Chihiro Hatsuki's Skylanders

by Tilde-Heart

Chihiro Hatsuki is an ordinary Earth kid whose life is turned upside down when the Skylanders, the magical guardians of another world, land in her backyard and promptly tell her that she's a magical portal master! Now, Chihiro must help the Skylanders defeat their archenemy Kaos and restore the Core of Light that protects their world. (Canon-divergent retelling of SSA)

23. Chapter 23

And here we have chapter twenty-three, and boy, this one's gonna be a doozy! Before we start, another quick warning! This chapter contains some serious injuries and brief medical scenes, so if you don't feel comfortable with that feel free to skip out or ask me for a summary of what happens!

Greenswitch: If I recall correctly, it was briefly mentioned in the game that the Skull Mask belonged to Mortulannis, but I don't think it was ever touched upon beyond that so I expanded a little! And I definitely had a lot of fun revisiting the Fairy Kingdom again!

Watch Seeker: Glad to hear you liked the chapter! Chop Chop and Hex were another relationship I had a lot of fun writing, and good ol' Morty ended up growing on me when I wrote him as well! (And I can't wait to hear more about those comic!)

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Chihiro grunted as she held the handle of her magic hammer tight. Their trek through these catacombs and crypts was long, tiring, exhausting, and all other synonyms of the word, but it would soon come to an end! Just above them, inside the polished walls of the room they fought in and dangled above them in a cage of silver lasers, was none other than a key with no head that was made of literal bone! The Skeleton Key, the key they would need to reach the citadel where the Eternal Undead Source lied, was so close she could taste it! Once they knocked down those spell punks that had trapped the key and all the little nuisances they had summoned, they'd be golden! Chihiro clenched her brows as her body turned warm with exhaustion, but she wasn't going to give in just yet!

A massive rhu-barb the side of a car loomed over Chihiro with its pulsing red flesh, its gnashing teeth and the sharp blades it called arms, but its massive stature didn't intimidate her in the slightest! In fact, this was just the boost she needed! Chihiro leaped off the ground right as the rhu-barb slashed its massive blades at her, then while it reeled in confusion, Chihiro slammed her hammer on its head and flipped right in the key's direction! As she soared towards the key, Chihiro whisked away her hammer with a shake of her arm and reached both hands towards the cage… Only to get tossed aside by something hard and bony! Before she even knew it, Chihiro was flung into a wall behind and fell back onto the cold, dusty ground!

"Geez, anybody get the number of that truck?" Chihiro grunted as she pushed herself off the floor with both hands. Her whole body shuddered with a bit of numbness from such a nasty fall… But the shock of something crunching into her arm woke it up soon enough!

Chihiro screamed and rolled on her back as she lifted up her arm, where a skull attached to an arrow bit down into her sleeve. Chihiro grunted as she yanked the arrow off and tossed it aside, then sat up and shook her head. Geez, where was the archer that threw that? She was sure she saw one of those obnoxious skeletal archers just aside of her a moment ago… Chihiro turned her gaze aside, but whatever flung that arrow at her had apparently vanished into the recesses of the catacombs! Stupid archers. Chihiro huffed as she lingered over the side of the catacombs for a moment, but a large shadow falling over her pulled her attention up front soon enough!

Chihiro looked up and grimaced as another rhu-barb glowered down on her, its jaws full of pearly whites sharper than her mom's kitchen knives and ready to tear into anything it considered perfect for its next dinner! Chihiro grimaced and crawled back as saliva dripped down its mouth and pooled at its feet (Ew), then forced a laugh as the low growls of the rhu-barb grew louder.

"Er, nice rhubarb thingie?" Chihiro chuckled as the rhu-barb trudged closer and closer, all while Chihrio herself crawled further and further back, "Y'know, humans really aren't the most delicious thing on the market, I promise you I'm more bone than anything, I—"

While Chihiro was trying to reason with the rhu-barb, something slammed it into the walls with such impact that it left a sizable dent in the side of the catacombs' walls! The rhu-barb groaned as it stirred up from the wall, then a silver glow enveloped it as it shrunk down to the size of a plush doll! The rhu-barb squeaked as it looked down at its smaller body, but it was so obsessed with its sudden shrinking that it didn't even notice a shadow creep over it! The sound of crackling electricity alerted the rhu-barb soon enough, then as it looked up it squealed and dashed off!

"How about you pick on someone your own size for once?" The shadow hissed in a raspy voice.

Chihiro just giggled as she turned to the shadow's owner, a purple and pink dragon with silver spikes on the sides of her head that complemented her silver spiked choker, tail fin and bracelets, then patted them on the back as she grinned.

"Thanks for the save, Cynder!" Chihiro chuckled as she looked right into Cynder's icy blue eyes. Though a bit of a chill fell over Chihiro, it didn't particularly worry her—Cynder's glance was known to do that kind of thing.

Cynder just scoffed as she turned around and flicked her purple and pink wings. "Be careful, there, Chihiro. We can't risk you getting your amulet shattered, not in a place like this."

Chihiro frowned as she looked down at her chest, where a silver amulet that glowed a faint blue rested against her chest. It didn't seem like much, but its glow showed that its spell was working its magic! After all, even with the fancy elemental powers that came with being a portal master providing her extra insurance against the underworld's energy, she still wasn't perfectly immune… So the shiny little amulet Hex lent her gave her full protection from the undead's influence!

Chihiro gasped, then lifted up the pendant and scanned it over. Luckily, it hadn't gotten cracked in her crash, and it shone just as bright as ever! Chihiro grinned and lifted her head up as she got ready to tell Cynder everything was a-okay… But unfortunately, things were not, because a zombie had crept up behind Cynder and got ready to bite!

"Cynder, behind you!" Chihiro cried as she leaped to her feet!

Cynder whipped around and snarled as the zombie lurched closer, then leaned down as black sparks of lightning popped around her mouth.

"VOLTS AND LIGHTNING!" Cynder cried as she yanked open her mouth and shot out a massive black lightning bolt towards the zombies that had swarmed her down.

As the lightning set the zombies alight and flailing as they haplessly tried to put the fires out, a trio of gigantic skulls crashed into the zombies and splattered them against the walls!

While the zombies' remains trickled down, Cynder grinned and looked up at Hex, who only narrowed her eyes as she propped up an arm that glowed with eldritch magic! Despite the seeming victory, Hex seemed tense, almost, as if she wasn't entirely sure if those zombies were done for… And she was right to seemingly think so, as the walls glowed and the zombies popped out good as new from them!

Cynder and Hex snarled as they got ready to attack, but before they could a finger's snap resonated through the catacombs!

Everyone froze as the zombies were set alight with cyan fire, save for the zombies themselves who screamed as the flames bored into their rotten flesh!

While the zombies melted away, Cynder just scoffed and turned to Chihiro with maybe a slightly-less harsh glint than what she usually held.

"For a loudmouth, you're not so bad," Cynder remarked as a slight smile crept across her muzzle.

"And you're not so bad yourself, for a killjoy," Chihiro chuckled as she flipped her hair.

Chihiro walked up to Cynder right as the zombies remains melted away, but those zombies were hardly the only problem they had to face. All around them, those obnoxious rhu-barbs and even more zombies popped into existence as the spell punks above cackled with glee! There was no doubt they were drawing this out, and Chihiro had gotten sick of it.

"Ready to finish this?" Chihiro asked as she clenched a glowing hand into a fist.

Cynder narrowed her eyes and flapped her wings, which sent small clouds of dust flying across the floor. "Gladly!"

The two of them stepped forward while all eyes fixed on them, the tension high as Chihiro lifted her glowing fist and splayed out her fingers while Cynder's jaw slowly creaked open. The rhu-barbs and zombies alike groaned as they craned their heads, as if they weren't sure what Chihiro and Cynder were going to do. Well, Chihiro would show them soon enough!

Out from her hand shot a massive magic blast, which only grew larger and more powerful as Cynder charged it up with a string of massive lightning bolts! A couple of the rhu-barbs screeched and went to slash away at the magic blast, but it just exploded and ruptured the entire room before they could!

Bright, blue and black-tinged light shook the entire room with such brightness that you could barely make out its contents, though among the bright light Chihiro could just barely make out the zombies and rhu-barbs being evaporated back into magic among the light storm, and the spell punks flying down to the ground! As the light faded, however, they weren't the only things that fell!

While the spell punks squealed and writhed on the ground with closed eyes, the skeleton key's cage withered away and left the key to drop onto the ground!

"And scene!" Chihiro proclaimed as she lifted the key up for Cynder and Hex to see!

Chihiro giggled as she grabbed their hands (Or paw, in Cynder's case) and teleported them back to the beginning of those catacombs in a flash of bright cyan light. A part of her was finally glad to have that darn key at last… After all, now that she had this thing, they could finally go and get the Eternal Undead Source! But, the longer she lingered on it and that thought, the less happy she felt looking at it.

Chihiro winced as she gripped the key tight, then turned her head back to Cynder and Hex.

"Come on, we can't stay here!" Chihiro exclaimed as she stormed up the stairs that would lead them back to Ancient's Peak, "The longer we wait, the longer it'll take us to knock Kaos down a peg!"

"Don't you mean get the Eternal Undead Source?" Cynder asked as she flew up behind Chihiro!

Chihiro froze as another chill ran down her spine, then she hopped up another stair and giggled as she spun around to meet Cynder's gaze. "Yeah, and that too!"

Chihiro forced another strained giggle, but Cynder didn't entirely seem to buy it as she narrowed her brows down in a way that pierced through Chihiro's soul.

"You know, Chihiro, you've been really focused with beating Kaos lately," Cynder remarked as she hopped up a stair and flapped her wing. Her tone wasn't necessarily colder or sardonic than before, but something about it still pierced through Chihiro's heart. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you'd have gotten obsessed with the thought."

"Er, well, I mean…" Chihiro forced her grin to stick as she turned away from Cynder's gaze and climbed a few steps more.

True, she had been working harder than ever to prepare for her next confrontation with Kaos, to the point it was all she could even think about. Heck, she even had dreams about running his face into the ground! But, when she heard someone else remark on it, Chihiro didn't feel particularly proud of her work… After all, with it came the reminder of her royal failure at Kaos's hands, which she hoped nobody else knew about. She didn't want to make them worry or let them down, after all, especially when she was doing all this in the first place to protect them. And the observation coming from Cynder, the queen of cold honesty and bitter remarks, probably didn't help either.

"Well, I mean," Chihiro said as she dashed away from Cynder's view, "Isn't it natural? After all, all this stuff happened because of him and all…"

"That's not it, Chihiro." Cynder hopped up another step, then turned back to Chihiro and swished her tail, all while those icy blue eyes peered daggers into Chihiro's soul. Cynder turned around and flicked her wings again before she strode back up the stairs, "You've got a one-track mind, you know. When you get obsessed with something, it's like you lose sight of everything else around you!"

"Cynder does have a point," Hex added as she floated up the stairs, "Just don't get so absorbed in what you want to do that you lose sight of everything else."

As Hex floated past Chihiro, Chihiro herself frowned and rubbed her hand against her chin. Now what on earth did that mean? Getting caught up in her own wants and losing sight of everything else, she wasn't doing that, right? Besides, she was doing all this for their sake, anyhow! After all, if she wasn't strong enough to face Kaos, who would protect them when the chips were down?

Chihiro sighed, then shook it off as she teleported away. Eh, they were always all doom and gloom anyways, she shouldn't worry so much about them anyhow! So, she jumped up, then teleported away to the beginning of the stairs and grinned as Cynder and Hex climbed after her.

With her hands planted tight on the doors, Chihiro pressed forward and slammed them open in one big, swift push! The gates to the underworld that nobody apparently knew existed until now slowly, slowly creaked open and tossed out clouds of intermingled dust and sand wherever they went as they pressed open and poured light down the halls! The bright, golden light of the afternoon sun was a more than welcome sight after trekking through old, dusty, dark crypts all morning, one that Chihiro embraced after such a long trek.

"WE'RE BACK~KKK!" Chihiro proclaimed as she strutted out the doors and held the skeleton key to the skies.

Chihiro giggled as she beamed up at the sun, then stashed the key in her pocket and skipped up the stairs before anybody else could catch up. She may have been excited to have the key, but she knew some others who would be excited to see it—T-Bone and Hugo! Her feet pounded against the stairs two steps at a time, then as she hit the top she grabbed the railing and spun around.

"Hugo! T-Bone!" Chihiro called as she waved towards Hugo and T-Bone, "Guess who got that Skeleton Key?"

Across from them, Hugo was white as a sheet as T-Bone leaned over and messed with the pages of the book Hugo was reading, and though Chihiro couldn't make out what they were saying, Chihiro could tell Hugo was scared out of his wits. Poor Hugo, he'd always deny it, but his fear of the undead was obvious to everyone around. Well, everyone but the undead skeleton that was lingering around here, unfortunately. Hugo flicked one of his incredibly tiny ears as he lifted his head, then perked up and beamed as he saw Chihiro!

"Chihiro!" Hugo shouted as he put his book away and raced up to Chihiro, "How was the trip to the Cadaverous Crypt?"

"It's a very long story that will have to be saved for another time!" Chihiro smirked and spun the key around her finger, "More importantly, now that we have this key, we can—"—Chihiro's eyes widened as the key flew straight off her finger—"WHOOPS!"

"Owch!" Cried a familiarly raspy voice from way back, "Chihiro, watch where you're flinging that thing!"

Chihiro winced, then made a strained laugh and hopped aside as Cynder flew up to her with the Skeleton Key in paw. Oh god, her gaze looked colder than usual, she was definitely not happy.

"After all that time we spent messing with those halls to get this thing," Cynder said as she thrust the key back in Chihiro's hand, "I am not looking for it again."

Chihiro winced and held her head. "Understood, Cynder."

As she ruffled her black hair and sent stray catacomb dust flying everywhere, Chihiro looked aside and perked up as T-Bone sauntered over with a twinkle in his eyes!

"We got your key, T-Bone!" Chihiro chirped as she held the key out to T-Bone, "We just hafta shove this in the door's lock and it'll set the path for that citadel place, right?"

"You bet'cha!" T-Bone chirped as he hummed and rubbed his chin, then yanked the key out of Chihiro's hand as the glint in his eye turned a bit mischievous, "But y'know, this thing has quite a couple other uses besides opening doors…"—T-Bone yanked his head off with one hand and screwed said head onto the key—"It can also be a good place to keep your head cool!"

Chihiro screamed as she stumbled back and nearly tumbled down the stairs, but in the momentary shock who could blame her? She was hardly accustomed to seeing people yank off their own heads, even if they were skeletons who wouldn't really be hurt by it! And she wasn't the only one either, as beside her Hugo turned paler than before, which was definitely saying something, and looked like he was on the cusp of tossing his cookies!

"W-WHY?!" Chihiro screamed as she pointed to T-Bone's head.

"HOW?!" Hugo cried before he held his hands over his mouth and groaned.

T-Bone, however, only shrugged with that same, nonchalant grin on his face.

"Well, it is a skeleton key!" T-Bone replied before he used the skeleton key as a mock drumstick, "Ba-dum-tssh!"

However, Hugo only groaned and collapsed onto the grass, which Chihiro herself whimpered and forced herself to look away before her head started spinning!

So T-Bone only sighed and placed his head back in its proper spot atop his shoulders. "Geez, tough crowd."

Chihiro turned back around and breathed a sigh of relief as T-Bone's head returned to its proper spot.

Beside her, Hex floated up the stairs, then as she caught sight of Hugo she held out her hand and sent a flare of magic to shine in his face.

"Hugo, now is no time for a nap," Hex said as she watched Hugo stir, "We have important matters to discuss."

Hugo groaned as he sat up and rubbed his head while the color flushed back into his face, then he shook off his nausea as he popped up and examined the skeleton key.

"So this is the skeleton key that will open the way to the Creepy Citadel?" Hugo asked as he brushed a furry finger against the key.

"Should be! Unless that map I found in one of Morty's old scroll chambers was wrong…" T-Bone explained as he made another shrug, "But it's probably fine!"

"This is no simple matter, Mister Skeleton!" Hugo wagged a finger at T-Bone, "We need to get to the Creepy Citadel so we can retrieve the Eternal Undead Source! If we don't get there before Kaos does…"

"It's T-Bone, buddy." T-Bone pushed Hugo out of the way and rolled his eyes, oblivious to the shriek of fear Hugo made in response "And don't worry so much! Who are you to doubt good old Mortulannis?"

Before Hugo could say another word, some sort of warbling echoed between him and T-Bone as an eerie chill fell over the area, all paired with a silhouette just faintly visible in the afternoon light. T-Bone and Hugo both shuddered a bit, but Chihiro only grinned—after all, she recognized who that silhouette belonged to!

"Did somebody say something about the Creepy Citadel?" Asked a raspy, ghoulish-sounding voice as a skeletal imp dressed in black robes with a chain for legs popped into existence!

"Ghost Roaster!" Hugo exclaimed as he jumped back, "How long have you BEEN there?"

"Since the skeleton over there did some party tricks with the key." Ghost Roaster pointed a bony finger at T-Bone and rolled his eyes, "I needed a break from cleaning up the kitchen after one of Dark's concoctions exploded… Again."

"I TOLD YOU, GHOST!" Shouted a raspy voice akin to Spyro's over the horizon, "IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!"

"ACCIDENT OR NOT, IT STILL SEALED THE FRIDGE OFF!" Ghost Roaster snarled and shook his head as he turned back to the others, "If only being Spyro's clone or something meant he got some common sense from him…"

"Eh?" T-Bone uttered as he tilted his head, "What does that have to do with going to the Creepy Citadel?"

As he heard this, though, Ghost Roaster's eyes grew so wide they practically popped out of his head!

"You're going to the Creepy Citadel? Just you three?!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as he fixed those wide eyes on Chihiro, Hex and Cynder.

"Well, yeah? I mean, we kind of were short-staffed, it's why Master Eon let me go down to the underworld," Chihiro replied with a shrug, "What's so wrong with that? We do need to get the Undead Source ba—"

"You don't know what you're getting into! That place used to be home to a prestigious undead family, it probably has guards up the wazoo!" Ghost Roaster rumbled up to Chihiro and pointed a finger right on her forehead, "You're gonna need some extra backup if you're going there!"

Chihiro, however, just grinned and laid an arm around Ghost Roaster's shoulders. If she needed backup, looks like she knew just where to look!

"The more the merrier, then!" Chihiro swung around and walked towards the steps down to the beach, though, weirdly, Ghost Roaster wasn't as quick to follow.

Rather, he just sat there and frowned as he watched Chihiro run back down the beach's stairs. "Wait a second, I wasn't volunteering—"

"Now come on! All the chit-chat aside and all, we should be getting to the Creepy Citadel now, right?"

Ghost Roaster groaned and massaged his temples, but nonetheless reluctantly followed Chihiro down the steps. Though he dragged his, well, lack of feet behind him, Chihiro could absolutely tell he was just as pumped to kick Kaos to kingdom come and get the Eternal Undead Source like she was!… At least, she thought so.

"You're forgetting one thing, Chihiro," Hex interrupted as she floated in front of Chihiro and made both her and Ghost Roaster freeze in their tracks.

"Wait, what am I forgetting?" Chihiro asked as she turned around and held up the Skeleton Key, "We've got the key right here!"

Hex just pointed to the amulet that hung around Chihiro's neck then floated over to her side.

"The amulet's immunity spell needs to be renewed now. Let me see it."

Hex gently lifted the amulet from Chihiro's neck, and sure enough its glow had grown more faint and hard to see than before. Seems as though it needed a charge-up! Hex whispered an incantation in some kind of Elvish language that nobody else but her could understand… But at the very least it did something, given that as she spoke the amulet glowed and sparkled like a night star! Hex looked over the amulet with one last, inquisitive look, then finally she nodded and floated away from Chihiro.

"Now, with that taken care of…" Chihiro beamed as she stepped away from Hex and bolted down the stairs, "Let's go!"

But, Chihiro's energy wasn't matched by the rest. Rather than the cheerful cries and youthful speed she had, they sort of just… Mumbled among each other and nodded as they wordlessly followed her down the stairs with some kind of tense, anticipating aura.

"Not the most energetic crowd, are they?" Chihiro remarked as she watched them pass her by with a shrug and a smile, "Welp, that's what I love about them!"

Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster trailed down the stairs, then stopped in their places as a whooshing sound echoed around the beach. Right as they turned around to try and locate the noise, T-Bone leaped off of the island's cliffs and touched down feet-first on the door's sandy yard!

T-Bone bowed as Chihiro applauded his landing, then he whipped around and frowned as he jammed the key into the gate's lock.

"Now, if I jiggle this a little here, twist it a bit to the right," T-Bone said as he fiddled with the key, "Turn it around and..."—T-Bone pressed his skeletal hands against the doors and swung them open with one push—"Voila, the route to the Creepy Citadel awaits!"

Chihiro frowned and summoned a magic sphere to light the path around as everyone else poured in behind her. Though the path ahead didn't seem all that different than the route she had taken prior, with its stone tunnels lit just vaguely by dull blue light and decorated with cobwebs and scattered bones, maybe a full skeleton here and there, something in her heart felt uneasy still. It wasn't necessarily the decoration setting her nerves alight, but more like… A gut feeling, almost, like something was going to go really badly.

