Author's Note:
So yeah, as you can tell, this is a two-parter. I could've packed everything in just one big fat chapter...but that obviously would've been too much work. Don't wanna be overworked while writing fanfiction, you know what I mean? Cramming everything in one chapter would be no bueno. Let's answer some reviews:
"Next week? Does that mean there'll be no Pokemon Snap chapter? I'm sad, but if that means we're getting a two-parter to end this ARP saga, I'm all for it."
I gave some thought to doing a Pokemon Snap chapter, but I didn't know how to go about writing it. So no Pokemon Snap, I'm afraid. Another anonymous review:
"I was rereading old chapters and I saw a old review you answered but never talked about again...in honor of the person who originally asked it, I REQUEST YOU DO A CHAPTER ABOUT THE YARN/ CRAFTED GAMES. WE NEED MORE YARN YOSHI AND PRINCE FLUFF. THANK YOU"
Ah yes, the yarn/crafted games! Loved playing Kirby's Epic Yarn and Yoshi's Wolly World. I'll give those games some love soon, hopefully. On to The Reader:
"So...this is an adaptation of The Delivery? I know that episode is REALLY long, and there are some scenes that needed to be cut (like Falco destroying Fox's house due to mold, or maybe having him and Katt sign a baby contract) which I understand, but I'm still kinda disappointed that you don't include the scene where Mario (or Wolf, his absence in this episode was surprising) tried to pair Kairi with Waluigi (or someone worse), and of course, Sora being jealous."
The Office episode? In a way, yes. For the sake of story progression, some scenes had to be forfeited. Unfortunately, I had no room for Wolf or anyone else from Star Wolf in the previous chapter. And we'll finish things off, with A JRPG enjoyer's review:
"I think I forgot to say this during the Trails episode, but do you think you can have Rean interacts with the Byleths? Both of them are professors, both of them are pretty young for their job, and both of them have a sudden change of hair in the timeskip."
Of course! Rean was meant to cross paths with the Byleths in the Trails chapter, but that sadly never came to fruition. Rean and the Byleths will meet later this year.
Episode 280: Revival Part 1
A week has passed, and Fox and Krystal's newborn son, Marcus, was now a week old. Fox felt like he was over the moon since the last episode, as he finally got his chance to be a father. And as for Falco being a godfather...Krystal nipped that one in the bud.
When Fox and Krystal returned from the hospital the next day after Marcus was born, they were greeted with words of congratulations from mansion residents and tower denizens alike. Heck, Master Hand even tried to assemble everyone outside and have them admire Marcus, but fortunately, Cloud stopped that from happening. Any great deal of attention for Marcus would've been very unsatisfying to Krystal.
Now that he had Marcus to care for at his own home, Fox planned on teaching his baby boy his ways. While Krystal handled all the breastfeeding and the nurturing, Fox promised to handle "everything else". Whatever the pilot meant by that was very ambiguous, and it left Krystal worried. Not just for her husband...but her newborn son.
"Alright, Marcus - today is the start of your career as a space pilot," Fox said to Marcus, who was sitting in a high chair, as an amused Krystal watched from the living room. Krystal did her best not to laugh. "Now, what is the name of the gun that space pilots - such as yours truly - like to use?"
"Goo goo gah gah!" Marcus said in his native baby speak, as he happily clapped his hands together. The little fella had no idea of what was going on - and that didn't matter to Fox one bit.
"That's right! It's called the Blaster." Fox took out his Blaster and held it to Marcus, allowing his son to touch it. "Yeah, touch it...let its greatness rub off on you."
"You are such a trip, Fox," Krystal shook her head at her husband, as she couldn't help but smile at Fox's shenanigans. Her exuberance was pretty hard to wipe off her face. "Don't let Marcus hurt you with your Blaster, okay?"
"Oh please...Marcus is too young to even hurt a fly." Eventually, Marcus pulled on the trigger of the Blaster, and it fired a laser in Fox's face. Fox dropped the Blaster, holding his face in pain. "OUCH! Watch where you're firing that thing, Marcus..."
"Looks to me like he did that by accident." The sound of the doorbell ringing was heard, and it was a sound too familiar for Krystal as the vixen sighed. "Don't tell me he's back here again..."
Groaning mightily, Krystal went ahead and answered the front door. As expected, she saw Falco on the doorstep, eager to see Marcus...but what she did not expect was seeing Moira, standing a close distance behind Falco.
"How's my favorite baby doing today?" Falco asked Krystal, who felt partially relieved from the avian pilot's presence partly due to Moira. "Still on his best behavior, I assume?"
"Your 'favorite baby' almost shot me in the eye," Fox informed Falco, as he was still dealing with the pain. Had to massage the crown of his nose. "My eyes aren't cheap, Marcus!"
"Leave him alone, Fox, he didn't mean it," Krystal said to her husband, before bringing her attention back to Falco. "Did you come here just to see the baby, Falco? If so, then you can go back home...your work here is done."
"That's not all Mr. Lombardi cam here for," Moira told Krystal as she approached the front door, brushing Falco to the side. "I don't believe we've ever met, have we?"
"I don't think so..." Krystal got a good look at Moira, and she felt like she knew the geneticist by name. "...you must be Moira O'Deorian. Fox has told me stories about you."
"Yes, yes...good stories, I presume." Moira looked past Krystal and gave Fox a stern look that almost shook the pilot to his core. "Nothing negative, I hope."
"Is it time to complete the final part of the Aerith Revival Project?" Fox asked Moira, who nodded her head in confirmation. Fox clapped his hands together, expressing his excitement in his mission. "Today is the day..."
Fox: Last Friday, I was responsible for bringing life to his earth. This week, I'll be bringing life back to this earth. Double duty.
"Today is the day for what?" Krystal asked Fox, confused as to what Fox meant as she looked around in mild concern. "Miss O'Deorian, what is this 'final part' of the project?"
"Fox and Falco will be going back in time to retrieve a DNA sample from Aerith Gainsborough," Moira explained to Krystal, having been under the assumption that Fox filled the vixen in on the time-traveling stuff. "Should be a safe mission, if all goes well."
"Fox? Time-traveling? With Falco? Oh..." Judging by her response, Krystal was out of the loop about Fox going back in time. And she was also worried about him doing it with Falco.
"It'll be alright, babe - Moira and Dr. N. Tropy got this under control," Fox assured Krystal while having a huge amount of confidence in the latter scientist. "This mission will be airtight."
"But what if it goes wrong?" Krystal put her hands on Fox, letting her husband know just how concerned she was. "You'll be going back in time with a time machine, right? What if the time machine acts faulty, and..."
"Now you're just being paranoid." Fox gently took Krystal's hands off his chest, as he gave his wife as much confidence as he could. "As I said, it'll be alright! Have some optimism."
"Yeah, don't let the post-pregnancy depression get to you!" Falco encouraged Krystal, who responded with a vicious death glare. Falco looked away, whistling innocently and scratching the back of his head.
"If I make it back to the present times alive, I'll let you be the first to know. I promise." Fox gave Krystal her full assurance, looking at the vixen straight in the eye with every iota of confidence that he had. "I got this under control."
"Just remember who you're leaving behind..." Krystal said to Fox, as he brought the pilot's attention to Marcus. Marcus was holding Fox's Blaster, giggling happily as he messed around with it.
"Hey, you leave that lone you hear?!" Fox snapped on Marcus as he snatched his Blaster away from his son. Marcus did not appreciate it one bit, as he went into a crying fit that almost made Fox feel bad.
"Already making your newborn cry, I see," Moira smirked at Fox, who was doing everything he could to make Marcus stop crying. "Dr. N. Tropy and I will be waiting for you at the mansion, Fox. Take your time, if you must."
"Take good care of him..." Krystal pleaded to Moira, worried about Fox's safety; Falco slowly furrowed his brow at Krystal, refusing to be left out. "...oh, and take care of Falco too, I guess."
It was hard to believe, but today was Aerith's last day at the mansion. Her second stay was coming to an end. The flower girl had lived at the mansion for four months, since the start of the new year, and she got to hang out with the people that she considered her fellow residents. Even better, Tifa, Baret, and Marlene joined the mansion in early January, which made Aerith's second stay all the more special.
