When Destiny Calls: First of the Four: Temptation, Meet Master Moo
By Cale Kuecker (Ashertye@aol.com)
Disclaimer: Sorry about being so long with this chapter, it's just I haven't had a lot of time what with school and the other two stories I'm also working on. Now let's get one with the boring stuff. I do not own Monster Rancher, nor do I own any of the characters from the series. Tecmo owns them. As to the new characters and monsters, yes I do own them, so if you want them to be guest characters in your fanfiction, you've got to ask me first. Also, I have never played any of the monster rancher games; so all the information I have to go on is the anime. That said, you'll understand if I take certain liberties with the rules of the monster rancher universe.
Author's Note: One more point for Melodi Hare who correctly guessed that the character Levi was in fact Gene Starwind (anybody else get the joke?) from the anime show Outlaw Star. Who knows, maybe I'll get around to putting Jim Hawking in too. Anyway, this time around I've pulled two characters. They're featured together, and both come from the same series, so it shouldn't be very difficult. The only other clue I'm going to give you is that they're not anime this time around. I would also at this time like to thank Evil Hare Girl for being kind enough to proof read this for me before I posted it, and for her very quick response.
Summary: Moo has decided that the searchers have been a thorn in his side for far too long, so he opts to deal with them personally. But, if Holly's father never left the village, just who is it that has claimed the mantle of Moo?
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"Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever's left, no matter how unlikely, is the answer."
-Sherlock Holmes, "Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd century.
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It was early in the morning. Very early. So early in fact, that the sun had not yet risen over the horizon, which only served to mask the presence of the dark vessel that swiftly moved through the sky. The ship was huge, and looked very much like a black star with huge spikes coming out seemingly at random from it's center. Closer inspection would reveal that there was nothing random about the ship. Guns were mounted on each spike, and at the horizontal center, landing pads could be seen large enough to accommodate mid-sized iron birds. Wires and cables decorated the craft, humming and glowing with eerie energy as they supplied power to the entire ship.
Inside, the craft was still impressively big, easily able to hold the rather large number of monsters that made up its master's guard force and staff. So honeycombed with passageways was the flying fortress that it was exceedingly easy to get lost inside if one did not know the plan for the ship. Several rooms were on board, an armory, a mess hall, and quarters for those monsters that served as crew or bodyguards. Four large rooms clustered in the front, the homes away from home of the four generals of the army. At the very center of the black star was a suite which served both as living quarters for the owner of the fortress, as well as his command center.
Moo sat on his throne now, a his claws taping irritably on the smooth onyx that made up the chair as he listened to the report being made by the crab saurian that stood in front of him.
"Regrettably, we were unable to recapture the escaping humans after the battle my lord," the clawed zuum hybrid said. "With Master Pixie lost and our troops scattered, the rebel scum that fought her also managed to escape with her killer."
"Any word yet on who it was that betrayed my scarlet general Captain?" Moo asked, his voice thunderous as he glared down at the messenger's scaly body.
"Our sources point to Big Blue sir, apparently Master Pixie had the rebels on the ropes until that scum killed her."
"Such a pity," came Moo's reply. "Of course, Pixie shall be given full honors as a hero to the cause, and her disk will be stored with our cherished fallen."
"That would be a problem. From what we've seen, Big Blue stole Master Pixie's disk, probably as a souvenir of his heinous deed," the crab saurian said.
"All the more reason to find the traitor and make him pay," Moo said, a hint of finality in his voice. "Strange, I assigned Big Blue as Pixie's assistant due to his loyalty. That he would so suddenly turn on her is quite… disappointing."
"With all do respect Master Moo, he fooled everyone."
"Quite… Weed; show the captain here out for now. I must make plans based on this latest… development."
"As you command oh great and majestic Master Moo." At his words, the small purple plant in question jumped out from the shadow of the throne and simply seemed to slide down to the crab saurian. "You heard what the master said, move move move move!" Weed began to push the larger dino out of the chamber.
"Quit pushing me you little turnip or I'll turn you into coleslaw!" Were the irritated crab saurian's final words before leaving. As soon as the door closed, Weed crawled back over to his master's side, eager to perform whatever task Moo wanted next.
"So, the vermin have made it past the first of my generals," Moo said, his and on his chin as he spoke. "Perhaps they are more powerful than I first anticipated."
"It was simply luck, my master. They would have been toast had not that traitor interfered," Weed said, trying his best to console his master.
"Bah, I do not believe in luck, good or bad. Another force is at work here, I know it." As Moo got up from his throne, as if on mental command, a pedestal rose from the ground as a hologram of a map of the Western Continent appeared on it's flat surface. Aside from a few small pockets of land the entire continent is covered by a dark shadow indicating Moo's influence. "In a few years I have accomplished what the petty kings, queens, and so called 'noblemen' of this continent have failed to do in generations, unified and brought peace to this land. Yet I cannot rest until I've secured this for all time." Moo turned his hands over staring at them. "Something new has come to this world... It tastes of an energy that threatens to undo me as I now exist. This frail body will not last forever. I need the power, the immortality I can only access in my original body. For that I need the magic stone the rebels carry with them."
"Your forces are searching every inch of the continent for them," Weed said before he realized Moo was no longer listening to him. The titan's red eyes were closed as dark energy pulsed around him. One of the titan's hands began to move over the map slowly, as if searching for something. Suddenly, a clawed finger fell upon the map.
"There," said Moo, crimson eyes exploding open. "Order the crew to take the fortress to these coordinates."
"As you command Master Moo," Weed said as he slid away to carry out his master's order.
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"Mocchi, Mocchi, Mocchi," chanted the little pink monster as he walked in front of the rest of the searchers. The group had found themselves in an open meadow, a fact that was making Gray Wolf more than a little edgy.
"Will you stop that already," the silver lupine hissed. "The last thing we need is to attract attention to ourselves while we're this vulnerable."
"Do you think you might be getting a little paranoid Gray?" Pink Eye said from on top of Golem's shoulder.
"Unless you can find someplace to hide within running distance eyeball, I think I'll keep my caution," Gray Wolf said. "All this open space is perfect for a surprise attack."
"I never thought you'd not want to engage in a fight Gray Wolf," said Hare as he walked beside the wolf. "What's the matter, loosing your edge?"
"There is a big difference between being hungry for battle and just being foolish rabbit… or didn't Vega teach you that much?" This last part elicited some snickering from the other searchers.
"Ha ha very droll," Hare said. The group traveled in silence after that, save for the occasional of quip between Hare and Gray Wolf. Suddenly, Pink Eye stopped in mid-hop.
"Hey guys, do you see that?" the suezo/pixie asked, squinting in the direction of the sun. In unison, the group looked in the same general direction, careful to avoid staring directly at the golden globe.
"I don't see anything Pink Eye," Joshua said.
"There, just below the sun... It looks like... a black star??" Pink Eye said, sounding as though he was unsure of himself.
"A black star?? Pink Eye are you sure you're not just seeing things," Genki said.
"No, I can see it too," Golem said, his rocky eyes' ability to withstand the intense brightness of the sun allowing him to see the speck.
"Told ya it was there," Pink Eye said before turning back to the "star." "Uh guys, that thing's coming in pretty fast." Sure enough, what had once been a dart spot too small for most to see was quickly getting bigger and much more prominent with each passing second.
"INCOMING!!" Pink Eye yelled and, without second thought, the group split up as an explosive shell collided with the ground, decimating the area the searchers had previously occupied. More explosions hit as the searchers did their best to anticipate where the blasts would occur and avoid them. All the while the floating fortress had moved closer, coming in for a landing as it's bottom spire dug into the ground while the other spikes supported the craft. The guns stopped firing after what had once been a beautiful meadow had been transformed into nothingness. The searchers looked on as the door of the fortress opened and a conveyer belt extended from it to the ground. Soon the former meadow was began to fill as zuum, jells, weeds, and other assorted monsters disembarked from the spiked touching the ground, quickly forming a barrier between the searchers and the floating fortress. A single figure appeared at the open door, standing almost serenely at the top of the conveyer belt.
"MOO!!" Gray Wolf growled, his fur standing on end and a look of pure hatred in his eyes as he saw the caped baddy.
"So that's Moo," Genki said as he watched the titan descend from his ship on a platform. "He doesn't look so tough to me."
"Don't let his looks fool you, this guy's a nightmare in and of himself," Gray Wolf said. Moo stepped down from the platform and, with a few strong, regal strides, made his way through the crowd of monsters to face the searchers personally.
"So... you are the seven who have openly defied my rule and been searching for the thrice-cursed firebird," the dark titan said slowly, his deep, cold voice sending shivers down every one of the searcher's spines. "I must admit, I am impressed. That such a pathetic group of misfit nobodies such as you can become such a nuisance is an accomplishment in itself. That you defeated Pixie, one of my chosen generals, is even more impressive. But, it is time for your little streak to come to an end."
"Big talk from a guy who had to bring a whole army to back him up," Genki said, balling his fist as he did so.
"Such bold words for such a weak creature. Were I a lesser god I might be offended." Suddenly Gray Wolf leapt in front of Genki, snarling at the golden armored monster.
"Grrr enough of this," the silver lupine growled. "It's time you paid for all the evil you've done!"
"Why Gray Wolf, I did not expect to see you alive. Perhaps you're stronger than you appeared."
"Shut up and tell me what you did with my brother!!"
"Ah Tiger," Moo said, his hand on his chin. "I turned him into a baddy."
"I'll make you give him back!!" Gray Wolf charged at the giant, ready for combat as silver energy sparkled around his horns. The wolf jumped into the air and let his lightning attack fly. The silver energy didn't even make it to Moo as it was blocked by an invisible barrier that protect the titan while a simple gesture told his entourage not to interfere. Gray Wolf was not done by a long shot however, as he continued to charge in, hoping to use his horns to impale his dark opponent. Much like his lightning, the silver wolf didn't even reach his target before a giant hand swatted him away as though he were a fly. Gray Wolf sailed into the arms of Golem who did his best to soften the blow as Pink Eye leapt forward to continue the battle. The eyeball monster moved as fast as he could directly toward Moo who barely seemed to acknowledge the attack.
"Teleport!" Pink Eye called only a few feet away from Moo, rematerializing directly above the titan as he spun downward like a cannonball, hoping to crush the villain. "This one's for Suezo and Holly!" He cried as he came down. Suddenly, he was stopped inches above Moo, held helplessly in place by the very power of the monster Moo.
