busy. And you, Gohan- you probably need to leave too."

"Yeah.", said Gohan, and looked down at the ground. "I do. If I don't get back to studying soon, Mom's gonna kill me."

Jotaro sighed, and turned around. "Sā, baka. Shuppatsu shimasu.", he said, and Josuke nodded.

"A, mō shuppatsu shimasu ka?", asked Okuyasu, Za Hando vanishing back into his body. "Shikashi, watashi wa chōdo koko de sore o suki ni nari hajimete imashita! Kono fūkei ga mobairugēmu no kurasshu, kurasshuobukuran ni dore dake nite iru kani sae kidzukimashita."

"Eto.", said Josuke, and nodded. He ran his comb through his hair out of habit, and started to follow Jotaro around the bend. A curious white filter lay over a patch of air in the middle of the path- no doubt the way back to Morioh. "Anata ga tadashī… watashi wa ima soko ni iru no kashira?"

"You guys are crazy.", said Jotaro, then transitioned back into Japanese for their sake. He settled back into his regular mode, preparing himself once again for the serial killer hunting task at hand. "Gēmu ni sanka suru koto wa dekimasen. Sore wa imi ga arimasen."

And with that closing remark, the Duwang gang vanished behind the bend, into a flash of white light. The portal closed up, and they were gone, back to their bizarre adventures.

"You.", said Dan, and turned to Gohan. "You have to teach me how to get that strong."

Gohan stared at him, then put two fingers to his forehead. He had watched his dad do the technique a lot- he was sure he had it down by now. "Just get angry. It'll do the rest."

Gohan closed his eyes, his first try at Instant Transmission most likely a success. He vanished, leaving the group once again by themselves.

"So.", said Dan, staring at the spot where Gohan had disappeared from. "That happened."

"Yep.", said Brandy, staring at the Ring of Three Wishes. It had generated immense value for them so far, but there was now only summon left. And they had to save it for Rakastamos. No matter what, she could not let herself use the last summon of the ring until then. "It did."
"So… anyone wanna take a little break?", asked Dan, and sat down on the ground. He looked around for any food growing anywhere, but saw none. So he just picked up the Gem that had been generated from the trunk Za Hando had erased, and tossed it to Brandy. She grabbed it with one hand and tucket it into her pocket, keeping it nice and safe. "I'm tired."

"Yeah.", said Bubble, and sat up. "That was exhausting. And that robot hurt me. Good thing that nice man with weird hair fixed me up though."
For a second, Bubble thought she could hear something banging on the other side of reality, unspeakable rage only contained by a barrier between dimensions. But she dismissed it.

Song: Memories of Bah

"Dan?", asked Brandy quietly, staring down at the ground. She had tucked the Ring back into her pocket, and was now sitting cross-legged upon the ground. Dan could immediately tell that something was wrong, and he went over to sit next to her. "What's wrong, honey?"
"I keep…", said Brandy, and closed her eyes. She had to force herself to say what was next in her words, but it was difficult. She could not bear the thought of saying it out loud.

"What?", asked Dan, and put his massive hand on her legs. His strength could break hills, but his touch was as gentle as an April breeze. "What is it, Brandy?"
"Well…", said Brandy, and reopened her eyes again. Her face turned a little red, then slowly started to become more and more white. Her fingers started to tremble, and sweat dripped down her cheeks. "I keep… I keep on…"

"Yes?", asked Dan, and slightly shifted on his massive weight. One hand went onto the back of Brandy's spine, supporting her all the way up her back. "Come on. You can tell me."
"I've been having these visions lately.", said Brandy, her voice dropping from a regular speaking tone to a loud whisper. Her heart started to beat faster, barely able to articulate what thought entered her head after that. "And… and... "

"Brandy.", said Dan, and ever so gently placed a single finger on Brandy's chin. He looked her dead in the eyes, trying to send her all the love and affection he possibly could. He did not know what had sparked this sudden change in attitude. "You can tell me. You can say it."

"I keep feeling like…", said Brandy, and closed her eyes. She spoke in a voice so quiet that Dan could hardly even hear it at all, could barely make it out. ""I'm going to die."

The force of the words was far more than any usual utterance. A thick blanket of silence suddenly fell upon the entire area, crushing any noises of the throat, general conversation, or anything else that might be uttered casually. Dan took that information to heart, and knew he had to tread the next conversation carefully.

"What do you mean?", Dan asked, taking in a bit of a breath. He gently channeled what he hoped was positive energy into Brandy's back, trying to displace the fear she held. But he felt it merely push against her, unable to actually enter her body.

"I keep on feeling like… I'm gonna die.", said Brandy, gesturing out to the open air. She tucked her knees in close to her chest, and stared down at the ground. "So many times we've run into a monster this quest, and so many times I just barely survived. Each time we run into a strong one they get tougher and tougher… what if, next time…"

Brandy was barely able to choke out the words, but she forced herself to keep on going.

"What if next time, I don't make it?", she asked, feeling her eyes start to tear up. "What if next time, I'm not fast enough, and… it kills me?"

"No, don't say that.", said Dan, with total seriousness. He moved in closer to Brandy, wrapping his hand around her and gently squeezing, not enough to hurt but just enough to be comforting. He knew she liked it like that. "You're not going to die. Nothing can hurt you anymore."

"But they can.", said Brandy, remembering what she had faced. "Bonoome almost killed me multiple times. That guy on the wolf almost killed me. There were a few times in the river where I almost died. Every time, something saved me. You, the silver…"

"Woah, the sil-", Dan said, but thought that would be best saved for another time. "Yes.", he said, and nodded. "But you know what else?"

"What?", Brandy asked quietly, feeling a lump well up in her throat. She tried to push it down, but it was too big, too strong. Her eyes automatically closed, as tears of real fear slowly pushed their way out.

"You survived.", said Dan, and gave her the gentlest smile he possibly could. There was another slight shock in the back of her head, and Brandy's eyes opened up automatically. "Yes, they tried to kill you. But you survived. We all did. Because no matter what, we are not going to let each other die. None of us."

Brandy stared at him, exuding light. She felt the lump in her throat beginning to go down, and the tears starting to slow down.

"I'm not going to let you die.", said Dan, and gave her another small squeeze. "Leon's not going to let you die, Bubble's not going to let you die, Trevor's not going to let you die, Annabelle's not going to let you die-"

As he spoke their names, he picked Brandy up. He turned her in a circle, letting her face each and every member of the party. They nodded, and looked at Brandy with sincerity.

"But most importantly, Brandy…", said Dan, and slowly, gently, not making any sudden movements, brought Brandy closer to his chest. "You are not going to let yourself die. So you won't. I mean, you've survived so much, you must not be able to die."

"What do you mean?", said Brandy, trying to keep the lump in her throat from rising again.

"Well, look at everything you've been through.", said Dan, and Brandy took a moment to remember. "And if you've survived all that, then you must be destined to survive."

Brandy could easily have said "Yeah, I guess you're right", and left it at that. She could have easily agreed, and let the party continue on their way. But she did not, for she had one last thing to say. One last fear, that stood in front of her mind and did not allow her to let go of the fear of death. She swallowed hard, trying to find the courage to say it.

"But…", she said, and her eyes grew misted. "I've been having more dreams lately. From The Dreamer, those kinds of dreams. And…"

"And what?", asked Dan, letting his hot breath fall into Brandy's ear. Normally, this would have sent her curling up, into a happy ball. But this was not like most times.
"And in them…", Brandy said, and felt more tears begin to drip from her face. "I'm dead. I've been having visions from the future, and in every single one of them, I die."

Leon stared at his mother, unable to believe what he was seeing. He had only known her for a few days, but he still found it hard to believe she could be like this. Almost all the time he had known her, she had been very calm and collected, not the crying mess he was now seeing. And yet, he had to think- was this what she was normally like?

"What?", Dan asked, and tried to hug her even better than he was doing. "Don't say that, Brandy. Even if you're getting a vision, it doesn't automatically mean that it's true."
"But it does.", Brandy said quietly, and once again began to sob. "I'm gonna die, and-"

She suddenly felt a small Zap run across her face, all her tears evaporating. She looked up into Dan's face, who stared at her with a stone-hard seriousness.

"Brandy.", he said, every word weighted with emotion and intent. "Have I ever lied to you?"

"N- no.", said Brandy, and shook her head. "No, you haven't."

"Exactly.", said Dan, and nodded. "Now, has The Dreamer lied to you? Yes, yes it has. It said we would lose that final battle in the arena for some reason. And, of course, we did not."

Brandy thought about this for a second. She had always just assumed that the visions granted by The Dreamer were flawless, that they would come true every single time. But she did have to admit that Dan had a point. If that time had not come true, then why should the dreams of her death? The thought sent a single beam of light, a shaft of hope through the darkness clouding her mind. "I… you're right."

Brandy's tears began to dry, and the lump in her throat started to break down. She swallowed, and moved her tired limbs. "I guess I hadn't thought about it that way."

Dan let her out of his tight hug, and she slowly scrambled up to his shoulder. She laid her head on his, and felt her eyes start to slip close. "But I'm still kinda shaken up."

"That's understandable.", said Dan, and leaned down. He offered up his hands to the group, who climbed upon them and towards their usual spots. "We did just fight a gigantic metal monster and meet weird people from another place, after all."

"Yeah…", said Brandy, and a slight smile started to creep across her face. "I'm just gonna take a little nap right here, okay? Just a little… nap…"

Her eyes closed, and Brandy fell limp. She was prevented from falling off by the sandwich of Dan's head and Leon's side, slightly squished between them. But she liked that.

Dan watched her for a few seconds, making sure she was truly asleep. He hoped that his therapy session had worked, impromptu and quick as it was. Once he was sure she was out, he turned to the valley, looked for the river, and pointed in the direction opposite from which it was flowing. "To the mountain!", he said, but quietly, so as to not wake Brandy.

"To the mountain!", the rest of the group shouted, also quieter than they would normally. Dan began walking, down the hill, and towards the tranquil river.

"Trevor.", he said, and Trevor pulled out the map automatically. "Where are we going?"

"Hmm…" said Trevor, and carefully looked at the map. "It says something about a field, but that part of the map looks like its burned off. I can't read it."

"Oh.", said Dan, but kept on walking. He reached the bottom of the hill, and put his hand up to block the sun from his eyes. "Well, some fields can't be that bad, right?"

"I would hope so, Dan.", said Trevor, with worry. "I would hope so."

The Dragon that the Cyborg had summoned had managed to survive Gohan's blast, by not being in the way when it had shot. He cowered behind some still-smoking trees, unable to process the sheer might he had just witnessed. He was in terror- both of whatever that boy had been, and what Rakastamos would say if he found it.

But, in truth, he did not have to worry about either of those things. Gohan had gone back to his own realm, and Rakastamos already knew. He did not know the first, but he was about to find out firsthand the second, as something in his head began to ring.

"Terabooooos!", he heard inside his head, in the unmistakable voice of his master. Terabos flinched, but knew he had no choice but to answer the call. He squeezed his jaw, the method for answering. He winced, not wanting to answer. "Yes, Lord Rakastamos?"

"I suppose you are answering in fear.", said Rakastamos, and Terabos was taken aback. "But you do not have to worry. For although The Cyborg was indeed struck down, he can regenerate a new body at will. This was merely an inconvenience for him."

"O- oh.", said Terabos, and relaxed. "That is good, I suppose.",

"Yes, yes.", said Rakastamos, and his voice took on a more serious tone. "However, creating a new body will be a difficult task, especially since he would like to make it an even better one. It will take him a while, and I have a new mission for you during that time."

"What is it?", asked Terabos, and looked up to make sure the group was gone. They were, and he sighed in relief. "I should know as soon as possible."

"Find Chuqalita.", said Rakastamos. "I know my sister well. I also know that she is most likely going to try and wake our siblings, no doubt to try and quell my goals."

"But- why would she do that?", asked Terabos, and began to warm up his wings. "You wish to save all Dragonkind, and bring in a true Golden age of prosperity. Why would she oppose you on that?"

"Her name may be Chuqalita the Wise.", said Rakastamos, and chuckled. "But her constant interactions with mortals have slowed her mind to that of a mere child. It pains me to see her fall to such depths… but if she must be dealt with, then do it."

"Wait, you-", said Terabos, and shook his head in confusion. "I must have not heard you right. You want me to- to kill Chuqalita?"
"If you must.", said Rakastamos, and Terabos felt a chill run down his entire body. "It would be a loss, but everything matters… when you're building the perfect world."

"But…", said Terabos. "But sir, I can't kill Chuqalita. That's like asking a Skeleton to battle a Pekka. It would be suicide. Would my talents not be better used somewhere else-"
Before he could finish his sentence, Terabos felt a searing pain suddenly erupt all along his jaw. He howled in agony, his tail thrashing around, crushing dozens of the trees around him. He slashed at his jaw in immense pain, but it did nothing to quell the firey sensation. He bit his jaw down and cursed in Ancient Draconic, much to Rakastamos's amusement.

Finally, after a dozen or so seconds, the pain was over. Terabos shook his head and winced, to find that his once golden scales all down his right side were now a deep black, the color of pure ink. Smoke rose off his body, and spikes jutted out from random places.

"There.", said Rakastamos, and Terabos could hear him smile. "I've given you some power. It should be enough to put up more of a fight against my dear sister."

"I see…", said Terabos, and flexed his arm, testing out his newfound strength. He took a moment to calculate- he estimated that his overall power had increased by nearly 120%. He was now most likely one of the strongest beings on the entire planet, behind some of Rakastamos's choice forgotten and the Dragonlords themselves. "Thank you, sir."

"Yes, yes.", said Rakastamos, and sighed. "Thanks can be held until after you successfully complete your mission."

"Yes, sir.", said Terabos, and took another look at his black scales. He felt that he needed a new name, one more befitting of his strength. He thought- Terabos the Black sounded appropriate.

"Now go.", said Rakastamos, and Terabos the Black could feel a burning sensation in his limbs that drove him to action. He immediately pushed off into the air, and took off towards the sea. He reached out with his mind, able to sense Chuqualita's immense strength from where he was. "And if you cannot do her in…"

Terabos could suddenly feel Rakastamos's hot breath in his ear, and he could not help but shiver. Even though he was now far more powerful, he was still a snowball in an Inferno next to the almighty Dragonlord. "Then find somebody who will."

Terabos nodded, and kicked his speed into higher gear. He flew off towards the ocean, in search of Dragonlady Chuqalita, willing and now perhaps able to do what his master requested.

Song: Fields of Fright

It was about an hour later. The group had made good progress towards their current destination, along the banks of the great, blue, clear and clean Clashcrush River. But as the previously mossy riverbed had started to turn to mere rock and silt, they knew the landscape was about to change.

Bubble lay with her head across Brandy's lap, the latter still fast asleep. Bubble looked up into the face of her mother, gently snoring, tears and sweat streaked across her cheeks. Bubble looked at Brandy's mask- and a mischievous idea began to creep into her head.

Bubble pushed herself to a sitting position, and ever so slowly reached out for Brandy's mask. She had not seen her take it off the entire trip, and she was very curious to see why. Was there something beneath it? Was there something she was keeping hidden? To Bubble and her young mind, these were very enticing reasons to pull off the mask.

No one noticed as Bubble very gently grabbed the edge of Brandy's mask. Trevor and Annabelle were engaged in a conversation about stars or whatever, and Leon was talking to Dan about how something worked- Bubble thought she heard a "Brawl" in there somewhere. But none of that mattered to Bubble- the only thing that did was seeing they were distracted. No one was able to see her grab the edge of Brandy's mask, take a breath, and pull-

Brandy was jerked awake, her hand automatically flying out. She pushed Bubble as her head snapped up, Bubble crying out and falling off of Dan's back. Brandy's hands went to her mask, the sensitive skin irritated by Bubble's touch. A few tears of pain came to her eyes- then they widened in shock as she realized what she had just done.

"Bubble!", she yelled, and looked over the side of Dan's shoulder- to see that both Trevor and Annabelle had reached out and managed to grab Bubble just in time, by her feet. Bubble hung there, staring up at them, a frown upon her face. "OhmygoshImsosorryIdidn'tseeyou-"

Bubble tried not to cry, as Annabelle and Trevor pulled her up. Brandy assisted in yanking her back up the last few feet, wrapping her in a hug not even a second afterwards.

"Mommy…", said Bubble, her voice muffled in Brandy's embrace. "Why did you hit me?"

"Mommy's really sorry, and she didn't mean to.", said Brandy. "But you tugged on my mask when I was asleep, and I guess I just acted without thinking. I shouldn't have done that."

"Why did you get mad?", asked Bubble, her pain quickly forgotten. "I just tugged on your mask. Just wanted to see what was under there, is all."

Brandy sighed, realizing only now she had never told Bubble this. "Nothing's under there, sweety.", she said. "My mask is part of my skin. That's part of being a Bandit."

"A Bandit?", asked Bubble, her mouth dropping open. "Isn't that a bad thing?"
"No.", said Brandy in confusion. "Of course it isn't. Who told you that?"

Bubble appeared to be about to say something, but she stopped herself from doing so. Instead, she scratched the back of her neck, and looked away. "Somebody.", she said. "People."

"I see.", said Brandy, then was suddenly thrown back. She grabbed on to Bubble again, and turned around. "What is it? Do we have trouble?"

"No.", said Dan, and looked forward. There, in front of them, was a massive field of volcanic rock and blasted sand. Hundreds, or maybe even thousands of pits dotted the landscape- it was hard to tell what was inside of them. Chunks of rock stuck in semi-randomized patterns, with rivulets of lava running in between each one. Steam rose from bubbling pits in a waved line all across the entire area, all the way into the distance. The area seemed to be dozens of miles across, and likely hundreds of miles wide. There was a short slope from the semi-grassy, rough woodland they were in now, and the blasted landscape they saw before them.

The Clashcrush River sloped sharply down, entering directly into a slit right in the ground. From the arrangement of the steam vents all across the landscape, Dan could guess that was the direction the river followed. But the most curious part of the entire place was how semi-symmetrical it was, how perfectly non-perfect it appeared. There was something very odd about it, although he could not place exactly what. "Look."

"Oh…", said Trevor, finally understanding. He brought up the map again, and nodded his head. "I know where we are now."
"Where?", asked Annabelle, and moved a little closer to him. "Where are we?"

"That's why it said the Fields.", said Trevor, and moved the map right side up. "This is the War Fields. This is where Villages go to conduct their Wars."

"Woah.", said Dan, and gave a low whistle as he looked out over the tortured realm. "Looks a lot different than our War Island. I mean, I don't really remember what that place looks like anymore, honestly. It's been a while since we were last there."
"But it looked a whole lot different than this.", said Brandy, with a nod. "This looks more like Pekka's Playhouse than anything else. Only a whole lot…"

"Creepier.", Bubble finished, and scooched closer to Brandy. "This place is creepy."

"It is.", said Brandy, and nodded. She looked up towards Dan, who took the signal. He looked down the slope leading to the fields themselves, looking for the best place to go down. "We had better head through it quickly. There's probably things in this field that we would be better off not running into."

Dan didn't say anything to that, even though he agreed. He just took a single cautious step down the slope, everyone on his shoulders increasing their grip. He slowly slid his foot down the pale, crumbling dirt, everybody holding their breaths in hope the dirt would hold as well. It almost slid away underneath the entire party's massive weight- but somehow, it managed to hold. Dan's foot was stable on the slope, and everyone let out a sigh of relief.

Unfortunately, however, this was the thing that broke it. The force of everybody releasing their sighs of relief at once changed the force exerted upon the dirt, and tipped it just onto the side of breaking. The dirt began to slide away, and Dan lifted up his foot, trying to get back to the top.

"Shoot.", he spat under his breath, seeing that the dirt under him was still sliding, faster than he could get up it. He instead slammed his other foot down into the dirt, choosing to go with the slide instead of trying to resist it. He, and the group on his shoulders, slid down the steep slope, arriving with a hop and a jarring thud at the bottom. Dan's feet went from soft dirt to impacting hard volcanic rock, a sharp hiss echoing out from the destroyed ground.

"Well.", said Dan, and clapped his hands. The sound carried oddly far, echoing across the plains and into the pits that were arrayed across the entire area. "That wasn't so bad."

"What's in those pits, Dad?", asked Leon, and pointed towards one of the pits. He flicked the tip of his lollipop as it changed flavor- this time to a subtle cinnamon. It was his least favorite of all the flavors, but it would do for now.

"Uh…", said Dan, and moved his stance up to his toes. Standing as high as he could, he could see into one of the pits, but not well enough to see what lay at the bottom. "I don't know. Let's get closer."

Dan walked closer to the pit, everyone else on his shoulders all keeping a careful eye out. This was a monstrous place, and each of them knew it. They were expecting an attack from any and every direction- perhaps a flying Forgotten coming in from the sky, or something burrowing up from underground. At this point, nothing no longer surprised them.

Dan reached the edge of the immense pit, and looked down. To his surprise, he could see a sprawling, but totally empty, Village. It was a brand new Town Hall 11, with the walls a mere level 1. Dan didn't really understand the concept of rushing your Town Hall, but if he did, he would have snorted in disgust. "Oh. It's a Village. An empty one…"

The hair on the back of his neck raised in alarm, remembering that the Cyborg had appeared at first to be an empty village. He growled in a low voice, and his fist gripped. "That's not good."

"Oh, don't worry.", said Trevor, and looked down at the Village as well. "They're all like that. Most Villages have an exact copy here. But when they're not actively in war, they don't have any Troops here."

"Oh.", said Dan, and his fist unclenched. "So it's fine then. We won't be running into the Cyborg again."
"Well, he is dead.", said Brandy, and gave Dan a slight scratch on the back of his neck. "So of course we don't have to worry. That kid killed him, remember?"
"Right.", said Dan, and nodded. He turned away from the pit, and looked towards where the river boiled underground. He had no idea how it continued on through the sheer volcanism of the area, but he was glad it was able to. Otherwise, there would be no path to follow.

"Seriously, this place is giving me the creeps.", said Annabelle, and pulled Bubble a little tighter. Bubble was happy to oblige, and gave Annabelle a tight hug. Annabelle smiled, giving Bubble a little pat on the head, then pulled Trevor closer as well. "And it feels… cold. Like, this place is full of volcanoes and junk, but it feels cold for some reason."

"That is weird.", said Dan, and sniffed the air. He continued to walk, but slower than normal. He had to make sure he did not miss anything, just in case something was going wrong. "Yeah, it is kind of cold, and- and does anybody else smell that? It smells like… flowers."
Brandy sniffed the air as well, the distinctly sweet and airy smell of roses reaching her nose. But that made no sense. There were no flowers in any direction that she could see, the only plant life in the entire fields some blasted bushes and sickly-looking weeds. With the cold air, the strange smell, and the tinkly, eerie music that was now beginning to reach her ears, Brandy could tell there was something wrong.

Song: Buunemba

"We should run.", she said, and slapped Dan on the shoulder. "Before something bad happens. Like, now. Dan, run."

Dan nodded, and started to walk faster. But it apparently was not enough for Brandy, who could feel her heart start to inexplicably beat faster. There was the smell of roses again, jamming itself into her nostrils with almost painful intensity. The feeling of the cold grew as well- to the point where even though she was standing next to a puddle of lava, it felt as though she was in Frozen Peak. Sweat broke out on her brow, and she gasped. "Dan, run!"

"I'm trying!", shouted Dan, his legs pumping with ferocious force. "But nothing's making sense!"

Dan jumped forward, and soared through the air. He landed a few feet behind where he had started, the cold blasting across his face. "I can't go!"

"What do you mean you can't go?", Brandy screamed, unexplained terror welling up from inside her body. She pointed forward. "Just go!"

Then she noticed what had happened to her hand. Despite the fact she had pointed forward- she knew that, without a doubt, she could see her own hand pointing back at her. It was not broken, it merely curved in no way that was possible. She drew her hand back, and stared at it in horror, revulsion, and a little bit of wonder.

Up is downnnn…

The voice came into everybody's heads, yet no one had said it. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard, the tone of the voice similar to a theater closed after dark. Bubble slapped her hands over her ears, and screamed. Leon had become invisible, without meaning to.

Right is left, the voice continued, and something started to emerge. Forward loses its meaning, and hot turns to cold…

The entire group stared, as the monstrous thing emerged. With a puff of smoke that tasted like a haunted childhood hallway, its twisted, geometric nightmare of a body became visible.

It stood tall and thin, each of its four arms spiraling off into fractals. No head was visible, save a single bright pink triangle upon what could feasibly be called its shoulders. The trademark cap of a Jester swung lazily off the top- a clear signal of what it was.

"I am the Jesterbot 4.0.", it said, and flicked a finger. "And you are dead."

It spun in a circle, each of its arms twirling around in a pattern that bordered on hypnotic. It laughed a low laugh, and continued to speak its cursed song.

"Black is white, and all around…", it chanted, and stood up tall. "When the Jesterbot's in town!"

"You think you can stop any of us?", asked Dan, and took a deep breath. "Just like that?"
The Jesterbot put its hand to its chin, pretending to think- then burst out laughing. It spread its arms open wide, just as its predecessors had done before it. A spark of lightning shot down from its hands to whatever could be called its feet, running into the ground below. "Why, of course I can! For under my disruptive sphere, you are powerless to make your own actions. Only I can control what-"

"Hah!", shouted Dan, and thrust his fist out in back of him. Space bent and warped, the opposite effect taking place through some unknown, highly advanced sorcery. A portal opened in front of Dan, his fist launching outwards, opposite from where he had struck, right towards the Jesterbot's face. The Jesterbot grimaced, yelped, and just barely managed to dodge out of the way. Once Dan's fist had reached its furthest point, it came flying back, through both portals, and Dan snapped his hand back into place.

"I see.", said the Jesterbot, and raised its hands. "Very clever… very clever indeed."
"Guys, spread out.", said Dan, and lowered his voice to a whisper. "By which I mean don't spread out. Everybody jump towards each other, right in the middle. We'll use his own strength against him."
"Right.", they all said, and stood up. Taking places in a tight circle, they faced each other, ready to follow through. Leon almost pulled out Hunter Killer, before remembering it would inevitably cause something bad. Bubble racked her brain, trying to figure out what the opposite of making an illusion would be. Dan took a deep breath, trying to figure out his next move.

"It's no use, your time is done!", the Jesterbot shouted, the crystalline figures on its arms beginning to turn into claws and blades. "I must kill you, even though we're having fun!"

It waited a few seconds to see the reactions to its impromptu poem. It thought it might have messed it up, but it wasn't really sure. It hoped it had not. That would be rather embarrassing.

"You messed that up.", said Annabelle, and the Jesterbot's face fell. "You should lose a syllable on the second line. It would make it a lot more intimidating."

"Why, you little frick!", shouted the Jesterbot, and fully expanded its hands into shimmering blades. It gave a mighty shriek and plunged downwards, right where the party was all gathered.

"Split!", shouted Brandy, and they all jumped at each other at maximum speed. They had expected for the opposite reaction to happen, sending them all flying away and ready to attack. But to their utter surprise, the opposite of the opposite took place, and they all smashed into each other with a sickening crunch. Brandy alone was unharmed- she had activated enough of her Dash to keep herself safe, without endangering anybody else.

The Jesterbot yelled in triumph, and jabbed its blades down at the group. "You fools!", it screamed sadistically, its multiple eyes gleaming with sick laughter. "Did you think that my ability was unable to be manually controlled? I control all! I even control…"

The Jesterbot gestured in a swift motion towards Trevor, and his arm raised on its own accord. The Jesterbot gave a sinister smile, and Trevor's sword was slashed right at Annabelle's head. The Jesterbot's eyes lit up. "You!"

"Sorry, Trevor.", said Brandy, and closed her eyes. She took a moment to concentrate, trying to figure out where it her plan would work on Trevor's body, before remembering that it likely would not matter anyway. So she just struck out randomly- and hit the back of Trevor's neck with a perfect tone of focus and reverb, the blow traveling up a nerve and into the brain, shutting off his awakeness instantly and sending him into a deep sleep.

"Haha!", the Jesterbot laughed, and jumped back in a backflip. "You sent him to sleep instead of releasing him from my control!"
"Yes, but that is what I wanted you to do!", shouted Brandy, and pointed at the Jesterbot's astonished face. "You said it was manual what you do, and I just took advantage of that!"

The Jesterbot's face twisted up in anger, and it drew itself backwards. Extending its arms hugely in either direction, a great variety of bladed weapons began to appear from within.

"That's it.", it said, and growled. "Everybody dies!"

Only then did it notice the gigantic blast that Dan had been building up the entire time he and the group had been talking. It lay in Dan's hands, yellow lightning sparkling all around it, Dan barely even able to keep it contained. It scorched the ground where Dan held it above, slashing across it with little bits of potent electricity. Dan held up his hands, the spitting sphere held between them.

"Oh.", said the Jesterbot, and smiled internally. "It- it looks like it's too powerful for me to deflect! Please, sir, have mercy! I-"
"No.", said Dan, and unleashed the blast. It fired straight towards the Jesterbot like a magical missile, picking up speed as it went and increasing in size. But as it shot at it, the Jesterbot only laughed. He held out his arms to catch the blow, as if opening for a big hug.

But as the energy collided with him, a vast shock of pain erupted through his body. The Jesterbot was thrown back, skidding across the lavastone. He spun to a stop about after 10 or so seconds of skidding, staring up at the sky. "What?", he spat, unable to belive what had just happened. "What- how- how did you-"
"Simple.", said Dan, and folded his arms. On the tip of each of them was another glowing orb, growing in both size and power. "That was a burst of healing energy. When it hit you, it dealt you all that damage it would have just healed. Will you catch the next one, I wonder?"

The Jesterbot stared at the group, the smile all but gone from its face. He held up one hand, a sparkling green aura sphere within it. Then he allowed himself a little laugh, and held up his other hand. "There you are. You are free to leave."

"Wait, what-", Brandy began, only for a thick, barely transparent shield to slam down around the group. The Jesterbot laughed, and held up his hand, the green within only increasing.

"Do you know what this is?", he asked slowly, and began to spin the orb around in his hand.

"No.", said Dan, trying to buy time. He took in a very deep breath, intent on unleashing as much distracting force as he possibly could. He knew how to beat this thing, but that required a ton of speed. Enough speed to attack the thing and rip out its mechanical brain without it realizing they had done so.

"This, mortals, is an orb of pure life.", said the Jesterbot, and began to juggle it from hand to hand. "I found it, the other day. So does anybody want to guess what happens when I throw it at you?"

There was silence for a few seconds, while the Jesterbot waited for someone to answer his question. Finally, Annabelle spoke up just to cease the awkward silences. "It becomes a-"
"That's right!" shouted the Jesterbot, and raised its hand to finally throw. "It becomes a great big ball of de-"

He never got the chance to finish his sentence. For before he could, a blue light found its way over his entire body, freezing him to that microsecond. He stuttered, staticed, and disappeared, vanishing utterly in a flash of blue light.

The group stared at the spot where he had vanished, in utter astonishment. There no longer remained any trace of the Jesterbot 4, merely a blank spot upon the volcanic rock. Not even a wisp of blue smoke or soot remained. There was no longer any trace that it had ever even existed in the first place.

"What... ", Brandy said, struggling to get the words out of her mouth. "What just happened? Where did it go?"

"I have no idea.", said Dan after some thought, and stood up straight. "But… I guess that it's gone now. That's good, right?"

"Right…", Annabelle said, slowly taking her hand off of Trevor's shoulder where she had grabbed him, when she thought she was about to die. "But didn't it say something about it being the fourth?"

"That's right, it did.", said Dan, and his eyes narrowed. He took a deep breath, not really wanting to have to fight again, but suspecting that he would have to. "I know that I helped take down the first one, me and Leon. The second one, Brandy killed. And then that was the fourth… so whatever happened to the third?"

As if to answer his question, the air once again began to flash and spit blue sparks, another portal through time opening. There was a streak of white lightning, the air splitting open entirely to fling something out, as it tumbled through the air and landed upon the volcanic ground with a disappointing thump.

"You're…", said the Jesterbot 3.0, almost instantly springing to its feet. Its vast variety of guns were still drawn, but it looked around in utter confusion instead of shooting. Its internal clocks were going haywire, causing steam to rise out of whatever it had to pass for ears. It should have been the day before the current day, but somehow it was the future. What was going on? Its eyes beeped and tried to take in the information, but failed. "You're not Askari!"

"Askari?", asked Brandy, suddenly right next to the Jesterbot. She brought up one fist and put it against its chin, figuring that it would not have time to fire all its guns if she struck first. "Who is this Askari?"

"Nobody.", said the Jesterbot 3.0. "No one to you, at least. But I, the Jesterbot 3.0, was dispatched to dispose of him. But now it appears that I am one day ahead of my schedule. Or, one day behind my schedule. Yes, indeed, I am one day behind the day I was supposed to have killed Askari already. No, wait-"
As the Jesterbot struggled to figure out something it had never been programmed for, Brandy looked up towards the group. "Well, looks like we know where the other one went. That's convenient."

"I was supposed to kill Askari.", said the Jesterbot again, and lashed out. "But I guess you'll do nice as well."

Brandy dodged the Jesterbot's sudden attack, leaping backwards right next to Dan. His jagged chainsaw sliced through the air, black smoke from its diesel engine slashing behind it. Its guns started to roll around, the bullets in its interior chambers starting to slide back into place. Firing calculations were made, and scopes were automatically adjusted for sizes. "Yes, I suspect that Askari will come to recruit you sooner or later. I will stop that from ever happeni-"
Then he stopped. The whirring from within his body wound down to a rapid halt, his upright guns falling limp and useless in front of him. One chainsaw simply stopped running, the other snagging on its belt and destroying itself in a fit of sparks. The Jesterbot fell forward and broke on the black stony ground, a dozen or so holes all drilled through the side of its head. There stood Leon, Hunter Killer still smoking, a grim look upon his face.

"And now they're all dead.", said Leon, and blew the smoke off the barrel of his gun. He flipped it around in an ethereal matter, and it disappeared into the air. He wasn't a Colt, he knew- no, he was even better. "That makes things a whole lot less difficult."

"That guy was creepy.", said Bubble, pointing at the Jesterbot, turning to a puddle of slick black Elixir. "His arms were weird."

"You think everything's creepy, kid.", said Annabelle, and tucked her hair behind her ear.

Bubble shrugged, and walked a little faster to keep up with her. The group had already started moving- no words were needed at this point in the journey. Even the newcomers knew each other well enough by now to know what Dan and Brandy were about to say. "That's cause everything is."

"Well…", said Annabelle, and looked around for something to use. There wasn't a lot around. There weren't any sticks or branches, not even a tuft of grass. There was just volcanic rock, white sand, and the occasional bit of broken glass. "Everything? I'm not creepy, am I?"

"No.", said Bubble, trying and failing to keep her giggling to herself. "You're not."

"Oh, but I'm part of everything, aren't I?", Annabelle asked, and winked. "So's Trevor. So's Leon. And so are even your parents."

"Yes, but-", said Bubble, her face welling up in young frustration. She huffed a sharp breath and put her hands on her hips, blowing her bangs out of her face. "You know what I meant."

"Oh, did I?", asked Annabelle, and finally found something to use. She leaned down and grabbed a small cream-colored pebble off the ground, slipping it discreetly into her palm. "Or do I just know other things? Like… what's behind your ear?"

"What?", asked Bubble, brushing back her bangs to look at her right ear. "Is something-"

"No, silly.", said Annabelle, and knelt down. She put her hand behind Bubble's left ear, revealing the rock that had been in her hand. "Your other ear. Look."

Bubble gasped, and grabbed for the rock. She stared at it in wonder, unable to believe that Annabelle had done such a thing. Annabelle laughed, and Bubble tucked the rock into her pocket. Refusing to let herself be outdone, Bubble grabbed Annabelle by the shoulder.

"Okay, watch this.", said Bubble, and reached behind Annabelle's ear. "I'm gonna pull something out from behind your ear."

Annabelle rolled her eyes, knowing that Bubble was just going to conjure something up. But she went with it anyway, letting Bubble reach behind her ears, act surprised to find something, then pull out a Gem. "See, look.", said Bubble, with a proud smile. "I found a Gem!"

"Yes, but-", said Annabelle, and reached to take the Gem. Her words were halted in her throat as she touched it, realizing that it was, in fact, real. "Wait, what-"

Bubble looked up at Brandy, who still held another Gem in her palm. Brandy winked, and held a finger to her lips. Bubble winked back, not allowing Annabelle to see.

"I'm just magic.", said Bubble, and jumped past Annabelle, running to catch up to Dan and Leon in the front. "You silly."

Trevor watched Annabelle chase after Bubble, and scratched at his mustache. He sometimes considered trimming it, maybe even cutting it off- but then what would he be? A Barbarian without his mustache was nothing. He had no idea why he would even think about it removing it, and yet think about it he did. Sometimes it worried him, but most of the time it felt perfectly natural. He had no idea why.

"Hey.", he heard Brandy whisper in his ear, and he startled. Brandy looked at him with mischievous eyes, seeing him looking at Annabelle. "Can I talk to you for a second?"

"Sure.", said Trevor, not quite taking his eyes off Annabelle. "About what?"

Brandy saw the edges of his eyes twitch, and his teeth gently clack together. "About that.", she said, and Trevor immediately seized up. "About what you do when-"
"No.", said Trevor, and turned away. He folded his arms, his mustache and face bristling at the mere thought. "I'm not going to talk about that, okay? You can't make me."

"Hmmm…", said Brandy, and turned away as well. She was not only concerned for what they were, but she was also madly curious. She had never seen anything like that before, and she so very much wanted to find out what it was.

"So what do you think we're gonna run into when we get there?", Leon asked, looking up at Dan. "Get to Rakastamos, I mean. I know his lair is in the mountains, but that's about it."

"Well.", said Dan, putting his hand to his chin in thought. He tried to remember what he had learned from his animal studies, of the Clashcrush Mountains in particular. He looked down at the ground to make sure they were still following the path of the river- they were. That was good. If they lost the path, they might never make it to the mountain. "There are animals."

"Yes.", said Leon, taking a suck on his lollipop. It was, unfortunately, still cinnamon. "And?"

"And there's going to be a lot of Forgotten.", said Dan, with a nod. "That I know for sure. I would expect Rakastamos to be holding the majority of his forces up in his lair. So once we get there, we're really going to have to fight like mad."

"That's what I'm worried about.", said Leon, and his face grew dark. He pulled his hood down a little more over his face, and moved closer to Dan.

"What do you mean?", asked Dan, and let Leon lean against him as they walked. "Sure, it's going to be hard, but it'll be worth it. We'll save the world all together."

Leon grimaced, and fidgeted with his spinner blades. "Yeah, but… there are going to be a lot of Forgotten. And not to mention Rakastamos himself. It all seems pretty intense. Harder than anything I've ever done."

"We've all done hard things on this quest, son.", said Dan, and gave Leon a gentle pat on the back. "Doesn't mean we can't do harder things soon."

Leon frowned, and looked up at Dan in slight frustration. "I'm scared, Dad. I guess that's what I'm trying to say. I may not look like it, but deep down? The idea of going up against a Dragonlord scares me to the fricking bone."
Dan pulled Leon a little closer, then grabbed him around the waist. He hoisted him up onto his shoulder, and spoke a little quieter. "It's okay, Leon. It's okay to be afraid. Because I'm here for all of you. And as long as I am, nothing will happen to anybody."

"Okay, but what if something does?", asked Leon, and Dan frowned. "I mean, you can't-"

"I can.", said Dan, and a spark of Star flashed behind him. "By the end of this journey, we will be strong enough to face down and take down Rakastamos. I promise you that."

"Okay.", said Leon, and chose not to press the issue further. He turned and looked ahead- and saw something, far ahead.

"Dad?", he asked, and pointed. "What is that?"

Song: A Powerful Enemy

Dan saw it, approaching them at incredible speed. Over the blasted ground it soared, its sheer velocity kicking up a trail of dust behind it that looked almost as if to be a mountain. The dust swirled and lashed out with tendrils of both lightning and flame, utterly decimating anything it flew over. A single tree grew out of the space between two War Bases- until the monster flew over it. Then it was reduced to nothing but ash and a Gem, the wind blowing them both out of sight. He could see the form was of a monstrous Dragon, but one unlike he had ever seen before. Its wings were incredibly wide, almost far too much so. There was no reason for it to have such vast wings, yet here it was anyway. Its tail was long and thin, slashing across the ground like a scythe cutting through wheat. Its head was enveloped in a strange mix of both electricity and fire, blasting along the ground and tearing it apart in a blazing cloud of utter destruction. Dan could feel the menacing aura sweeping off of it in droves, and he raised his hand to try and ward it off on instinct.

"I don't know.", he said, and slid one foot backwards, taking a combative stance. He took a deep breath, feeling the Star flow into his hand. "But it looks bad. We had better be ready."

Brandy scrambled up to Dan's shoulder, putting one hand to her brow to scout out the Dragon. "That looks like… an Electro Dragon.", she said, and squinted. "But it's not. There's fire around it. And is that an… Inferno barrel on its back?"

Dan took another look, seeing that Brandy was right. As it drew closer, Dan could see the color of its mottled scales- a bright blue, with seemingly random patches of green arrayed all around it. Its claws shined like Gems, its eyes glowing yellow with no doubt murderous intent. There was no doubt about it- this was a Forgotten. A particularly powerful one.

"Oh, you're right.", said Dan, and tried to think. The chaos made it hard. "It looks to be some sort of cross- an… uh…"

"An Infeletic Dragon?", asked Annabelle, and Trevor shook his head.

"An Enfeirlic Dragon!", he said, then shook his head as he realized how that sounded.

"An Elecfirno Dragon?", asked Bubble timidly, and Trevor snapped his fingers.

"That's perfect, Bubble!", he said, and Bubble smiled a bit. "Now we just need to kill it."

"That would be great, Trevor.", said Dan, and raised his hands, taking careful aim as the Elecfirno Dragon approached. He thought that a few far off shots would be best, but not as warnings. If they merely drove the beast off, it would most likely come back when they least expected it. It was far better to just kill it now and be done with. "Now come help me kill it."

"Uh… how?", asked Trevor, and drew his sword. He was not sure why. "I'm not ranged."

"Right.", said Dan, and looked down at Leon. "Leon, light him up."

"You got it, Dad.", said Leon, and nodded. He stuck out his hand, Hunter Killer swirling into his fingers. He aimed it right in front of him, directly at the approaching Dragon, and fired.

The Elecfirno Dragon saw the barrage of both electric blasts and metal shards streaking towards him, and scowled. Retracting his wings to the his sides, he tucked and rolled in the right direction a few times in order, expertely dodging the fire. Leon's bullets streaked right past him, impacting randomly onto the ground below, as did most of Dan's shots. But one of them had been shot on a curving path, and smacked right into the Elecfirno Dragon's neck.

Dan shouted in triumph, and immediately started charging up another round or two of shots. But he stopped once he saw what had actually happened to the Dragon's neck- instead of being damaged, the electric charge was actually absorbed into its body. The spikes all the way along the Dragon's back glowed a bright blue, lightning and fire just waiting to be unleashed.

"Watch out for that attack.", said Brandy, her mind spinning to try and come up with the most likely way the attacks of an Inferno Dragon and an Electro Dragon would be combined. Would it shoot a chain of Inferno beams? Would it shoot a single concentrated blast of Lightning? But as Brandy saw the Elecfirno Dragon speed ever quicker across the ground, she knew she would not have to wait long to find out.

"Everyone.", said Dan, and put his hands down. He saw how his attack had been absorbed, and disliked that fact very much. "I can't use Star against this thing. It's immune."

"Oh.", said Leon, and his face turned a little whiter. "Well, darn."

"No talk time!", shouted Trevor, as the shadow of the Elecfirno Dragon just barely overhead came within striking distance. "We have to fight!"

Song: Sword Attack

The Elecfirno Dragon gave a colossal roar as it reared up over their heads, the air shaking from both the force of its voice and the heat aura surrounding its body. Everyone in the group could now clearly see the details they had missed before- the spikes on its limbs, glowing blue in perfect accordance with the charge spikes on its back. The metal covering on its jaw, to better channel its Infernal beam. The total lack of pupils its eyes had, instead merely solid yellow slits. The way its wings bent at the joint, almost as if they didn't work. But they had to work, for it was flying.

"Shoot its mouth!", shouted Dan, and tried to think of what he could do. There was still Rotation, he knew that. But he hadn't had much chance to practice that at all, and he wasn't quite sure how well he would do with it in an emergency. But if he had to, then he had to.

Leon shouted, as he unloaded volley after volley of pure metal slashes into the Elecfirno Dragon's direction. But they merely bounced off the insanely hard scales, only a few minding meager purchase. Even then, they barely sank half an inch into the blue and green skin before sliding back out, dropping onto the volcanic ground. Leon grit his teeth and kept firing, a fan shape of crushed bullets appearing on the ground in front of him in every direction as the Elecfirno Dragon swooped and soared. A low roar built up in the back of its throat, preparing to fire its first shot. The ground quaked from the sound, and the air shook.

"Daddy!", shouted Bubble, and threw herself against Dan's leg. Dan had been in thought, trying to figure out how best to use Rotation to incapacitate it, but he had been stumped. The feeling of Bubble slamming into his thigh brought him back to the real world, and he blinked.

"Bubble!", he said, and started spinning around one hand. Thin blue lines accumulated around it, like the stick on a fairy floss stand collecting sugar. "I need you to distract it in any way you can! Summon up… summon up a Giant!"

"Giant!", shouted Bubble, and nodded. She turned to face the Elecfirno Dragon, her hands starting to glow. "Okay!"

Annabelle pulled back the bow on her string, and shot. The arrow fired straight and true, right at the Elecfirno Dragon's eye- and bounced off, flying off somewhere into a War Base. She growled and nocked another one, hoping for a different result. But she knew, deep down, that was impossible. She was just an Archer- what hope did she have against a Dragon as mighty as this?

The thought was interrupted by the sight of something streaking past her face, and striking the Elecfirno Dragon right on the snout. It didn't care for the most part, and continued to hover- but the sight of annoyance was clearly on its face. Annabelle saw Brandy grab another rock, take a moment to imbue it with Dash, and fling it at her target.

The second rock bounced off the monster's thick scales, but it had apparently caused enough pain for the Dragon's eye to twitch. It briefly considered changing its target to attack Brandy, but decided that it didn't need to. Instead, it just opened up its mouth, lightning and flame dancing in tandem within. Brandy knew that she had to jump back to avoid the shot, and she leapt backwards in a Dash-infused leap. Annabelle tried to do the same, but her skills weren't enough. She tripped over a rock, landing with a painful thud upon her back. The Elecfirno Dragon took a breath to fire, and Annabelle screamed-

Only to find herself suddenly out of the range of fire, Trevor below her. She blinked and looked up, seeing the piled up dirt around her. Trevor had tackled her out of the way.

