Chapter 6: A Jolly Good Scan Quest of Friendship
Another day in Chaotic. Sidney had just ported in and was looking for Minnie. She had just spotted her watching a match. "Hey Min." She said, taking a seat next to Minnie. "Who's battling?" "Some player called RobbieOne. Dude's mopping the floor in the drome." Minnie explained. 'RobbieOne? Why does that name sound familiar?' Sidney thought. "Dude still has 3 Creatures. The other guy only has Klasp." Minnie said.
RobbieOne, as Malvadine, fired a Riptide from his Liquilizer, sending Klasp into the wall. "Well, looks like you're all washed up, Klasp." Malvadine said. Klasp struggled to get up. "That's what you think. Melody of Malady!" He yelled, casting a Mugic. The Mugic played in tune and started dealing damage to Malvadine, who started to topple over due to loss of energy. "Mega Roar!" Klasp shouted, blasting Malvadine into the wall. "Hmph! Is that all you got?" Malvadine asked. Klasp just grinned. Malvadine seemed confused until he heard contraptions starting up. He looked behind him and saw a boobytrapped wall. "Oh." He said before he got struck by wall spikes, bursting into code.
"Ooh!" Sidney and Minnie shouted, cringing at what happened. "That had to hurt!" Minnie said. "No doubt." Sidney agreed. As RobbieOne was transported back, Sidney got a good look at him. 'I knew it!' She thought. "Hey, you alright?" Minnie asked, shaking her shoulder. "Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. It's just that I know Robbie." Sidney said. "You do?" Minnie asked. "I'll tell you later." Sidney said. The screen switched to the battle board. Both the girls took notice of an unknown Creature on the board. "Who's that next to Zhade?" Sidney asked. "I don't know. I've never seen that Creature before." Minnie said.
"RobbieOne, it is your attack." The Drome Master said. Robbie spun the randomizer until it stopped. Glacier Plains. "Princess Oézaeria attacks Klasp!" Reggie said, tapping his unknown Mipedian card. He then transformed into a beautiful red Mipedian girl, wearing a blue breastplate and skirt. His opponent transformed into Klasp once more.
As the 2 battled in Glacier Plains, Sidney and Minnie checked on the new Mipedian's stats on Sidney's scanner. "Wow! I've never seen a Mipedian like this before." Minnie said, looking at the stats. "Yeah. This Princess Oézaeria is unlike any other Mipedian. A Muge who's able to do attacks from 3 elements? Air, earth and fire? I've never seen anything like it." Sidney said.
Back in Glacier Plains, the Mipedian princess was cornered. "Time to burn, Princess. Steam Rage!" Klasp called, firing a stream of fire from his hands. But suddenly, only steam was formed when it hit. It cleared to see that Oézaeria was equipped with an Ice Cloak, shocking Klasp. "Good try. But this is how you do a Steam Rage." He said, firing the same attack right back at Klasp, sending him off the cliff. Klasp landed on an ice block and burst into code, giving Robbie the win.
"The winner: RobbieOne." The Drome Master announced. "Jolly good match, old bean." Robbie said. "Aw man!" His opponent said, kicking the floor. Robbie chuckled at his newly claimed victory.
(Intro)
Robbie had just entered the Port Court when he heard a familiar voice. "Hey Robbie!" He looked over to see Sidney waving him down. "Sidney? No bloody way! How the heck are you, lass? Long time no see!" He said, walking over to the table. Sidney got up from her seat and wrapped Robbie into a big hug. "Oh, it's so good to see you, buddy!" She said. 'Whoa! She really does know him!' Minnie thought with a bit of jealousy. "Oh right. Introductions." Sidney said, pulling out of the hug. "Robbie, this is my friend, Minnie. Minnie, this is Robbie, a childhood friend I knew from back home." She introduced. "Jolly good to meet you, Minnie." Robbie said, holding out his hand. "Pleasured." Minnie said, shaking it. Robbie felt a tight squeeze when they were shaking hands. "So, how do you 2 know each other?" Minnie asked. "Well, his father's a good friend of my father." Sidney said. "His father? You mean ReggieOne? The player who had that accident and got captured by the Mipedians?" Minnie asked. "Yep. In fact, I owe it to Sidney's father. If it wasn't for him, my pops would've been a prisoner forever." Robbie said. "Wow!" Minnie said. 'Sid never told me about this.' She thought.