"If I knew who they were or even cared, I might just give a damn," Moo said as he grabbed eyeball's tail and tossed him away as though he were trash. Pink Eye was saved from a rough landing by Joshua, though the pink eye was unconscious from the force of the throw. Moo soon found himself under further assault by Hare who had been closely following Pink Eye's attack pattern. The anthropomorphic lagomorph's fists moved like lightning in his rush punch; but each blow was blocked in turn by only one of Moo's hands. "So tell me, what have I done to you? Stolen your lucky people foot perhaps?"
"That's it you're toast. HEART PUNCH!!" Time once more slowed down as Hare's hearing became more and more acute. This time, however, there was no thumping of a heartbeat to help him time his attack. The rabbit's fist slammed full force into Moo's chest, with absolutely no effect.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but this heart has not beat in ages." Hare's eyes closed as he felt Moo's fist crash into his body. "Anyone else care to try to take ME to task."
"We're not finished tangoing yet!" A suddenly revitalized Gray Wolf yelled as he leapt into the air.
"Another lightning attack? Haven't we gone down this road before?"
"Not this time... ARCTIC BLAST!!" Gray Wolf yelled as he poured all of his energy into the familiar blue and white beam that left his mouth. This time, the tiger hybrid's attack had more luck, forcing Moo to move to block the blast. Gray Wolf poured more and more energy into the blast, which was still leaving his mouth as he landed on the ground. Slowly Moo's body began to ice over as the attack overpowered his defenses. It took five full minutes of a full-force arctic blast before Moo's entire body was frozen in a solid block of ice. Gray Wolf stopped the attack and promptly fell over, gasping from loss of breath and exhaustion. At first it appeared that the silver lupine had done the impossible and actually defeated Moo. Such hope, however, died as cracks began to swiftly appear in the block. Suddenly, the icy prison exploded as Moo broke free, sending a hail of ice and snow in all directions.
"An admirable attempt warrior, but in the end, your best was simply not good enough." Moo walked up to the fallen wolf and prepared to kick him into the horizon before he was stopped by a gray blur.
"I have had enough," Golem said as he tried to tackle the black titan, only to have his hands caught in Moo's own. The two grappled and seemed almost equal in strength for a few minutes before Golem found himself falling to one knee as Moo displayed his superior power. Suddenly, Moo broke the hold, placing both hands on Golem's chest before firing a power beam from each. The blasts sent the rocky giant flying backwards, cracks appearing in his granite chest as he came to a halt several yards away from Moo.
"Pathetic fool, thinking his strength equal to mine."
"I'm gonna wipe that smile off your face," Genki said as he surged forward, his fist extended as he tried to punch the titan in the face. In one fluid motion Moo grabbed the boy's wrist with his own massive hand. Genki dangled for a few seconds in disbelief as Moo chuckled at his attempted attack.
"Deluded child... what made you think you could harm..." That was when something in Moo's mind clicked. Call it a premonition, call it recognition, but Moo simply looked at his young captive with a look of realization. "It's you..."
"What?"
"All that power..."
"Get away from him!!" Joshua yelled as he attacked, knife drawn as the human attempted to bury the blade in Moo's neck. His guard dropped and his attention fully focused on Genki, Moo had been oblivious to the human's approach and thus unable to prevent the attack from succeed.
"AAAAHH!!" Screamed the titan as he dropped Genki and reached for the knife, pulling it out of his neck. "Miserable human, you will pay for that with your life!!" Moo yelled as he picked Joshua up by the neck. Big though he was, Joshua was dwarfed by the mighty Moo as he was lifted off his feet. A glint of sunlight bounced off the magic stone as it came out of the human's shirt, catching Moo's eye. "I see you have my stone. I shall look forward to reclaiming it from your lifeless body," Moo said as he began to squeeze Joshua's throat harder and harder.
"NO!" Genki yelled as he came down into a kick. As fate would have it, however, Moo turned his head to look at his oncoming attacker. A look of horror came over Genki's face as he realized what this change meant, too late to stop himself. The sound was defining as Moo's left horn impaled Genki right through the stomach.
"Troublesome whelp. This calls for an acceleration of my plans." Moo dropped the barely conscious Joshua, swiftly grabbing the magic stone from the human as he fell. Then the baddy master slid the wounded Genki off his horn, cradling the dying boy in his arms as he turned to leave.
"Stop," Gray Wolf said, a sentiment echoed by the other searchers who were struggling to get to their feet. "I won't... I won't let you take him." At those words, Moo stopped in his tracks, his head turning to look over his shoulder.
"My dear adversary, you are in no position to stop me." Moo then turned to his troops. "Make sure they do not impede my progress."
"Yes sir," the monsters said in unison as they closed behind Moo read for combat. Gray Wolf led the charge with a lightning bolt that exploded in mid-air when it collided with three fireballs sent by zuums. Hare had his hands full exchanging blows with the contingent of evil hares that kept him at bay, while Joshua was kept from progressing by a line of seeds being shot by weeds. Golem attempted to break through with his rolling attack, but this was blocked by a group of jells that merged into one rubber band- like sheet. Even Pink Eye's teleport was unable to get him through, thanks to the magical effects of a Joker in the crowd. In mere moments, the floating fortress began to lift off, firing off a beam that teleported the defending baddies back aboard. Desperate, Pink Eye tried one last time to teleport aboard, only to find himself sent hurdling back to the ground.
"NO!"
"I can't believe it," Hare said. "Genki's gone."
"We failed... I failed... just like with Tiger," Gray Wolf panted.
"No," Joshua said defiantly. "It can't be over... There has to be away to get aboard that fortress." Gray Wolf looked up as an idea hit him.
"Maybe... Come on, we haven't much time." With those words, the six remaining searchers were off like shots.
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"Huh!!" Genki said as his eyes burst open. The last thing the boy remembered was being impaled on one of Moo's horns in the battle. By all rights, he knew he should have been dead, so it was a bit of a surprise to find himself still breathing. Genki squirmed a little, surprised again to find himself bound to a table of metal. Genki lifted his head to look down at his body, a bit embarrassed to find he'd been stripped to his underwear, a fact that was reinforced when he squirmed and his bare flesh touched new metal. Needless to say it was very cold. There wasn't even a scar on his stomach to show where he'd been impaled. Whoever had healed him had done a superb job.
"Ah you're awake," came a deep, rich voice. Genki's head turned as he searched for the source of the voice only to find Moo sitting in a big chair, his personal effects stacked for the most part nearby. In Moo's hands sat Genki's yellow backpack, something that Genki could feel didn't bode well at all. "I must say, I am impressed with your recuperative powers Master Sakura... I am pronouncing you're name right, am I?"
"Who are you talking to, I don't know any Sakura," Genki said, feigning ignorance in the hopes of throwing the titan off.
"This seems to say different," Moo said as he held up Genki's student ID. Genki gasped as he recognized the small rectangle of plastic. Once more, Moo's hand disappeared into Genki's backpack, pulling out two books and some papers. Genki gulped again as he read the title of one of the books; World History. The papers Genki recognized as being some homework and a test of his. "And that is not all I found while looking through you're little pack. Such interesting reading material you have." Moo looked at the test paper. "But you missed two questions here I see." Moo's hand reached down the side of his chair, pulling up a paperback book Genki instantly recognized.
"No..."
"Of course, I found this to make for particularly interesting reading." The evil giant began to thumb through the book. "Dragon: a violent tempered monster with tremendous physical power and deadly breath. Its strengths are it's impressive attack and defense stats. Mew: what this monster lacks in raw strength and defense, it makes up for in speed, accuracy, and agility. Cabalos: a rare and tough tiger/naga hybrid that is forbidden to be raised without special permission from... Fimba?" Moo looked at his captive a questioning look on his face. "I may be going out on a limb here, Master Sakura, but I'd venture to say that this," Moo held up the book, "and this," his other hand held up Genki's backpack, "and, most importantly, you are not from this world. Am I correct?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," the boy said defiantly.
"Cut the charade whelp. I can feel it," Moo walked closer to the boy, bending over to look him in the eyes. "There is a... strangeness about you. You are unlike any human I have ever met. Couple that with the explosion of dimensional power I felt mere months ago, and what conclusion would you draw?" Genki tried his hardest to come up with a plausible excuse, but nothing came to mind. "Just as I thought."
"So now what happens? You gonna try to torture me to find out where I'm from? Is that why you bothered to keep me alive?" Genki almost spat in Moo's face, and would have if his mouth had not been so dry. Moo stood up straight again, turning his back to the boy.
"Please, I am not so barbaric as to torture a child. I do have my standards. There is more to you than a simple alien origin, boy."
"So why did you save me?"
"Because I can tell you have the potential to be VERY useful to me." A window suddenly appeared in front of Moo, presenting a fantastic view of the land spreading out around the fortress. "This world's work is coming to a close, Master Sakura. In less than a year, I will be master of all the light touches, and I will bring to this world a peace and serenity the likes of which it has never seen." Moo's hand clenched into a fist as he stated his plans. "But I have always suspected the existence of other worlds, other lands choking under the yoke of chaos and agony, crying out for the iron hand of a true ruler to forge a future of peace and tranquillity for them. And you are the key helping me achieve such a goal." The master of the baddies raised a single finger into the air, and a black bolt of lightning vaporized Genki's restraints. "I apologize for any humiliation you might have suffered, but it was necessary to tend to your wounds." The titan stepped aside, allowing Genki to get to his clothes and dress.
"Look, thanks for fixing my stomach from what your horns did, but if you think I'm gonna help a killer like you, you're crazier than everyone says."
"True genius is never understood by the ignorant masses boy," said Moo. "Sometimes you must sacrifice the trees for the forest to flourish. And according to your history book here, your world would greatly benefit from some... selective trimming."
"What makes you think I'd help you do anything?" At these words, Moo knelt before Genki, looking the boy straight in the eyes as a glowing sphere appeared in his hand.
"Because of what I have to offer."
* * *
"Gray Wolf, we're coming up on the floating fortress," a red dragon told his silvery passenger as they sped through the air.
"Excellent Falcon. I knew that flying eyesore would be child's play for you to catch up to," Gray Wolf told his dragon ally. Behind them, the other searchers were also being carried by a wing of dragons, with Golem sitting suspended between two in a harness. Ahead of them, still a black dot on the horizon, was their target; the floating fortress.