According to Cloud, Aerith wouldn't be returning to her universe until after dinner. That gave the flower girl more than enough time to do some last-minute things, say a few goodbyes, or even give Master Hand the foot massage that he always wanted. (Good luck with that...) Or even check out a few flowers in the mansion's front yard, which she was doing now.
"Today's your last day in Seattle too, eh?" a certain explorer asked Aerith, who was picking out a few flowers. Aerith looked up and saw Peony, with his daughter Peonia standing next to him.
"Yes, I'll be heading back to Radiant Garden this evening," replied Aerith as she stood up, holding the flowers in her hand. "My second stay at the Smash Mansion was better than the first, I'll say."
"Glad to hear that you liked it! Say, what are those flowers you got in your hands?" Peony took a gander at the flowers, scratching his chin. He had his eyes fixated on the pink flower, which Aerith held up.
"Oh, just a few flowers that I want to bring with me back home, as a keepsake. This one that I'm holding is called a peony."
"Hey! That's my name! Peony!" Peony apparently didn't know that there was a flower that shared his name, from the looks of it.
"Peony is the name of the flower, dad..." Peonia said to Peony, who took the flower from Aerith and smelt it. The sweet, citrusy aroma of the flower was quite pleasing to Peony's nostrils.
"I knew that, Nia! I was, uh, just testin' to see if you knew yourself." Peony handed the flower back to Aerith, as the sweet aroma lingered in his nose.
Peonia: Thankfully, Dad has been more tolerable the last few months. He's way more open to doing my favorite hobbies with me, and I can actually laugh at his dad jokes now. His "jokes" were so lame, that I sometimes found myself questioning my own existence.
"Had a feeling you were outside," Cloud said to Aerith as he stepped down from the porch, seeing what the flower girl was up to. "Taking all the flowers for yourself, I assume? Make sure you leave some for us."
"I'll just take all the pretty flowers for myself..." responded Aerith, as she gave Cloud a playful nudge...then out of nowhere, Peony ran up to Cloud and hugged the swordsman, as he lifted him in the air.
"Uh, why are you hugging me like this?" Cloud questioned Peony as he felt creeped out - only because he and Peony weren't that close enough to warrant such an out-of-nowhere hug. If it was Barret who was hugging Cloud, it wouldn't feel as uncanny.
"I'm just giving you a farewell hug!" replied Peony, as Cloud struggled to free himself from Peony's grasp. The wiggle room was essentially nil. "Isn't this what friends do when they see each other off?"
"Stop it, Dad, you're hurting him," Peonia stressed to Peony, in an attempt to free Cloud from his constricting prison. Peony released his hold on Cloud, as he dropped the swordsman back on his feet.
"I think 'acquaintances is the best word to describe our relationship..." Cloud told Peony as he stretched out his arms to alleviate the cramps in his muscles. Peony was holding on real tight. "...though 'associates' might be more accurate."
"Peony! Peonia!" Mario called out to the explorer and his daughter, as he showed up with his car keys. Didn't lock his keys inside his house as he had done in the previous episode. "You two need a ride-a to the airport?"
"You bet!" replied Peony as he gave Mario a hearty smile. He and Peonia couldn't wait to head back home to Freezington. "All our belongings are packed up. We're ready to go whenever you are!"
"Have a safe trip to the airport, Mario," Cloud said to the plumber, mostly out of courtesy - and also safety. "Don't get a ticket like you did last time."
"No worries, Cloud, I've learned-a my lesson. And good-a luck with your secret..." Mario stopped talking when he realized that Aerith was outside. "...with-a your secret aerobics class! Keep putting in the good-a work!"
"Yeah, what he said - gotta stay fit!" Peony said to Cloud as he smacked the swordsman on his back...only for an important realization to cross his mind, as his face fell instantly. "Oh no, I forgot to pack my yoga mat!"
"You brought a yoga mat, seriously?" groaned Peonia, as she followed a rather frantic Peony to Mario's house. Mario followed after Peony to help him in his search for his...yoga mat.
"What is this I hear about a secret aerobics class?" Aerith asked Cloud as she gave the swordsman a sneering smile. Cloud was under pressure after Mario nearly outed his big secret. "Who's in this class?"
"Ryu, Ken, Akuma, Wii Fit Trainer...both of them," answered Cloud, thinking of a bunch of names on the fly. Mainly anyone who was either strong or athletic. "You know, the usual fit people."
"And where is Tifa in your class? She's pretty fit, don't you think?" Cloud mentally shot himself in the foot for not thinking of Tifa's name.
"She's...she's a holdover. Along with Barret. Would be a miracle if they joined."
Ryuji: H-Hello? Is this thing on? *points the camera at himself* Haha, there we go! What's up world, it's your boy, Ryuji Sakamoto! Got some pretty big news today. the Phantom Thieves (which includes yours truly) are going down to Mementos...the real Mementos. Not the miniature diet soda version that Joker and his pals built underneath the mansion. Surprisingly, Master Hand still doesn't know about it. That fraud. Anyway, we're gonna go down there, and together we're gonna...
Joker: *from afar* Ryuji, have you seen my knife? Don't tell me you "borrowed" it again without my permission!
Ryuji: But I asked Morgana this time, does that not count? *makes a nervous face as he looks at the camera* Sorry peeps, but I gotta go - don't want Joker an unhappy camper!
Yes, as Ryuji just said, the Phantom Thieves were going to Mementos. But they couldn't go there in their regular clothes, of course. They all had to dress up accordingly, in their Mementos costumes. Always important to look the part. Ryuji was with Yusuke and Morgana in the foyer, waiting on Ryuji to bring him his knife.
"Everything should hopefully go well," Joker said to Morgana and Yusuke while adjusting the red glove on his right hand. "Yusuke, did you send the calling card to Cloud?"
"Had the buddy cops deliver the card to Cloud," replied Yusuke; the Phantom Thieves couldn't go to Mementos without the calling card not being delivered. That was poor Phantom Thief protocol. "Since Cloud's their 'deputy sheriff' and all..."
"Deputy sheriff...what an insignificant title that is. Cloud must feel the same way." Soon Captain Falcon came down the stairs to the foyer, and he brought his girlfriend Nowi with him.
"And that, Nowi, is how I beat Waluigi in a game of arm wrestling!" Captain Falcon bragged to the half-Manakete, talking up his win as if Waluigi was Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield combined. Yet Nowi bought the racer's coasts unconditionally. "Nearly snapped his arm in half! I was so close..."
"You are so strong, Captain Falcon..." Nowi admired the racer, who was smiling proudly as his girlfriend patted him on his chest. Captain Falcon and Nowi came to a stop when they saw Joker and Yusuke all dressed up.
"Oh, dear...we've been spotted!" Yusuke fretted the very moment he saw Nowi; Nowi was staring at Joker and Yusuke's costumes, taking a great interest as she cocked her head to the side. "What if she sees through our disguises?"
"I think she already knows who you guys are..." responded Morgana, as Nowi's interest was starting to peak and boil over. "...might wanna back away."
"Your costumes...look AMAZING!" squealed Nowi, as she was unable to contain her excitement. The half-Manakate was sounding like an overexcited schoolgirl - and Captain Falcon couldn't be any more proud. "You two must be going to some big masquerade dance!"
"Um...not quite," affirmed Joker with a smile, before Nowi ran up to the young man and tried to pull off his mask. "Hey, what are you doing?! Let go!"
"Let me see your mask! I want to try it on!" Nowi kept pulling on Joker's mask, as Yusuke and Captain Falcon stepped in to pry the half-Manakete off of Joker. Thanks to a little elbow grease from Captain Falcon, Joker was soon free from Nowi's grasp.
"No, Nowi, Joker's mask is off-limits!" Captain Falcon said to his girlfriend after he pulled her away from Joker. "And so is Yusuke's." Nowi was now depressed, as she lowered her head in sadness.
"Oh, I see..." said Nowi, feeling apologetic as she looked to the side held her arm. "...I guess they really need them for the masquerade dance, huh?"
"Not quite. They need them for...traveling to Mementos. Which is a cool place where all the cool kids hang out!" Captain Falcon turned around and gave Joker and Yusuke a goofy smile and a thumbs up. Joker and Yusuke gave a thumbs up in return.
Captain Falcon: Would tell someone about Cloud's special project, but I have my own moral code. Just like an average cameraman from the documentary crew...I ain't no snitch.
