Brandy's Bizarre Adventure

by Von Reivanon

Brandy the Bandit lives happily with her king Oticat, her best friend Dan the Knight, and the rest of her fellow troops. But when the dark machinations of an evil King and an evil Clan start to tumble into motion, her life is thrown into chaos. Rated T for intense action, peril, heavy themes, and slightly suggestive content. And yes, there are lots and lots of JoJokes.

7. Chapter 7

North of TheEvilOverLord's Clan Castle, one hour earlier

ChupilickytwaCT brought a pair of binoculars up to his face, and peered through. He could see, off in the distance, the menacing dark red Clan Castle of TheEvilOverLords. The entire structure simply radiated evil- he could almost see it.

"Well, there it is.", he said, and put the binoculars down. "It looks heavily guarded."

"By what?", asked Oticat. "I don't see anything."

"Ah, but that's because you're only looking with your eyes, my boy.", said ChupilickytwaCT. "You need to look with your spirit."

"You're starting to sound like a Magic Archer there, Chup.", said Oticat. "What do you mean?"

ChupilickytwaCT simply waved his hand over Oticat's face. "Here. Look again."

Immediately, Oticat could see far more. A thin layer of blue covered his vision, and he could see small shapes of Troops surrounding the castle that had previously been hidden by the treeline.

"Wha- what was that?", asked Oticat. "What did you do to me?"

"That's Co-Leader vision, my boy.", said ChupilickytwaCT. "I just promoted you."

Oticat sputtered with a mix of confusion, gratitude, and pride before finally spitting out his next sentence. "You mean, all Co-Leaders can do that?"

"Of course.", said ChupilickytwaCT. "And a lot of other things, besides. And that's nothing compared to the powers of a true Leader… but that's best to be explained some other time. For now, let's talk strategies."

He stood up. "Co-Leaders! Meeting!"

At once, several Kings materialized next to him- Gameremix, Stankyleg, Aurora, Digb, getusomeofthat!, Lord Farcuash, and Rockerc. They were all in various states of wakefulness, with Rockerc and Digb on wide alert and Aurora almost asleep. It was still extremely early in the morning, and the sun had not yet risen. It would not for another hour or so.

"Welp, guess I'd better go.", said Oticat. "Leave you Co's to it- wait! No!"

He had gotten up to leave, but then quickly sat back down. "I am a Co-Leader now. Right."

"Alright,", said ChupilickytwaCT, and pressed his hands together. "We need to talk strategy. Right now, if we just charge in there without a plan, we'd get destroyed."

"I have a plan.", said Rockerc. "But its a weird one."

"Weird's alright.", said Stankyleg. "What is it?"

Rockerc's face became animated, and he started to gesture wildly with his hands. "Okay, what if we traveled to the bottom of the ocean, found a pillar of the gods, and-"

ChupilickytwaCT raised his hand to stop him. "Too crazy. And also too time-consuming. We need something different."

"I have a suggestion.", said Digb. "And I guarantee you, it's not as bizarre as that one."

"I'm listening.", said their Leader.

"Well,", said Digb, "I know from reports and my own research that this Clan does a lot of… experimentation. We won't be up against just regular Troops, I can tell you that. We need a scouting mission, something to see what exactly it is that we're fighting."

ChupilickytwaCT stroked his chin. "I see… unfortunately, that would give away the element of surprise. And that just so happens to be our greatest weapon."

"That is a problem.", said Lord Farcuash. "Yes, if only there was some way to have a reconnaissance mission while simultaneously keeping the effect of total surprise. If only…"

Oticat couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not- it was always quite hard to tell with Lord Farcuash. But he happened to have the perfect idea, and so Oticat spoke up anyway.

"Well, what if we Cloned a batch of our troops and sent them in? That way we can force at least some response, and we trick them into thinking we lost already."

He had said it quietly, but it had gotten everyone's attention.

"Why, I think that's a great idea, Oticat.", said getusomeofthat!, a puff of smoke coming out of his pipe. "We get information and weaken their defenses, and then we can strike with even more surprise."

He stood up, adjusted his pipe, and spread his arms. "I see this as an absolute win!"

ChupilickytwaCT stood as well. "Well then, it's settled.", he said. "Everyone, discuss among your own troops which ones will be Cloned. In exactly 20 minutes, we send everyone in. Once the Clones are destroyed, we will adjust our strategies according to information gleaned, and then take these buggers out."

"And rescue Brandy, right?", Oticat asked.

ChupilickytwaCT smiled. "Of course.", he said, and then snapped his fingers. Or he was about to, when he was distracted by a very odd sound coming from above. "Hog Gliiiiider!", came a distant call.

"What the…", the King mumbled. "What are those?"
"I heard you're going up against some pretty weird troops.", said a voice he had not heard in months. It seemed to come from behind the trees.

"So we brought some of our own.", said another. ChupilickytwaCT strained to place the two voices. They seemed so familiar, yet he couldn't quite remember who they belonged to.

But then, when the two stepped out into the light, his memory was jogged.

"Vin-Vinsent?", he gasped. "DestinedChild? You two came back?"

Vinsent and DestinedChild used to be dedicated Co-Leaders, but had both left the Clan for their own reasons. ChupilickytwaCT couldn't believe they had come back.

The two Kings both posed on each other. "Yes! We are!", shouted Vinsent.

"And we brought help, from far across the sea!", said DestinedChild, and pointed up. The assembled Co-Leaders looked up, and saw a flight of Hog Gliders flying overhead, as well as several Dropships and Healers. "The likes of which you have never before seen!"

"Well, I guess I haven't.", said ChupilickytwaCT. "But I'm sure they'll help."

Then, he snapped his fingers, and the rest of the Co-Leaders were instantly teleported back to their respective tent-wagons. He had some things he wanted to talk about to DestinedChild and Vinsent.

Oticat felt himself dissolve, be remade, and then dissolve again as he was teleported. It was quite a disorienting feeling. Huh, he thought. I wonder if this is how Troops feel when they die in the Arena.

As a matter of fact, it was the exact same feeling minus the slight pain Troops underwent, but that fact was unknown to him. All he knew was that it felt very odd.

Once the effects had subsided, however, Oticat found himself facing all of his Troops in his tent-wagon, looking up at him expectantly.

"Well? What's the plan?", shouted Kars. "Come on, tell us!"

Oticat took a deep breath, and clapped his hands together. "Well. Who wants to get Cloned first?"

Brandy felt an odd sensation, tingling through her entire body. It felt like an Arena death- no, it felt like being played- no. It felt like… like… a Clone.

She opened her eyes, and saw the last remnants of a shattered blue body fade into the floor. But even as it went, Brandy could make out the shape of two things: a mask, and a hood. Someone had Cloned her.

She looked up, and saw the Executioner staring at his axe in bewilderment. She had been Cloned at the exact same moment that the weapon fell, and the short-lived copy had been the one to receive the death blow instead of her.

Good thing Clones don't usually have feelings, Brandy thought, Or I might feel kind of guilty about this.

"What happened?", Ryusei_Nakao69 asked. "Vladamir, what was that?"

"I- I don't know, your majesty.", said Vladamir. "It looked like a Clone, but… there's no one around who would cast it."

The King's eyes narrowed, the long black scars underneath them furrowing. "Indeed. It does seem to be a Blue spell. But who…"

He cast his furious gaze over the room. "Who cast this? Who dares disturb my commands?"

Nobody answered, awkward glances being exchanged. Nobody dared to say a thing. But Rick, in his seat so very close to Brandy, began to lean forward. He spun his sword, adjusting so that the flat of the blade would come down on the swing.

"Well then, do it again, Vladamir.", Ryusei_Nakao69 growled. "Its got to be a fluke- and a fluke won't happen twice."

Brandy racked her mind for anything that could have caused the Clone spell. Could it have been Webert? No, there was no way he could cast spells. Could it have been the man in the brown coat? Perhaps, but he had already left the room. Perhaps, could it have been-

She stopped. Could it have been her Clan?

No, the more rational part of her brain replied. Kurizas said they were all dead.

But what if they weren't?, she thought back. I'm sure Oticat could have come up with something to trick Kurizas. He does not seem like a smart Prince.

Yes, but there were others with him. Even if Kurizas is not the sharpest tool in the shed, one simple trick could not have fooled everyone.

Ah, yes, Brandy thought, but you are forgetting the most important thing.

What?

That stranger? The one in the brown coat? He said everything would be alright.

And you trust him?

Yes. Yes I do.

"Very well, your Majesty.", said Vladamir, and raised his axe again. "This time, I won't miss."

He put down Brandy's hood, in order to get a cleaner target, and his eyes lit up in glee, at the thought of a satisfying kill. But then Vladimir's gaze met Brandy, and he saw something he couldn't quite comprehend.

Brandy was smiling. Here she was, literally seconds away from a painful death with no regeneration, and she was smiling.

Oh well, thought Vladamir. Not my problem.

He scoffed, and let his axe start to fall.

Song: The Hand Theme

Right then, in that moment, several things happened.

One was that Vladamir's axe fell, slicing through the air like a hurricane right towards the top of Brandy's exposed head.

One was that the entire North wall shook in a massive explosion, hurtling chunks of ornate masonwork outwards into the assembled crowd, turning several dozen weaker troops into puddles of Elixir instantly.

Another was the aforementioned explosion knocked dozens of other troops off of their feet, including everyone on the makeshift sacrificial altar that Brandy was. To Brandy's relief, Vladamir's axe flew out of his hands, and stuck in the stone floor.

Another was that a thin line of Blue started to creep across the floor, through the now panicking audience, and began to make its way towards Ryusei_Nakao69. He could see it, one of his many powers as a Leader. His eyes grew wide.

And finally, the last thing that happened within that space of a few seconds was that a charged up shot from a Max Level Sparky blasted through the massive hole in the wall that even more Wall Breakers were still pouring out of, streaked over the heads of the crowd, and detonated with a titanic explosion right at the base of the altar. Everyone on it- Ryusei_Nakao69, Vladamir, Chad, Rick, Chloe, Kurizas, Yaga, Stacy, Veronica, theSenate, Odurawaz, LeChris, and Brandy- were all thrown in a dozen different directions, skidding across the floor from the force of the attack.

But even as Brandy hit her head on the stone, she was ecstatic. Because she knew that she had finally managed to hold out long enough, and that she had been right all this time. Brandy knew that her beloved Clan, LosDementosCT, had arrived at last.

Ryusei_Nakao69 coughed, and looked up through the dust. He could just barely see a trio of Sparkies roll through the hole in his castle's wall, dozens of Battle Ram teams right behind them.

"What is this?", he growled to himself. "What happened? Who are those people?"

He made some dark gesture with his right hand, and a Wizard appeared by his side.

"Give me answers, Timothy,'' he said. "Now."

The nervous Wizard fumbled with his glasses, and stared at the invading Blue army. He made a few quick calculations in his head- he was good at numbers, but very little else.

"Well, sire,", he said. "Those troops seem to belong to a Clan known as LosDementosCT. The very same Clan, if I may mention, as the Bandit you stole recently."

Ryusei_Nakao69 clenched his fist. He had no idea how they were still alive. Kurizas, his own son, had promised him that they had all died. He knew Kurizas well- the Prince was far too unintelligent to lie.

He debated trying to figure out how such a thing could have happened, but decided against it. Far too much was happening for him to focus on such trivial pursuits. Instead, he just decided to gain some information.

"Timothy!", he yelled. "What's our current odds of winning this encounter?"

Brandy sprang up from the floor like she had been shot from a Cannon. Then her vision was overcome by a field of blackness, and she fell back down again, because she had stood up too fast and was rather dizzy. But then she stood up again, this time for real.

"Hey!", she shouted, and jumped up and down, hoping that someone she knew would catch a glimpse of her. "I'm over here! Guys, I'm over here! Over he-"

Then she went silent, as the side of a blade smacked her on the side of the head with immense force and Brandy was knocked out instantly.

Rick scooped her up in his arms, and started looking for the best way upstairs. It wasn't easy to pick one out, with half the Troops in the room running around randomly, and the other half actively trying to destroy everything they saw.

"Rick!", shouted Chad. "What are you doing? We gotta go fight!"

"I'm looking for a secure place to take Brandy!", Rick yelled back, trying to be heard over the immense din. "We'll hide her until after this is over!"

"Why?", Chad hollered back. "She's just a Bandit, Rick! Why are you so concerned about her?"

Rick thought about telling his brother why, but decided against it. He had his own reasons, very good ones, for keeping her safe, but they were too complicated to share now. "Just follow me!", he yelled. "Valeyrie, you come too!"

"Okay!", Chad said. "But this had better be good!"

So Chad, Rick, and Valeyrie all ran upstairs, picking a path through the crowd. Then they're going got a little tough, and they smashed their way through the crowd. Then they at last reached the back staircase and ran up as fast as they could, vanishing into the upper recesses of the Clan Castle.