"I hope you appreciate this Gray Wolf. I lost half my wing when I tangled with that flying nightmare before. We'll have about five seconds to drop you off before someone realizes we're there."
"Don't worry, that should be plenty of time. Just don't forget we're gonna need a pick-up too."
"Fine, what signal will you use when you're ready?"
"I... haven't figured out yet... but you'll know it when you see it Falcon," said Gray Wolf.
"This kid must be something special if you're willing to go to so much trouble for him."
* * *
"You can WHAT?" Genki asked as he backed away from Moo, a startled expression on his face.
"I looked over everything you had in that backpack. You devote a tremendous amount of your time and energy to this game you have of our world. I was particularly interested in the drawings. A human possessing different... monstrous attributes. Not that you would be the first human to desire some of our better traits." Inside Moo's glowing ball a miniature hologram of Genki appeared, spinning around three hundred sixty degrees as it did so. Genki felt almost mesmerized by the glowing orb.
"I can't help wanting to know what it's like...," Genki said as he looked into the orb.
"Ah... An inquisitive mind, how splendid." Moo's gaze fell down to orb. "Perhaps such a curious boy would enjoy first-hand experience of what say... a dragon feels as it soars through the clouds." At the titan's words, two red webbed wings fluidly grew out of the hologram's back as did a red tail. "I felt a dragon's wings would be more acceptable to a boy than a pixie's but that can be changed according to your preference." The wings stretched wide as the miniature Genki turned, showing off their full wingspan to the dazzled Genki.
"Wow." Genki said as he inched closer.
"And why stop there? The wings of a dragon are fine, but there is so much more. The speedy fists of a hare perhaps?" The hologram's hands became hairier and bigger as they took on the appearance of a hare. On and on Moo went, substituting Genki's old body parts for new monster ones. A golem's chest, a naga's ears, a tiger's legs, all were adding to the mixture making the hologram appear all the time less and less human. "You see, anything you want, any way you wish to be, it's yours for the taking, all you have to do is one thing."
"What?" The still mesmerized Genki asked, still staring at the hologram.
"Tell me how you got here, show me the path to take to reach your world," answered Moo, lowering his head even further so he could look into the boy's eyes.
"I... I don't know."
"WHAT!" Moo bellowed. "You have to know, no one can possess such power and not be aware of how to use it!"
"I don't know, I was just playing my game and then I was here."
"Game?" Moo began to pick through Genki's belongings once again. "I see know game here. What are you talking about?"
"Not there... lost it... Used it to beat the black dinos and free Mocchi..."
"And the source of your power, the catalyst that got you here?"
"Don't know any catalyst... just came..." At those words Moo began to lose his patience. Gruffly he grabbed the boy by the collar of his shirt, lifting him high into the air.
"Don't toy with me boy!! Tell me where you are from!! How did you get here!?!" Suddenly, the dreamy look on the boy's face faded as the spell that held him captive was broken.
"No! I won't let you invade my home. I won't let you hurt my world like you did this one." At once Moo's eyes twisted in rage and hatred as he raised his fist and prepared to knock Genki's head clear off his shoulders. Before that could happen, however, intellect came to both monster and human's rescue. Moo lowered his fist and then Genki, placing the boy gently on the ground as his eyes became lost their former anger.
"No matter, there are other ways to get the information I want," Moo said, his voice calm and even.
"I won't talk no matter what you do to me, so do your worst."
"My dear Master Sakura, my worst doesn't even require you talk. I will simply get it directly from your memories. In a way, this is actually the best possible outcome for me." Genki backed away, a little bit afraid as to what Moo might be hinting at.
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm always on the lookout for a fresh host, and truly, I could do far worse than your body..."
"What?"
"Come now, you don't think what you see before you is my actual form. Do you truly believe that the master of monsters would have so human a form if he could do otherwise?" Moo walked closer to his captive. "This is merely a temporary vessel until I can find my true body and merge with it again."
"True body?" Genki said before comprehending. "The dragon Monol showed us!!"
"Well, I don't know any Monol, but yes, my original dragon hybrid body. It lies dormant somewhere in this world while my mind must be forced to attach to other... less stable hosts." As Moo talked he began to slowly remove his mask and a sickening sucking noise came to Genki's ears. "The fool who awoke me sought the power my mind represented, hoping to make it his own. He was measured and found wanting. Unable to cope with the vast power he now had, I'm afraid his poor heart gave out. Fortunately, my powers transcend death, and his now fully available body was mine to animate and do with as I pleased. But, as you can now hopefully see, nothing lasts forever." Moo had finally removed his mask and Genki fell to the ground in horror at what he saw. Green rotting flesh barely hung to an all too human skull that poked out between bits of hair and a worm-eaten scalp. There was only a hole where the nose should be and the eyes remained unblinking as they rolled in dead sockets. Nothing covered the teeth and rotting gums and there was a stench suddenly present in the air that made Genki gag. The titan quickly leaned in again, bringing his rotting visage as close to Genki's face as he could. "Even at that point of my evolution, the body only lasted for two years before becoming totally inoperable. My forces scower the battle fields after every campaign searching for the least beaten up of the dead for me to use as a host. Now, though, my power is so great that my hosts barely last a month before decay destroys them."
"If you think I'm gonna let you do that to me, forget it!" Genki said, back rolling away from Moo and standing.
"You... There is something about you, I can't quite put my finger on. You should be able to survive the merging process, and when I merge with you, I shall have instant access to all your memories, just like with the others. Then we shall find out how you came to this world, and more importantly, how I may go back."
* * *
Meanwhile, the rest of the searchers were busy sneaking through the fortress, being careful to keep out of sight of any baddies, no mean feat with Golem in the group.
"How many twists and turns are in this place?" Pink Eye asked.
"We're gonna need a better way to find Genki," Joshua said stopping the whole group. "Gray Wolf think you can sniff out Genki's location."
"It shouldn't be too much of a problem... But I'm gonna need something to catch the scent."
"Here," Golem said as he handed the tiger hybrid Genki's orange baseball cap. "I picked this up after the battle with Moo."
"That's perfe... Someone's coming." The group looked around, ducking for cover as a baku and a mew walked by. The baku's tongue dragged along the ground completing the dopey look on his face, while the mew was actually skipping down the hallways, a ball of yarn in his hand.
"Odiferous, have you seen Garfunkal anywhere?" Instead of answering with words, the baku named Odiferous simple barked and began to use his huge wet tongue to lick his cat-doll companion.
"Odi... Oh Odiferous... Please stop... It takes me hours to comb my fur right. Wet fur isn't cute," the mew wailed as the two continued moving down the hallway.
"Well, that was pointless," Gray Wolf quipped. Then the wolf took off like a shot, the rest of the searchers followed after him. Occasionally, the silver tracker halted long enough to sniff the air and ground, which was typically followed by his changing direction. Soon, though, he stopped before a stonewall that marked a dead end. "This is where the trail ends."
"I gotta be real honest with you Gray, I don't see Genki anywhere around here," Pink Eye said.
"Maybe you should use your brain instead of your mouth Pink Eye," countered Hare as he began to look around. "Places like this are full of hidden passages and other junk. All we need to do is find the right…" That was when Hare's hand flipped a switch and a circular section of the wall slid upward, revealing a plane of glass.
"GOL!!!" Golem said as he looked inside, clearly upset at what he saw. The other searchers climbed up and looked in too, wondering what their stony friend had seen. Inside, Moo stood with his back to the window, holding Genki by the shoulders as he pulled the struggling human closer and closer. The goodies didn't need any other incentive.
"We have to get in there now!" Joshua said as he searched for the mechanism to open the door.
"Stand back," Golem commanded, which was quickly obeyed by the other five. "TORNADO ATTACK!" Golem's body broke up into segments that hung in the air for a few seconds before they began to twirl around like a tornado. The pieces crashed into the wall with the force of an avalanche, but did no damage as Golem bounced off fully reunited to the floor.
"Geeze what is that stuff?" Joshua said.
"It must be reinforced somehow," Hare commented. "Gray Wolf, use you arctic blast to freeze the wall, that should weaken it enough for Golem to break through."
"Roger," rock giant and silver wolf said in unison.
"ARCTIC BLAST!" Gray Wolf called and the freezing ray struck the wall, quickly covering it in subzero ice. As soon as it was covered, the silver lupine got out of the way, giving Golem the shot he needed.
"TORNADO ATTACK!" Once more Golem broke into pieces and slammed into the wall. This time, great cracks appeared in the stressed material as it began to weaken. A second tornado and the former obstruction was reduced to rubble.
"WHO DARES TO INTERRUPT ME!!!" Moo bellowed as he turned to face the intruders, his mask once more covering his face.
"Let the kid go Moo, and nobody will have to get hurt," Joshua said, a sentiment echoed by the monsters behind him in the form of growls and glares.
"I'm afraid the boy and I have become too… attached to each other to be separated." So saying, Moo grabbed Genki once more by the shirt lifting him in the air. Genki kicked and punched at Moo, connecting a few times; but each hit wasn't even felt by the titan.
"You're crazy if you think I'll let you steal my body," Genki said as he fought.
"I would have preferred enough time to properly prepare you to be my new vessel, but it appears that is not to be. CHANGE NOW!!" Black energy flew from Moo, invading Genki's body through his mouth before any of the searchers could stop it. After a few seconds of this, Moo fell to the ground along with Genki.
"Genki-chi," Mocchi yelled, rushing forward to help his fallen trainer to his feet. Steadily, his eyes closed, Genki stood with Mocchi's help.
"Genki, you all right boy?" Joshua asked. No answer came.
"Come on kid speak to us," pleaded Pink Eye. No answer came.
"Genki be all right now, right, please," Mocchi said as he shook his friend and trainer. Suddenly, Genki's right arm crossed his chest swiftly, and Hare's eyes went wide.
"MOCCHI GET AWAY NOW!!" the lapine cried, but he was too late. Swift as lightning, Genki's arm came down, slapping the little pink monster away and sending him sailing into a wall. An inhumanely cruel smirk appeared on Genki's face as an evil giggle escaped his lips. Slowly the boy rose into the air as tendrils of dark energy began to swirl around his body.