"Well, maybe one day I'll get my own mask and join all the other cool kids," Nowi said to Captain Falcon, as she and the racer walked away. As Captain Falcon went down the hallway, the racer flashed an "OK" hand signal to Joker and Yusuke.
"Here...Joker...I got your knife," Ryuji said to the young man as he ran to the foyer, out of breath as he handed Joker his knife. "...pay no attention to the potato peelings."
"Duly noted..." mumbled Joker as he dusted the potato peelings off his knife. Who knows what else Ryuji used that knife for - Joker dared not to dwell his mind upon it. "...all there's left to do is wait on the ladies, I guess."
"They better hurry up; not like they're putting on makeup or anything," remarked Yusuke, not knowing when Cloud planned to enact his plan. Time was of the essence.
For the past couple of weeks, Ema Skye was working on something in the privacy of her room, with Tails and Coco. And no, it wasn't some ray gun, like the one she made for Organization XIII. Nobody knew what this thing was, not even Sonic and Crash...who were supposedly a part of Ema's initiative.
According to Ema, Sonic and Crash wouldn't be needed until later. But little did Ema know that there would be another person joining Sonic and Crash for whatever they had to accomplish. And Sonic wanted to formally introduce that person to Ema.
"Yo, Ema, open up!" Sonic called out to the forensics expert as he knocked on her bedroom door, as he, Crash, and Aku waited outside in the hallway. Coco answered the door a few seconds later. "Can we speak with Ema? It's important."
"Not now, Ema is still working on..." Coco started, only to trail off when she saw a fourth individual with Sonic and company...Pit. "Um, what's Pit doing here?"
"I'm glad that you asked, Miss Bandicoot..." Sonic was more than happy to explain, smiling to himself as he rubbed his hands together. "...you see, Pit had a hand in Cloud's secret little project. Sort of."
"Pit told us that Cloud wanted $10,000," added Aku, as Coco was left wondering why Cloud even wanted that much money from an imbecile like Pit. "And so he and Lloyd started up that food delivery business!"
"Turns out, Cloud just needed ten grand to fund his project. And Pit and Lloyd had no idea about it all along!" Coco was alarmed to have learned this tidbit of info; she had never known Cloud to be so manipulative.
"Yep, Cloud played me like a fiddle!" Pit said to Coco, almost as if he was bragging about being hoodwinked. The angel frowned in a hurry. "Wait, why did I sound so excited?"
"Probably because that wasn't your first rodeo," replied Coco, understanding why Cloud asked Pit for the money. The angel's tendency to rarely ask questions must've played into Cloud's decision-making. "Dr. Brio played you like a fiddle, too."
"Yeah, Pit must like being played for keeps," assumed Sonic, as Pit wanted to object to the blue hedgehog but couldn't find the words to do it. "Which is why Crash and I recruited him, just so he could redeem himself!"
"Coco, are you done entertaining Sonic?" Ema asked Coco as the forensics expert joined the bandicoot at the bedroom door. Her face softened when she saw Pit standing around. "Oh, hi there, Pit. I heard something about you being played by Cloud?"
"Cloud personally asked Pit to find some dough," Sonic explained to Ema, and Pit confirmed as such with the nod of his head. "Pit didn't know the money was for the Aerith Revival Project until last week!"
"Then that must mean the money that was 'stolen' wasn't really stolen at all..." Ema placed a finger underneath her chin, as the plot was starting to thicken. "...this is gonna end up being a very bad look for Cloud, by the end of the day."
"Can I help with whatever you're working on, Ema?" Pit asked the forensics expert, with pleading hands clasped together. "I can't let Cloud have the last laugh...I'd want the last laugh for myself, for a change!"
"Since you assisted Cloud with his project in the past...albeit unknowingly...I'll let you join our pact." This was big news to Pit, as the angel jumped for joy and pumped his fists. A fire was reignited inside of the angel.
"Awesome! So when do I get to start? Do I start right now?" Pit was smiling from ear to ear, and Ema couldn't bring herself to potentially devastate the angel.
"Not yet...still working on some things," Ema replied with an earnest smile, as Pit faceplanted unto the floor. "I'll let you know when you're ready." Ema went back to her work, as Coco closed the door.
"Ema has told me and Crash that multiple times already," Sonic said to Pit, who was lying face-first on the floor. Sonic patted Pit on his back, in a reassuring manner. "You'll get used to it..."
Once she was back inside the mansion, Aerith took it upon herself to ask Link about how his wedding planning was coming along. The flower girl figured that she wouldn't be back in Seattle until Link and Zelda's wedding, so it didn't hurt for her to inquire since she would be away.
"Nice rehearsal, everyone," Link said to his wedding band, as he and Rex oversaw the band's performance in the Pokemon sanctuary (the one place where the band wouldn't disturb Master Hand). Aerith was peeking around the corner, as one of the bandmates - Kanji - noticed the flower girl.
"Uh oh, a wild flower chick spotted!" the delinquent shouted as he pointed at Aerith; Link and Rex turned around and saw Aerith, whose plan on sneaking up on the two swordsmen was foiled.
"Who are you calling a 'wild' flower chick?" Aerith asked Kanji, arms held behind her back as she smiled at the delinquent. Kanji was too nervous to answer. "Calling it as you see it, I assume?"
"No, I was just...trying to make a joke." Kanji was all flustered, blushing as he scratched the back of his neck. His fellow bandmates were smiling at his expense. "Or a statement, rather. Either or."
Kanji: Why is it that I act so weird around certain women? I knew that Aerith meant well and that she was just playing around, but she still looked like she wanted to kick my butt. My grandma always told me to watch out for the nice ones. Best advice I've ever had.
"This is the band that will be performing at my wedding," Link explained to Aerith, who was giving every member of the band inquisitive looks. Except for K.K. Slider and Iori, since she knew how talented those two were. "They're not much, but they're better than nothing..."
"'Not much'?" Iori frowned at Link, as he summoned a blue flame in the palm of his hand. For a moment, Link was afraid for his life. "You were the one who assembled this putrid band!"
"See, even Iori himself thinks that the band isn't that great!" Rex said to Aerith, inherently making Iori even angrier as the blue flame was starting to build in his hand. Link was nearly trembling in fear. "I won't lie, I had some second doubts myself."
"So you don't think I can cut it as a trombone player, huh Iori?" Waluigi snapped on the saxophone player, causing a scene in the sanctuary. Rex saw the damage that he had done, as he looked on nervously.
"You're mediocre at best - nothing spectacular," Iori offered his two cents on Waluigi's trombone playing, giving the lanky man the truth. Waluigi didn't appreciate the truth one bit, as he lunged at Iori.
"Let me at him, let me at him!" Waluigi tried to reach for Iori's neck, so he could strangle the sax player, but Kanji was there to hold the lanky man back. Part of Kanji felt like his effort was wasted since he knew Waluigi could never get close to Iori with or without restraint.
"Our band rehearsals always have to end with drama..." K.K. Slider facepalmed, as Kanji was successful in keeping Waluigi away from Iori. Eventually, Waluigi's animosity towards Iori ran out.
"One of these days, I'm gonna get you, Yagami..." Waluigi vowed to the saxophone player as he pointed at him; Iori could only scoff at the lanky man's measly guarantee.
"So, Link...have you found an officiant for the wedding?" Aerith asked the Hylian, doing her best to ease the tensions in the sanctuary. All the flower girl did instead was make Link feel very nervous.
"I'm still working on it," admitted Link, as Aerith made a surprised face; she expected the Hylian to be much more prepared than that. "And no, I'm not asking Ganondorf to be the officiant. Because I have boundaries."
"Then why not Cloud? He's your best friend." Cloud seemed like a very obvious choice - he and Link have been tight for several years. Champion Link was also another fine choice...although he might not command the crowd's attention, as Cloud could. And speaking of Cloud...
"Found you again," Cloud said to Aerith as he showed up in the sanctuary. Now would be a great time for LInk to make Cloud an offer he couldn't refuse. "Almost like I know where to find you..."
"I mean, we are pretty close, so why wouldn't you know? I take that you're done with your...secret aerobics class?" Aerith was smirking; she just couldn't help herself, could she?
"You have a secret aerobics class, Cloud?" Waluigi asked the swordsman, who found himself hating Mario for the pickle that the plumber put him in. "How come you never invited us?"