Despite the fact that its targets had moved, the Elecfirno Dragon fired anyway.

Three triplet beams of both fire and lightning surged out of its mouth, scraping away at the rock and dusting the sand above. It flew away into the wind, borne aloft crazily by the shifting winds the monster had summoned .The blasts cracked through the very ground, shaking the entire area. If it hadn't been built on solid land, it looked as though it might collapse.

When the attack faded, three trails of burnt and broken ground had been torn into the landscape. The Elecfirno Dragon took another breath, preparing to fire once again- only for a strange blue line to suddenly dive into the side of its head.

The Elecfirno Dragon grunted in confusion, and aimed its head downwards. There stood Dan, one finger out, breathing a little heavily from the force of the rotation. He had hoped that it would be enough, but he had not used the technique in a bit. He hoped he wasn't rusty.

The Elecfirno Dragon opened its mouth once again, ready to fire- when Dan closed his fist. The Elecfirno Dragon's head spun around, the rest of its body following suite only a second later.

There it saw the figure of a Giant, badly hurt, trying to crawl away from the group. The Elecfirno Dragon now suddenly had to make a choice- battle against this group, who seemed quite capable, or go after a suddenly appearing injured Giant? It was a no-brainer to the Dragon- those without brains tend to solve problems just as fast, if not faster, as the smartest ones. They were usually wrong, but it was the time that counted in that situation.

The Elecfirno Dragon shot its massive blast of death right at the Giant, its bolts- of course- passing all the way through. They hit the ground on the other side, churning up the rock and dirt into something that most resembled taco meat. The Giant just kept on running, merely a creature of light. It could not be hurt.

The Elecfirno Dragon growled, and gave a flap of its mighty wings. It took off after the Giant, floating above it, trying to figure out why it had not been injured. It followed it, as the Giant walked off in a random direction, then increasing in speed.

"Good work, Bubble.", said Dan, and nodded. "Now while it's running away, we can regroup. Then when it comes back, we'll be able to kill it easily."

But, of course, nothing is ever really that easy. Dan's eye twitched, as he saw that the Elecfirno Dragon had gotten bored with the Giant and its apparent inability to combust. It now was once again flying overhead, seeming to be preparing another atack.

Brandy looked around her- and new what to do. She looked around, trying to see which one of the pits held the strongest base. She grimaced- it appeared to be a Town Hall 12 right next to her, brimming with all the upgrades that the Village could possibly get. She caught herself grimacing, and told herself to grin. This was a good thing. And most importantly, the Eagle Artillery was on. That was the most vitally important part of her whole plan.

"I'm gonna go start this village going!", Brandy yelled, and Dashed down into the pit. "We can kill him with that!"

"Brandy, wait!", shouted Dan, but it was too late. Brandy had already dove into the pit where the War Village was, skidding down to the Town Hall to try and figure something out. Dan cursed underneath his breath, and looked around to try and take a look at the situation. The Elecfirno Dragon was charging another blast, ready to unleash it soon. Trevor and Annabelle had taken cover behind a rock, discussing amongst themselves what they could do in this situation. Bubble's hand were flying as she tried to summon up another illusion, but it would not be ready for a few more seconds at least. Leon- Leon was nowhere to be seen. Dan guessed that was normal, and he was most likely plotting an attack. But for the meantime, there was only one fighter left to take on the Elecfirno Dragon, and that was him.

Dan grit his teeth, and sucked in a deep breath. He let the Star flow into his fist, concentrating brightly on the very tip. He aimed it right where the Dragon was about to go as it flapped overhead in long, lazy arcs, the spikes on its back slowly charging. Dan took aim, fired, and-

His Star shot outwards in the shape of his fist, rocketing like a bolt of Lightning right at the Dragon's face. The Elecfirno Dragon was far too slow to avoid it, and it crashed right up against the bright blue scales with a mighty crack of thunder. But that was all it did- his Star did not yet harm the beast. Dan frowned, and let his hand down.

"Shoot.", he said to himself, only now remembering he had been about to try and use Rotation. It should have still been spinning around his finger, he remembered. He looked back, making sure not to take his eyes off of the Dragon.

The Elecfirno Dragon, its charge finally completed, opened its mouth to its fullest width. A low whine shot through the entire area, moments before the blast was unleashed. Three strikes of electric fire shot through the air, exploding against the dirt and throwing up a trio of huge clouds of dust. Annabelle and Trevor cowered behind the rock, grateful that the Elecfirno Dragon seemed, at least for now, totally unable to hit its mark. The dust clouds swept over Bubble, causing her to yelp and lose her concentration. But there was no shape illuminated by the dirt, as one might expect. Leon, for now, remained hidden.

Now sooner had it completed that attack than it began to charge up the new one, the electric ions still crackling in the air around its head as it soared upwards. It started to concentrate a huge amount of energy in its mouth, ready to unleash one traumatic blast.

"Bubble!", shouted Dan, and held out his hand. Bubble stared at it fearfully, trying not to think about the Dragon above. Dan shook his fingers, and Bubble started running over. "Bubble, I need you to-"

But no sooner had he spoken those words than the Elecfirno Dragon revealed its true plan, and struck. A thin line of electricity smote the ground, drawing a direct line in between Bubble and Dan. Bubble jumped back and screamed, as the hit ground dissolved into a thin sheet of flame. The shadow of the Dragon passed overhead, most of the charged energy still in its mouth. Dan snarled- it had strafed them. And judging from the way its wings banked on the curve, it was planning to soon do it again.

"Bubble, jump to- no, just hold still!", Dan shouted, and thrust out his hand. He searched around for a half second before grabbing Bubble around the waist, yanking her right next to him. Bubble buried her face up against Dan's leg, wrapping her limbs around him to keep herself safe.

"Good!", Dan yelled, and stuck out his finger. The Rotation he had been able to gather to that point crackled and spat at the edge of his finger, a blue light emanating from his entire body.

The Elecfirno Dragon turned around, the energy building in its mouth to strafe the group once again. He looked down at the six, or now the two. He had no idea where all the others had went. There had been no pulsating sensation of a confirmed kill when they had vanished- it was as if they had willingly run away. The Elecfirno Dragon did not understand such things, but it did not matter. He did understand how to kill- very, very well.

Dan roared, and let his Rotation fly. It shot directly through the sky at unmatched speed, slipping past the Elecfirno Dragon's reflexes with an uncanny speed. It bounced and twisted as it flew, going straight one moment and spiraling in on itself was pure blue and white, a streak of hope as it slashed through the air on its way to the target.

But, alas, the Elecfirno Dragon was mostly unharmed. However, the place where it had hit caused it so much pain that fact was hard to at first believe. The Rotation sunk deeply into its flesh and pierced out through the other side, the Dragon giving a sudden cry of pain. It lashed out with its tail, severing the head off of several ancient statues that had been standing at the edges to some of the War Bases. It threw back its head and roared, stretching out its wings to try and make itself appear as large as it could. The metal that adorned its lower jaw sparked from the energy it was throwing around, its eyes shifting from blue to red to purple to green, to yellow again. It sounded like a volcano, if volcanoes typically rose from the shallow waters and had children. It straightened out one wing as it turned around, and started to come right back at them with a hateful vengeance in its blanked out eyes.

"Shoot.", said Dan, and jumped back. He checked to see if Bubble was still on him- she was. He checked to see that nothing had been forgotten about from when he last checked- no. Everything was fine there, if there wasn't a giant Dragon trying to kill them.

The Elecfirno Dragon opened its mouth to fire yet again, the electric death blazing up from within. It beat its wings faster and harder, trying to get to a position to hit the entire group at once. But such a thing was hard to find, and it kept on circling around. It knew that it would have to unleash the blast it currently had sometime- only preferably on the target group. And as it swept overhead, seeing only Dan and Bubble, he guessed that it would be the right time to start strafing again.

"Leon!", shouted Dan, looking around. He tried to gather up some form of energy in his hand, but he had no idea what to use. He saw the both Star and Rotation had achieved very little, and so he was striving not to use those. But what to use? "Leon, where'd you go?"
He tried to wait for an answer- only for the Elecfirno Dragon to once again shoot a beam of flame directly into the ground. Dan jumped out of the way of the immense beam, as it carved out a swatch of solid land about 3 feet in width, but about 100 feet in length. The hard electric ray burned out a solid degree of the dirt, sending it aloft through the air to parts unknown.

"Dang it Leon…", Dan grumbled, and thought about what to do. Star didn't work. Rotation didn't work. Hee had only one chance- get close to the Elecfirno Dragon. Then, and only then, could he unleash his ultimate attack.

Dan had barely had time to put the plan together when he sensed that, once again, he had to dodge out of the way. He leapt to one side, sensing that Bubble had dropped off of him. The thought filled him with a momentary sense of panic, before he pushed it back down again. There was no room for panic here. She had just escaped, and that was it.

The Elecfirno Dragon's blast hit the ground right next to Dan, the deafening sound hard on both their ears. The ground shook and shattered underneath the elemental assault, the dirt and dust flying upwards on a level that had not happened before.

The dirt shot upwards into a massive corona, Dan throwing up his arm to block his face. A sphere of golden energy automatically appeared as a shield, the dirt and rocks dissolving into nothing upon impact. But even though Dan had been protected, the Elecfirno Dragon's attack had still worked. Dan heard a triumphant roar, and saw nothing but a tan haze in all directions. The purpose of the strafing assault had not been to damage him- but to create a smokescreen. If he was blinded, then he could not hit- or, at least, that was what the Dragon thought.

The Elecfirno Dragon gave a few beats of its mighty wings, soaring high above the cloud of dust and smoke. It cast a cruel gaze over the entire battlefield, admiring its handiwork. Trevor and Annabelle were still locked down behind the rock, Leon was still nowhere to be seen, Bubble was lying on the ground next to a different rock, thrown by the force of the most recent blast. She was barely moving, trying to crawl off towards the direction of a ditch. It looked for Brandy- it thought she had last been seen trying to escape.

Brandy kept on running down the center of the War Base, searching for the Town Hall. All the Villages she had been to had their Town Halls in the center, so why was this one not there? The only things that stood in the center were the Clan Castle, Eagle Artillery, and an empty Archer Queen Alter. It made no sense. She spun around on her heels, the wind tugging at her hair, looking for the now distinctive gleam of the Clan Castle- then she saw it. For whatever reason, the Chief of this particular War Base had decided to leave it at the very edge of the entire area, up against the far wall from which Brandy had come down. Brandy rolled her eyes and groaned, running off towards it as fast as she could go, plumes of dust blowing upwards behind her.

"Why is it over there?", she growled to herself, pushing herself to go faster. "That doesn't make sense? Aren't you supposed to protect your Town Hall? So why is it out in the open? Especially during a war… isn't a war supposed to be when you're trying most?"

The Dragon reared up its head, the pressure building up in its mouth. It turned its head to aim right at Brandy, and the Town Hall which she was running towards. It almost fired- until it felt something on its neck, scraping against the scales like an ice cube against wood. It turned its head to look, and saw the sight it most did not want to see. There stood Dan, blowing out a massive breath of air from his unparalleled lungs, the dirt utterly annihilated before his force. The cloud of dust had been split in half, the two parts rapidly deteriorating into the wind. The ground below Dan was affected as well- it too was eroding, leaving Dan on a rapidly shrinking plateau of solid dirt. The Elecfirno Dragon was almost blown back by the force of Dan's breath, holding out its wings in order to steady itself.

"Hey, you stupid flying trash!", shouted Dan, too angry to properly concoct a more personal insult. He didn't know the Elecfirno Dragon well enough anyway. "Look at me!"

The Elecfirno Dragon, already looking at Dan, decided to turn its attention back towards the Village. With any luck, its next shot would destroy the Town Hall, the resulting explosion taking the girl with it. His orders had been to capture her alive, but he would do what he must.

The energy in his throat built up to a fever pitch, the electricity arcing around his head even as his fire grew more intense. He narrowed his eyes, took aim, and-

Brandy suddenly felt a curious sensation behind her. It felt extremely hot, yet somehow also very far away. She ran a few more steps toward the Town Hall- then her vision suddenly blanked out completely. She skidded to a stop on the hard ground, falling onto her rear end from the deceleration. Time seemed to slow down around her, the approaching Lightning slowing almost to a standstill. Her vision turned from darkness to a split view, both surrounded by flickering blue lights.

The first was of her keeping on running towards the Town Hall, and jumping right onto the door. She gasped internally as a massive bolt of both fire and lightning- Elecfirno- came crashing down right onto the roof, exploding the entire structure. She saw her cape come flying out of the wreckage, still on fire and leaking Elixir from multiple places.

Due to the curious nature of The Dreamer, she was able to observe both split views at once. And the second one was much more pleasant- she stopped running towards the Town Hall, and instead flipped back the opposite direction. The Elecfirno still came, still destroying the Town Hall in a massive, devastating explosion, but she was not part of it.

The Dream began to fade, Brandy shaking her head to clear her vision of blue lighting. She stood back up, took a stance, and nodded. "Right."

She immediately flipped backwards, going away from the Town Hall and back the way she had come. She flipped about half a dozen times, stopping just shy of a Builder's hut right next to a Wall. She was glad she did, and even more grateful that she had avoided the Town Hall and listened to her Stand. For not even a second later, it came true. A massive bolt of death split open the Town Hall from the inside, tons of brick and Gold flying out. Brandy's forehead slightly tingled at the sight of such riches, but she put her urges aside. She had a lot of better things to do- like take out the Dragon.

The Elecfirno Dragon closed its mouth, letting the residue of lightning drip off. It looked back towards Dan, not sure if it had done its job or not- and was slightly nervous at the fact that Dan had disappeared. He had suddenly gone from right in front of him to nowhere to be seen, and that fact made the Elecfirno Dragon look behind him. He had heard this particular Mega Knight- if he even could be called that anymore- was a very dangerous enemy.

Dan, while the Elecfirno Dragon was searching for him above the dust cloud, run very close to the ground. It was difficult to think of one his size sneaking around anywhere, but he was managing to make it work. He looked forward, trying to find everyone. He knew that Trevor and Annabelle were still behind the rock, but he would have to find the others.

"Dan!", he heard from beside him, and saw Brandy Dash into the smoke cloud. She closed her eyes to protect from the storm, and slid right next to his feet. "You okay?"
"Yeah.", said Dan, and breathed out. His right fist and arm lit up like a torch, allowing them to see in the dark cloud. "We have to find the others. That thing won't be distracted for long."

"How long do we have?", asked Brandy, looking forward into the dust.

"About… 20 seconds.", said Dan, and prepared to leap. He had a very particular operation in mind, one that required a lot of careful planning. "So be careful."

"20 seconds…", said Brandy, reflecting on those times when 3 minutes had been an eternity. It seemed rather odd now, the structured battles of an Arena next to the sheer chaos of whatever this was. It certainly was no standardized. She nodded, and Dashed off. "Okay."

No sooner had she taken off than she saw the glint of steel from beside her, and changed direction. She slid in next to the rock that Annabelle and Trevor had been hiding under- but she could only see Trevor now. And Bubble upon closer inspection- she was hidden behind him, eyes closed, looking thoroughly miserable. Brandy supposed she could allow that.

"Where's Annabelle?", Brandy hissed, trying to be heard over both the flickering storm, the Dragon's roars, and Dan's returning shouts. "Where's Leon?"

"She jumped out to attack it.", said Trevor, pulling Bubble closer to himself. "And I don't know."

"She did what?", Brandy shouted, and shot around to the other side of the rock. She looked up- now the smokecloud was fading. She could see Annabelle standing right there, bow drawn back, aiming right at the Dragon. Brandy cupped her hand around her mouth, about to shout- then she saw it. Two other pairs of footsteps, right in the dirt next to her.

Brandy pulled herself back into the cave, hugging Bubble tight. This was no longer a battle for melee fighters, and Bubble looked unable to fight. She had to trust the rest to the three ranged of the group. It was frustrating not being able to do anything to the Dragon, but it was what it was. She gripped the two a little tighter, and tried to wait out the storm.

The Elecfirno Dragon bellowed, beating its wings ever stronger. The ferocious, wind-filled flaps beat what little remained of the dust cloud into nothing, revealing the two bleeding lines down its stomach. The Dragon stared at the blood dripping onto the parched sand, and shrieked.

Dan thrust his fist into the air, faint lines of spent Rotation still running around it. Even now, a pair of small cutters were still working their way down the Dragon's skin, slicing apart the scale wherever they found it. "Ha!", he shouted, and quickly tried to prepare another one. "How do you like that, you idiot?"
The Elecfirno Dragon screamed, and opened its mouth ever wider. It began to suck in immense amounts of strength from the ground, the steam vents on top of the hidden river flowing into its maw. Its entire body started to shake from crackling lightning and intense flame, an aura of yellow and red burning all around it.

Then it stopped its screaming for a second, almost falling out of the air. Once it began again, it was almost doubled in size and intensity, the burning aura around it multiplied to blazing. But all its fury did nothing to reduce the pain of the arrow that had landed right in its eye, shot straight from Annabelle's bow. Nor the peppering of metal shots in the area all across its face, the blood trickling down that side of it evaporating lost instantly in the insane heat.

Annabelle inwardly rejoiced as her arrow hit its mark, but knew she should take that opportunity to retreat. She ducked down, grabbed the lip of the rock, and swung downwards. She misjudged the gap, however, from her distractedness, and was sent flying right towards the ground at top speed. She barely even had time to scream before she was caught by a pair of invisible arms, an audible groan coming from Leon.

Leon gently set Annabelle down on the ground, then slinked back into visibility once again. He gave his arms a rub, and experimentally flexed his shoulder muscles. He winced in pain and stumbled to the ground- the effort of catching Annabelle had strained his shoulder muscles.

"I got him!", shouted Annabelle, then rethought her statement. "I mean, we got him. Right."

"Right…", said Leon, and breathed out. He let Hunter Killer fall back into himself, taking a peek around the rock. "I just hope Dad can finish that thing off."

Dan stood alone against the Elecfirno Dragon, just the way he had figured it. No one else was strong enough to take the monster on- it had to be him. He stared the Dragon down, daring it to attack with a gaze that seemed just as crazy as its own.

The loss of an eye had not bothered the Elecfirno Dragon. In fact, it now seemed overjoyed that its combatants had been reduced to a single warrior. It would rather have had it been any other warrior in the party, but a duel was a duel. Blood dripped onto the sand, as it opened its mouth even wider for the most powerful shot it could possibly summon. The spikes on its back began to slowly charge up, one by one, the energy around it almost blinding.

Dan took in an exceedingly deep breath, and held his hands below his arm, behind his back. He gathered the Star in between his hands, in a pulsating, crackling ball of pure force. He thought to when the boy had defeated the Cyborg- what had he called his attack? The… kahameah? Something like that. Dan would work on remembering it- it seemed fun to shout.

"Super…", Dan breathed in, the energy in his body only increasing more. The power swirled around him, giving him a brilliant golden aura of his own.

The Elecfirno Dragon continued to build up energy, the winds of the air bending around him. The dust in the area started to pick up, threatening to build up another blinding storm. Pain actually started to shoot through the Dragon's body, from the power he had been gathering. But if it was enough to secure him a victory, then it would have been worth it.

Dan's blast coalesced into a perfect sphere between his hands, small bolts of lightning escaping and crackling against the ground. He had it figured out by now- every part of the Elecfirno Dragon's body crackled with lightning. But that did not mean it was not immune- no, enough energy would overload it. Dan just had to get enough. "Cannon…"

The Elecfirno Dragon took in one last charge, and tried to close its mouth. It was too full of the gargantuan blast to do so- so it instead just shaped it into the shape of the head of a beam. It had to take a few seconds to aim, right at Dan's head.

Dan took in one last breath, gathering all the energy he possibly could. He closed his eyes, thrust out his hands, and fired, right at the same time the Elecfirno Dragon finally unleashed its own blast. "Overdrive!"

The two immense beams of death launched towards each other at the exact same speed, at around the same level of power- and clashed in midair, throwing up a shockwave that spread across the entire area in less than a second.

Brandy watched from afar, staring at the two clashing titans. It was a bit hard to see exactly what was going on, due to the massive amount of smoke that was being thrown up. But from the shapes and sizes of the beams, it was possible to make out who was winning.

They seemed perfectly matched at this point, both of them pushing as hard as they could to try and break the status quo. The Elecfirno Dragon's skin glistened with the heat of his flame, the exhaustion written upon his face. Dan kept on pushing as hard as he could, a determined grit and frown all over him.

Brandy kept on looking at the stalemate- then began to worry. Now that a few seconds had passed, it seemed as thought the Elecfirno Dragon was beginning to push back harder. Dan's beam was slowly being pushed back, shrinking in size and power. The Dragon's roars and Dan's bellows made it hard to hear, or even think. But as Brandy looked, trying to think of what to do, a single thought kept on pushing its way to the front of her mind.

We have to make him mad.

Such things had worked before. When Dan or herself had gotten truly angry before, it almost always resulted in the death of an opponent. She had only ever seen glimpses of Dan's rage before- but those glimpses had showed her a power beyond anything she had ever seen achieved by anybody. Brandy's train of thought ran wildly- if she could get him to unleash his full, absolute rage, the Elecfirno Dragon would be no threat. Maybe he could even become strong enough to defeat Rakastamos.

At that thought, Brandy grit her teeth, straightened her hood, flared her nostrils, and made up her mind. She grabbed Bubble, who at this point was feeling a lot more awake.

"Mommy?", Bubble asked, as they jumped out to the side of the rock. The winds buffeted their face and hair, but it was still possible to walk. "What are we doing?"

"Dad needs to get mad, Bubble.", said Brandy, a gleam in her eye. "We have to make him mad."

Dan kept on pushing against the Elecfirno Dragon's blast as hard as he was able to, but he felt his push slipping. His arms were starting to get sore from the constant beam, as he had never done one this long or this strong before. Sweat dripped down his face, both from the effort and from the heat. The edge of the Elecfirno Dragon's beam was getting dangerously close.

"Dan!", he heard, and saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He allowed himself to look- and saw Bubble and Brandy both running towards him. "Dan!"

Dan growled, and somehow found the strength to push harder. The beam of the Dragon was pushed back a bit, but truly not by much. He slammed his legs harder into the dirt, trying to steady himself. "Guys, what are you doing?", he shouted, and spat. "Get back!"
Brandy cupped her hands to her mouth, and shouted through the sound barrage of the clashing beams, the warring rays. "Dan!", she yelled. "I have to tell you something!"

Dan bit down on his own teeth, feeling one beginning to crack. He took in a breath through his nose, the sudden burst of air allowing his beam to increase a bit more in strength. The Elecfirno Dragon's was pushed back about 5 feet- great. Only 45 more to go. "What?"

Brandy almost said her message- but she never got the chance. Before she could, a beam of Elecfirno shot out from the main one, heading straight for her. She yelped and threw up her arm, a Dash shield appearing around her hand that blocked off the beam. But the power behind it was intense, and both her and Bubble were forced to the ground.

Dan's eyes shot wide open, and he yelled in panic. "Brandy!", he shouted, trying desperately to push away the opposing beam. He made a quick calculation- his legs were too short to reach her. Now he wished he had taken the time to fire from his legs, but it was far too late for that now. "Brandy, just hold on! I'm gonna get you out of there-"
"Dan!", Brandy screamed, in absolute terror. Her arm shook from the pressure, and Dan could see that, horribly, the Dash shield was rapidly weakening. "Help me- I can't hold it- I can't-"
"BRANDY!", Dan shouted, but it was too late. With a terrified scream, the Dash shield broke. The solid ray of Elecfirno slammed down onto both Bubble and Brandy, tearing them apart and turning them both into Elixir within an instant.

For a moment, Dan stared. The sounds of the battle, the heat right in his face, the pain of his screaming body, the desperation of his struggle- they all faded away into a quiet nothing. The only thing he could sense was the slight smear of Elixir upon the ground that had once been his wife and daughter. Right there, cut down and destroyed. Right there, when he could not save them.

The Elecfirno Dragon began to feel alarmed, the panic building up inside its body. It didn't know why, for its brain and mind were simple. But deep down, it knew. Deep down, all things know. There are three things all living beings should fear- the storm at sea, the night with no moon, and the anger of a gentle man.

Dan felt something start to gather, from so deep within him he hardly recognized it. It began to swirl around his body, the green and yellow swirls coming up from both the shattered ground and out of his shattered heart. A low hum started to build, from some unknown source. Dan's face shook, his hands beginning to tremble. Yet even as he did so, his muscles began to swell, the hair on his head starting to wave in some metaphysical wind. His vision blurred, gradually becoming less and less visible, and more and more a blazing, crimson red.

His back spasmed, his head flickering with intense energy. His hair shot upwards, then back down again, the lightning within shooting outwards and striking the ground. A sensation of absolute nothingness filled him- yet, tinged with total, complete, all-consuming rage. As he continued to stare at the spot where Brandy and Bubble had met their ends, that rage began to grow, pushing out the void, pushing out the sorrow, pushing out all other feelings and emotions, until the only thing left in Dan's head was just what all living beings had a right to be afraid of. The total, unending rage of a gentleman, with nothing left.

Dan's eyes snapped open to the fullest- their once ivory whites replaced with nothing but a deep red haze, straining to overtake his azure pupils. As Dan felt the full rage within completely overtake him, his hair stood up on end. His muscles bulged to gigantic proportions, and he finally, finally snapped.

Song: Broly's Rage and Sorrow- Triple Mix

The single most powerful roar he had ever unleashed in his entire life erupted from deep within his very soul like an exploding supervolcano, boiling the very air around him with its raw intensity. A shockwave of raw sound and fury blasted outwards, slamming into the beam that the Elecfirno Dragon was still firing, and ripping it apart almost instantly. The Dragon itself was flung back just from the power of the shout, flipping and turning over in the air.

The ground started to buckle from Dan's outrage, the dirt beginning to melt and the rock dissolving into nothing. Dan grabbed the sides of his head and continued to roar, pulling at the skin of his face like he was trying to tear it off. Blood dripped from the spots where he scraped with his almost flaming fingers, yet he did not notice.

He could barely even see now, see the spot where the Elecfirno Dragon had struck Bubble and Brandy down. The absolute, unending intensity of his rage was blinding, yet freeing. He felt the power well up deep within him like an encroaching tidal wave, pouring out of his mouth and into the air in the form of a sonic boom. It tore at his throat the way he screamed, but he could not stop. He would not. He did not know if he was ever going to be able to.

As he threw his head back into the sky, Dan's last bit of self control fell away into nothing. He let his voice ascend to even louder heights of rage, the edge of it tearing past all vestiges of reason and blasting off throughout the entirety of the War Fields, shaking the world with his loss. He narrowed his eyes, the pupils of each at last replaced with nothing but pure crimson fury, snapping away into nothing.

As he threw out his entire body in every direction, caring not for his own survival, pure Star streamed from him like the breaking of an ancient dam. A low whine built in the air, as the gold and red blasts tore out from him like a dying star, slashing up the ground all around him. The Elecfirno Dragon struggled to right itself, against the immense buffeting winds of Dan's total breakdown. It stared in fear and wonder, at the titan before him.

Dan's screams of pain only continued, slashing through the world like physical attacks. His loss of his wife's death cut through a huge boulder, reducing it to dust in less than a second. His agony at the death of his daughter hit a dead tree right on, blowing it so far apart there was no longer any evidence that it had existed in the first place. He tore and scraped at his face- yet there was no solace to be found. And as his rage grew more and more powerful, his true power began to be unleashed.

The ground below and around him started to buckle, the stone undulating up and down like waves in the ocean. Entire sinkholes collapsed and vents opened, lava erupting out of them in destructive pillars that aimed up towards the sky. The blood red hues of the magma attempted to mirror Dan's emotional turmoil, but nothing in the world could even come close to the sheer pain flooding through his mind. He did not even notice how his own aura followed the magma's path, shooting upwards in a brilliant arc that burned just as hot.

Multiple places on the ground followed suit, bursting open and releasing huge magmatic jets that shot into the air as if fired from a Cannon. The ground continued to buckle and burn from the intensity of Dan's rage and sorrow, burning like a Dragon's throat. But the rage of the ground was nothing compared to Dan's own fury, as he too continued to heat up.

Tears flew off upwards from his tortured face, evaporating almost instantly from the heat, like that of a raging Inferno. Dan threw out his limbs and let his Star erupt in equal measure, shooting out in five directions like a star- from his arms, legs, and head. He started to lift off of the breaking ground, as the sky darkened.

Clouds began to form, drawn to the area from the gravity and power Dan was emitting. Lightning flashed from them all, striking the ground and Dan just as much. The ground exploded each time it was hit- but Dan merely absorbed the thunder, his magnificent golden aura growing stronger and stronger with each one. After about 10 bolts, Dan opened his eyes.

A solid column of pure Star flashed upwards, reaching the clouds in almost an instant. They burst open upon impact, the shrieking star spreading through them at incredible speed. This caused even more Lightning to be called down, spreading across the ground like a storm summoned by the very gods themselves. But this was no divine intervention. Everything that was happening was caused solely by Dan's overwhelming, all-consuming, rage.

Dan rose up in the column, his hair floating off of his back. Any armor that had somehow managed to remain on his upper body blew away and snapped into pieces, burning hunks of metal tossed around in the cataclysmic wind. His metal skirt strained a bit- then it too was burst into bits, hundreds upon hundreds of steel discs flying outwards from the epicenter of the storm. Each one was a bullet, carving a meter deep into the ground below upon impact and slashing against every rock they hit. Now Dan wore only his tight shirt and his shorts- but even that went soon. As Dan's muscles swelled again, his shirt burst open in a flash of fire, pure heat flooding outwards from every part of Dan's skin. His shorts, miraculously, remained intact.

Green and yellow light shone out from Dan's mouth and eyes, the swirling whirlwind of utter destruction and pure energy colored the same way. The buildings in the Villages around his majesty began to be yanked from their tethers, being sucked into the apocalyptic whirlwind that Dan had become. He could no longer hear anything but his own screaming. He could no longer see anything but flame, and death. He could no longer feel anything but his wrath, blasting outwards from him in a strength and raw intensity that defied description.

A massive blast in the form of a ring emanated outwards from him with a colossal sonic boom, tearing through the air like a blade through wet cardboard, leaving the world purple behind it. Everything that the edge of the ring touched- the ground, the flames around Dan, the odd rock that had managed to stay standing- was cut right down the middle, falling apart and crumbling into bits. Another circle erupted from Dan's enraged soul and body, slicing apart everything it encountered in a different direction. This one left the world green behind it, and the next blue. All three of them were equally destructive, yet incredibly sound that followed them was unlike anything else- a vibrating roar, sounding like the fall of a metal castle into a bottomless, hungering ravine.

The real Bubble and Brandy, not the clever illusions that the former had summoned up, lay crouched behind the rock that everyone else was hiding behind. So far, aided by Brandy's Dash shield, it had been the only structure in the surrounding area to avoid total annihilation. Brandy breathed in and struggled with her eyes, forcing them to stay open and watch. She had not expected for Dan's rage to transform him into something like that. It scared her, watching her normally gentle Dan turn into a berserk engine of death- but it excited her at the same time. He had so much power, far more than she had ever even thought possible in any living being.

"Mom?", asked Bubble fearfully, crouching down and holding her legs to her chest. "Do you think we overdid it? He seems really mad."

Brandy paused for a moment, then reached over and gae Bubble a pat on the head.

"No.", she said, squinting against the powerful dust storm. "I think we're good."

After a fourth ring shattered even the clouds of smoke and thunder that still hung around the area, turning the world back to the colors it was, Dan turned his head around. He focused his blazing, pupil-less gaze on the Elecfirno Dragon, mouth pulling down far past any mere snarl. Burning red erupted from every part of him, as he started to pull back his hand. The energy seeped in from around him, spiraling into circles from the way he pulled it to him.

The Elecfirno Dragon noticed, and once again started to gather energy from all around. Its blast built up to mighty proportions, with both the damage of an Inferno and the hitting of an Electro.

But Dan did not think about such things. He did not bother himself with theory most of the time, especially not during times such has this. The only thing he thought about was throwing his charged hand and attack forward, his blast streaking through the air and directly towards the Dragon with all the subtlety and grace of a collapsing mountain. It multiplied in size and strength as it shot forward, spinning red and gold.

The Elecfirno Dragon did its best to counterattack, shooting forward all the strength that it could possibly have mustered. But once its relatively minor shot collided with the sheer cannon of concentrated force that was Dan's, the winner was already decided.

The Elecfirno blast strained intensely against Dan's over the top assault for all of half a second before Dan's overwhelming power proved itself. The last vestiges of the Elecfirno Dragon were swept away in an instant, the skin peeling off the flesh, the flesh peeling off the bones, and the bones starting to dissolve. It did not last long until the bones peeled away into ash, floating over the sky like black snow. Or they would have ,if the ash had not been blasted along in a beam of energy so powerful it defied description, lighting up gold, coming straight from Dan's hands. The Elecfirno Dragon did not even have time to scream before it was dissolved straight into nothing, Dan's blast continuing onwards like a raging angel. It shot right into space, punching through the atmosphere and inner clouds like they were nothing. It did not stop until it hit the far edge of space- and then, perhaps, it did keep on going. Even though its light was gone, its momentum was legendary.

Dan just stood there for a second, his utterly berserk mind gently reflecting on the day's events. The Elecfrno Dragon was dead. There was no way it had survived such a blast. And yet, Dan's rage was not even close to quenched. He still stared at the ground, still stared at the sky. His muscles began to twitch, as he, somehow, grew about a few inches or millimeters in size. His rage was still flowing unchecked- and no there was no one to calm him down.

"Yes!", Brandy whisper shouted, then gestured to Bubble. "I'm gonna go try and gain back control of him. "

"Mom, no!", Bubble hissed, trying to grab Brandy back. "It's too dangerous-"

"I have to.", said Brandy, a serous look in her eye. "It's the only way."

Song: The World in Danger

Dan drew back his head, not even bothering to aim. He was back down on he ground again, ready to cut loose even more. Every breath was that of blazing steam, scorching the ground below him with heat. Not only the heat of the Star, but also the heat of his unimagined rage.

Nowhere in his entire life had he ever felt so wrathful. Nothing had ever quite awakened this much latent power in him. Some part of his brain was still a little bit lucid- enough to measure just what immense strength poured through him. But he felt nothing to do with it- save the now overpowering, burning, impulse to destroy. Destroy the fields, destroy the War Bases, destroy Rakastamos, destroy everything. Nothing any longer mattered.

He drew back his arm, his eyes glowing with molten power. Absolutely massive amounts of Star flashed between his fingers, burning and coiling like a star's miasma. The ground cracked underneath the powerful load- then Dan gave a roar that sounded like a cracking continent, and thrust his fist forward. The Star Cannon Overdrive blasted forward at speeds that left sound itself far behind, creating yet another sonic wave that tore up the landscape with its force. The blast itself tunneled cleanly through the dirt, blasting out into the nearest Village- and it kept on going, rushing through to the other side with intense rage, rivaling its creator's.

All down the middle of the Village, buildings vanished. They did not explode, or crumble- no, they were simply gone. Only a single light green square of not-quite grass remained to mark the fact they had ever been there, although that was burning as well. About a second after the buildings vanished, the shockwave hit- slamming against the rest of the defenses and storages, crushing them to atoms, and flinging them apart on the burning wind. Nothing in the village survived the blast- not the defenses, not the Town Hall, not a single wall was spared. Even the Builder's Huts in the corner and the traps underground were utterly annihilated by the absolute destructive force that Dan was now unleashing. The entire process took less than a second, the three silver stars appearing above the village in a flash of age-old sorcery.

"No…", Brandy breathed, running towards Dan's position. She saw the smoke rising from the speed of Dan's rampage, and its terrifying scope. "He's… out of control."

She leaned down, and put everything she had into her running. Flashing along the shattered ground with insane speed, dust flew up behind her almost as much as it did behind Dan. Although his mental breakdown had begun near where they all had been, it was now much further away. Perhaps he had traveled, perhaps the ground had just shifted that much. But either way, Brandy knew she had to run before he grew too wild. She had no idea that Dan, her Dan, was capable of such things. It made her shiver- and yet, somehow, it made her a little excited.

Dan took in the sight that a single attack had caused. His blast had echoed beyond the first destroyed village, plowing through another, then another, then dozens more before it finally stopped in a gargantuan mushroom cloud, spreading over the horizon. Seeing such destruction somewhat calmed the anger in him, somehow. But it was only a small bit- there was still far more still swirling around him, boiling the air and melting the ground. He snarled, blood spurting out of his face from the force. He raised his fist, not even bothering to surround it with Star. He wanted to see how strong he was alone. For even in such rage, some part of him remained.

With a motion that seemed impossibly fast, Dan slammed his fist down into the ground. There was a slight bend of the light as the world moved to accommodate the power, then the sonic boom sounded. The wind ripped outwards from him at hurricane force, blowing away the topsoil of the area for a half mile in all directions. The clouds that he had gathered parted slightly, the energy reaching all the way into the sky.

The ground reacted in a much more drastic way, the sudden channel that appeared in the ground testament to that fact. It was practically a river of its own, sweeping towards the closest village at nearly instant speed. It slammed into the rocky borders and continued again on the other side, flashing on for hundreds of meters past. But the Village that it had passed through was not unaffected- no, it lay in absolute ruins. Even just a regular punch from Dan at this level of power was enough to split every building in the Village in half, even cracking open the ground the Village was on like an Earthquake. Dan saw it, the destruction he had caused. He saw the destroyed Villages, whoever was in them no doubt killed. Normally he would abhor such things- but in his primal, unleashed state, all he could do was smile. His razor sharp, elongated teeth glinted at the sight of his power, trying to think of all the things he could do with it. But once again his rage overtook him, as he remembered there was no longer anything left for him.

Brandy jumped over a broken boulder, panic fully written on her face as she saw Dan, standing in the middle of a dirt mound. Terror struck her heart, as she saw his face. No longer was it kind, and gentle, his soft blue eyes telling her how much he loved her and that everything would be alright. No, his face streamed crimson anger, with a snarl of a grin that defied sanity. His hair glowed a bright green, in contrast to his usual blond. She hardly even recognized him- but that thought inspired her to keep going. She had to stop him. In his state, he could cause a disaster unprecedented, something that would be worse than the calamity they were trying to prevent.

Dan closed his eyes for a brief second, knowing what he had to do. If he could not live any longer, than neither would anyone else. It was a desperate, selfish move, but the only thing that could bring his broken mind solace. He thrust his hands into the air, and jumped high into the sky. His Star allowed him to stay there, hands raised, hatred searing patterns into the ground below.

Energy began to pour into him from all around, his corrupted energy stealing the force from his surroundings. The ground started to crumble, bright red rock turning into blackened ash. Raw, untamed energy slipped out from between the cracks, streaming into the rapidly growing sphere that Dan held above his head. It crackled with lightning and death, evil faces flickering into being around the destructive orb. As the remaining villages in the area broke down, their resources pouring into Dan's Ultimate Destruction Overdrive, the continent itself began to shiver from the imminent fear of death.

Annabelle stared forward, barely able to see over the storm. "He's… going to destroy it!", she shouted, her face turning white. "Brandy, please make it in time…"

"It?", Trevor asked, holding Annabelle's skirt to prevent her from flying away. "What do you mean, it?"

"Everything!", Annabelle shouted, and covered her eyes in terror. "He's going to destroy everything!"

Dan took a deep gasp, as he felt his attack complete. The gigantic green, red, and black orb rotated at diabolical speeds above his head, ready to destroy everything within sight. He looked down one last time, in order to say one last silent goodbye- when he saw a small figure leaping off the ground, waving her arms, shouting to him in utter desperation.

"DAN!", Brandy shouted, at the top of her lungs. She hoped she could be heard over the storm- it was her only hope. Tears streamed from her eyes, yet her determination did not falter. "DAN, IT'S ME!"

Dan, far above, was given momentary pause. His Ultimate Destruction Overdrive still hovered in his grasp, yet he did not throw it just yet. Something about that voice seemed familiar, beginning to break through his mental fog.

"DAN, IT'S ME!", Brandy shouted one last time, trying in vain to access their mental link. "BRANDY!"

At those words, Dan's pupils suddenly once again became visible. The red that had consumed him began to flicker, giving way to the soft blue once again. The multicolored sphere of destruction still hovered, yet he no longer had any desire to throw it. His mouth opened, and he uttered a single word in response.

"B… Brandy?"

"YES!", Brandy shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth. Even though the storm was loud and intense, her ears had just barely managed to pick up Dan's words. "IT'S ME! I'M ALIVE!"

Dan slowly began to float down to the ground, feeling his rage flickering. It was calming, the feeling of such overwhelming anger slowly drain out of him, and back to wherever it had come from. But of course, it did not want to go back. Everyone had internal demons, Dan very much included. They had manifested themselves in his anger, and highly resented the thought of returning. They pulled at him, telling him to go back up, to throw the attack and end everything. But Dan resisted- his rational mind fighting back against the mighty rage. He forced himself to descend to the ground below, the storm slowly weakening. His eyes kept on flickering back and forth between blue and red, his pupils and irises phasing in and out of visibility.

"Dan!", Brandy shouted again, a little quieter this time. "Come down!"

Dan's hair still flowed wildy above his head. Dan's eyes still raged. Green and yellow Star still flashed around his body, burning any air that got too close. But still he slowly, surely, descended to the ground, breaking it apart as soon as he landed. The sphere of death he had built had dissipated, blowing apart all the clouds for hundreds of miles with its diluted, yet still mind boggling power. And as he slammed down onto the ground on one knee, he saw the tiny figure before him. His demons pulled at his mind, begging him to return to Rage- until Brandy put her hand on his, and looked into his eyes.

"Bran...dy?", he asked, his voice a deep, hoarse rumble from all the screaming. He took deep breaths, struggling to keep his rage inside- until Brandy gave her response.

"Yes.", she said gently, and rubbed his hand. "It's me. I'm alive. Bubble's alive. We're both fine."

Dan gasped, as his eyes finally stopped flickering. They turned full on blue, as his hair finally fell to his back. His demons retreated for another day, and the aura of sheer Rage around him dissipated at last, replaced with a shower of sparkles, and an explosion of gold.

Song: Jonathan Joestar theme

"You're… alive.", Dan said, and his eyes began to water. "But- I saw you die. How did you-"

"Bubble.", said Brandy, and looked up into his eyes apologetically. "Bubble faked our deaths. It was to get you angry- but I didn't mean for you to be like that. I mean, I did, I knew you would get a lot stronger if you saw us die, but I didn't mean to hurt you like that, but-"

Dan stared at her rambling, and knew he could contain it no longer. Rather than listen, he just closed his eyes, threw his entire body forward, and enveloped her in a massive hug. Her words were cut off as Dan surrounded her with himself, suddenly plunging her into a dark cave of embrace. She realized what was happening, and wrapped her arms around his torso as best she could to hug him back.

"Don't…", he said, his voice trembling with overwhelming emotions. "Don't do that, okay? I didn't know you were faking it. I… I can't have you die."

"I guess I know that now.", said Brandy quietly, her own emotions beginning to get the best of her. "How about we both agree on it. We never make each other think we died ever again."

"That sounds good to me.", Dan breathed, and let his eyes close, just feeling Brandy safe and sound within his arms. After such legendary rage, it was good to rest.

Neither of them knew how long it was that they stayed there. Neither of them was paying attention to the time elapsed of them just on the harsh and broken ground, feeling each other breathe, feeling each other think, feeling each other live. It was a wonderful feeling, for both of them. Dan was overjoyed that not only were his wife and daughter safe, so was his confident, his very best friend, his precious thief. It warmed Brandy's heart to near bursting to know that despite his terrifying rampage, Dan was still Dan. His rage had been unleashed to its fullest, leaving behind the gentle person she both knew and loved.

As the minutes passed, silver began to gently flow out of Brandy's body. It mixed with the gold floating above of Dan's head, the two shimmering auras mixing together and dancing in the air. It would have been a true spectacle to behold, if there was anybody around to see it. But sadly, there was not- no one was there to see the dance of the lights, the gentle swirling of the silver and the gold. No one was there to see this physical embodiment of Dan and Brandy's eternal love for each other, glowing above their heads in the light, casting impossible shadows and ethereal glows on the dewdrops below. It was impossible to say what the lights truly were. Perhaps it was the force of Brandy's Dash and Dan's Star. Perhaps it was the physical form of Brandy's Stand, and Dan's potential for one. Perhaps their souls had, temporarily, left their bodies, stepping above the fragilities of the flesh to dance the true dance of the beloved.

But of course, such things cannot last forever. And as the lights slowly faded back into their bodies, a slight cough sounded from the two's immediate right.

Song: Calm Sightseeing

"Oh.", said Dan, but quietly, so as not to disturb Brandy, still tight in his grasp. He looked up to see the rest of the group, in various states of disarray. Bubble's eyes were wide open, almost haunted looking at seeing Dan after what had just happened. Annabelle and Trevor had dust all over their faces and torsos, blown on to them from the storm. Leon's hood lay off of his head, his hair mussed up and a shock of white down the very side. It was most likely from the terror of the experience. He still shook a bit, but was mostly able to keep it under control.

"Hey guys.", Dan said, and offered up a tentative smile. "I'm uh… sorry that you had to see me like that. I just kind of lost control, is all."

"Don't worry, Dan is fine.", said Brandy from underneath his arms, wriggling to get out. Dan noticed and unlocked his grip, allowing her to jump out and into plain view. She adjusted her hood and flicked a thumb off her forehead. "He just had to calm down. Sorry."

Bubble took a tentative step towards her father, still not sure what to think. Dan slightly twitched, and Bubble jumped back with a terrified yelp. She stuck out her hand in some token gesture of defense, skirting behind Annabelle's outstretched arm in underlying fear.

"Woah, woah, don't be afraid.", said Dan, and crept a little closer. He almost smiled, but decided that it would be a better idea to not show his teeth if at all possible. "It's me. Dad."

"But you were scary.", said Bubble, and audibly sniffed. "That was really scary."
"Yeah, but I'm not scary anymore.", said Dan, as gently as he could. "I got all of that out of me once I… you know. Went berserk."
"Are you sure?", asked Bubble, and gently waved her hand. A small neon sign appeared right in front of Dan, with two options highlighted- a bright green Yes, and a dark blue No. Dan rolled his eyes, but gently tapped on the Yes option. The sign disappeared, and Bubble managed to weakly smile. "That's good."