"I'm afraid Master Sakura is unable to answer you, at this time or any other," the possessed Genki said in a voice not his own as the dark tendrils transformed into very familiar golden armor. His brown hair turned pink and his eyes took on a eerie red glow as his skin, save for his face, turned black. The transformation complete, Genki/Moo landed on the ground light as a feather, his hands running over his body to check that things had gone smoothly. "A bit young for my tastes, but as I said, this is only a temporary arrangement." The possessed boy's now clawed fingers touched his lips as his smile broadened. "And within a matter of hours, my mind will fuse with this boy's giving me instant access to everything he know. Which, I might add, is more time than the six of you have left."
"It can't be," said Pink Eye.
"I'm afraid it can. You and your friends were too late. The boy is mine," said Genki/Moo. Suddenly, his head jerked to the rapidly decaying corpse that used to house him. "And before I forget…" The titan reached down, actually breaking off one of his old body's fingers. Tied to it was the magic stone. "I mustn't forget this little trinket, I went to too much trouble to just forget the key to finding my old body."
"What?" the group said in unison.
"You use this stone to find mystery disks, which, admittedly it is good at, but that is not the extent of its power. Since you have proven yourself skilled enough to penetrate so far into my sanctum, I suppose a fitting reward would be to allow you to see the stone's true power before you die." So saying, Genki/Moo lifted the stone into the air. "Magic stone of ancient times, show me where my body lies." This time, instead of the radiant red bird of fire that usually appeared when the stone was asked to do something, a black flame appeared, shaped like a dragon. Suddenly, the whole room shimmed out of focus as Genki/Moo and the searchers found themselves hovering over snowcapped mountains. The black dragon flew to the highest mountain where it began to circle, indicating they had arrived at the body. "Ah, Mount Kyris. Such a fitting place for my old body to be stored."
"It doesn't matter where that rotten old corpse you call a body is Moo, we're not gonna let you get to it," Joshua yelled as the vision ended.
"And just how do you intend to do that, human? The only way for you to actually halt me would be to kill your little friend. Would you so willingly sacrifice him?"
"From what you said, Genki'll die anyway if we let you go. I think he'd be a lot happier knowing we stopped you and saved both our worlds," Gray Wolf barked as silver energy sparkled around his horns.
"Be it so. I showed you mercy and allowed you to live last time, expect no such favors in this battle."
"ARCTIC BLAST!" Gray Wolf yelled, leading the charge with his icy breath.
"BREATH OF DOOM!" Moo called back as Genki's mouth opened wide to emit a black beam of energy. The dark attack broke through Gray Wolf's own, striking the wolf and through him back into a wall to be covered by rubble. Hare was next jumping forward in a jump kick. Suddenly, he found himself levitating in the air as Genki merely pointed from him to the wall. Hare slammed into the wall as Genki pointed again, sending the lapine monster hurtling into another wall. Again and again this was repeated by Moo in what was clearly an attempt to break his opponent's bones. Golem intervened however, clamping both of Genki's arms to his sides.
"Stop this senseless cruelty Moo, it is not too late to turn back," Golem said as he struggled to hold his surprisingly strong captive.
"But it feels so GOOD!!" Moo said as Genki's arms burst free of Golem's grip, through the granite goliath backwards as a blast of dark energy issued forth from the boy's hand to strike him squarely in the chest. Pink Eye backed up a bit, looking around at his fallen friends.
*Okay, I can do this... He's just one guy... One guy with more power than every monster I've ever met put together!! Suezo I hope you appreciate what I'm doing for you.*
"Hey Moo!! Catch this! TELEPORT!" With those words, the suezo/pixie hybrid began to blink in and out of existence all over the place as Genki followed him. Suddenly, Pink Eye appeared right in front of his former friend. "EYEBEAM!" the eyeball yelled, summoning the energy to fire his pink laser at the baddy leader.
"WALL OF HATRED!" Moo called as Genki's hand rose into the air, an inky black force following. The wall not only blocked Pink Eye's attack, but, with the swiftness of thought itself, began to move forward taking the pink eyeball monster with it and slamming him into the walls with a thunderous bang. The last of the monster searchers taken care of, Genki/Moo turned towards Joshua. "It appears to have come down to you and me, old man. I promise to make your end swift."
"No, not only you left," came a defiant voice. Moo turned around to see Mocchi standing up where he had fallen. The little monster's tiny hands were balled into fists and he had an angry look on his face. "I won't let you hurt Genki. Leave him alone."
"You have guts, little one, I will give you that. Not a lot of brains, but guts." Moo cackled.
"CHERRY BLOSSOM BLIZZARD-CHI!!" Mocchi said as he jumped into the air and spun in a circle to generate his tornado of petals. The little monster child put all of his energy into the attack, and it was quick clear from the sheer intensity of the winds and petals that a lesser opponent would have counted himself lucky to survive. Rubble, chairs, anything that was not attacked to the room itself was picked up by the tornado as it slammed full force into Moo. But Moo barely blinked at the raging wind. Soon the storm ended and Mocchi fell to the ground, exhausted from his attack.
"Such power, you are an impressive monster. Such a pity you joined the wrong side of this war. Now, feel true power." Genki rose into the air as his limbs spread out full-eagle. He looked straight up as Moo gathered the energy for his attack. "DARK FORCE!!" the titan called as a ball of black energy the size of Genki's whole body materialized in front of the boy. It crackled and sizzled with energy as Moo prepared to launch it at the searchers. "Now DI...." Suddenly, Moo stopped in mid-sentence as Genki's eyes widened in alarm. The energy ball quickly vanished as the possessed boy doubled over in pain and fell to the ground. "What... What is this?" Suddenly, black energy, Moo's very spirit itself, rushed out of the possessed boy, racing back to the rapidly decaying body it had left just moments ago. The body was no longer even in as good a shape as it was. An eye had fallen out and several muscles had simply dissolved without Moo's constant regeneration, and the titan could not even stand.
"Told you... I wouldn't... talk," Genki gasped out. "Guess it wasn't... so easy... to possess a live... body as you thought... eh Moo."
"No, it is infinitely easy," Moo said. "We are simply not as compatible as I'd hoped. No matter... I will have plenty of time to overcome such obstacles."
"You don't even have minutes left," came a weak but determined voice. Gray Wolf arose from the rubble he'd been buried in. All around, the other searchers were also recovering though it was obvious they were hurt.
"We may not be at our best right now Moo, but I'd bet a million gold you're dying I that body, and we've still got the energy to speed you on your way," said Hare as he rose, holding his left arm which felt broken.
"Your reign of terror comes to an end now Moo." Pink Eye said, a sentiment echoed by Golem. Genki and Mocchi too were standing again, perfectly mimicking each other's battle stances as they prepared to attack.
"Congratulations, you have achieved what few have ever dared to dream. You have brought me to the precipice of defeat." Moo's hand suddenly slammed into the wall, hitting a button that started a loud klaxon noise. "A pity you forgot that the forces that inhabit our little arena are mine." With those words, the room began to quickly fill with monsters of all shapes and sizes. Zuums, evil hares, worms, jells, gangsters, all entered crowding the room. "Take the boy and the mocchi alive but kill the rest," Moo ordered as the baddies began to crowd in on the searchers. Suddenly, eight beams of flame red energy blasted their way through the wall, revealing naught but sky... and eight pirate dragons.
"Guys your ride's here and it ain't stickin' around much longer," Falcon said as he began firing his dragon's breath at the collected baddies. The searchers, staggering and limping, made their way to the waiting dragons, climbing on as they took off.
"Next time Moo!" Gray Wolf called over his shoulder as the dragons sped him to safety.
"Yes," said the weakened Moo, "next time..."
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Night had fallen and the searchers, along with their dragon allies, now sat around a fire tending to their wounds.
"Thanks for getting us outta there Falcon," Gray Wolf said, bandages covering his ribs and paws.
"No problem, we figured something had gone wrong when all those sirens went off," said Falcon. "To be honest, we were about to be forced to leave, those guns were getting way too close for comfort."
"Fortunately for us you weren't."
"How's your arm doing Hare," Joshua said as he tied a sling behind the rabbit's shoulder.
"It feels a lot better than it did a few hours ago when Moo was tossing me around like a bean bag."
"Fortunately he didn't do as much damage as it seemed. You should be fine in couple of days. Considering you and Gray Wolf took the most damage, I'd say we got off pretty lucky."
"Oh sure, ignore my contribution and injuries why don't you," Pink Eye said with mock-hurt. The eyeball had several bandages over his cuts.
"I'm just sorry we lost the magic stone," Joshua continued, ignoring his partner. "It'll be next to impossible to find the Phoenix without it."
"Who says we lost it," Genki said, holding up his hand. Tied to it, exactly where Moo had placed it after he'd used it to find his body, was the magic stone. "Guess Moo just forgot about it during the battle." The boy handed the stone back to Joshua.
"Well, that's one less headache we have to worry about," said Joshua as he took back the stone.
"Look, my flight and I have to take off. I wish you all the best of luck in your quest, even if I think you're all nuts," Falcon said as he and the other dragons unfurled their wings and took flight. "Good-bye."
"Good-bye Falcon." The searchers said in unison, waving as best they could.
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Epilogue
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Moo sat on his throne, only one red eye glowing as he looked down at his sidekick Weed, barely able to move. The baddy leader had never looked so physically weak to the plant hybrid's eyes, an obvious effect of his body's rapid decay during his spirit's absence. Even his pink hair seemed grayer than normal.
"We're scouring the battlefields for a suitable host for you even as we speak mighty Moo," Weed said. "I anticipate you will be able to transfer your spirit within three days time. Unfortunately, the damage to the floating castle will take longer to repair."
"I do not want it simply repaired Weed, I want you to make sure nothing like this can ever happen again. Those dragons should not have been able to save their friends so easily," Moo growled, not even moving a finger to emphasize his point.
"At once master."
"And one more thing. Alert the remaining Big Bad Four of a change in my orders regarding these rebels."
"Yes mighty one?"
"I don't care if the others are reduced to cinders, I want the boy and the mocchi monster brought to me, alive and with no permanent injuries."
"And the magic stone sir?"
"Now that I know where my body is, I see no real reason to possess it. But I will not permit anyone else to have it while looking for the firebird. Bring it to me if possible, destroy it if necessary. Now, you have your orders, begone." With those final words Weed left, ready to carry out his leader's orders.
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Well, there you go, the story of Moo. Pretty scary, eh. Be here next time when the searchers begin their battle against the second member of the Big Bad Four, the great Gali. He's sending in a new minion to take the searchers out, and it's gonna take a new trick to stop him. Be here next time, when its time to "Ragnorak and Roll."