"Yeah, Cloud, not cool," Link shook his head at the swordsman, only to stop shaking it when Cloud glared him down. Even if this aerobics class existed, Cloud knew better than to invite Link.
"I haven't started yet, still waiting on Akuma," Cloud answered Aerith's question, hoping that his answer was suitable enough. "Before you head back home, Aerith, there's something that I want to show you later."
"Ooh, is it a farewell gift?" asked a very interested Aerith; Cloud never thought once about a farewell gift all this time, which might make you consider if the swordsman was such a good friend or not.
"Would've had one for you, but I didn't have the budget for it." Yet he had enough money for your secret project. Cloud was gonna find himself in some deep trouble with the way he was running around circles. "Maybe what I have for you will suffice."
"I hope there's a big surprise waiting for me!" Aerith kept her expectations high, hoping that whatever Cloud had in store for her was truly special. Suddenly, Kanji heard his phone ring.
"What's up? Oh, hey Rise," Kanji answered his phone as he placed his electric guitar on the floor. "You want me to meet with the Phantom Thieves outside?" Soon as the Phantom Thieves were mentioned, Cloud furrowed his brow. "Uh, sure!"
"Cloud? Is everything alright?" Rex asked the swordsman, who had a big frown on his face as Kanji carried his phone conversation out of the sanctuary. "Why do you look so angry?"
"Because...because I'm worried about my aerobics class being canceled," replied Cloud as he stopped frowning in an instant, with the Phantom Thieves weighing in the back of his mind. "Akuma might hold me up."
"Why wait on Akuma, when you have me?" Link asked Cloud as he put his hand on the swordsman's back. Cloud went back to frowning, as he turned his head towards Link. "I can easily replace Akuma!"
"Stay in your lane..." Staying in his lane is exactly what Link did, backing away from Cloud while Waluigi raised his hand. "...don't get any ideas, Waluigi, you're not replacing anyone either."
Ryuji: Aw yeah! Mementos, here we come! About to give Cloud his just desserts! And maybe give E. Gadd his just desserts, too, since he's probably the guy who got Cloud into this whole "bring Aerith back alive" crap. Do you think that the Phantom Thieves are above elderly abuse? E. Gadd looks like the kind of old guy that deserves to be bullied, not gonna lie.
Makoto: *from outside* Ryuji, where are you? We're not leaving you behind, you know!
Ryuji: I'm coming, I'm coming! *sighs* Makoto always acts like my mom, it's so infuriating...
Bringing the camera with him, Ryuji headed outside and joined the other Phantom Thieves in the front yard. Everyone was all dressed up and ready to head down to Mementos. Joker, Ryuji, Ann, Yusuke, Makoto, Futaba, Haru, Kasumi, and Morgana...they were all ready. As well as a few of their friends.
"We should be back pretty soon," Joker said to Yu, Rise, Minato, and Yukari, all of whom were standing outside with the Phantom Thieves. It looked like the Thieves got themselves some extra help. "We can trust you guys to monitor Cloud, right?"
"We'll keep a close eye out for him," replied Yu, speaking on behalf of not just him and Rise, but for the rest of the Investigation Team. Cloud better be on the lookout, if he knows what's good for him.
"If we see anything out of the ordinary, we'll let you guys know," Minato assured the Phantom Thieves, making sure that his phone was charged up. He was only one call away. "We got it all from here..."
"Sup guys, sorry I was late!" Kanji apologized as he finally showed up outside, but not without bringing a certain lady friend of his. That lady friend being Naoto, who looked like she wanted to be somewhere else right now. "Naoto wouldn't stop running away from me."
"I was trying to enjoy my alone time, thank you very much..." grumbled Naoto as she lowered her police cap just below her eyes, before she looked up saw everyone gathered around. "...not like these guys need me anyway."
"Au contraire, Naoto...we do need you," Joker said to Naoto, much to the police detective's dismay. So much for her alone time. "You wouldn't mind doing a little 'policing' for us, would you?"
"I mean, if those buddy cops aren't involved...then sure." Eventually, Naoto conceded, figuring that she had no choice in the matter. "But who exactly am I policing, though?"
"We need you to monitor Cloud - anyone who looks like a professor or a genius," Futaba explained to Naoto, keeping the general criteria pretty simple for the police detective. "Shouldn't be that hard."
"You look like a genius yourself...why shouldn't I arrest you?" Naoto took out a pair of handcuffs, as she eyed down Futaba. Futaba was unsure whether or not Naoto was joking around or being serious - which was hard to tell, with her.
"Let me clarify...they have to be a visitor," Joker cleared things up for Naoto, who promptly put the handcuffs away. "No need to handcuff someone like Dr. Cortex, as much as he probably deserves it."
"What about Sephiroth, what is he doing?" Yu asked Joker, having learned that the one-winged angel was a part of the Phantom Thieves' efforts to put an end to Cloud's plan. "He's on patrol duty too, I assume?"
"He probably has an eye out for Professor E. Gadd. Been that way since he saw him with Rayman at Dingo's Diner. Also, don't be surprised if Dingodile shows up along with..."
"You were saying something, mate?" asked a certain Australian mutant, as everyone looked over and saw Dingodile with his assistant manager, Ty. "Hope you blokes were saying good things about me."
"No, no, nothing negative..." Joker assured Dingodile, doing his best to save himself from the flames of Dingodile's trusty flamethrower. Dingodile could whip that bad boy out whenever he needed to. "...just good vibes."
Dingo's Diner Employee: Dingodile and Ty left us by ourselves again, and right on cue, the jukebox wanted to act up a second time. Now it's playing some weird Japanese song, about some...pineapple...apple...pen thing. This is starting to feel like a cruel set-up prank.
"We just happened to stop by to make an important delivery," Ty explained to the Phantom Thieves and company while holding a large box in his hands. "Well, for someone it feels like an important delivery..."
"You barbarians dare try to outrun the mighty Zekenator?!" someone shouted at Dingodile and Ty from afar, and guess who was back at the mansion once more? The Crown Prince Zeke, along with his Blade Pandoria. Zeke and Pandoria came to a stop, both taking the time to catch their breath.
"I'm sorry that your stamina is trash," Dingodile apologized to Zeke, who was so tired from running that he almost felt a cramp in his muscles. "Maybe you should exercise some more."
"Granted, I might've let you both get a head start, but that's no reason to leave us behind in the dust!" Done catching his breath, Zeke stood uprightly. "What you have done was disrespect a Crown Prince."
"A head start? Now you're just making excuses," Ty said to Zeke, who scoffed at the Tasmanian tiger's accusation. "So much for the so-called 'Crown Prince' being humble..."
"Hey, aren't you the guy who ordered that cake for Pyra and Mythra?" Yukari asked Zeke as she pointed at the Crown Prince; Zeke, who loved being recognized, flashed an exuberant smile.
"Why yes, that would be I! Sadly, the cake was consumed by everyone not named Pyra or Mythra...which is why I'm here again, to redeem myself! Whatever's inside the box held by Ty is meant for Pyra and Mythra only!"
"Yeah...I think my friends and I are going off to Mementos right now," said Joker, having heard enough from Zeke as he led the Phantom Thieves away. Zeke was left agape, offended that the Phantom Thieves no longer wanted to entertain the Crown Prince's company.
"No! Where are you going? You're going the wrong way!" Zeke pointed at the Phantom Thieves as they walked away, but that wasn't enough to reel them back to the front of the mansion. "I wasn't even done yet!"
"I think you've said enough, buddy," Yu said to Zeke, who held his head low as Yu patted him on the back. "Since you and Dingodile are here...why don't you two make yourselves useful?"
"Make ourselves useful for what?" inquired Dingodile as he raised an eyebrow at Yu...before having a hunch for what the young man wanted from him. "...does it have something to do with Cloud Strife?"
"Maybe it does...maybe it doesn't. I'll happily deliver your 'gift' to Pyra and Mythra in return!"
Lucina and Chrom were in the dining room with their kids from the future, Morgan and Marc. Why were they in the dining room, you ask? Because they were sampling some pie that Chrom apparently baked himself. Cilan, for whatever reason, challenged Chrom to a pie-off, and Chrom his family to taste-test his pie for him.
"Your rhubarb pie is very...interesting, Chrom," Robin said to the prince, giving perhaps the kindest take that he could provide. Lucina would offer her criticism but was afraid of devastating her dad with some brutal honesty.