"I'm still a little blown out.", said Leon, and sighed. He sat down on a pile of dirt, seeming to not notice his new streak of white hair. He let all the air in his lungs slowly dissipate into the area, closing his eyes and falling onto his back. "That was an exhausting couple of fights."

"Well.", said Brandy, and a sly smile began to creep its way up her face. "If you guys are feeling tired, then I guess you all could just stay here for a bit."

She looked up at Dan, who looked back down at her with some degree of confusion. "Because me and Dan are about to go somewhere else…"

"What?", asked Dan, not really sure what Brandy was getting at. She stared at him in a way that she had not for a few days, but-

"Dan.", said Brandy, and Dashed up onto his chest. She could not keep her eyes off of him even for a second. He had lost almost all of his clothes in the battle with the Elecfirno Dragon and his enraged transformation, leaving the only thing he was clad in a pair of blue shorts that he normally wore under his armor. Brandy stared at his massive muscles, his skin glimmering with both Star and sweat. She felt her own chest grow tighter, and her face grow hot. Brandy pressed herself right up against Dan's upper chest, and looked up right into his eyes. The look on her face was one of absolute hunger, although not for any food.

Brandy turned to the group, hardly able to keep herself contained any longer. Now Dan knew what she as getting at, and slowly began to get up off the ground.

"Me and Dan are gonna…", she said, looking around. Upon finding a suitable surviving boulder to go behind for a while, she grinned. "Go behind that rock for a bit. Don't go anywhere too far away, okay?"

Dan stood up, and started walking over to the boulder. He prepared himself for what he knew full well was going to happen next- it had not happened for a few days. Perhaps such a thing now would help to fully take care of the stress and worries that had been building- not to mention provide what he thought was the perfect capstone to such a tender moment.

"What are you going to do behind the rock?", asked Bubble, tilting her head. Leon's face grew stiff, both Annabelle and Trevor noting just how interesting the dirt in the area really was.

"Nothing.", said Leon, as he saw Dan carry the increasingly hyper Brandy off towards the rock. "Now let's go off somewhere else and… uh… look for bugs."

"But what are they going to do behind the rock?", Bubble asked, resisting Leon's brotherly pull. "Is it fun? Are they gonna do something? I wanna go!"

"They're going to do… uh…", said Leon, and looked to Trevor for assistance. He knew what they were going to do, but he did not know how he would go about explaining it to Bubble. He briefly considered telling her the full truth, but decided against it pretty quickly.

"They're going to go do boring adult stuff.", Annabelle said, one finger pointing up in the air. "You wouldn't want to go, Bubble. You would just be bored."

"Boring adult stuff?", asked Bubble, with a frown. "Like whaaaat?"
"Taxes.", said Trevor. Nobody said anything for about 15 seconds after that, just letting the word hang there in the air.

"That's… right!", said Annabelle, shooting Trevor a dirty look. He shrugged, but Annabelle retorted with a glance that said I will talk to you about this later.

"So let's not worry about that, shall we?", Leon asked, and took Bubble by the hand again. He started leading her off towards the top of the devastated hill, gently turning her face away from the rock that he could see Dan and Brandy duck behind. "Let's see what's in the area. I bet there's all sorts of bugs and spiders and stuff."

"Ew, but I don't like spiders.", said Bubble, and pouted with a fold of her arms. "Aren't there any frogs around here?"

"Probably not.", said Trevor, and wiped the sweat off of his brow. "It's too dry and hot for frogs. We might see some Skeletons though. Just out here in the wild."

"Frog skeletons?", asked Bubble, perking up hopefully. "I wanna see a frog."

"Sure.", said Annabelle, giving Trevor an elbow nudge. He looked at her in confusion, but accepted it. He didn't want to make her mad for any reason. "We'll probably see some frogs if we look hard enough around here."

"Yay!", Bubble said, and jumped over a rock. She looked around for the river, seeing the broken and shattered part of the ground that Dan had split. Through it ran the Clashcrush river, now able to be seen without its protective layer. Trevor figured they should probably have put it back, but that could wait. Apparently Bubble Needed to find a frog, so find a frog they would.

"I think there could be a frog in the river.", said Leon, leaning over Bubble. "We just need to sit here and wait for one to show up."
"Woooahhh…", said Bubble, staring right into the most likely deep water. It was impossible to tell its true depth, with the lighting so low in the crack. "What kind of frog?"
"Desert Bowstring.", said Annabelle, sitting down right next to Bubble. "They're special frogs that live in places like this one. They can also shoot small barbs of venom with their specialized feet, hence the name."

Bubble stared up at Annabelle's knowledge, and her eyes sparkled. She immediately threw her face right down up against the crack in the ground, keeping her eyes peeled.

"Sheesh.", said Leon under his breath, and flicked his lollipop around in his mouth. He looked up at the sky, seeing how close the sun was to the center of the sky. It had actually left it behind a little bit ago- he estimated it was now around 1 o clock. "I hope this doesn't take too long."

Song: Propaganda

At around the same time those events shook the War Fields, a very particular and rather peculiar meeting was happening rather far away, inside of a secret building, inside of a secret valley. The valley could not be found on any map that was not inside the area itself- but the person visiting there had methods of finding his way. He always did.

The secret building was not one known to the majority of the world's population, save every single Builder. They all knew it by heart, from the moment they were born. This was the place where the All Clan Annual Eastern Conference Builder's Thingamajig was held, it was the place where the Primal blueprints for all buildings were theorized, drawn up, finalized, and finally produced. This was the location of what some believed to be the very first hammer ever used to upgrade a building, and the very first Gems that had been painstakingly recovered after being used to complete it. This was the place where innovations were made on a daily basis, where invention was the norm, where it was rumored that even strange, mechanical heroes were beginning to be built. This was the counterpart to the Ivory Tower- the Builder's Bunker.

And in the very mechanical heart of the building, pistons and gears abounding in gaudy gold and scintillent silver, there sat a circle of chairs. Seven shadowed figures sat at one end of the circle, their short builds and bald heads not making them less intimidating. Or at least, they would have been intimidating to anybody but the one that sat before them- the one and only Askari the 15th.

"Sirs.", he said, his slightly mechanical voice ringing off the walls. The shadowed checkerboard of the walls reflected the tones back towards him, creating a strange sounding echo. "I do believe we both know why we are here."

He stared forward, and mentally changed the mode of his eyes. WIthin a second, the darkened gloom that had been hanging over the Builder's dark forms vanished, revealing their less than threatening selves. Other than the single beard among them, they looked just like regular Builders- but Askari knew the truth. These were the only Primals that had not left on the spacial journey with the others. The Primal five Builders- and their undisputed leader, the Primal Master Builder himself. The seventh figure that remained was that of the Primal Villager, who was taking careful notes of the meeting, flying across the paper she used with her Lightning fast hands.

"Ay.", said one of the Builders, and leaned forward just a touch. He knew full well that Askari could see him, for he had designed that particular model of eyes himself. He knew what mode they were on. "We do."

"But we are not sure we can devote any of our resources to helping you.", said the Builder on his right, and shook his head slightly. "This… Dragon Cannon, was it… seems rather outlandish. Frankly, I am not sure that such a thing is even possible to be built."

"It is far beyond what your ancestor constructed.", said the third, remembering to that fated time. "That was a relatively simple design, being based upon the Inferno Tower and Eagle Artillery. But this seems to not really be based on anything. How are we supposed to build it?"

"Well, you are builders.", said Askari, tapping his fingers on the table impatiently. A shiver ran up one of the Builder's backs, and he tried his best to hide it. "So build it."

The group, unsure, looked to their leader for guidance. He hiccuped, gave his beard a few soft scratches, and looked forward, his eyes almost glazed over. "Sir, what do you think?"

The Master Builder thought for a few things, the ancient gears and pistons in his mind twirling and whirling. "Well.", he said, and looked up. "The way I see it, he's sort of right. This is a complicated design, but I do think we can build it. It'll cost us, of course."
"What is your price?", Askari asked. "The resources of the Silver Tower can provide it, I promise."

"Hmm…", said the Master Builder, once again looking over the plans. His eye twitched, and his beard gently waved back and forth under its own accord. He took in every bit of the blueprints- the way the wheels were to move. The exact weight that it needed to have. Every single dimension, every single exact material and type- even the markings and decorations on the outside. Even the color was taken into effect, all swirling together inside of the Master Builder's mind. Finally, he nodded, and looked up. "That'll set you back about a billion Gold."
Askari's eyebrows raised, but he understood. There was no way his absolute masterwork could come up to costing anything less than a true fortune. "Alright. Once it is built, I will have the Gold delivered. And do not worry, it shall be."

"Hold it.", said the Master Builder, and turned to one of his partners. "How much we got in the back?"
"How much what?", asked the Builder, and looked around. "Gold?"
"Nah.", said the Master Builder, and inhaled deeply. "Fuel."

"Uh…", said the Builder, thinking back to the last time he had been there. "About a few day's worth. Should let us finish it in time."

"Good, good.", said Askari, and began to stand up. "But, if I may ask… what do you mean by fuel?"

"Builder Potions.", said the Master Builder, and coughed. "Or, if you're being technical, we got some bottles with a mix of crack, sugar, and Elixir. It's the good stuff, you know?"

"I see.", Askari said, and turned around. "Well, don't let me keep you dawdling. I'll be off-"
"Hold it right there.", said one of the Builders, and Askari paused with his foot off the ground. "How can be sure you're the real Askari?"

"What?", Askari asked, and turned around. "What do you mean, ask if its the real me? What other Wizard can do… this?"

Upon his words, Askari's hand suddenly turned to metal. It shot out and grabbed a drinking cup off the Elixir cooler, taking a deep, refreshing swig before crushing the cup entirely.

"I assure you once again, I am Askari.", he said, and nodded. "That is fact."

"Well then, Mr. Askari.", said the Builder, and grabbed something from above him. "I'm sure you won't mind a little test? Just to see, to make sure, to prove."

"By Ill'ka.", said Askari, and started walking towards the Builder. "Administer this test."

The Builder said nothing, and slowly produced a gun, to the gasps of his fellows. It was a rather simple model, much like the one used by Colts. There were no markings on its side, save a single red X. From the rattling it made when the Builder set it on the table, it had at least one bullet.

"The mighty Askari has been said to never lose a game of Death Roullete.", said the Builder, all eyes at the table staring at him in shock. Except for those of Askari, who merely peered in glee. "But we shall see if that is true. Are you the real Askari? Or are you just one of those fakes that's been hammering around lately."

Askari sighed, and grabbed the gun. He swiftly brought it up near his head, and pulled the firing mechanism into place. He did not even bother to close his eyes.

"You should know better than this.", he said, directly to the Builder who had given him the gun. "Such an odd test…"

He suddenly pulled the trigger- and there was a bright flash of light. The Builder slightly smiled, one of his targets down at last. For he had placed a bullet in every chamber prior to Askari's coming. There was no way he could avoid getting shot.

But as the smoke cleared, there stood Askari, the same insane grin still on his face. A very slight dent had impacted the part of his face where the bullet had hit, but disappeared just a second later. The rest of him wasn't even injured in the slightest, for it was just a regular bullet that had shot him. It was nothing before his perfected mechanical body.

"There.", he said, and threw the gun down to the table. "I proved it, did I not? For as you can see, I am indeed alive."

"So you are.", said the Builder, and the Master Builder gripped the plans tightly in his hand. "Well, looks like everything is sorted out. We will build your Dragon Cannon, Askari, and have it ready as soon as we can."

"Excellent.", Askari said, and let a grin slowly creep up the side of his face. "You and your fellows will be a valuable asset to my armies indeed."

"We can only hope.", said the Master Builder, and shook his head in exhaustion. He began to head down the interior row to the Grand Forge, as Askari decided to head out. He had a lot of places to be, and worryingly less and less time to be there.

Song: Space of a Lone God

But before he could leave the building, just as he entered into the hallway, a mysterious light shone from the space in front of him. Askari had no idea what it could be, and he brought up his hand for protection. A few stray guns automatically popped out of it, taking aim at the light.

"Who are you?", he barked, taking a step back. He didn't want to take any chances with the mysterious light, especially considering the number of times he had been ambushed by Forgotten lately. "Identify yourself!"

The white light opened wider, revealing a shimmering corona of power. A gloved hand reached through it, the fingertips glowing purple and the stitching shining with white light. An aura of deadly seriousness emanated from the strange hand, tearing at the air itself.

Askari looked down at the mysterious hand, and raised the guns on his hand. But he did not yet shoot, for his curiosity was beginning to outweigh his caution. There was something about the hand that seemed… familiar to him. Like as if he knew the person on the other end of the portal, even if he didn't know who were quite yet. He felt his own energy gently move forward and touch the glow of the hand, intermingling quite peacefully.

"Who are you?", he asked again, trying to make sure he was not making a mistake. "Did I call for you? Because if I did not, then I do not think that-"

But his words were interrupted by the glowing white crack in the air opening a bit wider once again, a face becoming visible through it. He wore a splendid white beard, and a stern expression that seemed hewn from solid rock. His famous Wizard's Eyebrows seemed almost to be glaring with a life of their own, staring down at Askari with both patience and contempt.

Askari stumbled back, in utter shock. The guns went back in his hand, and he found himself taking a bow. "Father?", he asked. "What brings you here to me?"

"Askari, my boy.", said Askari the 14th, and placed his hands on the side of the crack. Pushing mightily, he managed to separate the walls long enough for him to walk out, and land on the ground of the complex. It closed to a smidgen almost as soon after, the crack not able to keep such size up for very long. "I have come. For you need help."

"Help?", Askari the 15th asked, and stood back from his bow. "I do appreciate the offer, but I do not need help. I got the Goblins on our side already. And the Builders are building me the great weapon."

Askari the 14th shook his head, and put his hand on his son's shoulder. "Yes. That is good.", he said, his massive white beard moving with every word. "But it is not all that is needed."

"Oh.", said Askari, and his visgage grew slightly weaker. "Well then, what is needed?"

"You need to get more help, my boy.", Askari the 14th said. "There are continents that require your attention. You have spoken to Lady Chuqalita, correct?"
"Right.", said Askari the 15th, remembering if he actually had. "She might even end up coming."

Askari the 14th stared straight forth but intensely. "She will almost certainly know what to do better than I do. Seek her out, find her, recruit her if at all possible. For whatever reason, she is the only Dragonlord currently awake. She is very powerful indeed, and commands legions of strange, new troops."

"Yes.", said Askari, and took the plan to his head. He let it clink around inside of there for a few seconds, settling down into his mechanical nature within a second. "I can do that, father."

"Good, good.", said Askari, and looked up. "Then let us be off there at once, Father! Merely tell me where it is you now live, and I shall make sure to visit there soon."

"Of course, of course.", said Askari the 14th, and performed a small nod. "I am in Brawltopia at the moment, beginning to gather warriors. Swing by anytime. I'm sending you my exact coordinates. You should be able to get there easily."

"Good.", said Askari, and stood up. "I do have some other places to go, however. As much as it pains to me to say so, and leave you behind for a while."

"Very well.", said his father, and bowed. They both took one last look at one another, then Askari the 14th saluted. "I look forward to your arrival."

The portal closed, leaving Askari the 15th alone in the hallway. He closed his fist, looked up, and ran off- intent on meeting his father as soon as he could.

That meeting, all things considered, had taken place in the span of about half an hour. That had left plenty of time for the slightly less than important things happening in the War Fields to run their course, and begin to reach their close as well. And while one group of the fated travelers were still out in the mounds of dirt looking for frogs, the other two finally stepped out from behind the rock, exhausted but happy. Dan carried Brandy with one arm, the other held over his brow.

Brandy looked up into Dan's face, still shaking a little from what they had done behind the rock. She tried to form words, but failed, only softly breathing out. But that was okay with her. Exhaustion of that type was to be expected after such vigorous activity.

"Brandy.", said Dan, and took a huge step over a rock. "Thanks for that. I really needed it. And I guess that you needed it too."

Brandy nodded, and took a deep breath. She prepared herself to speak, trying to push the words through her mouth. "Of… of course we both needed it.", she said, and uncrossed her legs, intense as that movement might have been. "Why else… would we do it?"

Dan smiled, and reached out with the arm that was not holding Brandy. He gently stroked the top of her head with the single tip of a delicate finger, causing her to close her eyes. "We did it because we love each other.", he said, speaking in the deepest, most gravelly voice he could. Brandy closed her eyes and purred, feeling Dan's touch. "That's why, silly girl."

At those words, Brandy went limp in Dan's arms. She closed her eyes again, and almost fell unconscious. But she managed to stay awake, flexing her worn muscles to sit up in Dan's grasp. "We should…", she said, and blinked her eyes open. "We should check up on everyone else. See what they're up to."

"Right.", said Dan, and gave Brandy one last gentle tap on her back. She let herself fall completely into his hand, feeling his pace quicken over the dirt. "We should probably run now."

Brandy agreed, although she did not say so. Having her face pressed into Dan's skin might have prevented that.

"A frog!", shouted Bubble in raw excitement, jumping up from her crouch above the river. She pointed eagerly in, the heads of the group all turning to see. "A frog, a frog!"

"Wait, you actually found one?", asked Leon, jumping over. He hadn't expected to ever see a Frog in a place like this, but he guessed that he had seen many things he never would have expected to see. Bubble was one of them- so why not a frog? "That's cool."

As Leon landed right next to Bubble, he looked right where she was pointing. He too had been excited when she announced her discovery- and yet, there was nothing. No frog adorned the spot that she was showing. There was no frog anywhere within the entire area.

"Uh…", said Leon, and cast a look of confusion to Bubble. "Where?"

"Where what?", asked Bubble, and pointed harder. "It's right there!"

"But it's not.", said Leon, and squinted. There wasn't even a camouflage frog that he could see. There was just nothing but the slowly rushing water and a small bit of stone, too small for most frogs to sit. "There's not a frog there, Bubble."

Bubble rolled her eyes, a soft "Boys" coming out from under her breath. She pointed down into the water itself, and insisted louder. "Not there. There! Look!"

Leon looked harder, a touch concerned for Bubble's sanity- when then he saw it. She had not been pointing to a frog down in the water, she had been pointing to the reflection of one upon the surface. Leon immediately looked up- and saw a frog hanging there in the air, in a classical mediation pose, eyes closed and dewlap vibrating like a hyper Ice Spirit. Somehow, Leon had missed it until now.

"Huh.", said Leon, and scratched the top of his hood. "Well, would you look at that. A frog."

"Amazing…", said Trevor, coming up from behind them. He stared up at the frog as well, his biology training finally coming into effect. "That's a Floater Frog. Very rare, especially around these parts. Nice find, kids."

Bubble beamed, and tucked one lock of hair behind her ear. She reached out tenderly with one hand towards the Floater Frog, intent on giving it a pet- when she heard the panicked scream of Annabelle reach her ears.

"Bubble, don't touch that!", she yelled, diving into the way. Bubble retreated in dismay, watching Annabelle spread her arms out open wide, making sure not to touch the frog. Her breathing was hard and her eyes wide from panic. "That's not just a Floater Frog, Trevor. See, look at its legs."
Trevor looked down at the legs, and his eyes widened in alarm as he saw a distinct red mark on the interior sides. "Oh, shoot.", he said, and took a step back. "Yeah, that's the highly toxic kind. Keep your distance, guys. Sorry Annabelle, not sure how I missed that."

"No, no, it's fine.", said Annabelle, and put her hand on Bubble's back. "Come on, everyone. Let's leave the Floater be. We should probably go check up on your parents now, shouldn't we?"

"Right.", said Bubble, and pounded her little fist into her hand. The thrill of the search for the Frog seemed to be fading from her mind and memory, this new quest suddenly far more important. "We need to find out what they were doing behind that rock."

"Let's not, okay?", Annabelle asked, at the same time that Trevor said "Taxes."

They both stared at each other, Annabelle politely asking Trevor with her eyes to cut it out. Trevor just shrugged, as if implying his innocence. But Annabelle ignored the plea, choosing instead to just focus on ahead, guiding Bubble down the hill and back toward the fields. She saw that Leon needed no directing, for he was already far ahead of her. He had the fastest speed out of anyone in the group, more so now that he could activate Smoke Trails.

Song: Cheerful Journey

"Hey, kids…", Brandy said, still a little woozy. Dan stepped over a huge dirt mound, appearing in front of the group on the hill. Only one of her eyes was open, as she hung loosely in Dan's tight grip. Or at least it appeared that way- Dan would never let her fall. "You uh… you find any frogs?"

"Yes!", shouted Bubble, and started to run forward. She almost tripped on a leftover rock, but jumped over it just in time. She looked up at Dan and Brandy with an excited expression, light of happiness beaming from her face. "We found a super cool floating frog, but Annabelle said-"

"Wait.", Dan said, sudden alarm crossing his face. "A floating frog? You didn't touch it, did you?"

Bubble sighed, and looked back wistfully to where the frog had been. It was gone now, having since floated away upon the wind. "No. Annabelle said it was bad to touch it."

"Well, thank goodness.", said Dan, and slowly leaned down. He offered his open shoulder for Bubble to climb on, and she stared at it in caution. "Those can be dangerous."

They both stood there for a few more seconds, as the rest of the group advanced. Dan stared in confusion at Bubble, who stared in worry up at him. "Bubble?", he asked, as unintimidating as he could. "What's wrong?"

"What happened to all your clothes?", she asked, staring at his face. "You're in your underwear."

"Yeah…", said Leon, and frowned. "You kind of burned off everything, Dad. Almost."

Dan looked down, and frowned at his current state. They were right- he no longer wore anything but his bright blue undershorts. All other articles of clothing- his upper armor, his helmet, his metal skirt, his undershirt- they had all been destroyed along various parts of the journey.

"Oh.", he said, and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well uh… yeah, I guess I can't really go around looking like this, now can I. Brandy'll keep on getting distracted."

Brandy laughed, and nuzzled her face deeper into Dan's hand. Dan smiled, and squeezed his hand just enough to give her sides a bit of a nudge. He looked up, and back towards Bubble. "Do you think you could make me some illusion clothes? Just for now, until we find a more permanent option."

Bubble took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. She stuck her hands out in front of herself, and began to concentrate. Such an order was very complicated indeed, and hard to pull off. She had to understand perfectly how such a thing would look in every light, and every stance that Dan could take. It was on her pride as an artist that such things rested.

For a few seconds, nothing happened. Bubble merely sat upon the ground, waving her hands around and making odd mumbles. Dan looked at Brandy, who winked for some reason.

"I think it's working.", he said, and shrugged. "Otherwise, why would she be making-"

As if waiting for him to say such a thing, Bubble's eyes shot open. They were shining a bright and wonderful blue, sending light and casting shadows onto the ground below. A stream of blue shapes flew forth from her opened palms, rushing towards Dan and hitting his skin. It was a far more open presentation than the illusions she usually cast, but this was a far more complicated job. Dan felt a tingling run across his skin, as the power of Bubble's illusions slowly became exactly what Dan had known he had asked for- a curved, layered metal top piece across his torso, some spiked covers for his limbs, and a long blue cape trailing out behind him.

"Awww, thanks Bubble.", Dan said, and reached out. He gently tusseled her hair, so as to not hurt her. "Now we can keep on going."

Dan reached out his hand, gesturing for everybody else to get on board. Everyone knew the drill by this point- get on Dan, keep on walking, fight some Forgotten, get on board again, and keep on going. That is what they had been doing for quite a while now. But really, only Brandy was any bored of it. Dan relished the combat, taking each encounter as a chance to further hone his skills before he took on Rakastamos himself. Leon saw it mostly the same way, as a chance to properly get himself ready. Bubble didn't care much for the whole fighting thing as much as those two, but she very much liked the hanging out with her family part. Trevor and Annabelle both enjoyed the combat and knew that it was making them stronger. Already, they had felt each of their levels go up a few times. "All aboard!"

Once Bubble jumped up onto Dan's hand, completing the stack, he knew it was time to head out. With an authoritative gesture of his fist and a few decisive steps forward, the group struck out once again, following the hints of the River towards the Mountain.

"Hey guys?", asked Annabelle, and Brandy looked up. "Yeah?"

"What should we call ourselves?", Annabelle asked, and gestured outwards with her hands. "I mean, most cool groups have some sort of name. So what should we be?"

"I don't kno-", said Leon, but Dan rumbled, as he had something to say.

"Blue Justice.", he said, then almost stopped walking as he finally heard it for the first time outloud. "I mean-"

"Let's figure it out later.", said Brandy, slurring her words. "When we're not all so tired."

"That sounds like a good idea.", said Dan, and kept on walking. "Let's do that."

Song: Ancientry

The mood was unfavorable in the cave of Rakastamos during that particular morning. He had entered one of his famous fits a few hours earlier, and an entire section of cave wall now lay shattered and broken, felled by a single mighty blow. Reports of an earthquake had reached as far away as the Rushlands, no doubt attracting the attention of Chuqualita. But that did not even weigh upon Rakastamos's mind in the slightest at this point. No, he had much larger things to worry about. Things that pressed onto his mind like a heavy weight presses through a cloud, or the ocean's weight presses upon a deep-sea flatworm. It tore at him, causing his own claws to dig imprints into his own flesh. For as impossible as it might as have seemed, the great and mighty Dragonlord Rakastamos was stressed out.

He sat deep inside his personal cave, staring deep into the shards of broken glass that served as a Mirror. They dripped with blood on every edge- but the spilled blood of tortured, passed on Troops, and some of his very own. That blood still glowed bright, shimmering with the surface of the mirror itself. Sometimes he considered fixing it, putting the shattered bits back together again- but he knew without a doubt that every time he stared into it, it would just shatter again. For he was the almighty, truly chosen Dragonlord Rakastamos, he told himself. He broke the sanity of lesser beings from his sheer presence alone. His breath was that of a volcano. His strength was that of mountains, and his knowledge that of oceans. His swiftness was that of a hurricane, and his raw untempered might truly had no equal.

His sister Chuqalita called herself "The Wise." That thought made him spit, the acidic liquid bubbling and fizzing into the ground below. How wise did she think she was? She had gone so far as to not only reject his message of worldwide prosperity, but even to suggest that somehow, he was wrong. He, the savior of Dragonkind. The very notion made him furious, boiling over with anger towards his sister. He raised his hand, dripping with shadow, to smite some other part of the cave clean off the face of the planet- but something gave him pause. A memory, even just a sensation, of when he was young. He remembered that he had always been the closest with Chuqalita among his siblings, a very long time ago. His eyes softened a tiny bit-

Then he roared, and slashed down. The side of the cave hesitated for a bit, not sure what to do- then it fell away, the entire subterranean plate sliding down the cliff and shattering upon the ground. A great noise spread throughout the cave, all alerted to their master's rage.

Rakastamos sat there, huffing puffs of pure anger through his nose. Who was anyone to deny him his victory? Who had the right to cease the world's rightful cleansing?

"Master Rakastamos?", he heard something say far below him. Rakastamos ever so slowly turned to look, the majority of his gargantuan form hidden from view of the Troop. The messenger put his hands in front of his head, and bowed. "Yes?"

"I bring news, my lord.", said the Messenger, and bowed again. "Yes, very important news."

"Is it about the deaths?", asked Rakastamos, and ever so gently, ever so lightly, scraped the top off the rock below him. "Because trust me, I already know."

"No, no, it's not that,", said the Messenger, and Rakastamos slowly looked down.

"Oh?", he asked ,and slowly began to turn around all the way. His colossal, menacing form even intimidated the Messenger- he was the one that talked with Rakastamos all the day. And yet their connection was still incredibly shallow. "Then please, Messenger. Tell me what happened."

"Well.", said the Messenger, knowing that he had to tread his next words carefully. "I know you already saw the defeat- temporary, of course- of the Cyborg. And then there's the Singer and the Dancer-"

"What?", asked Rakastamos, in genuine confusion. "Who are the- I don't remember them."

"Oh, they were recruits", said the Messenger, feeling panic begin to drip down its brow. "We hired them, but now they were defeated. By the Tailbiters-"
"Oh, the Tailbiters!", Rakastamos suddenly shouted, and jerked himself to an upright position. His eyes burned with orange flame, and his teeth were pulled back in a ferocious snarl. At the mere mention of the group's name, Rakastamos's rage had been stoked.

"They truly will not leave anyone alone, will they?", he shouted, and bashed his tail against the wall. Several ancient runes that had been put there long ago crumbled to dust, the Messenger jumping to avoid the falling debris. "Of course, my Forgotten are hardly any better. They keep on splitting up, they keep on avoiding their assigned roles, and they just keep on dying! I assigned Trevor to Balkstrassen, and what does he do? He goes off with William, and he dies!"

He glared at his mirror in pure fury, and several of the shattered bits broke even further. They fell onto the ground in tiny shards and powder, the noise unable to be heard against Rakastamos's intense rumbling. His jaw hung open, his hundreds upon hundreds of teeth glinting in the low light. They were one of the only things that could be seen.

The Messenger waited a few more seconds before delivering his next message. "But on the bright side, the team has gotten your Blood Elixir Pump just about up and working again. Once we go out and get some new sacrifices, we will be on proper schedule once again."

"Good.", Rakastamos said, his mouth's snarl pulling up a little bit. "How far along are we on the schedule, by the way? How much time do we have left?"

The Messenger, ever the dutiful servant, told him just how much time was left. And upon hearing that number, Rakastamos's eyes lit up. His mouth turned from an enraged snarl to a genuine smile, practically able to taste the success within his grasp. He had waited for so long to finally, truly, ascend to the perfection that the Blood Elixir would bring him. He had overestimated the amount when he had awoken earlier, as well. He had thought that it would have taken a million- but it would only take around 50 thousand. Quite the acceleration, indeed.

"And of course, there is one more message…", said the Messenger, and Rakastamos slowly looked down. The Messenger trembled, as he was oft to do- but Rakastmos just sighed. He would never hurt his most trusted source of information. Besides, he already knew what the Messenger was probably going to tell him. "Yes?"

"There are more attackers, here to see you.", the Messenger said, then scrambled into his hole in the wall. Rakastamos grinned, and clenched his fist. "Goooood.", he growled, and slowly began the long walk towards the entrance of the immense system of caves that made up his lair. "I've got some things to work through."

Song: Frieza's Horrific Power

That particular group of assassins the Messenger had been referring to was a strong one indeed. The information that had desperately been relayed in the dying moments of the last groups had been carefully analyzed, studied, and put to good use. Rakastamos's power had been seen, and the agents of the Silver Tower had gotten a good estimate on just how strong he really was. His fighting style had been written down and drilled into the heads of everyone in the group, counters being taught to each and every one of them. It would be hard to try and counter such an immense beast, but the Troops of the Tower had been trained for any eventuality. They tried to keep the mentality of just a normal day of work, merely a routine assassination, even as they walked through the lair of true evil. They all tried to cut down on the air of fear, but it hung over them like a sickening cloud. Shivers ran up and down not only the spines of the party, but the air and even the very space itself inside the cave, what seemed to be evil voices making themselves heard. What they whispered was not a mere language, but the core sounds of evil itself. It scraped upon the ears like vile poison, a rot tipped dagger against pale flesh.

The group was a particularly strong one, for it had to be at this point. There were no mere Barbarians, or Archers. There were no weak links, such as a Wizard or a Musketeer. No, this group was far stronger. This group did not merely have heavy hitters, it was made entirely of them. There was to be absolutely no mercy visited upon Rakastamos upon that day.

The first and most powerful member of the group, the leader, was a level 75 Archer Queen named Saliah. Usually, levels did not go that hight for Heroes- but Saliah was different. She had been a mutant since birth, able to access strength far beyond her normal level. She had chosen the skin of the Gladiator, ready to take down Rakastamos by any means necessary.

Behind her was her second in command, Mary, who was also an Archer Queen. She was not nearly as high of a level, being only 40, but her strength in combat was still incredible. She had no special skin, but she was still ready and able to fight for the world's safety.

Coming up third in the battle line was Chris, a veteran Builder perched atop a Sparky. It hummed with sheer electrical power, ready to unleash lightning and death upon the mere touch of a button in Chris's hand. Chris was alert and waiting for anything, no matter what they might be. Any threats would be dealt with as quickly and painfully as possible.

Bringing up the rear were a pair of Super Pekkas, their electric bodies crackling and spitting sheer, absolute energy. Their twin swords shone brightly in the cold, old light, casting shadows onto the deeply haunted ground. The entire group could still see how the death Elixir of no doubt dozens or even hundreds of previous would be assassins covered the stone like a carpet. But this time was different. This time, they would kill Rakastamos for good.

In the very back was a level 30 Battle Machine, piloted by its own workings. Its massive hammer hummed with hidden electrical surges, able to summon up a ferocious bolt at the slightest notice. It took careful steps along the rock, trying to make sure not to trip.

One of the Super Pekkas looked up, her robotic eyes searching for Rakastamos. It was odd how little the nothing she found was .Normally, Rakastamos would have shown up by now- that was the information collected by all the other doomed teams. Perhaps there was something wrong. Perhaps he had left the cave, or just gone far deeper into it. But whatever the case, she would have to keep looking. She brought her head back down, staring forward, and felt a rather odd sensation in the middle of her mechanical torso. Something tickled.

Carl looked lazily over, trying and failing to stifle a yawn. He saw that one of the Pekkas had stopped, staring at its own stomach in amazement and concert. He yawned again, accepting it this time, thinking about what could have happened. Perhaps it had tripped over a rock, or perhaps it was just old. With a horrible creaking of metal, the Super Pekka's entire top body slid off and fell onto the ground, suddenly becoming half a Pekka. Carl decided that it would best to take a look at it in a few minutes, maybe once they located Rakastamos.

Something that he had seen, but not fully processed in the last few seconds suddenly took effect, and he turned once again to see the Pekka. There it sat upon the ground, the top half beginning to turn into Elixir. Its bottom half just sat, largely starting to do the same.

"Uh.., guys?", he asked, staring at the spot where the Super Pekka had fallen. He saw no traces of weaponry anywhere around it. "What was that?"

"What?", asked Mary, still keeping her bow extended and her ammo ready to fire at any sudden moment. "What just happened-"

Then she saw the Super Pekka, and audibly gasped. She watched as it let out one last, sad-sounding "Bu...tter… fly…"

Then it dissolved into Elixir, spilling out into the stony ground. The entire group stared in horror, unable to fully comprehend what had struck it down.

"What just happened?", asked Mary, looking up at Saliah. "What's going on?"

"It appears to be an enemy with incredible speed.", said Saliah, her eyes glistening with the knowledge. Such speed can only be truly stopped by a matching force."

Mary stared up at Saliah in wonder, as the other Super Pekka too felt the sensation of a hole in its chest. It looked down to confirm- and saw a gaping blasted out chunk indeed, apparently done when nobody had been looking. Or, it thought, perhaps they had all been looking, and it had truly been too fast for anyone to tell. That train of ideas was the last thing to go through its head, as the Super Pekka slowly collapsed into Elixir upon the ground.

"Holy crap.", said Mary, and gripped her queenbow tighter. Her face was white as snow from fear, and her hands were shaking. "What was that? Why did they just die?"

"I-", said Saliah, as she noticed something right below and in front of her. It was what looked to be a single footstep, similar in shape to a Dragon's, although there was something very off used about it. For one thing, it did not have the distinct back claw that all other Dragons had. The second thing was probably its absolutely colossal size, far larger than any other Dragon anyone had ever before seen. It sent a real chill down the spine of the entire group, or at least those who were still alive.

"Yeeesh…", said Chris, and gripped his hammer tight. "What a nightmare of a beast. Good thing we will soon be facing him in open quarters!"

Then he noticed something odd in his jaw. It didn't' seem like that much of a pain at first, but the more he focused on it, the more painful it became. He gently poked at it with one finger- then almost fainted as his entire jaw just suddenly came off. He tried to scream, but found that he had no connection to his lungs. He tried to writhe, to escape, to run away- but the only thing that happened was he found the pain growing in his neck to just be too much. He looked down and saw the ground, his head rapidly falling towards it from where he had been decapitated before there had been a second.

The two Archer Queens watched the slaughter, as did the level 30 Battle Machine. It sent shivers of fear up and down both their spines, hearing the terrible laugher of Rakastamos echo throughout the cave. For there was no longer any doubt about what it could be. No other being could visit this level of sheer destruction so quickly. Dragonlord Rakastamos was no longer merely waiting for others to battle him. He was now doing it up front.

"Duck!", Shalia screamed, knowing the hand of the Dragonlord would soon be coming up and around again. "Get out of the way-"

Her words were interrupted, as Shalia suddenly vanished. Mary screamed and jumped backwards into the arm of the Battle Machine. A bolt of lightning shot down from the ceiling and right into the path of its hammer- but this was not the one it had summoned. This was one that had been sent to destroy it. It still held off the lightning bolts with the power of its hammer, but its strength was beginning to tire. There was only so much that a single Battle Machine could take, and the power of Dragonlord Rakastamos was not one of them.

Mary stared in abject horror, seeing what was going on up above. She could see Rakastamos now, albeit very unclearly in the low light. But what she did see was the most terrifying thing she could have possibly imagined.

Illuminated through the smoke, Mary could see Rakastamos had Shalia firm in his grasp. She pushed mightily to escape, but her efforts were for naught against the great Dragon. Even though Mary could barely even see her, she was still horrified beyond conventional belief as she saw Rakastamos gently snap Shalia in half, take one half and gulp it down, and toss the bottom half down to the ground below. She could hear the cracking bone as Rakastamos crunched down, could feel the spray of blood upon her face.

As soon as the severed legs dropped onto the stone, Mary cried out in unbelievable terror. She could not tear her eyes away, even if she tried as hard as she could. For there were the severed legs of the strongest member of the team, tossed on to the ground like refuse.

"That is bad…", she said, her eyes wide open as if glued to the wall. "That is very bad."

As the legs continued to bleed out over the floor, and Rakastamos slowly reared his head, Mary took off in a blind panic. The only one who was not either dead or running at this point was the Battle Machine, who stood there as a last bastion. It raised its hammer to attack-

Only for his hammer, like those before it, to be blown utterly to bits. A loud crack of thunder accompanied the blast, sending the Battle Machine back staggering and removing a lot of the fuel in the chamber. Most Battle Machines worked on clockwork, but this one did not.

"Shoot…", said Mary to herself, having landed right to a broken Golem. She looked absolutely terrified to be there, for no small reason. She had just seen her entire group cut down within moments. "This speed, and this power… it was far beyond anything we had been prepared for. I have to… to tell them! I have to tell someone!"

"No.", she heard, and stopped all activity. All moving, all running, all speaking, all everything. For there in front of her, glaring with unmatched ferocity and legendary intensity, was the mighty Dragonlord Rakastamos himself. He stared her down, split blood still covering his jaws.

"You…", Mary whispered, and felt insane courage suddenly grip onto her. She grabbed her queenbow tighter, and rushed forward. A low growl built up in her throat, the savage look up on her face a silent warcry."You killed Shalia!"

If Rakastamos cared, he would have shown it. Instead he just flicked her like an insect, flying through the air like shot from a Cannon. Once she landed, death would soon follow.

The Battle Machine alone now stood against Rakastamos, but it was heavily damaged. Sparks flew from most of its body, the artificial brain trying to decide between standing there and running for safety.

"My, that was certainly disappointing.", said Rakastamos, drawling his words in a lazy manner. "I would have thought that such powerful fighters would make a challenge…"

Then he laughed once more, the immense tones filling the cave with the terrifying sounds of utter destruction. He spread his wings in boast, tapping his claws rhythmically on the cave floor and walls. "Oh, well. I suppose that my new power is far too much for anything to present a challenge. But I'm not complaining… much."

He took his foot off the ground, ready to return to his planning. Even if the fight had been a enjoyable, brief distraction, there was still much planning to be done. And, if he hoped right, not a lot of time in which to do it. He had almost turned around, when he suddenly found himself remembering something.

"No, wait.", he said, and looked to his left. "There was one other-"

Even though its Builder driver had died, the Sparky still had a mind of its own. And it had been building up vast amounts of electricity the entire time that the fight had been going for, crackling and sparking along the ground like a river of thunder. Rakastamos turned to see it ,and brought up his hand to block. He prepared a shot of his own while he did so, a burning jet of flame deep within his throat hot enough to melt through diamond.

The Sparky reared up, gave a mechanical war cry, and unloaded its devastating blast. It streaked through the air like a missile, heading straight for Rakastamos, and detonated right onto his raised hand. There was a flash of light like an exploding star, followed by a rush of wind that blew dust all the way out of the cave front, a hundred meters back.

Once the remnants of the explosion cleared away, Rakastamos stared at the Sparky in wonder. The blast had not harmed him for the most part, only sending a crack up a few of the scales in his hand. But he could still feel the strength of the machine before him, and it started something deep within his mind. "The machines of this world have grown strong in my absence…", he muttered, and grinned. "Perhaps I should use that to my advantage."

That thought reminded him of something else that was still in the cave, and a tinge of alarm was sent through his heart. He quickly turned around to see the Battle Machine charging towards him, a huge chunk of rock clutched in its hand, lightning crackling around its arms.

"Not this time!", Rakastamos shouted, and put his hand in front of his mouth. As the Battle Machine charged him and the Sparky revved up for another blast, Rakastamos unleashed his torrent of flame right into his palm. It soured right over his hand and in between his fingers, four individual jets blasting in multiple directions. One punched directly through the chest of the Battle Machine, piercing its main processing unit, sending it falling to the ground and collapsing into planks, wires, and hundreds of bits. One other flashed right over the Sparky, disabling the main firing unit and sending the gathered electricity in every direction, scattered upon the ground. The other two were sent towards the spot where Rakastamos had last seen the Archer Queens, just in case they had managed to survive.

Rakastamos put down his hand, and looked around. That was it that time. All the opponents had been defeated. The Super Pekkas had been destroyed before they could even do anything, their explosions only denting the ground. The Builder's head had rolled to a stop along the cavern wall, his body dissolved. One Archer Queen had been halved and turned to Elixir, the other no doubt dead as well. The Battle Machine lay like so many scattered building blocks along the ground, and the Sparky was no longer able to fire.

"Ah, that was much more entertaining.", said Rakastamos, and sighed. He turned go to back to his lair at last, a little happier than he had been a few minutes ago. "I'm having fun destroying all these assassins… I do wish I could just complete my plan, however. That Blood Elixir is certainly looking very tempting…"

He deeply desired the chance to once more taste it. The small drink he had allowed himself was one of the most delicious things he had ever tasted, and the boost in power it had given him was far beyond what he could have imagined. And yet, he knew he had to resist the urge. Drinking the full, magical amount would produce a reaction in him for truly limitless growth.

He clenched his fist in anticipation as he thought of the day when the gods would return, to find only him. He could destroy them all with his future strength- perhaps even toppling mighty Ill'kaa himself. But he had to wait, he told himself. Yes, he only had to wait. Wait for his Blood Elixir Drill to-

Rakastamos stopped, and spat an ancient curse. He slammed his fist into the floor, and growled. "Did I not fix that?", he growled, and his eyes narrowed. "No, its still broken. Curses… I suppose that will have to be fixed. I wonder if my Builders are done yet."

The Messenger had, in fact, told him that it would soon be fixed. But somewhere inside of Rakastamos's mind, that information had gotten lost. So as he strode away, the Sparky following him for some reason known only to itself, his tail brushing away any traces of the battle in the loose sand that covered the black rocks, the cavern gradually grew to silence.

It was with great caution that Mary poked her head up above the rock she had been thrown behind, keeping a careful eye out for any sign of Rakastamos. After 10 long seconds of waiting, she thought it was finally safe to move. So she stepped up- and immediately fell, due to her snapped femur. She almost screamed from the white-hot pain spreading up her leg, but managed to keep herself quiet. She had to, for fear of death.

Hobbling slowly down the rocky slope, she tried to look for the exit. The entire cave was dark, the dust thrown up during the conflict blocking out the light. There was no way to tell where the group had come from, no way to tell how to get out. She looked around in desperation, and felt her face start to get hot. She looked down-

And gasped at the horrific sight of Shalia's legs still lying on the ground. Her heart jumped to her throat, and she felt her eyes began to water. "Shalia…", she whispered, gently climbing over to the legs. "Why did you have to die? I thought… heroes were immortal…"

We are, Mary heard in her head. She gasped- that was Shalia's voice. Was it her spirit talking to her, or something else? "Sh- Shalia?"

Look at my legs, Mary, continued Shalia's voice, and Mary blinked. She forced herself to stare, even through the pain that such a memory brought. They are not Elixir yet. I, in a way, am still alive.

"Shalia…", said Mary, and stood up. She stared at the cut off point of Shalia's torso, noticing there was no longer any blood. "In… in a way? Is there some way I can bring you back?"

Yes, said the voice of Shalia. Touch me. Give me just a little bit of your life energy, and I will be reconstituted.

Mary did not even hesitate, or think about the obvious trap-like undertones this statement held. She just nodded, tried not to cry, and threw herself forward onto Shalia's legs in a huge hug. Wrapping her arms around Shalia's thighs, she closed her eyes, and tried to somehow lend her energy. She stopped, when she realized she had no idea how. She hugged again and again, just feeling the cold sensation of the dismembered legs below her. Hopelessness began to set in, as she felt her aloneness once more.

"I'm sorry…", she said, and started to cry. "I can't-"

"No.", said Shalia, out loud. Mary's eyes snapped open, as she felt her friend's familiar arms upon her back. There sat Shalia, still dripping Elixir, but alive. "You did alright."

"Shalia!", shouted Mary, and hugged her as tightly as she could. Shalia allowed the hug, but broke it off after a few seconds. They had to get down to business.

"There are other Queens in here.", said Shalia, looking forwards into the darkness. "That's partially why I came… to rescue them."

"Other Queens?", asked Mary, confusion clear across her face. "How many? Why?"

"Rakastamos likes to… collect them.", said Shalia, and her face grew dark. "Now come. We failed to kill him- but we can still work."

"Right.", said Mary, grabbing her queen bow from the ground. The two charged off into the dark- but quietly, so as not to be heard.

Song: Perfect Cell- Saiyan Enigma

Rakastamos had already arrived at the central cavern in his mighty lair, the one where he held all of his business. Scattered bits and pieces of various robots were scattered around- even though he had only ordered his underlings to get to work on his new Robot Program a few minutes ago, they were already far along. Such was the way of Skeletons.

