Chapter 26: Unexpected Twist of Fate

Ringo's POV

I slept, just as Dave said he would during that Friday night. I had a dream… no, a vision had come to me in my sleep. "Ringo, you there?" "Huh? Who is that?" "Don't you recognize my voice? Heh, I guess it has been a few years… It's me." "... … E-Ecolo?!" "Yep, it's me! Glad that you haven't forgotten about me. Getting on to a more serious note though…" "Serious...?" "Yes, for once… I need to be serious and warn you of the threat that is coming." "What kind of threat?" "You heard about that count guy, right? He's just a cog in a machine compared to the real danger. I don't know who or what is using him and that Maguro, but DO I know that these "things" are dimensional beings." "When will they strike, Ecolo?" "Even I don't know, Ringo… It could be tomorrow, or the next year for all we know. I just wanted to send this message to you in your sleep. It was the only way to get in contact with you, since I'm stuck as the keeper. I know things may seem bad, but no matter how sour the situation is… keep hold of the hope you cherish, and smile. I took over the position just to have you enjoy your life. Please… for me, have Dave protect you all he can. Could you let him, Ringie?" "Sure, but I still want to fight alongside him. It's not just his battle…" "Ah yes, the scent of betrayal is a fowl and pugnant thing. You liked Maguro as a childhood friend before he became craaaazy. I can assure you, I share your sentiment. But now, I don't have much time. I hope we get to see each other again under more... peaceful circumstances. Goodbye, Ringo." "Ah, wait-!" But, it was too late, my vision ended and I woke up. "! Was that really Ecolo…? … Nevermind, it's Saturday morning. Time to wake up Dave." I got up and went ahead to wake him up.

Dave's POV

As usual, I was woken up by Ringo for school, but she had something to tell me. "Dave, there's something I need to speak to you about." "We'll talk about it as we walk to school, Ringo." I got ready in good time. We left for the school, walking the same old path to it. "Dave, last night… I got a vision in my sleep." "The hell? A vision?" I raised an eyebrow at her, as though she was crazy. "C'mon, I'm being serious!" She pouted. "Alright, continue please. Who or what gave you that vision?" "It was Ecolo." "Ecolo?! What did he say to you?" "That count you mentioned to me… he said that Vyle was only a pawn compared to the real threat using him. This bigger force was said to be a group of dimensional beings." "A pawn that strong? If what Ecolo says is true… it won't just be us in danger, but this world and Primp Town as well…! Oh, that also reminds me, what about Ris? Did you find out what's been happening to him, Ringo?" "No, he's not answering my texts and still haven't seen him lately." "Damn, I hope he's okay..." Up ahead, we saw Feli sitting down by her lonesome. "F-Feli." I noticed. She sees us too where she sat. "Dave, Ringo…" looked up "How's Lemres? Is he being treated properly?" I hoped. "Y-yeah… he texted me last night, apparently with his good arm. He said he'll be fine in due time." I was thankful to hear that. "Thank God." I sighed in relief. "Feli, come with us to the school. I have to tell you what I told Dave." Ringo said to her. Feli became curious and walked with us. "I see... so you got a vision from this Ecolo, and he said that the count was only a mere cog?" She asked for confirmation. "Yeah Feli, I think he's telling the truth… I've never heard his voice sound so serious before." Ringo replied. "The question is though... what kind of dimensional beings are these things going to be?" I brought up. "Dunno." The two girls shrugged. "In any case, it'll be best if we prepare for the worst." I continued. They nodded to my suggestion, and we arrived at Suzuran High.

"I felt useless when I couldn't save Lemres. Granted, Maguro was and always will be a coward..." Feli told us. "That's the way things tend to go down… I know that it's sad and unfair, Feli." I said and Ringo nodded. Me, Ringo, and Feli hugged until the school's bell rang. We let go and went on to our separate classes. Biochemistry was just not the same without Risukuma. Calculus was the dreadful piece of crap that it has always been. English had nothing worth noting besides me and Feli keeping silent. The same happened with the history class, except with the typical type of lecture. To put it simply, I was not having enjoyment in any of those classes. Two of my friends were not there, and I still had the thought of danger looming in my head. I had lunch, coming and going through then arrived to Primp Magic with Feli. It was just us two traveling a portal she made. The trip was bittersweet, just like the classes we stay in that day. However, we at least spoke while in that portal. "Feli, I realize how… quiet, we've been today. I get it, yesterday hit all of us like a truck. Disaster is likely to strike at any given moment. No matter what happens, we won't fully be ready…" "So that means we have to be the best that we can be…" "Yeah. People like you are fragile compared to me. I was outmatched against Vyle... and had he done that to you, rather than me… you'd probably be killed." "Dave, I don't wanna die…" She clutched my hand harder in her's. "I don't either, that's why we have to get stronger. Not just for ourselves, but our friends and family." Potions was standard this time around. Although, our instructor, Witch… she didn't know what happened to Lemres.