"You said that after taking only one bite!" remarked Chrom - that one bite was all that Robin needed. And all that he could stomach, too. "That must mean my pie-making skills have been much improved from before."
"Not really saying much, Father..." said Lucina, as Morgan covered her mouth and ran out of the dining room. The young mage could be heard vomiting in the nearby living room. "...that must be acid reflux."
"That wasn't from my pie, was it?" It took a lot in her, but Lucina shook her head no to Chrom's question. Chrom let out a sigh of relief. "Phew, talk about a close call!"
"Don't mind if I ask, grandpa, but have you tried out the rhubarb pie yourself?" asked Marc, who had the courage to eat his entire slice of pie...or at least feed it to the Duck Hunt Dog, when Chrom wasn't looking.
"No, but that's why I had you all sample it instead. That way, I could gauge what I need to improve on." In all honesty, Chrom could stand to improve on everything about his pie.
Morgan: Well then...that was one of the worst pies I've ever had. If not the worst. I don't think my poor taste buds will ever be the same. Should've given my slice to the Duck Hunt Dog, just like Marc did. I'm sure the Duck Hunt Dog enjoyed his slice of pie as much as he enjoys all the other slop around here.
Duck Hunt Dog: *vomits on the floor profusely*
"Er, hello? Could someone let me in?" a voice asked from behind the backdoor in the dining room, which was followed after a knock. Recognizing the voice, Chrom answered the door and saw a certain professor standing by.
"Ah, I figured that it was you. Hello, Professor E. Gadd!" Chrom greeted the inventor, who for some reason looked like he was scared for his well-being. Chrom had never seen him so frightened before. "Is...everything alright?"
"Y-Yes, everything is just peachy," assured E. Gadd as he stepped inside, making himself at home the best way he could. "W-Why do you ask, Chrom?"
"It's just, you look like you just had a nightmare." Lucina, Robin, and Marc glanced at E. Gadd, and they too could see how scared he looked. "Did something go down at your mansion?"
"Aside from a leaky pipe, nothing major. Nothing to worry about it." The way that E. Gadd was acting seemed to suggest otherwise. "Has anyone used the time machine in the basement yet?"
"You mean the Rift Generator?" Lucina asked E. Gadd, before she furrowed her brow - how did E. Gadd know about the Rift Generator's existence? "Why do you want to know, E. Gadd?"
"Dearest me...should've kept that to myself!" E. Gadd scurried away from the dining room, passing through the kitchen to avoid further suspicion. "We never had this conversation!"
"Well, that was strange, remarked Chrom, as a much relieved Morgan returned to the dining room. "You think that E. Gadd knows something about that time machine you used, Lucina?"
"I wouldn't be surprised if he did," replied Lucina, who was beginning to have some strong suspicions about E. Gadd. "Dr. N. Tropy might've filled him in on it. Unless..."
"Wait, Lucina, you went time-traveling? Again?" Robin asked the princess, doing his best to suppress any sort of jealousy that he had. "And I wasn't even invited? Thanks a lot, Lucina. Some wife you are!"
"Apparently, it was for a test run. And from what I've heard, Cloud might be keen on using it..."
When she headed back to Radiant Garden, Aerith would have to leave some good friends behind...namely Tifa, Barret, and Marlene, whom Aerith bonded a lot with ever since she joined the mansion. The flower girl was chatting with her friends, on the fifth floor of the mansion.
"No, Barret, they only sell sea-salt ice cream in Radiant Garden," Aerith stated to the mercenary, who grunted in response; sea-salt ice cream was all the rage back in Radiant Garden, and it's been that way for years.
"Dang it! Your people have no taste," Barret shook his head at Aerith, who was smiling to herself as she took Barret's comments with stride. "Do y'all have any other desserts in your stinking universe?"
"There is a bistro in Twilight Town that sells desserts..." Aerith had never been to this bistro before, but she has heard positive reviews about it. "...French desserts, to be exact. The head chef is a rat."
"The head chef is a rat?!" Barret was so disturbed by this fact, that he almost wanted to punch a wall. "What kind of place is this Twilight Town?"
"That rat couldn't be any worse than Chef Kawasaki, that's for sure..." remarked Tifa, and that was something Barret and the others could agree on. "...I'm still surprised that nobody over the tower hasn't died yet!"
Aerith: I haven't been to the bistro yet. I would love to go one day, but...traveling to other worlds is mostly discouraged. You can't really meddle in other worlds, because then you would prove that other worlds exist and then you would be messing with the "world order". Sora's friends have been very...militant about keeping the order intact. Almost to a fault.
Bowser: Aerith told me about this Twilight Town, and that raised two questions. One, how in the heck can one measly town be deemed an entire world? The townsfolk must be full of themselves. And secondly, why can't you just freely travel to other worlds like Sora can? Whoever's in charge of Sora and Aerith's universe must want to keep everybody sheltered!
"Third time's the charm..." said Cloud as he showed up on the fifth floor. As expected, everyone was happy to see the swordsman. "...no matter where I go, Aerith, I always keep finding you."
"Hi, Cloud! Did you have your secret aerobics class already?" Aerith asked Cloud, putting him in some hot water as Barret and Tifa looked at the swordsman with amused faces. "Or was Akuma a no-show?"
"Who was a no-show?" questioned Akuma, who was standing inside an elevator as the elevator doors opened. The man heard his name called and was looking to throw some hands. "Someone better speak up!"
"It has nothing to do with you, Akuma," Cloud said to the fighter, who took the swordsman's word for it as he stepped out of the elevator. "So, uh, about this secret aerobics class..."
"I didn't know you were into aerobics, Cloud," Marlene marveled at the swordsman, who had a high amount of resentment towards Mario that he never even knew existed. "When did you start this class?"
"Yeah, this is my first time hearing about it!" grinned Barret, able to tell how deeply embarrassed Cloud was - but not for the reasons that he was thinking.
"But Cloud said that you and Tifa were holdovers," Aerith said to Barret, with Cloud wishing that he could just fade away and disappear. "Unless he was just pulling my tail."
"Yes, that is the correct answer," said Cloud, hastily grabbing Aerith's hand and leading the flower girl away. "C'mon Aerith, I think it's about time I show you that surprise I was talking about earlier."
"This soon? Alright then, fine with me!" So Aerith followed Cloud, hoping that the surprise was a big one. Otherwise, it would be a pretty huge letdown.
"So who do you guys think is a part of Cloud's aerobic class?" Tifa asked Barret and Marlene, as the thought of Cloud teaching others aerobics - let alone teaching anything at all - still amused her.
Cloud had received a call from E. Gadd, who told the swordsman to get things prepared. That was why Cloud wanted Aerith to see the "surprise" on early notice. Cloud led Aerith through the mansion, passing by Midna along the way; Midna had just exited from Cloud's room.
"Does Master Hand know about this surprise?" Aerith asked Cloud, as Midna watched the flower girl being guided down the hallway. "Or is it a secret, just like your aerobics class?"
"I guess you could say it's a secret...for now," replied Cloud, as Midna kept a very close eye out on the swordsman. "You're the lucky gal who will be the first to check it out."
"Lucky gal, huh?" Midna furrowed her brow, before pulling out a card that she found on Cloud's dresser. The imp furrowed at the card, which had a bunch of text on it.
"Midna? What are you doing here?" Link asked Midna, as he and Rex were heading towards the imp's way. "Stalking people again, I assume?"
"That's...none of your concern. I think you should read this." Midna handed the card to Link, who accepted it with some curiosity. "Found it in Cloud's room."
"It's even addressed to Cloud, too...wonder what it says." Link took a gander at the card, with Rex looking over his shoulder. The card read:
Cloud Strife has committed the great sin of creating an overblown self-righteous reality to fulfill his own selfish wishes. However, we will not allow you to soak yourself in your manufactured happiness, and we will help you overcome the past and move forward. As a result, we will not let your proposed salvation occur. And therefore, we will steal your distorted desires and leave the past in the past. From, the Phantom Thieves.
"Wait a minute...that's a Calling Card!" Link pointed out, somehow able to recognize the Calling Card from somewhere. "Joker showed me a sample card not so long ago. Does this mean that Cloud's in trouble, or..."
"I don't think Cloud's in trouble, per se..." replied Midna, hoping that Link was prepared for what she was about to say next. "...he is trouble!" Link now had horror written on his face, frightened about whatever his best friend was plotting.
