On Today's Episode: It's never that easy, is it? Just as Pirate Nick and Patty are about to send the spies back to their dimension, a not-quite-dead Alexei reemerges, well and truly enraged, for one last showdown aboard the Fiertia. But this time, Alexei has a rather nasty trump card up his sleeves, which may make this final battle more tricky to deal with. Can the spies persevere and put down Alexei once and for all, or is this where Alexei stakes his claim as the new ruler of the New World?
Act 3: A Duel to the Death
2:04 A.M. – The Moonflow Tides
The Fiertia
"Well, that was certainly an adventure, wasn't it?" May giggled as the spies boarded the Fiertia so they could sail away from the island they'd just fought and defeated Alexei on.
"We really can't thank you guys enough for helping us out, you know," Patty proclaimed. "Now my hubby's parents can rest in peace."
"Hey, it's what we do, right?" Sam replied. "It's our job as agents of W.O.O.H.P., after all."
"Ooh, I can't wait to tell Jerry that we explored an ancient underwater city!" Alex laughed. "That'll be an interesting story to tell."
"I bet it will be," Pirate Nick responded. "Well, then shall we fire up the Rift Generator and take you all home?"
"I'm all for that!" Melissa laughed.
Nick, however, wasn't so easily convinced, glancing back at the island they were rapidly leaving behind.
"Everything okay, bro?" Mat asked, noticing Nick's thoughtful expression.
"Something doesn't feel right," Nick proclaimed. "Why am I only now getting this 'that was too easy' feeling?"
"After how much we overwhelmed him back there, I highly doubt he's getting back up, especially after getting caught in a nethicite explosion like that," Britney quipped.
"...that's... where you'd be wrong, you little wretches..."
"Of course," Nick groaned as he turned around and saw Alexei, battered and bruised but still very much alive, climbing out of the water and onto the Fiertia itself. "Advice for heroes, number sixteen: if a victory seems too good to be true, it usually is."
"How the hell?!" May shouted, reaching for her anchor. "There's no way you could have survived that explosion!"
"I've... survived worse, believe me," Alexei gasped. "I just wanted you to think I was dead, so that I could ambush you here and finish the lot of you off for good. Then, no one will be left to challenge me."
"You're gonna lose again, you know," Patty taunted. "I mean, look at you. You look like you can barely stand up in your condition."
"Just give it up, Alexei," Clover growled. "We've kinda had enough of baddies abusing rule seven already!"
"Oh, but I still have a trump card of my own to play," Alexei quipped. "I was hoping to not have to resort to this tactic, but I see I am left with no choice if I am to erase you from existence."
Alexei reached into his pocket and pulled out two large crystals of manufactured nethicite, each one glowing ominously.
"Come on, already, we've seen what that stuff can do," Nick taunted.
"...who said I was going to use it on you?" Alexei laughed.
"...the implication being?" May wondered.
The spies would quickly get their answer as Alexei raised the nethicite...
...and jammed both of the nethicite crystals into his arms.
"...oh, who thinks this is going to end well?" Melissa groaned.
Sure enough, the magical energy within the nethicite crystals began to flow directly into Alexei's body, causing his whole body to start glowing with an ominous red sheen as he floated into the air, suddenly surrounded by a column of that same red light.
No one needed to say anything as the spies all prepared themselves for the showdown that was about to erupt.
When the column of light dissipated, Alexei was floating in the air, his skin having turned a dark violet, his eyes having turned a piercing blood-red, and two magically-created copies of Dein Nomos in his hands, along with energy-fashioned black devil wings sprouting from his back. The nethicite crystals he'd used were still sticking out of his arms.
"NOW I AM AT A LEVEL OF POWER UNSURPASSED BY EVEN THE GODS THEMSELVES!" Alexei bellowed, his voice echoing as he spoke. "YOUR TIME HAS COME, YOU MISERABLE WRETCHES!"
Alexei swiftly demonstrated his newfound power by swinging his weapons and launching blood-red energy blades from them that flew forward and struck Mat, sending him collapsing to the ground.