When the bell clapped and all the other students left, she called me over. "Dave, have you seen Lemres today? He's never absent for this class." She wondered. "No. But you should know this, he's currently in the hospital after getting shot by a gun yesterday. Fear not, he's alright. Lemres is recovering from the wound as we speak." "Who would do this to him?" "I know who, and he's paired up with a dangerous foe to boot. Witch, I know this sounds unlikely, but this world is at risk of being destroyed. We could all be in the face of annihilation. And it's not just this world either… whatever we're dealing with has the power to travel between dimensions constantly." Witch wasn't sure what to say to me after I explained. "As your instructor… just… be careful. You're a good student… No, not just good. You're a student who had exceeded all of our expectations. Don't going dying after you have proven yourself." "I'll stay alive as much as I can, but if I have to sacrifice myself for the better… so be it. Actually if anything, I'm more worried about you than you are for me. Let's just promise to keep ourselves safe, alright?" "... Hahaha! You're right. Take care, then." "You too." We waved goodbye as I headed over to Accord's room. My friends were already there and said hi to me. "Hey Dave, is it true? Tarutaru told me about it... Lemres got injured?" Klug came up and asked me. "Yeah... by that prick, Maguro… but he'll be fine. I don't know when he'll be raring to go again… Despite that, I know he's in capable hands. So Klug, everything's going to be just fine." I said. That seemed to make him feel much better, and he thanked me. I took my seat before the bell clapped. Class started on an unexpected note, I didn't see this coming. "Kiddies, we have a new student joining us today. This is not for any reason you would initially think. This is due to a student, not from this class, requesting this person to be here. I heard the whole story and decided to take in this newcomer. This also changes the focus of the class back over to combat for days or even weeks. Depends on the outcome that things will go." I heard a few murmurs of confusion from that last statement Accord made.

To be honest, I was confused with the direction that the class was taking too. "I understand your thoughts, truly, I do. However, I felt like this was absolutely necessary. So that means Ms. Rulue is back as well for this. She also knows about what happened... and Dave, you should know too." "M-me?" "Yes, what had transpired yesterday… The injuring of the comet warlock, the appearance of a scary and powerful enemy, and your paralysis." "!" I understood why she was doing this now. "You know?!" I reacted. "One of your sweethearts, Feli… she told me that I should recruit another student for this class. You know this person too, since you just met her yesterday." She explained. "W-wait, you mean?!" I caught on. "Correct, you can come in now." Accord opened the door. "Yui?!" My guess was confirmed, Yui joined the class. I didn't know what kind of powers she had, if any, so I was sitting there, stupefied. "Heh, I guess Feli didn't tell you, judging by your face." She smiled. "Who's that, Dave?" Amitie wondered. "Yeah, just who is she?" Raffina asked. "She's tall…" Lidelle remarked. "Yes, Dave. I think you would be the best person to introduce us to Yui." Accord told me. "*sigh* Fine, if you're all so curious… then I guess there's no use turtling up in my shell. *throat clear* This is Yui, an incarnated human... created by the ruler of the Puyo Underworld calling out for the god of incarnation. She was formerly two ghosts before being fused into becoming her spirit, Yu and Rei." I introduced her. I saw a hand raise from Raffina, and I acknowledged it. "Yes?" I waited for her to say something. "You mean the brother and sister ghosts that were inseparable... where the sister was blissfully happy, and the brother was utterly depressed?" She asked for confirmation.