But whatever it was, she had to cast it aside! The Eternal Undead Source was waiting for her somewhere down the line, and she had to keep it away from Kaos's grubby clutches! And even if she was scared, well… T-Bone had already closed the doors, so there was no turning back now. So, she held her magic sphere out and trailed it down the bony stairs that laid before her. She wasn't sure what tricks would be laid for her, but this time, she was going to get that Eternal Source before Kaos did, even if it was the death of her!

§

"So, how long before we get to the Creepy Citadel place, anyways?" Chihiro asked as she eyed a couple skeletons that laid down in front of her.

Chihiro winced as she tapped their shoulders, just to be entirely sure they weren't sentient and taking a nap, then when they didn't respond she shrugged and nudged them aside with her foot. They had been trekking down these stairs for what seemed like forever, and she was starting to get impatient. After all, they didn't have all the time Skylands had to offer! They had to get the Eternal Undead Source now! When would these stairs finally end and take them to that citadel, anyways?

"Shouldn't be long, if we've got the right path," T-Bone replied as he cringed and ducked under a couple of spiderwebs, then turned around to Chihiro and smiled, "In fact, it should be right around…"

T-Bone hopped down a couple more spine plate-shaped stairs and towards an area where the dull blue light turned a bit brighter than before, then he poked his head around the corner with an expectant grin. But, as he got a glimpse of what lied beyond the light, his jaw completely dropped!

"Holy Ancients above, that's one fancy citadel!"

Chihiro grinned and perked up as she leaned over T-Bone, and that grin of hers only widened as her eyes fell on what laid ahead!

Beyond the path they currently trekked laid a massive, gothic castle covered from head to toe in black stone laced with rusted silver metal lining and decorations that could barely be seen under the mess of cobwebs that covered the roofs, all protected by a tall, black embroidered fence! Its looks almost brought to mind the way her neighbors would decorate for Halloween, but a little more... Minimalist, she supposed.

"Looks like this is our stop!" Chihiro exclaimed as she strode out from the tunnels and into the broad... Well, lack of daylight, all while the others trailed behind her.

Chihiro took a quick peek back and forth as butterflies rose in her stomach, because something about this was almost... Too peaceful and quiet. There were no sort of guards around, nothing that looked like a sneak attack in the making, just them and this massive citadel they'd quickly unlock. By all accounts that should've made her feel glad, but something about it just didn't feel right—a gut instinct she supposed.

But, T-Bone didn't seem to particularly care! He just hummed a jaunty tune to himself as he whipped out the Skeleton Key and strode up to the gate's door.

"Now, just gotta put this little key in," T-Bone said as he slowly pushed the key towards the lock, "And we'll be in..."—T-Bone froze and dropped the key as the ground below began to rumble—"Here?"

Chihiro gasped, then stepped back as the ground below her feet began to shake and rumble and quake with such fury it made bones pop out of the ground and sent cracks through the earth! Crap, this wasn't good, she had to act fast! With a tap of her heel a new sort of speed rushed into Chihiro, then she dashed off and tapped Cynder, Hex, Ghost Roaster and T-Bone on the backs!

As the four of them were enveloped in a blue glow, Chihiro snapped her fingers and watched as the blue glow expanded around them and teleported away! In the blink of an eye they had returned back to the winding tunnel they had taken shelter in moments earlier, which was thankfully completely stable and not liable for quakes anytime soon.

"What was that?" Hex asked as she turned to Ghost Roaster, who only replied with a shrug.

"I don't know," T-Bone replied as he scratched his head, "Last I recall, this part of the Underworld wasn't prone to quakes..."—T-Bone sighed and turned around as the rumbling came to a close—"Woah, when did those guys leave the grave?!"

"Ha, ha, very funny," Cynder spat as she flew up and glared down T-Bone, though the bitter tone of her voice suggested the exact opposite, "But this isn't the time to crack jokes, bonehead, we've—"

"Oh, I'm not joking!" T-Bone pointed Cynder towards the path ahead, "Just look! Seems like we've got company, and not the good kind!"

Cynder followed T-Bone's gaze and snarled, but not in her usual sardonic way—no, the glare she carried was far more venomous and poised to kill! What on earth was behind there?

Chihiro hopped up to them and peered over their shoulders, just to get a better view, then let out a small gasp without even realizing it! T-Bone was right!

The army was comprised of all the kind of stuff that was probably expected of an undead castles, from rows of knights dressed in fancy silver and black armor, skeleton archers who wielded bony bows and arrows, zombie gremlins with patchy fur in black and red armor who wielded fancy-looking staffs. Between the knights and skeletons, Chihiro could spy spell punks with tattered robes, skeletal goblins who rode giant spiders, even a few weird green things she couldn't pin a name too! And with all those soldiers gathered in a place like this, Chihiro's heart sank to her feet, because she knew this could only mean the one thing she didn't want to think of.

"Look at the size of that army!" Cynder exclaimed before she cleared her throat and lowered her voice, "How the hell are we going to get in there?"

Yeah, getting in there before Kaos could come knocking would be a problem with all those guards. Kaos's cackles rang in Chihiro's head as her legs turned to jelly, but she bit her lip and tried to hide her fear.

"Maybe we can take the back door?" Chihiro suggested as she looked towards Cynder.

"What kind of back door would a citadel have, anyways?" Cynder shot Chihiro a glare then, shook her head and flapped her wings, "You know what? Nevermind that, let's just take care of these guys before they take care of us!"

"Right!" Chihiro nodded and summoned a magic sphere, while all around her the sounds of whirring attacks rose. If those guys wanted a fight, Chihiro would give them one!

Chihiro stepped forward and got ready to rush into the fray… But, before she could even take a step more, T-Bone flung his arm in front of her and stopped her and Cynder in their tracks!

"Now, let's not get too hasty here!" T-Bone warned with a wary grin.

"T-Bone! What gives?" Chihiro asked as she pushed the arm back to T-Bone.

"I don't know much about this place, but I'm sure if we explain everything they'd let us go!"

T-Bone chuckled as he strode away from Chihiro and back down towards the winding path that lead to the citadel's front gate. What was he thinking? Did he have a death wish? Well, being a skeleton he couldn't exactly die, but the point still stood!

Chihiro only dropped her jaw in utter shock. "T-Bone, there's no way—"

No use, T-Bone had already left her shouting range, ran back to the citadel and up to a couple of the skeletal archers who paced back and forth across the citadel's front gates.

"T-Bone!" Chihiro winced as she stumbled out from the group and bolted down the tunnels.

Granted, she seemed to have bolted down a little too fast, because once she started she found herself unable to stop! Before she knew it she was bolting down the dead hills, then tripped on a dead root and stumbled straight into a thicket of spiky brambles!

"Ugh…." Chihiro groaned as she plucked brambles out of her hair as Cynder and Hex floated down to her side.

"What does he think he's doing?" Cynder demanded as she placed her paws on the brambles, then immediately winced and drew them back, "Owch!"

"Lemme find out."

Chihiro rolled her hands, then cast them out and watched as twin speakers made of magic with a lengthy cord connecting them emerged from her palms! Chihiro said no words as she laid one speaker down on the ground, then brushed her fingertips against it and watched as it snaked under the brambles and closer to T-Bone… Hopefully, this would glean a little bit of the conversation to her ears.

"Listen, buddy, I'm no intruder!" T-Bone cried, his words echoed from the speaker that Chihiro still held in her hands, "I got the key to this crypt from King Mortulannis, cool guy, philosopher king who was crowned long before you crossed the bridge of death, you might've heard of him?"

Chihiro winced as inaudible, but definitely frustrated nonsense emerged from the speaker. She didn't need words to know that this wasn't looking pretty…

"Proof? I've got proof right here!"

Chihiro clenched her teeth and peeked up right as T-Bone showed off the Skeleton Key! What was he thinking? More angry chatter emerged from the speaker, but it was so distant that the words couldn't be made out from her speaker's distance. However, the footsteps that echoed while the armies charged forward were clear enough!

"They're coming this way!" Hex exclaimed as she readied a few skulls while Ghost Roaster became visible next to her… Then promptly dropped the skulls and her jaw from sheer shock.

T-Bone had flung himself in front of the stampeding skeletons and knights! There was no way he could take all those guys on! What was he thinking? As the armies froze and shouted more angry gibberish at him, T-Bone only chuckled and scratched the back of his head.

"Now, now, let's not get so hasty," T-Bone said as he held up his hands, "I know! This mood's so awful, why don't I lighten things up with a couple skele-puns?"

The armies all promptly lost all strength in their legs and collapsed from what could only be T-Bone's awful attempt at punnery. Well, save for a few skeletons who made some small chuckles.

"Ah, ah!" T-Bone clapped his hands and shot a finger gun at the audience, "Looks like some people here appreciates a good bon—"

The speakers promptly vanished as Chihiro was cast with realization. He wasn't trying to make nice with them, he was making a distraction!

"Come on!" Chihiro whispered as she motioned towards Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, "Let's get out of here while they're distracted!"

Not ones to waste a good opportunity, the four of them all fell to their bellies and crawled behind the shield of dead brambles, all while T-Bone enthralled them with his puns in the background!

"What does the ghost stylist say on their fashion show? If you've got it, haunt it!"

"Why do specters like to fly? It lifts their spirits!"

"Why did the skeleton laugh when he got brushed with feathers? It tickled his funny bone!"

"Ugh, I don't what's worse…" Cynder groaned as she buried her face in her paws, "Facing the armies, or facing his awful jokes!"

Chihiro made a few soft chuckles she kept to herself. She didn't know what Cynder was complaining about, those puns were hilarious! In fact, she wished

And besides, thanks to his cheesy jokes, they had completely evaded the eyes of Kaos's cronies in time to reach the backyard! At least, Chihiro thought it was a backyard.

It was completely devoid of even dead plantlife, and the only decoration was some rusty fences, empty suits of armor not unlike the ones that surrounded the gate and gigantic crystals that emanated thick lasers beams… Not really the kind of thing you'd usually expect out of a backyard, but then again the undead probably had different tastes than she did.

All four of them pulled themselves back to their feet as they crept out of the brambles, then Chihiro frowned and looked back to the path they just took.

"Geez, if all those guys really were his, then whoever lived here really wasn't messing around here," Chihiro remarked as she stuffed her hands in her pockets, "Still wanna know how we're even got in this place without using the key."

That was the question of the hour, wasn't it? Chihiro frowned as she glazed over one of those massive crystals, then froze as a chill ran down her back while a strange light crept out from the corner of her eye. She couldn't quite pin down why, but something in her gut told her there was something behind her! Hex or Ghost Roaster, maybe? They did tend to just sneak up on people without saying anything...

Chihiro shuddered and turned around, then screamed and jumped back as she found herself right in front of a suit of armor that definitely wasn't there before! And her scream must have startled the suit of armor as well, because it screamed back in response as it frantically grabbed its sword. Chihiro jumped out the way just moments before the sword could slice her in half and screamed another scream that was so loud, it alerted everyone around!

Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster all turned to her while the other suits of armor rattled to life and slammed their swords into the ground! As the knights closed in on them, Cynder snarled and jumped into the fray—or rather, dashed into the fray! With a quick zip into the shadows, she spun through several suits of walking armor!

The knights all shuddered and rattled from the sudden chill, then screamed and flailed as they started hovering in the air courtesy of a few large, purple ghosts who held the knights tight despite their struggling!

"Now!" Cynder shouted as she turned back around and became visible once more.

With a quick spin, Ghost Roaster transformed into a gigantic, flaming green skull then stormed forward and crashed into the suits of armor like they were meager bowling pins! He smiled and popped back to his original form as the suits crashed into the ground… Then yelped and dashed away as they jumped back to their feet and charged after him, all while they looked no worse for wear than before!

Ghost Roaster winced and ducked his head as one of the knights slashed at him, then as he lifted it up he gasped and stopped short, for several other knights had rushed in front of where he meant to go! Ghost Roaster winced as he looked anywhere he could for some sort of opening, but he had no luck. Everywhere he turned, the knights had closed off any escape routes! As their swords' blades poked against his chest, Ghost Roaster gulped and clenched his jaw. Surely, this would be his end…

"You will not pass any further!" Hex intervened as she teleported in front of Ghost Roaster.

With a wave of her hands, Hex lifted a wall of thick, hard bones from the ground and blocked the knights off from the two of them! While the clueless knights chipped away at her barrier, Hex crafted several orbs and rocketed them towards the knights. However, even those don't keep the suits down for long! They groaned and tumbled backwards as the orbs slammed straight into their chests, then they shook their heads and rushed forward!

Hex lowered the bone barrier and veered left as she shot off gigantic skulls, while Ghost Roaster transformed back into his gigantic skull form and chased after a couple of knights to the right. Both of them nailed down the knights once more, but yet again those knights just leaped back up and made chase after them!

Cynder took a seat where Hex and Ghost Roaster used to lay, then narrowed her eyes as several of the beefier knights chased after her. But as they drew closer, she didn't dodge or run, but blasted them off with a massive storm of black lightning before she dashed after them!

But while all this was going on, Chihiro only winced and hid behind one of the crystals, far away from the prying eyes of those knights. She wanted to fight alongside them, she really did, but things weren't exactly looking up!

After all, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster were fighting their hardest, but it seemed like no matter what they threw at these knights, they just got right back up! Ghostly bites, lightning, magic spells, even the swing of a ball and chain was little more than a minor injury those stupid hunks of metals brushed off!

Chihiro took a peek outside the crystal, then winced as she caught sight of the battle's current state. Now, Cynder, Hex, and Ghost Roaster could only dodge the suits' blows with tense scowls on their faces, as if they were trying to narrow down some kind of way to stop these guys…

"Crap, these guys are invincible! What'll it take to knock them down?" Chihiro asked as she cowered behind the crystal.

Her legs started to shake and shudder again while her eyes drifted over the fight, then towards the still-shining crystals that littered the backyard. Even through all the tension, they stood strong as they beamed out their lasers, even when one of the knights stumbled back into one and screamed in agony as it pulled itself out!
But while the knight seemed less than pleased as it blew off its red-hot armor, Chihiro grinned as she turned back around.

"Or maybe not! After all…"

Chihiro rushed over to the crystals under the cover of battle, then hopped on one crystal and pressed her glowing hands against its bright surface! With a wild grin she watched it glow even brighter than before, then latched her hands onto the sides of the crystal itself. Oh, she was going to have fun with this!

"FIRE BURNS METAL!"

Right as Chihiro said this, the crystal's bright laser turned to an even brighter stream of cyan flames, and the crystal itself became a makeshift flamethrower! Now she was in business! With her grip on the crystal tight, Chihiro planted her feet firm against the crystal's metal base and spun it all around the backyard!

Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster all screamed and jumped out of the way as the flames whipped their way through this undead backyard, but the knights weren't nearly as lucky! The flames seared into their armored bodies before they even got a chance to react, and all they could do was cry out in agony as the heat melted their armor and stuck them right in place, unable to move and forced to be still as… Well, statues.

Not that it was much of a concern for Chihiro! The power of holding a literal flamethrower in her own two hands had sent her into a new high as she spun around and cackled at the top her lungs. Not that could help it, she was having way too much fun spinning this thing around… But unfortunately, all fun times must come to an end, and hers concluded as the crystal grew so, so, unbearably hot she might as well have touched the sun!

"YOWCH!" Chihiro screeched as she jumped in the air, then floated down and blew off with her hands, "HOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOTHOT!"

Without Chihiro to power it, the crystal's flames slowly faded back into their regular laser form, while the crystal itself turned back to a cool, solid rock! Well, it was fun while it lasted… Chihiro paused as her hands finally stopped throbbing with heat, then she skipped up to the frozen armor statues and rapped a fist on one's chest!

The statue's arm twitched in response, but it didn't move any more than that! It was completely frozen and still!

"Looks like the coast's clear!" Chihiro shouted as she waved back to Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster.

Within a few minutes, the three of them crept out from their places of sanctuary to the sights of half-melted metal suits and the distinct scents of smoke and burning. But, they weren't concerned with that so much as they were concerned with getting out of here, it seemed! Hex had already floated off to the other side of the backyard, where an imposing locked gate that had way too many thorny brambles on top sat in their way. Man, whoever owned this place must have really liked their brambles…

"There's a crystal lock right here," Hex proclaimed as she tapped the rightmost side of the gate, where sure enough a tiny, kind of dirty-looking crystal sat firm within the wall, "And I have a feeling I know what the key is."

One by one Hex floated towards each of the crystals, then with a simple brush of her hand the crystals all turned themselves around and re-routed their lasers towards the crystal lock!

The gate itself didn't seem to budge at first, but finally it made a low rumble as it disappeared entirely into the ground below!

Everybody else gathered together and rushed through the gate, more than ready to face whatever trials would befall them, because surely there was something awful and terrible waiting for them on the other side of that gate!

Chihiro's own stomach tied itself in knots at the very thought of what could possibly be waiting for them. More of those goons? A really intensive maze that takes an eternity to get out of? A metaphorical war zone with traps and tricks every way you turned? Or perhaps…

"A wall full of gigantic blocks?" Chihiro remarked as the group came to a halt at the trial before them, "That's it?"

Loomed over them was a fence of ginormous cinder blocks which, despite the stains and cracks obtained with age, seemed incredibly firm. They were so tall and massive, they almost completely blocked off whatever was behind their walls! All that could be seen was a sliver of what seemed to be a tower's top...

But, that was hardly an issue when two of your party members had magical floating abilities and one had wings! Cynder flapped her wings and dashed up the side of the blocks as Hex cascaded into the air with a bird's grace, and Chihiro was quick to follow as she tapped her feet and jumped into the skies! Chihiro giggled as she soared through the air and gently cascaded down onto the blocks' top. Beside her, Cynder and Hex stretched their arms and legs, but…

They were still missing one! Just where was Ghost Roaster?

Chihiro's ears pricked up as the faint sounds of crashing and igniting flames crossed the skies, then poked her head down to get her answer! Back down at the very bottom of those blocks, Ghost Roaster kept transforming into his gigantic skull form as he tried to scale the blocks, but it was to no avail. Each and every time he tried, he kept falling back down to the cold, dead ground.

"What's taking you so long, Roaster?" Chihiro asked as she looked down over the blocks.

"Do I need to answer that?" Ghost Roaster asked as he gestured towards the gigantic blocks that blocked (pun completely intended) the way off.

Chihiro just smiled and rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, Ghosty, I'll give you a lift!"

So, she knelt down and hovered her hands above her shoes, ready to create some fancy suction-cup boots… But instead, her boot shifted down as a square of the block she stood on sunk into the block itself!

"Huh?"

Chihiro stepped back as the blocks all began to rumble around her, then winced as the block below her shook like an egg about to hatch. Just what was happening?

Hex and Cynder must have taken notice of the odd rumbling as well, for both of them immediately jumped off the blocks.

"Wait, where are you two going?" Chihiro asked as she turned around… Then froze as the ground slipped out from under her feet!

A peek at the ground underneath showed that the blocks had all come crashing down, and now all that was left was the fall!

Chihiro screamed as she started crashing down below while the ground grew closer at a dizzying pace, then frantically kicked her legs together in some kind of attempt to teleport away or hover down. But, it wasn't working! The thought of crashing and landing had taken up all the space in her mind! So, she continued frantically kicking, and on the bright side, it did work—she had teleported down! But, it only worked when she was inches away from making a crater in the earth, so she ended up faceplanting on the ground. Owch.

Chihiro grunted and spat bones out of her mouth, then a skeletal arm brushed against her and heaved her back to her feet.

"Watch where you're landing next time," Ghost Roaster scolded as he brushed dirt out of Chihiro's hair, "You could've crashed into me!"

Though his words were a bit cold, the concern that rang in Ghost Roaster's eyes was sincere enough. He was never the best at being honest about his feelings. So, Chihiro just smiled and gave him a thumbs up before the two of them joined up with Cynder and Hex on the courtyard the blocks formerly blocked off.

The courtyard itself was completely sparse, just dry ground and the occasional dead tumbleweed—no attractions, no decorations, no nothing! For a place that belonged to a noble family, you'd think it'd be a little fancier… Then again, that gigantic, spiraling stone tower that loomed over everything seemed fancy enough!

Chihiro hummed as she skipped over to the tower, but oddly enough there was no door! The only thing it held was a teleporter that, despite the very faint glow, faded color and occasional sparking seemed to work enough still.

"Teleporter in an ancient tower," Chihiro said as she hopped on the teleporter and tapped her feet, "Now where does it lead?"

Chihiro frowned as she tapped her foot a few more times. Was this thing broken? Chihiro leaned down as she tapped it for what was probably the fifth time, and in response the teleporter started sparking and glowing!

"Guess it just needed a little push!"

So, Chihiro beamed up at the ceiling as she was enveloped in a pillar of light and whisked away…

§

With a whoosh and a beam of magic, the light faded around Chihiro and dropped her off at the other side of a massive gate with intricate markings carved in the shape of ghosts, ghouls and all other sorts of undead creatures. In front of her laid a massive, black stone building with silver outlines around its bricks and a rotted wooden door. Fancy metal sculptures of armored knights with carefully crafted swords lined the walls around and brought to mind the image of guards protecting a castle, which… Wasn't too far off for this place, to be honest.