A wave of Hog Riders entered the breach, with a line of Ice Golems heralding their approach. They shouted their signature battle cry all as one, and charged.

"We got em, Riders!", shouted Vern, one of the leads. "Just keep on pushing!"

The Ice Golem in front of him said nothing. Most likely because it was an Ice Golem, and Ice Golems didn't talk. Or do anything, really.

Chuck smashed his hammer into the head of a Goblin, which exploded into Elixir. A dozen Skeletons all tried to sink their swords into his Hog, but were blocked by the Ice Golem's formidable bulk.

ChupilickytwaCT appeared at the edge of the breach, riding his Baby Dragon. Oticat and Dan were on opposite sides of him.

"I'll meet you lads once this is all over!", ChupilickytwaCT said with a jaunty salute, and took off into the middle of the room. "Let's ride!"

"Dan, where's Brandy?", asked Oticat. "Do you see her?"

Dan quickly scanned the room. "Yes.", he said. "I see her. Right against the back wall. Being carried up those stairs."

His voice was filled with sheer rage, as it had every right to be. But there was more to his inflection- it was bursting with cold hatred, with dark justice.

"Good, go ge-", Oticat started to say, but Dan was already gone. He had practically jumped into the fray, already slashing and hacking his way towards the back wall and the stairs.

"Um, well, your Majesty,", said Timothy, "let me think. We were taken by total and complete surprise, but I think that has just about worn off by now."

He was right- the Troops of TheEvilOverLords were no longer gripped in mindless panic. They had responded to the attack, and were now counterpushing in full force. LosDementosCT had already started to take some losses.

"So right now, I'd say 86%.", Timothy finished. "Of course, that's really just a rough estimate, but-"

Explosions rocked the room, and Ryusei_Nakao69 stumbled. He looked up, and his enhanced eyesight kicked in automatically. He could see the dust coming from the ceiling, almost certainly a by-product of something happening in the upper levels.

"What's going on up there?", he barked. "Timothy?"

Timothy checked his communicator, and his face paled a shade. "Sir, its not just a ground invasion! They're attacking with Balloons, Lava Hounds, Minions- you name it up there! And there's also this other thing- I can't quite make it out- its a-"

"Hog Glider!", shouted a Hog Glider as he flew in majestically through a stained glass window, punching it to bits in the process.

"Yes, that.", said Timothy. "But my point is that this isn't just a random invasion- these are real field tactics, orchestrated by someone with real experience in these sorts of things. Our chances of winning just dropped down to- to 81%!"

"Hmph.", said Ryusei_Nakao69. "Who cares? That's still an optimal percentage."

"Yes,", said Timothy timidly, "But it appears we won't hold that percentage for much longer. Look!"

They both turned their attentions to the front of the room. The Troops under Ryusei_Nakao69's rule had organized by now, and were beginning to fight back. There were Golems crashing against Giants, Ram Riders ensnaring each other constantly, Electro Wizards electrifying Pekkas, Knights vs Barbarians, and dozens of other battlefronts and duels opening up across the entire front of the room. And true to Timothy's word, the attacking force of LosDementosCT did seem to be slowly, but surely, gaining the upper hand.

But despite this, Ryusei_Nakao69 merely closed his eyes, and chuckled to himself. "Oh, Timothy. Did you really think I had not prepared for such an attack? Behold!"
He swept his arms out. "Golems! Defense formation C!"

The Golems had been all up against the back of the wall before the attack had started, so they were currently the ones making up most of the front. Upon hearing Ryusei_Nakao69's cry with their almost, but not quite non-existent ears, they took up formations as one, and stopped.

A solid wall of rock now blocked the entrance to the room.

"There, that'll certainly buy us some time.", said the King. "What's our percentage now?"

"Um, well, it's-", started Timothy, but he never got the chance to answer. Neither King nor Wizard had been paying attention to the sounds of battle- if they had, they would have heard a slow, high-pitched whine begin to build, growing stronger and stronger until-

A huge torrent of shotgun bullets ripped through one of the Golems, spraying chunks of fractured stone in all directions. The hit Golem was destroyed almost instantly, splitting into two Golemnites, which were also turned into Elixir by the storm of sheer firepower.

Shelly strode through the gap in the Golem wall, and repumped her shotgun.

Song: Second Bomb

"Let's go!", she yelled, and took aim at a Dark Prince charging towards her.

Ryusei_Nakao69's eyes widened. "Good Se'th, is that… a Brawler?"

"It would appear so, sire.", said Timothy. "One of very high level, as well. Our chances of winning just dropped to 72%."

Oh, that's not good. Not good at all, thought Ryusei_Nakao69, then raised his arm into the air. "Concentrate all power on that Shelly!", he roared. "I want her destroyed immediately!"

But then, something came through the breach that not only worried the King, but actually scared him. He felt it, really, before the massive presence even came into his sight.

A group of Archers all lowered their bows, about to all fire at Shelly simultaneously, when a huge hand, covered in golden armor, fell from above. The immense blow shook the ground, leaving a crater- and splattered the Elixir of the Archers for several dozen meters with the sheer force of the attack.

Orfox walked through the wall. He didn't walk through the hole that was already there- he actually walked through it, crashing through the thick stone and mortar that had taken a dozen Wall Breakers to penetrate. But he didn't even seem to notice, as he merely leaned down to address Shelly.

"Ay, saw ye were in a bit of trouble there, Shelly.", he boomed, his massive voice echoing across the room.

"No I wasn't.", Shelly said. "I was fine. Those Archers were about to become tortilla soup."

"Well, if ye insist.", said Orfox, and stood back up. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some bloody business to attend to."

His eyes seemed to light on fire, and the power and fury of his voice flowed across the wreckage of the Grand Ballroom like an angry tidal wave. "Who's in charge here?", he roared. "Come and fight me, ya wee coward! I'll break yer bones to nothing, and drink your Elixir raw!"

"Don't say it.", said Ryusei_Nakao69, quietly, so only Timothy could hear him. "Don't-"

"Um, 50, sir.", Timothy said.

"Our those our chances of winning?", the King asked. "For your own sake, Timothy, they had better not be."

"Oh, no.", Timothy said. "Of course not. That's the level of that Barbarian King, sire."

"So what are our chances, then? Hmm?"

"49%, sir.", said the Wizard even quieter. "Those are our chances of winning."

Ryusei_Nakao69 blinked. He looked at the chaos unfolding in his Castle, then considered his options. If he stayed here, he would almost certainly be killed. If he fought, even with his new personal guard alongside him, he would still fall to that thing besieging them. At this point, there was really one thing he could do.

"Timothy,", he said. "Wait here."

"Sire, where are you going?", Timothy said.

"To use that thing my benefactor gave me."

Timothy gasped. "But sire, surely, you couldn't possibly mean-"

Ryusei_Nakao69 looked the Wizard straight in the eye. He was determined to win, and if that meant potentially damaging the fabric of all reality, then so be it. "I do. I mean the Scrambler."

And with that, Ryusei_Nakao69 took off from the shattered head table, and towards a small, decorative pillar in the back of the room that glowed with malevolent light.

theSenate pushed the wreckage of a table off of himself, and erupted into a violent coughing fit that lasted for several seconds. Once it was over, he looked around for any of his troops.

"Hello? Is anyone around me?", he asked. "Could someone carry me away? I believe I hurt my foot quite badly."

After several seconds of silence, a slice of broken rooftop was pushed off of a makeshift shelter. Bailey rose up from within. "I'm here, theSenate."

"Ah, Bailey. I knew you would be here.", said theSenate. "Could you help me? I can't quite move."

Meg stood up from the last-second shelter. "I can help… I think. Here, let me take a look at it."

"Bailey, who is this?", theSenate asked. "I've never seen her around before."

"There really isn't a lot of time to explain, I'm afraid.", said Bailey as, with a massive exertion, managed to lift her King up onto her shoulder. "But this is Meg. She's LeChris's, and she's my friend now. Now let's go. This is a dangerous place."

Bailey and Meg both ran towards the back of the room, frantically searching for a way out, theSenate in tow.

Max stood in the middle of his kitchen, pondering. Even though it was mostly untouched at the moment, Max knew that the main heat of the battle would soon find its way here. And once it did, everything in it, everything that he had worked for, everything that he had worked so hard to preserve, would be gone. That old photo he had of his old life, that he kept secret in a locked drawer he claimed was full of "secret ingredients"? Gone. His mace, that he kept for absolute emergencies? Gone. He could not allow that to happen.

So he did the simplest, yet most effective thing he could have done in that situation. He flipped the sign on the outside window from "Yes, we're Open" to "Sorry, we're closed", shut all the lights off, calmly selected a knife from the drawer, and began to chop vegetables as if nothing was going on.

ChupilickytwaCT lashed out with a borrowed sword, tearing a Guard's head clean from its shoulders. A Goblin took a flying leap and tried to land on his Baby Dragon, but a swift blast of fire took care of it almost instantly.

He wiped the sweat from his kingly brow, and saw something alarming. He saw, at the very back of the room, Ryusei_Nakao69 grasp the sides of a menacing-looking stone pillar, and begin to make strange movements- no doubt some sort of incantation.

"Edward!", he shouted to his son, fighting below him. "I'm going after their Leader! Cover me!"

Edward smartly saluted. "Understood, father!", he said. "I will fight ever the harder!"

King and Prince smiled at each other warmly. Then King took off on his Baby Dragon, and Prince pulled down his vizor, and charged. Or he was about to, before a shape crossed his path. The shape of a Prince. The shape of Kurizas.

The two Princes instinctively began to circle each other, looking for any weaknesses in the other's armor or stance. But both found none- they were both very good Princes, of very high level.

"I can sense it in you.", said Edward, ever gracious. "You know not what you do. Stand aside, and you may yet be spared."

"On the contrary.", Kurizas countered. "I know full well what I do now. I defend my Clan, I defend my father, and I defend the honor of Red."

"Hmph.", Edward said. "Ones that call themselves Red have no honor to speak of. Only cheap tactics, and underhanded trickery."

Kuriza's arm stiffened, and he adjusted the grip on his lance. "I'll make you regret those words, fiend."

"The only thing I'll be regretting,", said Edward as he armed his own weapon, "Is that you will be such a short battle, and totally without enjoyment."

Kurizas didn't have much of a comeback for that one. He wasn't really all that smart. So he just lowered his lance, flipped shut his vizor, and charged. Edward charged as well.

The two Princes streaked towards each other, all the sights and sounds of the intense battle fading to nothing around them. This was a proper joust, a Prince's sacred territory, and nothing would interrupt it.

In their eyes, as they charged towards each other, both Edward and Kurizas could see no fear, or hatred. Only pride, and ferocity. They smiled underneath their vizor, both knowing that their opponent was one they would most likely very much like to meet someday, when they were not too busy hacking each other apart in a kidnapping-induced feud.

The two Princes met each other in a huge crash of steel, edge of spinning lance against rounded plate. The sheer force behind such a charge was one that would knock down a Giant, and it sent both combatants for a loop. Edward and Kurizas both fell off of their horses, rolled across the floor, and dropped their lances. They lay there for a few seconds, and breathed.

Edward could feel the hole in his chest, that was even know growing wider. The edges slowly became Elixir, his lifeblood draining away onto the floor. Fortunately, due to his father's plan, there was enough Blue presence here in order to designate the Castle, however temporarily, as neutral territory. Everyone that died here would regenerate.

He looked up, and saw Kurizas with the same wound, looking right at him. Edward gave him a thumbs up. "Well done.", he said.

Kurizas repeated the gesture. "You too.", he said.

And with that, both Princes dissolved into Elixir and into the floor.

Rick made one last lunge, and reached the top of the stairs. Almost out of breath, he handed Brandy's unconscious body to Chad. "Here, hold her. She's getting heavy."

"Why did you even bring her?", Chad grumbled. "Ryusei_Nakao69 needs her, not us."

"I have my own reasons, Chad.", said Rick. "Just trust me."

"You say that, but you haven't actually told me why.", Chad replied. "Why do you want her so badly?"

Rick started to say something, held up a finger, then stopped. "Okay, can I talk to you for a moment? In private?"

Chad nodded. "Here. Valeyrie. Hold her.", he said, and handed Brandy off to Valeyrie, who awkwardly scooped her up.

Brandy's eyelids started to flutter open. "Wha-", she said, and then Valeyrie smacked her in the face with the flat of her axe, knocking her once more into unconsciousness. "Stay out, you little twerp."

Chad and Rick reached the far side of the room. "Okay.", said Chad. "We're here, in private. What do you have to tell me?"

"Okay.", said Rick. "I'm not sure you'll understand quite where I'm coming from, since you have Valeyrie. But me? I have nobody. I want someone. Therefore, if I just take Brandy for my own, I can finally have a girlfriend."