I nodded to her before speaking any further. "Yes, Raffina. Yui is the product of those two, carrying some physical traits of Yu. The hair color for instance, is the same. Yui is what Yu would've looked like if she had grown to be the age that I am now, seventeen. Fun fact, her name was formed as a combination of Yu and Rei's names. And that is all that I know about her, as of now, so I'll take my seat." I ended. "Good. Now Yui, you have something that you want to show us?" Accord asked her. "Yeah, let's go outside so that I can." Yui requested. "I mean... I guessed that we were going outside anyway, so that shouldn't be an issue." I stated. Everyone else nodded and we left to go outside. "Let's see what you can do, Yui." I said. She closed her eyes, then concentrated to form her power. "Oooooooough!" She was lifting a boulder without moving a finger. "Is that…?" Klug stopped. "It might just be, man… Psychokinesis." I observed. "This is astonishing." Tarutaru commented. She put the boulder down slowly after that short period. "Cool…! Do you carry any other tricks?" Amitie asked Yui. "I have the power to possess people by slipping inside their bodies. But, it's not something that I can just abuse. For it to work, the person I want to be possess HAS to be either unaware that I'm doing it… either that, or they let me do it to them. Keep this in mind too: I'll only be able to possess others for a short time span. It takes a lot of energy for me to continuously possess someone else. So, who wants to be a guinea pig for this?" I decided to be the one, since no one else felt fine with it. "I'll be the guinea pig, Yui." I told her. "Sure, just don't have your mind resist possession. If it helps, you might want to close your eyes and breathe calmly, Dave." "Okay… breathe in… breathe out." I closed my eyes and prepared. Before I knew it, my mind went blank.

Yui's POV

Just like that, I was controlling Dave... as though his body was mine. Looking at his hands, feeling what he normally feels. "Well, it feels weird to be a girl controlling a guy's body… It's a lot easier to breathe without breasts weighing the chest down." I said with Dave's voice. "... … …" His friends stood there, speechless at this for a solid minute. "... What… the hell…?" Ms. Rulue finally spoke. "Yui, is that really you in there?" Amitie wanted to know for sure. "Yeah it's me, let me show you." I used my psychokinesis to move the same boulder from earlier. "!" They realized that it was indeed me controlling the body. "Wicked!" She was awestruck. "That is so freaky…" Klug shivered. "Agreed, imagine if a guy had this kind of ability and possessed girls exclusively… It would be so perverted!" Raffina grimaced. "Then you should be thankful that only Yui can do it, Raffina." Ms. Accord told her. "Alright, I think I'll leave his body now." I announced. I slipped out of Dave and waited for him to regain his senses.

Dave's POV

"... ! What happened? It felt like my mind went blank for a brief moment…" I expressed. "That, Dave... is what it feels like to be possessed." Yui explained to me. "It's strange… and vexing that I can't experience it in the moment." I felt. "Well if it makes you feel any better... I can do everything that the possessed normally does, in addition to my psychokinesis." She cheered me up. "So wait, so you can fight like us if we let you possess us?" Klug asked. "Sure I can, that's my biggest asset to use in the field of battle. Otherwise, I can't do much on my own at this time." She answered. "Hence why she needs combat training for when she IS alone." Accord established. "So that's the other reason why you brought me back here today…" Rulue figured out. "So Yui's going to be trained with with us then?" I asked Accord. "Well, she will be half and half… She'll warm up, training with Amitie, Klug, and Lidelle until I say for her to go with you." "I see then, Ms. Accord…" We went underway with training, splitting up. "Alright, what you three will be doing today is looking out for your comrades. So Dave, I want you to cover for Raffina and Tarutaru, as they try to land a hit on me. You can use anything you wish to help them." Rulue told me. "Sure." I nodded. I came through with my strong armor so that I could fly above the battle. "Raffina and Tarutaru, well… your part in this exercise is self-explanatory. Now, come at me!" She started. My friends charged at her, right from the start. "Ha, you two are so predictable." She commented. "Look out!" I called. "Lightning Clap!" My lightning got in between them. "You should learn a thing or two from Dave, he's more aware of stuff going on around him." Rulue mocked them. "Stay calm, you two... she's just trying to get under your skins." I spoke with reason.