While his vast scores on underlings toiled tirelessly on hundreds of mysterious projects around the cave, Rakastwmos himself sat in the center, overseeing everything at once through some ancient magic. His old, scarlet and gold eyes saw the Skeletons in the upper right north corner, manipulating several spells together into one bizarre concoction. Another group watched over several Baby Dragons, teaching them the ways of common language and magic. To the rest of the world, they were just simple Baby Dragons, unable to grow- but Rakastamos knew the truth. He fully knew the mysterious ways of Dragonkind ,and knew they were fully capable of turning into adults. All it would take was the proper training, and they could transform in just a few hundred years. It was a long time, but Rakastamos was prepared to play the very long game.

Past that group was a bundle of Skeletons that were busy making helpful adjustments to the captured Sparky. Despite its whirs and sparks of protest, the Skeletons had already replaced some of its wires with high-voltage crystals found growing on the far side of the mountain. Rakastsmos thought that with enough alterations, the mere Sparky could grow to a true Forgotten, eventually able to aid him in battle. But that time was a few days out, he thought. But maybe once the Builders he had taken were finished with their current project, he could assign a few of them to start on that. Speaking of the Builders…

Rakastamos cast a lazy look over towards the Blood Elixir Pump on the other side of the room, still under construction and repair. It was not in a village, so it had to be repaired fully by hand. He had also issued forth the order to upgrade it, for Rakastamos had sensed there was not much time in which to complete his goals. He had only about the time that the Messenger had told him- not a lot indeed.

Once he laid eyes on the Blood Elixir Pump, his face fell. It appeared, from the large green readout bar above the infernal machine, that there was still about 3 hours left. That would prove to be insufficient, he figured. He needed that machine up and running as soon as he possibly could. Anything else could potentially lead to the ruining of his plan.

"Builders!", he boomed, sending every Skeleton in the room to jump and the Builders to collectively experience painful shivers all the way up their backs. The Builders all looked over in terror, to see Rakastamos's mighty glare. They all knew Troops who had died from less.

"Is there any possible way you could speed that up?", he asked, not so sudden subtle undertones of do this or you'll die permeating his voice. "I need it to be done far before that. In fact, now would be the best time."

"Now?", asked one of the Builders, putting his hands on his hips and scalp. He stared up at the massive spout of the Dark Elixir Pump, scratching his head in puzzlement. "Well, I don't think I can do that, sir. It says about 3 hours left, and I don't think we can have it done any faster than that. Industry standard- well, not exactly standard, but-"

His words were suddenly cut off, and he gasped in terror. That was the only thing he had time to do before he was torn utterly apart by a sudden strike from Rakastamos, sending his Elixir all across the walls with a splatter. It was far too strong for anyone in the room to notice at first, but they all recoil in terror once had had done so. "Does anyone else wish to question me?", he asked, glaring intently at each every Troop in the area. There was no action, all the Builders staring at him in both shock and terror, which seemed to be an occurring thing.

"Uhh…", said another Builder, and Rakastamos instantly was up by his side, the small Bulder child waring sweating under the pressure. Rakastmos stared at the wall, the Builder staring right at him. "That is a terrible strategy ,and an even more mindset."

"Apologies, sir.", the Builders said as one, and went back to their construction. It was tricky business, no doubt about that. "We'll get it fixed up instantly, in fact- provided we have some Gems."

"Good, good.", said Rakastamos, and reared up. He once again vanished into the upwards part of the cavern, leaving the spot where he had been totally empty.

"Wait, did you say… Gems?", Rakastamos asked, slowly looking down from his interior spy positions. "Gems for free upgrades… yes, I do suppose that I have found many of those."
Rakastamos yelled to a Skeleton in the corner, and slowly reached for the ground. "Skeletons!", he shouted, the bare amount of history in his entire body shivering at the sight. These were far from the clean,sanitized Skeletons they had in the Arena- no, the ones summoned by Dragonlord Rakastamos would only ever get in the way. The Dragonlord's eyes narrowed.

"Here's how it goes.",said Rakastamos, holding his fist out over the area. "I will obtain the Gems,and then give the to you. In return, you will finish that upgrade instantly."

"Sure enough.", said of the Builders, and nodded. "This'll be done very soon, Lord Rakastamos. We just have to get this one little bit working, and…"

The Builder slammed his multi-tool that had been cleverly disguised as a hammer onto the side of the piston near where he was working, an the machine started to slowly, creakily, shakily, stumble back to life. It was still far from done, of course- it had to be loaded and primed, measured over and looked for by a team of elites. But it had been a major step, much larger than the other ones that had been happening. And as the Blood Elixir Drill began to once again take on its characteristic shine, the corners of Rakastamos's evil mouth slowly curled up into a smile. This was a perfect happenstance.

"Good, good.", said Rakastamos, and opened his hand. A rain of shimmering green Gems fell out of his grasp, shooting towards the Blood Elixir Pump that was still in repair below. Several dozen of them bounced off the woodwork, others careening off the metal. Some bounced off and hit a BUilder right on his head, knocking them out instantly. A few even shot right out of their path and took off across the cave, apparently in a mad search for victory. But most of them landed right on the murderous machine itself, sinking into the material and sending up small puffs of green and blue smoke. Once the magical amount of 88 Gems had been absorbed into it, there was a great flash of blue light. Dragon and Builder alike covered their eyes- until the blue flash faded, revealing the treasure and wonder that was now clearly visible to everyone in the cavern.

"Yes… yes!", shouted Rakastamos in triumph. He clenched his arms and shot upwards, blasting a stream of flame from his mouth in celebration. Rakastamos stared at the unholy mechanism before him, brought back to life at last. It may not have been as good in some areas, but it still worked, it still was his- and that is what mattered.

"Thank you, Builders.", he said, and stared at his now fully upgraded Blood Elixir Drill. The glinting chromium shone absolutely evil in the low light, Rakastamos almost hearing the death and suffering that came off of it droves. "This is a good thing… but it does need something to start it still. A little primer, if you wish."

"What?",asked one of the Builders, not really thinking about questions. This would soon prove to be his doom, as Rakastamos swiftly grabbed the Builder within a second, crushed several of his bones so his movement would be hampered, and tossed him right towards the central processing unit of his horrific chamber of death.

The mechanical horror made sounds straight from a nightmare. Deeper than a whale, elephants, or even a planet's. Louder than an industrial boar machine, louder than a Rocket. It terrified everyone- except for Rakastamos, who just laughed and looked absolutely ecstatic.

"You have all done very well!", he shouted, and beat his tal against the ground like a bell. He knew that in just a little bit of time, his plan would be at last complete. "Now let us begin the final stage of the plan. I shall call my strongest Forgotten, and-"

He looked up, into a crack in the ceiling of the cavern. "The Tailbiter group shall be no more. If anybody left on this world could possibly put a damper on plans, it would most certainly be them."

The deafing cry of Yes, Lord Rakastamos echoed throughout the entire mountain, leaking into some valley beyond. Rakastamos howled, shooting a jet of flame to the ceiling.

"The end is beginning, my faithful!", he yelled, preparing his speech for the final day. "And we shall all be here to enjoy every bit of it."

A single tinkering sound at the very edge of Rakastamos's hearing suddenly sounded from the edge of his cave, as if a single person fell a single foot onto a lower ledge. It was not an important sound at all, or at least it did not seem to be so. But for whatever reason it pierced directly through all other sounds in the cave and landed directly into Rakastmos's ears, announcing its presence in the world. And it was for that reason that Rakastamos slowly, surely, turned his head to see what the sound was, staring at the furthest recesses of the dim cave.

He looked, and saw very little. Merely the scittering of two small shapes, pulling each other up and over rocks, desperately trying to move through the cave unseen. As soon as hey noticed the immense head of Rakastamos staring at them, the two small figures frozen in absolute terror. For some thought that if you were not moving, a Dragon could not see you. But they could not be more wrong- the sight of a Dragon was advanced indeed, even more so if that Dragon in question just so happened to be a legendary DragonLord.

"Who goes there?", he boomed, and slowly raised his front paw, taking a step towards the back of the cave. The movement of his titanic tail almost slammed into the newly reconstructed Blood Elixir Pump, but missed by a few dozen feet. "Show yourself! Reveal yourself unto me!"

Once he moved, the figures in shadow knew they had no chance if they were to just sit there and hide. They redoubled their efforts to flee, scrambling over the rocks as if escaping from a rising flood of lava- or Rakastamos, which was probably worse.

"Hold still!", Rakastamos shouted, and narrowed his eyes. A single thin beam shot out form each of his pupils, zapping onto the rock and dissolving a small amount of it into grey dust. "If you are one of my minions, then stop running! Otherwise, stop running so that I may kill you!"

This was, of course, not something that one would say if they actually wanted to stop someone from running. What it was was a test of loyalty- one that these two invaders clearly lacked. They just kept running over the rocks, ignoring Rakastamos's words, heading for the far back of the cave. Rakastamos snarled, and clenched his muscles to jump forward.

As he did so, it was enough to dislodge the rocks in a certain port of the ceiling that had been hanging there precariously for quite a while. With the sound of a mighty crash, the rocks fell- right onto the area where the figures had been escaping. But it landed directly where they had been about a few moments ago, blocking off any viewpoint of them.

Rakastamos, however, and of course, did not care. He merely rushed forward like a tidal wave and rammed the ridged top of his head into the pile of rocks, sending a dozen or so tumbling down. The rest of the entire cave shook from the force, dislodging more rocks and small pebbles from the top of the cave below. He snarled as he stood back up, sand raining onto his face, still searching for the figures that had managed to escape him. He swung ihs mighty head back and forth, trying to even just what they could have been.

But any such gaze eluded Rakastamos, and he snarled. It chalked it up to most likely just some Goblins running around, deaf or particulary stupid ones who, for whatever reason, had not heard his commands. Rakastamos snarled- he did not know why he even kept Goblins around as servants. They had very little intelligence, are vulnerable to anything, and-

Rakastamos blinked, and looked forward. The logic of that last train of thought all but left the station, and he slowly opened his eyes.

"I don't have Goblins working for me.", he said. "So what were those…?"

He looked at the wall where the shadow figures had vanished, and a mural showing an ancient pyramid. It depicted several scenes, none of which were really relevant to his problem.

His mind admired the artwork for a few more seconds, before he suddenly came to a conclusion. His eyes narrowed, and his fist clenched. "Humans…"

Even though it stood no chance of working, Rakastamos decided to fire off a few more blasts. Even if they're wouldn't do much to the missing targets, it was really the thought that counted.

And so even though the torrent of pure destructive energy rained down on the entrance to a very secret tunnel, the two Archer Queens were able to slip through a small tunnel leading into the safe room and escape utterly unnoticed.

But even though the mischievous and happenings of Rakastamos were very important and likely devastating, he was not the only Dragonlord that was going around and attempting to further their goals. He was the only Dragonlord that was currently stuck in his cave, that was to bertain. The other ones were stuck asleep underneath various things, guarding their continent from dangers like Earthquakes and volcanic distortion. But to Rakastamos's great relief, they had not come awake for his plans quickly approaching completion. That was good for him.

But, of course, there was on certain individual who was counting very much on the other Dragonlords awakening for battle.

This individual was not, as many would think, Askari. He was indeed busy gathering forces to help defeat Rakastamos, but petitioning the sleeping Dragonlords had never even come within his frame of mind. It would take someone who knew them well to pull off such a thing. And who better that knew them than the mighty Dragonlady Chuqualita herself.

As she flew over the ocean from her home of the Rushlands to the home of her strongest brother, she hoped beyond conventional hope that he would be awake. In times of old and antiquity, Auinraur had always been the one to put Rakastamos away if he ever tried something. Chuqualita needed that power now- the entire world did. For who could defeat Rakastamos at his height but his stronger brother?

Chuqualita looked down, and saw what was laid out before her. A huge tapestry of water, the slightly different greens, blues, and the odd purple dotted the water. There was nothing to say out here, just her and her Zeppelin, a trio of Zappies that had gotten some sounds stuck in there head. She just had to keep going for a little while longer. She was not far away from the ultimate goal of where Auinraur slept, deep inside of a volcano near Pekka's Playhosue, if she remembered correctly. She just had to keep her eyes focused and locking onto the goals. Everything else could wait. She thought- only for something to slam right into her side, almost knocking her off of course. She looked to see her opponent- a massive golden Dragon, a huge deep scar running down the side of his head.

"Sorry about that.", the Dragon winced, and closed his eyes- the universal Dragon gesture for "I'm sorry.". "I- well, I- I just saw you, and knew that I had to stumble all over the clouds to find you. To come and see you up close, I mean. Really, it is my honor."

"Uh huh…", said Chuqulit, not trusting the Dragon in the slightest. The distinct smell of Rakastamos still lingered all over his body, and his proportions seemed to be weird. Almost as if they, no, his entire body even, had been altered through some use of dark magic. Chuqualita would definitely have to be careful around this one, that was for sure. Her eye twitched. "I see."

"So, uh, Chuqliata.", said Terabos, and nodded. He looked up at her hopefully, trying to appear as innocent as possible. "Where are you going for today? What are you doing? Pardon me if I seem intrussing, but I am really a huge fan."

"Yeah, actually, I was planning on going someplace secret.", said Chuqualita, and looked off towards Royale. She knew she could not land yet, or Terabos would know what she as up to. Then Rakastamos would know what she was up to, which would mess everything up. All she had to do was stay in holding pattern for a few hours, trying to stall.

"Someplace secret, eh?", asked Terabos, looking Chuquliata up and down for vital points. He thought they would be weaker, due to the way that basic logic worked. "Well, what's so secret about this whole thing awe're about to go seee."

"Alright ,that is it.", said Chuqualita, and sighed. "I've enough of this for you. Terabos, drop the pretense."

"Pretense?", asked Terabos, but he too knew it was time. "Why, whatever do you mean?"
"You're working for Rakastamos.", said Chuqualita, fire beginning to build in the back of her throat. "You've been sent her to kill me, weren't you? And those black scars are places where he gave you some of his power from."

"That is correct.", said Terabos. He chuckled, and spread open his wings wider. "My master has given me strength- strength enough to defeat even you!"

"Oh, get real.", said Chuqualita in an odd display of sass. She snarled, and flashed her claws. Terabos knew he had no choice but to attack. He threw back his head, gave a ferocious war cry, and shot forward, right at Chuqulita's throat.

Song: No More

But of course, Terabos had expected Chuqualita to try and dodge. He had started out with a basic attack, one that would only hurt a little. Chuqulita did dodge, raising into the air so fast a bystander would hardly be able to tell she had not actually teleported. Terabos's bite hit empty air, his burst of flame continuing onwards to hit nothing. Chuqulita figured that it was now her turn to attack, and closed her mouth. The fire of a Dragonlady soon grew- and right as Terabos looked up, Chuqulita released it. Terabos tried to dodge, and just narrowly did so, the edge of the flame leaving singe marks on his wings.

Terabos growled, and slashed forward with his tail. Chuqulita shifted her weight to avoid it, turning onto a bipedal stance. The tail continued on past her, allowing Chuqulita to open her wings to the fullest and take a position flying directly above Terabos.

This was the true ariel combat. There was no charging of positions, nor the formations. There was only the outmaneuvering your opponent, attacking them from all angles, attacking and attacking until you knew for sure that they were dead.

Terabos spun around and charged up a particularly massive blast of fire, intent on hitting Chuqulita right in her weak point. He knew precisely where that point was due to his new powers- a very small point on the base of her neck where her scales were missing, torn out hundreds of years ago in a sibling spat. For some reason, they had not yet grown back.

But Chuqulita, of course, saw exactly where he was aiming. She grit her teeth and spun around, bringing up her wings to block and sending her tail flying right at Terabos. Terabos almost released his shot of flame, before he realized that unleashing it right into Chuqulita's attacking tail would have a worse effect on him that it did on her. So he held off on shooting the flame for now, and unfurled his immense wings to dodge out of the way.

"You're stronger than I expected.", said Terabos, hoping to catch Chuqulita off guard.

"I'm one of the Primal Dragons.", said Chuqulita, and scoffed. "I rule over an entire continent. How strong did you think I would be?"

Terabos snarled, and knew it was time. He opened up his mouth wide and fired off the shot, sending it barreling through the air like a missile at high speed, straight for Chuqlita's head.

Chuqulita narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth as wide as she could, beating her mighty wings to stay in the air while she held in one place. As Terabos's shot roared towards her, Chuqulita's mouth began to howl, a curious wind being both expelled outwards and sucked in.

The fire came within a few hundred feet of her, nothing to both of the Dragons' immense sizes. As soon as it reached the beginning of the vortex inside of her mouth, Terabos's fire was sucked in. It whirled around the event horizon, vanishing as a string of orange and red deep into Chuqulia's mouth. She slammed her jaws shut and expelled a huge puff of smoke from her nostrils, her eyes telling Terabos to just try it again.

Terabos roared, and leaped towards Chuqulita in the air. Chuqulita took a careful stance, thinking she could predict where Terabos was about to go. But to her surprise, he instead shot upwards, flipping over her in a perfect arc.

Chuqulita looked upwards, as Terabos breathed out a cone of pure flame. It washed over Chuqulita's scales like wind upon rock, only tiny bits of damage registering upon her ancient form. But that was enough- Terabos smiled, and Chqulita scowled. He had actually managed to land a somewhat decent hit on her. And that was something that she could not allow.

"You would dare?", she bellowed, and her eyes began to glow. She spread out her wings and reverse dived upwards towards Terabos, only for his smaller form to tuck and roll out of the way. She opened her jaws and unleashed a torrent of fire that seemed like a natural disaster. It burned and twisted through the air as Chuqulita turned her head to follow Terabos, who swooped and swerved as much as his gigantic body would allow.

The two titans swerved around each other in the air, each blasting huge streams and rivers of flame that only barely missed hitting their prey. The air boiled and the sea recoiled in fear around their battle, Chuqulita the Wise vs Terabos the Black.

But as much as he was enjoying the battle, Terabos knew that it was time to end it. He clenched his jaws down as hard as he could, gathering strength for one lethal bite. He scouted out a good spot right at the base of Chuqulita's neck- one shot to her most vulnerable area would do so.

Terabos roared, and lashed out with his tail. Chuqulita raised her leg to block- at the very same instant that Terabos rushed forward for her exposed neck, mouth wide open and ready to kill.

Terabos had put all his power into that attack. He had been so absolutely sure that it would hit. So much strength slammed down on that bite it turned around and hurt him, as Chuqualita dodged without even so much as a hard breath.

The second that Terabos's jaws clamped down on mere empty air, Chuqulita had already begun her counterattack. She sucked in a breath, quickly converting it to a rush of flame- and launched it right at Terabos, aiming to kill right away.

But Terabos was no slouch in combat either- he had known the attack was coming. He closed his eyes and concentrated his power, his body twisting in unnatural shapes in order to dodge the attack. His spine bent almost in half, yet caused him no damage. He was far beyond that.

The blast of flame traveled past his body and continued down into the ocean, creating a massive explosion filled with steam. Thousands of tons of vaporized water shot upwards like an eruption, turning the Dragon's impromptu battleground into a misty cloud of combat.

Terabos could no longer see with his eyes, but they were no longer an important sense. He let them close, now able to detect Chuqulita by her vast aura alone. He gathered up a huge column of black fire within his throat and leaned back his head, about to fire-

When a devastating clawed punch from Chuqulita suddenly connected with the side of his head, knocking the black fire back into his lungs and throwing him aside. Terabos coughed in agony from the sensation of his returned fire, and spat out a bit of draconic blood. It fell from up high and hit the water with a splash, sizzling like boiling oil.

"You're not tough.", said Chuqulita, hovering in the air in front of Terabos. Compared to the Black Dragon's weakened state, Chuqlita was hardly even winded. "Where's that confidence now, huh?"

"You…", Terabos spat, growling in uncontrolled fury. Lunging forward again, he let his black fire overtake him completely. The heat rushed across his entire body, boiling the air around them, turning the steam into ash. He roared with a sound that was no type of natural, one that turned the vision purple and the hearing black. His teeth grew into shapes that shouldn't have existed, snapping like froth. "You die!"

Chuqulita brought her arm up to block, a shimmering silver light appearing around her scales. The rampaging force and the unmovable bastion met in the exact center of the steam cloud, blowing the rest of it away and blasting away hundreds of more tons of water hundreds of feet below.

Chuqlita's arm had been blown back a bit, but was otherwise fine. Terabos had almost crushed his entire snout underneath his own onslaught, as he backed up in severe pain. Black steam slowly seeped out of his damaged body, as the power that had been granted unto him began to leak out. He gasped in disbelief, unable to accept that such a thing was happening.

"You were a strong opponent.", said Chuqulita, and started to charge one final blast of flame, deep in the back of her throat. "But the second you went up against me was the second you died."

"Oh really?", asked Terabos, and snarled again. He too began to concentrate energy within himself, bright fire leaking out of his wounds. Other than looking cool, it didn't help much- in fact, the leaking fire actually damaged him, for it made him more open to attack. "Then how do you explain this…"

He opened his eyes all the way, and jumped forward. Sparked lightning surrounded each of his hands and his jawline as he opened it, thundering force emanating from his being. He growled, and almost unleashed his attack. "You're dead!"

But before he could shoot his own ray of destroying flame, Chuqulita had already anticipated the move. She shot a withering glare of ancient anger at Teraboss' heart, piercing right through the scales and physical body to affect his very soul. This, of course, distracted him to no end, the power that still surrounded Terabos now starting to break down.

The effect was further compounded by the painful shock of a fist through his torso. He looked down and saw that something pretty close to that had happened- three long lines suddenly appeared across his scaled belly, each one cutting fairly deep. Terabos gasped in shock, trying to fire off his final attack- but Chuqulita would not let him. Her fist came crashing right into his face, shattering at least one bone and breaking his concentration. He spat out a burst of blood and tried to retreat- but Chuqulita's grip was far too strong. She delivered another shot right to the chest without any warning, collapsing at least one bone system and drilling a hole through several vital organs. Terabos groaned in agony, and felt his grip on himself slipping. His eyes closed slowly as he relaxed, closed his eyes, and let himself fall.

Terabos fell into the ocean below, the mysterious attack from Chuqulita rendering him unable to move. As Chuqulita watched him plummet, eventually culminating in a loud splash from the ocean below, she wondered just how it was that he had gotten so strong. From the looks of hm to the way he fought, he had once been an ordinary Dragon. Even as his body crashed down into the water with an indescribable noise, turning into a float of Elixir upon the surface, she still knew that. But she was still unsure of why.

"Rakastamos…", she said sadly to herself, thinking of her brother. "He wanted me dead. He truly, honestly, wants me dead."

She looked up into the sun blazing overhead, remembering her early childhood with Rakastamos. It had always been those two playing together.

"Raksy…", she said, the weight of the informal title heavy upon her. "What happened to you? What could have made you like this?"

There was, in fact, a very particular thing and being that had led to Rakastamos's moral about face. But despite her knowledge, Chuqulita had no idea that Grrshknn existed. And so to her ,the question still remind a mystery, as she continued to stare at the noonday sun.

"Right.", she said, and shook her head. Chuqulita turned around to face the direction that the Continent of Royale was in, and narrowed her eyes. "No distractions."

Chuqulita folded her wings up closer to her body and dove, the air rippling behind her with her immense speed, blasting above the water so fast it was torn up by the force. She had someplace to be, very, very soon. And for the fate of the entire world, it was imperative that she did not miss it.

Song: Silver Twist

The landscape at the very edge of the War Fields was one that was quite a lot milder than the one within it, or even the one in the beginning. The volcanic deathrock slowly gave way to soft pebbles and assorted sandstone, the soft and worn rock a byproduct of all the energy that was constantly spread throughout the entire area. The bushes and trees existed in this area, a sharp contrast to the total and complete lack of vegetation in the War Fields. It was a wonder Troops even reached their assigned bases without starving, given how long and far they likely had to walk. But it was, then again, fine. Brandy did not know it at that time, but Troops did not actually stay in their war bases. Only Heroes did that.
The dark and pale tan sand that covered the surface of the War Fields in almost entirely was a far differing sight than the grass that now grew at the very edge. It was a lot less green and more brown with the fantastical event that had happened the previous day, but it was the thought that counted. And the thoughts of everyone there as they reached the edge of the War Fields was only-

"Finally.", said Brandy, and stretched her legs. She had been sitting in a bit of a cramped position for about half an hour, squished in between Annabelle and Leon. But she had not said anything about her situation, for not anything was needed. She would hate to be a bother.

"That was a terrible place.", said Brandy, and sighed. She ticked the reasons why off on her fingers, as the rest of the group slowly started to slide down Dan's back. "It was hot, and there wasn't any shade, and we got attacked twice, and I thought we were all going to die, and you thought I actually did die…"
"Yeah.", said Dan, and stood up as straight as he could with all the rock he had stuck to the bottom of his feet. He shook off his heavy boots, ot really paying attention to what he looked like. "But as long as we're safe now, that's all that matters."

"Right, right-", said Brandy, nodding, then something clicked inside of her head. She looked up at Dan to realize that, once again, his clothing had been reduced. Brandy looked around for Bubble- and saw the answer. There she was, hanging off of Dan's shoulder, her arms splayed out, fast asleep. Brandy could not help but smile at the sight. The pressure of keeping up Dan's illusion must have just knocked her out cold- she was even snoring.

"Dan.", said Brandy, and pointed. Dan saw where Brandy was pointing, and looked down in confusion. He saw where Brandy was pointing to exactly, and he stared at her in disbelief, even as Brandy let out a little giggle. "You're being distracting again."

"Oh.", said Dan, and blinked. He turned around, an involuntary flexing of his muscles causing Brandy to become lightheaded. As Dan put a hand to his chin to think, the other members of the group were now staring at him in wonder- except for Bubble ,but she was just asleep. "Sorry."

"No, no, don't be.", said Brandy, and swallowed. She couldn't quite keep her eye off of Dan, no matter how hard she tried. "You didn't-" wowww "-do anything wrong."

"Right, right.", said Dan, and nodded at Brandy's trademark expression. "But should we find me some clothes, or…"

He saw where Brandy was looking, and shifted slightly. Brandy's heart jumped, and she dug into the rock that she had chosen to sit upon. Dan lifted up a finger, and Brandy thought she could feel it brushing her chin. "Should I keep it like this just to-"

"Put on some clothes, Dad.", said Leon, pain clearly in his voice. "Please. For the love of Ry'an, put on some clothes."

Dan rolled his eyes, and spread his arms open wide. "Okay. As soon as we have some clothes in my size, I'll put them on. How about that?"
"Great.", said Leon, and gave a sarcastic thumbs up. "Couldn't be better. Are there any in the area that we can just take?"

"No, but-", said Dan, at the same second that Trevor and Annabelle said "Yes, there are." Dan turned his head very slowly to look at them, and spoke quietly. "Where?"

Ted the Giant had been having an average sort of day. He had gone for a little walk around his village out of sheer boredom, which had turned into a long sojourn far out of his Clan's territory, and down near the War Fields themselves. But that was okay. He knew the way back still, just a quick straight path through the woods. He had his lunch, a delightful turkey picnic with about 3 dozen turkey legs. He had his woods and his view, the Clashcrush River running alongside his campsite a truly lovely sight. He had always been one to appreciate the quiet things in life.

He took a bite of his food, gulping down three or so turkey legs in one go. He took a look towards the sky and sighed contently, not a care in the world. "Say…"

He sat up, and thought for a moment. "I wonder if I could take up painting."

He thought about it for a few more seconds, then his face burst forth into exuberance. "Why, yes I will! I'm going to make the greatest paintings the world has ever seen!"

He spun around, seeing various things to make paintings of all across his little homemade clearing. "I'll paint that log! I'll paint that tree! I'll even paint the river! I, Ted, will even paint-"

In the middle of his spinning around, he stopped. For there stood Dan, his hand lit up with ferocious, burning amounts of Star, aimed like a gun directly at Ted's face. Behind him stood a Bandit, arms crossed on her chest and an apologetic wince upon her face.

"Uhh…", he said, and slowly raised his arms. He had never seen a Mega Knight before, much less one without all his armor. He had no idea who or what Dan even was. "I'll paint… uh…"

"Give me your clothes.", said Dan, stone faced. Ted stared at the titan before him, glowing with ferocious energy, demanding his clothes, and made a solemn promise to not eat the Mushrooms at the edge of the village anymore.

"Sorry about this.", said Brandy, and tried to gesture outwards. "But we're on a mission to save the world. Very important things. And we need your clothes. For official reasons."

"Uh…", said Ted, his brain struggling to comprehend the situation. But after a few seconds he realized what it was they were asking, and he sighed. "Well, okay."

Ted stood there for a few seconds, as the entire group stared at him awkwardly. His face turned a little red as he motioned with one hand, and took a step back. "Err, could you turn around? I hardly thinking it would be proper to change in front of others. There are children present."

"Right.", said Dan, and turned around- but his hand stayed up, ready to fire. "But if you even think about running away, all the energy I have on my hand is gonna be on your face."

Ted gulped, not sure why Dan was being so aggressive in this situation. They were just clothes, weren't they? If he really wanted clothes, he could have just gone to the nearest village and asked. It was a service all villages provided free of charge, new uniforms. But Ted decided not to tell his violent stranger. It would be his little revenge. "Okay."

As the group all turned around and stared at the trees, Ted slowly removed his tunic and belt. He slung the entire set of clothes over a nearby rock, and gently sauntered off behind a particularly large bush. Once he was sure that no one could see him, he called out to the group. "Alright, I'm done! You can have your clothes now."

Dan whipped around, and saw the clothes resting on the rock. Quick as a flash, he grabbed the tunic and stepped right in, sliding into it like his hand would slide into one of his maces, if he still had them. From there it was a simple matter to slip on and tighten the belt, and Dan's new clothes were fitting like a charm. "Thanks. Sorry about that, just needed some new clothes."

"Oh, it's understandable.", said Ted, and waved his hand. "If you really are on a mission to save the world, I guess I could lose my clothes for a bit."

He thought for a moment, then rustled the bush in order to gain the group's attention. "Say, what kind of mission are you on anyway? You didn't exactly say."

"We're going to kill Dragonlord Rakastamos.", said Dan, and thrust his fist into the air. He hoped that would strike the Giant with shock and awe, impressed at the massive adventure the group was taking. But given that Ted had no idea who Rakastamos was, it did not.

"Uh… okay.", said Ted, and hunkered down a little lower behind the bush. "Well, that's a worthy guess I suppose. Go and kill your Dragon."

"Too right, Giant.", said Dan, his mood restored now that the wind was not constantly assaulting every spot on his skin and body. Even though his veins beat with a raging fire, the howling autumn air got a little nippy sometimes.

Dan gestured to the group, now staring at the Giant's clothes he wore. It took a few seconds for them to remember what they were doing, and keep on walking. But once they did, they walked along the path far quicker than they had been doing before.

"Go and find yourself some other clothes.", said Dan, and shot a look towards Ted. Ted nodded, and gave a little salute to the strange individual. "You'll need them."
"And good luck to you.", said Ted, with a nod and a smile. "You'll need it…."

"Dan.", said Dan, gently scooping everyone up onto his shoulders. He looked forward, and put his hand over his eyes. "And thank you."

"Just watch out for the swamp.", said Ted, and began to scoot behind the tree closest to him. "It's quite a nasty place, that one. It's said that those who enter never come back out. It's also right where you seem to be heading."

"Ah, we'll watch out for it.", said Dan, and stepped over a rock. He had just about reached the edge of the clearing. "Thanks for your help, Giant. We'll give you your clothes back when you're done."

Ted was about to say "Hey man, don't worry about it. It's cool, I can just get another one anyway"- but he did not. He sensed that the group did not have that much time to begin with, and he certainly did not want to waste any of it just sitting there and talking. So he nodded and slipped off behind a tree, beginning his frantic search for some new clothes.

Song: Wind in the Wilderness

The group had not gone far before Brandy began to get restless. She already was missing the feel of Dan's bare skin underneath her as they walked, replaced with the dull scratchiness of the Giant's outfit. She reached out to his neck to scratch the skin, but could hardly reach it underneath the thick collar of the GIant's outfit. Brandy sighed, wondering what she could do to keep herself occupied during what would no doubt be the next long phase of their journey. They would probably be attacked by a Forgotten before long, as now seemed par for the course. But before that, there was most likely little to do. She took a look around- everyone else just seemed so tired. Bubble was fast asleep, her little head using Leon's legs as a pillow. Leon too was mostly asleep, just absentmindedly moving his lollipop around in his mouth, leaning up against Dan's neck. Annabelle was asleep as well, having conked out a few minutes ago, almost as soon as they had left Ted the Giant behind. It seemed that only Dan, Brandy, and Trevor were awake- and soon, it would just be the two guys. Brandy's eyelids flipped closed every few seconds, no matter how hard she tried to keep them open.

"Uhh… hey.", said Trevor, leaning in close to her. Brandy's eyes opened up a little wider, and she perked up. "Yeah?"

"I uh…", said Trevor, and swallowed. Brandy could see the edge of his mouth pull down repeatedly, and his eyes squeeze together seemingly of their own accord. It was strange, but perhaps that is why Trevor was talking to her. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Oh?", asked Brandy, and drew a little closer to Trevor. Her face went from bored to excited almost instantly, ecstatic at the possibility of what Trevor was finally about to reveal to her. But she had to play to it safe- one mistake and Trevor would never trust her again. No laughs. No matter what Trevor said here, she couldn't laugh. "What is it, Trevor?"
The way that Brandy said his name filled Trevor with a bust of confidence. If she trusted him that much, then he could trust her. So he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, tried to clear himself of any negative thoughts, and looked up. "I… have…"

He opened his eyes, and let it all out in one huge burst of breath, "I have this thing called Tourette's. It makes me do things, very small, harmless things, that most people don't do. Sometimes I have to put something on a leash. Sometimes I have to put myself on a leash. It's a bit odd to explain, but you can ask me anything about it, and I'll answer."
"I… I see.", said Brandy, and took a moment to think. Without even realizing it, her arms started to wrap around Trevor for a hug, and Trevor let her finish the action,

"Well…", she said, and tried to think of something to say. "Thank you for telling me that, Trevor. I guess from your uh… previous reactions that it must have been hard to tell somebody."

"Yeah.", said Trevor, and let himself be hugged tight. "It was."

"I'm not sure what my questions are.", said Brandy, thinking. "But when I have some, I will ask them. Don't you ever worry."

"That's good to know.", said Trevor. He looked up, and nodded, his eyes a bit wet.

"We should probably talk more about this later.", said Brandy, and nodded back. "When I've had time to articulate my thoughts."

Trevor was about to say something, when he realized that not only him and Brandy had heard the confession. Dan was still wide awake, and walking along. He had to have heard everything- they were right next to his ears.

"Hey, Dan?", asked Trevor, and Dan slightly perked up upon hearing his name. "Did you uh… did you hear all that?"

"What?", asked Dan. In truth, he had not heard any of it. His eyes had been focused entirely on the path ahead, keeping an eye out for anything and everything that might possibly pose a threat. His brain had been focusing on anticipation for the final battle with Rakastamos, and exactly how he was going to bring him down. He knew that it could not be long before it happened. There was no way. "I didn't. What did you say?"
"Uh…", said Trevor, and looked around. He didn't want to admit that he had been talking with Brandy about something, so he just looked for something that could conceivably have been the source of his attention. "That Hunter right there."

"What?", Dan shouted, and brought up his hand. Star flowed into his lungs, then into his palm, as he took aim at the Hunter that had been crossing the dimly lit first path right in front of them. It took a second for the Hunter to notice, his attention being mostly on the aimless tune he was humming. But once he did notice Dan's titanic bulk over his head, he jumped back in shock and grabbed his shotgun, holding it out in front of him.

"Who are you?", they both shouted at the exact same time. "Identify yourself!"
That was, until, Dan saw a certain patch on the Hunter's shoulder. It was a patch that only belonged to a very elite order of Troops- those that had trained with Juno and Fallon. Dan set his hand down, and his expression changed. "Oh my Se'th… Mike?"

"Dan?", asked Mike in shock, after looking at Dan a bit longer. His gun went back to his side, and he adjusted his coonskin cap in surprise. "Well, step on my toe. It is you."

"What?", asked Brandy, looking down. Trevor looked down as well, in total shock. He had never expected such a thing to happen- he had made the Hunter up. And yet there one was, right in front of him. It was an odd thing to happen indeed. "Dan, who is this?"
"Oh, right…", said Dan, and gestured towards Mike. "Everyone, this is Mike. He's a Hunter that I met while I was training to become a Mega Knight. He's cool."

"Huh.", said Brandy, leaning forward to take a better look. "You never told me about him before."

"Oh, really?", Mike asked, looking upwards to see Brandy. "Well, he never told me about you! Well, he told me about you, Bandit. Brandy, was it… yes. The rest of you though, I don't belive I've ever heard of you."

"Well, that's cause I hadn't met them yet.", said Dan, and gestured to the rest of the group. "But this is Leon, our son. This is Bubble, our daughter. And Trevor and Annabelle are our guides on this journey."

"Journey…", said Mike, and stroked his chin. His eyes could not be seen through his eyebrows, although they did try at times. "Journey to where?"
"We're going to kill Rakastamos.", said Dan, and struck another pose. He hoped it would have more impact on Mike, as he most likely knew who Rakastamos was. But to his disappointment, it did not. Mike just stood there, not entirely sure who or what Dan was talking about.

"Ah.", said Mike, and slung his gun back up onto his shoulder. "Well, good luck to you, Dan. I had best be off. One of my friends is calling me off, and I best not be late."
"Who's your friend?", asked Dan, with subtle curiosity. He too stretched, getting ready for no doubt what would be a long road ahead. "Have I ever met him?"
"No.", said Mike, after a thought and a shake of the head. "I don't belive you have."

"Well, what's his name?", asked Dan, and took a step forward. Mike turned to look, as Dan was about to head off.

"Askari.", said Mike, and too began to walk. "Well, see you Dan! May you have good luck upon your journey!"
"You too, Mike!", said Dan, waving as they both began to fade from each other's sight. "And may you have good luck upon yours!"
Then the two headed off, in opposite directions. The news and name of Askari had reached the group's ears- but without any knowledge of who he was, the information was lost. Had it not been, perhaps many things would have turned out differently.

Song: Dawn- Phantom Blood

The faraway shores of Royale now seemed an old friend to many who were upon the journey. The golden beaches near Spell Valley and Pekka's Playhouse shone with a brilliant light, the sun high over the surface of the world radiating brilliance. Although the darkness over the Continent of the Clans was a terrifying presence, hardly any of its influence was felt in Royale. The only evil anyone there- besides an observant few- was the pretend evil and mock terror of the season. For the celebrations of Shocktober were in full swing, Royal Ghosts and Witches roaming around at night unabated, paid to do so by the Gods themselves, in their absence.

For many on the continent, life was continuing just like any other October day. There were battles to be won, trophies to be collected, and Troops to be upgraded. The new Triple Draft had proven to be one of the most popular modes introduced, and many Kings were eager to get their hands on it.

The atmosphere at Pekka's Playhouse in particular was one of joyous occasion. Now that it had gotten colder, due to the official onset of Autumn, many Troops found themselves visiting the comforting heat and warming volcanoes of Pekka's Playhouse more and more often. It had expanded its seating from 3000 to 4000 housing space, which was a great boon as well. There were more battles being held in it every day- and yet, none of those were quite the reasons that one particular honored guest decided to show up that fateful day.

There was, of course, a battle going on that very moment. It was not anything special- no, it was between two Kings, who had been having a battle in that particular Arena. The sparks had been flying, the crowd had been cheering, and the Blue King, Tiktavik, was busy beating down his Red opponent, Viritas. Jimmy Firecracker, of course, was narrating.

"It looks like it's gonna be a close one today, folks!", he shouted, holding out his microphone to the scene below. It was one of chaos, the smoke and explosions rising from the Arena floor blinding several of the front row Troops. But that, of course, is how it was every day. "Tiktavik has been merciless with that Giant Skeleton of his, far more than Viritas's Rocket Cycle can keep up with! It looks like it's going to be-"

He was about to say a clear victory for Tiktavik. He had been about to say those words, but something stopped him. It felt like an odd chill running over his body, over his mind. It was difficult to place just exactly what it was, but it disturbed him on a way he had never felt.

Then, once Jimmy looked down, he could see a shadow below him. He looked up out of curiosity, and-

Not a single noise came out of Jimmy Firecracker. He just stood there, looking straight up, utterly transfixed at the otherworldly sight that was flying above him. Several members of the assembled crowd, too, noticed their bodies obscured with shadows, and looked upwards. The gasps from them were enough to alert the friends they had brought with them, which alarmed the Troops around them. This, of course, set off a chain reaction throughout the entire Arena, every single audience member and now even every single fighting Troop in the Arena floor itself looking upwards in awe at the majestic sight before them.

The news cameras, one by one, turned upwards to try and capture the sight that was unfolding right before them all. They were live, so some footage was certainly released- but for the most part, the footage was lost. The cameras pointed up into the air were simply too weak to contain the majesty, and thus shattered into spare parts after just a few seconds. This was met with sighs of disappointment from most of the camera workers- but Jimmy's one cameraman, Larry, was far angrier. This had been his third camera in just as many spectacular instance that had been broken, and he was not sure if he could afford a third one. But then he chanced to look up- and that utterly changed his mind. All the anger he had been holding on to just simply, quietly melted away- unable to cope with the sight before him.

There, in the air, descending slowly, was the absolutely immense form of Dragonlady Chuqulita. Gold and green fire burned around her, indicating her status as one of the first troops to ever exist. She had waited quite a long time to get her own continent someday, and now it was something to use. But she was not there- she was in Royale. She was in Royale for a very specific reason- to attempt to wake the mighty Aiunraur. If anyone could take down Rakastaos, it would be him. He was the two's bigger brother, always able to defeat them both. Chuqulita just hoped that this time would work as well. She didn't know what she was going to do if it didn't- but she could not worry about that. Right then, she had to find him, tell him what was going on, and finally do… something. Chuquilita figured she was ready to to do something of value, rather than just sitting on the sidelines and letting Askari hog all of the glory .

As Chuqulita adjusted her position, slowly but surely getting ready to land next to the Arena itself, Jimmy Firecracker gasped for words. "You…"

"Mortals.", said Chuqualita, and closed her eyes. As much as she quietly enjoyed the awe-stricken gazes of those around here, she knew that word of her visit here could not be allowed to get out. She flashed a secret gesture towards the crowd, a burst of silver light echoing throughout the entire area. "Sleep."

At once, the command went through the heads and souls of everyone in the entire Arena. The Troops in the battlefield itself blinked, stumbled around a bit, and fell onto the ground. In just a few minutes they would reawaken, to find absolutely no memory of what had transpired. No memory of Chuqualita could ever leave the Arena, if it first left the heads of everyone there.

Once the Troops in the Arena fell, it took only seconds for the stands to follow suit. Every single Troop that had been watching the fight spun around and fell right on their backs, Chuqulita's magical abilities making sure that nobody fell on top of or hurt each other. As the magnificent Dragonlady touched down on the volcanic ground near the Arena, the entirety of the would-be audience was fast asleep. Even Jimmy FIrecracker had passed out right on his announcer's podium, his microphone still clutched in his hands.

Chuqulita huffed, and looked around. She had to find the secret entrance that would allow her access to her brother's long lost lair. He had not been seen for many centuries on end- but she was confident that she could wake him up. If not her, if not here, then who?

After a few seconds of searching, her eyes landed on a single crack on the lava floor. But this was not a regular crack, brought upon by volcanic activity- no, this was straight as a ruler, deeper than sight could see. This was a crack that could only have been made intentionally, to conceal a secret entrance under a cover of stone.

Chuqulita drew back her immense paw, and took a deep breath. Faster than the eye could see, her hand slammed down onto the ground, in a massive peal of sound that echoed for miles. Many would wonder what it was for hours on end- but none knew. The only one that did was Chuqulita, as she saw impact lines of tremor spread out from where she had hit the ground. Her suspicion was correct- the lines glowed upon impact, to reveal the shape of a door. Chuqulita suppressed a smile, as the ground began to retreat into the rock. Such things could come later- after Rakastamos was defeated.

Song: Crucial Situation

The rock moved ever so slowly into the ground, clearly meant to grant a sense of awe should anyone come looking. But Chuqulita did not have time for awe. She knew this place well, and had been here many times before. She just wanted to get there as soon as she could.

Chuqulita slammed the bottom of the rock, and a jangling sound of running chains was heard from beyond the walls. The downward speed of the transport increased, and the true inner chamber of Pekka's Playhouse became visible.

Chuqulita's tired eyes were met with a truly gorgeous sight. The vast cavern was lit up red and orange from the thick river of lava flowing through the center, bubbling and boiling over with sheer intense heat. It started at one end and flowed all the way through to the other, its export of magma the main power source for much of the Arenas of Royale. But it was within what truly caught Chuqulita's eye- the plant life that seemed to thrive under the volcano, despite the intense pressure and heat. The hanging gardens of it defied all logic, tranquil life in a place of chaotic destruction. The various precious ores and metals that lined the walls glimmered and sparkled like polished Gold, only a hundred times more so. It was a gaudy sight- yet, one that its owner was very rarely around to admire it. And as Chuqulita looked around, she finally saw the one flaw in the mission.

There lay Auinraur, the mightiest Dragon on the planet. Although he had been smaller than Rakastamos when they last fought, the colossal bulk of his body had increased. He had been around half the size, but triple the fight- now he was twice the size, no doubt many times the fight. If all had been going well, Auinraur would have woken and defeated Rakastamos- but things were, of course, not going well. For Auinraur was still very fast asleep.

Chuqulita slowly walked across the blasted volcanoscape, dodging past stalagmites and stalactites galore, keeping her eyes her target. She absolutely had to get her brother's help- there was no other option. So once she reached his side, she very gently placed one hand on his snout, squeezed tightly, and spoke. "It's time to get up. Let's do this, brother."

She would have thought that would gain his attention. But it did not. The mighty Dragonlord, only continuing to slumber. "If only…"

Chuqulita bowed, stretching out her wings hundreds of feet in all directions, speaking right to Auinraur's sleeping form. "Brother, Rakastamos plans to destroy the entire world. Please, wake up, so you can stop his evil plan."

But nothing happened. The lava in the cave still flowed, Auinraur still slept, and Chuqulita's plan still was unfulfilled. She stared at Auinraur, trying to figure out just what to-

Now Chuqulita could see what she had to do. Directly attempting to wake him up did not work, as she had just seen. Sneaking in through the front door would accomplish nothing- she could always just ask for permission to enter legitimately. That's what she always said.