"Oh.", said Chad. "Well, if that's what you wanted, then why didn't you just tell me, bro?"

"I dunno.", said Rick. "I thought that you would think it was stupid."

"Nah.", said Chad. "You're good."

They bumped fists, smiled, and turned back towards Valeyrie. The first thing they noticed was that Brandy was no longer with her.

"Uh, Valeyrie?", asked Chad. "Where's Brandy?"

Valeyrie picked her teeth with one long fingernail. "Huh? Oh, her. Yeah, I just dumped her in a closet somewhere. Door's locked, so you don't have to worry about that."

"You what?", Rick shouted.

Song: Third Bomb

ChupilickytwaCT flew as fast as he could on his Baby Dragon, towards the back of the room. The wind whipped at his face, and his crown almost blew off, but he refused to slow down now. Whatever Ryusei_Nakao69 was trying to do with his dark arts, it would almost certainly spell doom for LosDementosCT.

Ryusei_Nakao69 finished performing the unlocking ritual to the Darksafe, and his eyes lit up with maniacal glee. He reached in, and took out a long metal rod. It was the Scrambler, a mysterious otherworldly device given to him by his mysterious, otherworldly benefactor. Ryusei_Nakao69 wasn't quite sure exactly what it did, but he was sure it would help him here.

He reached for the top of the rod, flipping back the glass lid as he did so, and saw a large red button.

But he was interrupted by the feeling of something landing behind him, shaking the floor. He turned ever so slightly, and saw ChupilickytwaCT. He jumped off his Baby Dragon, drew his sword, and pointed it at Ryusei_Nakao69. "Drop the device.", he said. "You're cornered."

Dan swung his sword with a mighty flourish, taking a Goblin's head clean off and sending it flying across the room. He was almost to the stairs, just a few more feet to go. He could almost taste the blood of Chad on his blade, almost see the fear in the Elite Barbarian's eyes. Almost. He just had to get there first, to wherever in the Castle those scum had taken Brandy, had taken his best friend. With a pounding heart and burning will, he knew he had to follow through. As he flexed his muscles, and the Star activated, every pulse rippled through his very soul. His veins overflowed with bravery. He was ready to rise, free of doubt, and accept fate.

But then, a Giant stepped in front of him, just as he was about to go onto the stairs.

"Hey, little guy.", said the Giant. "What do you think you're doing?"

Dan didn't waste a second. He breathed in deeply, concentrating the latent energy in the air. It was tainted by the overpowering presence of Red, but it would still do. Once the particles were gathered, he moved them down to his fist, and it began to sparkle with pure energy.

"My heart burns… with the force of a raging Inferno!", he shouted, and brought his fist behind his back. Flames started to grow around it, but he did not burn.

"Wait, wha-", said the Giant, but Dan didn't let him finish.

"Raging Crimson Overdrive!", he shouted, and plunged his Star-infused fist right into the Giant's leg. Powerful spasms of energy traveled through skin, muscle, and bone, igniting the Giant's body as they went. The arcane power of the Star overwhelmed the titan in mere seconds, and he burst into Elixir with a wail.

The purple liquid splashed against Dan, and he growled. Next time, he thought. Next time, it will be him.

And Dan ran up the stairs to finally rescue his best friend.

"Oh, am I?", said Ryusei_Nakao69. "It certainly doesn't look that way."

He held up the rod, and it glowed black under the overpowering red light.

"You see, in my hands, I hold a weapon.", he continued. "I don't know exactly what it does, or where it came from, or even who made it. But I can find out one of those things."

"You're a madman.", said ChupilickytwaCT. "You have no idea what that thing could do. You could kill us all."
"And if I don't use it, I'll die anyway.", said the Red King. "That is a risk I'm willing to take."

ChupilickytwaCT flinched. Such a statement was a twisted version of his own personal philosophy, that there was never any good reason to quit. Because if you quit, you lost for sure. But if you didn't quit, there was still a chance that you might win.

It was that philosophy that drove him now, trying to reason with such an insane individual.

"But who says you'll die?", he said carefully. "If you just turn yourself in now, you'll only go to jail. No death."

Ryusei_Nakao69 was silent for a few seconds, until he finally spoke. "Are you trying to reason with me?"

"Perhaps.", said his opponent. "That really just depends on whether or not you respond well to being reasoned with."

But ChupilickytwaCT could see in Ryusei_Naka69's eyes that it was impossible. There quite simply was no reason in reasoning with the reasonless. So he lunged with his sword, aiming straight for Ryusei_Nakao69's head- and was stopped.

The Red King held up a single hand, making a single evil gesture. A dark wave of force held ChupilickytwaCT in place, courtesy of Ryusei_Nakao69's nearly demonic powers.

"A bold attempt, mortal.", he said, with a voice larger than himself. "But my plans will not be so easily thwarted!"

On the other side of the platform, Kars the Lumberjack jumped into view. He was soaked with blood and Elixir, although most of it was not his own. He saw exactly what was going on, and charged right for the rod. He didn't know what it was, but it looked extremely dangerous.

Ryusei_Nakao69 noticed Kars sprinting towards him at the speed of Rage, and raised an eyebrow.

"You're too late, Lumberjack!", he shouted. "Though you and your King have made indeed a valiant effort, there's no longer anything you can do!"

He flipped back the lid on the rod once more, revealing the big red button. ChupilickytwaCT strained as hard as he could to escape the darkness- and noticed a crack in the shield. Kars put on an additional burst of speed, and got ever closer to Ryusei_Nakao69.

"This is it!", shouted the Red King triumphant. "I'm pushing it… now!"

His thumb clicked down on the button.

There was a clap of thunder, and the entire Castle began to move. Rooms flew through one another, staircases rearranged themselves, hallways disappeared and were made. Entire sections of the Castle teleported, and the Grand Ballroom was completely scattered. Ryusei_Nakao69 caught a passing beam, and flew off into the chaos.

"I- I did it!", he shouted. "It activated!"

Sadie and Elizabeth had been fighting near the entrance, using their Field Longbows to snipe foes with bursts of flaming arrows from across the entire room. But now, once the torrent of confusion had concluded, and the room stopped shaking and moving, they knew not where they found themselves.

"Um, Sadie?", asked Elizabeth. "Where are we? Where did Dad go?"

Sadie pushed her sunglasses up her face. "I don't know. We know not where we find ourselves, remember?"

"What?"

"Never mind. But look, we need to find out what happe-"

Sadie's words were cut short by the sound of scrabbling bones, and chuckling Goblins. She motioned for Elizabeth to get down, and the two Princesses dropped down to the ground, behind a stack of boxes.

"There's not much room in here, Elizabeth.", Sadie said. "We'll probably have to change weapons."

"Right.", said Elizabeth. They both slung their Longbows onto their backs, and withdrew instead their Tower Shortbows.

"We won't have any splash.", Sadie muttered. "Good thing the fire rate can make up for it though… I hope."

Elizabeth knocked an arrow in her bow, and peeked out over the edge of the boxes. A horde of Skeletons and Goblins were pouring through a hole in the wall, and coming straight for them.

Kars fell out of the air and landed directly onto the already smashed ruins of a table, scattering the pieces even further. He looked around, and scratched his head. It sure didn't look like any place he had ever seen- just hallways stretching into total darkness on either direction, bookshelves lining the walls. Traces of dried blood lined certain parts of the floor, and signs of many, many struggles were evident as well. This was clearly a dangerous part of the Castle- but Kars did not care. Lumberjacks were all insane, really, but Kars especially so. He didn't just not fear danger, but actually relished in it.

"Hey!", he shouted, as he shouted everything he said, even when he was whispering. "Anyone there? Foe, I'll tear you to bits! Friend, we can go find someone to tear to bits! Yee ha!"

But as he shouted, he did not notice a mysterious, ominent shadow sneak up behind him, and raise its sword into the air.

Agatha swirled out of her protective bubble, cast at the very last moment. It had been a hasty protective measures against the surely demonic powers of the mysterious object that had warped the Castle so, and seemed to offer at least some physical armor as well. She put her hand to her ear, tapping twice to access the communicator that an Electro Wizard had given her before the journey. It enabled her to speak with everyone else that wore one- about 50 other Troops.

"Hello?", she said. "Can anyone hear me?"

There was no answer. "Hello? Anyone at all? Oticat? Dan? Shelly? Orfox? Kars?"

But still, there was no answer. The power of the Scrambler had cut off all remote communication.

"Blasted thing… won't even work.", she frowned, and turned the device off. It was fortunate that she did, because in that exact moment, Agatha could see a dark shape loom out of the darkness ahead of her, thrusting aside broken bits of stone, and rise to its feet.

"I can smell your mind from here, Agatha.", said the figure. "It smells…"

Yaga leaned forward into the light, and smiled an unnatural grin that almost seemed to spread from one ear to the other. The sight was repulsive, exactly as it had been precisely calculated to be. "Delicious…"

Yaga hobbled forward, and Agatha could very clearly see that her leg had been damaged in the fight. But her staff and eyes glowed ever the stronger for it.

Agatha took a stance. "You... ", she growled. "You're the one that tried to erase Brandy's mind. I saw it."

"Oh, did you now?", Yaga smugly mused. "Well then, I'm sure you're familiar with the process. It will be a simple matter to erase yours."

Agatha's staff lit up, and a trio of Skeletons magically appeared around her. Yaga seemed to be almost totally inexperienced in out of arena combat, judging from her paltry stance- but Agatha could not be too careful. Everything in a Clan like this was considered a trick.

"Mmm,,,", said Yaga as she moved closer, and licked her lips. "I've never had another Witch as my pet before… I wonder what it's like."

Agatha clenched her staff tighter, pulled her cloak around herself, and approached Yaga with fury in her step, and menace in her eyes.

"You think you stand a chance against me?", she asked. "You couldn't even break Brandy."

Yaga slightly flinched. "What do you know about that?"

"I trained her.", Agatha said. "She may be strong in mental combat, but I am even her superior."

Yaga muttered something to herself, then stabbed her staff into the ground. With a familiar sound, a trio of Skeletons clawed their way out of the ground and stood to face Agatha.

"Perhaps.", Yaga said. "But one thing is certain-"

She held up a single finger in front of her face. "I am one level your superior."

Song: Overdrive

Bowza sat, cross legged, in the ruins of what looked like it used to be somebody's bedroom. There was a crushed bed in one corner- that would be a strong indication. But Bowza could never be sure for sure. After all, to him, many things were seen that were not necessarily there to others, and many things understood only by him. Perhaps he was merely imagining the bed, and he was in fact in the quiet wreckage of a library. Either way, however, he was doing something very important.

He was waiting. Waiting for someone to come along, maybe. Waiting for the signal to be given so that he could finally unleash the process that would instigate Operation Tremors, most certainly indeed.

Soon, one of those things did come along. But it was not a signal, it was someone. And that someone was a Troop, and that Troop was an enemy Troop, and that enemy Troop was a Giant, one of particularly high level.

The Giant shuffled forward, close to the ground, his small eyes trying to pick out any foes.

"Hey, anyone here?", he asked slowly. "Cause if there are, come on out. I wanna hurt you real bad."

Bowza felt another presence behind him, simultaneously scrambling and creeping across the rocks. With an icy chill that proceeded it, Bowza could tell it was their own Ice Spirit, Randy.

"Randy.", Bowza whispered in Spirit. "There is a very strong Giant just up ahead. Once I tell you to, I need you to jump directly into its eyes. You got that?"

Randy said nothing, because he was an Ice Spirit. But he nodded, because deep in his ice block of a brain, he understood.

"Good.", said Bowza. "Now let's go."

He floated back down to the ground, out of his cross legged hovering position, and drew back his bow. The Giant was only mere meters away from him.

The bulk turned, in midst of throwing a rock against the wall, and smiled a grin of sadistic glee. "Aw look, there's the tiny person! Hello, tiny person!"

Bowza took aim, without moving any part of his body. The Giant's ear seemed to be inflamed, most likely because of another previous attack. It would be the best place to attack- if he wanted to only annoy the Giant. No matter how badly such a spot was injured, it would only cause superficial damage at most. So he looked other places- and saw the perfect target. Over the Giant's chest, there was a ripped spot in his tunic, and a swollen bit of skin beyond.

Perfect, thought Bowza, and aimed.

As the Giant lunged, Bowza fired the arrow of light precisely at the point where it would hurt most.

Sadie nocked another arrow. She gritted her teeth, poked her upper body above the boxes they were hiding behind, and fired randomly into the horde. She heard the cry of a Goblin fall, be trampled under his fellows, and get flattened into Elixir. She shuddered a bit. Even if these Troops were evil, destroying them forever was a horrible thing to do.

"Sadie, pay attention!", Elizabeth said. "There's still more of them coming!"

She fired an arrow through a hole in their makeshift wall, and pierced a Skeleton right through the ribcage. It shattered from the force, and vanished almost instantly.