Wait, this must have been the inside of the citadel's gates! In fact, just behind her Chihiro could hear the faint echoes of T-Bone performing a stand-up comedy act to the utter glee of the armies as they burst into cackles from T-Bone's awful jokes. She had managed to get in! And thankfully, these gates were so fancy and detailed that you could barely see through them, so she was perfectly shielded from those armies, too! With her safety guaranteed, Chihiro skipped up to the castle doors, but her focus wasn't in getting in just yet. Rather, it drifted away to the many knight statues that pressed against the castle walls!

"Wow, they sure have a lot of statues here," Chihiro remarked as she waltzed up to one and lifted its visor to find nothing inside but darkness.

It seemed hollow and lifeless enough but still, after the incident last time, she couldn't help but want to double check. So, she hopped away from that one and moved to the next, then the one beside that… Soon enough she was hopping from armor suit to armor suit, just to be entirely safe! She was sure she had checked ten of the, well, twenty, thirty suits of armor? She lost count by now.

Chihiro frowned and rubbed her chin as she tried to recall just what number she was at when a whoosh and the faint, twinkling noises of falling light sounded behind her! Chihiro perked up and turned around, then beamed! Cynder had finally arrived, and she had Hex and Ghost Roaster close behind her—in fact, Chihiro was so happy to see them, she hardly paid any mind to the strange light that just barely flashed for minutes beside her!

"Hey Cynder!" Chihiro shouted as she waved towards Cynder, "I'm checking out these weird armor statues! These ones don't seem to be alive, I think…"—Chihiro frowned as the area around her grew darker—"Huh? Who turned out the lights?"

"CHIHIRO, BEHIND YOU!" Cynder shouted as she took to the skies and flew over.

Chihiro yipped and turned around, then… Oh no, looks like she missed one! Right above her, a large knight statue armed with a very hefty-looking sword loomed over her, its sword held tight above its head and fully ready to slice her in half!

Before it could, however, a large bolt of black lightning struck the armor suit right in its heart and fried it to the core! It shuddered and rattled from the lightning, then as the electricity faded it groaned and collapsed in a fried armor heap on the floor!

Cynder snarled and flew in front of Chihiro as more and more of the statues slowly stretched to life and grabbed their swords, but Chihiro wasn't one to stand by and watch when there's a fight to be had!

As the now-living knights rushed towards them with swords held high and speeds much faster than you'd expect a living armor suit to have, Chihiro created a sword of her own and jumped into the fray! They immediately swung at her, but while they were fast, Chihiro was much faster to parry them! The sound of heavy grunts and grinding metal echoed through the courtyard as Chihiro intercepted their blows and flung their swords back at them, and boy, was it an adrenaline rush! Chihiro could feel her whole body shake with joy!

As another knight tried to swing at her from behind, Chihiro summoned a second sword and blocked their blow mid-swing, then with another slash of her sword she blew the knight's blade out of its hands! The sword spiraled forward and wedged itself into the yard, then was set alight as black lightning shot down from above and seared its metal.

Right behind Chihiro, Cynder had taken to the skies and mowed down forced with lightning so intense it was more like thunder, and from the safety of a bone barrier Hex had taken to shooting off eldritch orbs that rained from the skies like meteors!

The only one who wasn't fighting was Ghost Roaster, who had instead taken to dashing across the courtyard and phasing between invisibility and visibility as he tried to dodge guards. Well, guess he wasn't exactly the most equipped ghoul for a fight like this.

But either way, seeing all this fighting got Chihiro even more fired up! With a smile so wide it stretched across her face, Chihiro dashed up towards several knights that had raised their swords and got ready to strike… Before she could hit them, though, they hit the ground instead and sent an intense shockwave through the whole courtyard! Chihiro was shaken to the bone as she flew back while her swords dissipated back into magic sparkles, then finally she crashed on the ground and grunted.

She coughed a bit as she pulled herself off the ground, but a glance aside showed she wasn't the only one who was rattled to the bone! Cynder had fallen from the skies and made a dragon-sized dent in the front yard, and Hex herself shuddered as she laid on the cold, dead earth.

But worst off yet was Ghost Roaster, who had been shaken back into visibility and fell on his back as the knights who were chasing him closed in! He grunted as he tried to pull himself off the ground and glared down the armor. Just what was he going to do?

"You know what they say," Ghost Roaster rumbled as he lifted up the ball and chain that made up his feet and swung it around, "No chain, no gain!"

Ghost Roaster slung his ball and chain towards the knights, who all jumped back in some attempt to dodge. However, they weren't his targets—their swords were! Ghost Roaster's ball and chain had wrapped around the swords and yanked them back at him… And nearly skewered himself in the eye if not for his quick dodging, but whatever.

The knights in response all froze and looked down at their noticeably barren hands, now completely distracted. Chihiro had the perfect chance, and she was going to take it!

So, she whipped up a cleaver out of magic and let out a fierce yell as she bolted towards the knights! By the time they realized she was coming, they were too late! She had leaped above them, turned around her cleaver and smashed its blade against them like it was a hammer! Chihiro smirked as she lifted up the cleaver and let it dissolve into sparkles, then snuck a peek at the knights, who had been flattened like pancakes!

A quick gaze around the rest of the yard showed that those knights' comrades weren't much better off, either—the other knights had all been fried, blasted to bits, or even severed in half! The yard was a mess now, but at least it was danger free!

"Guess that's our cue to move on!" Chihiro chirped as she skipped up to the gates and pushed them open.

Thankfully the gates themselves were light enough that a simple press flung them open just in time for Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster to join Chihiro… But unfortunately, it seemed like whatever was in store for them wasn't nearly as simple!

They had been greeted by a room made of worn, but still sturdy cobblestone accentuated with purple and black ghastly decorations, from tattered curtains to cracked marble statues and withered vines with black leaves. It didn't seem like there was any sort of door around, either. All it held was a wall with some kind of lock puzzle on it and a gently-turning whirlpool that glowed with a suspiciously milky light.

"Wait, why's there a whirlpool here?" Chihiro asked as she walked up the whirlpool and frowned, "I don't know if the undead like to swim…"

Chihiro's eyes then traveled to the side of the whirlpool, where a worn, half-rotted wooden sign stood tall next to the pool. Despite the rot, the writing on it stood out clear enough for her to make out some kind of message.

"'Entrance to the Box Goblin Swamp,'" Chihiro read as she tilted her head, then shook it and stood tall, "Well, guess I found our next stop!"

Chihiro dipped her feet in and shuddered from the bone-chilling cold that rushed through her body, but that was how she always felt when jumping in the water! She just had to wade through and it would get warmer as she went, right? So, she dove in… But despite being in a whirlpool, the water didn't drench her clothes at all! It was more like wading through air! Well, if the air was super thick and only got colder and colder the further in she went. Hey wait, why was her amulet's glow starting to fade?

Chihiro shuddered, then finally the cold got so unbearable that she tried to wade her way out, but it only got more intense the further she pushed against the current! It was like the thing was trying to pull her back in!

"Chihiro!" Cynder exclaimed as she flew over and yanked Chihiro out of the whirlpool at last, "What're you doing? Now's no time for a swim!"

Chihiro gasped as Cynder dropped her off on solid ground, then she sighed and pulled herself back to her feet. For some reason, that chill had taken a bit more out of her than the usual cold did, as it had shaken her bones and made her body ache for some kind of rest.

"Well, that sign said this was the way to some swamp," Chihiro explained as she pointed to the sign beside them, though her eyes were still fixed on the whirlpool, "But it was so cold I could barely stay in there."

Cynder dipped a paw into the whirlpool, then lifted it up and frowned.

"What're you talking about? This water's perfectly fine!"

Chihiro just raised an eyebrow at Cynder, then jolted slightly as Hex floated up beside her. Geez, Hex was always so quiet it was like seeing a ghost! But, Hex didn't seem to notice Chihiro's shock as she knelt down and swirled a hand in the whirlpool.

"Cynder's right. The water's tepid, but not freezing by any means," Hex remarked as she lifted herself to full height and made that same pensive frown she always made when she was thinking, "Perhaps this is a pool that only the undead can enter…"

Well, that would explain why it was messing with the amulet. But, how was Chihiro supposed to get past this place now? Was there a hidden passage or something? Then again, that lock puzzle did seem pretty suspicious…

"You guys take the shortcut!" Chihiro said as she skipped over to the lock puzzle and gripped it tight, "I'll see if I can't get this thing working!"

Hex and Ghost Roaster dove into the whirlpool with no hesitation and quickly disappeared down the eye of its storm… But oddly enough, Cynder just flew up to Chihiro and sat down next to her.

"You're not going, Cynder?" Chihiro asked as she turned the puzzle this way and that.

"I'm not particularly fond of swimming," Cynder remarked as she flicked her tail.

"Well don't worry, I'll be done with this thing in a split-second!"

Chihiro shrugged, then went back to twisting and turning the puzzle before she paused to peer into its keyhole. Surely, those strange glowy orbs that rested inside among the puzzle's inner tiles were what she needed to hit if she wanted to unlock this things and pass, but… It seemed like she kept missing them no matter where she turned!

"A little to the left…"

Chihiro tilted the lock puzzle left and frowned as a clunk sounded from within the lock puzzle itself.

"Then a bit to the right…"

With a spin of the puzzle's box, the lock puzzle swerved right.

"Now, just bounce it a little and…"

Chihiro jiggled the puzzle up and down and peered inside… But not a single one of those strange glowy orbs had been touched! Chihiro's teeth clenched while an unholy groan rumbled in her throat, a groan that only grew more intense as the imp inside started laughing at her for failing! What business did it have laughing at her problem solving its stupid puzzle? It's not like it was doing any solving anytime soon!

Chihiro let out another scream as she banged her head against the lock puzzle and punched it a few times, but nonetheless another peek in the keyhole showed she was no further than before! With a sigh, she let go of the lock puzzle and slunk against the wall.

"Are you done with that thing yet?" Cynder asked as her tail drifted against the stone.

"You try it," Chihiro groaned, "I'm no good with these things."

While Chihiro repeatedly bonked her head against the stone wall, Cynder flew up to the lock puzzle, then grabbed its sides and peered in the lockhole… But instead of solving it, she just winced and immediately let go.

"You know what?" Cynder said as she flew over to the whirlpool, "I think I might swim there after all."

And just like that, Cynder dove headfirst into the whirlpool and disappeared down its waters! Well, looks like Chihiro was on her own now.

"Safe travels," Chihiro moaned as she staggered back up and gave the lock puzzle another pain look, "Something tells me this is gonna take a while…"

§

"You know," Hex remarked, her voice whisperlike as ever while she used a magical towel to dry herself off, "I wonder when Chihiro and Cynder will get back. It seems like it's taking them a while to arrive…"

Ghost Roaster shrugged and toyed with his ball and chain. He opened his mouth as if he was saying something, but the moment he spoke his words were drowned out by the sound of rushing water!

"Ugh…" Cynder groaned as she popped out of the whirlpool and shook herself off, "Next time I'm just flying."

"There you are, Cynder!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as he trudged over to Cynder, "What took you?"

"Chihiro trying to solve a lock puzzle." Cynder shook the last of the water off her body and groaned, "She said she'd finish it in a split-second… About a half-hour ago."

Ghost Roaster sighed and looked back to the still-standing gate. "Think she's gonna figure it out?"

"I doubt it—"

Before Cynder could finish, however, a mighty CRASH rumbled through the area as the gate smashed open and crumbled to bits! The sheer volume of the impact caused a hefty dust cloud to set over the area and not only make everyone break into hacking fits, but completely clouded their vision as well! However, beyond those massive dust clouds, one could just barely make out a cyan glow from the dusty fog…

"Heh, sorry about that, guys!" Chihiro chuckled as the dust faded and unveiled her as she stood tall, a giant magical fist close by her side, "I, well, I got a little impatient."

Chihiro frowned, then cast her gaze ahead and placed both hands on her hips. "And I don't know about you guys, but that doesn't really look like a box goblin swamp to me. Or any kind of swamp, really."

And Chihiro's observation was quite right. There before them lied not the trademark murky waters and greenery of a swamp, but the cold, metallic halls of a walkway filled with swinging axes that hacked away till eternity! Despite the rusty patches on them, they still seemed incredibly sharp and perfectly capable of cleaving things right in half… Guess they weren't walking, then.

But, it was a good thing they had other means of travel! With a tap of her heels, Chihiro's boots sprouted wings right as she leaped off the ground. Her leap took her on top of one of the swinging axes, then she sighed as she sat down and looked over the path before them.

"Now, if I jump over that one…" Chihiro whispered as she pointed a finger towards the next one across, "And that one, then that one, and, and… And… That…"—Chihiro groaned as she held her head—"Can't these axes swing a little less fast? I'm trying to plan here!"

But, the axes ignored her pleas and continued swinging at the same rhythm they had done for what was surely the past few centuries. And worse yet, it was making Chihiro dizzy! Chihiro groaned and laid her back down against the ax as her stomach churned like the ocean. The cold of its surface did make her feel a little better, but not by much… Maybe she should hurry up and get going. Chihiro nudged herself over as she tried to stand up, but the moment she did she lost her balance and collapsed on the floor instead!

"OOF!"

Chihiro shook her head as she lifted her face off the cold, dusty, but thankfully motionless stone floors. Guess she wasn't as clearheaded as she thought she was.

"Dang, talk about lucky!" Chihiro remarked as she lifted up her head, "If I was any second later, I'd be chopped—"—Chihiro yelped and ducked under as another ax just narrowly swung over her head—"NEVERMIND!"

So, Chihiro pressed her belly flat against the cold floors and crawled her way along, all while the hallway's sound of clashing axes rang in her ears and served as a reminder of what awaited her should she lift her head. Ugh, but on the other hand all this crawling was giving her a nasty crick in the neck! And the axes were giving her a headache, too… Who designed this place, anyways? She was gonna have a word with them if she could!

Chihiro grunted as she planted her face against the floor, then just poked her head up just slightly as the sound of flapping echoed above. Was that?…

Sure enough, Cynder flew overhead with not a care in the wall! She was quickly followed by a levitating Hex and Ghost Roaster, who charged along in his giant skull form.

Wait, what was Chihiro doing just standing around here and watching them go? She'd get left behind at this rate! Chihiro rubbed her hands and watched as they glowed a bright blue, then smiled as she rolled over and pressed her hands against her chest. With her destination set clear in her mind, Chihiro directed her magic throughout her body and was enveloped in a bright blue glow!

Chihiro disappeared with the light, then popped out at what she presumed was the end of the hallway.

All around her, the cold gray stone of the halls was traded off for a room make of stark, colder blue stone covered in cobwebs and those odd knight statues, and the sheer cold of the entire room sent chills down her spine… Wait, knight statues?

Chihiro winced, then crept up to one and tapped it on the helmet. The tension was thick as she watched as it… Stood there and did absolutely nothing!

"Phew! Guess these are just normal old knights!" Chihiro sighed as she turned around and looked down the halls, "Guess all I've gotta do now is wait for—"—Chihiro frowned as a soft, buzzing noise rang in her ears—"Huh?"

Chihiro winced, then bit her lip as she turned her gaze back to the knight statues behind her... Wait, something was wrong here. Those knight statues, she was sure they weren't shaking before, and they definitely weren't glowing bright purple!

"Wait, when did they start—"

Before Chihiro could finish, however, an intense shock rumbled her entire body! Chihiro jittered and shook down her frazzled hair, then grimaced as the sound of clanking metal approached her. She had a bad feeling she knew what that was… Chihiro gulped, then reluctantly turned around right as the knight statue she tapped rushed towards her with sword in hand!

"Ugh, delayed responses," Chihiro groaned, "My least favorite thing in a fight!"

Chihiro snarled as she summoned a magical flame and got ready to shoot… Then released her flame and tensed, because something felt off here! Just above her, the ceiling panels shuddered while weird, squeaky echoed from the few cracks in the stone… But why? Chihiro looked up, then screamed and jumped away as a crashing waterfall of spiders poured down below!

The spiders twitched and made angry spider noises as they turned to Chihiro, their eyes even beadier and angrier than normal spider eyes!

"Hey, I didn't do this!" Chihiro exclaimed as she gestured towards the knight, "It was that dude!"

But, the spiders didn't want to listen! Instead, they all flung themselves at Chihiro with wide mouths and very sharp teeth that Chihiro was half-certain spiders definitely shouldn't have!

"So that's how you wanna play, huh?" Chihiro scoffed as she surrounded her fists with large hand cannons, "Just warning you, I've got a couple tricks up my sleeve too!"

Chihiro punched the air, and in response her hand cannons sent magic spheres shooting all across the room! These magic spheres were quick to blast the spiders away, but unfortunately those were only maybe a hundred or so of what seemed like several thousand spiders! Chihiro jumped back and punched more, then gasped and swept away as the knight swung at her.

The knight, however, wasn't one to give up! Instead, it turned back to her and kept swinging! But, Chihiro probably wouldn't be alive right now if she wasn't fighting back either! So, she kept ducking and dodging every blow it swung from its mighty sword. Left, right, up, down, spider—hey, wait a second! Chihiro hissed and blasted away the spiders that had lunged at her, then shrieked as she narrowly dodged yet another slash from the knight.

"Geez, keeping track of so many enemies is tough!"

Chihiro grunted as she tried to move forward, but for some reason her feet were completely stuck to the ground! Chihiro winced as she struggled against her bonds, then looked down and hissed. Apparently, in her brief moment of hesitation, the spiders must have used their silk to stick her to the ground! Her boots were completely bound with sticky spider silk! Chihiro grimaced as she struggled and stretched forward in some attempt to break free, but she was completely stuck! No matter what she did, she couldn't move her feet from that position.

And worse yet, the knight had realized this at well! It crept back up to her, all while Chihiro could only watched with wide, transfixed eyes. That is, until she shook her head and got ready to teleport! Chihiro clasped her hands against her chest and watched as they charged with magic, but by the time she had started it was too late! The knight had raised its sword and got ready to slash…

But before it could, some purplish, shadowy streak rammed into it and sent it barreling down! Wait, Chihiro knew that purplish, shadowy streak!

"Cynder!" Chihiro called as the shadow manifested back into Cynder's physical form.

Cynder, however, just urged out some ghosts from under her wing and nudged them towards where Chihiro stood! The ghosts made some friendly chirps, then flew around Chihiro's boots and slowly began unraveling the spider silk like it was nothing more than a thin thread.

The knight grabbed its sword off the ground, shook a few spiders off of it then lurched towards Cynder with full intentions of striking…

"COMING THROUGH!"

… Well, it would've, if a certain ghastly green skull didn't force it back on the ground! As Ghost Roaster returned back to his original form in a flash of green flames, Hex teleported right behind him and readied a skull orb.

"I'll teach you why you should fear the dark," Hex hissed as her orb grew larger and its inner skull grew more detailed, all fancy markings and shining eyes and all—whatever attack came from it would surely be a doozy!

And the knight must have realized this, before it immediately snatched its sword and slammed its blade against the ground! The sword resounded with a gong-like clang that seemingly did nothing a first other than stun everyone around… Until the ceiling opened up and dropped several more knight statues and some skeletal archers as well!

The newly-arrived knights gripped their swords tight as they rushed towards Cynder, Hex, Ghost Roaster and Chihiro at incredibly fast speeds for such bulky suits of armor, but Cynder was quick to match their pace! Cynder dashed forward and spun several of the knights around, then while they reeled she opened her mouth and shot them down with a blast of black lightning! As the knights shook and shuddered, she flapped her wings and got ready to strike… Then froze and swooped away as a rain of skeletal arrows rained down behind her!

It seemed like now the archers wanted to play, too! They loaded their arrows in an instant and shot them off just as quickly, like a rain of judgment from above.

Hex gasped and dodged this way and that as the arrows rained down, then floated back as a conglomerate of spiders formed and pounced at her! Before the spiders could collect and strike again, Hex shot them down with blasts of eldritch orbs, then froze and teleported away as more arrows rained down!

Unfortunately, her teleport had lead her right into the grasp of another knight! Hex floated away as the knight tried to slash her down, but before she teleported away from it, the knight itself got mowed down by Ghost Roaster! While the knight fell to the floor, Ghost Roaster chomped it in half and spat its upper half out, then grimaced as he returned back to normal and pulled metal bits from his bony fangs.

"Ugh, I never liked the taste of metal," Ghost Roaster groaned as he yanked out a particularly large chunk of metal, "So sour…"

However, while he was busy cleaning his teeth, he failed to notice an archer fix its burning eyes on him and shoot an arrow directly at his head!

"YOWCH!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as the arrow bounced off his head. He snarled as he turned around and lifted the arrow from the floor, then his snarl grew wider as the archer snickered. "Hey, watch where you're shooting those things, you numbskull!"

Ghost Roaster shook a skeletal fist at the archer, but in response the archer only rolled their eyes and shot more arrows straight at him!

As Ghost Roaster ducked and covered, Chihiro jumped out the way of the arrow blast, then turned around and teleported away as more arrows shot towards her! But, even that wasn't enough to get sanctum, as soon after she fell down and rolled under another wave of arrows! It was like wherever she turned, those stupid arrows were soon to follow!