Sam and Britney were immediately by Mat's side to try and help him up, but Alexei thrust his hands forward and used a pulse wave to slam Sam and Britney into the nearby wall.
Melissa quickly jumped in and surrounded herself and Mat with an All-Weather Umbrella, but Alexei unleashed a blast of blood-red lightning that broke the shield effortlessly before he moved in to attack them.
Melissa hugged Mat close to her as Alexei swung his weapons, but Nick placed himself in front of them and created a psychic barrier to deflect Alexei's attack before charging forward to swing Dein Nomos at him and keep him away.
"Okay, I was definitely not expecting him to do that," Alex quipped.
"Alexei must be desperate if he injected himself with nethicite," Pirate Nick proclaimed. "We'd better go help your friends out."
"I'm with ya, hubby!" Patty exclaimed. "Let's cut this jerk down to size!"
It took Mat quite a while to get up as he obviously had the wind knocked out of him. Melissa was there to help him recover.
"I'll get you two down," Nick proclaimed to Sam and Britney.
Nick used a psychic shot of his own to bring both girls back down to the ground.
"Thanks, Nick," Britney quipped.
Sam was no different; that's when she and Britney teamed up to help Melissa take down Alexei.
"Hold on, girls," Nick pointed out. "If my hunch is right, it'll take ALL of us and not just the two of you to get Alexei to fall now!"
"That's a valid point," Melissa replied, helping Mat to his feet.
Sam agreed and even aided Melissa.
"Now we're REALLY behind the 8-ball with Mat!" Blaine chastised.
Alex and Clover came to help them all, too.
"Are you okay, Mat?" Alex asked.
"Still out of breath, but otherwise okay," Mat wheezed a bit.
"That must've been some hit you took," Nozomi replied.
"Like I got hit... by a car... without the scratches," Mat wheezed again.
"Looks like Melissa's plan will need some tweaking," Bridget quipped.
"Totally," Clover chastised.
"But that doesn't mean we've lost," Haruka quipped.
"Nonetheless, we still gotta try and distract him," Dawn replied.
"Maybe Clover and I can do something," Blaine remarked.
Clover could read his mind, thinking it was just fly around like bothersome flies.
"Let's go for it then, Blaine-y," Clover proclaimed as they both equipped their Jet Pack Backpacks.
"Allow me to help," Bridget added as she came after them.
"HAHAHAHA! YOU'RE FIGHTING A BATTLE YOU CAN'T WIN, YOU WRETCHES!" Alexei cackled.
Sam and Britney, whom had remembered Melissa's plan, flew up themselves to help the three spies already flying around.
"We know you can't keep up with us all," Britney proclaimed.
"Face it, it's thirteen-to-one for you!" Haruka added as she joined in the flying around.
Melissa and Mat watched as Mat methodically recovered from the hit he took.
That was when Clover and Blaine each took a hit themselves and fell to the ground.
"Oh, crapbaskets!" Nick chastised.
"Let me try something," May proclaimed and hurled her trusty anchor at the super-powered Alexei.
Sadly, it only bounced off of him, not doing any visible damage.
May didn't even have time to let out the "oh, crapbaskets" she was thinking of as Alexei rushed forward and grabbed her by the throat.
"DID YOU REALLY THINK I WAS GOING TO FEEL THAT, YOU SAD, PATHETIC EXCUSE FOR A PIRATE?!" Alexei shouted. "YOU CAN'T STOP ME NOW! I AM ALL-POWERFUL, UNMATCHED BY EVEN THE GODS! NOW PERISH HAVING AMOUNTED TO NOTHING!"
As May tried to free herself from Alexei's iron grip on her throat, Nick rushed in and landed a resounding slash across Alexei's back with Dein Nomos, actually doing noticeable damage and forcing Alexei to release May.
Nick swung Dein Nomos hard enough to fire a blade of energy at Alexei to get him to back off so he could tend to May.
"You all right there?" Nick asked.
"Aside from a possible bruise on my neck, I'm good," May quipped.
"And trust me, he's going to pay for that," Nick proclaimed, hefting Dein Nomos towards Alexei.