By Cale Kuecker (Ashertye@aol.com)
Disclaimer: Sorry about being so long with this chapter, it's just I haven't had a lot of time what with school and the other two stories I'm also working on. Now let's get one with the boring stuff. I do not own Monster Rancher, nor do I own any of the characters from the series. Tecmo owns them. As to the new characters and monsters, yes I do own them, so if you want them to be guest characters in your fanfiction, you've got to ask me first. Also, I have never played any of the monster rancher games; so all the information I have to go on is the anime. That said, you'll understand if I take certain liberties with the rules of the monster rancher universe.
Author's Note: One more point for Melodi Hare who correctly guessed that the character Levi was in fact Gene Starwind (anybody else get the joke?) from the anime show Outlaw Star. Who knows, maybe I'll get around to putting Jim Hawking in too. Anyway, this time around I've pulled two characters. They're featured together, and both come from the same series, so it shouldn't be very difficult. The only other clue I'm going to give you is that they're not anime this time around. I would also at this time like to thank Evil Hare Girl for being kind enough to proof read this for me before I posted it, and for her very quick response.
Summary: Moo has decided that the searchers have been a thorn in his side for far too long, so he opts to deal with them personally. But, if Holly's father never left the village, just who is it that has claimed the mantle of Moo?
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"Once you've eliminated the impossible, whatever's left, no matter how unlikely, is the answer."
-Sherlock Holmes, "Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd century.
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It was early in the morning. Very early. So early in fact, that the sun had not yet risen over the horizon, which only served to mask the presence of the dark vessel that swiftly moved through the sky. The ship was huge, and looked very much like a black star with huge spikes coming out seemingly at random from it's center. Closer inspection would reveal that there was nothing random about the ship. Guns were mounted on each spike, and at the horizontal center, landing pads could be seen large enough to accommodate mid-sized iron birds. Wires and cables decorated the craft, humming and glowing with eerie energy as they supplied power to the entire ship.
Inside, the craft was still impressively big, easily able to hold the rather large number of monsters that made up its master's guard force and staff. So honeycombed with passageways was the flying fortress that it was exceedingly easy to get lost inside if one did not know the plan for the ship. Several rooms were on board, an armory, a mess hall, and quarters for those monsters that served as crew or bodyguards. Four large rooms clustered in the front, the homes away from home of the four generals of the army. At the very center of the black star was a suite which served both as living quarters for the owner of the fortress, as well as his command center.
Moo sat on his throne now, a his claws taping irritably on the smooth onyx that made up the chair as he listened to the report being made by the crab saurian that stood in front of him.
"Regrettably, we were unable to recapture the escaping humans after the battle my lord," the clawed zuum hybrid said. "With Master Pixie lost and our troops scattered, the rebel scum that fought her also managed to escape with her killer."
"Any word yet on who it was that betrayed my scarlet general Captain?" Moo asked, his voice thunderous as he glared down at the messenger's scaly body.
"Our sources point to Big Blue sir, apparently Master Pixie had the rebels on the ropes until that scum killed her."
"Such a pity," came Moo's reply. "Of course, Pixie shall be given full honors as a hero to the cause, and her disk will be stored with our cherished fallen."
"That would be a problem. From what we've seen, Big Blue stole Master Pixie's disk, probably as a souvenir of his heinous deed," the crab saurian said.
"All the more reason to find the traitor and make him pay," Moo said, a hint of finality in his voice. "Strange, I assigned Big Blue as Pixie's assistant due to his loyalty. That he would so suddenly turn on her is quite… disappointing."
"With all do respect Master Moo, he fooled everyone."
"Quite… Weed; show the captain here out for now. I must make plans based on this latest… development."
"As you command oh great and majestic Master Moo." At his words, the small purple plant in question jumped out from the shadow of the throne and simply seemed to slide down to the crab saurian. "You heard what the master said, move move move move!" Weed began to push the larger dino out of the chamber.
"Quit pushing me you little turnip or I'll turn you into coleslaw!" Were the irritated crab saurian's final words before leaving. As soon as the door closed, Weed crawled back over to his master's side, eager to perform whatever task Moo wanted next.
"So, the vermin have made it past the first of my generals," Moo said, his and on his chin as he spoke. "Perhaps they are more powerful than I first anticipated."
"It was simply luck, my master. They would have been toast had not that traitor interfered," Weed said, trying his best to console his master.
"Bah, I do not believe in luck, good or bad. Another force is at work here, I know it." As Moo got up from his throne, as if on mental command, a pedestal rose from the ground as a hologram of a map of the Western Continent appeared on it's flat surface. Aside from a few small pockets of land the entire continent is covered by a dark shadow indicating Moo's influence. "In a few years I have accomplished what the petty kings, queens, and so called 'noblemen' of this continent have failed to do in generations, unified and brought peace to this land. Yet I cannot rest until I've secured this for all time." Moo turned his hands over staring at them. "Something new has come to this world... It tastes of an energy that threatens to undo me as I now exist. This frail body will not last forever. I need the power, the immortality I can only access in my original body. For that I need the magic stone the rebels carry with them."
"Your forces are searching every inch of the continent for them," Weed said before he realized Moo was no longer listening to him. The titan's red eyes were closed as dark energy pulsed around him. One of the titan's hands began to move over the map slowly, as if searching for something. Suddenly, a clawed finger fell upon the map.
"There," said Moo, crimson eyes exploding open. "Order the crew to take the fortress to these coordinates."
"As you command Master Moo," Weed said as he slid away to carry out his master's order.
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"Mocchi, Mocchi, Mocchi," chanted the little pink monster as he walked in front of the rest of the searchers. The group had found themselves in an open meadow, a fact that was making Gray Wolf more than a little edgy.
"Will you stop that already," the silver lupine hissed. "The last thing we need is to attract attention to ourselves while we're this vulnerable."
"Do you think you might be getting a little paranoid Gray?" Pink Eye said from on top of Golem's shoulder.
"Unless you can find someplace to hide within running distance eyeball, I think I'll keep my caution," Gray Wolf said. "All this open space is perfect for a surprise attack."
"I never thought you'd not want to engage in a fight Gray Wolf," said Hare as he walked beside the wolf. "What's the matter, loosing your edge?"
"There is a big difference between being hungry for battle and just being foolish rabbit… or didn't Vega teach you that much?" This last part elicited some snickering from the other searchers.
"Ha ha very droll," Hare said. The group traveled in silence after that, save for the occasional of quip between Hare and Gray Wolf. Suddenly, Pink Eye stopped in mid-hop.
"Hey guys, do you see that?" the suezo/pixie asked, squinting in the direction of the sun. In unison, the group looked in the same general direction, careful to avoid staring directly at the golden globe.
"I don't see anything Pink Eye," Joshua said.
"There, just below the sun... It looks like... a black star??" Pink Eye said, sounding as though he was unsure of himself.
"A black star?? Pink Eye are you sure you're not just seeing things," Genki said.
"No, I can see it too," Golem said, his rocky eyes' ability to withstand the intense brightness of the sun allowing him to see the speck.
"Told ya it was there," Pink Eye said before turning back to the "star." "Uh guys, that thing's coming in pretty fast." Sure enough, what had once been a dart spot too small for most to see was quickly getting bigger and much more prominent with each passing second.
"INCOMING!!" Pink Eye yelled and, without second thought, the group split up as an explosive shell collided with the ground, decimating the area the searchers had previously occupied. More explosions hit as the searchers did their best to anticipate where the blasts would occur and avoid them. All the while the floating fortress had moved closer, coming in for a landing as it's bottom spire dug into the ground while the other spikes supported the craft. The guns stopped firing after what had once been a beautiful meadow had been transformed into nothingness. The searchers looked on as the door of the fortress opened and a conveyer belt extended from it to the ground. Soon the former meadow was began to fill as zuum, jells, weeds, and other assorted monsters disembarked from the spiked touching the ground, quickly forming a barrier between the searchers and the floating fortress. A single figure appeared at the open door, standing almost serenely at the top of the conveyer belt.
"MOO!!" Gray Wolf growled, his fur standing on end and a look of pure hatred in his eyes as he saw the caped baddy.
"So that's Moo," Genki said as he watched the titan descend from his ship on a platform. "He doesn't look so tough to me."
"Don't let his looks fool you, this guy's a nightmare in and of himself," Gray Wolf said. Moo stepped down from the platform and, with a few strong, regal strides, made his way through the crowd of monsters to face the searchers personally.
"So... you are the seven who have openly defied my rule and been searching for the thrice-cursed firebird," the dark titan said slowly, his deep, cold voice sending shivers down every one of the searcher's spines. "I must admit, I am impressed. That such a pathetic group of misfit nobodies such as you can become such a nuisance is an accomplishment in itself. That you defeated Pixie, one of my chosen generals, is even more impressive. But, it is time for your little streak to come to an end."
"Big talk from a guy who had to bring a whole army to back him up," Genki said, balling his fist as he did so.
"Such bold words for such a weak creature. Were I a lesser god I might be offended." Suddenly Gray Wolf leapt in front of Genki, snarling at the golden armored monster.
"Grrr enough of this," the silver lupine growled. "It's time you paid for all the evil you've done!"
"Why Gray Wolf, I did not expect to see you alive. Perhaps you're stronger than you appeared."
"Shut up and tell me what you did with my brother!!"
"Ah Tiger," Moo said, his hand on his chin. "I turned him into a baddy."
"I'll make you give him back!!" Gray Wolf charged at the giant, ready for combat as silver energy sparkled around his horns. The wolf jumped into the air and let his lightning attack fly. The silver energy didn't even make it to Moo as it was blocked by an invisible barrier that protect the titan while a simple gesture told his entourage not to interfere. Gray Wolf was not done by a long shot however, as he continued to charge in, hoping to use his horns to impale his dark opponent. Much like his lightning, the silver wolf didn't even reach his target before a giant hand swatted him away as though he were a fly. Gray Wolf sailed into the arms of Golem who did his best to soften the blow as Pink Eye leapt forward to continue the battle. The eyeball monster moved as fast as he could directly toward Moo who barely seemed to acknowledge the attack.
"Teleport!" Pink Eye called only a few feet away from Moo, rematerializing directly above the titan as he spun downward like a cannonball, hoping to crush the villain. "This one's for Suezo and Holly!" He cried as he came down. Suddenly, he was stopped inches above Moo, held helplessly in place by the very power of the monster Moo.