"Cloud! Wait up!" Link called out to the swordsman as he ran down the hallway. Rex and Midna followed after Link, who had gone down the stairs on the search for his friend. Eventually, Link caught up with Cloud, as the swordsman and Aerith were being held up by Sora.
"Really, Aerith? You're heading back so soon?" Sora asked the flower girl, sounding very devastated; Cloud was impatiently looking around. "But you've only been here for four months!"
"I never said that my stay was permanent..." stated Aerith, as Sora began to wonder if Master Hand would send his butt back home soon. Cloud turned around, and when he did...he saw Link, with the Calling Card. Rex and Midna were also there.
"Midna said she found this in your room," Link approached Cloud as he showed him the Calling Card. "It's one of those Calling Cards that the Phantom Thieves give out. Care to explain?"
"I've never seen that card before in my life," fibbed Cloud, as Link did not fall for the lie one bit. The Hylian wouldn't be deceived so easily. "Are you sure you're aren't making things up?"
"He is telling the truth..." responded Midna, getting all up in Cloud's face - yet Cloud still gave off the vibe that he wasn't convinced. "...it's obvious that you got a big secret, Cloud."
"You're right, I have a secret...a secret aerobics class." Not affording to waste any more time, Cloud took Aerith's hand and led the flower girl away. "And you guys aren't invited!"
"Wait, you teach aerobics?" Sora called out to Cloud, who completely ignored the Keyblade wielder as he and Aerith went inside an elevator. Sora was distraught when his question was left unanswered. "Guess we'll never know..."
"It's alright, Sora...there's no aerobics class at all," Link said to the Keyblade wielder, as he was starting to smell the roses. "Rex, can you handle the rest of the wedding planning duties for me?"
"Uh, sure," agreed Rex - if he could handle a day's worth of menial tasks before, he could certainly do it again. "What do you plan on doing, Link?"
"A thing that I probably should've done some time ago...getting my best friend back."
"Getting your best friend back, hmm?" asked Yu, as he showed up in the hallway; the young man wasn't alone, for Zelda was with him. "I might be able to help you with that..."
"Yu here told me what's been going on with Cloud," Zelda explained to Link and company, as she was now fully aware of the situation with Cloud. "I think it's about time we put an end to Cloud's...madness."
With the Calling Card already having been delivered to Cloud, the Phantom Thieves were freely able to access Mementos. The only way they could enter Mementos was through a hideout...and fortunately for them, there was a hideout near the mansion.
Yiga Clansman: The weirdest thing just happened...I was outside, counting all the bananas that I stole from some establishment called a grocery store when the Phantom Thieves popped up. One moment, they were standing together, like they were some kind of cult...and the next thing that I know, they were gone! Almost like they vanished and went to an entirely different dimension! Who knew that our hideout was a portal to other dimensions? Master Kohga will be most pleased!
Being that Mementos was exclusive only to the Phantom Thieves, cameramen and other crewmates from the documentary crew weren't allowed to enter the palace. That was why Ryuji had brought a camera with so, just so he could record the Phantom Thieves' exploits.
"Ryuji, can you not record the subway trains?" Yusuke scolded the delinquent, who was recording a subway train passing by. Ryuji was more interested in capturing everything on camera than focusing on the task at hand.
"Yeah, this isn't some kind of nature documentary!" frowned Ann, as Ryuji ignored his friends and kept on doing his thing. "Can't you just focus for just one second?"
"Okay, sure," Ryuji sarcastically replied, as he focused for literally just one meager second...before going back to recording everything that Mementos had to offer. Yusuke sighed depressingly at Ryuji, as he facepalmed.
"Told you we should've left him behind..." Makoto whispered to Joker about Ryuji, as Joker nodded his head in slight agreement. So far, Ryuji was proving to be more of a hindrance than a help.
"Guys, I think we made it!" announced Morgana, as he and the Phantom Thieves came to a stop. The group saw a large towering structure before them, one that was made out of glass and gold. Its structure looked oddly familiar.
"That definitely looks like Maruki's Palace," observed Kasumi, as she recalled Maruki's Palace also being a large towering structure of glass and gold. "This has to be the one."
"You did say that Cloud was pulling a Maruki," said Futaba, wondering if the vices manifested inside of Cloud was what caused the palace to look very resembling of Maruki's. "How about we head on inside?"
Cloud and Aerith finally made it to the first floor of the mansion, after an unexpectedly long elevator ride. Cloud guided Aerith to the foyer, planning on using the trapdoor, but he wouldn't arrive without some unwanted company...
"I would run into you guys, wouldn't I...?" grumbled Cloud, when he saw two individuals he did not want to see - Zeke and Dingodile. Pandoria and Ty were also there, of course, but Cloud had no issues with them.
"Spiky hair, we meet again!" Zeke said to Cloud as he pointed and Pandoria at the swordsman. Cloud groaned, holding in the urge to punch Zeke in the face. "Our paths are forever intertwined..."
"You and your lady friend look very busy, mate," Dingodile said to Cloud, making the swordsman suddenly protective of Aerith. "Why don't you stick around and chat, for a little R and R? Just like old friends!"
"Aw, are you and Dingodile friends?" a charmed Aerith asked Cloud, imagining the swordsman and Dingodile hanging out and drinking beers and whatnot. Strange mental image to have.
"He's more of a nuisance than a 'friend,'" replied Cloud, who had to keep his cool due to Aerith being around. Couldn't let her see his bad side. "Like an annoying mosquito."
"Say, Cloud, have you ever told your sweet precious Aerith about your...secret plan?" Dingodile asked the swordsman, getting under the swordsman's skin. Aerith glanced at Cloud, who was gritting his teeth.
"Uh oh, Dingodile, I say you hit him at a sensitive spot!" exclaimed Ty, as he observed the frustration on Cloud's face. Aerith's presence didn't make things any better for Cloud. "Ask him about Pit's money."
"Really picked the wrong time to start instigating..." Cloud frowned at Ty, knowing that if Aerith found out the truth about the $10,000, it would leave the flower girl very disappointed. "...why don't you guys just buzz off?"
"Buzz off? Us?" Zeke scoffed at Cloud, looking away and waving off the swordsman. "Why would we buzz off for, when we had a special gift for Pyra and Mythra to deliver?"
"Totally not a cake," stated Pandoria, feeling that this point had to be made. Didn't do much to quell Cloud's skepticism.
Yu: I delivered Zeke's gift to Pyra and Mythra, on his behalf. Had no idea what was inside of the box, but I think that Pyra and Mythra can share it...
Pyra: *frowns* It's a literal bust...made out of meat. *holds up bust* Aaaand it has my face and Mythra's face on it. Please remind Zeke to stop relying on Dingo Diner for useless gifts...
"Cloud! At last, I've found you!" exclaimed E. Gadd as he emerged from the living room. The inventor, who at first appeared alarmed when he arrived, was now elated after seeing Cloud.
"It's him, it's that old geezer that Cloud is chummy with!" shouted Dingodile as he pointed at E. Gadd, as he, Ty, Zeke, and Pandoria focused their attention on the inventor. "Get him!"
"E. Gadd, no!" shouted Cloud, as Dingodile and the others leaped at E. Gadd, producing a dust cloud of constant wrangling. One might think that poor E. Gadd was being ganged up on, getting his keister handed to him...but somehow, the inventor emerged from the dust cloud unscathed.
"Shh..." E. Gadd shushed Cloud and Aerith, before opening the trapdoor in the foyer. "...follow me!" E. Gadd whispered before he jumped in through the trapdoor, going down to the tunnel.
"Cloud, is there something going on?" Aerith whispered to Cloud, as the dust cloud was still going on. You'd think the four would realize that E. Gadd was already gone. "Dingodile looked like he was really on to you..."
"I'll explain everything later, follow me," Cloud whispered back, as he and Aerith went through the trapdoor and down to the tunnel. Cloud obviously won't explain everything - might say a few details to Aerith, and probably just leave it at that.
"Wait a minute...that old man is gone!" exclaimed Zeke; he and the others stopped the wrangling, as the dust cloud finally went away. "He must have disappeared right under our noses."
"Or, he escaped and took Cloud and Aerith somewhere else..." assumed Dingodile, as he saw that Cloud and Aerith were no longer around. "...we'll let him get away with it for now."