So after thinking for a few seconds, she decided the best strategy to wake him up was the one most typically used by the majority of people in the world. Chuqulita took a deep breath, raised up her entire body, and threw herself forward right onto Auinraur's stomach.

"HEey!", she shouted, and shouted at the top of her lungs. "WAKE UP!"
She grabbed his arm and shook it, as hard as she was able to, not even caring if he was damaged in the process. They had to win this war- and Auinraur's help may have been the only way to do so. But despite Chuquilita's efforts, Auinraur stubbornly stayed asleep. He did not even move or shift around a bit in his position, instead just staying perfectly still like a mount of bizarre flesh. His breathing was so slow and methodical it was hard to even tell that he was doing it, like tectonic movement observed by mortals.

"Dang it…", said Chuqulita, and drew back her foot. She kicked Auinraur in the ribs out of desperation, to be met with the same result- nothing. Her mouth puled down in a vicious snarl, and a low growl rumbled outwards. Her wings shook with fury, and her entire body boiled over with a shining silver light. "Dang it!"

She grabbed at and yanked Auinraur's unconscious form, desperation awakening from deep within her. She knew she had not tried every method, but had tried any method with a chance of working. That was very bad.

Auinraur just slept there, totally asleep, not a single care in the world. He didn't know that the probable destiny of the world was held within his waking up, nor that his very own sister was constantly yelling at him to awaken. He just kept on dreaming his silent dream, drudging through the space of the head in an infinite universe of his own mind.

"Wake up, Auinraur!", shouted Chuqulita, and finally resorted to biting. She delivered a quick, mostly painless bite to the ear, sending a little bit of flame alongside it. She hoped beyond hope that such a thing would finally prove to be his awakening- but there was no such luck. Auinruar remained totally asleep, not having any idea what was going on.

Chuqualita sat back, and looked around for ideas. She had to find something, someone. Any-

"There was no troop that truly ate anemones.", said Dan, and let Bubble down the trail.

Chuqulita blinked, at the sudden vision that just had entered her mind. "Wait, what?"

She sat there for a second, letting it twist and turn around in her mind- then knew it was time to keep on trying. No matter how bad a time she was having of it, she knew that Auinraur could not, or would not, rather, wake himself. There was something that she could use to wake him up, but what? Perhaps there was something in his cavern that could do it- yes, that made sense. Auinraur had always been very wise. He would have left some sort of help, had anybody decided that they needed to wake him up.

Chuqulita turned around, to check. Her vision flew over the floor of the cave, checking for a mystic talisman perhaps, or some sort of ancient artifact, or even just a gigantic alarm clock. She looked up and down, far and wide- yet she saw nothing that resembled anything of the sort. She narrowed her eyes, and jumped across the lava river, to check the other side. There had to be something here. She knew it. There couldn't just be no way to wake him up- Chuqulita had to belive that. There was no other option.

And yet, as she continued her frantic search across the cave floor, there appeared to be continuing amounts of nothing. Just empty jar after empty jar, bare vase after bare vase, random piles of Gold in abundance. There was nothing that could have-

But then, Chuqulita saw something. A single oddly shaped rock, stuck in the middle of a crack in the ground. It appeared to be glowing an odd purple- the color of Auinraur. Her eyes lit up. There it was. That had to be it.

Chuqulita's massive hand crashed down onto the ground, breaking the hard, ancient dirt and dragging the stone talisman along with it. She held it up to her gaze, and nodded. It was in the shape of a Dragon, if she looked at it the right way. Once the dirt had fallen off, it was revealed as a brilliant amethyst, glowing a deep, luxurious purple. Such things did not merely happen- this was it. This was the moment she awoke her elder brother, and put an end to Rakastamos's schemes for good. It pained her to strike her brother down, but she knew that it had to be done.

She brought the Dragon Charm close to Auinraur's sleeping form, hoping that it would work. It had to, she thought as she gently placed it on his forehead, watching the purple cracks start to spread through his scales, watch the-

Watch as a single bolt of crimson and gold energy blasted out from the ceiling, slamming right into Auinraur's forehead, shattering the crystal into a million pieces in an instant. Chuqulita did not even have time to cry out before the light faded once again from her brother's scales, and he fell back into his deep and dreamful sleep. The shattered bits of the crystal soon lost their glow as well, turning into little more than chunks of glorified glass. Chuqulita looked down at the fragments, then up towards where the blast had come from. There was a still smoking hole in the ceiling of the cavern, right where it could have come from. A dark voice echoed from the very air, winding around and inside of Chuqulita's mind like an evil tapestry.

Oh, my dear sister, murmured Rakastamos, his tones a spiked fabric upon Chuqulita's ears. Did you not think that I would anticipate your attempts at waking our siblings? To somehow get them to join your little charade? I don't think that will work out for the rest of them either, now do you?

"You may have slowed me down.", Chuqulita growled, knowing that Rakastamos could hear her through some dark, forgotten magic. She saw a pahntom image of her brother appear right there in front of her- it was now a two way call. "But even if I fail to wake a single one of our brothers and sisters, my allies will still be more than enough for you."
"Oh, your allies.", said Rakastamos, and chuckled. "And what allies are those?"

Chuqulita found it a bit hard to breathe underneath Rakastamos's crushing influence. But she still managed to spit out a few all-important words. "Askari. His name… is Askari."

All at once, the memories inside of Rakastamos's head came rushing back. He gasped out loud, at the thought of Askari the first helping to trap him inside of the stone for a hundred years. For some reason, he had totally forgotten that he had known about Askari before this.

"Askari…", said Rakastamos, trying to appear nonchalant. "I don't think I've ever heard of him. But if you think he could possibly just waltz in here, and take what it took me weeks to create-"

But Chuqulita knew the truth. She knew Rakastamos well enough to tell when he was nervous, and this was definitely one of those times. She could see it all over him- the way he scratched his back, leaving actual deep cuts in the skin. The way his wings twitched, the way he blinked slightly harder, longer, and for more often. They were tiny changes in his behavior, but Chuqulita could tell very well. "Oh really?", she asked, and bared her teeth. "I think you are afraid of Askari. He was the one to beat you- with that Dragon Cannon of his."

Rakastamos's entire body suddenly twitched with the mere thought of having to face the Dragon Cannon again. He could feel that that he could no longer disguise his feelings, particular not with his sister ruthlessly mocking him like that. His mouth drew back in a bloody snarl, the pressure of his mouth cutting open his veins. He almost lunged for Chuqulita, but remembered that she was just an illusion to him, seen only through the eyes of a bug.

"Sister, this is your final warning.", said Rakastamos, with deadly seriousness, "Next time you try and interfere with my plans, I will kill you. Do you understand?"

"I don't really care.", said Chuqulita, calling her brother's bluff for perhaps the last time. "I am going to raise an army. We are going to come to your lair, and kill you. That is the fact."

"I see.", said Rakastamos, his horned head crackling with bizarre power. "Then I invite you to try. But in the meantime…"

He snarled , and turned off the illusion. Hs words could still be heard inside of Chuqulita's head, echoing over and over again. "Do not trifle with me."

Then he was gone, leaving Chuqulita behind in the cavern, the lava still flowing. But not as fast as Chuqulita's mind, which was now going as fast as she could make it. Now that her first and best option had failed, she had to get more. What was Askari doing, she wondered?
Chuqulita looked up. Whatever it was he was doing, she could certainly join him on it.

Song: Danger Draws Near

Back at the Continent of the Clans, the time had grown later. Not too late, not too late that one would look at it and think "Wow, that's late", but late enough so that it was no longer early. If one wanted to be totally specific, they would say it was around 3 o clock in the afternoon.

The group, a little winded from the oppressive sun, was currently winding their way around a particularly interesting grotto, right above where the Clashcrush River still flowed.

"Daddd…", whined Bubble, flopped over on Dan's shoulder. "Daddy…"

"What is it?", Dan asked, taking a giant step over a fallen tree. He looked up, putting one hand on his brow to block out the sun. There in front of him was the grotto proper, a quite beautiful sight. They were not able to appreciate it fully due to the exhaustion throughout the group, but the azure water flowed through the emerald stone all the same. It almost looked like a trophy, the overall shape of the formation. Perhaps it was. Perhaps it was some ancient statue, long since lost to time. "Bubble, this is the fourth time in a row you've asked me-"

"Can we get some food?", Bubble asked, looking up into the sky. Her stomach audibly rumbled, soon followed by everyone else in the group. Brandy nodded, misery crossing her face. "We haven't eaten since this morning, and I'm really really hungry."

"Yeah.", said Trevor, and burped. "Except for that squirrel I ate, I haven't eaten hardly anything all day."

"Wait, a squirrel?", asked Annabelle in shock, twisting around from her resting position to stare at Trevor. "When did you eat a squirrel?"
Trevor looked at his sword, still covered with fresh blood. He tried to wipe it off on his tunic, and then just hid it behind his back. "Recently.", he said, and tried to look innocent.

"Uhhh…", said Dan, and slowly nodded. Putting one hand on the top shelf of the mysterious grotto, he thought he could hear some odd voice from afar. It sounded like singing, but he didn't know quite what it was. "Bubble, you can get some water here. Everyone else, I still do have that rune of Elixir in my back pocket. Brandy, break that out for me, would you?"

"Yeah, but we're hungry.", said Brandy, and groaned. "We need food."

"We can get food at the next village we stop at.", said Dan, a little sternly. "If you drink some Elixir, it can help for now. Trust me."
"Okay.", said Brandy, the rune of Elixir already in her hand. She had Dashed to Dan's pcket and grabbed it, faster than anyone could see.

"Daddy, this is bad water.", said Bubble, staring down at the river with trepidation. "There's stuff in it. Bugs."

"Oh, those aren't bugs!", said Dan, and gently leaned down, taking care not to disturb anyone on his back. He pointed down at the river, the many things within all looking up. "Those are spiders! They aren't bugs."
Bubble's face wrinkled in disgust, and she turned around. "Spiders! I don't want to drink that even more now. Not at all."

"Well.", said Dan, and plunged his hand into the river. Scooping up a huge handful of silt, river rocks, and some amount of water, he concentred a cleansing amount of Star within his fingers. WIth a puff of air from his nose and a gentle hiss, the water within his grasp was purified of all the toxins that could have been in it. Bubble, who had been staring at the rocks, turned around and gasped at the magic trick- just like the last fourteen times Dan had done it for her.

"There you go, Bubble.", said Dan, and opened his hand. Bubble didn't even wait a second before diving in and taking a few huge gulps. Dan laughed, making sure she didn't go in too deep. "Dig in."

He took one eye off of Bubble's drinking to check on the others, passing the rune of Elixir around themselves. They had gotten off his back to sit upon the top shelf of the grotto, making sure not to accidentally fall in. Brandy had already drunken some, droplets of Elixir across her cheeks. She seemed a bit delirious- maybe she did need food. Leon had drunken some as well, but the constant presence of his lollipop seemed to give him something, at least. Annabelle and Trevor kept on passing it between themselves, both of them trying to give it to the other. Dan thought about what Brandy had told him about those two, and smiled to himself.

After watching his group for a few seconds, Dan stood up. He grabbed Bubble gently around the waist and put her on his shoulder, letting her finish her mouthful of water. The rest of the group saw him coming, standing up to meet him. Annabelle finally let Trevor take the rune of Elixir, after taking a quick swig herself. With a single motion, Dan hopped up onto the top of the ground above the grotto, towering over 20 feet, taller than some of the trees.

"Alright guys.", he said gently, reaching out his hand to the group. They filed one by one onto his shoulder, taking up their usual positions. "There's a village somewhere over there, just down that valley and between those two mountains. We'll get there in a few, and then we can eat."

"Oh, thank Se'th.", groaned Brandy, and flopped down on Dan's neck. She patted her stomach, and frowned. She felt a little helpless, and that thought unsettled her. "Honestly, I might even eat meat if we got some. I'm hungry as frick."

"I hope there's meat there.", said Trevor, aimlessly shining his sword with a bit of his tunic. He had gotten a lot of blood on it by now, but he didn't care. In fact, he thought it made him look cool. "I need some. A lot."

"You and me both.", said Leon, putting his hood all the way over his eyes. He grabbed a single spinner blade out of his pocket, and flung it into the trees. He did not know why. "We need it."

"Then let's go.", said Dan, and began to walk. "It's not that far away- we'll get there in no time."

But even as they walked, they did not suspect the thing that waited in that faraway village. They did not suspect the thing that waited under the ground, the dirt writhing in its passage, its thin and twisting body scraping through the stone like a cursed drill. Bizarre noises pounded outwards from it, none of them strong enough to reach the surface, but still menacing on every level. A single pair of glowing yellow eyes shone outwards from the very tip of the creature's head, illuminating the dirt and rock it tunneled through at a rapid pace. Its two strong arms, massive mole-like claws at the end, dug through the ground like a pair of steel spoons through a tub of melting ice cream. Faster and faster it went, determined to reach its goal before the ones it was hunting got there first. But that did not mean the village- no, it meant underneath it. There it would wait, until they got settled. Until they had gotten comfortable, until they had gotten something to eat, somewhere to sit down, someplace to become unprepared.

As The Cyborg churned through the low dirt, scraping veins of Elixir and bits of Gold out of the way, he marveled at the marvelous new body that it had constructed for itself. No more did it need to rely on the false village he had constructed- no, this new one could go around and take villages at will. They would be absorbed seamlessly into himself, boosting his power by tremendous amounts. He was no longer limited to the Draconic form of his previous body either- he could now shift and shape change into anything he wanted, be it bipedal, on four limbs, or something else entirely, perhaps of his own making- or his truest form of a gigantic, hovering orb. That was his favorite form, but he hardly ever had a chance to show it off. A fine suit with no occasion to wear it- because every time he did, somebody died.

He felt his internal tracking mechanism beep, and he stopped his tunneling for half a second. That was all the time it took for his massive digging arms to change direction, now propelling him straight up instead of forward. He was right underneath the village now- it was almost time to put his, and his master's, plan into action.

Remember this, Cyborg,Rakastamos had told him. Those Tailbiters always seem to manage to pull something out of nowhere that allows them to win. They're tricky ones. So be sure to attack from underground this time… kill them before they have a chance to.

Yes, sir, he had replied. I will.

The Cyborg had temporarily lost himself in thought- then noticed he was but meters away from the surface. He halted as soon as he noticed, careful not to break through the dirt any sooner than he had to. The time for that would come later, once his victims arrived.

Mason the Builder was currently asleep in his hut, as was the usual. The Chief of the VIllage had reached the point in his Town Hall of 12 where he no longer needed all of his Builders, and so Mason was usually the one that got to take naps all the time. He thought it was fantastic, just not having to go anywhere or do anything. Sometimes he wished that it could be that way all the time- perhaps a great plague could sweep over the world and force everyone to stay in one spot. That would be nice…

But his peaceful sometime-in-the-day-time nap was abruptly shattered, as Helena the Villager rushed into his hut. She slammed open the door with a shout, causing Mason to fall out of his bed. He looked up, and saw Helena's stern face. "What? What? What is it?"

"There are weird troops in our Village.", said Helena, and turned around. "Everyone else is busy. So I got you."

"Weird Troops, eh?", asked Mason, rubbing his head and yawning. He stepped forward, grabbing his multi-tool and pulling on his overalls as he did so. "Well, let's just have ourselves a look."

As the two left the Builder's Hut and rounded the corner around the nearest Barracks, they soon came upon just who Helen had been talking about. There stood The Group, looking around, exhaustion and hunger all written upon their faces.

"Oh my-", said Mason, and gasped. "Is that- are those-"

"Yes!", Helena squealed, barely able to keep her emotions to herself. The tale of The Travelers, as they had become known in some circles, was beginning to become a legend. Word of their exploits had traveled far, all the way from the Goblin Hotel to the Villages they had assisted, to far beyond. And word had reached this in the middle of nowhere Village as well.

"Hey.", said Brandy, seeing the two. She gave a little wave from atop Dan's shoulder, attracting the two's attention almost immediately. "Do y'all have any food?"

"YES!", Helena yelled, then caught herself. She smoothed down her skirt, straightened her auburn hair, and nodded. "Yes.", she said, in a more reserved manner. "We have enough for all of you. Just follow me to the Town Hall- it's a bit empty, as all the Troops are battling right now. But we have food to spare- I'm sorry, am I saying too much?"

Dan stared for a moment, before shaking his head. He had started to get hungry too, the mental fog affecting him and his massive body. "No, no, you're fine. Just show us where the food is."

"Alright!", shouted Helena eagerly, and turned around. She pointed towards the Clan Castle, the group following her in hunger and Mason just there for the ride. "Follow me!"

The Cyborg could feel the itch to attack burn deep within his mechanical bones. He had the blazing impulse to just burst out of the ground and destroy everything he could find, assimilating it into himself, building the perfect warrior, the ultimate form of being-

But he knew that, regrettably, he did have to wait. For that is what Rakastamos had told him, and that is what he had to abide by. No matter how much he desired to put down his foes for good, to splash them all into Elixir, he could not. For only one thing took providence over his need for power and victory- his undying loyalty to Rakastamos.

But he did need something to do until he reached that point. Being a hyper intelligent artificial lifeform did not come without its disadvantages- one of them being that he got bored extremely quickly. He needed something to do. He could not just wait there in the dirt, waiting for a signal from his master that he had no idea when to expect. So he slowly withdrew inside his own, vast, mechanical mind, reaching into his vast store of abilities.

He grabbed a single thought ,and spread it out across the entire world. Being constructed of pure light energy, the action crossed the globe in less than a second, boring into the information databases that the Cyborg had been listening for. He blinked in excitement, and reopened his eyes- now finding that what was playing upon them was in fact some current episodes of TV Royale. The Cyborg smiled to himself, and began to watch.

Helena tossed out some bowls full of soup for the 14th time, watching the group eat. Dan gulped down his in a single second, as had he all of the rest. Leon drank his rather quickly, although not as quick as Dan. Trevor and Brandy ate at a quick pace, drinking down the vegetable soup eagerly, while Annabelle and Bubble just sort of picked at their food. It was not the type of soup that either of them particular enjoyed- besides, they had managed to find some bread to eat.

"I've head about you all.", she said cheerfully, and Dan instantly stopped moving. He slowly set down his bowl, giving her a suspicious look, his muscles starting to flex.

"Oh, I mean-", Helena said, and raised her hands. "I didn't mean it like that! I just heard about your wonderous exploits. You really are quite famous, you know."

"Really…", said Dan, and took another sip of the Elixir bottle that had been granted. He didn' really need it due to the Rune of Elixir, but it was the thought that counted. "Tell me a little more."

"Oh, sure!", Helea said excitedly, and her hands started to move. "I first heard of you when I-"

The Cyborg had been fairly deep in to some of his TV Royale viewing when he suddenly felt a buzzing come from deep within his head. He stopped the replay as soon as he could and switched modes to his private communication channel, seeing the face of Rakastamos held right above him. The Cybrog shivered- even though he knew Rakastamos, his face was still absolutely terrifying. Sometimes he wondered what it would be like to see him as an enemy, rather than as a master. But that thought could resolved later, as he could see very clearly that Rakastamos wished to talk. "Yes, sir?"

"The time has come.", said Rakastamos, and the Cyborg felt, deep within himself, something that would be considered excitement. "Kill them all for me, wouldn't you?"

"Yes.", said the Cyborg, and punched his arm higher. He immediately began to burrow himself upwards, the ground beginning to break. "I will."

"So.", said Dan, his elbows on the table. He knew that he wasn't truly supposed to do that, but he was huge. There was no real way to avoid such a thing. "You know about us… but who else knows about us? Does Rakastamos know?"
Helena just shrugged, not quite sure. "Maybe he does, and maybe he doesn't. I'm not there to check-"
Before she could finish her sentence, There came an odd rumble from outside. Dan sropped his bowl, and Brandy dropped her spoon. They looked to each other- they suppose that the peace they had managed to get, even if only for a few seconds, was good. "Oh, not again."

"What?", asked Leon, looking up. He saw his parent's faces, and immediately knew what was up. "Oh great, not again."

"Well, here we go.", said Brandy, jumping up out of her seat. She Dashed outwards towards the door, ready to take on whatever might come next. She thought she was prepared- but nothing could have ever prepared her for the terrifying sight she saw, the very ground beginning to burst.

Song: Magnetic

As Brandy watched in abject horror, the titanic new form of The Cyborg burst out from the ground. Huge chunks of dirt and stone flew in a sphere, scraping against all the buildings in the nearby area. A vast mechanical roar echoed out across the entire village and far beyond, buffeting back the leafless trees and slightly disturbing the clouds overhead. As the dirt began to settle, Brandy could see the monster's head- angular, twisted, and overflowing with hate.

"What is that thing?", she shouted, and instantly flipped backwards. She landed on Dan's hand in an instinctual movement, still not taking her eyes off The Cyborg. Fear was written across her face, as a gigantic steel fist burst from underground, landing on a Barracks and crushing it to dust before there was a second.

"It looks like…", said Dan, and narrowed his eyes. "That thing we fought earlier. The Cyborg."

The Cyborg, upon hearing his name, roared once again. He made sure to make it as animalastic as he possibly could, in order to max out his intimidation factor. He had made this body look the way it did for a reason- a gigantic beast with the head of a Dragon, the body of a Giant, and the bottom half of a vast Octopus. He thought it looked rather nice.

"But that's impossible.", said Brandy. She stared at the beast, trying to make sense of it, to come up with some other option. She had seen the Cyborg die, get blown to bits by the alien kid. But the thing in front of her did seem to bear much resemblance- too much to be just another Forgotten. Her heart beat with the sight, faster and faster than was normal or healthy. "We… we saw him die. The Cyborg is dead."

Leon looked upwards, letting his hood fall behind his head in shock. The tail on the back of his jacket stood straight up, through some unknown force. His mouth dropped open, and he slowly tucked his eternal sucker into his back pocket. "Well, what do you call that?"

Bubble did not want to see such a sight. The trauma she had endured during their last encounter with the Cyborg was still too fresh in her mind, too recent. She screamed, ran behind Dan, and buried her face into his leg. She closed her eyes, unwilling to accept the terrifying sight of the Cyborg, now busy crushing a Gold Mine under his massive tentacles.

Brandy swallowed hard, and looked down at Trevor and Annabelle. They seemed to be taking it alright- at least better than Brandy thought she was. They had unsheathed their weapons, and wore expressions of war. Brandy looked forward to the Cyborg, and tried to put on one of her own.

The Cyborg, seeing their offensive stances, turned around his entire body. He stood straight up to his full height on eight massive arms, towering almost 120 feet above the ground. His metal body glinted horrifyingly under the sun, the construction constantly twisting and turning to keep himself upright. He stared at the group with a hard cold eye- then laughed.

"You really thought you could rid yourselves of me?", he asked, and threw his hands into the air. Sparks of Lightning flashed between each one- he had managed to keep some of the power from his previous incarnation. "You fools! For I am The Cyborg, and can reconstitute my body any way I wish, any time I wish, anywhere I wish! You did not defeat me- you merely slowed me down!"

Then he stopped and put his arm to his chin, pretending to think. "No… you let me transform myself into a new body. So I suppose you only ever helped me! Ha!"

He cast another look downwards, his Magical vision activating. He saw the Ring of Three Wishes inside of Brandy's pocket, and smirked. "I see… that is how you summoned those allies of yours. But it appears you have but one summons left… and you're going to want to save that one for my master Rakastamos."

He raised one titanic tentacle and claw, and thought about who he wanted to attack first.

Brandy nodded, building up Dash in one hand. She brought her fist out behind her, feeling the skin start to tingle. She thought she knew his weaknesses by now- if the ones from his previous body were to hold over. She hoped they did. If not, it would be very bad indeed.

"So that's it.", she said calmly. She had not been listening to anything The Cyborg had said- save his name. "That really is the Cyborg then. Dang."

"Guys, we need to take this thing down fast.", said Dan, and took a deep breath. "We didn't even beat him last time, and I assume he's stronger now. I don't know how we can take him out, but we have to do it quickly."

"Daddy?", asked Bubble, peeking out from behind Dan's leg. She still saw the Cyborg towering over the village, and ducked behind again. But she still had something to say. "What about that time you were super strong? Just a few hours ago?"
Dan blinked, remembering this. He grinned, the idea of his new power now in his brain. "Why, you're right.", he said. "I am stronger now. Let's see how this Cyborg measures up to…"

As the Cyborg looked over the Village, trying to decide which one to kill first, a thought entered his head. It was one of Rakastamos, and his constant raved murmerings. He was always thinking about the group the Cyborg was currently after, and which one to kill first. He had always said the same thing- get the big one.

"Quite right, my lord!", the Cyborg shouted, and adjusted his aim to shoot right at Dan. "I will finish him off first."

"To…", said Dan again, and flexed his muscles. He took in deep breath after deep breath, but nothing beyond the usual swelling of Star happened. He tried to summon up the all-consuming strength he had before, but for some reason, it failed to work. He grit his teeth, his face turning a bit red as he tried even more and even harder. "To…"

"Die!", he heard from right above him, and he looked up. There came the right claw of the Cyborg, rushing straight towards his head at high speed, and Dan knew that he could no longer afford to wait. He jumped backwards with his powerful legs, breaking open the ground in a gold explosion. As the claw made impact with the dirt, Dan used the release of force to propel himself even further back- then noticed the mistake that he had made.

As he had jumped back far stronger, he had failed to hold on to the group with that much more force. He shouted as everyone he had been holding was thrown off of him and out of his grip with the force of the wind, landing on the ground in various parts of the Village. Trevor and Annabelle, holding on to each other, landed near a Barracks right in the path of the Cyborg. Bubble rolled away and into a ditch on the side of the village, landing right next to a sparkling blue tree. Leon rolled over the ground for a few feet, then abruptly became invisible. But Dan could still see the marks he left in the dirt as he bumped up against the Spell Factory.

Brandy tried to hold on to Dan, to keep going, but knew that trying to do so would only lead to her arm being torn off. She let go, instantly flying through the air in the direction of the Town Hall. Spinning around, she managed to grab hold of her cloak and hold it in the air, slowing her fall enough to not hit the ground prone. She instead slammed into the side of the Town Hall, right where the Mega Tesla would emerge if it was damaged. She lay there for a moment, trying to get up- then the spot where she was laying gave her an idea.

Dan stuck out one leg, slamming it deep into the ground. He skidded along the edge of the village, throwing up dirt and grass as he went, until he came to a standing stop right in front of a small orange box. He looked up, seeing the terrifying technological titan looming high over the village, searching for every member of his hit list with his multiple eyes. Dan grit his teeth, and righted his feet. He closed his eyes for a second, hoping it wouldn't let him lose track of his target, and concentrated fully on the Star within the air. If he had any hope of taking down the Cyborg at all, he would need absolutely everything that he could get.

Trevor and Annabelle stopped rolling around on the ground and lay there, dazed. Trevor took a moment to try and collect himself, groaning from the impact. Annabelle forced herself to rise to her feet, shakily reaching back and nocking an arrow into her bow. She aimed upwards, right for the Cyborg, and felt her legs begin to shake from panic.

"You two are unimportant.", said the Cyborg, and raised his hand. A strange blue light shone from his palm, even as one of Annabelle's arrows bounced harmlessly off of it. "I would kill you for my Master Rakastamos, but… he did disagree with me in a debate this morning. So I'm letting you live, just to piss him off. I'm not sure he knows about you anyway. Sleep."

There was a pulse of blue light, and a burst of blue sound. Trevor suddenly felt his body shutting down, his eyes automatically closing and the thick haze of sleep moving over him. Annabelle stumbled from the sonic wave, her muscles relaxing, and fell right onto Trevor. They both fell asleep instantly, their weapons by their sides.

The Cyborg looked up, intent on finding his next target. He was searching for Dan- but his battery of eyes lit up once he saw Bubble, hands out, multicolored light shining from them.

"Hey!", she screamed, her anger and adrenaline pushing out all of her fear. "What did you do to them?"

Song: Decisive Battle

"Oh, nothing much.", said the Cyborg, carefully selecting his next weapon. After riffling through the options, he decided on a nice drill. His hand morphed into a rapidly rotating metal screw, and he raised it above his hand to cut Bubble apart. "I just put them to sleep, is all. What you should be worried about is what I'm going to do to you…"

"Haaaa!", screamed Bubble, and put her hands by her side. Golden light flowed into them, the stance suddenly becoming all too familiar in the Cyborg's mind. He experienced a brief surge of panic, before remembering what Bubble's powers actually were. It's just an illusion, nothing more-, he said, then Bubble fired right at the Cyborg's face.

He didn't expect it to hurt. He thought it was just an illusion. But as he felt the heat upon his face right before the blast slammed into him, confusion rocked his brain.

"What?", he gasped, feeling the damage sink in. Sensors beeped at him from every corner of his face, some of the metal bent. "How- how did- how did she do that?"

But as he saw Bubble bending down for another blast, he knew that was a question best left for later. He guessed that she had somehow figured out how to concentrate her illusion energy into physical blasts, but-

"You never can know!", he shouted, and threw his drill right at her.

"Wait, wha-", Bubble said, a moment before the drill hit her head on.

The Cyborg shouted in triumph, checking another victim off his list. He turned to check for Dan again, marveling at how easily they were going down. Everyone else had always told him that they would be strong. They had told him to be careful, to watch out for any tricks-

That thought came to him a little too late, right before another blast struck him right at the base of the jaw, blowing explosive energy all over his face and sending him staggering for a loop.

"What?", he spat, looking to where the energy had come from- then realized his mistake. For there stood Bubble, her hands outstretched, right behind a Wall. How foolish he had been, to assume that was the real Bubble. "But I don't make mistakes twice…"

Bubble crouched behind the level 17 Cannon, her hand right on the fire button, ready to let loose. She wondered just how stupid the Cyborg could be, to keep on falling for such obvious illusions. She had heard that computers and robots were supposed to be super smart, but she was not seeing it here. She made a mental command, and the illusion of herself near the Cyborg looked up. "Why do you keep on talking to yourself?"
"What?", asked the Cyborg, as he drew his hand to the proper angle in which to strike Bubble. "I'm not talking to myself, I'm just-"

Then he devoted a little bit more time to the matter, and his eyes opened wide. "Oh, I am talking to myself. Maybe I should see someone about that."

"See this!", shouted Bubble, proud of herself for thinking that one up. She fired the Cannon once more at the same timer her illusion fired the beam of energy, the blazing ball right at the tip of the ray. The Cyborg noticed just in time and managed to yank his head out of the way, both real and fake attack traveling out into the air past him.

"How about no.", said the Cyborg, and decided that he had had enough of Bubble. He drew back his drill, rotating it up to the highest speed that it could go. He took careful aim, began to move downwards- and stopped. He knew that the last Bubble he thought he had destroyed was merely an illusion, so why would this one be any different? He would have to find out just where the real Bubble was- and fortunately for him, he had a very precise way to do just that.

With a single movement, he flipped his pair of heat-seeking glasses over his belt of eyes. It took only a second for him to realize that the Bubble in front of him was just an illusion, as was the shot she was building up in her hands. That made him feel better about what she was doing. The real Bubble, he surmised as he looked up, was hiding somewhere over-

But his feed was abruptly cut off, as another shot from a Cannon suddenly collided right with the center of the glass. A large crack run up the Cyborg's vision, the glasses automatically detaching for his own safety. An ancient mechanical curse spat from his mouth, and he stumbled backwards a bit. Smoke still rose from his slightly damaged face.

Bubble knew she had gotten lucky with that shot. If he hadn't taken the time for a quick costume change, The Cyborg might have found her. But as she ducked behind a Builder's Hut and looked for another thing to shoot with, she began to grow more and more nervous. Even though she had landed several excellent hits, the Cyborg was barely damaged. He seemed to have an unlimited array of weapons- it was only a matter of time before he found her. And with the fact that no one had yet come to assist her, Bubble had no choice but to assume that she was on her own. She had to, somehow, take out the mechanical nightmare on her own. She looked around, searching for anything that might serve that purpose- until her eye fell on the glimmering height of a fueled, single-target, Inferno Tower.

"Where did you go?", shouted the Cyborg, raising a few tentacles far above the ground. He looked ready to use them, about to resort to just smashing the village instead of finding his victims. "Come out, kid! It won't hurt when I kill you!"

Bubble grabbed the top of the Inferno Tower, deciding where the spot for her next illusion self would be. She knew how Inferno Towers worked by now- Brandy had told her about the many defenses of a village while they had been walking. She just had to catch the Cyborg in a beam struggle- then turn on the heat and watch him crumble into ash. Twisting the side, the structure began to heat up, the air around it turning hot.

"Where'd you go…", the Cyborg growled, turning its head around on its stalk to check for other members of the group. He had already defeated two of them, and was most likely about to defeat a third, when he noticed something. His opponents had all disappeared. They had not been defeated, as far as he could tell. That left only one option- they were hiding something.

"Hey, Cyborg!", shouted Bubble, and gave a great big wave. The Cyborg turned around, outstretching his hands in what he thought was a threatening gesture- only to receive a clear model of what one really was. Bubble blinked, and suddenly a vast, smoky aura of fear appeared behind her. The Cyborg could not tell what it was, nor was he afraid, but it did hurt to look at. Bubble opened her hands, and put them together. "Are you ready?"

"I am ready for you to die!", shouted the Cyborg, and gathered up a ball of energy in both hands. He focused laser tight on Bubble, making sure it would not miss. Even though his tracking equipment had been shattered, he knew that Bubble would leave tracks. The Cyborg pointed his massive gun straight for the smallest member, aiming straight her torso- and fired.

But, of course, that one was not Bubble either. That too was an illusion, created by the real Bubble, lying behind the Inferno Tower, ready to strike. Tears dripped down her face, her feet and fingers shaking. It was mostly out of panic, but also from the fact that still nobody had shown up to help her. She would have assumed that they would have by now.

The Cyborg's blast headed straight for the illusion of Bubble, tearing the air apart with its force. It rolled through the air right towards her- but she had a response. WIth a magical gesture the Inferno Tower roared to life, and the illusion fired the beam from its hands. The beam of the Inferno Tower continued invisibly onwards, rushing towards the Cyborg's blasts, meeting them head on with a tremendous explosion that rocked the trees and sent a peal of sound ringing out through the whole jungle.

The Cyborg noticed the especially strong aura this blast gave off. He brought up his hands to block- but he saw that the shot was far too strong. It would leave him largely handless, and that would take a bit to repair. Time in which he would highly vulnerable. So he just held out his hands right behind his blasts that he had fired, as they pushed against Bubble's Inferno Tower. He grit his steel teeth, trying to figure out how hard it would be to break open the shot.

Seconds went past, the heat from Bubble's Infernal Blast continuing to grow hotter and hotter. The Cyborg started to notice, mainly due to the extreme heat that was now burning his hand. He didn't want to pull his hand back, and risk further damage, but he also knew he could not deal with the Inferno anymore. He groaned in pain and threw himself downwards, his now unsupported blast passing by Bubble and detonating on the ground.

Bubble yelped and pumped her fist, preparing another shot. But The Cyborg's plan to get low to the ground was not out of fear or caution- no, it was to gain insight. To gain control. He could put his head to the ground, and manipulate the non-living things. The dirt, the rock, the Inferno Tower that Bubble was even now preparing to load- they all obeyed his will, beginning to writhe and jerk around.

Bubble yelped, feeling the Inferno Tower start to rise up against her. She almost screamed at the sensation, but managed to keep herself mostly under control- for if she gave away her position, the Cyborg would have her. She just jumped away from the Inferno Tower, running behind a Barracks and practically sticking herself to the wall, her breathing heavy.

"Come out, come out!", he shouted, sweeping his sight back and forth. He smiled to himself, for he know knew what Bubble had been up to. He knew weapons well, and he was ashamed of himself for not having figured it out sooner. "Little girl!"

Bubble tried to collect herself, and failed. Panic still surged through her, and she struggled to stand. In her mind, there was no hope left. He had figured it out, that much was clear. She had thrown all she could at him, with no effect. And now he was coming for her, with no way to be stopped. She clenched her eyes shut, trying to get herself together- then her body saw a way out of the situation. She felt her muscles instantly relax and her body fall to the ground, as she lost consciousness.

"Hmmm…", said the Cyborg, and stopped looking around. "I do think that did it. That thing I felt pop with the Inferno Tower must have been her… yes. That is good."
The Cyborg stomped off towards where he believed Dan to be- then stopped. He remembered the last piece of advice and gift of the future that Rakastamos had given him, just before he left on this mission. The thing that had started several days ago would come to fruition in this battle.

"Behold", he shouted, and raised one hand into the air, a lightning rod looking device on the very end. "My crushing masterstroke!"

Far away, in the clouds above, an ocean of rot stirred. The thin layer of muck and corruption that had been circling the area for days began to condense, drawn to the Cyborg's mysterious tool. Ugof the Toxic Goblin's final blast of poison was finally going to be used, by the Cyborg himself. And as the cloud began to swirl downwards, headed straight for the Village, the Cyborg-

The Cyborg's head was suddenly hit directly by a huge beam of energy, sending smaller shockwaves out through his body. He gasped in electronic pain, a spurt of oil and blood spitting out from the hit area. He staggered backwards a few times, in total shock. What?

One of his many eyes slowly turned around to see what it was, and he growled upon the revealing sight. There was the Eagle Artillery of the village, shining a brilliant blue, gold, and white, several Villagers and Builders climbing all over it and letting it go. When the Cyborg had disabled the Village's defenses beforehand, he had not counted on manual startup.

"Oh, that is annoying.", he said, and focused on one of his hands. It shaped into a colossal claw, almost like a pair of scissors, ready to cut apart the Artillery and whoever was on it. He remembered to keep most of his power on his other hand, still calling down the blanket of poison. He knew it would cause severe damage to everything it hit- except for him, a creature of metal. There was acid too, he knew, but he could survive that. He hoped.

"Get out of our village, you freak!", shouted one of the Villagers, courageously shaking her fist. "Or we'll have to kick you out, scrap metal tower!"

The Cyborg's jaw twitched at the insults, which he took deeply to heart. He had never been one much for insult wars, and so he merely chose to respond by throwing his claw forward, intent on cutting the Eagle Artillery clean in half-

Only for a huge sheet of flame from several Inferno Towers at once to suddenly wash across his face, rendering him blind for a few seconds. His attack went wild, plowing into the ground and cutting apart a few Gold Mines, the Gold within spilling into the air and flying off in the directions of Clashcrush Mountain, where it would join Rakastamos's horde. The Cyborg cursed and shot a spray of air from his face, blowing away the fire and back into the Inferno Towers, creating a feedback loop that temporarily overwhelmed their mechanisms and caused their lava to cease flowing.

"Mortals!", he screamed, in frustration rather than an attempt to impress. "You suck!"

He gave one last grunt of effort, slamming his radio hand into the ground- and Ugof's cloud of festering, poisonous muck came splashing into the village right along with it.

The direct point of impact had been the Eagle Artillery, the gleaming ivory soon melting under the toxic assault. Green and black smoke rushed through every pathway and every pocket like laughing ghosts, the grass turning white and withering. The Villagers and Builders had no choice but to jump off, sprinting as fast as they could towards the Town Hall, the only place they knew how to go when attacked. But even that was beginning to dissolve, the unmatched virality of Ugof's poison wearing down the metal. Some of the Villagers, with their slightly too slow run, were feeling the backs of their shoes start to dissolve, their panicked screams sweet music to the Cyborg's evil ears.

"Hahaha!", laughed the Cyborg, and spun around his torso on a gigantic screw. "That is it, fleshbags! Taste your weakness! The weakness of-"

He immediately regretted his words, as he saw something he did not expect. The gas began to abruptly thin, suddenly disappear, the force concentrated at the edge of the village. He looked over- there appeared to be a tall figure actually blowing it away. "Breath?"

As Dan continued to blow, the virus-ridden air further dissipated. What had previously been a choking cloud that obscured vision and melted rock was now just a thin mist, barely able to be detected, only chipping at the paint of the various buildings that it touched. The Cyborg watched in frustration as his hard work all went to nothing, a plan days in the making ruined in just a few moments. But that, he guessed, was life. And Dan had just revealed his location…

The Cyborg now knew exactly where to hit. He raised his claw hand once again, not even suspecting the silent assassin that even now crept up his shoulder to the weak point, right on the side of his head.

"Oh, Dan!", he shouted, and Dan looked up. His breathing was a little heavy, as he tried to prepare an attack under all the pressure. "You've left yourself wide open-"

The rest of whatever he was going to say suddenly died mid-transmission, with a sharp burst of pain. It took the Cyborg to think of exactly why- then he realized that a storm of bullets had, out of nowhere, pierced his throat and blew his voicebox to shreds.

The sound that cameo ut of the Cyborg's mouth was not anything that could be recognized as words. It was more of a high-pitched, awful, wavering screech that tore at the ears and wore down on one's brain like a storm of TV static. The Cyborg's eyes narrowed in rage, as he realized that he was no longer going to be able to craft any witty one-liners. But he could still kill- so he was definitely going to have to do that. He could repair himself once he got back to his lair anyway. But first, he had to find out just what had broken his voicebox like that…

The Cyborg, with a powerful thought, activated the cameras all along the right side of his head. Another thought, and the ones along the left turned on as well. They moved their vision all along their regular parameters ,but were unable to detect anything that could have shot at them. This was, of course, due to the fact that Leon had gone invisible.

Even now, he crept up along the Cyborg's metal head, grateful for the lack of sensitive nerves along the steel skin. He grabbed onto the lines and folds of the metal construction, using them as temporary handholds as he got closer to his target- the Cyborg's main energy reactor, right on the top of its head. Leon figured that if he shot right there, then the Cyborg might be defeated. But he had to act quickly, and keep on harassing the monster, or it might end up destroying the entire Village.

"Over here, metalhead!", Leon shouted, and drew out Hunter Killer once again from jacket sleeve. He supposed that it wasn't really the best line he could have done, but he was working under pressure. The Cyborg's eyes all turned to face different directions, most of them going towards the direction where Leon had thrown his voice. Leon silently chuckled to himself, as he placed Hunter Killer right on the lip of the Cyborg's mouth. Maybe if he shot right, he could disable some of its weapons. Man, this guy's an idiot!

But despite the obvious direction in which to attack, The Cyborg was not entirely fooled. He had heard of Leon, and heard of his ability to turn invisible. So he figured that if Leon was shouting out loud like that, there would have been some reason. He wouldn't have just wanted himself to suddenly become findable, now would he? No, there had to be some other reason. Perhaps if he was hiding somewhere else on the Cyborg's body…

But those thoughts were shattered out of the Cyborg's head, as Leon pulled the trigger. A few dozen rounds all shot at once through the Cyborg's front snout, each one of them causing both a small explosion and a burst of oil-blood-elixir fluid. The Cyborg winced in pain and shook his head- he could now feel where Leon was. The painful sensation moving around on him had to have a logical source, and the Cyborg was intent of finding it. He just had to turn on his higher sensitivity, particularly his head and skin, and the search would be over. One might question the thought of putting pain receptors on a mechanical body- but there was no better damage report or alarm system in existence.

But right before The Cyborg began the search, Leon noticed a small lever right where he had been pointing Hunter Killer. "Well, alright!", he shouted, and pumped his fist into the air. Without waiting for a thought about what he was doing, he pulled down the trigger again, and shot the red lever as much and as loud as he possibly could.

There was a horrible cracking sound, and the Cyborg almost screamed from the pain. The sensor lever that he had been about to employ had turned on him, and a shock of agony spread throughout his entire system. Only a horrifying screeching sound erupted from his body, as he writhed around in the air. One of his hands grabbed desperately at anything around him, slashing out at clouds high above and trees down below. The other opened and closed at rapid speed, almost like a fanatic revolving door of death.

"Guys!", shouted Leon, a bit hasty to celebrate. He figured that such devastating strikes had rendered the Cyborg mostly brought at that point, and it would be okay to shout. But such assumptions very rarely had a basis in reality, as Leon was about to see. "I think I weakened him! Come on, let's take him down!"

As those words slowly wound through the air and into the mind of the Cyborg, he laughed internally. Even though his thrashing around had yielded no targets, it had yielded the full crop of a Spell Factory. And what could be in the middle but 4 full-size Heal Spells, just ready to be used. The Cyborg knew this, and knew that such healing could repair the damage that had been dealt to him.

Leon jumped over the Cyborg's thrashing arm, and raised his hand once again. He began to aim Hunter Killer straight for the nest of mechanical eyes, faintly remembering something about having eyes once. When he was a regular human, or perhaps something of that sort. It made him a little sad, not having them.

But once that sudden character ambush had faded form his thoughts, the Cyborg was once again ready to attack. With a movement speed that belied his massive size, all four Heal spells were grabbed, uncorked, and held up to the light.

Shoot, thought Leon to himself, running along one of the crashing tentacles. His arms were out behind him as he ran, back level to the ground. That's not good… I just damaged him.

As the Cyborg continued to drink the heal, the shine returning to most of his head, an idea occurred to Leon. Time slowed down for a second, and he gripped his fist as he went over it in his head. It was a good idea, he thought. If he pulled it off, they could potentially beat the beast.

"Hey, Cyborg!", he shouted, and jumped up into the air. He concentrated all he had within Hunter Killer, aiming right at the base of the monster's body, where the thick trunk split off into the forest of tentacles. "Whaddya got?"

"What?", asked the Cyborg, and felt his throat, relived to have his voicebox back. But he knew that he had to pay attention to the battle, and looked up at where Leon soared.

"That ain't craaaaaap!", Leon screamed, as he pushed all he could from deep within himself into Hunter Killer's blast. A vast storm of metal blasted outwards from the barrel, followed by a streak of fire, a blast of lightning, and then as the gun itself slowly began to change shape, a single rocket, similar to that of a Brock's. His eyes closed as he felt himself losing consciousness- but he managed to hold on, just barely. He would not go out the same way Bubble did. He was strong. He was legendary. He was Leon.

The Cyborg raised its arms to block the massive attack- only then realizing that Leon had not aimed for his head, or even his torso. The vast destructive energy that Hunter Killer's full power had unleashed instead hit the top of the Cyborg's tentacles dead on, resulting in a massive explosion that kicked up a storm of dust, obscuring everything in the village for several seconds among a white wall of sound.