But for every foe the sisters struck down, there were a half-dozen more still coming. The rip in the wall that they poured through seemed to have almost no limits to its capacity, nor the source of the tide of enemies.

Sadie dared a longer look over their wall. She slowly raised her head above the rim, and yelped in surprise. Before, there had been almost 100 feet between them and the wall. Now, the nearest rushing Goblin was only about 8 feet away.

She knew there was no time to run away, or space. She also knew that even if they kept firing to the end, it would have no dent on the massive amounts of Troops. There was only one thing they could do.

Sadie swallowed hard, and turned to Elizabeth. "Elizabeth, they're here.", she said. "There's only one thing we can do."

"What?', Elizabeth asked. She almost didn't want to know the answer.

"We have to surrender.", Sadie said. "Surrender, and hope they don't hurt us until someone comes."

She stood up over the box wall, and put her hands into the air. "Hey! Hey! We surrender! We give up."

Elizabeth slowly nocked another arrow, until Sadie shot her a look. Then she dropped the bow, and stood up as well. "Uh, yeah. We don't have any weapons, so I guess you can just leave us alone. Go fight someone else."

Nice touch, Sadie's eyes seemed to say.

Hey, thanks, was Elizabeth's silent reply.

Their plan worked, in their heads. The horde of troops would see that the two Princesses were now no longer a threat, and leave them alone. Then they could escape, and rejoin the fight somewhere else.

But they had underestimated their foe. The Troops of TheEvilOverLords didn't know mercy, or decency. They only knew victory- the crueler, the better. And they were notorious for doing things to defenseless girls who gave themselves up.

The Goblins grinned, and extended their arms forwards. Their eyes glinted with a hungry glee, and drool came from the corner of their mouths.

Elizabeth noticed first. "Uh, Sadie?", she said. "I don't think-"

"-that this plan worked?", Elizabeth finished. "Yeah, I don't think so either."

The Goblins in the front of the group leaped towards them. The Princesses grabbed each other, and couldn't help but scream.

Song: Jonathan Joestar theme

A wave of yellow energy rushed across the front of the Goblin ranks, burning their skin. They fell back, screeching, but were quickly dissolved by the rush of Star. The two Princesses looked up, and saw the glowing figure of Dan in the doorway, illuminated by the bright energy coming from his body.

The lead Goblin, a large Goblin Brawler, hissed at him. "Get him!", he screamed. "They're defenseless, he's the main threat!"

The horde started to run towards them, and Dan did nothing but close his eyes. Close his eyes, and breathe in.

He felt the latent energy of the room, increased by the heat of battle, fill his body. "My body swells…"

He concentrated on the force of the Star, and directed it to his hands. "With pure, unyielding light!"

As one, the horde rose up to attack him, crazed eyes and crazier screams filling the doorway. Dan opened his eyes, and thrust his hands outward. "Storming Yellow Overdrive!"

A huge flash of energy blasted the front fist of the tidal wave, turning the Goblins and Skeletons into purple splatters within the space of a second. It continued, never slowing down, burning the rest of the army like paper in an Inferno. Finally, it reached the Goblin Brawler, who was trying to get away as fast as he could. But it burned over him just as easily as it did all the others, and he, too, dissolved in a flash of yellow Star.

Sadie and Elizabeth watched in shock, then cheered. "Dan!", they said in unison. "What was that?"

"That?", Dan said. "Oh, that was the Star. Bowza taught it to me. Did you two not see that?"

"No…", giggled Sadie. "But maybe you could show us some more."

"Yeah.", said Elizabeth. "Show us some more."

"Maybe some other time.", said Dan. "Right now, I've got to find Brandy-"

He stopped. He looked up, and sniffed the air. He could smell the scent of true evil, not that far away. "He's near.", Dan said. "You two, hide. Right now."

The two Princesses also felt something was wrong. They simultaneously ducked underneath their line of boxes, and both got quiet. They didn't know who "he" was, but from the way Dan said it, they could tell he was someone bad.

Song: Shoot Towards the Decisive Battle

The door on the right side of the room swung open. An invisible, almost imperceptible dark wind blew from it, Dan's senses picking it up almost immediately. A single horned figure stepped through, followed by another. Dan's body bristled. It was him.

"Yo, what was that?", Chad grumbled, as he brushed debris off of his arm."It was like a frickin Earthquake, only way bigger."

"I bet he used the Scrambler.", said Rick. "Don't know what else could have caused it."
"You think?", said Chad. "Cause I sure don't-"

He looked up, and saw Dan, standing in the middle of the room. "Oh. Hello.", said Chad.

Dan had no doubt. This was the one in the picture. This was the- the thing that had taken and violated Brandy. He was sure of it.

"Where's Brandy?", Dan said.

"Brandy- oh.", said Chad, and chuckled. "You're him, then. Dan. The one she was begging for, the whole time."

"Where is she?", Dan screamed, and Chad moved back.

"Woah there.", he said. "Easy, now. We just put her to rest a bit. She'll be fine in a few minutes."

"You'll be dead by then.", Dan growled, and raised a fist. Star faintly swirled around the metal gauntlets. "With the power of the Star, I will-"

"Wait, Star?", said Rick. "The frick is that?"

"With the power of the Star, I can kill Giants and Skeletons Armies with but a single blow.", Dan continued. "I will make short work of you."

Chad smiled. "Oh, come now Dan. We both know that the Star is exponentially more powerful the larger and more numerous your enemies are. I'm only about your size, and there's only one of me. It won't be that strong. I, on the other hand…"

He curled his arms, showing off his prodigious muscles. "I am Chad the Destroyer, finest of all Ryusei_Nakao69's Troops. With one mighty hand, I can hold back Pekkas, and with the other, bring down towers in seconds. Many have tried to face me, to avenge their precious friends, but all have failed. I've killed all of them, and forced the ones they tried to help to drink their Elixir. I've taken stronger opponents than you hundreds of times. I know full well that now won't be any different."

Dan didn't even wait a moment. He didn't really listen to what Chad was saying. Instead, he just started a slow, intense walk towards Chad. This took the Elite Barbarian rather by surprise.
"Oh?", he said. "You're approaching me? Even after all I said? Rather than running away, you're coming closer?"

"I can't kill you without coming any closer.", said Dan simply.

Chad chuckled. "Oh ho! Come as close as you like, then."

Chad took a step towards Dan, and Dan took a step towards Chad. The fire reflected off their eyes, and focused into each other's hearts. Their souls met for a moment, and pushed off of each other again. This meant little to Chad, but Dan had been pushing himself towards this moment for days without rest. This meant everything to him.

Finally, the two met in the middle of the room, right up next to each other.

"Do you have anything to say before we begin?", asked Chad.

"I do.", said Dan quietly. "My name is Dan the Knight, of King Oticat, of Clan LosDementosCT. You kidnapped and raped my best friend. Prepare to die."

Kars stepped up onto a destroyed wall, and stopped. He carefully scanned the area for any sign on any enemy, but found none. Any yet, he could still feel the danger that surrounded him.

Morgan slowly floated towards Kars, approaching him from the back. He was utterly confident in the knowledge that only Kings could see a Royal Ghost once invisible. The Lumberjack had no chance of stopping his assault.

"Where should I go?", Kars shouted to himself. "Maybe I should just go to the front, where all the action is."

Morgan hovered over the rubble, and up to Kars. He slowly raised his sword, over the head of his victim, light glinting off of the edge of the blade.

"Or maybe I should just run around in the back, see what I can find.", Kars hollored thoughtfully, and brought his axe up to his head to help him think.

Morgan brought his ghostly blade down with a mighty slash. It cut through the air with a mighty swing, and hit Kar's axe, which had been accidentally raised to block, with a mighty thunk. The sword bounced off and slid across the ground, just out of Morgan's immediate reach.

Song: Stardust Crusaders

Once Morgan had attacked, he became again visible, much to his slight embarrassment. Nobody had ever been able to block his first strike, or get the drop on him- and now, this Lumberjack had done both sheerly by pure luck.

Kars turned his head all the way around, slow as curiosity, and saw Morgan blinking back at him. And he smiled, a crazed grin that said "hey buddy, I'm just as crazy as you are."

"Hee ha!", shouted Kars, and slashed forward with his hatchet, slashing downwards across Morgan's face. The Royal Ghost screamed in agony, and retreated, holding his face in his hands. Morgan's mind reeled with confusion- how did this Lumberjack deflect his strike so effortlessly? How did just one attack cause him so much damage? And where was this bizarre music coming from?

Kars wasted no time. Almost instantly upon seeing Morgan retreat, Kars advanced. He grabbed his axe and made another swipe, slicing open the ethereal fabric of Morgan's tunic.

Morgan scowled, and held out his hand. Magically, the blade that had been knocked out of his hand vanished, and reformed in his grip. He swung his sword at Kars- but he was just far too slow. Kars ducked out of the way and slashed again, this time targeting Morgan's lower torso.

Morgan's face twisted from the attack, and swung around. This time, he managed to catch Kars by the leg, and send him sprawling across the floor.

But within a second, Kars pushed against the stone ground and sprung back up onto his feet. He spun his hatchet around in his hand, and gave a maniacal laugh.

Morgan decided it was time to disappear. This battle wasn't going too well, and he needed a little bit of time to readjust himself. So he thought of emptiness, of nothing, and of the cold stone of the dark hallways that he spent so much time in. Within seconds, all visual traces of his physical, Elixir-fueled body had vanished, leaving only his ethereal soul.

Kars carefully scanned the room, looking for any signs of Morgan. The Lumberjack was practically a battle genius, and knew all the telltale signs of a hidden enemy. Usually, there was some sort of trace- dust on the floor being disturbed, the smell of life moving around, the ever so faint echoes of footsteps, trying their best to not exist. But for Morgan, he could find none of these.

Morgan carefully considered his next course of action. It would be foolish, of course, to continue the attack. Kars's raw physical might was on a whole different level from Morgan, and seemed to be far too much in a fight. He would have to escape, obviously- but from where?

The north door was too obvious- everyone expected you to flee north. It was the direction the loser King always went; going north for Morgan would practically be instinct. Going west was out as well, because there was a huge rock collapse that was blocking the area. Going east was impossible, because there was no east exit, and Morgan didn't think he could make one. That left only one way- north. There was just one small problem. Kars was standing right in the middle of the north doorway, gleaming axe in one hand, clenched fist at his side.

Morgan knew that he stood no chance against Kars in an open battle. But he also knew that if he just managed to take him by surprise, then it would be a bit more even. It had only been a fluke last time that Kars had managed to block, a complete accident. And, as Morgan thought as he drew closer to Kars, drawing his sword, A fluke won't happen twice.

Kars had no idea that Morgan was coming. There was literally no way that he could detect the Royal Ghost. Not only that, but the strength of Morgan's blows far outclassed those of Kars's. Just one shot to the head to finish it. Just one clean strike, and the Lumberjack would be no more.

So when Morgan raised his sword to strike, his surprise when Kar's fist suddenly streaked forward and slammed into Morgan's cheek was immense. The blow was clean, the line of impact clear and defined. A crack appeared in Morgan's cheek, and he staggered backwards through the air, suddenly again very much visible.

"Millä tavalla…", he gurgled. "Miten lakko maa?"

Kars grinned. "I just took a random shot.", he admitted. "How nice of you to wander right into it!"

Morgan stopped moving, and his eyes narrowed in sheer hatred. How dare this upstart Lumberjack deliver such pain unto him? How dare he attack him so randomly, and receive such luck? How was he, the great guardian of the halls, going to be bested by some Arena-only Troop?

Morgan yelled in fury, and dug his sword out of the ground. He swung it at Kars, only for Kars to totally sidestep the blade, and dig his axe into Morgan's shoulder. Morgan swung again, upwards this time, intending to cleave Kars right in half, only for him to parry the blow with a skillful swipe of his hatchet and fling the weapon aside.

Morgan stretched out his hand again, trying to recall his sword, not even stopping to realize what an open target that made him. Kars did, however, and his eyes twinkled with jolly, murderous intent as he spun his axe around in his hands, and thrust downward.

Their eyes met, for just half a second. Oh, I've really messed up this time, haven't I?, Morgan's seemed to say.

Yep, replied Kars. I think you have.

The razor-sharp axe blade sliced directly through Morgan's arm, separating it from the rest of his body with barely even a whisper. The detached arm flopped onto the ground and melted, yet Morgan did not yet become Elixir. He gasped at such a massive injury, and he pulled his arm closer. But even as he did so, even as he cradled his stump in his arm, he could see the menacing shadow of Kars fall over him.

"Vara ... varaa minut ... Juoksin vain pois ja piilotan jossakin täällä linnassa.", gasped Morgan. "Sinun ei tarvitse murehtia minua vastaan, lupaan. Ole hyvä, älä tappaa minua."