This continued on for a while longer. I did a good job of keeping them away from Rulue's attacks. At one point, I saw her sneak up on Tarutaru. "Tarutaru, look sharp! One hundred and eighty degrees!" I warned. He took a glimpse and grabbed her, but not for long. "Tight grip there, but your body weight allows you to be toppled easily... given enough force that is." She spoke. "! Release her and protect yourself by morphing, quickly!" I exclaimed. He did it just in time, and turned into a ball. "H-huh? When did he have this?" Rulue didn't see this happen the first time, since she defeated Tarutaru and Raffina so effortlessly. With my leadership, I was able to guide the guy to be more evasive. "Heh, since the first time that I faced him, Ms. Rulue. You brought him down so fast in the first exercise, he could not focus at all. From that fight, it didn't even occur to him that he was able to morph into a ball." My mind then formulated a plan to land a strike on Rulue. "Raffina! Kick Tarutaru as he is now, and propel him like a projectile!" I ordered. "What? Why?" "Just do it, trust in me, Raffina." She went along with doing it and breathes in. "Alright. ... Rainbow… Ball… Deluxe!" Tarutaru went flying, homing in on Rulue. She saw and went on the defensive, holding him back as he collided with her arms. "Hrrrrr….!" She struggled, but in the end, the combo attack was too much to handle. "Gyaaaah!" She flew back a few feet, hard landing on the ground, and bruised. Tarutaru turned back to normal, catching his own fall. "You did it, guys!" I was proud of them. I came back down and my armor disappeared. However, I took one look at Rulue… "! She's not getting up…!" I noticed. I ran up to her, to see the damage.

I shook her body to hopefully get a word out of her. "M-Ms. Rulue… Ms. Rulue!" I called. "*groan* D-Dave…?" "Ms. Rulue, are you okay?" "Heh… heheheh. Worry not, I'll be fine… You did a fantastic job… leading those two to success. Alone... neither of them could hit me, but you created their teamwork and it allowed them to overcome this obstacle... me. Boy, when you have time to think, you are THE battle strategizing prodigy." "Y-you praise me? Thank you…" I smiled at her praising me. I felt a hand touch my shoulder. Looking behind, I saw Yui standing there. "O-Oh, Yui! How long were you there for?" I jumped a little. "Since I saw you form that combo for your friends… it was a spectacle to watch." She said. "Uh huh… Well, I dunno how we can get this part of your training through now… Ms. Rulue's kinda bruised." I told her. "Dave... have Yui test out her psycho-whatever on you." Rulue suggested. "I guess that could work for now… Welp, time to put on the armor again!" I went along. "Dave, how tough is that armor of yours?" Yui wondered. "It's quite tough, about the hardness level of a diamond, I would say. Does that satisfy your question?" "Yes… yes it does." Yui nodded to me. "Ms. Rulue, you should get far away from here." I said to her. She nodded and my friends carried her away. "Good, now that she's safe… try me, Yui." I posed. "You know, for a nice guy… you can really push someone's buttons. You asked for it, don't say I didn't warn you ahead of time." After she made that clear, I flew in the air to have more mobility. "What? You're gonna be a scaredy-cat and fly? C'mon, be a man!" "Yui, as tough as the armor is… I'm not going to just stand around, tanking blows all session. You'll have to aim at me as a moving target if you want that!" That might have been an unintentional taunt, because that sentence provoked her. "How… arrogant! I'll blast you outta the sky, Dave!" A mind-thrown rock, almost the size of my head, wizzed past me with an irritated feel.

"Uh oh…" I realized that I had made a huge mistake, running my big mouth. "H-hey! I was only kidding! Don't take that into heart, Yui!" "Only kidding?! Please, you wouldn't have said it in the first place if you were just kidding. At least say things in a more playful tone next time! Now, you'll regret making yourself known to me as a stuck-up jerk who flaunts at people!" She continued launching rocks and other hard objects at me. "I'm telling you, I was not flaunting at all-! Eeyah!" "Yes you were, jackass! Don't deny it!" I flapped as fast as I could evading her rage-filled assaults. "Crap! This bitch is never going to let up at this rate. I must find a way to stop her before she kills somebody by accident!" I said to myself. I thought about how I would do it while still dodging. "That's it…! I need to approach her. Distancing myself from Yui will only make things worse. It was what I was taught in that other exercise. She won't be able to do much if I get close. Well, here goes nothing!" She saw me closing in on her. "What do you think you're doing now?!" "Yui, this is for your own good. I didn't want to do this, but you left me with no other option!" I dashed in the air toward the girl, then held her down firmly after crashing. "Gyah-! … …" She struggled, then open her eyes. Yui's face lit up in embarrassment from what she saw.