Once the storm cleared, Leon stood on the broken ground, hands out by his side, panting hard. A thin stream of blood ran down one side of his face, and a lick of flame was slowly working its way up one side of his jacket-

Leon blinked, and looked down. A lick of flame was slowly working its way up one side of his jacket. He shouted and grabbed the offending sleeve, undoing the zipper in one swift motion and tossing the jacket down onto the dusty ground. He tossed and whipped it around in the dust, rather having it be dirty than burned apart. He seemed not to notice the still- gargantuan figure of the Cyborg rising up behind him, nor the fact that without his jacket on, his torso was totally bare. He kept on stomping on the bite of fire until it was out, then stopped to rest. He still panted from exhaustion, the final strike with Hunter Killer having taken everything he had.

"Boy!", he heard from behind him, and he turned around in shock. In his weakened state, he didn't even have time to react before a massive fist of steel pushed its way out through the smoke, grabbed him around the legs, and threw him into the air, taking the breath from his lungs and leaving it far behind, down on the ground as Leon soared through the sky. He felt his eyes close from the pressure and the pain, all the sound disappearing from his mind, moments before he landed right on an Elixir Storage. The grass cracked as he made impact, Leon falling asleep into the Elixir itself. There was not much left in it, fortunately for him- it was not enough to drown, but only enough to cover his lower body and most of his torso, shielding him from view and providing a comfy bedding as he fully lost consciousness.

The Cyborg blew away the rest of the smoke with one hand, revealing the damage that had been done. Leon had removed his tentacles, leaving his body scraping against the ground on a steel shard of a body. Smoke rose from several parts of him, his yellow eyes searchlights through the gloom. They turned as he focused on his next target, who was now running towards him at top speed. "Ah… the girl."

"You piece of crap!", screamed Brandy, as she sprinted towards the Cyborg. After slowly getting up from the spot where she had landed, she had seen what the Cyborg had done to Bubble and Leon. Pure rage flowed through her, bits of purple sparking at the edges of her eyes. A stolen piece of electricity jumped behind her, taken through an ancient Bandit technique. It had been lifted straight from the Mega Tesla, once Brandy figured out she could not actually pick the entire thing up. "I'm gonna kill you so much you die!"

The Cyborg concentrated, and focused on his lower half. He felt the bottom of his body begin to turn into his personal favorite form of locomotion- the wheel. Perhaps, if he-

"Doraoraoraoraora!", Brandy screamed, as she suddenly Dashed right up to the Cyborg. She screamed in absolute anger, simultaneously slamming into his side with a barrage of fists, and slinging her held ball of electric death right into the monster's wires. There was a snap, a crackle, a pop, and then a vast bolt of lightning that flashed right up the Cyborg's side and continued far into the sky.

"Gah!", screamed the Cyborg, and closed his eyes. "Mother-"

"Die!", Brandy roared, and continued to pummel at the Cyborg's side. Dozens upon dozens of Lightning-fast punches collided against the metal skin, Brandy's Dash shield protecting her from harm. Her utter fury at what he had done to Bubble and Leon coursed through her, adding increasing power to every punch. They went from unnoticeable, to tickling, to annoying, to threatening in just a few seconds, the side of the Cyborg cracking from the pressure.

"Doraoraoraoraoraoraora-!"

"Begone!", the Cyborg shouted, and moved his entire bottom half upwards to meet her. Brandy crossed her arms, her Dash automatically shifting from offensive to defensive. She was protected from harm, instead using the energy to fly back into a better stance. She thrust out one arm as hard as she could, the burst of air from the movement shooting forwards and slamming into the Cyborg's face. There was a deafening crack, and a visible break appeared in the metal.

Song: Figlia

"You little brat…", growled the Cyborg, and focused on creating his wheel as soon as he could. Parts of his jaw dropped off, better to ignore the pressure than try and tank it. It left him without a lower mouth, only an angular shape making up his head. "Now I have to kill you."

"You'll have to try!", shouted Brandy, not even caring enough to make clever comebacks. Her eyes steamed with rage, and her muscles boiled over with sheer adrenaline. She picked up a rock from the shattered ground and spun around, the stone flying out of her hands at incredible speed. But it was still just a rock, and so burst upon contact with the Cyborg, who had finally finished his final form. He was now a rather simple form- a wheel at the bottom, an angular head and torso, and two gigantic claws for hands.

"Then I will.", said the Cyborg, and thought about the best way to do so. She appeared to be almost impossible to kill with that Dash Shield of hers, and he doubted he would be able to beat her the same way he did last time. She must have grown by then- she was a tricky one.

He looked to the village for inspiration- then an idea struck him.

That was the first thing to strike him, followed by an entire tree trunk. It hit him right in the eye, sending pain shooting through his body and a curse appearing in his voicebox. He looked down, to see Brandy yank an entire bush out of the ground and hoist it high over her head, preparing to throw. A single Gem popped out, and spun to a stop on the ground.

The Cyborg growled, and thrust one hand into the ground. It traveled through the dirt, seeking its many targets, sending vibrations through the ground like the signals of a communicator.

Brandy screamed, and threw the bush. She shot out her hand less than a second afterwards, imbuing it with a bust of Dash energy that made it glow blue. It spun through the air like a missile, bursting upon the Cyborg's vision in a flash of green.

"You are truly annoying!", the Cyborg yelled, and kept on seeking the things it needed. It held up its other hand like a knife, beginning to spin it around. "Killing you will practically be therapy."

Brandy paused in her rage a bit, wondering just where Dan was. She knew that he had blown away the toxic air, and knew that he had not yet gone up against the Cyborg. She knew that he would not just abandon them. No. Knowing him, he was probably preparing an attack, one that could wipe out the Cyborg in a single blow.

That thought gave her hope, and power surged through her. She leapt forward, her intensified brain seeing a way to hop up the Cyborg's body and sink her fist right into his power core, a glowing jewel right above his eyes. Just a hop, a skip, and a jump to victory.

The Cyborg's eyes lit up, as he found what he was looking for. One of the tentacles he had turned his hand into connected with the bottom of a Cannon, and it suddenly jerked to life. Another found the base of an X-Bow, and it beeped awake like the hand of a puppeteer grabbing a puppet. They both turned to face Brandy, her peripheral vision becoming aware of a lot more than just the Cyborg she now had to watch out for.

"That is how you die.", said the Cyborg with a sneer, as his tentacles connected to an Inferno Tower and another Cannon. Curiously, the Archers and the Wizards that would normally be atop their respective towers were nowhere to be seen. Brandy guessed they must have been removed by the Cyborg before the battle had begun, but she hoped they were alright. "The defenses of the very village you thought was safe!"

As a Hidden Tesla popped up from the ground right next to her, and a Cannon swiveled around to shoot, Brandy knew it was time to move. She slammed her feet onto the ground, activating her Dash- and jumped, high into the air.

She immediately realized how much of a mistake that was, as she saw the cannonballs heading right for her. She had not jumped high enough to get out of their way, and now she would be forced to use her Dash to dodge.

Brandy concentrated, and pushed against the air itself. There was a thin white shockwave that blasted out towards the cannonballs, splitting one in half and robbing the rest of their momentum. But they still continued onwards, crashing into each other right where Brandy had been, hitting her feet with tiny shards of metal. She did not feel it, due to her Dash, but she still knew it had happened. She narrowed her eyes, attempting to think of a plan.

Brandy looked over the village from her lofty vantage point, trying to keep tabs on everything at once. She saw that Leon had landed in the Elixir Storage, and felt a touch of relief. He was not drowning in the vat, but he had lost his hoodie for some reason. That was odd.

Brandy looked to the left, where Bubble had gone down- and yelped, as she saw a trio of high-intensity rockets zip through the air, straight at her location.

Apparently, Brandy's second Dash had put her so high into the air that they Cyborg-possesed Air Defenses were now able to target her. They roared through the sky like Dragonfire, each of them holding terrifying amounts of power. Brandy knew that a direct hit from any of them would cause her far too much damage to survive. Shoot…

Brandy looked to the right, and saw a clear opening. She tucked her leg up right close to her body, concentrated again- and Dashed out of the way of the incoming rockets, as they exploded just a foot behind her. She could feel the twinge of heat right on her back, and she grimaced.

She did not exactly know what to do now. She hadn't really come at the Cyborg with a plan, more just attack and hope he died. But now her Rage was beginning to fade, both through exhaustion and her knowledge of Leon's safety. She looked for something to become angry about- then realized she did not know where Bubble was. That thought once again surged a flood of Rage through her entire body, and her eyes lit up a dark violet.

She saw another Cannonball coming straight towards her- and she lashed out with all the fury she could muster. Her fist hit the metal dead on, breaking it to dust in a single blow. She turned towards the Cyborg, her breath hot and rapid, feeling herself heat up.

"You will fall…", the Cyborg muttered, observing her flight path. "You cannot stay up there forever. And once you fall, I will have you!"

He knew this- and once Brandy saw the ground, she knew this. A vast array of spikes had been lain across it, all rotating and stabbing upwards. She had no idea where they had come from, but they did look deadly. She also knew that she was heading straight for them.

That was, until something happened. A tiny bit of her eyes turned from purple to a mysterious silver, and a hint of a musical note hung in the air, for just a tiny second.

The Cyborg saw her. He saw the silver in her eyes, and the sudden increase in aura- and he felt something that, if he had a heart, would have made it drop all the way into his stomach. "No…"

The Cyborg screamed, and all the defenses he was controlling hissed in harmony. A surge of overlocking energy poured through them, his motivation to get rid of Brandy suddenly doubled. "No! You will not!"

As Brandy fell towards the spikes, she could feel everything sort of… slow down. Become more visible, easier to see, almost before it happened. Brandy, ever so casually, turned herself right side up, threw her arms out to her sides, and roared, a solid wave of sound almost visible spread out across the entire village, shaking the buildings and trees.

"Nooooooo!", the Cyborg bellowed, every bit of him now determined to stop her. He gave the order to fire to every single one of his defenses, and they began to open fire. A rain of cannonballs, Tesla bolts, and X-Bow arrows shot towards Brandy, and-

And something else happened.

For a single second, Brandy's eyes turned completely silver, shooting wide open.

For a single second, the faint aura of purple and blue around her was replaced with a scintillating cloud of silver, small flecks and particles winding around her body.

For a single second, her hair stood up off of her head, floating in some ethereal wind. A deadly expression of pure seriousness came onto her face, unlike anything she had ever been like before.

And for that single second, the world went dark in her shining eyes. The only thing she could see was the projectiles heading towards her- she could not even see her own body. But she hardly needed to, with the unmatched speed and focus she had attained.

With a single flick of her wrist, one of the cannonballs was suddenly turned around. It headed back at its source with actually increased velocity, a silver wind whipping around it.

For a second cannonball, an even smaller movement was needed. There was only a tap of a finger, and it split all the way down the middle, the two halves redirected into opposite directions- one towards the Cannon that had fired it, and the other towards the Cyborg.

She moved upwards in the air, both of her feet striking a cannonball. That was all it took for the shots to curve wildly, both of them shooting straight towards the Cyborg's face, their movement increased by whatever Brandy was doing. Even she did not know.

Not even half a second had passed in these actions- Brandy's speed was that of a bolt of lightning. No, even beyond- for the Tesla bolts that had been shooting at her were now moving at the speed of syrup, Brandy easily able to step aside and dodge out of the way. She actually grabbed a bolt in one hand, the vast aura of Dash surrounding her protecting her from all harm.

With an effortless toss, it had gone both back the way it had come and straight towards the Cyborg, the bolt forked in two. It hit its fellows along the way, turning what had once been sleek bolts of death into a jumbled up electric mess.

Brandy saw the X-Bow arrows, and knew exactly what to do. She grabbed the first one right out of the air, turned it around, and sent it back with an increased velocity. She did not need to jump- she merely stepped on what was almost the air itself, her momentum preserved by the molecules. She looked up towards the Cyborg, her blind eyes somehow seeing.

Song: Cornered

Then the moment was over, and Brandy's eyes once again turned to blue. The silver around her disappeared, and she felt her muscles relax. She fell straight out of the sky, falling towards the spikes below.

The shots of defenses she had altered all happened at once, in a truly chaotic display. Each and every one of the Cannons exploded, their own ammo jammed deep into their barrels. The Cyborg felt the pain in his fingers- but not as much as his face, which had also taken heavy fire. He felt the bolts of lightning strike his forehead, as the Teslas exploded. He felt X-Bow arrows tink against his skin, as the one that had been sent back crushed the forward shots. That too struck the firing mechanism, tearing off the wires and rendering it useless.

"What?", the Cyborg gasped, as he retracted all his arms at once. The spikes that had been on the ground disappeared, and Brandy fell onto the dirt unharmed. Except for the fall, but that she could shrug off. The Cyborg stared at her in shock, almost unable to believe what he had just witnessed. He could feel his mind shaking, in cold fear.

"That power…", he said to himself. "That speed… there's no way."

But as he saw the way Brandy just lay there on the ground, defenseless and most likely unconsciousness, he smiled to himself. Even if she had attained that power, she was unlikely to be able to repeat it anytime soon. And in the meantime, he could easily finish her off. He reached out his aboveground hand, his massive claw reaching for her, about to-

"Hey!", he heard from the far side of the village, and looked up. There, in resplendent glory, stood Dan. He held his hands together, charge that he had been building up for minutes sparking in his massive hands. The ground around him seemed about to melt from the pressure, the walls behind him already having done so. "You!"

The Cyborg briefly considered retorting- but knew that there was no point. Instead, he just reached forward for Brandy, about to crush her sleeping body. He slammed his hand down onto the ground- only to notice that she had suddenly been lifted into the air, high above his fist. She floated over to the Town Hall, and was gently deposited on its surface. The Cyborg looked back at Dan, and regretted not trying to block.

"Maxicharged Overdrive!", Dan shouted, and unleashed his blast. It surged forward like a bolt of godly thunder, searing the ground underneath it, blowing away the smaller buildings that were still standing, and heading straight for the Cyborg. The Cyborg stuck out a few instruments, and realized that, fearfully, he had no chance of surviving such a majestic blow. He chose instead to yank his body out of the way, just as the blast reached him- and losing a sizable chunk of his right arm. It tore through his metal and wires like a heated knife tears through butter, turning them to black and purple dust within a second. But the Cyborg's dodge had mostly worked- the shot continued onwards, and into the air beyond.

"You missed, fool!", shouted The Cyborg, and leaned down. He charged straight for Dan, head down like a Bull, remaining hand down to crush. "Now die!"

Dan held up his hand, two fingers extended, trying to reach his beam. He would have grabbed it, turned it around, and shot it right into the Cyborg's back, finishing it off, where it not for one tiny little detail. Two, actually- one was that he actually needed to see the beam to properly do that, and it was hidden behind the Cyborg's charging bulk. Two was that his opponent was far too close, and his beam would not make it in time. He had to use other means.

"ORA!", Dan screamed, and threw his right fist upwards, putting all the power in his entire body into the colossal blow. The Cyborg had not seen such an attack coming, and so was totally unprepared as Dan's mighty fist crashed directly into his head. The metal cracked under the intense pressure, and The Cyborg felt pain through his entire body.

"You little worm…", the Cyborg growled, real hatred staining his mechanical voice. He stared at Dan in anger, and brought his gigantic claw over his head. "You will die!"

"You sure say that a lot.", said Dan, and brought his hands back. He jumped backwards in an agile flip, making sure to size up the Cyborg once more. He thought he saw a weak point right at the top of his head- if only he could get there. "Be careful there, wouldn't want to sound like a broken record."

The Cyborg shrieked, an extremely sensitive nerve suddenly touched. His claw hand suddenly grew somewhat larger, and his other hand began to regrow from Dan's shot. He loomed as high as he could above Dan, a heat difference of almost 20 feet. But Dan was not afraid- he knew what he had to do to win. And that was just to-

But his thoughts were cut off, as the colossal metal hand of the Cyborg suddenly was whipped down at him, and his arms shot up automatically to block. He pressed against his opponent's overwhelming pressure as hard as he could, but it was extremely difficult. He had underestimated his foe's intense mechanical strength, and had failed to follow up with the proper grip. The Cyborg's hand was pushing down on his arms, and appeared to be winning the shoving match. That is, unless Dan acted quickly. He knew he had only once chance to get this right, so he had to be extremely careful. Dan sucked in a quick breath, gaining some Star within his lungs, and-

And Dan felt his right leg stumble, becoming a bit weaker. In his haste to destroy the Cyborg, he had forgotten about the way lungs worked. If he sucked in a breath, he denied himself the regular passage of air, and thus made his lungs, and muscles, slightly weaker.

Shoot, thought Dan, trying to push back as hard as he could. This isn't good. Everyone else is knocked out, I just made a mistake, and I'm pushing as hard as I can, but this guy won't budge! Got to… got to…

Dan's mind raced, but no ideas that were very good came to him at that moment. Perhaps he could call upon Jonathan, but he had no idea how. Maybe he could try again with the Star, but that was far too risky. Maybe he could try some Rotation-

He could use Rotation. He hadn't done it for a bit, but it was worth a shot. Dan focused on his fingers, trying to get one to spin. He needed to actually spin something for it to work, it wasn't just within his breath like the Star. But try as he might, his fingers were locked in tight. The Rotation wasn't going to work.

Dang it, he thought, and felt the Cyborg start to push harder, overcome with fury. What do I do, what do I do? Am I… too… too weak?

Dan growled, holding on to that thought. He felt the Rage build up from inside of him, and a faint green aura appeared around his head. He felt the incredible power that had allowed him to defeat the Elecfirno Dragon begin to spark up once again- until the Cyborg pushed more, forcing Dan's thighs to try even harder. He grunted, and closed his eyes, feeling the crater around him grow. Dang it dang it dang it-

But then, something else happened. He felt the pressure on his hands suddenly lift, reduced by almost 50%. He saw another pair of hands next to his, just as large as his were, holding up the Cyborg's claw. And as he saw just who those hands belonged to, his only reaction was that of shock.

Song: The Hand

"Ayy, you wee bloody bastard!", shouted the familiar, formidable Barbarian King next to Dan. His muscles swelled with unnatural vigor, as he pushed the claw of the Cyborg up into the air. His crown hung loosely upon his head, his body the chosen skin of the Pekka. One would not normally be able to wear just part of a skin at once, but apparently this King was different. "Get off my land!"

Dan took another astonished look at the Barbarian King, before redoubling his efforts. A low growl built in his throat, eventually turning into a mighty roar. Sweat dripped down both of their faces, as they pushed the previously overwhelming force of the Cyborg back into the air, foot by foot, forcing him away from them. The Cyborg screamed in confusion, unable to see what was going on in his insane mindstate.

"Ya shoulda gone back to wherever ya came from, eh?", the Barbarian King yelled again, with a glint in his eye that shone with the brightness of a brilliantly irregular mnd. He dug his feet in low to the ground, and bent back his arms slightly. "Then I wouldnt'a caught ya!"

Who is this guy?, thought Dan, trying to think about where he had seen him before. He was maddingly familiar, although Dan could not quite place why. Who was he?
"You…", the Cyborg screeched, looking over his claw hand. He tried to push it towards the two again, but their combined strength was now far too much for him to handle. Even though his metal pistons and wires pushed as hard as they could, they were all but useless before the pair's own might of muscle and bone. Or, in Dan's case, Star. And also muscle. "What are you?"

"Ah, you don't know who I am?", asked the Barbarian King, and grunted. He built up one final push inside himself, one holding the power to throw the Cyborg right off his feet. "Then ya shouldn'ta come here, all prancing about like that! This is our land! Not yours!"

"Ours?", asked the Cyborg, and looked around. He could not see anybody else for a good large while- the mysterious Barbarian King apparently the only one that had come to help.

"Yes, our!", the Barbarian King shouted, and drew back his fist. He snarled, and it swelled with the power of Rage and iron, several dozen Barbarians all popping into existence. "Me… and my fists!"

The Barbarian King, with that one-liner, swung his fist upwards, right into the Cyborg's midsection. The Cyborg bent backwards to try and avoid injury, only for the fist to once again slam into his gut.

The Cyborg, in disgust and slight fear, chose that moment to make a retreat. He didn't know where or how the Barbarian King had gotten such immense power- but very few things in his life seemed normal anyway. So he growled, took the pressure off of his claw hand, and-

A charged shot from Dan suddenly slammed into the middle of its chest, exploding with a bright golden light .The Cyborg, having taken that moment to try and readjust himself, was helpless before the light, and several of its smaller eyes just burst. The rest of them, however, adjusted fairly quickly. They could see again after a few seconds, only to find that the attack had blown the body backwards. It now lay against the ruined side of the Clan Castle, having been destroyed some time in the raid. Its eyes twitched and turned every which way, except for the ones that were broken. Those just steamed, sending up smoke that would have blinded anybody nearby. The Cyborg itself lay in a heap, his claw hand smoking and his tentacle hand all tangled up. It stared at the two in utter disbelief, confusion crowding his mind.

"You're…", said Dan, and stared at the Barbarian King in wonder. He looked a touch different, because it had been a little bit of time. He also sounded a lot different, but the first time he had met him, he could have just been messing around. But either way, he knew it was him. The way he dressed, the way he acted, the constant humor in the situation.

"Holy Se'th.", said Dan, staring again. He knew it was a bit rude, but he could not help it. "You're… you're…"

He jumped up, and shouted. "Orfox?"

Orfox's face was suddenly one of confusion. He turned an eye towards Dan, stared at him too for a few more seconds, then opened up his memory. His mouth opened wide into a smile, and he opened up his arms for an arms crossing. "Daniel?"

Dan sputtered over his words for a moment, before spreading out his arms in wonder. "Orfox, how did you get here? Where you on the trail of that thing for a while?"
"What?", asked Orfox, and waved his hand. "Nay. For I Iive here, Daniel. This be my village."

"Oh.", said Dan, and nodded. "Well, I guess that it is a good point."

Both of the battle-hardened heads turned as one, to see the Cyborg slowly getting up, rising to his wheel. He pushed a part of himself back on with a painful-looking crack, and snarled at the two. Both Dan and Orfox took stances, staring the Cyborg down.

"Now die!", shouted the Cyborg, and concentrated. He had quite forgotten that it was an endurance test to reshape his body into the form that he wished, and this time was no golden. He still had a mission to complete, and that mission was killing the Tailbiters, regardless of how many people got in his way. "And perish forever!"

"Nay, thee!", shouted Orfox, and focused. Right directly as the Cyborg flung itself towards Dan, Orfox's sword slashed out at the same incredible speed and timing as Dan's fist.

There was a horrible cracking sound, of twisting metal and splitting wires. It stabbed through the air like a sword through paper, the dry, sparking gasp of the Cyborg the only other sound to be heard.

They both jumped out of the way, as the exhausted and largely destroyed Cyborg toppled to the ground in front of them. There was a large sounding explosion, as the entire mechanical body of the beast split up the middle, the sides of it pummeled into total oblivion from the beating that Dan had delivered. Wires still hung to Orfox's sword, and Elixir still dripped from Dan's fist.

"You… we…", said Dan, and stared at the spot where the Cyborg, had, evidently, fallen. "We did it. We killed him. If only there was some way to keep him permanently dead."

"Ay, but there is.", said Orfox, and looked down low to the ground. "There we'll find clues. And maybe his soul, if we look hard enough. But if we don't… I still know a guy."

The Cyborg's body suddenly twitched, and they both held up their fists- only to see that it was just a small ant, having stepped into the melting Elixir. That was a relief. They just stood there, waiting for it to be done- until at last, with a horse cry of disbelief and anger, the Cyborg faded into the ground, and withered away.

Brandy had been looking over at the sight in disbelief, from where she had been dropped on to the Town Hall. She saw the Cyborg become suddenly cut in half by Orfox, and her face became one of exhausted victory. She lay spread-eagled across the roof, letting herself fall asleep from the total exhaustion that ran through her entire body.

"Ayy, tis' not over yet, lad.", said Orfox, his almost unbelievably thick accent. "We've got to catch his soul while its still here. Or he's gonna get away again."
"Catch… his soul?", asked Dan, and stared in confusion. "Well, how are we going to do that? Isn't the whole point of a soul that is something you can't catch?"

"I said, watch.", said Orfox, and knelt down close to the ground where the Cyborg had gone down. He flexed his ears, as if looking for something, that no one else could see. Trying to detect something that, against all logical rules could not be.

Something gently stirred some metaphysical form of the dust below, and Dan whipped around. There he saw Orfox, deadly seriousness on his face, about to jump to where Dan had seen the dust. He stepped aside and let him, as Orfox gently bent down next to where the movement had happened. He put one hand on the ground- then jumped up, turning his hand to alert the one on the far side of the village. "Ayy, laddy! Shield!"
"Shield!", shouted the Grand Warden. He was in charge of leading the rest of the troops of the village back home, but Orfox had gotten there far quicker. He was, after all, a mutant. The Grand Warden slammed his staff deep into the ground, a burst of energy that drove through the dirt and cracked open all the walls in the affected area. It covered Orfox and Dan with a golden light that would protect them from all harm- but that is not why he had made it. He had just installed an anti-soul shield, one that had been specifically made in order to combat the Cyborg.

As long as it was active, no souls could go in or out- that included the Cyborg.

Sure enough, within just a few seconds, there was the imprint of a mechanical man on the inside of the shield. It staggered backwards, before howling and turning red.

"Thar he is!", Orfox yelled, and pointed his sword. There was the Cyborg, still trying in vain to press his way out of the shield and into safety. "Daniel, crush the bugger!"

Dan took a deep breath, and focused the lightning into a small circle on his chest, barely bigger than even a human hand. That much destructive force concentrated in that small of a space would no doubt deal massive damage to the single thing it hit, even if from range. He just had to figure out best to use it, against the still-tanky monster they were going up against.

The Cyborg pushed one last time, then gave up. He now figured that if he could not escape, and so his plan changed. Kill the ones inside, exhausting the one holding it, then fly off towards Rakastamos. It was not a good plan, but it was the only one he had.

"Fire!", shouted Orfox, right as the Cyborg's true, spiritual form became fully visible. He seemed almost to be a young man, with a stylish beard, metal implants all over his body, and a circular object above his head, blinking all sorts of mysterious light. He didn't look like any troop that either Dan or Orfox had ever seen before- but that is why, of course, he was a Forgotten.

Not a single one among them really had time to rectify this act, however. All Dan knew was the enemy, trying to get away, and Orfox, telling him to fire. So he did- a gargantuan blast of Star that whipped through the small shield they were in and curving inwards upon impact with the other side. The Cyborg held up an arm in order to combat it- and it almost worked. But the sheer power the blast held was simply far too much for the arm, and it dissolved upon the spot. It burst open the Cyborg's fragile soul like a roll of toilet paper, truly unimaginable pain inflicted upon the unfortunate individual for just a few seconds. Afterwards the pain was gone, as was the rest of the Cyborg's soul. It was impossible to tell where exactly it went, but most likely someplace not very good.

Dan stopped firing, and started his heavy breathing. There stood the mangled back of the force field, the broken rock that The Cyborg had been close to, and the sounds of the Cyborg's last scream, still flying through the air.

"We… we did it.", said Dan, and looked up. He turned his hand towards the village, and waved for everyone else to come and join him. "Come on, we won!"

"He's…", said Brandy in near disbelief, looking down at the wreckage below. She could hardly belive it. After all that, after coming so close to death she still tasted it on her dried out tongue, the Cyborg had been cut down. Cut down by both Dan and the just-in-time, almost like a miracle, Orfox. "He's dead. We did it."

She placed one hand on the lip of the Town Hall, and jumped down. Once she hit the ground, she just lay there for a bit, trying to wrap her head around the chaotic events of the last few minutes. "He was a real tough one, wasn't he? That was too intense…"

She walked off towards Dan and Orfox, then ran. Her legs still shook from the sheer intensity of the battle, the near-death experience still burning fresh in the right front of her brain. She knew that everyone else was still out there somewhere in the village, but she knew they were all alright. She could not quite explain why- she just knew it.

Bubble looked around a corner, peeking out through half a Barracks to see the scene that was unfolding in the center of the village. A small clearing had been made out of the wreckage, Dan and Orfox's conversation clearly visible within it. Bubble had no idea who was talking to her father- this was the very first Barbarian King she had ever gotten a good look at. If she noticed the resemblance he held to Trevor, she did nothing to signify it.

Leon could feel himself beginning to wake, stirred back to consciousness by the gentle sloshing of the Elixir right up next to his ears. His eyelids fluttered open, to see the face of the Grand Warden looming high over him. It took only a second of their direct eye contact for Leon to jump right out of the container and backpedal through the air, landing on the dirt behind the storage.

"Woah now, don't be afraid.", said the Grand Warden, and held up his book. "I'm here to help. You look quite damaged… and I can heal you."

"Oh.", said Leon, and unclenched every muscle in his body. The spinner blade that he had nocked into his hand vanished, back into-

Leon blinked, and looked down. The slight embarrassment at having been startled was turned into a red shock, as he saw his lack of a shirt. He looked up towards the Grand Warden, nodded, and turned invisible, leaving footprints on the dirt as he sped away.

"Dan!", shouted Brandy, and Dan turned away from his conversation with Orfox. He saw Brandy running towards him at top speed, arms open, jumping forwards for a hug. Dan let the hug connect, Brandy wrapping around his torso in a loving embrace. "Dan, you did it! He's dead!"

"Yes.", said Dan, and gave Brandy a playful little pat on the head. "The Cyborg is dead. That was a pretty tough fight. Might have been in trouble if Orfox here hadn't shown up."

"Ayy, that's right!", shouted Orfox, in his accent that had been even thicker than before. "I shewed up an beat the Elixir right outa that bugger! Me and Daniel, of course."

"Right, right.", said Dan, and looked down. There was Leon's hoodie, right upon the ground, totally empty. His heart went a little cold, and he looked down at Brandy.

"Uhh…", he said, trying to keep his voice calm. He had heard that when a Brawler died, they left behind all their clothes- he just hoped it would not one of those times. He didn't know how to say the next words to Brandy. "Brandy, I-"

"Hi Mom.", said Leon, suddenly materializing right next to Dan's hand, still near the ground. He grabbed his hoodie in a flash, pulling it on over himself and grabbing his face. "I'm alright."
"Okay, good.", Brandy said. She had known he was alright- she just thought it was nice for it be confirmed. She looked up at Dan. "What were you going to say to me?
"Uhh…", said Dan, then got an idea. He just brought Brandy up closer to his chest, and gave her even more of a hug. "I'm just glad you're alright. That everyone's alright, and that nobody died."

"Where's everyone else?", asked Brandy looking around. There was the ruined village and the two heroes, but the only members of her group she could see were herself, Dan, and Leon. Trevor and Annabelle were nowhere to be found, and she could not see Bubble right to Dan.

"I'm right here!", said Bubble, and jumped out from behind Dan's legs. She was still visibly very shaken up as well, but nobody could really blame her. They had all just been through terror.

Brandy, the second that Bubble went outwards further towards the middle of the group, Dashed over. She picked her up in both hands and held her close to her shoulder, letting her eyes fall closed. For a second they both just stayed there, feeling each other, Brandy glad that Bubble was safe.

"So.", said Dan, looking over at Orfox once again. "This is your village, eh? Pretty nice-"

A damaged Gold Mine gave a pathetic-sounding cough, and collapsed into a pile of metal and boards. Dan took another look, and winced. "Yeah, fairly nice."
"Oh, ye don't like my village?", asked Orfox, and laughed. "No, just give it a place and a time to clean up. Buggers will have it looking spotless, that's a fact."

"Good.", said Dan, and put his hands on his hips. "A pity we won't be here to help… we'd best be off soon anyway."

"What?", asked Orfox in genuine shock. He had just seen the two after a long separation- he thought they would have had time to sit and talk for at least a bit. He furrowed his brow- there had always been something odd about both of those two, and now he was feeling it firsthand.

"Why, won't ye be talking with me for a while? Your little children can join in too."

"They're not my ch-", said Brandy, before realizing, once again, that the two were in fact their children. Trevor and Annabelle Orfox did not see as children, because they were not awake yet.

"Oh, right. They are. Well then, I suppose that you could all speak together."
"Good, good.", said Orfox, and waved his hand at the two. Leon and Bubble just stared, not at all sure what to make of him. Leon had seen Barbarian Kings before, but not anything like this level. Orfox was not a regular Barbarian King by any means- although the number above his head read 50, it was more along the lines of 112. He was a great mutant, able to soar past many times his perceived strength. Leon could not sense the true upper echelons of his power.

"Now, come! Tell me. What brought you to my village?"

"Well…", said Dan, after seeing that nobody else was going to talk. "We're on our way to kill a giant Dragon that plans to wipe out all non-Dragon life on the planet. You wanna come?"
Dan hoped, knowing that Orfox's strength would be a great boon to their cause. It appeared this his raw physical might was unparalleled, even if he lacked anything for range. But, unfortunately, Orfox shook his head. "No. You see, I'm busy gathering Troops for a grand mission. It's very important. Maybe even as important as yours."

"Oh?", asked Dan, and raised an eyebrow. Orfox shook his head, and a single jolt of pain suddenly appeared right down his hand. "What sort of troops? Strong ones?"
"Well, of course.", said Orfox, staring down Dan from across the table. "I would only think they would be."

"Woah, woah, woah!", said Brandy, ducking in between the two. "Both of you, calm down. You are both friends, right? So don't fight."

"Right.", said Dan, and nodded. He looked down at Brandy, giving her a little pat. "We shouldn't antagonize each other this early in the day, Orfox."

"Early?", Orfox asked, and checked his thick stone watch. "Why, tis only half past rock. We're fine."

Dan tried to ignore the fact that Orfox had just checked the time on a rock, and blinked. "Well, we should be heading out anyway. We have a lot of ground to cover, and not a lot of time to do it. It was nice meeting you again, Orfox. May we meet after the journey is complete."

"Right.", said Orfox, and saluted. He thought again to his mission that he had agreed upon to take for Askari- his main army of specialized troops was right over the hills. If only they had stuck around long enough to see it, some of the impending future would have played out very differently. But they did not, and so they happened in a very specific way.

"Dad?", asked Leon, and Dan looked down. He stuck out his arm, but Leon did not get on. He just stood there, in disbelief. "Yeah?"

"You can fly now.", said Leon, pointing up towards the sky. "And if you can fly, then why don't you just pile us onto your back like a Dragon and fly right towards Rakastamos?"
Dan could see exactly where such a thought was coming from. He also knew the reason why they hadn't tried to fly- several of them, in fact.

"I can't really do it on command.", said Dan, and shrugged. "It's more of a desperation thing. I might be able to do it command someday, but not right now. And two-"

Dan looked up into the air, remembering that time when they had tried to ake a Balloon to their destination. "The last time we air traveled, we were shot down. You were there. So we are not taking the sky."

"I guess that makes sense.", said Leon, and shrugged. "Seems like it just sucks to keep on going over the ground like this, though. If only there was some faster way."

"Trevor, what's our fastest route?", asked Annabelle, who had come up behind the main group, all sitting around the Center Marker. They had found rocks. Trevor pulled the map out from behind him, and began to try and read it while he was upside down. "Let's see, you need to-"

Then he noticed his mistake ,and turned the map right side up. "We'll need to go straight across this evil canyon for a few dozen hours. Real nasty place, full of evil stuff."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful!", said Brandy, practically dripping with anticipation. "I can't wait for 22 more hours of what we just experienced. We'll not get there too late or anything, either."
"Hold it.", said Orfox, and stood up. He pointed off towards the horizon, where the sun's influence was beginning to lengthen, in contrast to the other side. "I know a place. A place where the Clashcrush river flows, a place where-"

"Wait, the Clashcrush River?", asked Dan in surprise, and turned to Trevor. "So that canyon wasn't in our way?"
"What?", asked Trevor, and turned the map around. Sure enough, there it was- the Clashcrush RIver, flowing between the immense black canyon and the smaller green swamp, off to one side. "It just splits, is all."

"Oh.", said Orfox and Dan at the same time, then turned back to face each other. "Well, that works out fine, I guess."

Brandy figured it was her time to speak. She had felt kind of squished down ever since the battle with the Elecfirno Dragon, and she didn't want to take it anymore. She stood up, and cleared her throat to get everyone's attention. With everyone turning their heads to look at her, she decided to deliver her speech.

"Guys.", she said, and spread out her arms. "We need to go through the swamp. I feel it. The Dreamer tells me… the swamp is the only way we'll survive. If we go through the canyon, we will all die."

The grim message slowly sank into the brains of everyone there, one by one. Their faces were those of understanding, the depth of Brandy's words hard to deny. Dan stretched, popped his neck, and spread out his arms, onto the ground.

"Well then, let's go.", he said, and motioned for everyone else to climb on his back. As soon as they did, they would be off. He nodded a goodbye to Orfox, who returned it. "We can't be waiting here and making plans forever."

Song: Pensare

"Wait a second.", said Orfox, and held up his hand. Dan looked up, to see that Orfox held an expression of deadly intensity. He stared at Brandy with a tense curiosity, almost as if she was a rare treasure, unsure of whether or not he should pick her up.

"What?", asked Dan, fully noticing the way he was looking at her. He almost shifted into a defensive stance, but he decided against it. He did trust Orfox, and figured it was probably nothing. All Barbarian Kings had a Queen, or at least most of them. "What is it?"
"That… thing ye did earlier, Brandy.", said Orfox, and stood up. He drew a little closer to Brandy, who shifted back on the dirt. She looked up into his face, but saw only intense wonder. "Ye seemed almost to vanish, yet in the air you were. Faster than anything I'd ever seen."

"Wait, how did you see that?", asked Dan, remembering when Orfox had arrived to the battle a few minutes after that had happened. That was suspicious. "You only came to help after she had already fallen unconscious."

But Orfox merely tapped his head, and nodded. "Mine eyes are a gift, Daniel. I could see the entire battle from where I was. Great job ye all did, by the way. It was good."

"Oh, thank you.", said Brandy, and smiled a bit. She always liked attention, usually regardless of where it was from. "But… what were you talking about? The thing I did back there? Yeah, I-"
She had been about to say I don't really know what that was, but Orfox's words interrupted her. "That was a true sign of strength, Brandy. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but it was not like anything I've ever seen in any Troop, let alone in any Bandit. If you had kept that up for just a few more seconds, it no doubt would have meant the end of that metal beast."

A shiver ran down Brandy's spine at Orfox's words. He was not exaggerating- Brandy knew that he was telling the truth. Her hair lifted up into her hood at the thought of such power coming from her- not even Dan had been quite enough to defeat the Cyborg. And yet, if what Orfox was telling her was true- which she had no doubt that it was- she could have brought him down in just a few seconds? That thought ran through her head, wonderment settling in.

"Woah…", said Brandy, and shivered again. She let herself grin, eager for the next opportunity she got to unleash that mysterious strength. She would have to come up with a name for it- The Silver seemed not to cut it anymore.

"Well, I suppose that ye best be off.", said Orfox, and reached out a hand. He met Dan's own fist right in the middle, a small shockwave emanating outwards. "Wouldn't want to keep you waiting, now would I?"

He looked to Leon, and gave a thumbs up. "Put a shirt on, laddie. Next time that comes off, it might be in the company of ones other than your family."

Bubble looked up at him in awe, as did Trevor. All Barbarians had such behavior in the faces of Barbarian Kings- it was only natural. Bubble was of course not a Barbarian, but she was awestricken anyway. He was the fourth titan she had met on her part of the journey, but the wonder still held. "And you two, take care of yer parents. Those two are mischievous ones."

Bubble nodded, and Trevor gave a sharp salute. He turned to Annabelle, and gave only a nod, which she seemed to understand. It was unknown what message was passed.

Orfox sat back down on the rock, and looked around the village. It was going to take him a while to clean up, but he was sure that he and his Builders could do it. If the leyline wasn't damaged- that would be bad. But it looked like it was not. That reminded him-

"If any of ye see my Archer Queen, tell me.", he said, and jabbed his sword into the air. "She went off with her friends some day ago, and has not come back since."

"Will do.", said Brandy, a shock of cold worry running through her for some reason. "What's her name? Is she wearing a costume?"

"She is named Shalia.", said Orfox, a dreamy glimmer running across his eye. "And last time I checked, she was in her Gladiator skin. I do miss her."

That thought reminded him of someone else he knew, and he sat up. "Ah, perhaps Shelly knows where she is."

"Wait, Shelly?", asked Leon, his ears perking up. "You know Shelly?"
"I know a Shelly.", said Orfox, and kicked at a large rock. It broke. "Perhaps the same one."

"Guys.", said Dan, and rolled his eyes. He started walking, making sure that everyone was on his shoulders. "We really should be going, or we'll never get there in time. To the swamp."

"Say thanks to Orfox, Bubble.", said Brandy, and waved. Bubble nodded, and waved too.

"Thank you, Mr. Orfox!"
Orfox nodded, and watched the group go, walking over ditches and through the treeline until they could no longer be spotted. He looked up into the sky, and thought. "Oh Shalia… where did you go?"

Song: Propaganda

"Father?", asked Askari the 15th, as he slowly exited his personal Battle Blimp. With a hop down to the ground below, he looked around the shores of Brawltopia. It was a rather nice place- with the white sands, blue skies, and gentle waves lapping at both. Several Brawl Ball stadiums lined the nearby landscape, a few of them actually on the beach itself. None of them were in use at the moment, although many had been reserved for coming groups. Askari had planned it precisely that way- for although he was the World's Protector, the world at large has not allowed to know. That was part of the actual protecting- to not let the common folk know exactly what it was they were being protected from. Otherwise, many bad things would most likely arise. "I'm here."

He looked around the beach again, wondering when his father, Askari the 14th, might show up. He hadn't really left much of a clue, just that if Askari arrived here at a certain time and waited, the two would soon be met. All of his messages tended to be rather cryptic, unlike his son's straightforward and to-the-point memos. "Are you?"
His personal guard for that day, a Mega Knight and a Pekka, took either side of him. There heads spun on a constant swivel, keeping an eye out for anything that might attempt to harm their master. Askari was, of course, stronger than both of them combined- but after the run in he had earlier with the Jesterbot, no chances could any longer be taken.

Askari looked around for a few more seconds, beginning to get a little impatient. Even if his father was sort of an airhead, prone to running off at the slightest distraction, Askari still thought it would only be polite of him to keep a good schedule. That is what he always did. He had to, for that was his destiny. Defeating Rakastamos was his destiny.

"Ah, son.", he heard from the right of him, and he automatically turned his head. Not his body or neck, just his head, due to the way his mechanical body worked. But there was no one there- the voice had been cleverly thrown. His father was hiding somewhere else.

"I see that you've finally decided to come aboard fro the ride.", he said, as did Askari at the exact same time. They stopped and looked up, the 14th's smile growing wider as the 15th summoned a small flame above his head. "Ah, nice."

"It's time for you to meet my special group, son.", said Askari the 14th, as the 15th noticed a rustling right in the bushes next to him. As he watched, the aging, slightly pudgy figure of Askari the 14th emerged, and performed a slight bow. "They will prove most useful for your crusade against Dragonlord Rakastamos."

"Your special group?", asked Askari, and raised an eyebrow, accompanied by a custom sound effect. "Why, whatever do you mean-"

"Everyone!", he heard an incredibly, almost overly enthusiastic voice shout from the bushes next to him. A Magic Archer leapt out from the shrubbery and landed on a rock, twisting his entire body around in a magnificent pose. "Introductions!"

"Colt!", yelled a Colt, as he walked out backwards from the bush next to his leader. He too struck a pose, his Royal Agent skin complementing his crossed guns hugely. He flashed a grin, and gestured for the next member to come onto their impromptu stage.

"Butterfly!", a Pekka shouted, and strode out onto the rock. She stopped right next to the Magic Archer, and stuck her hands out as one leg went up to her knee. The overall effect was disorienting, , but that was most likely the point.

"Madgriese!", came the mighty roar of a Mega Knight, slamming down onto the ground with a crack. The rock very nearly broke, but it floated back together with a furious glare from the Magic Archer. The Mega Knight threw his arms out to one side, and stepped with his leg up.

"Budli!", the last member shouted, as a Goblin jumped out with a double cartwheel, spun around in the air, and landed in the middle of the group, one hand over his face. With a nudge from the Magic Archer, he moved aside, to his proper spot right underneath the massive Pekka.

"And together we are-", said the Magic Archer, and posed again. The rest of the team shifted their positions to complement his pose, the rock almost cracking once again underneath their combined weight. "The Tilyial force!"

They stood there for a second metrosexually, Askari blinking in utter inability do to anything else. After a few seconds, Tilyial the Magic Archer gave a slight nod. Askari the 14th spread his arms out open wide, finishing the presentation. "Yes! These boys were my strongest back when I was in your position, son. And now, they will help serve you. It took us a while to find each other, but once we found Colt, we were ready."

"I… see.", said Askari the 15h, trying to suppress a laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of the entier display. "Well, I do suppose that we can use everything we can get. Tilyial Force, consider yourselves part of-"

Tliyial gave an imperceptible signal that only his team understood, and they swung into action. He drew an arrow of light at speeds almost too fast to see, and shot it speeding into the clouds. Colt flashed his guns at max intensity, a storm of bullets all flying into the air like a hailstorm of metal. The Pekka folded her arms, and Madgriese breathed a flash of Star right into her back. It flared around her for a single second, until Budli, who had somehow gotten himself glowing, delivered a strong kick right against the Pekka's back. The Star flew out amplified, scattered across and bounced off the bullets, magnifying each time, until it shot out and hit the arrow of light- then exploded in a magnificent detonation as bright as the sun, spreading out across the clouds as far as the eye could see.

Askari blinked again, but this time out of pressure on his eyes rather than shock. He pointed out a finger at the group, and grinned for real. "Get on the ship.", he said, and turned. "You guys are amazing."

The group posed once again, and let out a mighty, synchronized cheer. "Yes, sir!", shouted Tliyial, and nodded with extravagance. "We will not let you, the new Askari, down at any cost!"

"Time for the dance!", shouted the Colt, as the group tended to shout everything. The rest of the group all circled up, and began to stomp their feet on the rock in curious unity. They drew closer and further apart in a rhythm, Askari's bizarre fascination once again triggered.

"We're the team who'll bring him down!", said Tliyial, and stuck out his arm into the center.
"We'll kill the Dragon, we'll take his crown!", said Colt, and did the same.

"Butterly!", said the Pekka, but it rhymed in Pekka language. She stuck her arm into the center, and looked to the Mega Knight.

"And if anyone tries to stop us on the way?", he said, and almost laughed at the next line.

"We'll kill them dead!", shouted Budli, and jumped up onto the hands. "Make them pay!"

"Tiliyal force!", they all yelled at once, the two smaller leaning outwards, holding on to the larger ones for support. "Let's do this! Away!"

"Right, right.", said Askari the 15th, after waiting for the 14th to finish cheering. "Now, let's move. We still have one more stop to make today, and we have to not be late."