Until their names were called, Sonic, Crash, Aku, and Pit were hanging out in the lounge playing the Monopoly board game. With them were Kirby, Incineroar, and Lloyd, who was in a better mood now than before.
"What?! Why do I keep going to jail?" complained Pit, after he landed on the "Go to Jail" space. Which was hilarious, given that Pit had just got out of jail two turns earlier. "I'm telling you, this game is rigged!"
"It's a board game, nothing about it is rigged," Lloyd said to Pit, who was ready to throw a sore loser fit and toss the game board unto the floor. "I think you just suck in general."
"It's bad enough I lost all my money in an auction for Mediterranean Avenue." Mediterranean Avenue? Pit wasted all his money on the cheapest property in the entire game! "And now this happens!"
"Maybe you have sucky money management," said Sonic, who was currently in the lead as he had bought a whole bunch of properties. "Using all your money on the first space, really Pit?"
Pit: I thought I had a brilliant strategy. They say that to win, you have to go all in. It rhymes, so there's obviously a ton of success. But when I did go all in, I bought the property that I landed on and went bankrupt on just my first turn! Perhaps I shouldn't have rolled a one.
Sonic: *laughs* Pit really started an auction...for the cheapest property in Monopoly...don't even get me started on the fact that he rolled with only one dice, instead of two. He was setting himself up for failure with that one.
"Say, Lloyd, are you still angry about the money being stolen?" Kirby asked Lloyd, who went ahead and rolled the dice. Lloyd had yet to know the "secret".
"I'm still mad, but not as much as I used to be," replied Lloyd as he moved his game piece across the game board. "That brunch Pac-Man had at his house put me in a much better mood."
"Oh, boys!" shouted Ema as she entered the lounge, along with Coco and Tails. Sonic and Crash instantly perked up. "It's about that time..."
"FREAKING FINALLY!" cheered Sonic, showing his excitement as he flipped the Monopoly game board onto the floor. Lloyd looked distraught, as the game pieces and dollar bills fell from the table.
"About that time for what?" Lloyd asked Ema, greatly out of the loop about whatever was going on. The swordsman looked around, as Pit bit his bottom lip, too reluctant to answer.
"Just a little favor that I'm asking from these three," replied Ema as she brought Lloyd's attention to Sonic, Crash, and Pit. Lloyd was left wondering why Pit was included. "An errand, if you will..."
"Seriously, Ema?" Sonic grumbled at the forensics expert, shaking his head as the excitement that he once had gone down the drain. "I left the Aerith Revival Project just to avoid Moira and her errand crap!"
"But this errand will actually be meaningful," Tails said to Sonic, trying his hardest to make the hedgehog excited again. Sonic didn't want to hear it, as he folded his arms. "You won't be getting a glass of water this time."
"Basically you're going to a different universe...Aerith's universe," added Coco, and just like that, Sonic was immediately sold. The frown Sonic had on his face was turned upside down.
"Oh cool, do I get to slay Heartless again?" Sonic asked Coco, rubbing his hands with much anticipation. "What about Nobodies, can I kill them too?"
"...probably not. But you, Crash, and Pit will be going to Aerith's home, Radiant Garden. We need you three to find for us a..."
"Hold up - what's this I hear about some Aerith Revival Project?" interjected Lloyd, perhaps the least uninformed person in the lounge right now. Incineroar doesn't really count. "Can someone please explain?"
"I think you should tell him," Aku advised Pit, believing that Lloyd deserved to know the hard truth about his delivery service - and why it was even started. Pit nervously clenched his teeth.
"Tell me what? What's going on, Pit?" Lloyd looked at Pit, wanting answers from the angel himself. Pit took a few steps towards Lloyd, before putting his hand on the swordsman's shoulder.
"I'll tell you what's going on, Lloyd..." replied Pit, as he looked at Lloyd straight in the eye. The others looked around, wondering what was taking Pit so long to answer. "...after you come with me and the boys to Radiant Garden. Your choice."
"So that's the game you wanna play, huh?" Lloyd took a few seconds to mull over Pitt's offer...before shrugging his shoulders. "Fine, I'll play your little game. I'll go get my swords, just in case I need 'em."
"Holding out, I see..." remarked Aku as Lloyd ran out of the lounge. Once Lloyd was gone, Pit let out a sigh of relief. "...very cowardly move, Pit."
"Go speak with Dr. Wily and ask him if he'll let you use his universe transport device," Ema explained to Pit and company, fingers crossed that Wily would give the group the green light. "What we need is in Aerith's universe."
Cloud and Aerith were with E. Gadd in Mario's bunker, and it was the first time that E. Gadd was inside the bunker. It was the perfect spot since the inventor could conduct his business in secret.
"Can I trust you to keep Aerith safe?" Cloud asked E. Gadd, putting a lot of trust and responsibility in the inventor. Up for the task, E. Gadd nodded his head. "Good, because I need to buy some time for the...for the surprise."
"You're not gonna keep me waiting, are you?" Aerith asked Cloud, leaning in towards the swordsman with a smile and her hands behind her back. "I can't stick around all day, you know!"
"Relax, Aerith, it's not like I'll be gone forever. I'll be back sooner than you know it." Cloud left the bunker, going through the tunnel; making it through the trapdoor would prove difficult if there was company around.
"You'll be safe with me, Miss Gainsborough," E. Gadd assured the flower girl, making sure to keep his hands to himself. Didn't want to touch Aerith somewhere he shouldn't, and give her the wrong idea.
"Do you know what the surprise is?" Aerith asked E. Gadd, in an attempt to burst the inventor's bubble. Even with the pressure on him, E. Gadd managed to stand his ground.
"I know a little something about it...but I won't say. It's a secret!" E. Gadd held his finger close to his mouth, keeping his lips sealed.
"Alright then...what was Dingodile going on about, with Cloud's secret plan?" Now E. Gadd was feeling the pressure, once Aerith mentioned Dingodile. "Is the surprise the secret plan?"
"No...but don't mind Dingodile, he's just super nosy. Always butting his head in other people's business when he shouldn't..."
Much to Wily's dismay, the Turks were unable to dismantle the Rift Generator. That said, however, Wily was still determined to dispose of the time machine one way or another. The robot inventor contacted Cortex and asked him to come over to the tower, so they could discuss their next course of action.
"Uka, you sure would come in handy right now..." Cortex said to the floating mask, who was still lifeless. Cortex was holding Uka in his hands as he went down the stairs to the tower's basement.
"If that's what you're looking for, you ought to speak with the scientists there," Wily was heard from down below, explaining to someone. Once he reached the basement, Cortex saw Wily standing around with Pit and the "boys" - Sonic, Crash, Kirby, Incineroar, and Lloyd.
"I take it that you're busy?" Cortex asked Wily, seeing that the robot inventor was booting up his universe transport device. "Could've given me a heads up..."
"No, no, we can still have our little discussion!" Wily assured Cortex, while he was putting in the coordinates to his device. "I was just helping these six gentlemen get to Radiant Garden. Aerith's homeworld."
"We're gonna find a replica!" Pit loudly explained to Cortex, getting excited for no reason as he pumped his fists. When he saw that the others were giving him judging looks, Pit slowly put his arms back down.
"A replica? You're going to some alternate universe, just to look for a replica?" questioned Cortex, shaking his head as found the boys' mission to be highly questionable. "Let me guess, you're gonna look for a mannequin as well!"
Ema: For my experiment to be a success, I'm gonna need a replica from Aerith's universe. Actually learned a lot about these replicas, from one of the members of Organization XIII. He was a mad scientist - a bit on the crazy side, but what mad scientist isn't crazy, amirite?
"You wouldn't understand, Dr. Cortex," responded Wily, as he opened up the portal for the boys to go through. A portal that led to Radiant Garden. "Just trust the science!"
"Yeah, because science obviously involves a bunch of replicas..." Cortex rolled his eyes, before choosing to keep his mouth shut and stop questioning things.
"Alright, everyone! Last one through the portal is a rotten..." Pit started, only for Incineroar to shove the angel through the portal. Incineroar took his sweet time entering the portal, as the rest of the boys (and a cameraman) followed suit.
Kirby: I agreed to tag along with "the boys", for obvious reasons. Pit doesn't know how to behave in public, Sonic and Lloyd might say something to offend someone, and Crash is perhaps the purest definition of braindead there is. Aku could only handle so much responsibility.