I didn't see it at first, but once she screamed, I looked down. "Aaaah! What the hell is wrong with you?!" "? … … ... Huh?!" My hands were on her breasts. "A-a-ah! Sorry! I most certainly did NOT mean to do that!" "You… PERV!" She used her psychokinesis to rip through my armor at a slow pace. "! Wh-wh-what is this?!" My face was then exposed to her. "Eat this!" Yui punched my face multiple times until it was beaten to death and bloody. "S-stop! Please! I beg of you!" "Why should I show you mercy?!" "Because... we all need each other to fight the count and… save the world. Please believe me when I say this, Yui… *sob* I… didn't mean to offend you. I apologize, dearly… I'll do whatever you want me to do after this class is through. Anything that you request… I'll do it without question or hesitation. Your body is graceful and beautiful... I would never soil it. What do you say… Yui?" "What do I... say? Well… you do look sincere… Fine, I'll forgive you if you do what I say. Also, I'm sorry about beating your face in." "What…? Why?" "I realize I was going overboard with my rage. The least I can do is get you to a healer… BUT, don't think for a second that it is an act of kindness. I'm doing this because I feel like I have to." I managed to calm her down, but she wouldn't happily talk to me for a while.

My school day ended after healing, so I went back to Suzuran. Coming out from the portal, I got a text from Ringo. "Dave, this is bad. I went to Ris' place to see if he was alright, but it looks like a fever got to him first. Where are you right now?" I texted back to her a response shortly after. "Ringo, I just came out of a portal from Primp. I'm by the northern part of the shopping district. Damn, why didn't I see this coming?" She makes another text following mine. "I'll come get you since you don't know the way to his home." I was forced to wait as Ringo found me some time later. "C'mon, there's no time to waste." She said. I nodded to her and we ran as fast as our legs could do. We made it to Risukuma's house. "This is his home?" I questioned. "No time, Dave! Get in!" "Okay, jeez." His home was a towering tree that stretched several meters up to the sky. "He's over here." She showed me. "R-Ris!" Ringo told me that the bear had a fever, but never had I imagined it to be this bad. He laid in bed, with heavy breaths to his name. "... … He's burning up badly, shit…" I gritted my teeth. Risukuma then noticed me standing there with him. "D-Dave…?" "Ris! What is this potent fever all about?" "Re...member what happened… to me, involving that ant bite…? The… one from the Puyo Isles?" "Yes! That was a terrible experience for you, my friend! … Why do you ask?" " That ant… it must have infected me... with a disease. I tried to figure out what disease it was... but my illness got in the way. Do me one favor, Dave… please… See that syringe? Puncture my skin… and draw out some of my blood. The virus... should be all around my bloodstream by now." "But-! What do we do with the blood after getting it?" "There's someone, another bear-person… who might be able to help you. His name is Akuma… and he lives back in that Primp place. I'm sure that if you ask around… you'll find him. He's intelligent like me, even more so." He finished.

I nodded to him before saying something to Ringo. "Alright… we can do that. Ringo, draw out his blood… I don't feel comfortable doing it." I stood back. "If you insist, Dave." She took the syringe and poked it in Risukuma. The blood was extracted and contained safely. "Ris, I swear… I will cure you of this mystery viral infection. You just get some rest, your gonna need it." Ringo swore to him as he fell asleep. "I'll hold on to that for now… let's go, Ringo." "Right." She gave me the sample of Risukuma's blood to hold. We left Suzuran and searched around Primp for Akuma. We saw Amitie walking around, to which Ringo got her attention. "There's Amitie…! Amitie! You think you could help us find someone?" She called to her. "Oh Ringo! Sure, who are you looking for?" "One who's called Akuma." "Akuma… … I know where he is! Follow me, guys!" My mood started to lighten up a little after finding where he was so effortlessly. "A… public library?" I squinted. "He's the librarian, one of the smartest people I know in the town. If you need knowledge, he'll likely have the answers for you." Amitie explained. "Well uh… let's go talk to him then, with you by our side I take it?" I readied. "Of course! I'm always happy to help any of my best friends." She told us. We went inside the library, of course… we kept manners in mind and stayed quiet. We saw a dark-colored creature moving about, switching book spots on the shelves. Amitie pointed at him and turned to us. We nodded, for we now knew that this had to be Akuma.