"That's it," Chihiro proclaimed as she jumped to her feet and snarled then held her hands high, "I've had enough!"

The shimmer of magic that glowed around her hands soon morphed into a magical bow and arrow set… Or rather, bow and sword set, for the ammunition was none other than sharp swords! Chihiro held her bow high, then with a quick slip of her fingers her sword arrows shot like rockets!

"Have a taste of your own medicine for once!"

Unfortunately, it was in that moment that Chihiro Hatsuki realized her aim absolutely sucked, for instead of hitting the archers, those arrows ricocheted around the area like bullets!

Cynder and Hex dove for cover behind several of the knights as Chihiro's swords plunged into the knights' armor bodies, but Ghost Roaster wasn't so lucky! Before he could escape, the blunt side of a sword's blade slapped him in the back and knocked him down!

"Sorry guys!" Chihiro exclaimed as she watched everyone duck for cover, "I—YIKES!"—Chihiro slid out the way of one particularly large sword and breathed a sigh of relief—"Don't really work with bows all that—"

Once again Chihiro was cut short as she ducked yet another one of her own swords… But as she looked up, her eyes drifted back to the archers, who had completely forgone any sort of combat in favor of taking cover! She had an opening! Chihiro smiled, then teleported behind two of the archers and conked their heads together! While they fell unconscious, Chihiro did the same to the other pair that laid down, then grabbed them all by the collar bones and winked.

"I'll take care'a these guys!" Was the last thing she said before she teleported away!

In a shimmer of light, Chihiro arrived on top of the swinging axes, then leaped forward and teleported away! She grunted as her teleport landed her on another ax, ducked as a third ax swung from the heavens, then leaped again and teleported back to the beginning of the halls.

As her eyes hit the whirlpool, a mischievous grin formed on Chihiro's face while she strode over and stuffed all the archers inside!

The archers swirled further and further in as the whirlpool made a sound akin to the of a clogged drain, but it still didn't feel like enough… So, Chihiro summoned a gigantic, magical cork and stuffed it into the whirlpool!

"Have a nice swim!" Chihiro chirped as the whirlpool's waters stilled. Then with a frown, she turned her attention back to the ruined wall she had busted out of. "And just to be sure they don't come back…"

Chihiro snapped her fingers, then watched as the ruined bits of the wall flew up and stuck themselves back inside! Once they were all solidified, she snapped her fingers once again and magically sealed the various cracks in the wall. It was almost good as new!

And with those archers taken care of, Chihiro's job here was done.

So, she teleported back to the ax-filled halls, then teleported from ax to ax until she had returned back to the sight of their battlefield.

While she was gone, the fighting had resumed, and this time, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster had the upper hand! The spiders fled the scene as Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster wiped out the knights one by one, the knights' hollow screams the only thing heard as they all fell to the floor… Well, save for one knight who was running around in a panicked circle, completely oblivious to the battle around.

Chihiro chuckled a very mischievous chuckle as she was enveloped in blue. Looks like she could have a little fun! In a flash, she was cocooned in light and teleported away!

"BOO!" Chihiro exclaimed as she reappeared right in front of the knight.

The knight screamed a shrill, very unknightly scream, then stumbled back and fainted onto the floor! The loud clatter of its armor echoed around the room, but after that… Silence. Seemed as though this was their cue to move on!

With a wave of Chihiro's hand, a sphere of aqua light bounced from her palm and zoomed down the halls ahead, while Chihiro just giggled and ducked under a spiderweb as she made chase. Even though the halls were dark and kind of eerie with all their spiderwebs and broken portraits, she hardly noticed as she pursued her sphere towards a light at the end of the tunnel… Er, hall, but that hardly mattered.

But soon enough, even that eerie darkness made way for stark, cold light as she finally bounded through the hallway!

"Yeah, that's definitely a swamp!" Chihiro proclaimed as she left the halls.

Sure enough, as the gate closed behind them, Chihiro found herself in what could only be a swamp with all its murky, muddy waters and rotting greenery! But suspiciously, there was a stunning lack of box goblins… At least, she thought there was. Chihiro didn't exactly know what a box goblin was, but she was sure she'd recognize it if she saw it.

"There's something strange about this swamp," Hex remarked as she floated out of the hall's exit and looked around, "Where are all the box goblins?"

"Maybe they all died?" Cynder suggested with a shrug as she pulled cobwebs off of her head "I mean, it has been a while."

"Box goblins don't just die, Cynder!" Ghost Roaster retorted as he flicked a spider from his skull, "Those things are as stubborn as weeds!

Chihiro shrugged and blocked out their conversation as she waltzed down the hallway… Then jumped back and screamed as some gigantic, green box with wide eyes and a creepily wide smile popped out of nowhere in seconds and resided just as quickly.

"Huh?" Chihiro uttered. Did she just imagine it?

Chihiro frowned, then peered down to find a stone, round switch underneath her foot. Chihiro raised an eyebrow as she pressed the switch, then looked up to find those weird green boxes had disappeared again! She lifted her foot from the switch, and once again they reappeared from the depths. She did a third time, then a fourth and fifth just to be sure… Then finally she made a sagely nod and crossed her arms.

"I see," Chihiro said as she held her hands out and made a weight out of magic, "These guys just have a switch!"

So, Chihiro dropped the weight onto the switch and watched as those green boxes receded before she raced along the maze. The watery mud below her feet splashed against the rotten flora as Chihiro dashed through the maze… And judging by the shout of surprise she heard behind her, plants weren't the only thing it splashed!

"Watch where you're splashing around, Chihiro!" Cynder snarled as she flew up behind Chihiro and wiped mud off of her face, "Some of us are flying here!"

Chihiro turned around, then giggled as she scratched the back of her head.

"Sorry about that, Cyn!" Chihiro chuckled as she raised a finger and walked backwards, "But hey, I hear that mud masks are really good for your skin! Er, I guess scales in your caseeeEEEEEEEEE!"

Chihiro's foot slipped out underneath her, and before she even knew it she had slipped backwards and collapsed right into the mud with a large splash! As muddy water rained down all around her, Chihiro groaned and staggered up as she looked down at her clothes, which were now drenched in gross, wet mud. Ugh, she hated the feeling of wet clothes, so overwhelming and gross…

But Cynder seemed to find it a little funny as she placed her front paws over her muzzle and tried her hardest to stifle a chuckle—though it wasn't exactly working, given that Chihiro could hear her just fine.

So, Chihiro just knelt down and splashed the mud right back at Cynder! Not much, just a little splash to get her attention… But it seemed that either way, Cynder wasn't entirely pleased as the mud splashed her face! Her blue ice eyes went tiny the mud hit her cheek, then they narrowed as she turned around and dropped down to the muddy floors!

"Alright, if that's how you want to play," Cynder cried as she whipped her tail around and shot a wave of mud back at Chihiro, "Then take this!"

Chihiro gasped, then spun back around and dodged the mud right before it could slap her! As the mud swam by her, Chihiro kicked up a mud wave of her own with a stomp and tossed it at Cynder with a magic blow!

However, Cynder jumped out of the way just in time, and instead of slamming into her… It slammed into Ghost Roaster instead! And he had come up so suddenly, he didn't even get a chance to react before it completely drenched him!

Chihiro gasped and covered her mouth with her hands as the mud poured down Ghost Roaster, and even Cynder, cold as she was, was shocked speechless as she stepped back.

Ghost Roaster, meanwhile, growled as he wiped the mud from his very tired face, his mouth drawn into a snarl and his eyes narrowed to match… Then he swung his chain aside and submerged them in a tidal wave of muddy water!

"Try that for size," Ghost Roaster cried!

The muddy water drenched Chihiro to the bone so quickly that she could only stand there and blink, but despite being soaked Chihiro didn't feel bad at all! In fact, all she could do was laughed as she knelt down, swept the mud from the ground and balled it up!

"How about you have a taste of your own medicine?" Chihiro cried as she slung her mudballs at Ghost Roaster, "Or should I say… Mudicine?"

The mudball slapped Ghost Roaster right in the face, but he just shook it off and smirked. "I don't know what's worse, the mud or your wordplay!"

Chihiro cackled and she and Ghost Roaster slung mud back and forth at each other, and even Cynder jumped into the fray once more as she slapped them both with tidal waves of muddy water! For a moment, Chihiro had completely forgotten about her cares, and all she had to worry about was winning this battle!…

"My, my, I suppose you two aren't as above it all as you act."

That is, until Hex floated up and raised an eyebrow as she examined the battle.

Ghost Roaster and Cynder both gasped, eyes wide like they had been caught stealing something, then they both huffed as they looked away.

"You saw nothing!" Ghost Roaster insisted as he crossed his bony arms.

Cynder was too flustered to say anything beyond a couple of indistinct murmurs and grumbles, but the way she glared back at Hex showed that she carried Ghost Roaster's sentiment.

Hex, however, just sighed and shook her head in a bit more lighthearted a fashion than she usually did, then with a snap of her fingers everyone was clean and dry once more!

Chihiro grinned as her clothes went from cold and muddy to soft and warm like they had just come out of the dryer, then paused for a moment as she buried her face in her warm, fuzzy sleeve. Just the feeling was so good, she could linger on it forever!

"Now come along, we still have an Eternal Source to find," Hex said as she passed by Chihiro.

Chihiro sighed, then shook her head and bit her lip as she followed Hex around the corner. Though her little mud fight had lightened the burden in her heart some, it came crashing back as the thought of the Eternal Undead Source and… Kaos entered her mind once more. The very thought of potentially seeing his face once again sent chills down her spine and made her legs quiver as she followed Hex around the corner. Was she really ready for this?

Well, not that she had to worry that much—if Kaos or his minions hadn't shown his ugly mug anywhere before now, then surely he hadn't even arrived yet! She didn't have to worry... Well, that was what Chihiro told herself, but even that felt like an empty reassurance. Her stomach still twisted itself in knots just thinking about being here and getting the Eternal Undead Source, so she shook her head and turned to her front.

Just ahead, the muddy swamps and rotted nature had morphed into a stone gateway that lead into fancy but dusty and old-looking marble halls that seemingly lacked any decoration save for the fancy purple curtains of the doorways at the end of their hall. Guess this was their next stop.

So, Chihiro shook her head and hopped onto the stairs, then hung her head as she trailed into the halls…

"Mua ha ha!"

Wait, was that Kaos's voice she heard just now? Chihiro whipped around, but she didn't see him behind her at all—all she saw was Cynder and Ghost Roaster as they gave her weird looks.

"Something up, Chihiro?" Cynder asked as she raised an eyebrow at Chihiro, "You're looking at us weird."

Chihiro, however, just bit her lip as she shook her head.

"No, it, it's nothing," Chihiro whispered as she hung her head and trudged into the halls, "Don, don't worry about me."

As she trailed into the hallway, Chihiro clenched her teeth and vest tight. Just when she thought she had forgotten about Kaos, he wormed his way back into her mind and freaked her out again! But no matter what, she couldn't let any of them know she was worried about Kaos.

After all, she was sure that he was lurking around somewhere around here, ready to strike at the worst possible moment and take them all down! And if even she wasn't sure she'd be able to protect them from Kaos's powers in spite of everything she had trained for till now, in spite if everything she had done for this very moment... Then who could?

§

Chihiro stopped and smiled as she glazed over the various paintings hung across the walls of the hallway they now strode in. They all ranged in style and details, from intricate masterpieces not unlike Renaissance paintings she had seen in her history books to the more hieroglyphic-esque abstract pieces, but all of them resonated with some kind of ancient magic. From portraits of famous undead people to replications of important historical events, it all felt like she had stepped into another world!

However, the one that caught her attention the most was the one she stood before at the moment, one that also was the sole portrait of what appeared to be living beings as opposed to the undead's ranks.

On it, several humanoid figures fought alongside giant creatures and beasts in what appeared to be a fierce battle with several equally-gigantic robots with red and blue metals adorned with fancy golden markings. A tan-skinned man with black hair and brown eyes who donned robes that vaguely reminded her of a king's clothes lead the charge alongside a giant whale with barnacle-covered arms who wielded a gigantic anchor like a flail. However, they weren't without opposition, as they were countered by a kingly-looking robot who wielded a giant glowing fist.

Beside them was a paler-skinned woman with white hair and pink eyes dressed in something that vaguely reminded Chihiro of an intricate kimono, surrounded by a rosy glow as she levitated and healed the injuries of a large tree ent.

At the back of the group, a dark-skinned man who had black hair striped with streaks of light blue shot energy beams at a slightly smaller enemy robot, while a woman with skin dark as night and purple hair stood on the shoulder of an… Elf… Genie… Person, their arm outstretched as if they were ordering attack.

"Wow," was Chihiro's only comment as she brushed her fingers against the painting, oblivious to the dusty residue it left behind, "Sure would be cool to meet these guys."

Chihiro beamed as she drank in the painting's beauty, then turned around that Hex, Cynder and Ghost Roaster had left her in the paintings' dust!

"Hey, wait for me!"

Chihiro raced down the halls and back to them, only to get caught up in another painting's beauty instead and completely forget about Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster.

But, could anybody really blame her? These paintings were so cool and lifelike, it almost felt like she was right there a time long past the time she lived in right now, ready to make history… She just had to absorb the entire thing! Chihiro giggled as she hopped towards a painting of a man wearing a ferocious looking mask not that far from where Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster currently stood, then turned her eyes aside as Hex shuddered.

"You alright, Hex?" Chihiro asked as she laid a hand on Hex's shoulder, only for Hex to gently lift her hand away.

"I'm fine, Chihiro," Hex whispered as she stretched back up and cast a cold gaze on the halls down below, "There was a spike in Undead energy just now, we have to be close!"

Chihiro's eyes lit up the moment those words hit her ears! Finally, they could get the Eternal Undead Source and get this over with! She wanted to jump up and cheer with glee… But before she could, a wave of dizziness washed over her and caused her to lean against the nearby wall. She made another soft groan as her head started to go fuzzy, but quickly shook it off as she caught sight of Hex's worried look.

"I, I'm fine, don't worry about me!" Chihiro insisted as she just barely took notice of a strange light below her chin, "Let's just worry about getting the Undead Source!"

"It's not that, Chihiro." Hex floated closer to Chihiro and lifted up her amulet, which now flashed with a faint white light, "Your amulet's spell needs to be recharged. Give me a moment."

Huh, Chihiro had gotten so caught up in the mission that she forgot about her amulet! Guess that would explain why she felt so dizzy all of a sudden. So, Chihiro just sat cross-legged and watched as Hex wrapped her hands around Chihiro's amulet.

Though Hex was perfectly silent, the twitch of her fingers as they sparkled with magic showed she was clearly hard at magical work. Her focus was so intense yet so subtle that it was almost enchanting. Chihiro almost couldn't look away!

Well, almost. While Chihiro watched Hex work away, a loud crash and cursing caught her ears! But from what? Surely they were the only ones here... Right? Whatever it was, it was quickly drowned out by skittering feet feet and chattering—it almost sounded like, spiders, Chihiro wanted to say? But, not just two of three, it was more like an entire army!

"Say, what's that noise?" Chihiro whispered as she turned around, then bit back a scream as she stumbled backwards!

There down the halls was none other than a gigantic black spider with red and green markings, with a large sore on its head and an army of what seemed like at least a thousand, much smaller spiders behind it!

"A gargantula!" Ghost Roaster cried as he drew back, "At a time like this?"

Had something woken the spiders up? Well, whatever reason they were coming here, those spiders were ready to kill! They hissed as they swarmed past Cynder and Ghost Roaster, their eyes all fixed on Hex and Chihiro!

Hex gasped as she lifted her hands from Chihiro's amulet and got ready to fire, but before she could, she stopped short as she heard Chihiro groan and fall down. Though Hex's eyes were completely blank, they clearly dashed between Chihiro and the oncoming spiders, as if she wasn't entirely sure which ones she should take on. However, she didn't have much time to hesitate, because the gargantula dashed forward and snapped right at her!

Hex thrust herself out of its way just in time, but the gargantula wasn't going to give up there! It kept snapping and biting towards Hex at every given opportunity, and though Hex kept dodging it seemed they both knew she couldn't keep it up forever.

And unfortunately, Chihiro wasn't in any better position! Though she kept trying to blast away the smaller spiders that had swarmed, she strained and whimpered with every shot, as if every blast of magic she shot sapped her own life force! And given how her amulet's glow continued to dull, for all she knew that was probably the case. As she shot out one last magic blast, she only collapsed and grunted as she held her racing heart.

"Chihiro!" Hex called as she dodged another blow from the gargantula. Hex tried to rush to Chihiro's side, but before she could, the gargantula skittered in front of her and roared!

Its cry was so mighty, Hex herself was blown straight into ones of the walls! The painting above her rattled as she slunk down and cringed, while Hex herself tried her best to force herself up. Unfortunately, she didn't do it time, because the gargantula immediately rushed in front of her and widened its jaws.

"This should give you a jolt!" Cynder cried as she rushed out from the shadows and slammed right into the gargantula's side!

The gargantula wailed as it stumbled back, but it was quick to regain its footing as it roared and chased after Cynder! Cynder, however, just snarled as she dashed further and further down the hall… But before she left, she looked back towards Hex and nodded.

Hex understood Cynder's signal well, as she immediately teleported over to where Chihiro was and dashed away the spiders that had surrounded Chihiro with a flick of a skull-fueled orb!

"Chihiro, are you alright?" Hex asked as she propped up and shuddered Chihiro, then winced as she caught sight of the amulet's fading glow.

Her lips pursed, Hex immediately clasped the amulet and went back to spellcasting once more. The amulet glowed and glimmered as Hex silently cast her spell, an almost peaceful scene compared to what was going on a few steps below!

Chihiro forced a smile as her body started to ache a little less, she turned her gaze aside to where the spider army waged their war.

With the gargantula safely out of Chihiro and Hex's way, Cynder and Ghost Roaster had gone all out! Lightning black as night rained down from above as Cynder flew over the spiders and shocked them, then while they crackled with lightning Ghost Roaster zipped every which way in his giant skull form and splatted them against the walls! But, unfortunately there were a lot of spiders, and not even Cynder could get every one! A few of the larger ones had dashed their way through her blitz, and their beady eyes were set as they ran towards Hex and Chihiro!

"Not on my watch you don't!" Cynder proclaimed as she swooped in front of them and got ready to strike, only for a large spider to ram into her before she could charge!

Cynder shouted out as she was flung to the window, but before she could get up the smaller spiders swarmed around her in a flurry of creepy-crawly legs and dust!

"Hey, stop! Quit crawling on me!" Cynder flailed all about as she tried to swipe away the spiders with such force that it kicked up even more dust, "What do you creepy things think you're—"

Cynder froze as the dust settled and revealed that those spiders had stuck her to the wall with bona-fide spider silk! And try as she might, no amount of struggling on Cynder's end could free her! All she could do was grunt and squirm as she tried to free herself.

"Dang, these guys really don't mess around…" Cynder gasped as she saw the spiders skitter back down the hall and tried to shake a fist at them, though she was unable ultimately because of current predicament, "Hey, get back here and face me like a—"

Cynder just faltered off and snarled as the spiders merrily scurried away. They hadn't hear her at all!

"Ghost Roaster! I've got a big problem over here!"

"Not right now, Cynder!" Ghost Roaster snarled, his giant skull form's flames bright as he butted heads with the gargantula, "I've got one of my own—"

Ghost Roaster winced as the gargantula slapped him right down the hall! His flight ultimately came to a close as he flew into a marble statue and smashed it to bits, which forcibly reverted him back to his original form. Ghost Roaster grunted as he sat up, then caught sight of Cynder and groaned.

"Got yourself a little stuck there, didn't you?" Ghost Roaster asked.

"Don't worry about me!" Cynder bit back, "Some of those spiders got past me, and they're on their way to Chihiro and Hex! We can't let them get her while Hex is recasting the spell!"

"That kid's a magnet for trouble, isn't she?…" Ghost Roaster shook his head, then flipped over and transformed into his giant skull form once more, "Don't worry, I'll show those spiders some chain!"

And so, Ghost Roaster flew back down the halls, but not for long as a thread of sticky silk grabbed him by the back of his skull! Before he knew it, he was tossed back and smashed straight into the leftmost wall, dust and rubble and all that.

"HEY, WATCH THE SKULL, BUDDY!" Ghost Roaster shouted as he emerged from the wall's newborn opening and shook a fist, "It's the only one I've got!"

Ghost Roaster snarled as he got ready to transform back, but before he could, the sound of clanking armor completely stopped him!

"Don't tell me that's what I think it is." Ghost Roaster turned around to find several large suits of knightly armor raise their swords high above his head, "And it is."

Ghost Roaster screamed as he dashed down the hall with the suits in close pursuit, while Cynder still struggled against the spider's silky bonds.

And as for Hex and Chihiro, well… Unfortunately, they weren't much better off! Those spiders had them completely surrounded, their creepy little and with Chihiro too weak to fight, Hex had her

"Stay back!" Hex demanded as she shot off orbs towards the attacking spiders with one hand while she cast a spell with another. Hex narrowed her eyes as she watched the spiders roll on their backs, then her frown grew as they jumped back up like it was barely a scratch!