"Oh, please,", said Kars, and dropped his axe. What he was about to do required both hands. "I've seen what you did to people."

He leaned closer, and Morgan's eyes grew wide with fear. "Did you really think such a fate…"

Morgan saw his chance, and he took it. He slashed at Kars's face with his extra long fingernails- and they shattered into bits upon contact with just Kars's cheek. The Lumberjack didn't even flinch- he just kept on talking. "...awaited scum like you?"

"Sinä - olet hirviö!", Morgan shouted, and tried again to stab Kars with what he had available- nothing more than just a broken piece of rock that he had found on the ground.

"Chop chop!", Kars bellowed, and hit Morgan with two punches, both at lightning speed. They hurt, but it was just a taste of what was going to happen next.

"Chopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchop!", Kars roared, and flung a torrent of punches. Each one hit Morgan on either the face or the chest, each one flinging him around like a sack of potatoes.

"Chopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchop!", Kars yelled, and pummeled Morgan again, this time alternating strikes on each side of the head, with both fists. Blood sprayed from the Royal Ghost's mouth as his jawbone and skull were shattered, but Kars was not even close to being done.

"Chopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchop!", Kars screamed, and directed his punches towards Morgan's chest. Every few punches, the smack of the hard blows was accompanied by the harsh crack of another rib being broken.

Kars paused for only a second to collect himself, and take a deep breath, before jumping back in. "Chopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchopchop!", he roared, slamming wild fists onto Morgan's already shattered body with reckless abandonment. He knew that the Royal Ghost had no chance whatsoever of surviving this, but he wanted to be absolutely sure.

Kars grabbed Morgan by whatever mangled hunk of flesh counted as his hand at this point, and threw him up into the air. "TIIIIMMMMMBBBEEEERRR!", he shouted as he barraged Morgan's collapsed and shattered torso with yet more punches, each faster and more enthusiastic than the last.

Once Morgan was launched into the rafters, Kars jumped up after him. He grabbed the front of the broken Ghost's shirt, flung him down with Kars actually riding on top, and resumed his barrage.

"ChopchopchopchopchopChopchopchopchopchopChopchopchopchopchopChopchopchopchopchopChopchopchopchopchopChopchopchopchopchop!", he yelled, anger tinting his blows, each strike propelling both him and Morgan downwards, then through the floor and onto the level below, right next to a large stone column that looked an awful lot like a Crusher.

"Hee ha!", Kars screamed one last time, and delivered one final punch to Morgan, using up the last of his ferocious energy for now to do so. The mangled near-corpse of the Royal Ghost flew towards the Crusher, various holes across his body and streaming ribbons of blood, and landed right in it. The stone pillar fell with a mighty crack, and the body of Morgan sprayed into nothing but purple rain across the entire room.

Kars dropped to his knees, and breathed in and out. His colossal attack rush had taken a lot out of him. He put his hand out to his side- his axe would come flying to him, soon enough. In the meantime, he could just take a deep, refreshing drink from his bottle of Rage, and he would be all ready to go again. Just as soon as he took a drink. But before that, he thought he would close his eyes a bit. Just to rest…

Song: Throwing

Shelly leaped off of an overturned bookcase, loading her gun with a fresh round of bullets as she did so. Once she landed, a door fell in front of her, split down the middle. The one glowing eye of a Mini Pekka illuminated the dark room with an eerie red light. "PAN. CAKES.", it said metallically.

"Yeah, you're not getting any.", said Shelly, and lowered her gun. "Maybe next time, though."

The Mini Pekka raised its sword as it clamped closer. As soon as it was within striking distance, Shelly pulled the trigger on her shotgun, and fired. A hail of bullets blasted from the barrel and ripped through the air, slicing right through the metal of the Mini Pekka's skin. It screamed in all the agony it could feel, them fell to the ground.

"PAN. CAKES….", it said sadly, then fell apart and dropped through a fracture on the ground, just a flow of purple liquid.

Shelly pumped her fist in victory. "Yes!", she said with excitement. "That makes 50! I can't wait to tell Orfox, he'll freak!"

She swung her gun up to her shoulder, preparing to run. A bolt of pure electricity suddenly arced from behind a crushed doorway and struck Shelly in the face, sending a sharp bolt of pain through her and sending her backwards a couple of feet.

Hastily, Shelly redound her bearings, and drew herself to her feet. With a quick scan of the room's crumbled interior, it soon became apparent that there was something hiding behind the door frame. She couldn't actually tell what it was- but she would find out soon enough. She just needed to reload her gun, then blast the door open, then kill whoever was behind it, then make another list of things to do. Shelly liked lists.

She pulled back the bolt action on her giant shotgun, born of her half-Hunter heritage. A chamber opened deep within, and another load of bullets would have ratcheted neatly into the firing chamber had twin bolts of lightning not fired from the wall and into her gun, resetting the entire process completely.

"You…", Shelly spat. "What are you?"

Unknown to her, there was a chamber behind the door that was just barely large enough for one person. Inside it was Ryusei_Nakao69's own Level 11Electro Wizard, Tsarsus. He had his hands placed on some torn wiring, able to fire bolts of thunder anywhere in the room. With another devilish grin, his hands pulsed white, and two more electric charges hit Shelly in the arm.

But even though it hurt to do so, Shelly raised her gun, and swept her vision across the room. She couldn't see anything, or anyone, that moved. Her life's experience had taught her to be wary of any sign of danger, but there was nothing. Nothing at all, except…

Except for a faint yellow light, coming from somewhere next to the door. Even though this castle was indeed very odd, Shelly reckoned that a glow like that had to come from a complex source. And whatever source was complex enough almost certainly was whatever was attacking.

Shelly raised her gun again to fire, but it's loading process was interrupted once again by Tsarsus's electric interference. Soft, maniacal laughter echoed from somewhere unmarkable, maddingly just outside Shelly's reach.

"You think you've got me trapped, huh?", Shelly said, and raised her gun. Tsarsus quickly reset the loading- but Shelly wasn't going for shooting this time. Instead, she swung her gun around like a club, smashing a hole in the drywall and exposing the spot where Tsarsus lay in ambush. Upon seeing her, the grin on his face vanished, replaced with the slowly dawning face of regret.

Bowza's arrow pierced through the Giant, right in the middle of his lower stomach. It roared in pain, and staggered backwards. The middle of a Giant's lower stomach was notoriously sensitive, and having a burning arrow of light stuck in the middle wasn't probably helping much.

"You dare hurt Fred?", he bellowed. "Fred no like being hurt! Fred smash you!"

Bowza leaped backwards, just over the top of Randy's head. "Unusually stupid, isn't he, Randy? Even for a Giant."

Randy said nothing, because he was an Ice Spirit. But he nodded in agreement, and fixed his eyes on Fred's head. He had only one shot, and he knew it. He knew it as a spirit.

"Remember Randy,", said Bowza, "hitting the right spot it absolutely key. Without it, our whole plan falls apart."

Randy laughed.

"It's not funny, Randy.", said Bowza. "Really, its not that funny at all."

He nocked another arrow, because Fred had recovered from the blow and was now coming closer. "Fred beat you to a pulp!", he bellowed, face red from the sheer animalistic fury. "Fred rip you into tiny bits!"

"Sure, buddy.", Bowza said, and prepared to fire. "Sure you will."

He let loose his magical bowstring, and the arrow of light shot forward and pierced straight through the Giant, leaving a hole about the size of a coin. Fred's face tightened in pain, and he lashed out. He didn't care that he was not even remotely within range of Bowza, he just wanted to attack.

But even though he was still around 30 feet away, the sheer force of Fred's mighty blow still had an effect. The ground rippled as if hit by an Earthquake, and the vibrations reached all the way to Bowza. He jumped up into the air to avoid the strike, and landed on a broken windowsill that led out into open air.

He took another look at the Giant. Now that Bowza thought about it, Fred certainly didn't look like a regular Giant. His muscles bulged with unnatural force, and what appeared to be small pistons and wires adorned certain parts of his body. He must have been subject to some of Ryusei_Nakao69's bizarre Troop experiments.

"Crush you!", Fred screamed, and turned a small knob on his chest all the way to the right.

Oh, that can't be good, thought Bowza. And he was right.

As soon as Fred stopped turning the knob, a pulse of red flowed out from it, covering his entire body. His muscles swelled to even further proportions, and his eyes glowed with sheer, uncontained Rage.

"Uuuurrraaahh!", Fred bellowed, being unable to even form words at that point. The pure adrenaline flowing through his body was too much to contain. He leapt straight for Bowza, one hand outstretched in a colossal fist.

Bowza watched him grow closer, each mighty step pushing him further along the floor. Craters formed with each step, and a fire broke out mysteriously from somewhere behind him.

Closer…, Bowza thought. Closer… come on…

Finally, Fred was within mere meters of Bowza. He roared something incomprehensible and threw his fist straight at Bowza's head.

"Randy, now!", shouted Bowza, and ducked to the side. Randy appeared from behind his cloak and hopped right into Fred's eyes. There was a confused bellow, and Fred grabbed his eyes. But they were already frozen, and Fred's vision had been temporarily stolen. Still storming ahead, he crashed through the spot where Bowza had been just moments earlier, groping randomly for him, only to break through the window behind, slip through, and fall screaming out into open air.

Bowza listened to the bellow of confusion and pain as Fred fell seven stories, then smashed into the ground. When he heard the wet slap of an Elixir splash, he was sure his foe had died.

Bowza turned, closed his eyes, and pushed out his hand into the air. "Good job, Randy.", he said. "Once I get back home, I will give you my personal congratulations."

He turned to leave, and go to the next room. But he never got the chance.

At the bottom of the fall, Fred lay, still very much alive. The Elixir pop had come from an unfortunate bundle of Archers that he had landed upon, crushing them all to splatters instantly. His head pounded from the fall, and blinding rage still refused him judgement. He couldn't even control himself at that point- one arm just randomly lashed out, slamming into and across the wall. The blow shook the foundations of the tower, and the walls began to crumble.

Bowza felt the room shake, and he looked out the window. He saw Fred bash the wall again, and slowly start to get up.

How did he live?, Bowza thought. I heard him die. Such a thing seems quite bizarre…

But there was no time to just sit around and think. Fred still needed to be killed.

Song: Fight to Antagonize

Tsarsus raised his hands in defense, and conjured up a beam of electric force. It slammed into Shelly, and almost sent he reeling backwards. But with sheer force of willpower, Shelly managed to stand her ground. "You know, Electro Wizard...l-" she began, "Really don't think that you thought this through."

Tsarsus took a visible step backwards. His fingers ran with electrical energy, sparks flying off nervously. "Oh?", he asked, in a voice that seemed damaged by electrical force.

"Yeah.", Shelly said. "You see, even though you can reset my gun, you can only do it every few seconds. Which means that if I just set it to rapid-fire mode, there's nothing you can do."

Thinking quickly, Tsarsus launched a blast of electricity at Shelly's blaster. But unlike before, nothing happened. What?, he thought.

Shelly pointed her gun right at Tsarsus's face. "Wondering when I could do it, Are you? Yeah, I already have."

Tsarsus realized, in that half-second, that of all the things he could have done, Random Sniping Crew was most likely not the most important.

"Arrriariariariariariariariariariari!", Shelly shouted as she squeezed her guns's trigger, sending a cyclone of bullets directly into Tsarsus's chest. He screamed, and started to fall apart. "Ari!", yelled Shelly one last time, and fired a particularly vicious blast that split Tsarsus wide open, sending his Elixir splatting against the walls. His scream of pain hung temporarily in the air before fading into total oblivion.

Shelly Set her gun on the floor and leaned up against it, stopping to take a breath. After such a loud, enthusiastic barrage of attacks, a good rest was in order. "I wonder how Orfox is doing.", she thought. "He's probably doing pretty well."

She waited for several more seconds before silently getting her gun into battle position and running off again, into the darkness that was Ryusei_Nakao69's Castle.

Agatha locked eyes with Yaga. "You think that matters?", she said quietly. "You boast about your higher level, when I have an advantage that matters far more?"

"Oh? What?", Yaga asked.

"There's a Lumberjack right behind you.", she said. "And he wants to kill you."

Yaga spun her head around, and saw, running at top speed right at her- nothing. There was nobody there. No Lumberjack, and certainly not one that wanted to kill her.

"Oh, I don't think so-", she started to say, then stopped, as she immediately smacked in the cheek by the head of Agatha's staff. The blow forced her to stagger backwards a few steps.

"Oh, you think you're tricky?", she snarled, and lowered her own weapon. A blast of purple, more red than blue, shot out from it and connected right with Agatha's own shot, which was more blue than red.

"I am tricky.", Agatha said. "I have far more tricks up my sleeves than you can possibly handle."

She spun her staff, shooting a small storm of miniature bullets of magic. They smacked against Yaga, tearing small rips in her clothes and skin.