She went in to speak to him on a piano volume. "Excuse me, Akuma?" "Ah, why if it isn't Amitie… what are you doing here, ma?" "My friends told me that they need your help." "Do they now, ma?" Me and Ringo came up to him. "My, I don't think I know who you two are…" He observed. "I am Dave, and this is Ringo. We are friends of Risukuma, and have come for your aid. You see, our friend grew ill from an ant bite. Ordinarily, he would have looked into the virus itself… but he was too weak to do it. By the time he discovered it, he was practically bedridden. It was because of this, that we turned to you." I said. "I see, ma… Although, I'm not a scientist like Risukuma. It'll take me some time to investigate this, but I at least have the means to do it. Do you have a sample of his DNA, ma?" He laid down. "Yes, in this… is his blood, Akuma." I flashed the needle. "Then follow me to the back, boy and girls." He gestured. He led us the way to a separate room in the back of the library. "There should be a microscope in here, ma. Boy, hand me that for the time being." He held out his paw. "Here it is." "Wait for me to finish this, ma." As he said, we waited for about fifteen to twenty minutes. "I have figured out what this virus is, ma." He said. "What is it then, Akuma?" Ringo asked. "The Sandy Snare, a rare disease that only comes from the bite of an ant with the color of sand." He presented us. "...! That's the species he was bitten by..." I looked.

Akuma took in my reaction seriously as he said: "He will be dead in a matter of a week if it is left untreated, ma. Luckily for us, I know the way to treat it and I have what we need too." Akuma spoke as he rummaged around the room for what he meant. "Ah here it is… It will be a slow recovery, but it's the only way, ma. Just inject this in him... it will kill the virus off, periodically." He gave me. "Thank you, Akuma. We'll be heading off now…" I took it. We left the library and talked. "Gosh, I didn't know that Risukuma had gone ill. It'll be fine though, we have what we need to save him!" Amitie pulled herself together. "Yeah well, see you back in Accord's class tomorrow, Amitie." I waved. "Have a safe trip, Dave and Ringo!" We returned to Risukuma's house in Suzuran and injected him the cure. "Ris, this won't fix things right off the bat… however, I can assure you that you're safe now." I spoke to him. "Yeah, your body will recover eventually, Ris… We'll be going back home now." Ringo said. "W-wait… I need somebody to feed me… I live alone and I still can't... move from my bed." He said. "Alright… what do you want, Ris?" I asked. "Just a bowl of honey... that will suffice." He answered. "A bowl of honey? That's it?" I raised an eyebrow. "To bears, Dave… honey is nectar from the gods, almost as important as water." "I-I see." "There's a stash of honey around this house… in jars. You should be able to find one." We looked for a single jar of honey to pour into a bowl. "Sweet, found one." Ringo reached out. "Nice. Let's pour this stuff into a bowl and give it to him." I said to her. The rest of the night came and went as you would expect. We gave the bear honey, left and found ourselves back home. After doing everything else, we ate, bathed, and slept.

A single month had passed since that day. Me and my friends trained the hardest we could, to be strong warriors. Lemres' wound had healed completely by this time. Risukuma meanwhile, has been doing fine and going back to school. Schezo hasn't been easing himself too much into making friends, but he was getting closer. I trained my body for the judgment day closing in on all of us. Ringo consulted Accord for aid, so that she could fight along with us. Just like me, she turned her into a stand-alone magic user. Her specialty, commanding lightning and electricity under sheer will. To put it as a title, Ringo was from that point and onward, a lightning sorceress. She also became part of Accord's class, to be with me, Amitie, and the others too. Eight students, two instructors, Feli, a comet warlock, one dark mage, and Ex all waiting in the wings. We waited for Count Vyle, Maguro, and potentially, the larger threat looming over them to appear.

Author's Notes: Dave and his friends trained all they could, to have the chance to take down the count and Maguro. Dave in particular was looking in to pass his own limits and go beyond. Who will prevail in the end? How will this decisive battle play out? Next chapter, Chapter 27: The Count's Vengeance.