"It's no use, dividing my magic between these spiders is breaking my concentration."

"In other words?" Chihiro asked as she held her amulet close to her chest, then ducked as a string of spider silk flew over her head.

"Trying to keep an eye on all these spiders is keeping me from casting spells at full power!" Hex knelt back down to Chihiro and claimed Chihiro's amulet for herself, "Let me see if I can speed up the recharging spell."

Hex held the amulet so tight that her nails practically dug into its surface, while her whole face grew void of all emotion as she chanted. It was kind of creepy… But, it seemed to get the job done, as the amulet glowed brighter and brighter!

Chihiro beamed as she looked down at the amulet with a new life in her eyes, but Hex didn't seem to take notice. It seemed as though Hex was focused most on casting her spell… That is, until one of the spiders crashed into her and bit her in the arm!

Hex opened her eyes and cried out as she recoiled in pain, then made a very ugly snarl as she shot off the spiders. The spiders, in return, jumped and dashed past every single orb she threw at them before then leaped onto her in one big pile!

Hex squirmed and cursed as she thrust through the spider pile, though her cries were muffled by the collective weight of the spiders! It seemed as though their ranks had doubled in the time they first arrived, or maybe the spiders themselves had grown bigger, but either way they had Hex completely stopped!

"Hex!" Chihiro cried, before she snarled and clasped her amulet. Chihiro shuddered but nonetheless forced herself to stand and hold out her hand.

A bright blast of energy shot out from her hand, then it jumped on the ground and slowly shaped itself into a gigantic, magical cannon, fuse and wheels and all!

Chihiro dashed over to the cannon's fuse, then snapped her fingers and created a match out of magic. With a pinch of her fingers, fire sprung to life at the match's tip, then the match flew out of her hand and brushed against the cannon's fuse.

The fire burnt down the fuse in an instant, and from the cannon came rounds of smooth, heavy-looking magical spheres! The spheres smacked straight into the spiders and tossed them off Hex, with a few unfortunate ones caught on the spheres themselves and splatted against the walls!

"That…" Chihiro panted as she slunk down to her knees, "That was close…"—Chihiro made a weak laugh that sounded more like a whisper as she crawled towards a wall and laid down—"Good thing I got there just in time, huh?"

Hex got to her feet and dusted herself free of stray spider silk, then gasped as she floated towards Chihiro's side and held a hand over Chihiro's forehead.

"You have to be more careful with yourself, Chihiro," Hex warned as she went back to charging up Chihiro's amulet, "If you had done anything more demanding, your amulet's spell would have been completely exerted!"

"But, but…" Chihiro winced as she looked up at Hex, "I, I had to protect you!"

"I would have found a way to free myself." Hex closed her eyes as the amulet began to shimmer in accordance with her silent spell, "You may be a portal master, but you're still a living being in the underrealms. You're much more vulnerable to its energies, so you can't risk—"

Hex stopped and snarled as the sound of crawling spiders and hissing echoed across the hallways, then lifted herself from Chihiro and held out her hands.

"BOTHER US NO LONGER!"

Something bright and magical spiraled out from Hex's palms, then as it flew out it manifested into a gigantic skull that flared with magic! The spiders screeched in horror as the skull sent a rain of magical orbs down upon them, but Hex was hardly bothered as she turned her attention back to Chihiro and held the amulet once more.

The amulet sparkled and faintly glowed for a few more moments, its shimmer in tune with Chihiro's pants… Then as the amulet's glow grew brighter and brighter, Chihiro's panting grew less heavy and labored before it finally stopped altogether as Chihiro sprang back to her feet.

"YES!" Chihiro exclaimed as she sprang back to her feet and twirled around with a new life, "Man, for a moment I thought I'd end up like those skeletons! Now, let's go get that Eternal Undead—"

Chihiro beamed as she stretched her hands to the ceiling, then gasped and ducked as a sword flew over her head! As the sword disappeared into the hallway's depths, Chihiro turned ahead and grimaced as she spied Ghost Roaster wrestling with a living suit of armor.

"… And I forgot there was a battle going on."

As the battle raged before them, Hex swept forward, then blasted the knights in the chest with eldritch, magical orb that tore nicely-sized holes in their chests!

While the suits fell unconscious on the ground, Chihiro teleported over to where Cynder was stuck to the wall, then tore through the spider silk and yanked out Cynder.

"You weren't stuck there too long, were you?" Chihiro asked as Cynder hopped on the ground, "Get it, stuck?"

"I'll spare your awful puns this time," Cynder replied as she stretched her legs.

Chihiro forced a smile and a chuckle. She wasn't entirely sure if Cynder was joking or serious… But then again, it was kind of hard to tell with Cynder. So, Chihiro stared down the stretching halls before them and clasped her fist.

It seemed as though they've shaken most of the opposition—were things finally done? The knights were hunks of broken metal, most of the spiders had fled or been splatted, and the sounds of war had been replaced with silence. But, something in Chihiro's gut told her that they were forgetting something, something that egged at her head…

"GRRROOOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRR!"

Chihiro winced and jumped back as the gargantula stomped forward, its eyes beady and its mouth wide open and slobbering. Yep, that was it!

The gargantula splayed its mouth a bit wider, then shot out silk strings in every which way!

Cynder jumped into the shadows just in time to avoid it, and Chihiro herself was quick to teleport away, but Ghost Roaster and Hex weren't nearly as lucky!

Ghost Roaster was the first to go down as a silk string hit him in the back and stuck him to a large rock left among the rubble from the earlier battles, while Hex herself had been struck and stuck to the walls right as she was getting ready to teleport away!

"Just my luck, huh?" Ghost Roaster grunted as he squirmed against the silk, then raised an eyebrow as he looked down at it, "I wonder…"—Ghost Roaster unhinged his jaw and took a quick lick of the silk, then gagged and yanked his tongue back in—"Yuck, way too bland!"

"Now's not the time for a taste test, Roaster!" Chihiro shouted, then turned around and squeaked as a silk string head straight for her! However, instead of teleporting again, Chihiro just stood her ground and cast a sticky, magical web of her own from her open palm!

The two webs stuck to each other like glue, then pulled against each other in a twisted game of tug-o-war—the gargantula in all its might against the magic of a portal master. Who would come out on top? Ultimately, the gargantula won out! Its grip was so much stronger that it yanked Chihiro forward, straight into its open mouth! Chihiro screamed as she flew closer and closer into the gargantula's jaws…

But before it could get a taste of human flesh, something dashed out from the shadows and straight through the silk string! While the string snapped clean in half, that shadowy figure dashed behind Chihiro's back and rolled her onto the ground.

"Thanks for that, Cyn!" Chihiro said as she watched Cynder become visible once more.

"Don't call me that," Cynder replied as she dashed off towards Hex and clawed through the spider string, "Just get cutting!"

So, Chihiro teleported over to Ghost Roaster and began tugging and tearing through the spider silk that kept him bound tight… But, it was hard! After all, this silk was tough and tight, a bit like rope—it must have been some pretty impressive stuff!

"Can't you do this any faster?" Ghost Roaster whined as he struggled against the silk and nearly flung his ball and chain in Chihiro's face, "I'm getting a crick in my head!"

Chihiro winced as she dodged Ghost Roaster's chain, then huffed and summoned a gigantic pair of scissors made of magic! With a smile, she slid them under the silk and began cutting away!

"If you say so!"

Ghost Roaster, however, didn't seem particularly keen on the idea—in fact, he just started squirming even faster! "Hey, watch those scissors, you're gonna—"

Ghost Roaster stopped short as the silk came undone, then got up and stretched.

A slashing sound right beside them showed that Cynder had free Hex, so all four of them instead turned their eyes on the gargantula. What would it do now?

The gargantula paused and blinked for a few minutes, then snarled and made another loud roar before it charged right at them!

However, this time they were all prepared!

With a step forward, Cynder shadow-dashed passed the gargantula! While the gargantula paused and looked beside it, Ghost Roaster flew up to it in giant skull form and spun it in circles, literally! By the time he released the gargantula from its spin cycle, its eyes were in eight different direction as it stumbled around and bumped into the walls.

Hex stepped forward with her eyes set on the gargantula, then she held out their hands as said hands glowed with a magical aura. From those hands, she cast out a twin blast that fused into one, gigantic skull which burst with magical flames!

The gargantula watched in horror as the skull charged towards it with a gaping mouth, then in one snap of its jaws it swallowed the spider whole and burst into a shower of magic and… Spiders? Yes, spiders! Tons of smaller spiders had burst out and rained down from above!

"Crap! It was a mom!" Chihiro exclaimed.

Chihiro, Hex, Cynder and Ghost Roaster tried to race past the newly-formed herd of spiders, but it was hard, given that those spiders were as persistent as they were small!

And worse yet, it didn't seem like there was any kind of exit in sight, just endless stretches of hallways and artwork. Were they ever gonna make it out?

Chihiro herself paused and wondered that, then stopped as something that sounded like an earthquake crashing rumbled through the entire hallway! The sudden sound pulled Chihiro's attention backwards, then as she caught sight of what made it, she screamed and jumped back!

Behind her, the crowd of spiders had turned into a massive wave of spiders, ready to crash down like a tidal wave! Chihiro immediately ran like she never thought she could have, and judging by the way that Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster dashed with her, it seemed as though they noticed too!

"There, a door!" Hex exclaimed as she pointed ahead!

Chihiro looked ahead and gasped, because Hex was right! Right before them was the end to their troubles—a simple, wooden door with a round metal handle that would lead them out of the mess! Chihiro teleported ahead, then yanked the door open with all her might.

"Get in!" Chihiro shouted as she watched Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster rush inside.

As all three of them to safety, Chihiro looked down and frowned as she saw a splintered, broken wooden crate crushed underneath a pile of round rocks by her feet. Though broken crates were hardly a unique sight, this one seemed fairly new judging by the quality of its wood, as did the shiny, smooth rocks that stood above it. Why would something this shiny and new be in such an old, abandoned castle?

Chihiro winced and bit her lip at the sight without even realizing, but the cries of oncoming spiders reminded her that she didn't have all the time in the world to muse! So, she screamed as she dashed inside and slammed the door shut!

A loud thunk echoed as the spiders presumably hit the door, then hissing sounds with a vaguely pained tone were heard as the sound of skittering noises grew further and further away… Yep, seems like those spiders had given up.

Chihiro slunk against the door in relief, then paused and glazed around the room she had entered.

It reminded her a bit of an old ballroom, with its sleek pearly floors that were pristine save for the lack of a shine and worn, dust-covered curtains held up by a dimly-lit crystal chandelier. A winding staircase separated an empty balcony from the ballroom itself with its pearly stairs and intricate railings, while the part underneath the balcony seemed to blocked off, literally, by cinder blocks. The walls were covered in paintings of ghosts and vampires and zombies in fancy clothing dancing with each other in rooms that looked suspiciously like this very room… But other than those paintings and block, this room lacked the haunting aura of the rest of the citadel. It was just like something out of a fairy tale!

Chihiro grinned, so completely taken back by all the sights that she made no words, but Cynder didn't seem nearly as enthralled with its beauty as she did. Rather, Cynder just leaped up and flew onto the balcony, then paused and tapped the empty wall at its end.

"Completely solid," Cynder shouted as she hopped onto the balcony's railing and sighed, "Doesn't look like there's a way out here."

"Think we hit a dead end?" Ghost Roaster asked as he crossed his arms.

"Probably." Cynder flew down from the balcony and crept back to the door, "Looks like we got the wrong place—"

"I wouldn't be so certain," Hex interrupted as she floated further across the room, "That undead presence grows stronger the further I go. Perhaps there's some kind of hidden passage here?"

Cynder stopped in her tracks, then turned around with maybe a bit of hesitation in her eyes for a moment. She paused for a moment and pursed her lips, as if she was hesitant to respond, but finally she nodded and stepped aside.

"If you say so, Hex," Cynder replied as she flared her wings and turned to Ghost Roaster, "Search the entire ballroom if you have to! We're not leaving this room until we find that secret passageway!"

So, Cynder flew off to one of the walls and began lifting the paintings in some search of say, a secret button or hidden passageway, while Hex teleported back onto the balcony perhaps to see if there was anything Cynder missed.

Ghost Roaster, meanwhile, just sighed as he crept up to the stairway's banister and started fiddling with its décor, but while he did that, Chihiro just shrugged.

After all, they were a ballroom right now! What better thing was there to do than dance? So, Chihiro took a step forward, then spun around and leaped aside.

"Chihiro, what are you doing?" Cynder asked as she turned around and laid a painting back on the wall.

"Dancing, of course!" Chihiro replied as she turned back to Cynder and beamed, "What else is there to do in a ballroom?"

Chihiro chuckled, then sprung forward and spun around in great, elegant strides, just like how they did in those pictures she had seen. A pirouette here, a couple fancy leaps there, a stride there…

Beep!

Wait a second, did the room just beep? Chihiro stopped her dance recital short, then perked her head up as a shooming sound resounded through the empty ballroom. Her attention turned back to the cinder blocks underneath the balcony, except there was one missing! At least, she thought there was one missing.

"Wait a second, wasn't there another block underneath that balcony before?" Chihiro asked as she looked down at her feet.

Chihiro frowned, then pressed her foot against a panel of the ballroom that seemed suspiciously discolored compared to the rest. With another whoosing noise, that cinder block shot back up!

As her eyes sparkled, Chihiro turned back to Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster and pointed towards the blocks. "You all saw that, right?"

Ghost Roaster and Hex both turned around and nodded as they came back to Chihiro's side, while Cynder flew over and examined the discolored tiles on the floor.

"Seems like we found our secret passageway," Cynder remarked as she lifted her head.

Chihiro grinned and nodded as her eyes drifted over to another oddly-colored floor tile, then she stepped forward and went to press it—but before she could Cynder leaped on it like a cat leaped on a mouse!

The second block went down in another swift blow, and the third was quick to follow as Hex nailed down a third discolored tile just a little further off with a skull.

Ghost Roaster crept to a fourth tile just a few steps above that one and slammed it down with his flail… Or at least, he tried, but he missed it by just a hare! Ghost Roaster snarled as he slammed it again, but all he managed to do was brush against it with his flail's spike! Seems as though he wasn't having much luck!

So, Chihiro stepped on the discolored panel once more and smiled as the last of the blocks fell down and allowed their passage.

As they all passed through the dark depths underneath the balcony, the world around turned into a dimly-lit hallway that kind of look like a dance hall, what with its sleek floors and beaming spotlights. But, oddly enough, unlike the room before it, the walls held large, gaping round holes. But what for?

Chihiro frowned as she focused her gaze on the strange holes, then shrieked and ducked down, for out from the holes came sharp-looking axes dead-set to cut! Chihiro screamed as she fell back and rolled out the way of one, then winced as another one came straight towards her! And it was so fast, she could only sit and watch as… The ax passed right above her?

Sure enough, the ax dodged her and spun around with a dancer's grace as it grazed past Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, who all seemed equally as confused as Chihiro was. Really, all the axes did as they spun around the room with rhythm and wide strides, almost like a dance!

"That's it!" Chihiro shouted as she smiled, then popped over to Cynder and took Cynder's paw.

"Chihiro, what are you doing?" Cynder asked as Chihiro held her close.

"You'll see!" Chihiro winked as she swept into the axes' fray like it a ballroom dance, Cynder close to her side. "These things are best with a partner, after all!"

Chihiro spun around an ax as it whirled by her and Cynder, then dipped down as an ax swung above her head.

"Isn't dancing fun?" Chihiro asked as she strode past an ax and spun Cynder around by the paw.

Cynder cried out as she spun around in rapid time, then as the spinning finally stopped she swirled her head around in a dizzy haze. Whoops, guess Chihiro might have taken her for too fast a spin! As Cynder shook her head, she wrangled her paw out of Chihiro's grip and shot Chihiro a glare, then stormed off with a huff.

"I'm not made for this dancing stuff," Cynder grumbled as she stepped forward. She shook her head as she muttered something probably unsavory under her breath, then screamed and leaped backwards as an ax flew out from the ceiling!

Chihiro yipped and leaped ahead as another ax slashed the air behind her, then pushed Cynder down as a third ax flew in from the ceiling!

As the ax receded back into the ceiling, Chihiro winced as more and more shining silver blades swept in and out from the walls beside them! She and Cynder rolled back and forth in perfect sync as they swept left, right, left… Ugh, this was getting dizzying! Chihiro wrapped her arm close around Cynder's waist and held Cynder's paw just as tight, then lifted up and pirouetted them both through the storm of swinging blades!

Chihiro giggled as they dashed hand in paw out of the fray, but Cynder seemed less amused as her jaw dropped wide-open.

"Alright, I guess I am made for this dancing stuff," Cynder panted as she pressed her cool, scaly body closer to Chihiro's, "Just don't spin me anymore, got it?"

"No promises~" Chihiro giggled and stuck her tongue out at Cynder, who just sighed and rolled her eyes in response.

Chihiro just shook her head, her smile still fixed on her face, but that smile quickly faded as she looked ahead and saw that her trials weren't over just yet! After all, just ahead of them lied an entire row of saws that popped in and out of the ground with rapid speed!

"Alright, Cyn, you might wanna hold on tight!" Chihiro said as she narrowed her eyes and fixed herself on the saws, "We're gonna have to jump!"

"Jump?" Cynder repeated as she looked at the saws with wide eyes, "Over that?"

"You bet'cha!"

Chihiro giggled as she leaned down, then dashed off past the blank strip of stone that lead straight towards the axes! Her feet echoed around the halls in time with the gnashing of the saws' blades as they sheathed and unsheathed themselves out from the ground, but that noise was of no concern to Chihiro!

"Un, deux, un, deux…" Chihiro whispered as she drew just closer to the saws. Her footsteps slowed down in time with her counting, but not enough to slow her momentum as she bent down and leaped right over the saws' blades!

"TROIS!"

Chihiro bent down as yet another ax swung above them, then finally she released Cynder and sat down on the floor. The heavy breaths she breathed rattled her chest just a bit, but the exhaustion wasn't killing her by any means—heck, she felt great! Though she went entirely off what she had seen of ballroom dance in cheesy princess movies, she had aced that ballroom dancing stuff! After all, she had completely dodged the axes' blades!

Even Cynder didn't complain as she stretched out her legs, despite the impromptu dance Chihiro roped her into, which was saying a lot!

Chihiro twirled past a pair of axes, then strode forward and leaped past another pair! As she landed on the floor and spun around, something depressed underneath Chihiro's foot and froze the axes right in place. The axes whirred as they slowly drew upright, then disappeared into the depths of their holes. Looks like Chihiro had found the shutdown switch!

With the axes gone, Hex and Ghost Roaster swept down the halls and joined them, then with their party regained they all crept down the path ahead.

It seemed completely identical to the rest of the hall before them, but completely dull and dark compared to the rest. Heck, Chihiro had to summon a light sphere just to make sure she didn't trip over anyone's feet!

Though the hallways seemed like they'd span forever, evidently Chihiro was mistaken as she stopped at an empty hall with what seemed like no sort of exit.

"So we were walking to a dead end all along?" Chihiro asked as she released her light sphere and huffed, "Darn."

"But that can't be right," Hex remarked, "There were no other entryways at that ballroom..."

"You sure 'bout that?" Ghost Roaster asked as he flicked his chain… And promptly bonked Chihiro's back by accident.

"Hey, Roaster!" Chihiro whined as she leaned over and looked at what she thought was where he stood, "Watch where you're flinging that thing!"

Chihiro scoffed, then she frowned as she felt a soft light against her face that she hadn't noticed before. Light? But where was it coming from? No light sources came from these walls around them! Unless… Chihiro looked down, and sure enough, the light's source was in the floor! Specifically from an oddly-shaped crack in the paneling. Suspicious!

Chihiro dug her fingers underneath the crack, then slowly lifted the panel to find it wasn't a panel, but the cover to a secret passageway to a stone room flooded with soft light, its gap bridged by a worn, but hopefully still usable, pair of stairs! Chihiro beamed, then pushed the tile aside and crept down the ladder.

The soft light had faded away, and this time it unveiled a smaller, but still elegant-looking ballroom with elaborate murals and cinder blocks that hid what was surely an entrance of some kind at the back of the room. Geez, how many ballrooms did these people need, anyways? However, unlike the ballroom before, this one completely lacked the opalescent coating that made that floors shine and sparkle!

Rather, the tiles were duller and looked less maintained, and some were oddly-colored compared to the rest. And not in a case of discoloration, no. Rather, seated there on the floor were four tiles painted in an entire rainbow of colors!

Chihiro hopped off the ladder and tapped the first rainbow tile down, then looked up as a shifting sound announced that the first block was gone! She smiled as she teleported to the second and got ready to touch down… But before Chihiro could reach it, the block shot back up! Chihiro sighed as she fell down onto the second rainbow tile and watched the second block go down in accordance.

"Guess I'm gonna have to be a little faster!" Chihiro chirped as her body sparkled with magic.

Chihiro teleported back to the first on and lightly tapped it down, then whisked herself away to the third… But then both of the blocks shot back up and threw her off! As Chihiro stumbled back, she turned to the blocks and huffed.