"You think tricks matter to my power?", Yaga growled. "Take a good taste of this!"

She spun her staff around, and smacked it against the ground. Normally, such an action would have summoned only three Skeletons, but this was not a normal battle, and Yaga was not an ordinary Witch. Her special technique, honed from years of practice, summoned a horde of 6 Skeletons instead. "Take a good taste!"

"Yaga, do you really think that I would be bothered by mere Skeletons?", Agatha asked. "Watch."

She fired a few quick blasts from her hands that streaked into the bony ranks, destroying all of them at once. Then she gave her own staff a twirl, and summoned her own trio.

"It's the same to me.", said Yaga. "I don't care about your little buggers, either."

She flicked her hands, and shot just one thin beam that broke all of Agatha's Skeletons to bits, their Elixir vanishing instead of just seeping into the ground.

"Well then.", said Agatha, and raised her hands in front of her. Light purple lightning began to accumulate within them. "Let's settle this like real Witches."

Yaga raised her own hands, and dark purple lightning began to crackle around her.
"Yes. Let's."

They both paused for a moment, taking in as much energy as they could. Then they shouted angrily simultaneously, and fired.

Song: Virtuous Pope

Dust rained down from the low, narrow ceilings, right onto Meg. She peered ahead through the smoky darkness, but couldn't really see anything. She squinted her eyes- still nothing, save some random sparks from a cut wire.

"Meg, you see anything?", came the voice of Bailey from behind her. In a Dash and a flash, the Bandit appeared, still holding theSenate. "Any way out of here at all?"

"Uh, no, I'm afraid.", Meg admitted. "I don't really see much of anything at all, besides just dust and smoke…"

Bailey squinted her eyes, and moved up closer. Meg awkwardly got out of her way, and Bailey leaned theSenate up against a broken dresser. He groaned, and almost fell over.

"Don't worry, he's just unconscious.", said Bailey. "He's fine. Let me see…"

She stared through the darkness, looking for anything that might be important. Bandits had very keen eyesight, especially in dark places and when looking for anything shiny. So the shine of an Outside doorknob, through a haze of smoke in a dark hallway should have been easy for Bailey.

And it was- through the purple haze, she could see a door to Outside.

"Okay, I found one.", she said, and pointed forward. "Meg, grab him. Let's move."

Meg tried to hoist theSenate into her arms, but she was far too nervous. Her hands shook like there was an Earthquake, and she couldn't quite grab hold.

"Meg, let's go!", Bailey shouted, exasperation in her voice.

"I'm trying, I'm trying!", Meg shouted back, but she wasn't really getting anywhere. The more she tried to hold on to theSenate, the more nervous she got, and the more her hands shook. It was clear that she could not do it.

"Meg, you're useless.", said Bailey harshly. "Let me do it."

Meg recoiled, and Bailey could see the hurt etched on her face. The Bandit immediately regretted her choice of words.

"Hold on, I didn't- I didn't mean it like that-", Bailey said, but she could see Meg's eyes already watering up. "Hold on, you're fine-"

"No, no, you're right.", said Meg. "I am useless. I can't shoot, I can't fight, I can't even pick something up right!" Her face reddened, and Bailey winced.
She pulled her helmet on tighter, and slapped her gun against her chest. She looked up, and tried not to cry. "Bailey, go on without me. I'll just fight until I die."

Bailey grabbed Meg's gun, and set theSenate aside. "No, no, hold on. You're not useless. You're my friend, remember?"

"I… I am?", Meg asked. Her fragile countenance struggled between breaking and holding, and her fingers started to tremble. "Really? But I'm so useless…"
Bailey stared Meg right in the eyes. "Meg, listen to me. I want you to listen to these words, and really listen to them."
"I'm listening.", said Meg, and met Bailey's eyes. Her heart started to beat faster, as she stared deep into the green and slight red.

"You. Are. Not. Useless.", said Bailey, making sure to carefully enunciate every word. "You are valuable, and you are appreciated. Now let's get out of here."

Meg's face turned slightly redder, and a small grin crept up her face. "Okay."

Bailey let go of Meg, and grabbed theSenate. "Let's move!"

Meg saluted sharply. "Yes, ma'am.", she said, and started to run after her friend.

The two sprinted as fast as they could through the rapidly collapsing hallway, only narrowly managing to avoid chunks of falling stone and twisted metal. A Goblin fell screaming out of a broken window, and splattered into Elixir right in front of them. Shouts of battle echoed from all around them, each indistinguishable against the general chaos and noise. Finally, they reached the door, and Bailey grabbed the doorknob. She took a moment to breathe, just to rest.

She turned to Meg, and grinned maniacally. "Well Meg, we did it. We're saf-"

But Bailey never got the chance to finish her sentence. Because as she was talking, both she and Meg forgot to keep a close eye on their surroundings. A huge chunk of stone had come loose from its bearings with a mighty crack, and came down directly onto Bailey and theSenate with an equally mighty thoom, killing them both instantly.

It took Meg just a moment to comprehend what happened. Here, her friend that even though she had only known for a few hours, was already feeling like a sibling to her, had been crushed and killed. Completely out of the blue, right in the middle of her sentence, just as they had been about to escape. And Meg knew that TheEvilOverLords was losing this battle. Their influence would be destroyed, and Bailey would be gone forever.

Meg kneeled before the huge chunk of stone that had stolen her friend's life. "Bailey…", she whispered hoarsely. "No…"

She slammed her hand against the stone, and screamed. "Bailey!"

Meg screamed her heart out, until her lungs were exhausted. And then, the tears started to flow. Thick, ugly tears that ran down her heaving face, and dripped upon the floor. They mixed with the flowing Elixir that was once her best friend, ran down the leaning ground, and poured off into parts unknown. And Meg covered her face with her hands, and sobbed on the grave, as sparks flew around her, and battle continued, not caring about her sorrow.

Dan and Chad stared at each other, for several long seconds. Pure hatred poured from Dan's eyes, unmatched in its fury across the entire planet. Chad stared back, a massive force of sheer evil, a cruel uncaring gaze dancing across Dan. Finally, he spoke.

"So, are we gonna do this or wha-", Chad began, but was swiftly cut off. Dan's sword cut upwards, slicing towards Chad's face. He quickly brought up his own, and blocked the blow. The ring of silver steel rolled across the room, shaking the windows. Dan growled, and pushed upwards, slowly forcing back the Elite Barbarian's blade.

"You disgraced a maiden's honor, beast.", Dan spat. "For that, you will be erased."

"All I did was work.", Chad said back. "Any delusions of a Bandit's maidenhood are yours and yours alone."

Chad lunged back and swiped upwards, sending Dan back. He swung his sword in a circle and brought it up near his face, and Chad did the same. Both of their fighting styles seemed to be equally matched- but Dan had not yet even begun to fight.

"My sword is burning…", he said, and breathed in. The Star filled him once more, and a soft blue and gold light started to stream into him from all directions. "With the force of a thousand raging suns!"

Chad cast a sideways glance at Rick. He wasn't sure exactly how this battle was going to go, and if he needed Rick to step in, he had to tell him now, before things got too out of hand.

Yo, Rick, he said with his eyes. If I give the signal, you and Valeyrie help me.

Really, bro?, Rick blinked back. You, need help against just a little Knight? He's not even level 10!

Yes, but…, thought Chad, that Star of his certainly seems formidable. I'm not sure what it is, exactly, but it doesn't seem like anything I'd like to mess with.

"May the gods and the Star guide my blade,", Dan finished up, "and bring me victory today!"

The Star that he had been building up flowed into his sword, and it glowed a brilliant gold, flooding the room in holy light. He swung it into an attack position, and shot a fierce glare at Chad. "Let's begin.", he said.

Chad slowly approached him, swinging his own blade by the base of the hilt. "Your powers may be impressive, Dan.", he said, trying to intimidate his opponent. "But you are still just a Knight, one with 50% less HP than before. And I am an Elite Barbarian, the strongest of the strong, the quickest of the quick. Do you really think you can fight me, Dan? Can an insect ever fight a man?"

Dan concentrated power in his arm, preparing to strike. A bead of sweat dripped down his brow, as the heat from his Star-infused blade reached him. "My Star training has pushed me far past the limit of any normal Knight, Chad. I have even managed to overcome the nerf you mentioned. You are the insect here."

Chad smiled. The two had reached each other once again. "Really? Do you really think your meager training could help you? The product of a few short days, while I have had a lifetime to perfect my strength and skill in combat? Your Star training is useless! It's useless, useless, useless!"

They sized each other up once again, trying to look for any weaknesses. But upon finding none, they both swung into attack.

Song: Virtuous Pope, KiraraMagic remix

"Oraoraoraoraoraoraora!", Dan yelled, and swung his sword in a flurry of movements that would have confounded even a Lumberjack with their strength and speed.

"Useless, useless, useless, useless, useless!", Chad roared in return, swinging his much longer, heavier blade in order to block Dan's attacks.

The two masters of combat threw their blows at each other with such incredible force that shockwaves began to be produced. Strength far beyond what they would have in any mere Arena collided with the other, silver swords clashing in a flurry of angry steel. Yet through the storm, they stared at each other's eyes. One was still filled with hatred, and the other with mere evil glee.

Sadie and Elizabeth could feel the power surging from the center of the room, but they did not dare to look. They could sense that if they drew any attention to themselves whatsoever, bad things would happen. Very bad things.

"Should we help him?", Elizabeth whispered. "Does he need it?"

Sadie put out an arm to stop her sister from doing anything potentially rash. "No. There's still two more people out there. Remember, we sense that if we draw any attention to ourselves whatsoever, very bad things will happen, right?"

Elizabeth gave Sadie a confused look. "What?"

"Eh, just forget it.", waved Sadie. "We should really just shut up and watch."

Dan was the first to break off his attack rush. He backflipped onto a broken bed, and raised his sword into the air. A deep sound came from his throat- not quite a yell, not a roar, not a scream- it was something else. The Star started to cycle around his sword, off of the blade, and into his fist. Veins of yellow became visible in his arm, and his eyes glowed with sheer strength.

Chad tried to run towards him, but he wasn't quite fast enough, and he didn't get too far. By the time he had reached the bed, Dan already had a fist pointed at him, and ready to fire.

"The Star runs through me, like a river of blood!", Dan shouted, and his hand glowed. "Cannon Fist-"

Chad grabbed Dan's hand, and yanked him off of the bed. Without letting go, he smashed the Knight into a pillar, sending bits of wood flying across the room, then slammed him onto his back onto the ground.

"You shouldn't make such big speeches while you're fighting, boy.", said Chad. "It leaves you vulnerable-"

Then he noticed something. Even though he had just slammed and threw Dan around like a sack of potatoes, Dan still had a grip on his arm, and his own arm was still glowing. And he was also still conscious, even barely hurt, and looking up at Chad.

Song: Jonathan Joestar theme

"Overdrive!", Dan yelled, and directed the energy outwards from his palm. It slammed directly into Chad's arm with a crack, sending painful waves of energy through the rapidly burning flesh. Intense pain shot through Chad, and he groaned unwillingly. Smoke rose from his arm, now half cooked. "Why, you little-", Chad spat through blood, and swung his sword. It connected firmly with Dan's own, brought up just in time to block the blow.

"Metal is a perfect conductor!", he said, and narrowed his eyes. "The Star flows through me, through your blade… and right into you! Metal Silver Overdrive!"

In a flash, even before Chad could blink, pure energy rippled outwards from Dan's body, through their touching swords, and into Chad's unburned arm. The skin on it ripped, bits lifting off and turning to ash. Other parts melted into boiling flesh, sizzling as they fell to the floor.

Chad yanked his arm back and howled in agony. His mind swirled as he thought of how this could have happened. Dan was just a Knight, and an underleveled one at that. The Star seemed easy enough to avoid, yet still Chad had just been hit by two equally devastating blows.

But the why and how aside, it was clear that Chad couldn't win this fight honestly- so it was time to do exactly what he did best, and cheat.

"You know, you're pretty strong.", he said through gasps to Dan. "Do you think… that maybe… after this is all over… you could just join us?"

Dan snarled, repulsed at the very thought. "How dare you even suggest such a thing?", he roared, and slashed the air in front of him. "I would never join a dead man's side!"

"The only dead man here, Dan…", said Chad slyly, "is you!"

He grabbed a half dozen bottles of Elixir from a smashed open cupboard, and flung them at Dan. Dan spun his sword, smashing the bottles to bits, but this was exactly what Chad wanted. The magical liquid within them was freed by the destruction of its container, and splattered all over Dan's face. It got in his eyes more than any other place, forcing them closed and useless.

"How do you like being blinded by Elixir?", Chad shouted, and lunged forward. He could still use his burnt arms, although it was very painful to do so. "I've won! Die!"