"I'll just keep this portal open, just for when the six have to return," said Wily as he walked away from his device, before bringing his attention to Cortex. "Now that you're here, Cortex..."
"Before we get started...you know of a way to revive Uka?" Cortex asked Wily as he held up the evil mask in question. Wily stared at the lifeless Uka, scratching his chin. "He powered on the Rift Generator...and he might be the one to shut it down!"
"Ashley might have an elixir for this kind of stuff. But if she doesn't concede...which is a given, I'll handle this myself."
After being shoved through the portal, Pit found himself falling through the sky before landing on the ground with a thud. Just when the angel was about to pick himself up off the ground, Crash had landed on top of him.
"Ow, my squeedily spooch..." Pit writhed in pain as Crash got off of the angel. Kirby, Incineroar, and Aku came over to check on Pit. "...Kirby, do I have a speedily spooch?"
"We've been through this before...you don't have a squeedily spooch," answered Kirby, as Incineroar helped Pit up to his feet. Pit felt his back aching, as he tried to walk the pain off.
"So this is Radiant Garden, huh?" said Sonic, who was just a few feet up ahead, as he and Lloyd were looking around. The world looked as magnificent as Aerith said it was. "Don't see much radiance, let alone a garden, but this place still looks pretty cool!'
"There must be replicas inside that castle up ahead," said Lloyd as he pointed at a large castle in the far distance. Two men were guarding the castle entrance. "Those guys at the front should let us through."
So the boys went to the castle, as they apparently expected the two bodyguards to let them inside like they were VIPs. When the boys showed up at the castle entrance, the bodyguards stared at them inquisitively.
"What brings you all to Hollow Bastion?" one of the bodyguards, a man with black hair, asked the boys. He looked rather strict. "Are you all lost?"
"Hollow Bastion? Pardon me, sir, but this world is called 'Radiant Garden,'" Pit said to the bodyguard, trying to correct him. "I believe it's you who are lost!"
"This castle is called Hollow Bastion, thank you very much..." the bodyguard corrected Pit, putting the angel in his place. "...now tell me, what world - or worlds - did you all come from?"
"We came from the world of...Seattle!" exclaimed Sonic, as both of the bodyguards furrowed their brows with much skepticism. "Which is close to, uh, Destiny Islands! And Twilight Town!"
"Seattle? Never heard of it..." said the other bodyguard, an auburn-haired mammoth of a man with a chiseled jawline. He was but a man of a few words.
"Dilan, Aeleus, do we have visitors?" someone asked, as the castle doors were opened. A scientist emerged from the castle, wearing a lab coat. "Overheard a conversation from inside the castle."
"It appears that we have visitors," replied the black-haired bodyguard, Dilan, as he brought the scientist's attention to the boys. "A bunch of outsiders."
"They all come from the same world, apparently," added the chin-chiseled bodyguard, Aeleus, while the scientist got a good look at the boys. Took a small interest in them, almost.
"A hedgehog, an angel, a pink ball, a giant cat, a floating mask, and some...alien lifeform," observed the scientist, as he described Sonic, Pit, Incineroar, Aku, and Crash in that order. Lloyd was left out, possibly due to looking too normal.
"He's actually a bandicoot," Aku corrected the scientist concerning Crash; the scientist wished to refute Aku's claim, but decided against it.
"A bandicoot, you say? To each their own, I suppose. I am Ienzo - and you all are?"
"We're from the world of Seattle!" exclaimed Sonic, before anyone could have a chance to introduce themselves. Kirby facepalmed at the blue hedgehog.
"Seattle...that name rings a bell..." The name Seattle dwelled in Ienzo's mind, as the scientist searched deep into his memory banks. "...any chance that you know Marth and Luigi?"
"Yeah, they live in Seattle just like us!" replied Lloyd; Ienzo must have met Marth and Luigi when they were looking for Aerith. "You know them?"
"I actually had a chance encounter with them some time ago, outside the castle. I was taking a break from my studies to enjoy some sea-salt ice cream."
Pit: Everyone in Radiant Garden enjoys sea-salt ice cream, it seems...this world must have a secret ice cream cult.
"If you want, you may come inside the castle," Ienzo said to the boys, as Dilan and Aeleus begrudgingly granted the group of six access. "Make yourselves comfortable."
Once the coast was clear in the foyer, Cloud exited through the trapdoor and ran to the basement. The swordsman knocked on the door, which was soon opened by Moira.
"Mr. Strife...you're just in time," Moira smiled at the swordsman, before leading him down the basement steps. Fox, Falco, and Kyrstal were down in the basement with N. Tropy; Krystal was holding Marcus.
"Greetings, Cloud," N. Tropy greeted the swordsman, as he was turning on the Rift Generator. "We were just ready to send Fox and Falco back in time."
"Don't we look good in our time-traveling suits?" Falco asked Cloud, as he and Fox posed for the swordsman in their...very unflattering protective suits. The way that Falco was dancing in place didn't make it any better.
"Please stop shaking your butt, Falco," Cloud commanded the avian pilot, who ignored the swordsman as he kept on shaking his groove thing. "I want my eyes unscarred, you know..."
"Why are they going back in time again?" Krystal asked Moira and N. Tropy, as she desired to tell Fox to turn back while he still could. "Fox mentioned something about Aerith..."
"They are going to the past to receive a DNA sample from Aerith," Moira explained to Krystal, as the Rift Generator was starting to rev up. "With this DNA sample, we can use it to revive Aerith, and let her stay at this mansion."
"And alternative universe Aerith can return home," added N. Tropy, typing in the coordinates to the Rift Generator. Had to make sure he got both the date and time right - otherwise, it would be a major screwup.
"Wouldn't reviving Aerith...diminish her sacrifice, in a way?" asked Krystal, before looking towards Cloud for an answer...Cloud chose to remain silent.
"Portal's opening up, you guys," Cloud pointed out, changing the subject in a hurry as the portal opened in the Rift Generator. It was now time.
"You two have your phones?" Moira asked Fox and Falco, who both pulled out a blocky phone - the same phone Moira showed off in episode 277. "Superb. Now go through the portal, and retrieve that DNA sample."
"Say a prayer for me, babe!" Fox said to Krystal, as he and Falco were about to jump through the portal. But before they could, Krystal ran up to Fox so they could have a moment together.
"Please be safe, okay?" Krystal pleaded to Fox, who gave the vixen an assuring smile. He gave the same smile to Marcus, patting his son on his head.
"You two hang tight...I'll be back sooner than you know it!" On that note, Fox went through the portal with Falco, as he and his best friend traveled back through time. A cameraman also went through the portal...just to record the pilots' exploits on camera.
"Here's to a successful mission..." said N. Tropy, as the portal closed; Krystal took a deep breath, assuring herself, as her huge amount of worry started to give Cloud some reluctance.
"May I speak with you in private?" Moira asked Cloud, before leading the swordsman back up the stairs. "It's about Kamek and Dr. Eggman..."
"Yeah, what about them?" Cloud discussed quietly with Moira, worried that neither Eggman nor Kamek could make it. "Did something happen?"
"I'm afraid so...E. Gadd tried to contact Eggman, but he didn't receive an answer from him. And Kamek is nowhere to be found..."
"This isn't good...let me give E. Gadd a call." So Cloud took out his cellphone, pulled up E. Gadd's number, and gave the inventor a call. "...hello, professor?"
"Hello...I'm hiding in the corner of the bunker," E. Gadd whispered after answering the call, sounding like he had his hand over his mouth. "I keep hearing voices from above! Mainly Peach and Spyro. But Aerith is still safe with me."
"That's good. But what about Dr. Eggman? Moira just told me that you tried to reach out to him, but got no response."
"I called him multiple times already, but he hasn't answered! I'll give him another call. You still have those items Ryza Stout synthesized, right?"
"Kept them hidden in my room. I'll get them out, just to prepare. Keep up the good job protecting Aerith, alright?"
"Will do! I'll try and keep in touch. We'll meet back with each other soon!"
"Right. Later, professor." Cloud ended the call, before heaving a sigh. "I sure hope that Sephiroth didn't get involved..."
So far, one half of the Aerith Revival Project - getting Aerith's DNA sample - was a work-in-progress. The other half, from the looks of it...was now in jepoardy.