"Oh come on!"

Chihiro sighed as she teleported back to the first panel, then tapped her feet against the floor. Blue, magic wings manifested on her heels, while the itch to run rose in her heart, as if staying put a moment longer would kill her! That's right, if speed was what she needed, she had the perfect fix! Chihiro leaned down as she slammed her foot down on the first panel, then zoomed from that one to the second and slammed it down as well! As she dashed en route to the third panel, Chihiro craned her head around and grinned, for the first two blocks were down! She was doing good, but she couldn't get her hopes up just yet!

She dashed closer and closer to the third panel, so close that she could almost taste it… Then, in a cruel twist of fate, she lost her footing and flew right past it! Chihiro's eyes went wide as the third tile passed her by, then she crashed face-first into the floor right as the blocks shot back up! Chihiro pulled her face off the floor with a pop and groaned as she repressed the urge to say several words that were highly inappropriate for someone of her age to say. Well, that was a bust. She heaved a sigh as she sat up, then drifted over to the walls and glazed over the murals drawn on them.

They all depicted pairs of undead dancers spinning around on a rainbow floor, with another pair taking the place the pair before them had vacated every time one had moved on, all while arrows pointed from one movement to the other. Hey, wait a moment! The whole thing almost seemed like it was painted to look more like instructions… And those rainbow floor tiles did look awfully familiar…

Wait, that was it!

"Hey, guys!" Chihiro shouted as she turned around and waved across the floor, "Come on down, I found something!"

Chihiro frowned as her voice's echoes faded away—had they heard her? Thankfully they had, as Cynder swooped down the open hole while Ghost Roaster and Hex crept down the ladder soon after! Chihiro waved Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, then beamed as she pointed first at the painting.

"See these?" Chihiro pointed to the painting once more for emphasis as they all joined her, then spun around and gestured to the rainbow panels on the floor, "I need you to stand on those tiles so we can take these blocks down!"

Chihiro grinned, then hopped onto the first rainbow panel and narrowed her eyes as the first block slid down. As she vacated it to take the second, Hex floated over and gently drifted onto the first panel, then lowered down and sat still on the first panel! Chihiro turned around and fixed her eyes on the blocks, then grinned so wide it stretched from ear to ear.

She was right! Both those blocks were down, and this time they stayed down!

So, Chihiro hopped onto the third right as Cynder took the second panel, then hit the fourth and final with a grin, right as Ghost Roaster hit the third! As her feet hit the cold floor and pushed down that fourth panel, a cheery piano tune a bit unfitting of the undead atmosphere played while all the blocks went down!

"Finally!" Chihiro cheered as she shook her head, "I never wanna see another ballroom for the rest of my life after this!"

"You and me both," Cynder grumbled as she flew up to Chihiro. The two of them shared a soft chuckle as they looked towards each other, and for a moment the tension and cold of Cynder's look let up a little.

But, it was quick to fade as Cynder flew up and over to the dark tunnel that the blocks formerly hid. Hex and Ghost Roaster trailed after her in response, so Chihiro just frowned and summoned a magic sphere as she trailed after them.

Shudders ran down everyone's spines as they sifted through the darkness of the tunnel, a sure sign that the Eternal Undead Source was definitely close by. Kaos had been awfully quiet this whole time they ran around... Would he be waiting for them, she wondered? Had he already stolen it, or perhaps they were lucky enough that he hadn't stormed the castle already? Not that she thought about it, those knights started glowing really weirdly and those spiders showing up out of nowhere seemed pretty suspicious... As did that oddly new crate she had found earlier...

Chihiro didn't know what was going on here, but the anticipation to find out was tying her stomach in knots again! Just the thought of it made her sick, so she shook it off and tried to push it to the back of her mind… But it just prodded at her the way animals scratch at doors to rooms they so desperately want to get into.

Chihiro sighed as the darkness started to relent, and with one last step she found herself on a gigantic stone platform dimly lit cyan by glowing holes in the walls and floor. Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster all stood on the platform and frowned as they looked around, and Chihiro could definitely understand their silent concern!

After all, not only was the Eternal Undead Source decidedly not here, but the whole area was blank and vacant! Outside of those lights, nothing else was here. And yet, why would an empty room be hidden behind so many bells and whistles? Something wasn't right.

"Weird," Chihiro remarked as she looked around while the cyan light grew brighter around here, "Shouldn't there be something—"

Before she could even finish, however, the platform let out a burst of bright, blue light that whisked them all away in the blink of an eye!

§

"HERREEEEEE!" Chihiro shouted as she, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster were transported to a dark, cool cavern with a floor covered in skeletal appendages, all arranged to look a bit like a battlefield's cage.

Chihiro groaned as she plonked headfirst onto the cold stone, then shook her head and looked up as a bright, silver light cascaded over the battlefield!

Sure enough, the Eternal Undead Source loomed on top of everything around, with its round-oval shaped body silvery in color and bright like the moon while an oddly-shaped skull bobbed in its heart. Its undead aura was a striking chill among the already-frightening sights of the citadel and surrounding underrealms. Just being around it made Chihiro feel so weak, even with her amulet's protective magic… They'd better make this quick, then!

"What was that containment spell Master Eon taught me for this?" Chihiro whispered as she tapped a finger against her chin then beamed, "Oh, right!"

Chihiro tapped her heels against the cold stone below her, and in moments magical springs emerged from the soles of her boots! She took a few hops to make sure they worked, then once she was certain she knelt down and made one big leap into the skies! (Or, lack thereof given they were in a building)

Chihiro beamed as she felt the cold undead breeze in her hair, then magicked up a pair of wings to keep her airborne. Now that she was safely above everyone else, Chihiro flew towards the Eternal Undead Source and held her hands around it. She could feel its power seep into her very body at such it rate that it made her whole person shudder with weakness, but she tried to push that thought to the back of her mind as she envisioned its containment method… But before she could, something slammed into her and smacked her straight towards a nearby wall!

Chihiro screamed out as she balled through the skies, the pain surprisingly more intense than what she normally got from sudden injuries, though that might have been the Undead Source's work, now that she thought about it. Either way, the pain quickly subsided as she felt something cool and scaly grab onto her!

Chihiro shuddered for a moment as the pain coursed through her, then as she opened her eyes she found herself staring into the eyes of none other than Cynder.

"You alright, Chihiro?" Cynder whispered as she pulled Chihiro onto her back and flew down to the ground.

Chihiro whimpered, but forced a nod as she opened her eyes and stumbled off Cynder's back. Chihiro frowned as she rubbed her aching head and looked up—just what was that thing that attacked her? They should've been the only ones here, right?

Wrong. A familiar cackle resounded from nowhere, one shrill and bone-chilling kind of like… Ghost Roaster's voice? Hex and Cynder must have had the same thought, as they both immediately turned and looked at him!

"Hey, don't look at me!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as he threw up his hands, "I'm not the one laughing about this!"

"He's right!" Affirmed a shrill voice not that far off.

Everybody turned to their front once more, as a big purple and gray blur shot in front of them while two other silhouettes manifested among twin puffs of dark purple smoke!

The blur steadied itself soon enough to unveil an identical clone of Ghost Roaster, save for its body being made of dark purple and gray energy as opposed to Ghost Roaster's bone and cloth, and its eyes which were white and blank.

The silhouettes beside it stepped from the smoke and unveiled themselves as well, their appearances akin to Hex and Chop Chop's save for the similar matter-filled bodies and evil auras. The two of them grinned as low cackles escaped their lips, and their presence added a subtle, menacing aura to the area around. But, more importantly, something about them felt... Off. They seemed stronger than the average clones, their bodies radiant with raw power and menacing feelings.

"Wait, weird clones?" Chihiro exclaimed as she took a step back and instinctively readied a magic sphere, "That can only mean…"

"MUA HA HA!" Cried a quite familiar booming voice as a blue light cast over and colored the area around!

Everybody looked up as the simple light turned to a bright flash, then gasped and stepped back as Kaos's holographic head made its way into the Eternal Undead Source's humble hideaway!

But while Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster just snarled with anger, Chihiro's legs started to tremble without her even realizing! Just the sight of him brought back memories of their last confrontation at the Fairy Kingdom, the sheer look of bloodthirsty malice in his eyes as he struck in to kill her… No, what was she doing? Chihiro shook her head, then forced a grin as she balled her hand into a fist.

After all, she had gotten a lot stronger since then, right? There was no way Kaos could possibly beat them now! And she'd show him! She'd take the Eternal Undead Source right from his grubby little hands and show him who's boss!

"Ha!" Chihiro scoffed as she stepped forward and forced a smile, her stance more confident that she really was, "Sorry to say, Kaos, but you're too slow this time! We found the Eternal Undead Source first, and we'll be the ones to take it back home!"

"Oh, really?" Kaos sneered as he cast down a piercing glare, one that made Chihiro's heart stop for just a few moments, "You really thought you could interlope your way to the Eternal Undead Source under my magnificent evil nose, didn't you, you interlopers?"—Kaos snarled a snarl so wide it showed off his sharp, rotten fangs—"WELL TOO BAD, SO SAD! THE ETERNAL UNDEAD SOURCE IS MY EVIL PROPERTY, AND I WON'T STAND FOR YOU STEALING IT!"

Kaos's snarl leered over Chihiro as his eyes tensed down at them all. "After all, I already knew you were coming!"

"YOU DID?!" Chihiro gasped and stepped back as her legs continued to shudder. Something in her gut told her she wasn't going to like the answer to this...

"Of course I did! I laid magnificently evil traps of doom for you and everything!" Kaos's snarl turned to a smirk as he raised an eyebrow, "Didn't you find anything suspicious about those knights? Or the spiders? Or perhaps even the masses of guards at the castle doors?"

This time, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster gasped as they steeled their gazes at Kaos, but Chihiro couldn't find it in her to join them. Rather, her chest had tightened up as the earlier fights and trials flickered back into her mind—so he had been here all along!

"Well, even if you managed to get past my magnificent evil traps of doom, you still won't be leaving here unscathed!" Kaos proclaimed as the Eternal Undead Source glowed brighter beside him, "While you were gallivanting around the castle, I used the Eternal Undead Source to power up my minions! Now they're even more powerful than before!"

Kaos cackled while his own hologram's light glowed brighter in tandem with the Eternal Undead Source. "THE ETERNAL UNDEAD SOURCE IS MINE, I TEEL YOU! MINE!"

"NOT IF IT GET IT FIRST!"

Chihiro raced forward right as a pair of spring-loaded boats manifested on her feet, then bent down and sprung up to the Eternal Undead Source! The blood rushed to her head as she drew closer to the Eternal Undead Source… But the moment she faced it, something swatted her down onto the ground! Chihiro crashed down with a nasty crack and winced as her body started to ache, then grunted as Kaos's cackle resounded in her ears.

"Did you really think a stupid trick like that would stop me, portal-poster?" Kaos glowered as he glared down Chihiro, "Seems like you haven't learned a thing from our last confrontation!"

Chihiro made a shrill, barely-there gasp as her eyes went wide, then turned her attention back to Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster who all gave her wide-eyed looks that were silent with shock...

"Last confrontation?" Cynder repeated as she drew closer to Chihiro, "Chihiro, what's he talking about?"

But Kaos paid no mind to Chihiro and Cynder's conversation. Rather, Kaos cast his gaze back to the Eternal Undead Source as his holographic head glowed brighter, and in response a sickly purple and black fog formed around the Eternal Undead Source!

This fog swirled its way down to Kaos's evil minions, who embraced it with open arms as the fog seeped into their bodies and made them glow with a faint, silver halo. In that moment, the minions' strange aura grew stronger and more threatening while they seemed even more ghostly than usual, almost as if being around them would suck the life out of you.

"Enough of the talking! Evil Skeleton Knight, Evil Elf Witch, Evil Skull Imp, show the portal-poster and the Skylosers what we do to interlopers!"

The minions all cackled in unison with Kaos, then squealed as they got zapped with a tiny spark of lightning.

"And quit laughing! I'm the only one who's allowed to laugh here!"

As Kaos vanished, the minions groaned and rubbed their aching, burnt heads, their intimidating stature forgotten for a mere moment. But, as they locked eyes with Chihiro, Hex, Cynder and Ghost Roaster, this frightened statue was quickly regained! Their blank faces turned to burning scowls as that silver halo glowed bright around them, then they all dashed forward!

The Evil Skeleton Knight was the first to strike, its sword flared with purple fire as it dashed forward and got ready to slice Chihiro in half! Luckily, Chihiro herself had teleported out of its way and closer to Cynder! Cynder, in turn, shot bolts of pitch-black lightning towards the Evil Skeleton Knight, but it was quick to nullify her lightning with its shield! Cynder winced and jumped back as the Evil Skeleton Knight slashed at her, but that wasn't the end of it! It continued to slash and slice away, all while she barely dodged and jumped… With an enemy as unrelenting as this, it was impossible to land a clean blow.

So, Chihiro narrowed her eyes, then summoned a longsword of her own and teleported between Cynder and the Evil Skeleton Knight! Right as the Skeleton Knight swung its sword and got ready to crash down, Chihiro swung her own and blocked it mid-blow!

"You're not the only one who can play with swords, you know!" Chihiro shouted as she ground her own longsword against the Evil Skeleton Knight.

With a grunt, she swung her sword forward and tossed the Evil Skeleton Knight's sword well out of its grasp!

The sword flew through the air for moments, with its trajectory set right for Hex's showdown with the Evil Elf Witch! The two of them, however, were so absorbed in the fight that they couldn't bring themselves to look away from each other as they cast orbs of eldritch magic… Then Hex froze out of nowhere and teleported away!

"Hey!" The Evil Elf Witch shouted as it looked around for Hex, "Come back and face me, you coward!"

The Evil Elf Witch then looked around and gasped as the Evil Skeleton Knight's sword shot straight towards it! It was quick enough to dodge before the sword could cut into it, but the momentary distraction hadn't shielded it from Hex, unfortunately!

"Something wicked your way comes!" Hex hissed as she reappeared in a puff of purple and black, smoky tendrils behind the Evil Elf Witch!

The Evil Elf Witch twisted its head around and got ready to attack, but it was too slow! Before it could even respond, Hex blasted it in the chest with a skull orb and shot it right across their battlefield! It could only cry out as it skidded across the floors… And also made the perfect roadblock for the Evil Skull Imp!

The Evil Skull Imp immediately tripped over the Evil Elf Witch as it charged after Ghost Roaster, then its gigantic skull form broke and it returned to normal as it bonked its head against the stone floors! It groaned as it sat back up and rubbed its head, then it shot a glare at the Evil Elf Witch.

"Watch it, you—" The Evil Skull Imp cried, only to get socked on the face with an eldritch orb before it could finish!

"You need to look where you're going!" The Evil Elf Witch retorted with a scowl.

The Evil Skull Imp rubbed its head and growled as it looked back at the Evil Elf Witch, then froze as a low cackle sounded off.

"It's right, you know!" Ghost Roaster remarked as the sound of something spinning in the air echoed throughout the cavern, "You never know what's lurking in the shadows!"

And before either of them could reply, Ghost Roaster manifested out of thin air and smacked them aside with his chains! They screamed as they were tossed in the air, then as they skidded aside they crashed into an oblivious Evil Skeleton Knight before collapsing in a heap!

The three minions all groaned, but their exhaustion was quickly forgotten as they jumped back onto their feet and into the fray! Though Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster immediately jumped after them and attacked, their attacks were completely matched! Cynder's lighting was nullified the moment it hit the Evil Skeleton Knight's shields while her ghosts were swallowed alive by the Evil Skull Imp, and Hex's own skulls and magic blasts were veered off course by a wall of bones the Evil Elf Witch summoned and shot towards Ghost Roaster instead! Ghost Roaster grunted as an orb conked him in the head and knocked him down and out of his giant skull form, but he didn't get much time to rest. While he laid down and rubbed his skull, his eyes went wide as the Evil Skeleton Knight charged towards him with swords raised.

Chihiro gasped and looked aside as Ghost Roaster narrowly dodged the Evil Skeleton Knight, then frowned as she summoned a second sword and held both those swords tight. The fight seemed pretty evenly matched, but if she could get the Eternal Undead Source, she could tip the scales in their favor! Once she got it, surely she could undo that weird spell Kaos put on those minions and finish this up!

Her frown spread from ear to ear as she dashed towards where the still-smoking Eternal Undead Source hovered in midair, then leaped up and swung her swords against the fog. Kaos may have put some weird spell on it… But some fog wouldn't be enough to stop her, not when she had come this far! The fog, however, just yanked the swords by their blades and spat them out like a bad snack! Chihiro gasped as she turned around and watched her blades strike the ground below, but she wasn't going to give up yet!

So, she summoned a hammer and slammed it through the fog, but the fog just dissipated and reformed right as it swung! Guess weapons were useless here… So, Chihiro summoned a couple spheres and tossed them into the fog, but they only bounced off like the rest! Geez, Kaos really pulled out the stops with this fog spell, didn't he?

"How do you get rid of this thing?" Chihiro exclaimed as her head started to spin. Seems as though it didn't block that weird, life-sapping aura the Eternal Undead Source held, either.

Chihiro panted as she floated back down to the floor and lurched over. Sweat crept down her brow as she rattled her tired brain for something, anything that would help with something like this… But she was so tired and dizzy, nothing came to mind! Come on, think, brain, think! Chihiro whimpered as she held her hung head, then a sizzling sound drew her attention towards the ceiling. Though her dizziness made it a little hard to tell, it kind of seemed like there was a weird, white speck glowing against the ceiling, but maybe it was just her imagination?

Chihiro squinted as she tried to get a better view, but ultimately she didn't need to, for the little white speck glowed brighter and brighter, all while the sizzling sound buzzed in her ears! Just what was this thing? Chihiro winced as she slapped her hands against her ears, then screamed and leaped back as a gigantic laser shot down and out of nowhere!

"Wait, when did that get here?" Chihiro exclaimed. She frowned as she watched the laser finally vanished into thin air, only for two more to slam down inches beside her!

Soon, two lasers became three, then ten, twenty… It was pointless counting them, for these lasers spawned like rabbits on the battlefield and blocked everyone else off from the evil minions! Not that the evil minions were high priority in anyone's minds anymore, for right now, they were all more focused on not getting seared!

"Owch!" Cynder yelped as a laser burned one of her wings before she took to the skies.

She breathed easy for a moment, but her breath was too quickly taken, for a bunch of lasers rained down from the ceiling and tried to shoot her down! Cynder gasped as she wove through their lightning assault, but in the end there were far too many to avoid! While she was busy dodging, a trio of lasers shot right into her wing with such force that it blew her against the battlefield.

And she wasn't the only one dodging, either! Back down on the ground, Ghost Roaster and Hex jumped and teleported and ran every which way as lasers shot out from every angle, but they were so preoccupied with the lasers, they had forgotten to take notice of their other obstacle—each other!

Ghost Roaster jumped away from a laser that strung across the right the same moment that Hex had teleported away left, and both of them smacked right into each other! Ghost Roaster grunted as he conked his head against Hex, then he jolted up as Hex let out an agonizing scream and turned around!

"Hex!" Ghost Roaster exclaimed as he yanked her out of a particularly large laser's path, "What was that for?"

Hex, however, just grunted and shuddered as she held a hand tight around her arm. Her whole body seemed to glow with a faint light, but it was hard to tell when there were so many lasers crashing everywhere.

"Your arm!" Ghost Roaster gasped as he crept towards Hex and tried to get a better look, but she just drew back and panted.

"I'm… I'm fine…" Hex gasped as she lurched back to her full height, "Just… Just where are these… These lasers coming from?"

That's what Chihiro wanted to know, too! She spun around as one laser crashed down below, then leaped out the way of two more and peered up. As she took a glance at the Eternal Undead Source's foggy prison, where a cage of lasers enveloped it as well! As if she didn't need more things to worry about! Chihiro snarled as she dashed out the way of another laser, then summoned a new pair of swords and leaped up towards the laser prison!

"HI-YAH!" Chihiro cried as she slashed her swords straight through the lasers, which in turn made the lasers completely vanish in an explosion of light!

Chihiro grinned as the light faded around her, then sniffed and frowned. Something around here smelled kind of burnt, but why?

Chihiro frowned and looked down at her swords, then screamed as she got her answer! Their magical surface had holes torn into it and bubbled like red-hot metal, all while white light wafted off of their blades… But it didn't last for long, as the bubbles ate away at the swords and caused them to dissipate into nothingness.

Right as her swords' light faded away, the lasers around retracted back into the walls and ceiling! Normally this probably would have been a good thing… But given that this was right as the evil minions rushed across the battlefield, light on their feet (or notable lack of feet in the Evil Skull Imp's case) as they got ready to attack down below, it was just one problem traded for another!

Chihiro frowned, then turned her attention back to the Eternal Undead Source. No, she couldn't worry about them right now! Once she got the Eternal Undead Source, she'd be able to turn the tides plenty! Chihiro narrowed her eyes, then slammed into the fog and plunged her arms inside its thick mist! The fog bent inwards like rubber as she pressed further, then finally, she came to a stop. No matter how hard she pushed, the fog just wouldn't budge! As she leaned in and pressed further, however, the fog just snapped back and sent her hurtling through the air!