"When did you get your Chaotic code?" Robbie asked. "2 weeks ago." Sidney said. "Since then, she's become one of the top new players in Chaotic." Minnie explained. "Well, I'll just have to test that sometime." Robbie decided. "As soon as you tell me about your Mipedian, Princess Oézaeria." Sidney countered. "Ah, you saw. Well, Oézaeria is a distant cousin to the royal Mipedian family, recently returned from a yearly vacation from her home village near Sha-Kree Flats." Robbie explained. "I'd like to meet her." Sidney said. "Me too." Minnie said. "Alright then, do any of you have any scans of anywhere in Mipedian territory?" Robbie asked. "I have a scan of the Mipedim Tropics." Sidney said. "Yeah, me too." Minnie added. "Great! She's got her own little place inside. Let's go." Robbie said, dragging the girls over to the Transport Center.
Sidney and Minnie transported just outside the Tropics and went to find Robbie. Just then, Sidney and Minnie slipped down a hill. They tumbled and tumbled until they hit a tree. They stood and wobbled from the dizziness. They looked and saw Robbie by the tree. "Guess I should've warned you about those steep hills." He said. Minnie just growled.
After recovering, the 3 trailed deeper into the Tropics. Robbie and Sidney talked and laughed at their childhood days. Minnie just glared with jealousy, thinking that she was gonna lose her best friend. Suddenly, there was a boom. The 3 looked behind them. 4 armored demons on Skeletal Steeds, wreathed in blue flame, charged towards them. "UnderWorlders!" Minnie cried. "This way! Down to that gap in the trees." Robbie said, pointing the way. They ran through the trees towards the gap. The UnderWorlders fired Flame Orbs at the 3 players. "We have to port out of here!" Minnie suggested. "If we stop, we'll be sitting ducks!" Robbie said. "Oh, and you're an expert at escaping angry UnderWorlders!" Minnie said. "You got a better idea than porting out?! If so, then I'm all ears!" Robbie shouted. Sidney suddenly felt upset that her 2 best friends were now arguing. "Stay where you are!" A voice called. The 3 stopped in their tracks, seeing the very red Mipedian they were looking for. "Melody of Mirage!" She cried. A Mipedian Mugic floated out of her hand. One of her Mugicians flew from her body and entered the Mugic. The Mugic started playing in key and activated, shining and creating several mirage copies of all 4 of them.
The UnderWorlders rode up and spotted the mirages. They seemed confused, wondering which ones were the real ones. They threw more Flame Orbs, but they passed through each one. After a second, the mirages disappeared. The UnderWorlders screeched and roared, then rode up ahead to try and find them.
When they were gone, the 4 peeked from behind a tree. "This place isn't safe. Especially with those UnderWorlders running wild. Follow me. I have a place nearby where it's safe." The princess said. The 3 players followed her to a hidden moss-covered den. Inside, Oézaeria poured some water into 3 pints and gave them to her guests. "If you were trying to find me while those UnderWorlders decided to invade, you would've been trampled halfway into the deep sections of the Tropics. But I am relieved that I managed to find you unharmed." She said. "Well, I'd say we're very lucky to be alive." Sidney said after she finished drinking her water. "Especially with my 2 supposed to be best friends fighting with each other!" She then glared at Minnie and Robbie. "He/She started it!" They protested. "I don't care!" Sidney snapped. Minnie and Robbie cringed with fear. "Now, why are you 2 fighting all of a sudden?" Sidney asked. Minnie suddenly felt guilty. She knew she couldn't keep it to herself anymore. "It's my fault." She said. Sidney and Robbie looked at her. "I was being jealous. When you said Robbie was your old best friend, I thought I was gonna be forgotten." Her voice started to break. "You were the first friend I ever had. I- I didn't want to lose that." She then started to let her tears fall.
Sidney knelt down in front of Minnie and put her hands on her shoulders. "You're not gonna lose me, Min." She assured. "Just because Robbie's my childhood best friend, doesn't mean you're not my best friend anymore." Minnie looked up at her. "You really mean it?" She asked. "When you're best friends with someone, you're best friends for life." Sidney said. Minnie finally gave in. She grabbed Sidney into a big, tight hug and started sobbing. Sidney hugged her back just as tight. Robbie and Oézaeria looked on with big smiles. When the girls pulled away, Minnie turned to Robbie. "I'm sorry, Robbie. I was being a total jerk." She said. "That's alright, Minnie. No apology is necessary for actions that were also of my own doing." Robbie said. He held up his hand. Minnie smiled and acceptedly shook it.