Song: Fields of Fright

Clashcrush Swamp, like many other landmarks in the area, was not that creatively named. But it did not need to be, for hardly anybody adventured there. No villages were even around the area, the closest ones being a few miles away, even Orfox's. The majority of the population did not even know that such a place existed, had no idea of the secret wonders that could be found there. For the group had long since left behind any trace of regular civilization, and were now in the true, untamed wilds of the Continent of the Clans. The regular blue of the sky was now but a memory, having been replaced since the long yesterday with a deep purple. But now, in this toxic, choking environment, even that had been replaced with a localized sickly green.

The ground, if it could even be called that, was more of a thickened sludge, seeming to be able to fall apart at the slightest contact. It had the consistency of wet cake mix, the vile green goop occasionally spitting up a bubble of gas that smelled like fish left on the side of a metal wall for three weeks. The only plants that were able to grow in the biological refuse dump of the swamp were pre-blackened trees, and weeds that seemed almost moving with the wind, about to grab anything that they could drag down into the muck below. It was for that very reason that everyone was currently riding on top of Dan's shoulders- the risk was too great for any of them.

He was tall enough, although the muck was up to his waist in some areas. The entire area was absolutely disgusting, a rotting zone of nature's puke.

"This wasn't worth it.", Brandy forced out of her mouth, trying not to breath in the disgusting air. She hugged Bubble a little tighter, seeing the bright green swamp down below. They had been traveling through the swamp for about half an hour now, after leaving Orfox's village behind. Nothing in particular had happened on the way there. "This is too gross."

"Better than walking through a ton of other stuff for way too long, honey.", said Dan. "Better than dying, too. That's what you said, right?"

The sentence was a little garbled, due to the smell reaching Dan's nose. His mental processes were a little slowed, and his head reeled at the sheer volume of the the gas.

"I know, I know.", said Brandy, and closed her eyes. She held herself very, very still, and tried not to throw up over the side. "But it still sucks."

"It smells so bad…", said Annabelle, her voice nasally from holding her nose. She waved her hand in front of her face, and closed her eyes from the unbearable stench. "Seriously, could someone just knock me out so I don't have to smell it anymore?"

"You and me both.", said Trevor, doing largely the same actions. He had tried to stuff his kilt up his nose to block out the stench, but he knew that such a thing would not be acceptable in public. "Hey Leon, could you do us both a solid and just knock us out already?"

Leon looked up, his eyes a little glazed over from the near sleep. He flicked his lollipop around in his mouth and checked his wrist. He had no watch, but he used to have one, and the habit still persisted. "Why?"

"Cause it smells like everything bad that's ever smelled bad in this fricking swamp.", said Annabelle, her eyes starting to water. "Just please, do us a favor."

"But why?", asked Leon, and took a sniff of the air. "It doesn't smell that bad."

Trevor coughed, and stared at Leon in shock. "What- doesn't smell that bad? What are you blind? Or, whatever it is for smell- what, can you not blind- I mean, smell?"

The smell was starting to get to him too, clouding his thoughts and slurring his speech. But Leon seemed totally unaffected, and closed his eyes once again. "Not really. Smell's never been one of my strong points, to be honest."

As Trevor and Annabelle stared at him in utter shock, Leon nervously flicked his strip of white hair through his fingers. He couldn't smell very well, that much was true. But he could still detect something in the swamp- something truly ancient, and very, very powerful. He did not know what it was, but he hoped to hope they would not have to encounter it. He also knew that, unfortunately, based on previous experiences, they of course would.

Dan took a step right over a large rock, expecting for his footstep to fall right back down into the swamp again- but to his surprise, it instead landed on something far more substantial, and far higher up than the silty, sandy bottom of the normal muck. It didn't feel like anything suspicious- no, it just felt like solid ground.

He stood with one foot high above the other, a precarious position. But with another step, he had both feet on the odd ledge, rising higher above the muck, high enough so that his knees were exposed. He looked down, and saw the surface texture in front of him change- evidently, they had entered a new part of the swamp.

The new area of the massive swamp was a little less toxic, but no less dangerous. It was a lot shallower, with less deep, swirling, bright green sludge, but the menacing aura rising above it at all times seemed the same, if not actually larger. The surface of the water, if it could truly be called that, was now a dark muted emerald, tinged with splashes of dirty beige.

As Dan looked around, he could see shapes in the water that had not been there before. Among the tall weeds and grass growing out of the liquid were quick, darting ovals- no doubt strange Fish. What could have been a Crab flashed by, with several small Squid in hot pursuit. That was odd by itself- neither of those things were typically found inland. But then again, this was far from a typical journey, or a typical place. And the swamp was fed directly by the Clashcrush River, which flowed into the ocean-

Dan put his hand to his chin, and thought. That didn't make sense. It led into the ocean, not away from it. Ocean animals wouldn't reach this part of the river unless they swam right up it, which seemed impossible. They would have to swim through multiple waterfalls to get this high.

"Honey?", he heard Brandy say, and he blinked as he returned to reality. He saw her pointing forward, at a dark shape scrambling amongst the grass. "You stopped walking. Also, there's something up ahead."

Dan frowned, and drew back his hand. Golden Star flowed freely into it, the bolts snapping down into the water. "Not for long there's not."
"Dan, wait.", said Trevor, and held out his hand. He and Annabelle looked forward, her magical eyes detecting exactly what lay inside the bushes.

"It's just a Spider.", said Annabelle, and leaned back. "Orange, northern type. A bit large, but nothing more. You don't have to kill it."

"Oh.", said Dan, and slowly let his charge fall. He took a step forward, and a twig cracked from the movement. A miniscule bit of kinetic energy ran all the way from a thin line to the bush, the Spider alerted to Dan's action. With a shocked, primeval cry, the Spider ran out from the bushes, jumped over a corrupted lily pad, and flung itself into the swamp.

"Woah.", said Brandy, and nodded her head. "That one must have been at least the size of a Princess."
She felt Bubble holding her tight, and returned it with a pat on the back. "That one was scary, Mommy. I'm glad Daddy made it go away."

"Me too, Bubble.".", said Brandy, and nodded. "Me too."

But, of course, in a swamp as huge and ancient as that one, a single spider would be far from the only crawling creep living in the area. And almost before Dan could take another step, the second emerged, with a cracking of plates and skittering of mouth parts.

It looked to be a giant centipede, a dirty brown in color and about the size of a Musketeer's gun. Brandy had seen plenty of centipedes before, but nothing like this one. This one was far larger, likely far older, and had enough scars on its carapace to show that it was far, far, tougher. Clashcrush Swamp seemed to be a place where prehistoric life forms showed up to forget about the changing times, and just stay the same for a while. It was disheartening.

"Oh, yeesh.", said Trevor and Annabelle under their breaths, staring too intensely at the centipede to even notice that they were doing it. "That's a creepy one. I hope-

Before they could even finish their sentence, another gigantic insect burst out of the woods. It looked around diligently for any prey that it could touch, the heavy-set scorpion build it wielded perfectly up to such a task. Or it would have been, had the only other animal around not been the centipede. Centipedes were known for being a hard counter to scorpions- and this time was no exception.

With a quick flash of energy, the centipede was upon it, moving its head to the tail and using dozens of legs to keep the forearms pinned. The scorpion tried to attack back as the centipede slowly chewed off its tail, but it was powerless to stop the process. Within mere seconds, the centipede had defeated the tail, chewing if off and onto the ground nearby.

The scorpion almost screamed, as everyone there watched intently. It tried to whip its lack of a stinger around in desperation, then stabbed the dirt with a huge pair of claws. But nothing worked. With a few more bites, the centipede had carved through the back of the scorpion's head, digging directly into its brain and killing it. As the insectile death train carried off its prey to devour later, Brandy cleared her throat.

"Guys.", she said and Dan nodded. "We can't get distracted. I know that fight was cool and all, but we don't have all the time in the world."

"Right, right-", said Dan, starting to step forward, but stopped. He looked up toward the sky, perhaps as if something was hidden from them all. "Guys? Do you… feel weird?"
"Weird?", asked Leon, and looked up. He looked from sky, to sky, sensing something overwhelmingly off about the entire situation. "What do you mean? But yeah, I do."

"If you did, then why did you ask why?", snapped Trevor, with a burst of uncharacteristic anger. His eyes were looking a little redder than usual.

"Woah, hey.", said Leon, and put out his hands. "I didn't' mean it like that. I was just asking for any special, other reasons."
"Hmph." said Trevor, and turned back around, still angry. He could feel the influence of some mist around the area slowly getting into his brain, but he didn't know that is what was happening. All he knew was his irrational anger towrds Leon. "You better."
Neither of the two had any more words to say, and so they just kep on walking. Yet still, something flickering and small slowly boiled in between the two- one half smoldering, the other half a defensive blend.

"Now, now, don't fight.", said Brandy, looking up from her lying down. She had been looking into the water alongside Bubble, hoping to see some Fish, or even a Squid. "We all have bigger worries to deal with right now."

"Right, right.", said Trevor, but his eyes had not yet gone down at all. He had no forgiveness- and that bothered him. He did not know why these things were happening, only that they were.

"Of course, Mom.", said Leon, and flicked back his hood. There it was again, the situation that something was coming. It felt so very close, so very near. But Leon still could not tell what it was. He drew a Spinner Blade out of his pocket, and stared over the side.

Brandy interrupted Leon's thought train with a rock that fell right underneath where he had been into the water, sending up some rough splashes

Leon, you can hear something, She said, Tell me what it is.

Leon looked around ,and let his thoughts be slowly entered in the mental chat room- unlike out loud, his voice sounded quite nervous in there. Something's coming, he thought. I can't quite tell what it is.

"Hmm…", said Brandy out loud, then ducked back into the chamber. Well, maybe you could-

Leon and Dan suddenly both felt it, in the strongest concentration they had ever felt before. It was no longer a feeling of "It's coming,", and more like "It's here."

"Get out of the way!", Dan shouted, and leapt in a random direction. Bubble, who had not been holding on that tightly was left behind, suddenly hanging out in the air. As she started to fall, Leon noticed something break the surface of the water, with dozens of small teeth.

Acting faster tha he had ever acted before, Leon stuck out an arm, towards Bubble to grab her. He watched as the monstrous thing he had been worried about emerge from the swampy gloom, a bizarre cross between a Shark and a Crocodile with the jaws of both. It churned through the air just as it churned through the water, its jaws right about to snap shut on Bubble's arm- before Leon grabbed her out of the way, leaving the force clamping down on empty air.

As the Crocoshark retreated back into the gloom, Leon firing a few bullets after it, Dan knew it was best time to head to higher ground. Fortunately, the area he had stepped on earlier was a herald of such a thing. As Dan made a few more gigantic steps, his feet once again hit semi-dry dirt. Seaweed clung to his feet, and small snails and clams adorned his ankles, but he could see where he was stepping now. And that was the point.

"What is that up ahead?", asked Bubble, seemingly totally unaffected by her near death experience. Brandy looked up to where she as pointing, and saw a mysterious landscape.

The massive woody copse was ringed with a line of trees, the only dry land a solid path right through the center. There was a deep lake of deeper green within, the water within seeming almost to bubble with unnatural energy. A pair of massive rocks on each side of the strange place made the only way through the area the path. And before the group could get to the path, there was almost what looked to be a-

"An obstacle course!", said Bubble, and clapped her hands. Leaning on Dan's head for support, she stared with absolue excitement at the obstacles up ahead. "That's fun!"

Whether it was "fun" was certainly up for debate, but it was certainly complicated. A trio of burbling acid pits spat upwards into the air, spinning blocks of what appeared to be bone the only way through. Floating planks hung magically in the air, metal spikes jutting out from them at random angles. Spots of dry land among choking, slurping slime shifted quickly among the course, just daring for anyone to come and try them.

"Well.", said Dan, noticing how the entire area seemed to be in a created shape. "That doesn't look suspicious at all. I'm sure it's fine. Let's go."

"Oh yay!", Bubble said, her sense of self-preservation seemingly left behind. She stood up on Dan's shoulders, not able to wait before she got to the course. "I call going first!"

"Woah, no.", said Brandy, and pulled on Bubble's shoulder. She sat down with a pout, but stopped when she saw the look on Brandy's face. "I'm going first."

"Why?", asked Bubble, and frowned again. She crossed her arms, and huffed her bangs out of her face. "Mommy, you should go after me."

"No.", said Brandy, and her vision grew cloudy as she remembered the past. "I used to handle these sorts of things all the time back when I was just a Troop for Oticat… the obstacle course was my favorite part of the gym. I remember that I lost on it once. Once, and then never again. I ended up having a 72-win streak… I don't think anyone has ever broken my record."

Bubble stared at her mother, the seriousness across her face not lost on her. She nodded, now convinced. "Okay. You can go first, Mom."

Brandy looked down at Bubble, and wondered why it was that sometimes she was colled Mommy, and sometimes she was called Mom. But such things could easily be left for later- there was an obstacle course to do first. She had to keep an eye out for any foul play that could await her on it- some courses, especially this far out in the wilds, would most likely have things like hidden explosives and gravity traps. Those were quite nasty.

"Okay, here I go.", she said, and tapped Dan on the head. "Love tap."

"Wait, wha-", sad Dan, then realized what she had said. Right before she Dashed off his shoulder, flying towards the course, he breathed a shot of Star over her body, protecting her with a blanket of electric force. He softly grinned. "Stay safe, thief."

With a sparkling of gold, Brandy landed on the first cube. It bobbed unevenly in and out of the acid pits, intent on making her fall off. But Brandy would not be so easily bested- she rapidly spun her feet around in a circle, stabilizing the cube's movements and keeping her rooted. She narrowed her eyes.

Song: I'm in Control

Brandy focused on the rest of the course in front of her, still keeping herself sure not to slip. She tried and focused on finding a way through the rest of the cubes, but it was difficult. But perhaps if she were to Dash right on to each of them right as they were in the optimum position….

Brandy shouted, and concentrated right as she Dashed. She felt her feet touch the second cube, pushing it down into the acid from the force of the impact. She felt her boots scrape against the acid itself, from not looking at her course. She yelped and pulled her feet above the acid- only to find they had never entered it. That thought pulsed through her head as she landed on the third cube, turning her arms over in a circle to stop herself from falling off.

"Okay…", she said, thinking out loud. "What's next?"

She looked up, and saw the next obstacle in her path. It was a mess of hovering metal planks, adorned with spikes on the ends, the tops, and the bottoms. There appeared to be no way through it without damaging oneself- for most people, at least. Brandy just grinned, and charged up her Dash- she certainly was not most people.

"Why doesn't she just go around it?", asked Trevor, staring at Brandy as she prepared to jump.

"Why don't we all just go around it? What's stopping us?"

"Everything around it seems to be Poison.", said Annabelle, pointing to the burbling, toxic green liquid around the course. "Not to mention those two rocks."

"Oh.", said Trevor, and leaned back. That made sense. "Alright then."

Brandy, having finished charging up her Dash, made her move deeper into the course. Her feet lit up a bright silver and blue, landing atop the metal spikes as light as a feather. Her Dash protected her from being pierced, able to stand on the spikes like solid ground. But she had to balance carefully, for the platforms were hideously uneven, and tilted at the slightest touch.

"Shoot…", she said under her breath, and held her arms out to her side. "What's next?"

She looked up, and saw the next obstacle- but before that was the rest of the spikes. There were quite a lot of them- it looked like there had to be at least a dozen. Brandy stared at them, trying to detect anything she had not seen earlier. She had been trained for this- and yet, somehow, it still made her a little nervous. She had no idea why.

Brandy clenched her muscles, and jumped right at the top platform. She made sure to keep her Dash shield on, even as it grew harder and harder to maintain. She could not let it drop, or she would be in for a world of pain. The thought gave her motivation, as she landed flawlessly on the platform- or almost flawlessly. The touch made it start to turn, downwards towards the poison.

Brandy yelped, and Dashed once again. The force of the especially strong Dash caused her to bypass the rest of the metal spiked platforms, and land directly on the next obstacle- a spinning barrel, coated with green slime. It spun at an incredibly high speed, right between two drop offs, the poison bubbling with eager anticipation of its next meal.

Brandy felt her Dash start to flicker, and she knew that she would have to use another one. But as the feeling left her body, it was replaced with another- that of Dan's Star, flowing around her like a golden halo. She was at the same time grateful to Dan for giving it to her, and a little frustrated, as she had no idea how to use it.

As her feet danced like crazy spiders atop the barrel, Brandy grit her teeth. She looked down, trying to pick out a path through the dozen or so barrels that lay ahead. They each had a different movement speed, and half of them went in the opposite direction. There was no clear pattern to any of it- somebody had sent them randomly spinning. It couldn't have happened long ago, which meant that whoever built this obstacle course must still have been nearby. Or they were just spinning from the last person to use it…

Brandy tried to push all distractions from her head, and took a deep breath. She gently brought her hand up, trying to focus the Star into it- and to her surprise, it worked.

A bolt of lightning shot out from all over her body, the golden glow vanishing. It lashed out and struck a nearby tree, blowing the base apart into splinters in a second and sending the rest toppling down, right towards Brandy.

She yelped again, and Dashed upwards, as the falling log utterly decimated the spinning barrels. They splashed into the poison with a loud hiss, flying droplets going every which way. Brandy spun in a tight, Dash-covered circle, most of the drops reflecting off of her- but one landed right on her arm as she unfolded, sending a twinge of pain through her body.

As she landed on the fallen Log, Brandy looked forward to see the next obstacle, and saw- a beach. It was a beach of rough sand and old slimy driftwood, but it was still a beach, leading up out of the poison. Brandy blinked, and realized that was the end of the obstacle course.

"Well, hey hey.", she said to herself, and made a mental note of the victory. "That's 73."

She turned around, and gestured for the rest of the group to follow her. "Come on, guys! Don't worry, the course is easy!"

But the rest of the group just looked at the obstacle course, a third of it destroyed, and decided it would be best if they just took an easier route.

"Come on, on me.", said Dan, and stretched out his arms. Everyone slowly climbed on, Dan building up a gigantic jump deep in his legs. "Brandy is super good at the courses, but I don't think all of us are. It would be better if I just jumped."
"What?", aksed Brandy, from across the course. She had heard him, but she wanted to see if he was going to change his mind.

"I said, I'm jumping over!", Dan shouted, as Bubble finally, reluctantly, climbed onto his shoulder and sat in Annabelle's lap. "Not everyone can complete the course! This is the safest way!"

Brandy folded her arms ,and frowned. She had expected to be able to guide each member of the group through the dangerous course, but she did have to admit this was a safer way. Provided nothing snatched them out of the way while they were up there…

Dan looked down at the ground, and took a deep breath in. As soon as his lungs were filled, he unleashed his breath- and shout off from the ground with the force of a launched Rocket.

Dan soared high above the obstacle course, crashing straight through the vines up above like a storm through paper. Right before he landed on the other side, Brandy realized where he was going to come down and Dashed straight through a rock to dodge. He hit the ground in a mighty crash, splitting open the dirt and spraying mud up in every direction.

"Well Dan.", said Brandy, and grabbed him by the finger. A bit of mud had gotten onto his face, but it was nothing a good sleep could not fix. "We did it. We got past the obstacle course. I did it my way, and you all did it the weird way."

"Indeed, Brandy.", said Dan, and grabbed her around the waist. She shivered with delight as she was brought up to Dan's shoulder, and deposited her right there. "You're right."
"Wait, is something wrong?", asked Brandy, as she moved closer to Dan. "Why are you saying stuff like that?"

"Like what?", asked Dan, until he saw the way Brandy's eyes looked up at him. It was then that he understood- through their time together, words were no longer needed. "Oh. I'm just tired, is all. We've been walking for a good long while now, and we'll still need to continue. Bubble, keep an eye on the Clashcrush, will you? Thanks."

That last comment was, of course, directed towards Bubble, who was leaning over Dans' shoulder and looking down into the water. Bubble looked up, nodded, and stared through the water with increased interest.

"But anyway, I can't get tired.", said Dan, and sighed. "I'm not allowed to."

"What?", asked Brandy, and put her hand on Dan's shoulder. "What do you mean we're not allowed to. What's wrong with getting tired?"

Dan had been about to answer- when he felt an all-too-familiar rumbling beginning to emerge from the ground in front o them. It sounded like the sound of breaking glass, only a much larger, much deeper level. It was certainly coming from whatever lay below the swamp- although it was still far deep underground. Dan narrowed his eyes, and stopped where he stood.

"Something's coming.", he said. "Better be ready."

"What?", Brandy hissed, and stood straight up on Dan's shoulders. She looked around, trying to see where the next threat was coming from. "Another one, already?"

"No, I think this is the same one.", said Leon, looking down at his foot. Sure enough, there it was- tapping out a panicked trim to songs that didn't exist. He stared at it, trying to convince it to stop- but it would not. That left him with a ring in his ears, and burning desire to do whatever it would take. The foot tapping had always been a sure sign things were about to get crazy.

"Oh.", said Brandy, thinking back to when that had been- it was only a few minutes. That was strange- it always felt like longer.

"Where is it?", asked Dan, spinning around like the predator on a hunt. He saw the large fields of blank space- most likely used for farming. He saw the stones around the murky lake light up, a chorus of chants flowing through the area, and he thought to himself about that one.

"Well, shoot.", he said, as the evil liquid bubbled at a frenzied pace. It boiled and grasped into the air, almost seeming to form shapes and hands with the muck. "What is-"

There was a nearly deafening explosion, with a bright flash of green light that flashbanged the entire group. They could all briefly feel the weight upon the ground of such a behemoth appearing from below the sledge and slime, even if they could not see it.

Once the blindness cleared, Dan leapt back. Most of the group had fallen off, and right into his waiting hands. With a quick nod, the rest jumped off of his shoulders, and into Dan's protective grip. Dan looked up to see his foe- and grimaced.

There stood something in the shape of a human, but appearing to be made almost entirely out of plants. It was certainly not the size of a regular human- no, it must have been at least 27 feet tall. It dripped with water and spilled chlorophyll, the blanket of leaves around its body all adding to the aesthetic. Vines and trunks ran all the way down it, while slime bubbled off its body and rose off into the woods. It stared at the group with an empty gaze, as if daring them to make the fist move.
"Well.", said Dan, and rolled his arms around .it had been ages since he had a fun fight like this one. He would have to make the most of it.

"Guys.", he said, and gestured back. "You all stay here. "I'll take on this Bog Monster, or whatever it is. Cover me, though. If it tries to escape, give it no quarter."

Brandy saluted, glad she could sit this one out. She had been just exhausted lately, and watching would be good for her. "Go get him, Dan."

Dan gave a thumbs up, and turned back around. He stared at the Bog Monster with a ferocious expression, which lay totally unreturned. He continued to stare, waiting for his foe to do something, anything at all. But it just stood there, occasionally moving its arms. It was almost as if it was Troop in a costume, or a Bowler in a formal suit. It seemed to be having many troubles.

"Oh well.", said Dan, and vigorously breathed out. A golden sphere formed right in the depths of his hand, Star sparking at the sides. He looked up, and focused.

"Take this, Bog Monster!", he yelled, and fired off the blast. "Star Cannon Overdrive!"
"Star. Cannon. Over. Drive?", asked the Bog Monster, as it crossed its arms in front of his face. "Bog. Monster-"

Then the explosions hit the main body of the beast, obstructing it in a huge cloud of dust. Dan thought and hoped it had done damage- otherwise, he would have to get in there. But as the smoke cleared, and Dan prepared to count the damage, he was astonished to find that instead of being destroyed, the odd monster had been merely washed. His look was no longer that of vines and plants- it was that of a bright, gleaming, golden automaton, spewing steam into the air and working on pistons next to wires. There was no one inside of the machine, either- it seemed to work itself, through some miracle of engineering. Odd, alien-looking weapons sprouted from his body, two gargantuan fists steaming with raw power. Its face was still totally emotionless, almost a painting upon its thoroughly mechanical body.

"I see.", said Dan, and cracked his knuckles. He popped his neck a few times, and got ready for a real battle. "That's good then. I was hoping for a good fight."

"Good. Fight.", said Blaukstrassen the Automaton, and shifted into a stance of his own as well. Dan suddenly noticed just how alike they looked- his earlier size estimate was off, and it appeared his foe was actually exactly the same height as he was. The stances were precisely the same, and he thought he could see actual Star come from its mouth.

"Yeessh…", he said, just before he rushed. "This is gonna be like fighting myself."

Song: The Power to Resist

Blaukstrassen gave a mighty bellow, steam erupting from the many vents on his back. He leapt from the ground, streaking towards Dan, who jumped forward with just as much fervor. As soon as they met in the middle, their giant fists colliding, a shockwave was blown across the entire swamp clearing that bent the thick trees, shattered the water, and very nearly blew the entire group off of their feet. But by some miracle, they managed to stay upright, not falling into the Poison all around. Brandy held on to everyone, using her Dash to keep them rooted.

Dan struck upright with his other fist, and Blaukstrassen barely dodged. He retaliated with a fist of his own, which collided against Dan's chest with little effect. For the power raging within him was now above what he could normally access, a bit of green fire glowing in his eyes.

Dan threw another punch, one that struck past Bluakstrassen's raised hand and collided directly with his defenseless torso. It was a clean, solid blow- but it did very little, against the Automaton's legendary body. He withdrew his fist, and leapt back a few feet.

Blaukstrassen tried a kick, which Dan saw coming from a mile away. He drew back his entire body, twisting around to dodge the strike, and attacked back with a kick of his own. But that one too missed, Blaukstrassen's entire upper body falling backwards on its hinges, into a defensive positon. Dan growled, and backflipped into the swamp, green muck splashing up dozens of feet into the air. It reminded him somewhat of his battle against the Charger, only much more intense. Whereas the Charger had been almost a comedic foe, this one had real strength.

Bluakstrassen reached out an arm, buzzing coming from the joints. It stretched out towards Dan, who reached out his own. As the metallic arm of the Automaton grabbed at Dan's shoulder, Dan's own hand clenched down on the steel pipe.

Dan yelled, and bent down all the way to his feet. His arm went with him, as did the caught arm of his opponent. A cry of alarm came from Blaukstrassen, as he was suplexed all the way over Dan's body, landing with a mighty crash on the other side of the thin strip of land the group was hiding on. Brandy Dashed behind a rock, the rest of the group in tow, just barely managing to escape the flood of swamp.

"Hey, Dan!", she yelled, poking her head up above the rock. "Be careful, okay?"

Dan heard her, but did not have time to acknowledge it. He knew that such things could wait, until after he had removed his current foe from the world's surface.

The Automaton slowly got up, its sensors pushing into overdrive- until it felt another source of pressure- Dan's fist, glowing with Star, colliding directly into the center of its chest.

The metallic titan was thrown back, plowing directly through a row of trees and smacking against a rock, throwing up swamp and Gems in its destructive wake. But its recovery protocols were already online, and it had already stood up by the time Dan had begun charging towards it.

The Automaton leaned back, and took an aggressive stance. Its vision calmly calculated where and when Dan would strike it, and it raised its fists and leg to prepare for such an attack.

Dan leaped towards Blaukstrassen, raising his right hand to attack with a searing burst of Star. The Automaton began its automatically calculated attack subroutine, expecting to catch Dan in his tracks- but to his surprise, Dan didn't attack that way. He threw himself around at the last second, firing his blast of Star directly into the swamp water below, while grabbing Bluakstrassen's leg with his other hand. With a grunt of effort, he threw the Automaton directly into the air, the exploding swamp water down below giving him an additional boost.

But Blaukstrassen did not wait. With a steam-powered punch, his fist collided directly with Dan's cheek, a spurt of blood coming out of his mouth. Dan was thrown upwards even faster and farther than the Automaton was, breaking the treeline above with a resounding crash. Branches and dead leaves fell down below, as they both soared high above the thick foliage, the majestic battle of titans becoming visible for miles around.

Not even slowing down, Blaukstrassen grabbed Dan's shoulders, bashing his metallic forehead into Dan's surprised face. This blew back Dan even further, right into the open air, only his hovering Star keeping him afloat above the trees. Dan snarled in pain, a green flash becoming visible around his face. His teeth grew longer, his eyes grew wilder- and he struck back.

Dan grabbed the arms of the Automaton, staring right into its empty holes of eyes.

"You scrap metal excuse!", he roared, and attacked. He smashed his own forehead into his foe's face, his hard bone skull making a visible dent in the magical steel. The Automaton was now thrown backwards, doing a backflip over in the air, its automatic rocket boots letting it stay up.

It hung there for a second, pondering its next move- until its artificial brain decided the best course of action. With an odd popping sound, gigantic bellows on both sides of its body activated, its torso swelling up. Dan's previous suspicion had been right- the monster could use Star.

But Dan was not about to let it. He was not about to let some machine use what should have been the rightful weapon of biological beings- it didn't even have lungs. Stretching out his arms and grabbing Blaukstrassen's foot, he spun around in a circle. He looked down as he spun, the Automon leaking steam as it was flung around like a pillow in a pillow fight, streaming oil instead of feathers. Dan decided on the best place for his foe to land- and threw him directly downwards, back into the swamp. He had made sure to throw him in the opposite direction of where he had last seen the group- it would be bad if they were to be squished.

With a mighty crash, Blaukstrassen landed right in the middle of a thin stream. It was blown to bits by the impact, almost resembling a Meteor strike. Trees crumbled to bits around it, Gems spilling out into the open water. He looked around for Dan- he was nowhere to be seen. He looked around for the smaller group of targets- they were nowhere to be seen either. His backup protocols took effect from the lack of targets, to fly into the air and search again. He checked if his body was damaged- he had taken some, but not a lot of, damage from the fall. That was good. He had a moment of calm in which to collect himself, and he did so. Blaukstrassen put his arms out to either side to push him back to his feet, and-

Dan suddenly landed like a falling star right on top of the Automaton's chest, pushing him back into the river with a sound that was like unto a falling anvil hitting volcanic stone. He let out a berserker roar as he did so, slamming his fists into his foe's chest with a force that could shatter an entire village with a single blow. Shockwaves blew out from the impact points, and Blaukstrassen's armor began to dent under the legendary onslaught. Blaukstrassen raised a hand in defense- and Dan grabbed it, lifting his opponent into the air. With a nearly animalistic roar, Dan swung the Automaton around once more. He slammed him down into the ground, sending up a burst of slime and casting a film across its eyes. He slammed him into a tree, shattering it to deadwood and hearing something within his foe snap. He slammed him into the ground once again, into a puddle of mud that slurched up 6 feet deep against Blaukstrassen's metal sides. Dan raised his fists for a double overhead that could put a hole through a skyscraper- only for the delayed blast of Star from the Automaton's bellows to finally fire. It hit Dan's upper body, sending him flying high into the sky, breaking through the treeline once again.

Dan felt himself flying upwards, and shook his head to clear it. He had almost let himself get away from control there- smashing his fists into the Automtonon rather than just ending it with a Star blast to the head. He chided himself, and drew a surge of breath into his lungs for the next opportunity he had. He knew that he was burning through it quickly with his hovering, and that he soon had to end the fight. If he didn't, something bad would probably happen.

But Dan also knew that he could not just wait around for Blaukstrassen to attack him. He knew that robotic foes were almost always tireless and merciless, always just about to attack you. So he threw his arms out to either side, gathering a barrage of Star within.

Sure enough, Blaukstrassen blasted through the treeline, heading straight for where Dan hovered. One fist was outstretched, Star blazing around it in a yellow umbra. Dan growled, trying to refuse his berserker tendencies influence over him again. Ever since his power had been unleashed, he was finding it more difficult to control. And against such a worthy opponent it was hard indeed.

Dan's twin spheres of Star erupted, shooting out a solid beam of gold and green energy that smashed right up against the Automaton's fist. A series of continuous explosions rocked the air where it flew, obscuring the vision of of both Dan and his foe for a single second. But once Dan saw Blaukstrassen's fist emerge from the smoke, he knew it was time to act. So far, his Star had done little, and his physical attacks had done hardly more. But perhaps, if he was to use both was once, like his opponent was doing, things might change.

As Blaukstrassen's Star-infused punch swung, so did Dan's quickly charged attack. The two mighty punches directly collided with each other far overhead, creating a titanic explosion that reached well over a hundred feet in diameter and a few hundred degrees in heat, searing off the entire top part of the swamp for dozens of meters and blowing back far more.

But even such a powerful blast had done nothing to discourage the two powerhouses- they were still going at it, just as strongly. As fire and smoke roared and spat around them, Dan's fist smashed deeply into Blaukstrassen's shoulder. Blaukstrassen returned the attack with a savage kick that landed directly into Dan's cheek- yet unlike last time, it failed to knock him back. Dan could not feel pain from the blow- no, all he could feel was his raging, golden heart, pushing him to even greater heights of power.

Dan lashed out with a quick jab that ducked under the Automaton's guard, slashing a layer of paint off of his chest. Blaukstrassen ignored it entirely, summoning up a pair of huge rocket launchers from his back, as they settled on his shoulders. He stared at Dan, trying to calibrate his attacks- but all the primitive cameras saw were Dan's hands, as he grabbed the launchers at the base, tore them off, and threw them in opposite directions, thousands of feet into the swampy jungle below. Blaukstrassen let out the air from his bellows in what was almost a gasp, as Dan threw yet another punch that smashed right into the Automaton's face. But he had left his guard open- open enough for one of Blaukstrassen's feet to slip right in between Dan's legs, attacking with a solidly landed blow.

Dan's eyes went fully red, as he realized there was no longer, really, a reason to keep himself contained after an attack like that. He knew that if the Automaton wanted to play dirty, well, then so would he. So as soon as Blaukstrassen went to attack- Dan disappeared in a flash of Star, reappeared right above him, and launched a vicious infused elbow right into the small of his back, launching him at top speed, once again, into the jungle below.

But that had not been any normal launch strike- no, that one had been filled with intense rage, boiling fury, and an overpowering drive to win. And as Blaukstrassen smashed through the trees, Dan was right behind him. As he smashed into the ground, Dan soared right at him. And as Bluakstrassen landed right at the bottom of the river, Dan landed right next to him.

Neither of them cared that they were under 25 feet of festering, barely flowing muck. They just kept on bashing at each other, the light of their respective star blowing away the scum and thickened water, the entire structure of the biome crumbling around them for hundreds of feet.

"Holy…", Brandy breathed, as the felt the trees shaking around her. Bubble dived underneath her skirt, Leon trying to hold Trevor and Annabelle steady. "Dan, what are you doing?"

Blaukstrassen raised a fist, shining with huge amounts of Star. He almost fired it at Dan- before Dan lashed out with a deflecting palm, redirecting the destructive push into the ground below. The riverbed shook, crumbled, and broke- both of them falling along with the river into a vast underground cavern below.

The cave was wide, and huge in all directions. At the bottom flowed a massive river of pure Elixir- the source of the Elixir that was collected by the villages. Hundreds of Torches illuminated the walls in an eerie red light, mysterious fossils clearly visible along the cave's edges. But neither Dan or Bluakstrassen noticed such things- the only thing they were focused on was removing the other from existence as swiftly as possible.

Dan grit his teeth, and lit up his hand with Star. He didn't even bother to pronounce the Overdrive- honestly, he wasn't quite sure why he did it anyway. Not saying it just let him do it faster- but he did suppose that it made it look cooler. But there wasn't time for that.

Dan pressed his palm into Blaukstrassen's face, the metal screaming as it was heated up to a red sludge. He kept on pressing harder and harder, determined to kill- until the Automaton threw up his own hand, piercing Dan's forearm with a sharp metal blade.

Dan roared and let go, tearing off most of his opponent's face. Now gone was the still, calm face he had before- now there was only twisted, melting metal, in the shape of a grinning skull. It didn't faze Dan in the slightest- it just made him more eager to destroy. And as they landed on the riverbed, sinking low into the Elixir, Dan knew he had an advantage. Already he could feel it soak into his wound, stitching up the cut- but Blaukstrassen knew the advantage as well. And as he slammed his fist right into the ground, Dan could feel it crack.

As the bottom of the Elixir river broke and split open, Elixir and river water falling into the void below, Dan felt a little sorry for all the villages that were suddenly about to have an Elixir shortage. But he couldn't focus on that right now. All he could focus on, even as they both plummeted towards the lake of bubbling lava down below, was killing.

Dan grabbed Blaukstrassen by the shoulders, bringing his head up near Dan's mouth. With an insane bite, Dan clamped on, tearing a chunk of metal straight from his foe's body. The confusion on Blaukstrassen's was evident, but he kept his cool- right until they fell into the lava itself, with a gargantuan Star-induced explosion. The lava reached all the way up the cave, shaking the surface world up above.

One might think that they would meet their end in the molten magma- but that was not the case. Instead, their sheer might and Star protected them, the lava no more than thick red water. As Dan bit off another sheet of steel, a growl erupting from his lungs, Bluakstrassen thought he should return the favor. He attacked with a savage punch- only for Dan's leg to twist around and block it. He attacked with a ferocious kick- but Dan twisted around, the strike hitting nothing. He bit into Dan's shoulder with a row of sharp metal spikes, Dan snarling as he was forced to let go. He backflipped a half dozen times and threw out his hands- then put them together, gathering Star underneath the lava. It sparkled and cracked around him, a rainbow of light reflecting from the brightness all around.

Blakstrassen saw the force building up, and thought he could not have it. So he grabbed Dan's foot, pushing all his pistons, wires, and various parts into maximum overdrive- then swung Dan straight upwards, his opponent becoming a practical meteor as he flew upwards, crashing through the layer of volcanic rock before vanishing in the darkness.

Blaukstrassen knew that he could not just wait there. He would have to pursue his target- so he did, flying upwards as fast as his rockets would allow.

Dan burst above the surface of the swamp, almost a hundred feet from where he had come down. He took a deep breath, his entire being swelling with Star, and thought of his next move. He had to do something that Blaukstrassen would never expect- but what?

Blaukstrassen tore a hole through the volcanic rock with his head, bursting back into the Elixir river. More Elixir fell around him, but the Automaton was pleased, for his orders had been to create destruction for his master. And cutting no doubt hundreds of villages off from their precious Elixir supply no doubt counted.

Dan leapt up into the air, taking as deep of a breath as possible. He let out a mighty roar as he did so, shaking the trees for miles around. A huge green and yellow orb, similar to the one he had summoned after killing the Elecfirno Dragon, appeared in his hands.

Blaukstrassen finally shredded through the surface of the swamp, bursting high up above the trees- only to see a terrifying sight. There was Dan, floating in midair, already finished charging up his blast. Blaukstrassen held up his hand- but it was too late. Dan bellowed, and threw the blast.

It tore through the air as it went, the trees within a hundred feet of it bursting into flames. Blaukstrassen looked around for a way to stop it, anywhere to dodge- but it was too late. The blast was upon him before there was even a second. Blaukstrassed screamed, trying to push against it, and failing utterly as he started to disintegrate under the insane pressure. The blast went totally by his rapidly vanishing body, and slammed into the ground itself, utterly collapsing the swamp for nearly a thousand feet in every direction, turning so many thousands of trees into dust, and shooting out a shockwave that, given time, would eventually find its way across the entire world.

Dan took a moment to just breathe, hanging there in the now still air. He saw what he had done to the swamp, an utterly devastated climate below him. He saw the holes where he and Baulstrassen had broken through to the lava, elixir and magma pouring out in small amounts. He looked around, and- and a bolt of panic shot through his heart. What if the group had been caught in that explosion. He had been so in the moment, that he had forgotten to think. He swore under his breath and let his Star wind down, floating down haphazardly to the surface.

Brandy looked out from under a huge chunk of black metal, the only thing within the area to survive the blast. A bit of her hair was singed, and soot was strewn across her face- but she was still mostly unharmed, and very much alive. She looked behind her, to the rest of the group that she had protected with her Dash shield. Leon, although looking a little shell-shocked, was fine. Bubble had fainted dead away from the stress, but Brandy could see her chest rising up and down as she breathed. Trevor and Annabelle clung to each other as they looked out, not even daring to move from such an intense fear of death. But Brandy smiled- they were all there.

"Well, uh…", she said, noticing just how much her own voice shook. She had had to jump around a lot during the fight, and her legs quaked from the constant beatings the entire area had taken. "We're all alive, guys! Yay!"

"Yayyy!", Bubble said, sleeptalking. She pumped her little fist into the air, then once again fell limp. Brandy had a sudden urge to pick her up and squeeze her- which, of course, she did.

There was a loud thud next to the rock, and Brandy almost jumped out- then she stopped, as she realized she did not actually know who won. There had been a massive explosion, but that could have come from either of them, based on what she had seen. The footsteps were large and heavy enough to belong to either of them, but- no. No, she had to have faith. She had to believe that Dan had won. He was Dan, after all. Dan was invincible-

The rock lifted up, and Brandy screamed. She jumped back- only to see Dan, with a friendly smile on his face, and parts of his thick beard still smoldering a bit.

"Woah, hey.", he said, and spread his arms open wide. They still flickered with Star. "It's just me. And it looks like you guys are alright too."

Song: Siol Ghoraidh

"Yeah.", said Brandy, and relaxed at the sight. "I… I guess we are, aren't we?"

She looked up, and Dashed right towards Dan. He welcomed her with open arms ,even though she leapt right up onto his shoulder. But it was really the thought that counted.

"Well, we did it.", said Dan, and looked around at what remained of the swamp. A large amount of the thick, murky water had been drained away into the holes that had been opened, leaving riverbeds overflowing with moss and increasingly dry land. The Elixir and lava had stopped flowing, now cooling into bizarre shapes of purple rock. The only sound that could be heard for miles around was the gentle collapsing of trees, and the heavy breath of the group. The birds had all flown away even before the fight had begun. "We went up against a lot of Forgotten today, guys. A lot of really strange ones, and really tough ones. But we beat them all."
"Dan?", asked Brandy, raising her eyebrow in a touch of suspicion. "Why are you talking about it in the past tense like that?"

Dan shook his head a bit, and sighed. He pointed up and behind the trees, but Brandy didn't look. "Honey?"

Brandy's thoughts were racing too quickly for her to notice, and she looked around. She saw the equally confused faces of everyone else in the group, trying to see where Dan was pointing- but he was just too tall. He could see things that no one else could, hidden beyond the canopy of the trees. For even though they had collapsed, they still towered tall.

"We have to keep going, Dan.", said Brandy, a little nervously. "I mean if we don't make it there in time, what are we gonna do? And we don't have much longer left in order to make it."

She looked up at the sky, searching for the sun in nervousness- and almost jumped 6 full feet in the air when she saw it. It was almost to the far side of the horizon, the sunrise beginning to break in beautiful hues of red, purple, and gold. But Brandy did not see that- she only the time slipping away, into nothing. "Oh, crap."
"Brandy, honey?", said Dan again, but Brandy wasn't paying attention. She just nodded, looked up- and only then saw what Dan had been trying to tell her. He pointed towards and over the trees, telling her what he saw with his deep, husky voice. "Look. Look at where we are."

Brandy nodded, and jumped high into the air. She cleared the broken treetops, took a look, and gasped in total shock, seeing what lay beyond.

As soon as she landed back in Dan's hands, Brandy was almost shaking with wonder. Her eyes shone with triumph, and she flipped around in joy.

"What?", asked Leon, trying to decide if he should go up onto Dan's shoulders or not. "Mom, what is it? What's going on?"

Brandy almost opened her mouth to speak, but thought the side should have spoken for itself. So she looked up to Dan, who nodded, raised his hand, and fired a single thin beam of Star that blew the tops off of the dead trees that littered the ground, revealing what was beyond.

"Oh.", said Leon, and his eyes widened. He stumbled back a bit, but caught himself before he fell. "Oh, uh… woah."

"Daddy!", shouted Bubble, running up to Dan's leg. She wrapped her arms and face around his calf, her face burning red from innocent frustration. "I lost the river! It disappeared and I don't know where it is anymore and now we're probably lost and-"

But she stopped abruptly on her rant, as she felt herself get picked up. She was gently deposited onto Dan's shoulder, and turned around to face the majesty.

"Wait.", she said, all her annoyance forgotten. Bubble scrambled over Dan's shoulders to see the scene unbroken, in all its splendor.

"Those are-", said Brandy, hardly even able to belive the sight. "That's-"

"It is.", said Dan, and smiled to himself, taking in the land beyond the swamp. He flared up a bit in excitement. "The Clashcrush Mountains. We're almost there."

His eyes gently floated across the landscape, taking in the famous markings that Trevor had told them about. There near the front was Ice Mountain, almost a gigantic version of Frozen Peak. Ancient Mountain lay behind that, its volcanic surface inhabited with nearly no plants. Behind that was Iron Mountain, a mountain said to be made entirely out of metal. Behind that, in between a huge, blackened gorge, was the legendary Dark Mountain. Many rumors swirled around that haunted place, but Dan did not know which of them were even true. And behind even that was a truly colossal geological fortress, towering hundreds or even thousands of feet above its fellows, the topmost spire scraping against the edge of the sky. It was somehow even deeper than it was long. Brandy knew that must have been the lair of Rakastamos- nothing else could have possibly measured up. Dan clenched his fist, the thought of the arrival giving him life. The thought echoed through everyone's heads, each with their own inflection. Tomorrow… we kill Rakastamos.

Brandy's eyes watered, and she put her hands to her face. The storm of emotions she was feeling almost overwhelmed her, the taste of victory approaching her senses at last.

"We… we did it.", she said, and looked towards the mountains another time. "We actually, truly, made it to the mountains."

"So we're here, then.", said Dan, and rolled his head around on his shoulders. "And we defeated everything… you know what that means!"

Brandy knew the present- she had gotten one many items. But Dan had yet to provide it to everyone else. She nodded, while everyone else just stared.

Dan drew back his hands, and placed them ever so gently on Leon's shoulders. Leon flinched, but trusted his father- trusted him enough to suddenly create a burst of blue fire right on top of him.

Leon almost freaked out, but stopped when he realized that despite the deadly potential of the flame, it was still just a burst, prone to falling apart in the wind. It rushed over Leons' skin, vanishing in an instant, but leaving the heat behind. It soaked into Leon's cold wet bones, and he had no choice to smile.

"See.", said Dan, and turned around. He started to swivel his head, looking for anything that lay in the moist swamp that could be used for fire starter. "Very cool."

"Woah.", said Leon, and looked up. He stared at his hands, hardly able to believe what had just happened. "That was cool, Dad."
Dan didn't have time to listen, however. He knew that the sun would now be setting in just a few minutes, having already slipped behind the far mountains. The group had to be asleep by then, and a good sleeping point made all the difference.