Chihiro screamed as she slammed against the wall, then shook her head and forced herself to keep hovering above. Just down below, she could spy Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster as they fought against those evil minions, their blows and dodges equally matched… Saved for Hex, who seemed a bit slower than the Evil Elf Witch as they traded magic spheres. But in the end, the clatter and screams and blows of their fight were only white noise in Chihiro's mind. They could handle their own just fine for now, she needed to hurry up and get that Eternal Undead Source before Kaos came back!

Chihiro screamed as she launched herself towards the fog again, but once again it sucked her in and spat her back out! So, she teleported to the other side and slammed in it there, but once again it tossed her out! Chihiro grimaced as she got ready to slam into the fog once more… But before she could, a bloodcurling scream pierced her ears! And worse yet, it wasn't just any bloodcurling scream—no, she recognized the voice it came from!

"Hex!" Chihiro cried as she looked back down at the battlefield.

Hex grunted as she was flung against the arena walls by an eldritch orb, then tried to pull herself back up, but it was fruitless. It was all she could do was slink against the wall and pant. Surely she was in no condition for fighting!

The Evil Elf Witch made a horrifying grin as it readied a gigantic orb well above them both, fully ready to kill Hex where she laid… But before it could finish, Chihiro zoomed down, tackled it aside and completely disrupted its spell! The Evil Elf Witch, however, hardly noticed that while it slammed into the wall.

"Oh no you don't!" Chihiro shouted as she lifted a sphere of her own above the Evil Elf Witch and got ready to finish it off.

But before she could, Chihiro herself was interrupted by a laser shooting right through her sphere! As her magic sphere disappeared into fading light, Chihiro squeaked and rolled out of the lasers' path. She just pressed her back against the ground and tried her hardest to avoid the lasers' bright, searing light…

"AUGH!"

Chihiro gasped as she heard a strained cry from Hex, then turned her gaze back around to see Hex collapse underneath the lasers' grid! Chihiro crawled forward at record speed, then grabbed Hex's hand and teleported to a corner that was thankfully laser-free. Chihiro grimaced as she laid Hex down on the coolest part of the corner and… Oh no, this was bad!

The skin around Hex's arms was covered in charred, dark blue burn marks, all while white smoke wafted from skin that bubbled like it was burning away! And it wasn't the only one of its kind, either. These burns spread to her shoulders, her hands, part of her face, and perhaps even more of her body, all while that shining, silver glow haloed her body. Just being around her made Chihiro's stomach churn…

"You just rest, Hex," Chihiro whimpered as she stood up and summoned twin magical swords, her eyes fixed on the Eternal Undead Source, "I'll finish this mess—"

Before Chihiro could run, though, a large bony bramble tore through the ground below them before it lunged right at Chihiro and Hex! Chihiro winced as she sliced the bramble away with her swords, but it wasn't the only one on the way—at least ten more barreled towards them!

As Chihiro grimaced and sliced away the brambles, she caught the Evil Skeleton Knight right as it ran away. That piece of crap! She needed to get the Eternal Undead Source, but she knew Hex was in no position to defend herself from it…

Chihiro stood there, frozen in contemplation, then jolted into reality as a round of gigantic skulls flew out beside her and smashed through the brambles!

"G… Go…" Hex winced as she held out a hand seared with white smoke and cyan magic, "Quickly…"

Chihiro nodded, then with a snap of her fingers, she formed a cyan, magical barrier formed around Hex. Hopefully it would be enough to keep those lasers away from Hex long enough to get the Source! Chihiro dashed ahead and leaped over a laser, her eyes fixed on the Eternal Undead Source, then skidded aside as a massive black lightning bolt shot right in front of her!

Chihiro gasped and skidded back, then turned her glance aside.

Across from her, Cynder had her paws full as she fended off both the Evil Elf Witch and the Evil Skull Imp at once! She'd jump out the way as the Evil Skull Imp dashed at her from every angle and shot off the Evil Elf Witch's blasts, all while she tried to shoot off attacks that were just barely successful at best. But she was so busy defending that she couldn't do anything else! And not just attacking, either. She was so fixed on the two of them that she didn't even notice the Evil Skeleton Knight creep up on her!

"CYNDER!" Chihiro cried as she stepped forward and slashed away another wave of bone brambles, "Behind you!"

Unfortunately, Chihiro's warning came far too late! The Evil Skeleton Knight had already bashed Cynder into the side of the arena with its shield! Cynder cried out as she slammed into the wall, then pulled herself up and opened her mouth. Sparks of black lightning crackled at her lips, but, something was off! Her legs were trembling really badly, as if it was taking all her strength to stand! And a glance at Cynder's wings showed just what was wrong. Like Hex, her wings were burnt and bubbling away, all while that same silver halo glowed around them!

And it seemed as though the Evil Skeleton Knight noticed this, because it immediately rushed forward and slashed Cynder's shoulder! The blow came so quickly, Cynder could only cry out in pain and fall down as blood formed in the newborn gash and pooled down her front legs.

"CYNDER!" Chihiro cried as the last of the lasers receded.

With the lasers not a problem for now, Chihiro bent her knees and got ready to run… But before she could, something large and purple zipped in front of her and made her fall down! Chihiro jumped back to her feet and readied her swords as that same purple blur made a u-turn and smashed straight into her! Luckily her swords were more than enough to keep it from balling her down, and more importantly, gave her enough time to discern the comet's identity—a souped up Evil Skull Imp!

"Sorry, you little portal-poster!" The Evil Skull Imp as it ground further against Chihiro's swords and sent magical sparks flying everywhere, "Your time is up!"

"I wouldn't count on that just yet!" Cried another shrill voice much like the Skull Imp's own as a green blur tossed it aside—Ghost Roaster!

The Evil Skull Imp growled before it transformed into its giant skull formed once more and took Ghost Roaster head-on! The two of them clashed and smashed against each other like warring comets, so fixated on each other and so evenly matched that their blows did little to throw each other off… But the return of the lasers certainly did!

Right before Ghost Roaster could charged into the Evil Skull Imp, a laser slammed into him and spun him aside! Ghost Roaster managed to stop himself mid-spin and charged back for the Evil Skull Imp… Then veered off the course for another attack as a laser cut through his path! He bounced from side to side as more lasers showed up at every avenue, but it seemed like wherever he turned, another one popped up! It seemed like he had completely forgotten about the Evil Skull Imp as he turned every which way… But that was his mistake, as out of nowhere the Evil Skull Imp leaped forward and crashed right into him!

The blow was so intense it slammed Ghost Roaster against the wall with a nasty CRACK, then as he slunk back down the wall he groaned and returned back to his original form. Except now, there was a large, nasty-looking crack in his head that leaked a glowing green ooze! And the rest of the bone in his head wasn't much better as it turned brittle and decayed…

"Ghost Roaster!" Chihiro cried as Ghost Roaster slunk down the wall, then shuddered as a cold feeling crept down her back.

This was bad, really bad! Cynder, Hex and Roaster were all down for the count, but the evil minions were still souped up and ready to fight, and she was all alone! Could this get any worse?

Right as Chihiro summoned her swords and got ready to fight, a booming, sickening cackle that made Chihiro's heart stop echoed throughout the room and made them all freeze in place. Stupid, stupid, she really had to go and say that, didn't she?

"HELLO AGAIN, INTERLOPERS!" Kaos boomed as his holographic head swirled back into existence with a sickeningly proud smile, "How did you like my EVIL LIFE-SAPPING LASERS OF DOOMLASERS?!"

Wait, life-sapping lasers? Don't tell her… As the image of Cynder and Hex getting slammed by those lasers flashed back into her mind, Chihiro gasped while the swords clanged onto the ground beside her. Those lasers, they were literally eating away at their bodies, their very life! No wonder they were weaker than usual!

If Chihiro wasn't in such a panic right now, she probably would've mocked Kaos's awful sensibility when it came to names, but right now, that was the last thing on her mind! All she could do was watched with big, horrified eyes as Kaos's holographic head continued to laugh in her face!

"Shocked speechless, are we?" Kaos's smile grew wider as he laughed, "Ha! As to be expected when dealing with me, the ultimate evil overlord of all Skylands! Bet you're regretting trying to take my Eternal Source now, huh?"

"It's not yours, Kaos!" Cynder hissed as she forced herself to stand despite her injuries, "It belongs…"

"In the Core of Light," Kaos crowed before he rolled his eyes and scoffed, "BAH, WHO CARES ABOUT YOUR STUPID CORE!"

Kaos's eyes glowed a brighter, shinier blue as he snarled.

"If I were you, I'd be more worried about THE EVILEST LASERS OF ULTIMATE DOOOMMMMM!"

Everybody gasped and braced themselves as Kaos's holographic head shone like an evening star and shot bright, silver light all across the room, then as the light faded…

A single, barely-there laser beam shot across the battlefield. Wait, this was the evilest laser of ultimate doom? This was barely a laser! Chihiro frowned and tapped it with her foot, then yelped and drew back as it scorched her… Only for the pain to fade in an instant!

But while everyone on the battlefield watched the sole laser with a bit of confusion, Kaos's eyes widened in utter shock.

"CURSES!" Kaos exclaimed as his holographic head flipped through the pages of a thorny-looking spellbook, "I USED THE WRONG SPELL!"—Kaos snarled and turned his head aside—"GLUMSHANKS! WHERE'S MY ULTIMATE LASER SPELLBOOK OF ULTIMATE EVIL DOOM!"

"You don't need to announce it like its big-paper news, Lord Kaos," said another, very tired-sounding voice off-holograph while Kaos's snarl deepened, "Besides, I thought you were holding it right there?"

"NO, IT ISN'T! THIS IS JUST A STUPID REGULAR LASER SPELLBOOK! GET ME MY ULTIMATE LASER SPELLBOOK THIS INSTANT!"

"But, it says 'Ultimate Laser Spellbook of Ultimate Evil Doom' on the cover—"

"I DIDN'T ASK FOR EXCUSES, I ASKED FOR A SPELLBOOK!"

While Kaos and Glumshanks bickered, Chihiro's eyes lit up with a light of realization. Kaos was completely distracted, she had a chance now! Thus, she turned her attention back to Cynder and Ghost Roaster and… Oh no!

Those evil minions had completely ganged up on poor Cynder and Ghost Roaster! And worse yet, they were only seconds away from attacking, there was no way Chihiro would make it over there in time! But still, she had to do something! Anything would work!

So, she thrust out her hands and let out an ear-piercing scream! As she screamed, one by one three gigantic energy spheres shot out from her hands and crashed straight into the evil minions!

Those evil minions tried to run off, but the spheres came in much faster than they could leave. Before they could break free, the spheres captured them and exploded!
Everybody around winced and shielded their eyes as a bright blue explosion was cast around the area, then lifted their eyes to find that the evil minions were no more! All that was left was a dusting of cyan magic sparkles paired with dark purple and gray energy spheres! Yes, she did it!

Chihiro knelt down and got ready to teleport away, then froze as the spheres began to rattle and shake before they completely flew off! Wait, where were they going? Chihiro turned her attention to the spheres, but before she could figure out their target, another bright flash of light, this time colored silver, rang across the battlefield and completely blinded them all! And it wasn't just blinding, either—it was like the more Chihiro basked in it, the sicker she felt!

It was all Chihiro could do to frantically teleport to Cynder and Ghost Roaster's side, then lift them up and teleport back to Hex as the light faded. Chihiro winced as she looked over Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, all in a shape far too bad for the fight ahead.

There was no way they'd be able to stand fighting Kaos, but they had to get the Eternal Undead Source back still! Maybe there was some way Chihiro herself could… Chihiro made a shrill gasp, then lurched down and pressed her hands against the cold battlefield. All of a sudden, she felt something akin to death come over her, something that made her head light and her heart weak. She could barely keep her concentration long enough to see her amulet, which was now duller than before. Its glow was starting to fade and its protective spell would surely be next!

Chihiro winced as she lifted the amulet up with cold, shaky palms, then fell flat on her face as a powerful rumble echoed throughout the battlefield paired with a bright, all-encompassing light! Chihiro whimpered as she picked herself up and turned around.

This couldn't be happening, but it was.

That simple laser that Kaos had summoned had become a gigantic laser cannon, charged and ready to incinerate everything around them—surely, it must have absorbed those minions' essence and got all that undead power with it! And there was no way Chihiro or anyone else could stop it! She had to get them out, but how?

Chihiro didn't know, but either way she had to buy them some time first! So, Chihiro used every last bit of strength in her body to pull herself back to her feet and thrust her hands in front of her body. A large blast of cyan magic shot from her hands and towards the cannon. now trapped in one magical battle of wills! She knew by all means that hew own blast was a rabbit in comparison to the mighty lion that was Kaos's blow, but still! She had to do something! Maybe if she held it in place long enough, the others could recover and…

Wait a second, was that a clunk she heard just now?

Chihiro turned her gaze to the side to see the brick walls stationed behind the skeletal decorations of her battlefield were now missing a few bricks! The missing bricks formed a hole large enough for a person to crawl through, and from that hole, a skeletal hand ushered them in!

"T-Bone!" Chihiro whispered as a burst of hope formed in her heart. She couldn't waste this chance!

So, Chihiro gulped and forced her blast into a gigantic shield that blocked off Kaos's laser cannon the best it could! Though the mighty laser the cannon shot burned against her shield and made cracks form in its magical surface, it still held its arms strong and mighty.

As the shield blocked Kaos's laser off, Chihiro dashed back towards Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster. She had to get something out that could carry them, since she was far too weak to carry them herself. Maybe some magic bubbles? Yeah, that would do the trick! So, she thrust her hands out, but nothing came! Chihiro grunted, then pulled them back and thrust twice, thrice, four times more… Then after the fifth time, those magical bubbles finally formed around them!

As the bubbles flew beside her, Chihiro dashed as fast as she could into the hole that T-Bone had created for them and collapsed onto the cold, dirt floors!

"Hey, kid, what happened back there?" T-Bone asked as he looked over the wounded, weak Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, "Your buddies look even deader than usual!"

"It, it, it's a long story!" Chihiro sputtered as she tried her best not to collapse under her, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster's collective weight, "Kaos, he—"

Outside their shelter, a sharp crack echoed throughout the stage of their former battle and paired with a loud rumble as an explosion so intense it made the entire area quake in fear stormed throughout the field!

The entrance to the battlefield was incinerated in a bright show of fire and light, but not for long, because right after, a bunch of dirt and rocks crashed in front of the entrance and sealed it off! And worse yet, judging by the way the ceiling crumbled, these tunnels would be soon to follow!

The bubbles popped as Cynder, Hex, and Ghost Roaster collapsed onto the ground, though they didn't stay there for long as Chihiro grabbed them and heaved them onto her shoulders.

"Actually, forget the explanation!" Chihiro exclaimed as she tapped her foot and cast what little magic was within her through her body, "We need to hurry!"

Chihiro glowed with a faint cyan light as she dashed through the twists and turns of the tunnels, but before long her momentum faded and she went back to lurching over and having to force herself just to take another step forward. Her amulet's spell was fading and the undead influence was seeping into her body, which made Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster's weight a far heavier burden on her then it normally would have been. And worse yet, she had already exerted herself so badly during that battle…

"Kid, what're you standing around for?" T-Bone exclaimed as he lifted Ghost Roaster from her shoulders then slung Ghost Roaster across his own, "This isn't the time to think!"

Chihiro gasped as she felt the weight lift from her shoulders, then looked down to see the still-reeling Cynder and Hex in her arms. T-Bone was right, she couldn't stand around here. She needed to get her friends out of this place before it was the death of them all! A newfound energy was born within Chihiro as she pushed herself forward and sprinted down the crumbling tunnels, whose rumbles and roars only got worse as progressed. Though she wasn't as lively or strong as she normally was, this would at least be enough to get them to…

"The door!" Chihiro shouted as she looked ahead, "I can see it!"

Sure enough, beyond those skeletons and dry bones and dead brambles was the door back to the beach! It was still thankfully intact and unblocked despite all the collapsing scenery behind them, but she couldn't feel at ease yet! She had to get out!

Chihiro knelt down and got ready to bolt forwards… But before she could, a loud rumble alerted the falling of a gigantic rockslide right in front of the entrance!

While Chihiro was lucky enough to pull herself away in time, it seemed her luck had run out! The door was completely blocked off, and there was no way it would open now! No, no, this couldn't be happening! They lost the Eternal Undead Source to Kaos, and now she and her friends were going to die in this awful, awful tunnel!
"No, no, no!" Chihiro shrieked at the top of her lungs, her voice hoarse and strained from panic as she fell to her knees and dug through the rocks, "No, please, let us out, let us out!"

But, no amount of begging would clear the rocks completely. No matter how many she dug, more fell into place! And she had grown so frail and weak, like she herself was on the brink of death. Chihiro heaved faint breaths and shuddered as she fell on the rocks, then lifted her head as she heard a firm CRUNCH and… As if things couldn't get worse, her amulet completely shattered from falling under a rock that soon fell on it! Chihiro yanked the amulet's string off her person, but as she did she felt herself grow so, so weak and cold… Her whole body shuddered as she made tepid whimpers, all while her temperature alternated between cold and warm.

"C'mon, kid!" T-Bone exclaimed as he laid Chihiro back on the ground and began digging through the rocks himself, "Don't give up the ghost just yet! You're not dying on me, I'm telling you!"

But, despite T-Bone's words, Chihiro had a feeling she wouldn't be so lucky. Her amulet, the one things that protected her from undead influence was gone, and she could already feel the undead energies of the tunnel sap away her life. And if that didn't kill her, then surely this cave-in would!

Chihiro's hazy eyes turned towards her side as she heard faint, pained groans, and there she saw Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, all shaky and piled together like corpses. She wouldn't be the only one to die here. Her friends, who she loved so much, but not enough to truly protect them… They'd meet the grave with her!

As the faint, fuzzy memories of that earlier battle came back to her, Chihiro shuddered, but this time not from the chills that came over her body. Rather, her memories came to how those evil minions did them in, how those lasers burned them away and surely continued to do so the more they lingered here. Chihiro had gotten so caught up in stealing the Source back, on breaking Kaos's spell and proving that she was stronger than him that she hadn't even thought to help them with their fight!

Cynder was right. Chihiro had gotten so caught up in beating Kaos that she didn't take care to anything else, and now it would be the death of not just her, but all of them!

Hex, Cynder, Roaster… I'm so sorry.

That's what Chihiro had wanted to say, though she was too weak to actually say any more words. Instead, she just held out her hand and brushed it against Cynder's cold, scaly paw as it trembled and twitched.

In response, Cynder only whimpered and lifted her head towards Chihiro, but despite the way her body shook with pain, her eyes didn't shine with any sort of weakness. No, instead, a kind of scrappy strength resounded within her, her piercing ice blue shade resonant with a kind of determination!

Yeah, that's right. Cynder was a Skylanders, and Skylanders never gave up no matter the circumstance! Even when things were hopeless, Cynder tried so hard to fight off Kaos and get back the Source, and even now, as she grappled with the brink of death, she was still fighting her hardest!

And not just her, either. From behind them, Hex and Ghost Roaster both stirred and tossed and turned around, even if it was just slightly. They were both fighting their hardest to see another day!

Chihiro made a sharp gasp as tears stung her eyes, then she struggled back to her feet. Just standing made her feel like her entire body was going to collapse in on itself, but she couldn't just give in and die, not when they were fighting so hard! Chihiro trembled as she let out tearless sobs, then finally she held out both her hands.

Please, please, please give me something to clear this out, anything! Chihiro begged as she felt the rushing feeling that always came when she cast spells, though this time it felt more painful than anything as her entire body ached, I can't leave my friends to die like this, please!

But, nothing seemed to come aside from a few sparks! This couldn't be it, please! She had to get them out of here!

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE! I DON'T WANT…

Chihiro's thoughts became ferocious beasts that swarmed around her head and made her entire body go numb.

I DON'T WANT THEM TO DIE!

Before Chihiro had known it, a gigantic magic blast exploded from her palms and enveloped the rocks, then melted them all into magical nothingness! It took so much power out of Chihiro that it knocked her on her back with a painful crunch… But at least, it did clear the doorway!

"Thank..." Chihiro whispered as she staggered back to her feet and watched T-Bone rush up to the gate, "Thank goodness."

Chihiro winced as another surge of dizzying, numbing pain crashed over her and forced her to her hands and knees, but even through the pain she crawled over to Hex, Ghost Roaster and Cynder and grabbed onto them. Though they could barely move, they all looked towards Chihiro with hazy, glazed-over eyes that could barely stay open. Please, please, let them last a little longer, they were so close…

"Don't…" Chihiro whimpered as she forced a weak smile, though tears had begun to streak down her cold, cold face, "Don't worry, everyone… We're almost there… I'll get you home safe, I promise…"

As T-Bone hastily pushed the gate's doors open, Chihiro gasped and grabbed Hex, Cynder and Ghost Roaster's hands. With one last, pained gasp, she crawled through the opened crack as fast as she could, then collapsed on cold, gritty sand as sea breeze hit her tear-stained face and made her even dizzier with panic than before. Her whole body was on lockdown, but she couldn't care about that right now! Surely, Cynder, Hex, Roaster… They were all in way worse shape than she was! She needed to get them to the infirmary before it was too late! But it seemed like no matter what, she couldn't possibly get up, as if it was like her entire body had lost its abilities to move!