"I DO NOT FEAR THAT ACCURSED SWORD ANY LONGER!" Alexei bellowed. "YOU'RE ALL JUST MORE BODIES FOR THE GRAVEYARD, AS FAR AS I CARE!"
Alexei raised his hands and called down a barrage of lightning bolts to strike at Nick, only for him to raise Dein Nomos and absorb all of the lightning.
"Did you forget? Magic sword," Nick shot back as he swung Dein Nomos to send all of the lightning back at Alexei, flooring him rather quickly.
"All right-y, then, what's the game plan here?" Patty asked as the rest of the spies gathered around Nick. Clover and Blaine were thankfully doing okay.
"It seems like Dein Nomos is the only thing that's doing any real damage to Alexei right now, as hopped up as he is on the nethicite's powers," Nozomi proclaimed.
"Even so, it seems like that might take a while to just whittle him down, and I'm not sure even a thirteen-on-one would be able to win a war of attrition with how much power he's got," Sam stated.
"Actually, I think I have an idea on that," Nick responded. "Remember that every time we cracked the nethicite he had, he had to get rid of it quickly. I'm willing to bet we just have to destroy the nethicite that's giving him his powers, and then he's a sitting duck. So, here's what we're going to do. I'm gonna pass Dein Nomos around to each of you, and we'll all take turns attacking the nethicite. But we're gonna have to keep the pressure on, like Melissa said earlier. Don't give the bastard any time to retaliate."
"Just make sure you let me deal the finishing blow," Pirate Nick proclaimed.
"No way was I gonna take that from you, buddy," Nick quipped.
"I GROW TIRED OF YOU INSIPID MEDDLERS!" Alexei snarled as he picked himself up. "PREPARE TO MEET OBLIVION!"
"Sammy, you're up first!" Nick exclaimed as he tossed Dein Nomos to Sam.
Alexei swung his weapons in hopes of cutting Sam in half right there, but she swiftly slid underneath the attack, then jumped back to her feet and swung Dein Nomos at the nethicite in Alexei's left arm, causing it to crack slightly.
May retrieved her anchor and started striking Alexei in the back with it, distracting him long enough for Sam to toss Dein Nomos to Alex so she could attack.
Not wanting to be outdone, Alex actually parried a blow from Alexei so she could strike at the nethicite before tossing the blade to Clover, who did a pirouette to dodge one of Alexei's phantom weapons before dealing a spinning attack to the left nethicite.
Alexei stabbed towards Clover, but she gracefully dodged the strike while passing Dein Nomos off to Britney, who decided to just forego subtlety and stab the right nethicite directly with it.
"FRUITLESS!" Alexei bellowed, raising his magical weapons above him. "YOU WILL NOT DEFEAT ME WITH SUCH AMATEURISH TACTICS!"
Mat barged in to pull Britney back and away from Alexei as he brought his weapons down. Britney kissed Mat on the cheek before handing Dein Nomos off to him.
"This is for earlier, you bastard!" Mat shouted as he swung Dein Nomos twice, sending glowing energy blades into each piece of nethicite.
Nick wasted no time in charging towards Alexei as Mat passed Dein Nomos to him. As Alexei recovered from Mat's attack, he tried to blast Nick backwards with more lightning, but Nick threw up quick psychic barriers to defend himself. Though they shattered quickly, it gave Nick enough time to jump to behind Alexei and slash at his back, causing him to drop to his knees.
"Haruka, your turn!" Nick shouted. Haruka was already running past him, taking Dein Nomos from him so she could deliver a flying overhead slash to the right nethicite.
"Bridget, you're up!" Haruka shouted.
"Sonic Mode, online!" Bridget exclaimed, transforming into Sonic Mode before catching Dein Nomos so that she could blitz Alexei, slashing at him with multiple lightning-fast strikes.
For good measure, Bridget jumped to kick Alexei in the back of the head before throwing Dein Nomos to Nozomi. This gave Nozomi ample time to slash Alexei across the chest a few times before slashing directly upwards, sending Alexei stumbling back.