He swung his sword right at Dan, aiming for the heart. Dan somehow managed to raise his sword in the exact right place to partially block the blow, turning Chad's sword so the flat of the blade would knock him backwards instead of the edge cutting him open.

Dan staggered backwards, and fell against the wall. The trail of Elixir from the spilled bottles reached all the way to Chad in a thin purple ribbon across the floor.

"Look at all that Elixir, wasted.", Chad said. "Just like you. You tried so hard to get me."

Dan raised his sword in defense, and slowly stood up. "Elixir…", he said.

Then, despite the ferocious sting of the Elixir, he opened his eyes, and glared at Chad with all the force he could muster. "Elixir is a perfect conductor!"

Dan plunged his hand into the pool of Elixir by his side, and it lit up gold. "Elixir Purple Overdrive!", he yelled, and channeled as much energy as he could muster.

Oh great, not again, thought Chad. It was an oddly calm thought, despite the circumstances.

The flood of Star energy punched through Chad's foot like a Spear, then continued up his body. It affected everywhere that had been covered by the Elixir, burning away the skin and damaging the raw tissue underneath. Chad roared in pain, and collapsed to his knees. His eyes flew shut, and his muscles clenched in agony.

Dan got up, and heaved a huge breath. Using so much Star energy in such a short time had taken a lot out of him- maybe he could take some more lessons from Bowza later. Right after he rescued Brandy- come to think of it, where was Brandy? He had come up here because he had seen Chad take her, but now, she was nowhere to be found.

Okay, are you sure you don't want help?, thought Rick. Because it really looks like you do.

Oh, don't worry bro, thought Chad. Believe me, I got him on the ropes.

Rick looked at Dan, heavily winded but otherwise fine. Then he looked at Chad, approximately 3/4th of his skin burned off and blood dripping from his entire body. He didn't think Chad had the situation even remotely under control, but Rick did trust his brother with his life. So he would stay back, and just see what happened.

Dan slowly walked up to Chad, gathering some more Star energy in his hand. He had almost been out with that last attack- he would not make the same attack again. Once he reached his foe, he grabbed Chad by the neck and leaned down to look in his face. "Where…", he hissed, making sure to inject each word with as much menace as possible, "Is... Brandy?"

Ryusei_Nakao69 landed on his knees on a floor of burnt ash, sliding backwards among the dust. There was no sound around him, no movement, and nearly no light- no evidence of battle of any kind. And yet, he could sense the chaos going on in his castle. He could see within him dark mind's eye dozens of separate fronts opening up, all across the entirety of the property, and several outside as well. But that small fact didn't bother him- no, what did was that somehow, the forces of Red seemed to be losing.

"This is certainly a situation…", he muttered to himself, and stood up. He brushed the ash off his sleeves, and peered ahead into the darkness. "I wonder if I can get anyone on my communicator."

He checked his Kingly device, quickly pulling up the contacts of all his co-leaders. The communicator had a function in which it told him the current status of all his contacts, ranging from active to dead.

theSenate- Dead

LeChris - Currently unavailable

Odurawaz - Currently unavailable

Thebaldbalancer- Currently on vacation

Ryusei_Nakao69 cursed inwardly, and outwards as well. He scrolled down the list to see his Elders, hoping that perhaps one of them could be reached.

JohngotHurt - Dead

Markhammak - Dead

TImeERaser- Currently unavailable

WLIAS - Currently unavailable

PerfectCell - Dead

Scarred Iron - Currently unavailable

BlackPhantom - Dead

Ryusei_Nakao69 scraped his hands across his face in frustration, leaving a thin trail of blood. He almost couldn't believe that all of his co-leaders and all of his elders were unreachable all at once. Then again, he almost couldn't believe that his castle was being invaded by a Clan several thousand trophies lower than them- and losing to the invaders. These certainly were strange times…

He was about to scroll down to his Members, when he saw one of the readouts change. He cast his eyes upwards- LeChris was currently online and available.

Hurriedly, he scrolled back upwards, positioned his thumb over the area, and was about to press- when he saw a flash of movement out of the upper corner of his vision. He looked up, and saw a Baby Dragon touch down. ChupilickytwaCT hopped off of its side, drew a sword, and charged.

Veronica drew back her bowstring until it was taut, took aim, and released. The arrow flew straight and true, right through a hanging sheet, underneath the arm of a Giant, and hit a Barbarian right in the face. He groaned and fell over, then dissolved.

"Alright, sister!", Stacy said, and they high-fived. "That's one down, only around… a lot more to go."

"Less talk, more firing!", snapped Veronica, and Stacy's encouraging smile faded. They both started to shoot again, in silence.

Then Veronica saw a Bowler stumble down a staircase behind them, and look around in semi-drunken confusion. She quickly checked the rocks on his ball- he was Red. That was good.

"You there! Bowler!", she shouted, and waved her hand towards herself in a kind of come here gesture. "Get over here and support us, you useless idiot!"

Webert glanced at the two Princesses, currently sniping down from a spotlight lookout and down onto a huge room, filled with clashing Troops. He looked down at his ball, then back at the Princesses, then he grinned.

"Quite right, your Majesty!", he bellowed. He saluted smartly, picked up his ball, took a massive step towards them, hoisted the huge boulder up into the air, and then let it fall, crushing them both into flat puddles of Elixir.

"Hey, you guys!", he whispered, not quite sure why he was doing so. "It's safe to come out now."

An Archer peeked around the corner, scanned the area, then turned back to her newfound friends. "Let's go.", she said, and a bunch of different Troops, all in various states of disarray, sneaked out of the door that Webert had just come from. They had been prisoners just until a half hour ago, when Ryusei_Nakao69 had activated his Scrambler and thrown the entire Clan Castle into utter chaos.

There was, in addition to the previously mentioned Archer, a Hunter, a pair of Rascal Girls, an Ice Golem, a very tired Barbarian, several Ice and Fire Spirits, a single Dart Goblin, and a Mini Pekka. But behind all of these was a familiar Musketeer, cloak drawn over her tear-stained face, and her helmet abandoned long ago.

Brenda put her finger to her earpiece, and squinted, trying to see ahead in the dark. She was a level 12 Bandit, belonging to SpaceKrakenX, one of LosDementosCT's Elders. He was renowned, or at least known, for his near-constant tech experiments, and Brenda's earpiece was no exception.

"This is Brenda.", she said quietly. "I have a visual on the target."

"Subarashii.", said SpaceKrakenX through the communications channel. "Is anyone guarding it?"

"No, sir.", she said. "It appears to be completely left alone- emphasis on appears."

"Good.", said her King. "Approach with caution."

"Understood, sir.", she said, and began to creep forward. She knew without a doubt, just from her instincts as a Bandit, that the floor and walls were absolutely littered with traps. Fortunately, due to those same instincts, she also knew just how to avoid them.

Giant Bomb to her left- just a quick step over could avoid setting it off. Trio of Bombs just in front of her? A swift Dash across the trigger point, and they never even got a chance to explode. A Spring Trap? That one was particularly easy- just step on the edge and allow its spring to propel you even further forward. A Push Trap, trying to fling her into a wall of spikes? Its push may have been strong, but it couldn't even come close to the force of her Dashing in the opposite direction. There were many traps, but none of them could outwit Brenda's intense training.

After the course of traps had been beaten, Brenda found herself in the center of the room. A golden altar rested under a pillar of golden light. There was gold trim on the stone, soft flecks of gold floated through the air- really, there was just a lot of Gold.

Ryusei_Nakao69 must have spent a fortune on this, she thought. I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I relieved him of some of it…

She stabbed her stick into a soft-looking hunk of Gold on the pillar, and broke it off with a grunt. WIth a single motion, it had been deposited into one of the dozens of pockets that lined the insides of her dress. Brenda smiled to herself, thinking of what such a chunk of Gold would be worth on the open market. 20000? 25000? She wasn't sure, but it was almost certainly far more than she needed for a new coat.

Song: Overdrive

Then she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. A single floorboard was shoved aside, and a dark brown coffin rose out of it. The lid banged open, and a trio of Skeletons danced out from within.

Oh, I can handle this, Brenda thought. Just a trio of-

Then another Skeleton Trap activated just to the right of the original, then another, then another, and finally another. They all deposited three Skeletons, all eager to try and rip Brenda to shreds.

Brenda bit her lip, and looked around nervously. Three Skeletons- she knew she could handle those. Six Skeletons- maybe, if they weren't too high level. But an entire Skeleton Army? There was no way… or was there?

As the Skeletons closed in, their tiny bones chittering and waving their swords, Brenda touched her earpiece. "Sir?", she said, hoping her King was still online. "What do I do here?"

"Brenda,", said SpaceKrakenX through the line, "I thought you knew. Remember what I taught you? The Steel Wind maneuver?"

Brenda grinned. "Quite right, your Majesty.", she said as she remembered. "Really, I don't know how I forgot."

She smartly saluted, and affixed the Skeletons with an unapproachable glare. "You fools.", she said with pride. "My King's training is truly the finest in the entire world! There is no equal!"

The Skeletons all jumped for her at once. Brenda closed her eyes, breathed in, and the entire world seemed to slow down. Once she opened them again, all the Skeletons seemed to be frozen in time.

Brenda backflipped away from the Skeletons, and reached into one of her many pockets. She pulled out a storm of knives, around a dozen in each hand. With a deep breath, and the Skeletons still near-frozen, she threw the knives in a steel wind.

The Skeletons had never seen it coming. One second, the Bandit was right underneath them, and the next, she had Dashed away, launched a barrage of knives, and then Dashed in front of them, all within the space of far less than a second. Once they realized what was happening, the knives had already sliced into all of them, cutting them apart as they fell to bare Elixir.

Brenda hummed a tune as she stepped over the ruins of the Skeleton Traps, which she had made sure to break, just in case. She placed her hands on the glass box that held her target, and, using the custom Sticky Fingers technology woven into her gloves, lifted it without a noise. There it was, resting on a scarlet pillow, all hers to take. Well, all hers to take, and all SpaceKrakenX's to own. But that was for another time- all that mattered to this Bandit, at this moment, was the thrill of the steal.

Brenda took out a 34/257th weight from her pocket grid, one of the many tools of her trade. Then with a single Dash-infused moment, she switched the weight and the prize, put back the glass, and started sprinting away.

"Did you get it?", asked Norbert, her Executioner friend through the communications channel.

"Was the operation successful?", asked SpaceKrakenX.

"Yes.", said Brenda, and smiled, looking at the soft golden slip of fabric and paper she held in her hand. She had heard a lot about these, and it certainly looked impressive enough. Quite the valuable prize, indeed. "I got his Pass."

The blue rope of Agatha's magical force twisted around and against Yaga's red, in a brilliant show of force that spat like a wounded flame. Sparks of purple flew off of their midair collision, lighting up the room as it slowly began to burn.

"My my, Agatha.", mused Yaga. "Looks like you're starting to tire."

She cackled maniacally, and pushed ever harder. Agatha was forced slightly backwards, and she grit her teeth in frustration.

"Are you sure about that, Yaga?", she asked. "Because it looks to me like I've barely begun."

Yaga chortled to herself. "Oh really? Then why am I…"

She took a step forward, and Agatha was forced backwards again.

"Beating you back so easily?", Yaga continued. "There's no way you can win, you second rate, under leveled, fool of a wimp!"

With an added burst of effort, Yaga practically threw herself at her foe. The additional surge of energy knocked Agatha off of her feet, and onto the shattered floor.

Agatha raised her staff in defense, and threw up a light blue shield in defense. Yaga's sadistic eyes flowed red, and she slammed the head of her own staff downwards. The two fields of Magic met with a sharp crack, and a small shockwave spread throughout the room.

"It's over, Agatha.", Yaga hissed. "Once I break through your shield, I'll bring you down instantly- and you're certainly in no position to launch a counterattack!"

"Well, Yaga,", Agatha managed to grunt out, "I know something you don't know."

"Ho?", Yaga asked. "And just what, pray tell, is that?"

Agatha chuckled, and narrowed her eyes in defiance. "There's a Lumberjack behind you."

For a few seconds, there was nothing but the sound of silence. Well, that and the sounds of the two Witch's magical forces hitting each other in a ferocious, purple particle storm, and the general noise and chaos of the castle under siege and generally just falling apart around them. But other than that, there was no noise at all. Until, of course, Yaga burst out laughing.

"Oh, please.", she started to say. "Do you really think I'm going to fall for that old on-"

She would have finished her sentence, and then gone on to finish Agatha, had the razor- sharp axe of a Lumberjack not come speeding through the air, leaving a ferocious yell behind it, and sliced her arm clean off.

Song: Propaganda

For a second, Yaga's eyes shot wide open in immense pain, but no sound came out. Her concentration was utterly shattered, and her assault upon Agatha's energy sphere was as well. And then, about a second after that, she dropped her staff, clutched the stump of her arm, and fell to the floor. And then, the screaming started.