"Chihiro?"

Chihiro recognized that voice, it was Spyro's! Sure enough, he had flown down onto the beach and quickly caught sight of her and the others, all tired and piled onto each other. And, judging by how fast he flew over, he was definitely concerned.

"CHIHIRO!"

Spyro immediately dropped to his feet and ran to their side, and even through the dizziness Chihiro could tell he was just as frantic as she was.

"What happened? Why's everybody passed out?" Spyro took one glance at Hex and winced, "Oh god, those burns…"

"Spyro…" Chihiro croaked, barely able to push the words out of her throat, "It, we… Kaos, he beat us, really badly… I, I…"

It was in that moment that Chihiro found herself unable to keep her body awake any longer. It was all she could do to keep her eyes from closing down as Spyro frantically began pulling them across the beach.

"Forget about the questions!" Spyro grabbed the back of Hex's collar and pulled her on his back, "We need to check you into the infirmary, stat!"

However, Chihiro herself wasn't sure she'd last that long. Her whole body ached and moaned and if it could barely keep itself alive any longer. Was this the end for her? She was too scared to find out, her fit of anxiety the only thing keeping her from closing her eyes and giving up. All she could do was shudder as her spikes of anxiety made her heart throb faster and let out tired whimpers.

"CHIHIRO!" Spyro called as he turned around and tried to shake her, "Chihiro, hang in there!"

Chihiro only moaned and whimpered further as her head grew warmer with… Pain, she presumed? Her body shaken so badly and so sapped of energy that even the simplest things were hard to do. She couldn't even cry from the panic of death she felt at the moment, she just let her eyelids droop up and down…

"Spyro, what's wrong?" Hugo asked as he raced down the stairs, "What's all this screaming for—"

Hugo's voice crackled further as he and Spyro frantically spoke among themselves, but in this moment of tension Chihiro didn't even notice. She had finally grown so weak, she could no longer keep her eyes open. In fact, she was gonna sleep for a little while… Yeah, that sounded nice…

"CHIHIRO!" Spyro called as Chihiro finally closed her eyes, his voice at a volume so loud and full of mourning that surely, it could be heard well past this stretch of the skies…

§

"Young Chihiro? Are you still with us?"

Chihiro grumbled and felt a bright, white light over her eyes once she finally opened them. Had she finally died? Sure she was in the afterlife, or whatever waited for her upon death. Hopefully her fate wouldn't be too unpleasant… But, why did she still hear Master Eon calling for her?

"Young Chihiro!" Master Eon's voice sobbed as a warm light brushed against her chest, "Thank the Ancients you're alright!"

In that moment, the white light finally cleared up and Chihiro got a hang of her surroundings! She wasn't dead, thank goodness! Turned out, she was in the infirmary under a few light woolen blankets, Master Eon and Hugo by her side. Master Eon's light had turned a deep blue, and Hugo's eyes were wide and puffy as if he had been crying. Were they that worried about her and… That's right, the others!

"Master Eon!" Chihiro exclaimed as she sat upright and looked around, "Where are Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster? How are they, are they alright?"

"They're in critical condition, young Chihiro. The deterioration spell cast over then was an incredibly strong one." Master Eon floated off of Chihiro's bed and flicked around with a hint of worry, "Whirlwind and Spyro are tending to them in the emergency wing."

Master Eon flitted back to Chihiro, his light now less dark but still with a hint of sorrowful blue. "I've never seen them in such bad shape from a mission before… Just what happened to you there?"

Chihiro only let out a sharp gasp, her eyes wide and the pound of her heart thick in her ears. All the memories of her earlier fight with Kaos rushed back into her mind like the blood rushed through her ears and blocked out any further words either of them might have said. She knew she had to tell them, but just thinking about it made her whole body lock up again… All she could do was stare into the open as that flicker of the laser cannon manifested in front of them all, fully ready to fire.

"Master Eon!" Whirlwind exclaimed as she and Spyro bolted through the open door that lead to Chihiro's room, "They're getting worse, we need more help!"

"Understood!"

Master Eon flew behind Whirlwind and Spyro with Hugo quick to follow. Soon enough, Chihiro was completely alone in this uncomfortably clean infirmary room, trapped in a prison of her own making.

You heard him! Chihiro thought as she bit her lip and tried to stave away tears, They're in critical condition! They might die soon, and it's all because, it's all because, all because…

Chihiro shuddered and curled up in her bed, though her blanket's softness and warmth was hardly a comfort in a time like this.

"It's all because of me," Chihiro whispered as her whole body grew tingly and numb.

Chihiro gulped as she curled up and buried her face in the blanket's soft surface, all in some meager attempt to stifle her crying that would never come, for her eyes felt just as numb as the rest of her body. Her whole head locked up from the combined numbness and dizziness she felt, but even in spite of it her thoughts were clear as crystal.

After all, if she had done something, anything better than what she had done, surely they'd be alright! But, she was so caught up in proving herself, in her stupid little quest to beat Kaos and show him who was boss, she completely lost sight of her actual goal! Now, they really had lost the Eternal Undead Source, and she had gotten Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster seriously hurt, too! It was a miracle that they had escaped like they did, and it would be a miracle if they even survived! But… They wouldn't have had to, had Chihiro actually done better.

Like it or not, she was the one who brought about this. She was the reason they were on the afterlife's door, she was the reason they had lost the Eternal Undead Source, which Kaos would surely use for the evilest of evils…

She was the one who failed them. The realization struck her cold and hard, a sharp knife that plunged into her heart and sent chills down her spine. And even though the cold brought her back to her senses, it wasn't a welcome sensation, for now all her failures crashed down on her with such intensity that her head pounded from the pressure!
Before she even knew it, tears started to streak down her cheeks in one, two, three drops… Then finally, the pressure and intensity and shock all overwhelmed her so badly that she buried her face into her blankets and sobbed her heart out!

Look at me, sobbing your eyes out at a time like this! Chihiro thought as choked gasps poured out her mouth like the tears that rained down her cheeks.

If I had done better, Cynder, Hex and Roaster would be alright and we'd have the Eternal Undead Source already! But I had to mess up! I could've taken care of those creepy clones right away, or blocked those lasers, or anything that could've been better than what I really did!

Chihiro bundled up her blankets and pressed her face further into them, just to muffle her sobs. For as much as she wanted a shoulder to cry on, she couldn't let anyone see her like this, not when she had already caused them so much grief—she had no right to be comforted right now.

Why did I ever think I'd be good enough to protect them from Kaos? Why did I even try? I wasn't able to protect them when it counted, and for all I know, they, they, they could be…

Chihiro sniffled once more, then wiped her tears and shook her head. Though her whole body shuddered and trembled still, she forced herself out of her bed and stumbled towards the door.

"No, I shouldn't just sit here and sulk," Chihiro whispered, her voice hoarse and on the brink of tears as she reached for her door's handle, "I've gotta make sure they're alright!"

So, Chihiro crept out of her infirmary room and dashed down the halls, her footsteps and panting the only sounds that echoed throughout the cold marble hallways of the infirmary. If she was right, the emergency wing should be somewhere down the leftmost hall. So, she took a left and slowed her walk to a creep, almost as if she was hesitant to arrive where her friends stayed. But, nonetheless she persisted. After all, she wasn't allowed to hesitate when they were hanging in the balance.

The halls themselves were quite dim despite the overhead lights, so Chihiro pressed a hand to the nearby wall to act as her guide. She could've created a magic sphere to act as a lamp, but she didn't want to make a big fuss of her presence. After all, Spyro and Whirlwind and the rest of the ones on medical duty were hard at work curing them, so she shouldn't interrupt.

Chihiro stopped and shuddered as she heard the faint sound of voices down the hall, then gulped and ran forward. Soon enough, the dull halls became illuminated by the sight of bright light from a source up ahead! That must be where the emergency room was!

"Spyro, where's the…"

As Whirlwind's muffled voice hit her ears, Chihiro stopped and froze as she peered through the emergency room door she had found, the only sound she could hear being her heartbeat as it pounded in her head… Or maybe it was the blood rushing to her head from panic? She couldn't quite tell.

But either way, she could only stand frozen as she watched Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, all so weak on the beds as they were tended to. In fact, their bodies only barely twitched as Spyro, Whirlwind and Master Eon frantically bandaged and tended their injuries or poured the contents of strange magic jars over Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster's burns. They were so weak, so lifeless… And it was her failure as a leader, as a friend that caused it all!

Without even thinking, Chihiro's whole body turned around and dashed back down the halls while her heart pumped fast as ever. Just seeing them in that condition brought her back to the battlefield, to her failure, to their near death! She just couldn't, she couldn't possibly bear to see them like this!

As she turned around the corner, Chihiro stopped and caught her breath, then as her heart slowed she made a tiny frown. What was she doing? Cynder, Hex, Roaster, surely they all needed help now more than ever, and all Chihiro could do was sit there and mope! Now wasn't the time to be so selfish! She had to go back and help them, even if it scared her.

So, Chihiro took one last breath and rounded the corner back, only to be greeted by a familiar light.

"Young Chihiro?" Master Eon whispered as he faced Chihiro, "Why are you out of bed? Are you feeling well now?"

Chihiro winced, then turned back around the corner and sighed. Surely, he was going to ask about the battle… She couldn't possibly recount such an awful failure to her mentor who had such high hopes for her. All the words slipped away from her as she looked towards Master Eon, and it was like whatever in her allowed her to speak had completely shut down.

"I guess," Chihiro whispered as she hung her head, "How are they doing?"

Master Eon's light dimmed with what seemed like contemplation, then he rounded the corner and floated next to Chihiro.

"They've been somewhat receptive to advanced health potions we've been giving them, but it's still far too early to tell. The reports show they were heavily sapped of their energy from that spell… It was as if they were practically drained of their own life!"

"I see…" Chihiro shuddered as her turned clammy.

Master Eon's blue glow faded to gray. "That being said, what exactly had happened during your mission? I've hardly seen them come out of a mission in such bad shape before!"

And there it was.

Chihiro froze up and looked away, her whole body shaken with fear. Once again all, these memories race back into her head, of her friends gravely injured and near lifeless, of the of the laser cannon and the explosion that rocked the world around, of their barely-successful escape from the tunnels… Of Kaos's smug face as he watched them fail. Chihiro wanted to freeze, she wanted to cry! She could just feel herself back at that battle, with the laser bomb pointed straight towards her shaking body. In fact, the world around her warped into that ruined castle, all while the air around reeked of death and blood.

Breathy pants escaped Chihiro as she stumbled backwards, then finally her legs gave out and she collapsed on the floor, completely unable to do anything as she watched Kaos cackle and revel in their misery. The life seeped away from her as her vision turned blurry and spotted, and for a moment her whole body started to lock up like she was going to pass out again…

"Young Chihiro?"

Then with those two simple words from Master Eon, the castle cleared away and once again Chihiro found herself in the infirmary halls, while a blue-tinted Master Eon on her lap. In that moment, a tidal wave of emotion crashed over Chihiro, and her heart started racing as a numbing, hot feeling tightened Chihiro's face.

"I'M SORRY, MASTER EON!" Chihiro wailed as she flung herself towards Master Eon and wrapped him in a tight hug, "It was all my fault!"

"Young Chihiro, what are you going on about?"

Master Eon freed himself from Chihiro's grasp and flew around her, his blue glow turned purple now instead. But, even though he asked, Chihiro still couldn't bring herself to look Master Eon in the eye so she simply shuddered and hung her head.

"When we went to get the Eternal Undead Source, Kaos had already gotten there!" Chihiro whimpered while the tears dropped down her cheeks at last, "We tried to stop him, but he and his minions were too powerful! They beat up Hex, Cynder and Roaster really badly, and he, he tried, he tried to… He used the Eternal Undead Source and his weird lasers to sap the life out of them!"

Chihiro shuddered and crumpled down to her knees.

"I, we, we barely escaped with our lives! And it's all my fault! I got so worked up about getting the Eternal Undead Source and beating him that I didn't stop to think about anything else! If I had just done something, or thought of something better, or, or, I, I…"

Chihiro's strained, sobbing confession was brought to a halt as Master Eon floated next to her and lifted her chin.

"I see…" Master Eon floated away from Chihiro and bobbed up and down. His voice was oddly cold, and just the notion of it made Chihiro's chest tighten so hard that it felt almost impossible to breath.

"And now they're all gonna die and it's all gonna be my fault! I shouldn't have become a portal master, I shouldn't have gone with them, I, I, I…"

Chihiro's sobs turned strained and screechy as her head flashed in and out of dizziness, and for a moment it felt like she was going to throw up! She slapped her hands against her mouth as the tears trailed over her hands, all while her throat tightened up and burned like the sun. Her head was spinning as she lurched over and prepared to black out again…

But then, something sharp and cold pressed against her, like an ice pack against a swelling wound. The chill ran through her body, but unlike the others she had felt it was more comforting and gentle, a soft breeze that dried her tears and calmed her spinning head. Chihiro released her hands, then as a bright blue glow dusted her chin she turned her attention back to her lap, where Master Eon gently nudged himself close to her.

Was that cold coming from him? She wasn't sure, but Chihiro was in no position to question it, so she just snuggled him close and buried her face into his cold light. Though the chill felt more harsh the closer it was to her body, at least it gave her something else to think about. With one last brush against his light, her sobs finally subsided, and though she still felt kind of dizzy, at least her entire body didn't feel like it was going to break down.

Master Eon turned around and left, probably to check the others' condition once more, but Chihiro didn't want the conversation to end just yet. She may not have been the most energetic, but, she still owed it to them to help them recover. So, Chihiro looked towards Master Eon and clasped her hands.

"Master Eon, please let me help them," Chihiro begged with her hoarse, strained voice as she shook her clasped hands, "I can't just sit here and do nothing while they're suffering because of what I did!"

Master Eon stopped in his tracks, then as he turned around he glowed a little brighter and bobbed. His light turned a bit pinker as he pressed against Chihiro's head, while a soothing feeling rushed through her body and eased the exhaustion she felt—was this some kind of spell? Probably, but she couldn't really think of what it was exactly.

"Very well then." Master Eon flew down the halls, "Follow me. I will instruct you on what to do."

Chihiro nodded, then bit her lip as she ran behind Master Eon. As her feet pounded against tile that slowly turned back into the dead ground of her former arena, the sound of Kaos's cackles rang in her ears… But Chihiro immediately shook them off and forced herself to repress the shaking in her body.

I can't care about myself right now, Chihiro thought as she burst into the emergency room, I have to save them!

As the door pushed wide open and the light filtered in, so bright it was almost blinding, Chihiro froze and shielded her eyes… Then lowered her arms and bit her lip.

Back inside, Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster still laid on their beds, though their breathing was more rapid and frequent. Their bodies had been bandaged up and those weird magical jars still hovered over them and streamed some kind of glowing substance into their veins, but judging from the cold sweats they had entered, they were still in a pretty bad shape.

Beside them, Spyro applied some kind of salve to Cynder's bandaged wing as he bit his lip, while Whirlwind pressed her horn close to Ghost Roaster's cracked head as said horn pulsed with a rainbow glow. The two of them were so absorbed in their work, they hadn't even noticed Chihiro and Master Eon come in…

Chihiro winced as Cynder clutched a bedsheet with such intensity that her claws tore a hole through it, then Chihiro leaned back as Master Eon zipped by and shoved a bunch of potion bottles in her arms.

"Young Chihiro, take these potions and apply them to the wounds—they should be able to replenish their lost life force!"

"Right!" Chihiro cried as she dashed off to the jar beside Hex, then popped open the cork of one potion and poured it over a nasty burn on Hex's arm.

Though by all means she should have focused on the potion as it poured down, Chihiro's attention fixed instead on Hex as Hex heaved labored breaths and curled up in a shuddering ball. It was almost scary to see Hex, so cold and stoic in such a weakened, helpless state that it almost made Chihiro numb… But, she merely just shook it off and bit her lip as she watched Hex shudder and hold the blankets tight.

Spyro, Whirlwind and Master Eon all darted around in a frantic haze as they traded around potions and medicines, reported statuses and provided treatment, but their work only became background noise in Chihiro's mind. The world around her faded away as she lifted up the now empty potion bottle, then rested it on the desk nearby as Hex's breathing turned less labored and more rhythmic, all while Hex herself rested against her bed.

Cynder, Hex, Roaster, Chihiro thought as she squeezed the bottle's glass tight, As long as I'm here, I promise I'll make sure you get better… So please, hang in there!

§

As she closed the door behind her, Chihiro cast one last glance back at Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster, all tired and bandaged up as they rested on their beds. Moonlight shone through the few windows in the hallways to signify the beginning of nighttime—how long had she been treating them, anyways? Chihiro had lost track in her panic and frenzy of treating them, but she didn't care.

Somehow, after all those hours spent treating and analyzing and everything else, they had managed to save Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster from the brink of second death, and now they rested safe in the infirmary. Of course, they did get a lot taken out of them and would need some time to rest, but... At least they would live.

Chihiro frowned as she curled her fingers against the glass, but finally the feeling of something hovering over her back had pulled her away. Spyro and Whirlwind had surely already gone back tot he sanctuaries to rest after such a harrowing day, and Master Eon surely would have gone back to his own quarters now, right? So who could...

"Young Chihiro, there you are!" Master Eon's voice cried behind her.

Chihiro froze up, then hastily whipped around to find Master Eon as he floated behind her, his light stark and white—what did white light mean? She wasn't entirely sure what emotion that color represented, but something in her gut told her it wasn't a good one. Or, maybe that was just her nerves speaking, she wasn't sure.

"I'm surprising you're still up at this hour." Master Eon's bright light turned to more of a pale yellow, "I had assumed you went to bed already."

Chihiro frowned, then looked aside and shook her head.

"Nah, I couldn't really... Couldn't really leave them just yet," Chihiro replied as her gaze fell back to the door's window once more, "Not after everything I did to them."

Chihiro's hands started to tremble as she hung her head, all while her face grew numb with sorrow, with regret, with guilt, maybe even a few more emotions she couldn't quite pin down. A few sniffles escaped her while her chest started to ache, though she tried to keep her volume as low as possible—Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster needed to rest, after all.

"After all, I didn't think things through and got so wrapped up in getting that Source that I didn't think anything through, and now..." Chihiro choked back sobs as she masked her mouth with her hand, "And now, now..."

"Young Chihiro, lift up your head. Now is not the time to fret and dwell on past mistakes," Master Eon said as he flew towards Chihiro, his light gentle as always... But Chihiro couldn't find it comforting.

After all, she had screwed up so badly! She had lost not just an Eternal Source, but one of the Eternal Sources that Kaos could cause the most damage with, and she nearly got Cynder, Hex and Ghost Roaster killed, to boot! All because of her stupid failures and oversights! If she were Master Eon, she'd be furious with herself right now! Why wasn't he yelling at her and chewing her out, why wasn't he scolding her, why wasn't he even talking about punishment?! Did he just not care what had just happened? Did he not realize the gravity of what she had failed to do?!

Without even thinking, Chihiro gritted her teeth as she turned back to Master Eon with brows clenched tight and a furious fire bright in her chest, then gritted those teeth further as she balled her hands into fists.

"What are you talking about? Why aren't you mad at me?!" Chihiro exclaimed as she slammed her palms against the wall, "I screwed up big time, we lost the Eternal Source and they got hurt really badly!"—Chihiro's face turned puffy and numb like she was going to cry again, but she forced back her tears—"Who wouldn't be mad at a time like this?"

"That's true, I could get mad..." Master Eon turned his eyeless gaze back on Chihiro, "But what good would fretting and getting upset at you or anyone else do?"

Chihiro froze for a minute as Master Eon flew back to her.

"Yelling at you and panicking won't undo the past, nor will it help anything in the present. All we can do now is figure out how to fix these problems that befall us."

Well, that wasn't the kind of response Chihiro had expected, and she still couldn't tell if Master Eon was mad at her or not—but nonetheless, it was oddly comforting. So, Chihiro nodded, wiped her tears then pulled herself back on her own two feet.

"I understand."

Chihiro gulped, then sniffed one last time before she wiped her face with her sleeve.

"Very well then, come along now," Master Eon said as he floated down the halls, "If we are to regain the Eternal Undead Source from Kaos, we will have a lot of work ahead of us."

So, Chihiro just nodded and hung her head as she followed Master Eon down the halls, no longer able to find the words to say or the feelings to convey. She supposed that if she was going to make up for such a big mistake, she'd have to do everything in her power to find the Eternal Undead Source and made sure they recovered...

If her own power was even enough at this point.

---

Alright, now, this next chapter... Is going to be really long. Like, I'm talking a little over forty-five thousand words long. Understandably I figured not everyone would want to sit through a chapter of that length, but I'm not entirely sure whether or not I should split it in half... So I'm leaving it in you, the readers' hands! I've opened a poll on my profile where you can vote on whether the next chapter should be split in half or posted in full, which will also act as a metric for how I handle chapters of similar length in the future! It'll be open until this coming Monday (October fifth), so get your votes in while you can!