"HOW?! HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO WOUND ME SO?!" Alexei shouted.
"That's simple," May shot back as Nozomi threw Dein Nomos to her. "You underestimated us."
May didn't give Alexei any time for a snappy retort, moving in and literally just chopping at both nethicite crystals with Dein Nomos, doing as much damage as she could before jumping back to avoid another barrage of lightning bolts that Alexei surrounded himself with.
"My turn," Melissa proclaimed as May handed Dein Nomos off to her. "You're gonna get it for hurting Mat, you son of a bitch."
Alexei simply bellowed in pure, unyielding rage and rushed down Melissa, only for her to stab Dein Nomos outwards, catching him in the chest and allowing Melissa to slash at him a few more times before tossing Dein Nomos to Dawn, who leapfrogged off of Melissa's shoulders to stab at the left nethicite.
Blaine was already on the move, dashing by Dawn as she handed Dein Nomos off to him and shoulder-tackling Alexei so that he could slash at the nethicite as well.
Alexei simply grinned as he approached the spies, only to hear a rather disturbing cracking sound. He glanced at the nethicite crystals embedded into his arms, which had splintered under the spies' relentless assault and were leaking an ominous red light.
The spies took that as their cue to back away to a safe distance.
Alexei frantically attempted to extract the crystals from his arms before anything happened, but it was too late, and the crystals exploded viciously, enveloping Alexei in an explosion of dark red energy.
When it faded, Alexei was somehow still alive, though obviously in very bad shape from the nethicite exploding on him again, and he was back to his normal self.
"Th-this... this cannot be..." Alexei gasped, struggling to stay standing. "How am I... defeated so badly?"
"I think the better question is, how in the hell are you still alive?!" May exclaimed. "That was a point-blank nethicite explosion! Even your super-buffed keester couldn't have survived that!"
"He won't be standing for long," Pirate Nick proclaimed. "I've been waiting for this chance for five years now. Patty, let's go!"
"Right! Let's end this!" Patty shouted.
Nick handed Dein Nomos off to Pirate Nick so he could make the final charge with Patty by his side.
Despite his wounds, Alexei seemed to recover enough to draw another blade from his pocket and strike at Pirate Nick, but he simply swung Dein Nomos to knock that weapon away before thrusting the ancient blade forward and stabbing Alexei through the chest with it.
For good measure, Patty drew her scimitar and stabbed Alexei through the back as well.
Everything was silent for a few seconds until Alexei coughed up blood.
"N-No... I... I can't die here..." Alexei gasped, his voice getting weaker by the second. "I... I was destined... to rule... this... world..."
"Well, sorry, but you're not what this world needs," Pirate Nick growled. "Now my parents can finally rest in peace, you monster."
Pirate Nick and Patty yanked their weapons out of Alexei's body. He tried to reach for Pirate Nick in his last moments, but the last of Alexei's life fled him, and he fell onto his face, stone-cold and unmoving.
Pirate Nick closed his eyes before Patty dashed over to hug him tightly, both pirates sighing in relief that they'd finally caught and ended the madman who had wronged them so harshly.
"That... was kinda excessive," May teased. "But considering who you were dealing with, I guess there really wasn't any other way, huh?"
"Things are different here, for sure," Patty admitted. "We've had to kill some of the more nasty pirates who got in our way, but unlike the Black Hope, we always gave every one of our enemies a chance to walk away."
"And I'm willing to guess that none of them took that chance?" Sam asked.
"Bingo," Patty replied.
"Well, I think that's enough of the morbid talk for today," Pirate Nick proclaimed. "Now that Alexei's toast, I think it's time we took you guys home. You all deserve a break after everything you've done to help us out."
"It's like we always say, helping people is the main reason we've stuck with W.O.O.H.P. for as long as we have," Alex replied as Patty rushed to the Fiertia's lower deck in order to activate the Rift Generator, opening a Quantum Rift in front of the Fiertia.
"And we'll do whatever it takes to keep the peace, even if it means having to cross dimensions to do it," Sam proclaimed.
"Couldn't have said it better myself," Patty giggled as she piloted the Fiertia into the Quantum Rift.