"If I knew who they were or even cared, I might just give a damn," Moo said as he grabbed eyeball's tail and tossed him away as though he were trash. Pink Eye was saved from a rough landing by Joshua, though the pink eye was unconscious from the force of the throw. Moo soon found himself under further assault by Hare who had been closely following Pink Eye's attack pattern. The anthropomorphic lagomorph's fists moved like lightning in his rush punch; but each blow was blocked in turn by only one of Moo's hands. "So tell me, what have I done to you? Stolen your lucky people foot perhaps?"
"That's it you're toast. HEART PUNCH!!" Time once more slowed down as Hare's hearing became more and more acute. This time, however, there was no thumping of a heartbeat to help him time his attack. The rabbit's fist slammed full force into Moo's chest, with absolutely no effect.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but this heart has not beat in ages." Hare's eyes closed as he felt Moo's fist crash into his body. "Anyone else care to try to take ME to task."
"We're not finished tangoing yet!" A suddenly revitalized Gray Wolf yelled as he leapt into the air.
"Another lightning attack? Haven't we gone down this road before?"
"Not this time... ARCTIC BLAST!!" Gray Wolf yelled as he poured all of his energy into the familiar blue and white beam that left his mouth. This time, the tiger hybrid's attack had more luck, forcing Moo to move to block the blast. Gray Wolf poured more and more energy into the blast, which was still leaving his mouth as he landed on the ground. Slowly Moo's body began to ice over as the attack overpowered his defenses. It took five full minutes of a full-force arctic blast before Moo's entire body was frozen in a solid block of ice. Gray Wolf stopped the attack and promptly fell over, gasping from loss of breath and exhaustion. At first it appeared that the silver lupine had done the impossible and actually defeated Moo. Such hope, however, died as cracks began to swiftly appear in the block. Suddenly, the icy prison exploded as Moo broke free, sending a hail of ice and snow in all directions.
"An admirable attempt warrior, but in the end, your best was simply not good enough." Moo walked up to the fallen wolf and prepared to kick him into the horizon before he was stopped by a gray blur.
"I have had enough," Golem said as he tried to tackle the black titan, only to have his hands caught in Moo's own. The two grappled and seemed almost equal in strength for a few minutes before Golem found himself falling to one knee as Moo displayed his superior power. Suddenly, Moo broke the hold, placing both hands on Golem's chest before firing a power beam from each. The blasts sent the rocky giant flying backwards, cracks appearing in his granite chest as he came to a halt several yards away from Moo.
"Pathetic fool, thinking his strength equal to mine."
"I'm gonna wipe that smile off your face," Genki said as he surged forward, his fist extended as he tried to punch the titan in the face. In one fluid motion Moo grabbed the boy's wrist with his own massive hand. Genki dangled for a few seconds in disbelief as Moo chuckled at his attempted attack.
"Deluded child... what made you think you could harm..." That was when something in Moo's mind clicked. Call it a premonition, call it recognition, but Moo simply looked at his young captive with a look of realization. "It's you..."
"What?"
"All that power..."
"Get away from him!!" Joshua yelled as he attacked, knife drawn as the human attempted to bury the blade in Moo's neck. His guard dropped and his attention fully focused on Genki, Moo had been oblivious to the human's approach and thus unable to prevent the attack from succeed.
"AAAAHH!!" Screamed the titan as he dropped Genki and reached for the knife, pulling it out of his neck. "Miserable human, you will pay for that with your life!!" Moo yelled as he picked Joshua up by the neck. Big though he was, Joshua was dwarfed by the mighty Moo as he was lifted off his feet. A glint of sunlight bounced off the magic stone as it came out of the human's shirt, catching Moo's eye. "I see you have my stone. I shall look forward to reclaiming it from your lifeless body," Moo said as he began to squeeze Joshua's throat harder and harder.
"NO!" Genki yelled as he came down into a kick. As fate would have it, however, Moo turned his head to look at his oncoming attacker. A look of horror came over Genki's face as he realized what this change meant, too late to stop himself. The sound was defining as Moo's left horn impaled Genki right through the stomach.
"Troublesome whelp. This calls for an acceleration of my plans." Moo dropped the barely conscious Joshua, swiftly grabbing the magic stone from the human as he fell. Then the baddy master slid the wounded Genki off his horn, cradling the dying boy in his arms as he turned to leave.
"Stop," Gray Wolf said, a sentiment echoed by the other searchers who were struggling to get to their feet. "I won't... I won't let you take him." At those words, Moo stopped in his tracks, his head turning to look over his shoulder.
"My dear adversary, you are in no position to stop me." Moo then turned to his troops. "Make sure they do not impede my progress."
"Yes sir," the monsters said in unison as they closed behind Moo read for combat. Gray Wolf led the charge with a lightning bolt that exploded in mid-air when it collided with three fireballs sent by zuums. Hare had his hands full exchanging blows with the contingent of evil hares that kept him at bay, while Joshua was kept from progressing by a line of seeds being shot by weeds. Golem attempted to break through with his rolling attack, but this was blocked by a group of jells that merged into one rubber band- like sheet. Even Pink Eye's teleport was unable to get him through, thanks to the magical effects of a Joker in the crowd. In mere moments, the floating fortress began to lift off, firing off a beam that teleported the defending baddies back aboard. Desperate, Pink Eye tried one last time to teleport aboard, only to find himself sent hurdling back to the ground.
"NO!"
"I can't believe it," Hare said. "Genki's gone."
"We failed... I failed... just like with Tiger," Gray Wolf panted.
"No," Joshua said defiantly. "It can't be over... There has to be away to get aboard that fortress." Gray Wolf looked up as an idea hit him.
"Maybe... Come on, we haven't much time." With those words, the six remaining searchers were off like shots.
************************************************************************
"Huh!!" Genki said as his eyes burst open. The last thing the boy remembered was being impaled on one of Moo's horns in the battle. By all rights, he knew he should have been dead, so it was a bit of a surprise to find himself still breathing. Genki squirmed a little, surprised again to find himself bound to a table of metal. Genki lifted his head to look down at his body, a bit embarrassed to find he'd been stripped to his underwear, a fact that was reinforced when he squirmed and his bare flesh touched new metal. Needless to say it was very cold. There wasn't even a scar on his stomach to show where he'd been impaled. Whoever had healed him had done a superb job.
"Ah you're awake," came a deep, rich voice. Genki's head turned as he searched for the source of the voice only to find Moo sitting in a big chair, his personal effects stacked for the most part nearby. In Moo's hands sat Genki's yellow backpack, something that Genki could feel didn't bode well at all. "I must say, I am impressed with your recuperative powers Master Sakura... I am pronouncing you're name right, am I?"
"Who are you talking to, I don't know any Sakura," Genki said, feigning ignorance in the hopes of throwing the titan off.
"This seems to say different," Moo said as he held up Genki's student ID. Genki gasped as he recognized the small rectangle of plastic. Once more, Moo's hand disappeared into Genki's backpack, pulling out two books and some papers. Genki gulped again as he read the title of one of the books; World History. The papers Genki recognized as being some homework and a test of his. "And that is not all I found while looking through you're little pack. Such interesting reading material you have." Moo looked at the test paper. "But you missed two questions here I see." Moo's hand reached down the side of his chair, pulling up a paperback book Genki instantly recognized.
"No..."
"Of course, I found this to make for particularly interesting reading." The evil giant began to thumb through the book. "Dragon: a violent tempered monster with tremendous physical power and deadly breath. Its strengths are it's impressive attack and defense stats. Mew: what this monster lacks in raw strength and defense, it makes up for in speed, accuracy, and agility. Cabalos: a rare and tough tiger/naga hybrid that is forbidden to be raised without special permission from... Fimba?" Moo looked at his captive a questioning look on his face. "I may be going out on a limb here, Master Sakura, but I'd venture to say that this," Moo held up the book, "and this," his other hand held up Genki's backpack, "and, most importantly, you are not from this world. Am I correct?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," the boy said defiantly.
"Cut the charade whelp. I can feel it," Moo walked closer to the boy, bending over to look him in the eyes. "There is a... strangeness about you. You are unlike any human I have ever met. Couple that with the explosion of dimensional power I felt mere months ago, and what conclusion would you draw?" Genki tried his hardest to come up with a plausible excuse, but nothing came to mind. "Just as I thought."
"So now what happens? You gonna try to torture me to find out where I'm from? Is that why you bothered to keep me alive?" Genki almost spat in Moo's face, and would have if his mouth had not been so dry. Moo stood up straight again, turning his back to the boy.
"Please, I am not so barbaric as to torture a child. I do have my standards. There is more to you than a simple alien origin, boy."
"So why did you save me?"
"Because I can tell you have the potential to be VERY useful to me." A window suddenly appeared in front of Moo, presenting a fantastic view of the land spreading out around the fortress. "This world's work is coming to a close, Master Sakura. In less than a year, I will be master of all the light touches, and I will bring to this world a peace and serenity the likes of which it has never seen." Moo's hand clenched into a fist as he stated his plans. "But I have always suspected the existence of other worlds, other lands choking under the yoke of chaos and agony, crying out for the iron hand of a true ruler to forge a future of peace and tranquillity for them. And you are the key helping me achieve such a goal." The master of the baddies raised a single finger into the air, and a black bolt of lightning vaporized Genki's restraints. "I apologize for any humiliation you might have suffered, but it was necessary to tend to your wounds." The titan stepped aside, allowing Genki to get to his clothes and dress.
"Look, thanks for fixing my stomach from what your horns did, but if you think I'm gonna help a killer like you, you're crazier than everyone says."
"True genius is never understood by the ignorant masses boy," said Moo. "Sometimes you must sacrifice the trees for the forest to flourish. And according to your history book here, your world would greatly benefit from some... selective trimming."
"What makes you think I'd help you do anything?" At these words, Moo knelt before Genki, looking the boy straight in the eyes as a glowing sphere appeared in his hand.
"Because of what I have to offer."
* * *
"Gray Wolf, we're coming up on the floating fortress," a red dragon told his silvery passenger as they sped through the air.
"Excellent Falcon. I knew that flying eyesore would be child's play for you to catch up to," Gray Wolf told his dragon ally. Behind them, the other searchers were also being carried by a wing of dragons, with Golem sitting suspended between two in a harness. Ahead of them, still a black dot on the horizon, was their target; the floating fortress.