"Dan?", asked Brandy, and found herself yawning. She rubbed her eye with one hand, and slowly walked on over to him. "I want to talk to you."

"Sure, honey.", said Dan, and sat down on a nearby flattened bush. "What about?"

"About… that thing that just happened.", sai Brandy, leaning down next to him. "And that thing that happened to me. And how you're just so good at killing the Forgotten. And stuff like that."

"Woah, woah, don't freak out.", said Dan, and moved a little bit for Brandy to sit on his lap. She hooped up immediately, feeling Dan's fingers start to play with her hair.

"So… you're still, like, you when you lose control like that, right?", Brandy asked, Dan telling she was talking about his berserker state he could now enter. She was worried about him- worried about his vast, nigh-uncontrollable strength. "When you go all green and crazy and way stronger? Because it almost doesn't even seem like you."

"Oh, no, that is me.", said Dan, and gave a reassuring nod. "I remember doing it- I just get angry sometimes, is all. Mostly when I'm fighting. But hey, good thing I do."

Brandy looked down at Dan's knee, feeling his hot blood rush through his body at the bottom of her own legs. She took a moment to marvel at it, before moving on to her next question.

"And Orfox said that I had something like that too…", she said, remembering back. "When I go silver, well, I feel strong. Stronger than anything I've ever felt before."
Dan thought about this for a moment, the breached up his hand for a high five. "Yes? What's your question about that?"

"What is it?", asked Brandy, staring up into Dan's eyes. "I know that Orfox didn't tell me, but maybe you can?"

"Well.", said Dan, and put his fingers to his lips. He thought about the best way to proceed through what could potentially be a risky topic of talk. "I don't really know either. I'm not sure he knows what it was to begin with… I definitely don't. But do you?"

"No.", said Brandy, and shook her head. "Just what whenever I need it most, it shows up, gets rid of the most of all of the problem, and then just… leaves."

"It could be a super fight or flight response.", said Dan. He shot a look to Trevor that it was good he had gotten the fire ready, but he had to put on the main fuel. Trevor and Brandy both nodded, Brandy leaning back and Trevor walking away. "Just a thought."

"Maybe.", said Brandy, and tried to think about it a little more. She sat there for a few seconds, completely silent, her mind trying to figure it out. But she decided that it would be better if she just asked her questions. That was at least uncomplicated.

"Okay, another question.", she said, and bit her lip. This one was a bit more personal than the others, but she knew that it was one that had to be answered. She put her hands together, and moved up closer to Dan's gigantic arm. "Why is that so far, you've gotten all the good fights? Like every fight we face is a huge monster, and you're always the one to defeat it, and all I can get is an assist maybe. It almost feels like if this were a story, you would be the main character. Honestly…"

She buried her face into Dan's leg, and closed her eyes."I just want to defeat something, on my own, independently."

"Well…", said Dan, and thought. His reasoning matched against his emotions, and emotions won through skill. He nodded, and gave a big smile. "That really depends on what we run into next. If we're not that threated by it, I'll let you kill it alllll by yourself. Okay?"

He rubbed her back gently, and let out one thought. "Besides, you did so much on this trip. All of what would happened did so because you were there. Directly."

Brandy let that thought ruminate in her mind, and she nodded back. That wasn't exactly what she had been expected, but she supposed it was better than nothing. She closed her eyes and tried to meditate- only to feel the pulse of her last question at the back of her head.

"Oh, right.", she said, and stood up. She asked her last question, staring up at Dan with unblinking eyes. "Am…. am I a good mother, Dan? Are we good parents?"

Dan looked around, and saw what the rest of the group was doing. Leon and Bubble were both picking up sticks, without being asked. Trevor was trying to get the fire started, while Annabelle lay bits of torchwood on the pit. There were smiles all around, occasional bits of laughter- but most importantly, there was love.

"Yeah.", said Dan, and Brandy's heart lit up with love at the word. "I'd say you're a pretty good mother."

Brandy Dashed right up onto Dan's shoulders, wrapping him as tightly as she could in a tight hug. He almost couldn't breath for a second- but he was fine the second after. He just took a single, intense breath, Star flowing out of him and running over Brandy, some of it hitting her ears. She yelped, and pushed herself further down into his loving grasp.

The night had grown to reality around them, the sun now vanished from the sky. Now that the fall season had been unleashed to the world, the day would become shorter and shorter, until it would almost not even exist at all. But those days were still far off- they still had day tomorrow.

"Honey, look.", said Dan, and pointed up. Brandy opened up her eyes enough to see what he was looking at- fireflies. Dancing points of light that gently floated out of the wreckage of the swamp, lighting up the campsite with their beauty. Brandy had neer seen fireflies in the wild before- it almost made her tear up a bit.

"Fireflies.", she said, her tiny voice against the immense world almost leaving her feeling insignificant. And yet she knew that, no matter what, Dan's presence by her side would always make everything better. No matter what.

Dan and Brandy stared at the other four members of the group around the fire, talking and laughing about- something. It was getting hard to tell, as both of their senses began to shut down for the night. Dan's aching body screamed at him to fall asleep. His pounding headache told him to let go, to lose consciousness- but he could not, until Brandy was sleeping.

Brandy's exhausted limbs told her the same, to let them sleep, to let them heal. She wanted to obey them, to let herself fall asleep in the arms of Dan- and yet, she did not. She felt as if there was something else, one more thing, that kept her from falling asleep. Something they had forgotten, something from the sky-

A tremendous boom suddenly echoed from far overhead, deeper than any noise had a right to ever be and louder than the echo of an exploding star. The night sky that had so gently fallen over that section of the world was rudely disturbed, a ruddy golden glow edged with twinges of black falling over the entire continent. The world shook from the pressure, of a totally unknown source. Fear gripped the heart of the world, once more from the fear of death.

"What the-", Dan snapped, and leapt up. He grabbed Brandy from where she lay, holding her tight to his chest as something huge began to appear in the black sky. It looked almost like a curved knife- but blazing gold, burning from every angle, and a solidly curved shape. A cosmic aura burned off of it, erupting into the sky.

"Mommy!", Bubble screamed, as she saw the thing approaching. It looked incomprehensibly massive- one edge of it stretched to the far horizon and even beyond, the clouds far below it burning away just from the presence. "Mommy, help!"

Brandy, having suddenly been yanked out of her near-sleep and now being dragged along towards the rest of the group, simply screamed. She had no idea what was going on, but she was slightly curious as to why the ground was reflecting Star gold. "What? What?"
Dan reached the rest of the group, and threw his arms around them. He took in a deep breath, not knowing how in Clash's name he was going to stop such a titanic blast from… wherever it had come from. From the sheer size and speed of the thing, it was as if it had been flung from deep space. "Everyone, get ready! Brace yourselves!"

Everybody tucked as tightly as they could under Dan's solid body, as Dan continued to build up his strike. He gathered two shots in both hands, putting all the power his exhausted body could allow into each of them. He had to give everything he had for this one.

The mysterious, cosmic blow came closer, only now entering the atmosphere. It had seemed to slow down and weaken a bit from the collision, but it still seemed as though it held the power to cut the entire planet in half. Dan grit his teeth, kept sucking in Star, and tossed both of the spheres into the air in front of him. They crackled and spat with sheer power, but it was nothing compared to the devastating world-ender bearing down on him.

"Double…", Dan breathed, bringing his legs up in front of him. He balanced on his hands, the group still protected. "Leg Day…"

The gigantic curve was still coming. Dan had only one shot. It was now or never. He opened his eyes, took a deep breath, and-

"OVERDRIVE!", he screamed, firing the blast with everything he possibly had. Yet as it shot towards the golden goliath in the sky, something strange happened. The curve stopped, and began to retreat off the planet. It was almost as if whoever had fired it had suddenly realize their mistake, and grabbed back their attack. Dan's Overdrive kept on going after it, into the sky, into space, and vanishing off to parts unknown, both golden glows fading from the sky.

Dan almost collapsed on the ground below, but he knew that everyone else was still underneath him- that is, until he saw them all rapidly crawl out. Then he let go, and fell to the ground.

"What…", he groaned, not even bothering to get up. "What the heck was that?"
"I have no idea.", said Brandy, still shaking from the experience. She looked over at Leon- another white stripe had been marked into his hair. She could not help but wonder what caused that- and what Juno must have gone through to make her hair white. "But-"

"But don't worry ,everyone.", said Dan, with a grin. "Old Dad scared it away."

"Right.", said Leon, and closed his eyes. "But, like… Super Leg Day Overdrive, Dad? Really?"

"What?", asked Dan, moving his head over to see Leon. "I like that name. It's cool."

"No.", said Leon, and shook his head. "It's not. Maybe you can come up with a different name in the morning, once we're all rested. Cause I'm going to sleep."

"Leon-", said Brandy, but it was too late. Leon rolled over on his side and Dan's arm, asleep with moments. In just a few seconds, the rest of the group followed, leaving Dan and Brandy the only ones awake.

"Dan.", said Brandy, finally able to say what had been on her mind for hours. "Being out here, in such an unstructured place, running into such weird things, seeing so much that we never knew existed, well…"

"Yes, Brandy?", asked Dan. "What is it?"

"What if… everything was like this?", she asked, gesturing with her hands to the stars. "What if there were no battles, or upgrades, or Troop Types, and everywhere was wild, and people were just… people? I mean, I know that sounds crazy, and it is, but-"
"I think it used to be like that.", said Dan, his brain starting to nod off. "Back before everything. When the first animals were made, they were just that. Animals. Nothing about them."

"What if…", Brandy said, trying to put her cosmic thoughts into words. "It was like that again?"

For a second, they just both lay there, staring at the infinite cosmos above, hearing the fireflies fly, and taking in the rich atmosphere of the fantastic world around them, a tapestry in its wonders and a sonnet in its beauty. The stars twinkled through the clouds, the moon a beautiful shade of purple from the October season. A pair of Bats flew by, and landed in a nearby tree. They were clearly wild- normally, Bats came in groups of five. Although, really, wild Bats would be the norm.

"That would be cool.", said Dan, and slowly nodded. "I think it would be nice to see that."

He put a hand onto Brandy's back, and pulled her in closer to himself. They both felt themselves begin to fall asleep, from the sheer unmatched stress of what had been one of the longest days of either of their lives. "Goodnight, honey."

"Goodnight, Dan.", said Brandy, and felt herself fall asleep. "I… love… you…"

Then they were both truly out like a light, drifting off into dreamland, until the world tomorrow would be ready for their waking.

Song: Dawn- Phantom Blood

Chris Tinkain the Builder slowly trudged his way up the nightly lit path, the almost overdone Shocktober decorations nipping at his heels, tugging at his boots, and generally just making his walking a bad time. A Skeleton stabbed his toe. A Bat danced in his hair. A Fire Spirit ran around his leg, and jumped on a piece of grass. He scrunched up his nose and held his breath as he felt a Royal Ghost pass him by- not for smell, but so as to not lose his breath. He sighed, as he saw that he still had a few more hundred feet to go before he made it to his destination- the gigantic gates of Oticat's and Spacekrakenx's duel castle.

He looked behind him, seeing for the 45th time what he guided- a gigantic procession of Loot Carts, filled to the brim with Gold and Elixir. He frankly had absolutely no idea why in all that was holy and unholy he was delivering it to some Castle on Royale instead of a Village like normal, but he had never been one to judge. He always just did what he was told.

A Guard working on the ramparts of the castle, Gid by name, took a moment from his eternal stride from either end of the entire building to the other to look outwards. There he saw Chris Tinkain, walking at the very end of his energy, what appeared to be a gargantuan train of wagons rolling up behind him. Gid had no idea what exactly was going on- but he had never been one to question orders either. All he knew was that he had a guest, and he was to be let in.

Chris, using the last amount of care left in him, finally took the last step. He stopped right within knocking distance of the gigantic gates, and held up his Torch to signal the Loot Carts to stop. They took a few moments to recognize his signal, but they did roll to a deafening stop, just a few feet before they would have run over Chris. He took a bit to lament this fact, and held up his hand to knock on the door.

But right before he did so, he saw and felt the locks within begin to open, the Guards inside hurriedly working to open it up. He decided that he would wait exactly 15 seconds- if he could remove an entire tree in that time, they could open the locks.

But the 15 seconds passed, and the door was still in the process of being opened. Chris rolled his eyes, and knocked on the door with his wooded multi-tool. Three immense knocks sounded, ringing out across the still night, right as the Guards finally got the door open.

"Evening.", said Chris, with the enthusiasm of a concrete sock in a coma. "I got some war loot for your King. Take it to him. Or do not. I genuinely do not care at all."

"War Loot, eh?", asked Gid, stepping down from the top of the pile of Guards, and craned his neck to see the immense train. "Wow, that's uh… a lot of Loot. Like…"

He started to count, before realizing that the highest number he knew was 50000, and there seemed to be a lot more than that. He looked at Chris with a disbelieving look, starting to question just what was going on here. "Like, uh…"
"That's 20.3 million. Each.", said Chris, and took a casual glance at his fingernails. "Give or take a few thousand."

Gid's jaw dropped clean off his skull, falling down onto the ground below. The number echoed through the entire group of Guards, each of their own jaws following suit. Their arms were the next to go from sheer shock, then their legs, then their heads. Within just a few seconds, the entire platoon of Guards had just fallen apart- that was more Gold or Elixir than any of them had ever seen in their lives.

"2- 2- 2-", stammered Gid, his eyes somehow flickering. "20.3 million? How? Why? Who?"

"Well.", said Chris, and took out a small notepad. He took a look at the front page, nodded, and tucked it back into his pocket. "You see, I have it on record that a single Troop of yours somehow three-starred about two dozen War Bases... I have absolutely no idea how, but I do not care. So you get the loot, and a formal invitation to join Clan Awesomesauce. Motto: Dang it Kyle, stop giving everyone free co or we will kick you."

"I… I see.", said Gid, and started to try and piece himself back together. "Well, uh, let me just call my King, and we can get started accepting this."

"Good.", said Chris, and stared up at the stars and moon overhead .He thought about writing a song about the once he got back home, whenever that would be. Probably in just a few hours, if his Dragon wasn't late or asleep. "Yeah, that'll be just great."

Oticat burst up from his bed, almost hitting his head on the wooden post up above. He stared at Max in shock, who had been chosen by Gid to deliver the message. They both had installed communicators in their shields, and Gid had Max on speed dial at all times. They had both decided that awaking Spacekrakenx was not the best thing to do, as he had gone to bed after working on figuring out The Slime for almost 10 hours straight. Neither of them knew that, in fact, he was still awake.

"What?", Oticat shouted, almost unable to articulate his thoughts. "20.3 million Gold?"

"That is what I said ,yes.", said Max, and gave a polite nod. "20.3 million Gold."

"But…", Oticat gibbered ,mirroring the same questions Gid had had. "How? Why? Who?"

"I do belive, sir…", said Max, and bowed again. "The Builder in charge said one of our Troops was responsible. Three starred over two dozen War Bases, winning us all the respective loot."

Oticat opened his mouth- then shut it again when he realized he had absolutely nothing to say. The mere thought of such staggering loot truly left him at a loss for words. His mind swirled with what he could do with that much- he could upgrade every single card he owned. He could buy an entire new wing of the Castle. He could get everyone he knew a massive boost. He could- he could-

He could get up, that's what he could do. The thought came into his head that unless he got up and went to collect everything, there would be no vast amounts of Gold. Not for him, or anyone.

"Well, let's go!", he said, now able again to speak. He jumped all the way out of his bed, and landed with a dramatic pose on his wooden floor. "Max, the night and Gold awaits!"

"Sire?", asked Max, slightly leaning back as he slightly died inside. He did not look at Oticat, only staring at the immensely interesting pattern of the walls. "Could you-"

"What?", asked Oticat, already on his way to the door. He looked back at Max, who had closed his eyes. "What is it, Max?"

"Could you put on some clothes?", asked Max. Oticat looked down and realized that he was wearing nothing but his blue nightshirt and his crown. He looked up and tried to meet Max's gaze, but of course failed- then realized Max was right. Without another word, Oticat turned to his dresser and began to rummage for real clothes.

Song: Approach

Meg was still awake, despite the late hour.

She sat in her bed, Brenda lightly snoring in the covers next to her. She held a TV remote, using it to blearily flip through the channels. Her Gunstand lay by her side of the bed, a soft blue light streaming from the barrel at all times. Almost no sound came from the room- only Brenda's snoring and the TV's quiet volume. Meg hadn't even bothered to put on her glasses- she was too tired to see the screen properly anyway.

A very concerned Archer was pictured on screen, her hair lying frizzled and her face full of terror. The studio behind her was cracked and broken, a Skeleton tapping the desk.

"Many villages are currently without any Elixir.", she said, staring right into the camera. "Except for what they already had in their storages- but collectors are no longer bringing anything up. Experts are saying that a devastating Earthquake ruptured the underground leylines, but we are not really sure."

A Wizard hurried on screen, tripping over an unseen object and landing right on the ground. He picked himself up as quickly as he could, still pulling on his purple robe. He skidded in to his spot, and hurriedly adjusted his hair. "That's right… and not to mention the dozens of War Bases that were mysteriously destroyed just this morning. No witnesses were there to see it, so we still have no idea what happened."

"All we know is…", said the Archer, and put her finger into the air. She stopped, thought for a second, put her hand down, and worriedly shrugged. "We don't know, okay? Just… stay safe out there, everyone. There's something going on out there. Something bad."

"Some say it's the work of the Gods.", said the Wizard, as Meg raised her finger to change the channel. "Some say it's the work of the Wa-"

The channel changed, to a screaming, raving, Giant. Meg briefly wondered what the Wizard had been about to say- but as the Giant screamed again, her attention was turned.

"It's Them, Harry!", screamed Alex Jones, and slammed his hand against the table. "I always knew there was a secret organization lurking under the surface of the world, waiting to strike, and this just proves it! It proves it! You too, Colt!"

Alex pointed accusingly at both a Barbarian and a Colt, who stared at each other in mild fear. Neither of them had any idea what to say in the face of pure insanity.

"Or it's a Dragon!", shouted Alex Jones, and felt his heart jump. "A huge Dragon, who's gonna-"

Meg groaned, and flicked off the TV. She no longer had any desire to watch anything on TV- not when they were just going to spread doom and gloom like that.

"Brenda?", she asked, and felt a mysterious feeling begin to rise within her. It was not something that she was quite able to place, but she felt its strong hold on her, sure as night.

Brenda had been having a bit of a dream, but the sound of Meg's words was strong enough to break through her sleep. With a burst of movement she awoke, and looked up at Meg.

"Huh?", she asked, and blinked. She cleared the sleep from her eyes with a quick movement, and adjusted herself to a sitting position. "Whassat?"
"I can't sleep.", Meg said, and sighed. She made some gesture towards the TV, but it didn't really mean anything. "I've tried watching TV, I've tried singing myself to sleep… I've tried everything."

Yep, two is everything, thought Brenda, but she did not say it. Instead, she just leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Meg, putting the Musketeer's head on her shoulder. "Well, have you tried lying on my chest and listening to me breathe until you fall asleep?"
"Yes.", said Meg flatly, though not without affection. She rubbed her forehead, trying to get the pain to subside. "I did. I almost fell asleep too, until you rolled over."
"Oh.", said Brenda, and thought for a moment. "Sorry, Nutmeg-"

Then the answer was upon her, and she snapped her fingers. A long, checkered arm appeared behind her, and started to move its fingers towards Meg's head. Brenda grinned, and gently elbowed Meg in the side. "What if I just get the Phantom to-"

"It's not that, Brenda.", said Meg, and a single tear ran its way down her face. The arm of the Phantom held, sensing that he still might be of assistance. Brenda just stared, wondering how to help Meg. "There's… there's something on my mind."

"I see.", said Brenda, and once again moved forward. She wrapped her arms around Meg in a hug. "Well, tell me what it is."

"That's just the thing…", said Meg, and frowned again. Her fingers began to shake, as she tried and failed to grab her glasses from the side of the bed. "I'm not quite sure what it is. Only that it hurts, and it's in my head, but it's not a headache. I have a weird, aching thought, and I'm trying to figure out what it is. "

"Hmm.", said Brenda, once again putting her mind to work. She had to figure out what it was. "Well, what if we were to-"

"I want to go out to the shooting range, Brenda.", said Meg, being unusually assertive. The words were echoed in her Stand behind her, as the blue slowly turned darker and more intense, almost a shade of green. "In the Training Camp out back."

Brenda nodded, and began to get up- it was not what she had expected Meg to say, but she supposed it was fine anyway. "Well, let's go then. You might want to put on some clothes, Nutmeg- can't go around in just a nightdress."

"I already did, Brenda.", said Meg, standing up from the bed in her full uniform. Brenda stared, suspecting that Meg had been planning this for quite a while.

"Ah.", said Brenda, and Dashed over to her closet for some spare uniforms. "Alright then, wait just a second. I'll be ready in a touch."

Oticat spun around in a crazed circle, grabbing entire handfuls of Gold from just one of the many, many Loot Carts in the room and throwing it in all directions. A vertibable train of them led out of the main entryway, far out back, and vanishing into the woods beyond. It was a miracle that a ton of Goblins had not shown up already- but no one was thinking that, save Brenda as she and Meg slowly, silently, snuck through the back of the chambers and out the door.

"We're rich, Max!", Oticat screamed, his eyes bulging from the sight of the unimaginable Gold. "This is rich beyond our wildest dreams! We'll never have to worry about anything ever again!"

The screaming of his cash-induced ecstasy quickly traveled throughout the castle, echoing off the halls, and trickling into the bedrooms of many Troops. Some of them started to stir, the distinctive smell of vast amounts of Gold wafting into the noses of the Goblins.

"Er, sir-", said Max, but Oticat was only half listening. He continued to spin, spraying Gold every which way, landing in the far cracks of the room. His eyes were alight with the comfort that only true financial security could bring, his merry, booming laugher filling the halls.

"Sir?", asked Max, and this time Oticat could bring himself to listen. "Yes?", he asked, after ever so slowly spinning to a stop. "What is it, Max?"
"That Builder said it was one of our own Troops who caused this.", said Max, his own mind racing. "Now who could have possibly destroyed that many War Bases? Who could possibly even be over there-"

For a second, they both fell silent. Their minds had automatically sifted through the possible knowledge available to them, both of them finding a conclusion they found equally correct.

Dan, thought Max, in awe of what Dan must have been doing over there to cause such immense amounts of destruction. Oticat, meanwhile, was thinking about what kind of sandwich he wanted to make fist. His options were now practically unlimited with that much Gold.

"Well, what are we waiting for?", asked Oticat, and threw up his hands. "Call everyone! Get them down here! It's upgrade time!"

Max bowed, and swiftly retreated. He looked for the stairs to upstairs, the best way to talk all at once. Oticat cast a greedy look all over the pile of Gold that new practically made up the room- 30 feet in all directions. He had no idea where to even start, only feeling the desire to grab it all and keep it for himself -but that thought was quickly subdued.

"Meg…", he said, and held is finger over a button that he had summoned upon setting up his keys. "I know you haven't been upgraded for a while. So how about now?"

Song: Virtuous Pope

The atmosphere of Training Camp, particularly at night, was one of total peace, The very last vestiges of the sun were just barely visible along the horizon, tinting some spots on the ground rather randomly with red, orange, green, and blue. Some Goblins were hovered in the area, endlessly ready to grant the Troops who came whatever they needed. As Meg and Brenda stepped down from the small field behind and around the Castle, and left the wooded cosp, they entered the Training Camp proper. Neither set of towers were up or running- it was too late for that ,and Oticat currently had no interest in a Training match. One could see the robotic trainer standing in his tower, his robotic troops unable to move unless attacked.

"Well, we're here.", said Brenda, and sighed. She looked out towards the range- and saw the icy sphere on legs that was Randy, dancing around on the grass without a care in the world.

"Oh, hey Randy.", she said, and they both gave a little wave. Randy waved back- but he said nothing. Because he was an Ice Spirit.

Brenda looked up at the moon, seeing the wonderful shade of purple, and wondered just who else was looking up at it that night. It brought her peace- but that was quickly shattered, as she remembered that Meg was currently still upset. So Brenda put her arms around Meg's shoulder, and whispered into her ear. "So, are you just here to shoot? Or should we-"
"Just here to shoot, Brenda.", said Meg, her hands still shaking. She had no idea how to tell what was on her mind to Brenda- but little did she know, Brenda too had something she ached to tell Meg. "Nothing really such that more."

"Suit yourself.", said Brenda, and grabbed Meg by the back of the head. A quick Dash to the right place later, and Brenda sat down. She did not want to tire out her legs, just in case.

"There you go, honey.", said Brenda, and gave Max a little kiss ont he cheek. "Don't worry, I'm just going to be here. Wake me up if you need me."

"Well, of course I'm going to need you.", said Meg, and rolled her eyes. ""You always help. With whatever."

Brenda nodded, and stood back up. She put her hand on Meg's head, as the Musketeer knelt down with serious intensity. She raised her gun to her chest, took careful aim at the target many steps away, and fired.

The shot rang out, disturbing the cool quiet night air. The Goblin that had been right next to the target jumped, adjusted his targeting glasses, and ran over to see the mark. It was his job to call out where exactly the epicenter of the target had hit, and this was no exception.

He walked around it a few times ,and Meg found herself unconsciously clenching her knees onto the ground. She had gotten better with her aim but… was she good enough for this? She had no idea until the Goblin threw his hands into the air. "Outer Ring."

Brenda frowned, and reached out to try and console Meg. But the opposite effect took place, Meg almost bristling at the touch. "I'm fine, I'm fine.", she said, and huffed her air out of hr face. She quickly reloaded another shot, and took aim. "You don't need to worry about me."

Before Brenda could even respond, Meg raised her Stand once more. She spun around and shot it right at a wagon- this one came closer. According to the Goblin, that shot was in the medium ring. Meg scowled and blew the smoke off her gun, intent on reloading.

But as Brenda watched her, she knew there was something she had to talk to her about. It had been bugging at the back of her mind for almost a week now, and she could not take it any longer. She swallowed ,and built up her words.

"Hey, uuh…. Meg?", she asked, and Meg looked up. "You remember when… we first met, right?"
"Yes.", said Meg, her eyes a little softer. Her shot was a little more accurate as well- but no one noticed that. "I do...what about it?"

Brenda started to say something, but knew she could not keep her emotions bottled up inside anymore. She pitched forward right as Meg shot her shot, landing right on top of her and bursting into tears. "I'm- I'm sorry…"

"What?", asked Meg, in utter shock. She had no idea why Brenda was collapsing into her chest, had no idea why her strong confident girlfriend of nearly four weeks was crying. "What-"

Brenda almost pushed Meg to the ground, but she was able to keep her footing, just barely. Her words came out quickly, spilling out of her like a fountain, almost as if she struggled to even keep them in her mind. "I'm sorry for taking advantage of you and I'm sorry for ruining what life you could have had and I'm sorry for not teaching you what I-"
"Woah, woah, slow down.", Meg said, her fingers shaking their way through Brenda's hair. "Slow down, be quiet, and tell me what's wrong. Exactly."

Brenda nodded, and sat up. She straightened her hair, smoothed down her uniform, looked Meg dead in the eyes, and spoke.

"When I first found you…", said Brenda trying and mostly succeeding, although it was hard, to keep control of herself. "You were just a kid, really. You had just left that Red Castle, just been saved from whatever awful things they were doing in there, and… I just snatched you up. You didn't even really have time to look around for anyone else, I just saw you and took you. You were underage, Meg! You might even be underage now! Frick."

Brenda took a moment to breathe, before continuing into her rant about herself. "And then you just had to end up with me, didn't you? You had to get snatched up by the worst predator in the woods."

Brenda looked up again, and almost burst into tears once more. "I'm sorry, Meg. I shouldn't- I shouldn't have made you this way. It's my fault."

Meg stared at Brenda, her eyes wide open in shock. "Wha-", she stammered, and tried to speak. "Brenda... "

She lifted up Brenda by the chin, staring into her eyes. Worry and love were reflected upon her face in equal measures. "Brenda, what in Clash are you talking about?"

"I"m a terrible person.", said Brenda, and looked down at the ground. A tear dripped from her face, splashing into the dirt. "And we both know it."

Meg blinked, and grabbed her cloak. She intertwined it with Brenda's, letting her thief's head fall onto her lap. Usually it was the other way around, but she supposed that this time it was Brenda that needed the help. "Brenda, what are you even saying? You're the best person I know."

"No…", Brenda whined, and pushed her face into Meg's legs. "You heard what I said. I didn't let you have your own life. I just took you, and kept you, and-"

"No, no, don't say that.", said Meg, and gently rubbed the back of Brenda's head. She made sure to get her ears as well, for maximum comfort. "Brenda, you mean the world to me. And you know it. Besides what you think you did, which you didn't, by the way- you saved my life- what do you think makes you a terrible person?"

Brenda opened her mouth to speak, and closed it again. Her mind tried to find things to say, but she was at a total loss for words. She stared at Meg, knowing that she couldn't just say "I didn't let you live your life." Because at Meg's words, she knew. She knew that Meg hadn't had a life before that day. Her entire real experience in the world had been with Brenda.

"I'm…. super possessive?", she said, not sure why she was trying to put herself down. Perhaps she had just been happy for so long that she needed to be sad a bit.

"No, you're protective.", said Meg, and rocked back and forth. "There's a difference."
"Well then, I don't let you do things.", said Brenda, even thought she knew it wasn't true.

"That's just rephrasing it.", said Meg, and tapped Brenda on the side of the head. "Silly."
Brenda tried to say something else- but she knew that she could not. How could she? Meg was right. She had no idea what she had been saying.

"Brenda…", said Meg, and let Brenda sit up. It was her turn now to lay down, in the green-cloaked lap of her thief. "Now that we're here discussing our inner feelings and all, there's something I need to tell you."

"You can tell me, Nutmeg.", said Brenda, and gently stroked her hair, just as she had done. "Tell me everything. You get to."
Meg's hand slowly reached into her pocket, not bothering to speak. She fished around in it for a few seconds, until she withdrew a single piece of dirtied cloth, clearly aged. It must have had been in her pocket for quite a while- Brenda wondered why she had never seen it before. Then it occurred to her that it must have been with Meg even though uniform changes- it clearly meant a lot. What was it?
Her question was answered when Meg put her hands up, unfolded the cloth, and let Brenda see. A shock of pain shot through her heart as she realized just what is said.

"For-", Meg said, reading off of it. Her throat caught on the next word, and she was unable to continue- but Brenda could still read what it said. For Boys only. Girls, no touch.

"They… they made me wear this. Around the Castle, all day.", said Meg, her words once again catching. She tried her best not to cry, but it was a losing effort, as the tears dripped down her face. "As soon as they found out that…"

"Meg…", Brenda said, and hugged her tight. "I'm… I'm sorry. I had no idea."

"Don't be sorry.", said Meg, reciting her famous phrase. "You didn't do anything wrong."

She took a breath, and began again. "They wouldn't let me have anything there. They let everyone else indulge in their desires- everyone but me. Why me?"

She looked upwards to the skies, and began to sob, unable to control her emotions. "I never did anything wrong. Not to a single one of them- and they all hated me."

Well, except for Bailey, I guess, she thought, at the back of her mind. I wonder what happened to her…

Brenda, ever so slowly, ran her fingers across Meg's face. The two just lay there on the still night grass, watching the stars, feeling the chilled winds go by. "Meg… of course they hated you. Because they were Red. They were evil, and you weren't. Evil hates good, and that's why they didn't like you."

Meg allowed that thought to enter her mind, swirling in and around her like a burst of cool air, and she opened her eyes. She had never really thought of it that way before- it was refreshing. But then again, that was one of the reasons she loved Brenda so much. Her unique perspective on life, always able to dispense advice. "But you l-"
"Meg, of course I like you.", said Brenda, and smiled. "Silly."

Meg closed her eyes again, and allowed herself to fall onto Brenda's lap with a smile. "I guess I'm just trying to say… I love you. I always have, from the moment that we met. And regardless of anybody trying to ruin that… no matter what they have to say… it's real. Our love. Even if we're both girls, even if you're Blue and I was Red, no matter what."

Brenda, realizing something, looked straight up into the sky. She sent a message to anyone that might be watching- Meg was technically young, yes, but it worked extremely differently for Troops than "Normal" people. Phedophilia was, and is, never okay, and anyone who acts upon such urges deserves to stand under a Rocket.

"I love you too, Meg.", said Brenda once she was done, and sat up. She held Brenda's torso in her arms- then looked towards her Stand. The glow it was emitting was… different. Something that was far brighter and stronger than she was used to, a different level of charge. "Now let's see if you can't hit that target."

Song: The Wonder of You

"The- the target?", asked Meg, in surprise. She picked up her gun- but just held it there, not shooting. "But- you saw that I couldn't hit it. Just a few minutes ago."

"Yeah.", said Brenda, and shrugged. "But that was before, my musky. Before we just talked. I think you could hit it now."

Meg bit her lip nervously, and ran her fingers up and down her gun. She stared at the target, so far away- and so fuzzy. Meg mentally slapped her forehead as she realized she had forgotten her glasses. "I forgot my glasses…", she muttered, and stared down at the ground. "There's even less of no way now."

"No, no, don't be thinking like that on me.", said Brenda, and put her fingers on Meg's shoulderblades. Meg jumped a bit, feeling her skin grow goosebumps. "You don't need your glasses. You just need your Stand, and yourself. Come on. Do it."

"I-", Meg said, and stammered. Her fingers shook- but not as much as they had been. "I can't do it. No way. There's no way I could-"

She felt Brenda's fingers grab her cheeks, and Meg was afraid she was about to get yelled at. Brenda had never yelled at her before, but there was a first time for everything, right? Even though it had been a while, Meg still feared that-

But those thoughts were shattered as Brenda turned Meg around, landing a kiss right on her lips. She let them stay together for 8 long seconds, before breaking it off and giving Meg a little honk on the nose. "No excuses, Meg.", she said, and winked. "There's a target there. Hit that thing."

Meg sniffed with emotion, and whipped her head around. She raised her gun, feeling the power of her Stand flow through her. She put one finger on the trigger, aimed as best as she was able, and began to pull. "Yes, ma'am."

But the she felt something telling her not to aim with her eyes- but to aim with something beyond. My heart, she asked, but the thought told her no. It came to her- she was to close her eyes completely, and aim with her very soul. So she squared her body, focused her entire being into the shot- and lit up with a dazzling blue light that shone like a midnight sun.

Brenda stared at the bright light, The Phantom producing a pair of sunglasses from her pocket and putting them on. Brenda stared through them, at what Meg had become.

Randy looked at the brilliant illumination- and giggled to himself. No one knew what was going on in that head of his- and he would not say. He could not. Because he was an Ice Spirit.

Meg opened her eyes again, the light pouring out from then as well. With a lightning fast motion, she pulled down on the trigger, the bullet shooting out in a blast that rivaled a Sparky's shot. Twisting and turning, it tore through the air like a knife, ripping all the way through the target and landing burrowed 15 feet in the ground on the raised other side.

The Goblin that had been next to the target raised his hand, signaling a 1. "Perfect…", he said woozily, and fainted dead away. "Perfect score. Straight through the middle, bullseye, congratulations Meg."

As the Goblin continued to sleep-talk, Meg's eyes once again began to tear up. But these were not tears of sorrow- they were tears of pure joy. She had done it. She had shot the target clean through, accurately, for the first time in her life.

"Meg, do it again!", said Brenda, her face glowing with excitement. She pointed towards another target, right next to the one that had been shot. "Shoot again!"
Meg was not quite sure at first- then she grit her teeth, swung her Stand around her body, and aimed right at the second target. There was a pulled trigger, a flash of light- and another target down, fallen to bits from the force of the blast. Meg stared in wonder, but not waiting a bit as she fired a third blast, smashing apart the third target within a single second.

Brenda put her hands to her mask, pulling down on the tough skin in amazement. Meg's hands flew to her nose, and the tears started to flow faster, cleaner, more beloved. She found herself pulsing with a strange, magical energy- but hether it was from Brenda, the Stand, or the green light of an upgrade that suddenly flowed around her body, she did not know.

"What-", she said, suddenly noticing what had just happened. "An upgrade?"

She looked down at her clothes, noting her level patch on her shoulder. Her heart very nearly stopped as she saw that it had jumped dramatically- from a mere level 9 to a mighty level 13. Her helmet glowed as well, the Star Level turning the silver metal a burnished gold.

Brenda had no such glow- she was already as high level as she could be. But another blue and gold flash came from across the clearing, as Randy was suddenly maxed out as well. There wer more and more, as even the Goblins were leveled up.

"What-", she gasped again, utterly confused. "What's going on?"

Brenda Dashed forward and grabbed Meg around the waist, lifting her up into the air and giving her another huge kiss. "Meg, who cares what's happening?", she cried, and hugged even tighter. "You did it, dearest. Your hands didn't even shake once."
"My- my hands?", Meg asked, and looked down in surprise. Normally, upon such a momentous occasion, with so much going on, her hands would be all aflutter- but not this time. No, this time, they were perfectly still. "Oh. My… my hands."

Meg looked up, a still mist coming off her body. A vein of previously hidden, raw confidence surged outward from her, and she clenched her fist. "I did it. Oh my goodness."

Brenda continued to hug her, and turned towards the castle. Even now they could see flashes of green and gold coming from Oticat's chambers, from his mad spree of continuous windfall-induced upgrading. The shouts echoed outwards, almost concealing the sounds of something else approaching from the opposite direction.

"You did.", said Brenda, seeing Randy run towards something out of the corner of her eye. She looked at Meg slyly, feeling her chest and arms heat up. "Now, we should probably go back… and do something else-"

Her words were interrupted with a vast gust of wind that tore from the opposite direction, almost knocking them both off their feet. Both of them spun around- to see a man standing on the far hill, staring at them with an air of sheer confidence that could break mountains, adjusting his cybernetic eye.

Song: Propaganda- Simpsonill

Behind the man, who they could now see was some sort of Wizard, was a vast army, unlike anything they or the continent had ever, ever seen. Huge scores of Goblins milled about raindrops in a lake, every single type of weapon at their ready. A great clatter arose from their number that almost sounded like rushing wind, as deafening as it was chaotic.

Among the Goblins marched dignified columns of exotic Troops, decorated and powerful beyond belief. Pekkas with electric swords stood alongside Giants with fists of stone. Wizards that glowed with mysterious purple light floated in midair, right next to Minions that glowed a bright, toxic green. Barbarians with muscles like steel and mullets flowing in the wind intermingled with Archers that held bows of flame, sparking all across their entire body.

Executioners, axes floating and gloating above their head, stood next to Mega Knights with fists of melded steel, and bodies of glowing light. Immense fleets of Lava Hounds and parades of Balloons floated overhead, each packed to the brim with multi colored Skeletons, swords aplenty in either or both hands. Truly gargantuan Golems with spikes the size of entire lesser Golems stood stone still, the ground almost seeming to collapse underneath their intense weight. A few Magic Archers hovered above the army of legends, mystical threads connecting their communications.

But the army was not just Royale Troops- no, far stranger things were within their number. Huge, terrifying Adult Electro Dragons circled overhead, the very sky crackling with thunder around their mighty bodies. All manner of Heroes stood in a line right behind Askari the 15th, their Skins glowing beneath the purple moon. Orfox stood among them, talking and laughing with another Barbarian King. They both wore the skin of the Pekka, bumping fists on occasion. So much power was arrayed in the front line that it illuminated the hill and Training Camp below- and yet, that was only the very beginning of the army.

Next to the Heroes and Askari were the armies from far off lands, not even from the twin Continents of Clash. Hundreds of Brawlers milled about, their skins shining almost as brightly as the heroes. Everything from Shellys standing backwards in the army line, unsure of what to do, to Gold Mecha Crows hovering expertly in midair looked down upon the Camp. No one below had ever seen that many Brawlers in one place before- they had only seen some, then and again. It was a mind-boggling sight for both Meg and Brenda- but not, of course, for Randy. He had been rushing at the army, intent on attacking- but that turned to a jolly skip once he saw Askari. He bounded up at heightened speed- past the still assembling army of legends.

Troops from the Boom Beaches and the faraway Rushlands were also rallied upon the hill line, bizarre Cryoneers and Grenadiers taking places alongside Pitchers and B. . They had never been to a place like Royale before, and were looking around in total confusion. But they too had a job to do, and didn't let themselves get too distracted.

Behind the regular Troops and Brawlers were other things, things that most people didn't even know existed. As a group of Tanks and Heavies parted, an entire tribe of Great Apes bounced up onto the hill, hooting and hollering for all they were worth. Ape Lord Kragonbrock stood at the front, a smile on his ancient lips, staring up at the majestic castle. He beat his chest once, and the entire army replied with a shout, spreading across the battle line.

Askari the 14th stood next to his elite warriors, as they posed for all they worth, a pure aura of fabulousness lighting up the night and heating up the grass below. He cast a look at his son- they both wanted to make sure that everything was absolutely ready before they picked up their final reinforcements.

Askari took another look at the Camp, noticing the Musketeer and Bandit that stood down below, in defensive positions. He thought it was only natural- he supposed that his army appeared absolutely terrifying to anyone facing it down. He only hoped it would be that way to Rakastamos. He thought about ordering someone to escort the two away- until his radar beeped. His eyes widened in shock- they were both Stand users. His plan would have to change then- get them into the army as quickly as he could.

Askari felt something run up right next to him, and he looked down. His stern face became a friendly grin, as the all too familiar face of Randy beamed up at him from down below.

"Why, Randy!", said Askari, and bent down. He gave Randy an icy high five, then stood back. "It's a pleasure to see you here, old friend."

Randy nodded, and took his place beside Askari. But he said nothing- because he was an Ice Spirit. Askari looked around- all things were in place. It was time for him to speak with Oticat.

"Hey!", he heard from down below. The Bandit stood with her finger pointed out, right at him. "Who the frick are you? Identify yourself, Wizard!"

Askari sighed, and concentrated. With a cry of alarm from his front line, he vanished- and reappeared with an impressive burst of effects right in front Brenda. She and Meg both jumped back, as Askari took another step forward. He supposed he did look intimidating,

"Do not be alarmed, Stand users.", he said politely, and offered his hand. "My name is Askari the 15th, great protector of the world. This is my army- for, as you may have guessed, the world needs protecting."

Meg stared for a few seconds, before croaking out a single word. "Wh… what?"

"Oh, I'll explain it later.", said Askari ,and shook his head. He pointed up towards the castle, right at Oticat's chambers. The light was still on, but the flashes and shouts had stopped- Oticat had presumably noticed what was going on. "I need to speak with your King. All of you are coming with us."

"Wait, what?", Brenda snapped, the bladed hand of The Phantom appearing behind her. "What do you mean we're coming with you? We don't even know-"

"Excuse me for one second.", said Askari, and tapped the side of his head. It was his father on the line, with some last minute questions.

"What?", he asked, and scowled. "No, I don't know where Chuqualita is right now. She is notoriously difficult to track. And I don't really know if she's coming with us- I hope. That would be rather nice, to have her on our side."

He listened for a few more seconds, and frowned in thought. "Why no, I don't really know where they are. Or even if they're coming at all. But they, too, would be most useful."

He looked up again, and ended the call. "Anyway, your friends are already on their way. Would you like to help them with their quest, or are you just going to stand around gawking all night?"

"Our… friends?", Meg asked, her head spinning. She held tighter on to Brenda- it was all going too fast for her. "Do you mean-"

"Yes, I do.", said Askari and listed the names he had heard. "Brandy the Bandit. Dan the Mega Knight. Leon the… Leon. Trevor the Barbarian. Annabelle the Archer. And Bubble, the unknown."

Brenda just stared, trying to make sense of everything, but she was having no more luck than Meg. She had always been wise and wordly, but this was far too much, all at once. "Uh-"

"And I see that the Gold was delivered here by my instructions.", he said, taking a look at Meg's shoulder patch. "That's nice- wouldn't want you fighting against a Dragonlord's army underleveled now would we?"

"A- a what?", asked Meg, and almost began to cry. Her face heated up with sheer confusion, totally unable to cope. The army, the man, the news- she was about to shut down.

Askari almost began to explain- when the door creaked open, to reveal both Oticat and Spacekrakenx, staring in confusion and absolute wonder.

"Who are you?", aksed Oticat, and pointed at Askari. "What is that?", he asked, and pointed at the army. "What are you all doing on my property?", he asked, and pointed at himself.

But Spacekrakenx already knew, for he was wise beyond most Kings. His hand had already gone to his forehead in a formal salute, his chest bursting with pride. "Askari, sir.", he said, and gave a bow. "It is an honor to serve you. We will do whatever we can."
"Good, good.", said Askari, and motioned. Spacekrakenx got up, and Askari smiled. "We will leave very soon, so tell everyone to get ready."

"Wait, what?", asked Oticat, as Spacekrakenx ran back inside. "Space, you- you know this guy?"

"Well, of course.", said Askari, and let loose with a deep, hearty laugh that echoed across the night. "Your friend is wiser than most. And as for what we're doing… well…"

He snapped his fingers, and looked towards the Continent of the Clans, far to the east. "There is a Dragonlord named Rakastamos. He plans to wipe out all mortal life besides Dragons, in not very long at all. We're all going to stop him. And yes, due to your involvement with some truly remarkable individuals, you have to come."

He made a motion, and teleported back. Oticat stared at the indescribable army that was still assembling on the horizon, and felt his mind break a bit. Everything was far beyond anything he had imagined now- but that, he supposed, was life. And as he prepared himself to head inside and get all his troops, he could not help but feel terrified at whatever was coming next.

Get ready, guys, he thought, as he rushed back through the door. I don't know what's coming, but… it's going to be big.

Brandy felt something stir, deep within her unconscious mind. It was a warning, and a vision. It came with both the sweet breath of life, and the dark smell of death. It whirled around within her, as a poem in her brain,

Through darkest paths and highest peaks,

The warriors travel, and deities sleep.

Through blackred anger and purple rage,

With light and love and bliss and age

Night falls harsh over the ancient land,

Crushed to bits by destiny's hand.

The light conspires, the time soars higher,

Until all is consumed in blazing fire.

The child runs through mountainous lands,

The grace of silver in her hands.

But even as the world shall burn,

Perhaps fate and life, can they turn?

The forces that were brought together,

By some chance, through the aether.

To fight, to burn, to clash, almost,

All in the strength of almighty Rakastamos.

The world spinning, towards its grave,

For the mortals, one day to save.

In doom or destiny will they lay,

At the dawn of the Final Day.