1:32 P.M. – Beverly Hills
Just Off the Coast
"Home sweet home at last!" Melissa laughed as the Fiertia appeared in Beverly Hills. "We have missed you, Beverly!"
"We can't thank you guys enough for helping us take care of Alexei and avenging my hubby's parents," Patty proclaimed. "You've made our dimension just that much safer."
"Can you guys handle the rest of the Black Hope on your own, though?" Mat asked. "Even if their leader's six feet under, there's still a lot of them out there..."
"The mooks aren't anything we can't handle," Pirate Nick responded. "Without a leader, they shouldn't be too much trouble to subdue."
"Well, I guess that's case closed, huh?" Nick quipped. "Well, everyone, I say we skedaddle to headquarters so we can let Jerry and RiCO know we're okay."
"Thanks again for your help, everyone!" Patty proclaimed as Nick surrounded the spies with a psychic bubble and lifted them into the sky. "May we cross paths again somewhere along the tides!"
With that, Patty piloted the Fiertia back into the Quantum Rift and it quickly closed itself up, leaving Nick to guide the bubble towards W.O.O.H.P. Headquarters in the distance.
1:43 P.M. – W.O.O.H.P. Headquarters
Jerry's Office
The thirteen spies walked directly into Jerry's office, which got Jerry's attention.
"Spies, you're back!" Jerry proclaimed as RiCO formed in his office.
"Safe and sound, Jer," Sam quipped.
"And the other dimension is safer than ever," Nick added.
"Splendid to hear," Jerry added.
"We just wanted to show our faces just to let you know that we're back," Nozomi stated.
"Yes, well, I'm happy to hear you've returned, so now I'll send you back to your beach house and let you enjoy your summer," Jerry replied and pressed a button to send all the spies out of his office.
"Enjoy yourselves," RiCO replied.
2:08 P.M. – The Spies' Beach House
And enjoy themselves they did.
Half of the spies elected on a pool day, while the other half went Smashing. Bridget, Mat, Nozomi, Haruka, Sam, and Dawn were at the pool.
Bridget whooped as she splashed in the pool near Mat, Sam, and Haruka.
"So, when's the next car wash?" Nozomi wondered.
"I'll keep ya posted," Bridget answered.
"By the way," Sam spoke up. "Have you car washed with Nick a time or two, Nozomi?"
"Probably not to the extent of you guys and your glorious water wars, but yeah, we did that a couple times," Nozomi giggled. "I still remember Nick's face the first time I blasted him with that hose."
"Please tell me you still have it in your phone," Haruka chuckled.
"I know Haruka and I enjoy those," Bridget giggled.
"No doubt you do," Mat laughed. "This would be your third car wash after all, Bridget."
"Yeah, but who's counting?" Bridget teased.
"I admit those car washes are fun," Haruka told the others. "And it's more gratifying to see Nick lose his marbles when he sees me in a bikini. I know what makes him tick."
"Yeah, it's pretty funny to see that from Nick," Dawn commented.
"FEAR THE FLYING JIGGLYPUFF!" May shouted from the other room, catching Dawn's attention.
"How the hell is that dumb move a freakin' INSTANT KILL?!" Melissa shrieked.
"It's only occasionally an instant kill," Nick replied, clearly having dealt with Jigglypuff's Rest before. "May just got lucky."
"Glad I wasn't anywhere near that thing," Alex laughed.
"Same here," Clover replied. "I may not be as good at Smash as the rest of you, but even I know to stay away from Jigglypuff."
"Sounds like they're having fun in there," Bridget laughed.
After all that Smashing was done, the other seven spies joined the others at the pool.
Clover and Alex whooped as they both jumped in the pool themselves. Nick, Melissa, Blaine, May, and Britney were right behind them.
"What's the hubbub?" Melissa wondered as Clover and Alex resurfaced.
"Nozomi's looking forward to the next car wash," Bridget answered. "Me and her are next."
"You again, Bridget?!" May chuckled.
"That's what I was saying earlier," Mat laughed at May's statement.