"I hope you appreciate this Gray Wolf. I lost half my wing when I tangled with that flying nightmare before. We'll have about five seconds to drop you off before someone realizes we're there."
"Don't worry, that should be plenty of time. Just don't forget we're gonna need a pick-up too."
"Fine, what signal will you use when you're ready?"
"I... haven't figured out yet... but you'll know it when you see it Falcon," said Gray Wolf.
"This kid must be something special if you're willing to go to so much trouble for him."
* * *
"You can WHAT?" Genki asked as he backed away from Moo, a startled expression on his face.
"I looked over everything you had in that backpack. You devote a tremendous amount of your time and energy to this game you have of our world. I was particularly interested in the drawings. A human possessing different... monstrous attributes. Not that you would be the first human to desire some of our better traits." Inside Moo's glowing ball a miniature hologram of Genki appeared, spinning around three hundred sixty degrees as it did so. Genki felt almost mesmerized by the glowing orb.
"I can't help wanting to know what it's like...," Genki said as he looked into the orb.
"Ah... An inquisitive mind, how splendid." Moo's gaze fell down to orb. "Perhaps such a curious boy would enjoy first-hand experience of what say... a dragon feels as it soars through the clouds." At the titan's words, two red webbed wings fluidly grew out of the hologram's back as did a red tail. "I felt a dragon's wings would be more acceptable to a boy than a pixie's but that can be changed according to your preference." The wings stretched wide as the miniature Genki turned, showing off their full wingspan to the dazzled Genki.
"Wow." Genki said as he inched closer.
"And why stop there? The wings of a dragon are fine, but there is so much more. The speedy fists of a hare perhaps?" The hologram's hands became hairier and bigger as they took on the appearance of a hare. On and on Moo went, substituting Genki's old body parts for new monster ones. A golem's chest, a naga's ears, a tiger's legs, all were adding to the mixture making the hologram appear all the time less and less human. "You see, anything you want, any way you wish to be, it's yours for the taking, all you have to do is one thing."
"What?" The still mesmerized Genki asked, still staring at the hologram.
"Tell me how you got here, show me the path to take to reach your world," answered Moo, lowering his head even further so he could look into the boy's eyes.
"I... I don't know."
"WHAT!" Moo bellowed. "You have to know, no one can possess such power and not be aware of how to use it!"
"I don't know, I was just playing my game and then I was here."
"Game?" Moo began to pick through Genki's belongings once again. "I see know game here. What are you talking about?"
"Not there... lost it... Used it to beat the black dinos and free Mocchi..."
"And the source of your power, the catalyst that got you here?"
"Don't know any catalyst... just came..." At those words Moo began to lose his patience. Gruffly he grabbed the boy by the collar of his shirt, lifting him high into the air.
"Don't toy with me boy!! Tell me where you are from!! How did you get here!?!" Suddenly, the dreamy look on the boy's face faded as the spell that held him captive was broken.
"No! I won't let you invade my home. I won't let you hurt my world like you did this one." At once Moo's eyes twisted in rage and hatred as he raised his fist and prepared to knock Genki's head clear off his shoulders. Before that could happen, however, intellect came to both monster and human's rescue. Moo lowered his fist and then Genki, placing the boy gently on the ground as his eyes became lost their former anger.
"No matter, there are other ways to get the information I want," Moo said, his voice calm and even.
"I won't talk no matter what you do to me, so do your worst."
"My dear Master Sakura, my worst doesn't even require you talk. I will simply get it directly from your memories. In a way, this is actually the best possible outcome for me." Genki backed away, a little bit afraid as to what Moo might be hinting at.
"What are you talking about?"
"I'm always on the lookout for a fresh host, and truly, I could do far worse than your body..."
"What?"
"Come now, you don't think what you see before you is my actual form. Do you truly believe that the master of monsters would have so human a form if he could do otherwise?" Moo walked closer to his captive. "This is merely a temporary vessel until I can find my true body and merge with it again."
"True body?" Genki said before comprehending. "The dragon Monol showed us!!"
"Well, I don't know any Monol, but yes, my original dragon hybrid body. It lies dormant somewhere in this world while my mind must be forced to attach to other... less stable hosts." As Moo talked he began to slowly remove his mask and a sickening sucking noise came to Genki's ears. "The fool who awoke me sought the power my mind represented, hoping to make it his own. He was measured and found wanting. Unable to cope with the vast power he now had, I'm afraid his poor heart gave out. Fortunately, my powers transcend death, and his now fully available body was mine to animate and do with as I pleased. But, as you can now hopefully see, nothing lasts forever." Moo had finally removed his mask and Genki fell to the ground in horror at what he saw. Green rotting flesh barely hung to an all too human skull that poked out between bits of hair and a worm-eaten scalp. There was only a hole where the nose should be and the eyes remained unblinking as they rolled in dead sockets. Nothing covered the teeth and rotting gums and there was a stench suddenly present in the air that made Genki gag. The titan quickly leaned in again, bringing his rotting visage as close to Genki's face as he could. "Even at that point of my evolution, the body only lasted for two years before becoming totally inoperable. My forces scower the battle fields after every campaign searching for the least beaten up of the dead for me to use as a host. Now, though, my power is so great that my hosts barely last a month before decay destroys them."
"If you think I'm gonna let you do that to me, forget it!" Genki said, back rolling away from Moo and standing.
"You... There is something about you, I can't quite put my finger on. You should be able to survive the merging process, and when I merge with you, I shall have instant access to all your memories, just like with the others. Then we shall find out how you came to this world, and more importantly, how I may go back."
* * *
Meanwhile, the rest of the searchers were busy sneaking through the fortress, being careful to keep out of sight of any baddies, no mean feat with Golem in the group.
"How many twists and turns are in this place?" Pink Eye asked.
"We're gonna need a better way to find Genki," Joshua said stopping the whole group. "Gray Wolf think you can sniff out Genki's location."
"It shouldn't be too much of a problem... But I'm gonna need something to catch the scent."
"Here," Golem said as he handed the tiger hybrid Genki's orange baseball cap. "I picked this up after the battle with Moo."
"That's perfe... Someone's coming." The group looked around, ducking for cover as a baku and a mew walked by. The baku's tongue dragged along the ground completing the dopey look on his face, while the mew was actually skipping down the hallways, a ball of yarn in his hand.
"Odiferous, have you seen Garfunkal anywhere?" Instead of answering with words, the baku named Odiferous simple barked and began to use his huge wet tongue to lick his cat-doll companion.
"Odi... Oh Odiferous... Please stop... It takes me hours to comb my fur right. Wet fur isn't cute," the mew wailed as the two continued moving down the hallway.
"Well, that was pointless," Gray Wolf quipped. Then the wolf took off like a shot, the rest of the searchers followed after him. Occasionally, the silver tracker halted long enough to sniff the air and ground, which was typically followed by his changing direction. Soon, though, he stopped before a stonewall that marked a dead end. "This is where the trail ends."
"I gotta be real honest with you Gray, I don't see Genki anywhere around here," Pink Eye said.
"Maybe you should use your brain instead of your mouth Pink Eye," countered Hare as he began to look around. "Places like this are full of hidden passages and other junk. All we need to do is find the right…" That was when Hare's hand flipped a switch and a circular section of the wall slid upward, revealing a plane of glass.
"GOL!!!" Golem said as he looked inside, clearly upset at what he saw. The other searchers climbed up and looked in too, wondering what their stony friend had seen. Inside, Moo stood with his back to the window, holding Genki by the shoulders as he pulled the struggling human closer and closer. The goodies didn't need any other incentive.
"We have to get in there now!" Joshua said as he searched for the mechanism to open the door.
"Stand back," Golem commanded, which was quickly obeyed by the other five. "TORNADO ATTACK!" Golem's body broke up into segments that hung in the air for a few seconds before they began to twirl around like a tornado. The pieces crashed into the wall with the force of an avalanche, but did no damage as Golem bounced off fully reunited to the floor.
"Geeze what is that stuff?" Joshua said.
"It must be reinforced somehow," Hare commented. "Gray Wolf, use you arctic blast to freeze the wall, that should weaken it enough for Golem to break through."
"Roger," rock giant and silver wolf said in unison.
"ARCTIC BLAST!" Gray Wolf called and the freezing ray struck the wall, quickly covering it in subzero ice. As soon as it was covered, the silver lupine got out of the way, giving Golem the shot he needed.
"TORNADO ATTACK!" Once more Golem broke into pieces and slammed into the wall. This time, great cracks appeared in the stressed material as it began to weaken. A second tornado and the former obstruction was reduced to rubble.
"WHO DARES TO INTERRUPT ME!!!" Moo bellowed as he turned to face the intruders, his mask once more covering his face.
"Let the kid go Moo, and nobody will have to get hurt," Joshua said, a sentiment echoed by the monsters behind him in the form of growls and glares.
"I'm afraid the boy and I have become too… attached to each other to be separated." So saying, Moo grabbed Genki once more by the shirt lifting him in the air. Genki kicked and punched at Moo, connecting a few times; but each hit wasn't even felt by the titan.
"You're crazy if you think I'll let you steal my body," Genki said as he fought.
"I would have preferred enough time to properly prepare you to be my new vessel, but it appears that is not to be. CHANGE NOW!!" Black energy flew from Moo, invading Genki's body through his mouth before any of the searchers could stop it. After a few seconds of this, Moo fell to the ground along with Genki.
"Genki-chi," Mocchi yelled, rushing forward to help his fallen trainer to his feet. Steadily, his eyes closed, Genki stood with Mocchi's help.
"Genki, you all right boy?" Joshua asked. No answer came.
"Come on kid speak to us," pleaded Pink Eye. No answer came.
"Genki be all right now, right, please," Mocchi said as he shook his friend and trainer. Suddenly, Genki's right arm crossed his chest swiftly, and Hare's eyes went wide.
"MOCCHI GET AWAY NOW!!" the lapine cried, but he was too late. Swift as lightning, Genki's arm came down, slapping the little pink monster away and sending him sailing into a wall. An inhumanely cruel smirk appeared on Genki's face as an evil giggle escaped his lips. Slowly the boy rose into the air as tendrils of dark energy began to swirl around his body.