When that matter was settled, Sidney turned to Oézaeria. "Anyway, didn't you and Minnie say those guys who attacked us out there were UnderWorlders?" She asked. Both Minnie and Oézaeria nodded. "But I thought all the UnderWorlders were loyal to Takinom now." Sidney said. "Not all. A few of the UnderWorlder guards remained loyal to Chaor and joined him in exile." Oézaeria explained. "Chaor's been working to take his revenge. To bring down the Tribal Alliance and take Perim for himself." Sidney, Minnie and Robbie looked on in shock. "But that doesn't matter at the moment. I don't believe we were properly introduced. I am Princess Oézaeria, one the royal heirs to the Mipedian throne." The princess introduced with a bow. "Hi. I'm Sidney Majors and these are my best friends Minnie and Robbie." Sidney introduced. "Wait. You're Sidney Majors? The daughter of Tom Majors?" Oézaeria asked. Sidney nodded. Oézaeria started laughing. "Well, this is quite a surprise. I've heard tales of your father from my cousin, Mudeenu. You know him I assume?" She asked. "Yes. I met him at Maxxor's castle in Kiru City." Sidney said. "Tell me. What is it you think of the Mipedian Royal Council's new loyalty to the Tribal Alliance? I'm still new to the Tribes now living in peace thing." Oézaeria admitted. Sidney was surprised. So, she began to think. "Maybe if you offer to go on assignments with other Creatures from the other tribes, you may understand them better." She suggested. Oézaeria widened her eyes. "I believe my friend Tianne said something similar to your father." She said. "Maybe I should meet with the Tribal leaders and discuss your suggestion. And perhaps you should do the same." "What do you mean?" Sidney asked. "I know of Chaotic. Mudeenu told me the day your friend Robbie scanned me at the fortress. You and your friend Minnie may scan me. And then, when you become me in your matches, we may learn to understand true teamwork." Oézaeria said, preparing a scanning pose. Sidney got out her scanner. Minnie did the same. "It's worth a shot." Sidney said. Minnie nodded. They tapped the middle buttons and scanned Oézaeria.
Suddenly, they heard galloping outside. "The UnderWorlders." Minnie deduced. "There's a secret tunnel out behind my medicine shelf in the back. Take it and get out. I'll hold them off." Oézaeria said. The 3 nodded and took off towards the back. Oézaeria walked outside and prepared herself for the upcoming fight. Soon enough, the UnderWorlders came into view. She prepared her hands. "Pebblestorm!" She cried, firing rock shards from her hand. The shards hit the middle UnderWorlder, knocking him off his Skeletal Steed. The other 3 started throwing Flame Orbs at her.
Meanwhile, Sidney, Minnie and Robbie found their way out of the tunnel to the other side of the den. "Come on! We've gotta port back to Chaotic." Minnie said. Sidney looked at her scanner then looked back at where Oézaeria was being attacked. "No. You guys head back to Chaotic. I'm going back to help." She said. "Sidney, it's too dangerous." Robbie said. "I don't care. Oézaeria did the same for us. And I gonna return the favor." Sidney said, turning back to the tunnel. "But Sid-" Robbie tried to stop her, but Minnie grabbed his shoulder. Minnie shook her head. "I know Sidney. She's just like her father. She knows what she's doing." She assured. Robbie felt unsure, but nodded.
Oézaeria was soon pinned down by the last advancing UnderWorlder. She managed to knock down the other 2, but the last one was just too strong. The UnderWorlder walked up to her and prepped one more Flame Orb. "Hey Ugly!" Sidney's voice yelled. The UnderWorlder and Oézaeria looked to see Sidney standing at the entrance to the den, holding a Fulgurite staff. "Get away from her!" She said, firing a Lightning Burst from the staff, shocking the UnderWorlder and knocking him unconscious. Sidney ran over and helped Oézaeria up off the ground. "Are you okay?" Sidney asked. "I am now. Thanks to you, young Majors." Oézaeria said. They both smiled and shook hands with gratitude.
Back at Chaotic, Sidney told Minnie and Robbie about how she saved Oézaeria. "Girl, you are definitely your father's daughter. Risking your life to save a Creature?! You are crazy awesome!" Minnie said. "Yep. Just like when your father rescued my father from the Mipedians when they were our age." Robbie said. "Thanks guys. I guess I owe a lot to my dad. I mean, he, Mom and my uncles and aunts taught me all I know about Chaotic. And he brought all of the Tribes together for their long, awaited chance of peace." Sidney said. "I just hope Oézaeria can help them keep it that way."
By that time in Perim, Mudeenu brought Oézaeria to meet with Maxxor and the other leaders. Maxxor walked up to the Mipedian princess and offered his hand of friendship. Oézaeria smiled and shook it without hesitation, taking her first step in accepting the Tribes' friendship and alliance.
New Card:
Creature: Princess Oézaeria
Mipedian Royal Muge
Courage: 30
Power: 40
Wisdom: 25
Speed: 40
Elements: Fire, Air, Earth
Mugic: 2
Energy: 40