That was when Blaine and Britney went in the pool, too.
"By the way," Mat told Nick. "We were wondering if you and Nozomi ever car washed yourselves, Nick?"
Nick looked a little surprised.
"You still have that picture in your phone, don't you, Nozomi?" Nick quipped.
"It's a priceless memory, Nick," Nozomi laughed. "No way was I getting rid of it!"
As Nick sputtered slightly and attempted to splash Nozomi, the rest of the spies could only laugh in response to the antics.
4:32 P.M. – The Moonflow Tides
Northeast Wave
("Umi to Shinjuu" by JUNNA plays)
"Hubby?" Patty asked as she joined Pirate Nick, who was kneeling in front of a gravestone that he himself had placed here five years ago, the very day his parents had been killed by the Black Hope. They had stopped at another nearby island so that Pirate Nick could bring some flowers to the grave, as he always did whenever he visited.
"Mom, dad, I know it's been a little longer that I thought it'd be since my last visit," Pirate Nick stated. "I've just been busy with finding that scumbag who took you from me, and... well, he's six feet under now. You guys can finally rest in peace."
"Hey, I know for a fact that they'd be proud of everything you've done," Patty noted as she hugged Pirate Nick from behind. "Don't ever forget that, 'kay, Nick?"
"Wouldn't dream of it," Pirate Nick answered.
Suddenly, both pirates heard a loud beeping sound coming from the Fiertia.
"Sounds like we've got a lead on that artifact we've been searching for!" Patty exclaimed.
"About time, honestly," Pirate Nick proclaimed. "Let's head back to the ship and set sail."
"Yeah, those nutballs aren't beating us to the treasure this time!" Patty laughed as they raced back to the Fiertia, holding hands the entire way.
Totally Spies: Fractured Hope
~The End~
Final Note from Mat49324: And with that, we bring the curtain down on Fractured Hope. I know I certainly enjoyed going dimension-hopping here for the first time since our second movie, Rift Apart. The fun's not over yet since we have another project coming that'll test how the spies handle others taking punches at their confidence levels. That's right, we've got another project on the docket that we've already gotten under way BTW – at least with the first chapter. I've titled it Competitive Counterparts, and I'll be authoring that project. For now, here's The Blue Time Ranger for his final thoughts.
Final Note from The Blue Time Ranger: And that's a wrap on another interdimensional adventure! What a trip that was, huh?
I had a lot of fun on our second movie with Patty and Nick's pirate self, so I figured, why not give them another moment in the spotlight? I think it's fun to imagine what your characters could be like in alternate timelines, alternate dimensions, and what have you. And speaking of timelines, we've got something else in the works, but we'll talk about that a little more at the end of the next story.
And finally, here's what's coming up next on The New Adventures! If you thought you'd seen the last of the LAMOS after Sortiliena cut them down to size, sadly, true villains never give up. We've got a bit of an interesting team-up next time on Competitive Counterparts, which will be posted by Mat. So, until next time, have a fantastic day, don't listen to the screeching morons, enjoy this preview of Competitive Counterparts, and we'll see you next mission!
"Ah, it feels good to be out of that stuffy containment cell. It's nice to know that I didn't spend too long in there."
"And you know you're only free because of my little tricks, lady."
"Yeah, yeah."
In a secret underground lair somewhere in Beverly Hills, fellow baddies Geraldine Husk and The Great Kandinsky were discussing their latest plan to take their revenge on the spies who had put them away.
"Anyways, back to business," Kandinsky laughed. "This is a pretty slick scheme you've got brewing here. It does feel a lot different than what you usually do, though..."
"Well, I do have to try new things every once in a while, right?" Geraldine admitted. "I can't always rely on rule thirty-six."
"Good point," Kandinsky chuckled. "So, what else do you have under the hood?"
"Let me show you, my villainous compatriot," Geraldine cackled. "Those dirty little spies won't know what hit them this time around."
As the two villains pored over the details of their plan, Geraldine couldn't help but crack an evil grin.
Those spies definitely wouldn't know what hit them this time.
To be continued in Totally Spies: Competitive Counterparts...