"I'm afraid Master Sakura is unable to answer you, at this time or any other," the possessed Genki said in a voice not his own as the dark tendrils transformed into very familiar golden armor. His brown hair turned pink and his eyes took on a eerie red glow as his skin, save for his face, turned black. The transformation complete, Genki/Moo landed on the ground light as a feather, his hands running over his body to check that things had gone smoothly. "A bit young for my tastes, but as I said, this is only a temporary arrangement." The possessed boy's now clawed fingers touched his lips as his smile broadened. "And within a matter of hours, my mind will fuse with this boy's giving me instant access to everything he know. Which, I might add, is more time than the six of you have left."
"It can't be," said Pink Eye.
"I'm afraid it can. You and your friends were too late. The boy is mine," said Genki/Moo. Suddenly, his head jerked to the rapidly decaying corpse that used to house him. "And before I forget…" The titan reached down, actually breaking off one of his old body's fingers. Tied to it was the magic stone. "I mustn't forget this little trinket, I went to too much trouble to just forget the key to finding my old body."
"What?" the group said in unison.
"You use this stone to find mystery disks, which, admittedly it is good at, but that is not the extent of its power. Since you have proven yourself skilled enough to penetrate so far into my sanctum, I suppose a fitting reward would be to allow you to see the stone's true power before you die." So saying, Genki/Moo lifted the stone into the air. "Magic stone of ancient times, show me where my body lies." This time, instead of the radiant red bird of fire that usually appeared when the stone was asked to do something, a black flame appeared, shaped like a dragon. Suddenly, the whole room shimmed out of focus as Genki/Moo and the searchers found themselves hovering over snowcapped mountains. The black dragon flew to the highest mountain where it began to circle, indicating they had arrived at the body. "Ah, Mount Kyris. Such a fitting place for my old body to be stored."
"It doesn't matter where that rotten old corpse you call a body is Moo, we're not gonna let you get to it," Joshua yelled as the vision ended.
"And just how do you intend to do that, human? The only way for you to actually halt me would be to kill your little friend. Would you so willingly sacrifice him?"
"From what you said, Genki'll die anyway if we let you go. I think he'd be a lot happier knowing we stopped you and saved both our worlds," Gray Wolf barked as silver energy sparkled around his horns.
"Be it so. I showed you mercy and allowed you to live last time, expect no such favors in this battle."
"ARCTIC BLAST!" Gray Wolf yelled, leading the charge with his icy breath.
"BREATH OF DOOM!" Moo called back as Genki's mouth opened wide to emit a black beam of energy. The dark attack broke through Gray Wolf's own, striking the wolf and through him back into a wall to be covered by rubble. Hare was next jumping forward in a jump kick. Suddenly, he found himself levitating in the air as Genki merely pointed from him to the wall. Hare slammed into the wall as Genki pointed again, sending the lapine monster hurtling into another wall. Again and again this was repeated by Moo in what was clearly an attempt to break his opponent's bones. Golem intervened however, clamping both of Genki's arms to his sides.
"Stop this senseless cruelty Moo, it is not too late to turn back," Golem said as he struggled to hold his surprisingly strong captive.
"But it feels so GOOD!!" Moo said as Genki's arms burst free of Golem's grip, through the granite goliath backwards as a blast of dark energy issued forth from the boy's hand to strike him squarely in the chest. Pink Eye backed up a bit, looking around at his fallen friends.
*Okay, I can do this... He's just one guy... One guy with more power than every monster I've ever met put together!! Suezo I hope you appreciate what I'm doing for you.*
"Hey Moo!! Catch this! TELEPORT!" With those words, the suezo/pixie hybrid began to blink in and out of existence all over the place as Genki followed him. Suddenly, Pink Eye appeared right in front of his former friend. "EYEBEAM!" the eyeball yelled, summoning the energy to fire his pink laser at the baddy leader.
"WALL OF HATRED!" Moo called as Genki's hand rose into the air, an inky black force following. The wall not only blocked Pink Eye's attack, but, with the swiftness of thought itself, began to move forward taking the pink eyeball monster with it and slamming him into the walls with a thunderous bang. The last of the monster searchers taken care of, Genki/Moo turned towards Joshua. "It appears to have come down to you and me, old man. I promise to make your end swift."
"No, not only you left," came a defiant voice. Moo turned around to see Mocchi standing up where he had fallen. The little monster's tiny hands were balled into fists and he had an angry look on his face. "I won't let you hurt Genki. Leave him alone."
"You have guts, little one, I will give you that. Not a lot of brains, but guts." Moo cackled.
"CHERRY BLOSSOM BLIZZARD-CHI!!" Mocchi said as he jumped into the air and spun in a circle to generate his tornado of petals. The little monster child put all of his energy into the attack, and it was quick clear from the sheer intensity of the winds and petals that a lesser opponent would have counted himself lucky to survive. Rubble, chairs, anything that was not attacked to the room itself was picked up by the tornado as it slammed full force into Moo. But Moo barely blinked at the raging wind. Soon the storm ended and Mocchi fell to the ground, exhausted from his attack.
"Such power, you are an impressive monster. Such a pity you joined the wrong side of this war. Now, feel true power." Genki rose into the air as his limbs spread out full-eagle. He looked straight up as Moo gathered the energy for his attack. "DARK FORCE!!" the titan called as a ball of black energy the size of Genki's whole body materialized in front of the boy. It crackled and sizzled with energy as Moo prepared to launch it at the searchers. "Now DI...." Suddenly, Moo stopped in mid-sentence as Genki's eyes widened in alarm. The energy ball quickly vanished as the possessed boy doubled over in pain and fell to the ground. "What... What is this?" Suddenly, black energy, Moo's very spirit itself, rushed out of the possessed boy, racing back to the rapidly decaying body it had left just moments ago. The body was no longer even in as good a shape as it was. An eye had fallen out and several muscles had simply dissolved without Moo's constant regeneration, and the titan could not even stand.
"Told you... I wouldn't... talk," Genki gasped out. "Guess it wasn't... so easy... to possess a live... body as you thought... eh Moo."
"No, it is infinitely easy," Moo said. "We are simply not as compatible as I'd hoped. No matter... I will have plenty of time to overcome such obstacles."
"You don't even have minutes left," came a weak but determined voice. Gray Wolf arose from the rubble he'd been buried in. All around, the other searchers were also recovering though it was obvious they were hurt.
"We may not be at our best right now Moo, but I'd bet a million gold you're dying I that body, and we've still got the energy to speed you on your way," said Hare as he rose, holding his left arm which felt broken.
"Your reign of terror comes to an end now Moo." Pink Eye said, a sentiment echoed by Golem. Genki and Mocchi too were standing again, perfectly mimicking each other's battle stances as they prepared to attack.
"Congratulations, you have achieved what few have ever dared to dream. You have brought me to the precipice of defeat." Moo's hand suddenly slammed into the wall, hitting a button that started a loud klaxon noise. "A pity you forgot that the forces that inhabit our little arena are mine." With those words, the room began to quickly fill with monsters of all shapes and sizes. Zuums, evil hares, worms, jells, gangsters, all entered crowding the room. "Take the boy and the mocchi alive but kill the rest," Moo ordered as the baddies began to crowd in on the searchers. Suddenly, eight beams of flame red energy blasted their way through the wall, revealing naught but sky... and eight pirate dragons.
"Guys your ride's here and it ain't stickin' around much longer," Falcon said as he began firing his dragon's breath at the collected baddies. The searchers, staggering and limping, made their way to the waiting dragons, climbing on as they took off.
"Next time Moo!" Gray Wolf called over his shoulder as the dragons sped him to safety.
"Yes," said the weakened Moo, "next time..."
********************************************
Night had fallen and the searchers, along with their dragon allies, now sat around a fire tending to their wounds.
"Thanks for getting us outta there Falcon," Gray Wolf said, bandages covering his ribs and paws.
"No problem, we figured something had gone wrong when all those sirens went off," said Falcon. "To be honest, we were about to be forced to leave, those guns were getting way too close for comfort."
"Fortunately for us you weren't."
"How's your arm doing Hare," Joshua said as he tied a sling behind the rabbit's shoulder.
"It feels a lot better than it did a few hours ago when Moo was tossing me around like a bean bag."
"Fortunately he didn't do as much damage as it seemed. You should be fine in couple of days. Considering you and Gray Wolf took the most damage, I'd say we got off pretty lucky."
"Oh sure, ignore my contribution and injuries why don't you," Pink Eye said with mock-hurt. The eyeball had several bandages over his cuts.
"I'm just sorry we lost the magic stone," Joshua continued, ignoring his partner. "It'll be next to impossible to find the Phoenix without it."
"Who says we lost it," Genki said, holding up his hand. Tied to it, exactly where Moo had placed it after he'd used it to find his body, was the magic stone. "Guess Moo just forgot about it during the battle." The boy handed the stone back to Joshua.
"Well, that's one less headache we have to worry about," said Joshua as he took back the stone.
"Look, my flight and I have to take off. I wish you all the best of luck in your quest, even if I think you're all nuts," Falcon said as he and the other dragons unfurled their wings and took flight. "Good-bye."
"Good-bye Falcon." The searchers said in unison, waving as best they could.
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Epilogue
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Moo sat on his throne, only one red eye glowing as he looked down at his sidekick Weed, barely able to move. The baddy leader had never looked so physically weak to the plant hybrid's eyes, an obvious effect of his body's rapid decay during his spirit's absence. Even his pink hair seemed grayer than normal.
"We're scouring the battlefields for a suitable host for you even as we speak mighty Moo," Weed said. "I anticipate you will be able to transfer your spirit within three days time. Unfortunately, the damage to the floating castle will take longer to repair."
"I do not want it simply repaired Weed, I want you to make sure nothing like this can ever happen again. Those dragons should not have been able to save their friends so easily," Moo growled, not even moving a finger to emphasize his point.
"At once master."
"And one more thing. Alert the remaining Big Bad Four of a change in my orders regarding these rebels."
"Yes mighty one?"
"I don't care if the others are reduced to cinders, I want the boy and the mocchi monster brought to me, alive and with no permanent injuries."
"And the magic stone sir?"
"Now that I know where my body is, I see no real reason to possess it. But I will not permit anyone else to have it while looking for the firebird. Bring it to me if possible, destroy it if necessary. Now, you have your orders, begone." With those final words Weed left, ready to carry out his leader's orders.
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Well, there you go, the story of Moo. Pretty scary, eh. Be here next time when the searchers begin their battle against the second member of the Big Bad Four, the great Gali. He's sending in a new minion to take the searchers out, and it's gonna take a new trick to stop him. Be here next time, when its time to "Ragnorak and Roll."