Chapter 31: Final Video Game Adventure

In response to Pierre's question, the carpet then flew over an spot with many clouds and arching rainbows. It swooped down at one and bounced along it, nearly spilling the startled riders.

"These aren't rainbows! They're airborne pathways! Real rainbows are just illusions of light prisms!" exclaimed Mortimer.

"I thought they looked too solid," added Taiki.

"Who's flying this thing anyway?" snapped Yaten.

"I think it's flying on it's own. Look, there's a bunch of pillars ahead; maybe it'll let us off there," Pierre answered. The carpet whizzed to the middle of the pillars and began spiraling downwards. The middle pillar, which was lower than the other four, opened up at the top and the carpet flew in. Now they found themselves in a water-filled cavern with a door. An energy beam shot out of the front of the carpet and blasted the door open, making a pathway through.

"What is this room?! The carpet needs to look out for that waterfall!" shrieked Yaten as they flew through a passage and came out in a room with more water, including a waterfall.

"It's trying to crash us into it!" exclaimed Mortimer.

"Hey, maybe it hates gender-bending Sailor Senshi," snickered Pierre, pointing to Taiki and Yaten, "I mean, I heard that you two once turned yourselves into rock star boys." Yaten started to respond but she got water in her mouth as they passed through the waterfall. They came out the other side on an area that seemed to be another set of platforms and the like floating in the sky, although this "sky" was dark.

"This seems like a good place for a Magic Knight to be. It looks like a stereotypical evil place," noted Pierre.

"You could be right. When is this going to stop, anyway?" complained Mortimer.

"Don't ask that or it might come true, and you'll fall off," warned Taiki.

"That's strange, there's big crystals sticking up out of that pathway with metal balls circling them. It would be a great help for science if we could get that magentic rock," Pierre commented.

"Hey, what did Taiki say?! Don't ask to jump off or you'll fall!" Yaten snapped. Pierre stood up on the carpet in challenge.

"Don't tell me what to do! Ahmed tells me you're just a whiny fashion ditz!"

"What?! I am NOT a fashion ditz, that's the stupid Queen who Seiya tried to mess up the mission for!" retorted Yaten, also standing up.

"Look out for that ledge overhead!" shouted Mortimer, shoving Taiki down. It was too late for Yaten and Pierre, though, and they were knocked off the carpet into the dark sky below, disappearing as flashes of blue. The scenery suddenly shifted dramatically, and now instead of a dark sky, there was lava below.

"This reminds me of a story Makoto told me and Kurumi once about one of her battles when she was Sailor Jupiter. They were trying to rescue her friends Hotaru and Chibi-Usa from being stuck inside Hotaru's house, and they were in a strange dimension where the scenery kept changing like this. One minute it would be in the jungle and the next they would be in the snow," said Mortimer.

"So you think that one of the Magic Knights might be manipulating the dimension from behind the scenes?" mused Taiki.

"Possibly. Now what's going on?" Mortimer exclaimed as everything went dark again. When they could see again, they were in a place that was similar to the dark sky area.

"It does seem like there is someone manipulating this space," said Taiki as they flew over a steep orange inclined plane. The carpet then swooped upwards and they passed a spinning set of platforms that looked like a small ferris wheel, and then another steep incline; this one was gray, though.

"Not up again!" screamed Mortimer as the carpet zoomed upwards, whizzing past a very tall pole, yet another of those spinning ferris wheel platforms, and then came to an abrupt, crashing stop on a large windy platform. The wind suddenly glowed blue and Taiki and Mortimer were swept across the platform and then dumped into a green tube. They landed on a large, flat black rock.

"This was where it was taking us. But we keep seeing blue," commented Taiki, "Does that have any significance?

"How right you are. But I wouldn't expect anything less from one who is obviously a real genius," said a voice. Mortimer spun around and saw a blue-haired Magic Knight standing on the rock too.

"How did you know that about Taiki? She's a refugee from another planet!" exclaimed Mortimer in disbelief.

"It's elementary, my dear Sailor Senshi. She has a large forehead, so such a head must hold a big brain. The bigger the brain, the smarter the person," Umi answered smugly.

"That's not true! Kurumi has the HUGEST forehead I've ever seen and she's not smart at all!" Mortimer retorted," Chocolate Power, Make Up!"

"Oh, you want to fight? I was hoping to talk to you a bit. You see..."

"Don't pull a trick on me! Crystal Surround!" Umi was cut off in mid-sentence as her body suddenly became encased in a clear crystal. She burst free, her sword appearing in her hand.

"If that's what you want, then you'll get it! Water Dragon!" Umi snarled as Sailor Chocolate easily stepped out of the way.

"Catch me! Catch me!" he taunted, running across the rock.

"Get back here you obnoxious Sailor Senshi! At least fight fair with your powers!" Umi shouted, but she didn't move to chase him. Sailor Chocolate stopped, staring at her. Umi stared back.

"Crystal..."

"Wait. Are you really going to be able to stop me with that?" Umi challenged. Sailor Chocolate stopped. Umi was right. He wasn't strong enough with his Senshi magic.

"Water Dragon!" Umi suddenly shouted. This time she aimed at Taiki and knocked her down. Umi ran over and grabbed the startled alien, holding her sword up. "If you don't surrender those useless powers to me, I'll kill her."

"Don't do it, Mortimer. If she takes your powers, you'll have no way of beating her at all, even if you have to work harder at it," Taiki warned.

"Shut up! What a stereotypical thing to say! It's just like in one of those cutesy magical girl anime shows where the main character's boyfriend is captured by the enemy!" Umi snarled.

"I'm not in love with Taiki, you fool," snapped Sailor Chocolate.

"Well? Give me the...OOF!!" Umi gasped as Taiki shoved herself out of her grasp, the Escudo sword clattering to the ground. Sailor Chocolate rushed forward and grabbed Umi's sword, but it turned to water and melted in his hand, reappearing back on the rock.

"I say we just throw her off into the sky," Sailor Chocolate smirked.

"What?! You'll have to catch me first!" Umi retorted. In response, Taiki grabbed her arm, but Umi kicked her away.

"Crystal Surround!" Sailor Chocolate shouted, and Umi was encased in crystal again. This time, Taiki grabbed Umi around the waist and began to drag her to the edge. Umi squirmed and broke out of the rocky covering, shoving Taiki to the side, but Sailor Chocolate knocked her down.

"What is it with you boys and trying to kiss me!" Umi shouted.

"I'm not trying to kiss you, you idiot! I'm trying to get rid of you!"

"Then try harder! Sapphire Hurricane!" Sailor Chocolate was blown aside, and Taiki took his place, pulling Umi closer and closer to the edge. Umi suddenly grabbed Sailor Chocolate by the leg.

"Hey, let me go! Crystal..."

"Sapphire Hurricane!" Umi called quickly, before he could finish his attack phrase, and the force blew all three of them off of the big black rock.

"Now where do we go!?" Sailor Chocolate exclaimed as he, Taiki, and Umi disappeared in flashes of blue light.