Agatha looked to where the axe had come flying in from, and saw an aggressively posing Lumberjack.

"Kars!", she said. "You got my message!"

The Lumberjack ceased his excellent posing, and walked down the stairs. "Kars? I'm not Kars!", he shouted happily. "I'm Lars!"

Agatha shot a brilliant blue blast at Yaga, hitting her directly in the head and knocking her over into the floor. "Oh. I thought you were Kars. You look exactly like him."

Lars put his hands on his hips and smiled proudly. "Nope! We may look alike, but I assure you, I do not enjoy dubstep anywhere near as much as he does. I tell you, he is not okay."

But as they talked, Yaga wasn't quite finished yet. She gathered all of what little energy remained in her, and yanked herself upwards to a sitting position. She put all of her power into her staff, not even caring that her body was dissolving by the second.

"Looks like you came just in time, Lars.", Agatha continued. "That spellhoarder was about to-"

Yaga shrieked in near-animalistic fury, flinging her crackling staff forward like a sword, aimed directly for Agatha's heart. Both she and Kars, upon noticing the surprise attack, tried to stop it, but it was already too late. Even as the last of her body turned to purple liquid scattered across the floor, Yaga stabbed Agatha right through the chest, sending tons of destructive power along with it.

Blood spurted out of Agatha's mouth, and she cursed with vigor and vim. Her eyes widened in shock, and her gaze turned to Yaga's arm, the last of her body as it fell to liquid.

"You…", Agatha mumbled. "You're clever…"

Then she saluted Lars with a grim expression, as one professional does to another, and fell to puddles of purple among the Elixir-stained stones.

"You're…", she managed to spit just before death. "You're a clever one…"

Shelly wiped a bead of sweat from her brow, and jumped through a broken window. But unknown to her, the glass that the window had held had been a freshly made batch straight from the Laboratory, and whatever had broken it had unleashed its strange magical properties. She landed on the other side in a crimson parlor room- and bolt of electricity shot from an open interior window and hit Shelley directly in the back, sending her flying with a sharp cry of pain. She managed to twirl back onto her feet again, but not before traveling several meters.

Shelly spat onto the floor, and reloaded her gun. "Come on, who was that?", she shouted into the seemingly empty room. "You wanna come out here and fight?

As if to answer her summons, a shining Electro Wizard stepped out from behind a broken door. His eyes twitched with fury, and lightning coiled around his fingertips like high-voltage snakes. He had actually moved so he could get a better shot, but he would pretend that he had been brave enough to meet Shelly's summons. In truth, Tsarsus the Electro Wizard was a bit of a coward.

"It is I, Tsarsus, who meet your summons, uh…"

He stared at Shelly in confusion. She didn't resemble any troop he had ever seen. With her purple hair, shotgun, and strange clothing, Tsarsus thought she resembled some odd cross between a Musketeer and a Hunter. He was right, but neither of them knew this.

"You again?", Shelly said, and lowered the barrel of her gun to directly face Tsarsus. "I killed you."

"Well, Yes, but actually no.", Tsarsus said. "Something happened very recently to rewind time for my personage. I'm not sure what it was, but I am glad for it."

Tsarsus grinned, and fired. Twin bolts of lightning shot from his hands and hit Shelly's gun, resetting the charge. "And this time, I will not be so careless in our fight. For although you may possess great qualities of sheer destructive strength, I can also see that your gun takes a bit of time to charge up. I can make sure that it never will."

Shelly tried to fire again, only for Tsarsus to reset it again. "Yes,", she said, "But you can only hit either me or the gun. Eventually, you'll tire out."

"Yes.", said Tsarsus. Even though he could fire two bolts at once, it took the power of both to keep Shelly's gun in check. "However, this is my home, which you are so rudely intruding upon. In this Castle, in this place, my stamina is unlimited."

"I see.", Shelly grimaced. "Then tell me, how good are you at head protection?"

The devious smile vanished off of Tsarsus's face. "What?"

Shelly got up from the floor and charged at Tsarsus, holding her gun like a shield. "Because you're about to need it!"

Instantly, Tsarsus switched targets. His lightning flowed not into the gun, but into Shelly herself. She grunted in pain, but managed to suddenly drop to a crouch.

"You know,", she said. "I thought Electro Wizards were supposed to be smart."

For a second, Tsarusus wondered what she meant by that. Then he noticed that although Shelly had stopped her forward charge, she had managed to get enough charge on her gun to fire, and was actually doing it right then.

And it was at that moment that Tsarsus knew. He knew that he had messed up.

Shelly pulled the trigger. A firestorm of metal erupted from the end of her gun, tearing Tsarsus into bits. He screamed as he died, and spread all across the stone floor.

Shelly blew the smoke off of the barrel of her gun, and set it on the ground. She took a moment to rest, leaning on her weapon, and wiped her sweaty brow. "And another enemy falls.", she said, "To the wit and might of Shelly."

She looked up, and looked around."I wonder how everyone else is doing right now."

Bowza backflipped onto another rock. He drew back his bowstring, and aimed towards the rampaging hulk that was even now making his way towards him. Red burned all around them in sparkling flames, almost a nightmare as the castle continued its collapse. Fred loomed humongous in the shadows, his muscles bulging almost to bursting point. His eyes boiled over with sheer, primal fury, and his teeth almost seemed to be growing longer.

"Crush you!", Fred bellowed, or so he seemed to say. His words had started to slur together into a massive roar, continually sustained. "Fred strongest there is!"

Bowza knew that Fred had to be stopped. Given his current rate of growth, it was only time before he became too strong for anyone to handle. Whatever dark, evil experiment had been done on him, it was clearly a good one.

Bowza also knew that his ordinary arrows wouldn't work on the enormous beast. He had to use the Star. Even though his abilities in it were less combat oriented and leaned more towards special operations, the force behind such techniques could still most likely bring Fred down.

Bowza slowly breathed in, calm even as Fred barreled towards him like an avalanche. Concentrating all the energy he had collected from the air in his magical arrow of light, he aimed straight for Fred's forehead. A clean shot to the brain would be most effective.

"Focused Piercing-", Bowza started to say, then stopped. He sensed that Dan was about to need as much Star energy as he could get, and fast.

Chad coughed, and managed a weak smile. "Where? Why, she's exactly where you're about to be…"

In a flash, his arm flew to his side, and grabbed his sword. Dan raised his own, anticipating the attack, and snarled.

"Exactly where I want you!", Chad roared, and swung his blade in a powerful arc that seemed to cut the very air. Even though his arms looked burned to dust, he was using them as easily as he had done before the fight had even begun.

"You think you had me beaten, didn't you?", Chad bellowed, as he spun around, flashing his sword around and around in a blur of silver steel. Dan, being forced backwards, only just barely managed to block his fearsome blows. "But no one can truly defeat me. You were a fool, Dan, to challenge me on my own turf!"

Song: Fight to Antagonize

Dan breathed in, his breath short from the fighting. But it didn't matter, he would take what he could get. As the particles of energy collected into his lungs, he-

"Oh no!", Chad shouted, and kicked him in the chest. "Oh no you don't! I'm not going through that crap again!"

Dan flew backwards, propelled by Chad's mighty kick to the chest, and landed among a heap of boxes. They crumbled around him, collapsing onto and covering his torso. He coughed, and a few drops of blood came out.

He looked up, and saw Chad slowly coming towards him, menacingly swinging his sword side to side. His face seemed to simply radiate evil, and the burns on the rest of his body only added to the look. "I told you, Dan! Your feeble attempts make no difference! They're useless, useless, useless, useless!"

"As long…", Dan groaned, and curled his hand into a fist. It started to glow, with whatever stored Star energy was left within him. "As long as there is breath in me, I swear-"

He pushed himself off of the stack of boxes with a massive effort, and stared right into Chad's face. The sheer rage contained within the gaze was enough to give even the Elite Barbarian pause. "I swear, I will make you pay for everything you've ever done!"

He breathed in again, and felt the Star, even more powerful now, pour into his body. He raised his fist, and it started to glow a brilliant gold, as yellow as the sun. "My heart resonates…"

But Chad wasn't about to let that happen again. Quick as a flash, he dropped to his knees and swiped his sword across Dan's legs, opening a thin long cut. Then he lashed out with his foot and caught Dan right in the knees, sending him sprawling backwards, back onto the boxes. Pain rushed through Dan's body, but he wasn't down yet. "Heat enough to burn…"

"I've got you now!", Chad yelled, and threw his hand over Dan's face, covering his nose and mouth. "You need air to use your Star! If I cover your face, you can't breathe in! I win!"

Dan tried to breathe in, but the rough skin of the Elite Barbarian stopped him from doing so. He tried to attack with his sword, but there was no good angle of attack, with Chad pinning him down to the boxes. He tried to get free, but the pin position was too good. There was no way to counterattack. He tried to say something, in order to continue the Star technique, but he couldn't- it only came out as mumbles.

Dan's face grew red with rage, and his muscles strained to escape Chad's grip. Here he was, helpless to fight against the villain that had taken Brandy's honor, and was about to take Dan's own life. He had been training almost non-stop for days on end, but it was not enough, in the end.

"Aw look, he's gonna cry!", Chad said, fake worry oozing over the edges of his voice. "Guys, look!"

From across the room, Rick and Valeyrie put their heads in their hands. "Awww!", they said in unison.

Dan tried to say something again, but it was mumbled. Chad frowned and put his hand to his ear. "What was that, Dan? I'm afraid I can't hear you. You'll have to speak up."

Dan screamed his words, and this time they finally made it through the Elite Barbarian's armored hand. "My blood's beat is razor sharp!"

Chad almost sighed. "Okay, why do you keep on doing that? Saying some big, dramatic speech before you start attacking? Its weird. Seriously, who does that?"

He looked around, and raised his arm for approval. "I mean, really, who does that?"

Dan was about to try again. He was about to put in one last attempt to break free of Chad's monstrous grip, but something stopped him. And that something was an image of Bowza, floating right in front of his head. Bowza?, he thought. Wha-

I can see you need help, Dan, the image of Bowza said silently. So I'm giving you my Star. Take it!

Bowza reached out his hand, and Dan grasped it in his mind. At once, he felt all of the Star energy of Bowza flood into him, like the gates of a dimension of pure light bursting open in glorious song.

Bowza felt the last of his energy drain away from him, put to a far better use- he hoped. If Dan couldn't defeat Chad, then it would have all been for nothing. He looked up, and saw Fred almost on top of him. Bowza stood shakily back up, and drew back his bow.

"Come on, you big bugger!", he yelled, and fired. "Let's finish this!"

The arrow pierced straight through Fred's chest, hitting and exploding upon the rock wall directly behind him. Then another, and another, and then many more, as Bowza hurried to unleash a storm of silver fire.

But Fred merely laughed, and raised his fists, joining them together. "Your arrows no hurt Fred!", he bellowed. "Fred strongest! Fred is the fricking strong!"

Bowza fired one last arrow, looked up, and smiled. "Your move, big guy.", he said, a mere moment before Fred's joined fists came crashing down onto where he stood, splattering the Magic Archer into a puddle of purple that spread across the entire room, miniscule droplets covering everything.

"Huh huh huh… I got him.", Fred chuckled to himself. "I got little magic man!"

But then, he heard a crack, and a creaking sound behind him. He turned around, and his tiny, Hog-like eyes turned wide. Every single one of Bowza's shots had had a definite effect- just not on Fred. No, they had been instead meant to disturb the massive statue of an Executioner just behind him, that was even bigger than Fred was. Bowza's attempts to lure the fight to the Hall of Primals had been for a reason. Everything he had done in the entire fight had been perfectly calculated- and none more so than this. What Bowza had lacked in strength, he had more than made up for in perfect planning and wit.

Fred shrieked, and tried to cover himself with his hands as the immense statue, at least 60 feet tall, fell towards him with axe in front. But such a defense failed, as it would, and the axe sliced into him, cutting a deep gash from head to foot. The Giant berserker fell to the ground with a mighty thud, and began to die. But even as he did so, he had just one thought running through his head- Why? Why hurt Fred? Why did rock Vlad hurt Fred….

And that was the last thing going through his head at Fred's moment of death. Except for, of course, the actual humongous stone axe.

Dan's face heated up- and not in the regular sort of embarrassed way. It heated up with a fire born of rage and the Star, but mostly the Star. A ruddy red and gold glow emanated from Dan as Bowza's energy was added to his own. And his face got very, very hot- hot, in fact, to the point where Chad instinctively let go of Dan's mouth and nose with a yelp, and whipped his hand behind his back.

There was a brief moment of silence, as the realization of what he had just done sank into Chad, and the magnificent golden light surrounding Dan multiplied ten-fold. He raised his fist, poured almost every last scrap of Star into it, and attacked.

Song: Jonathan Joestar theme

"SUNLIGHT YELLOW OVERDRIVE!", Dan yelled, and immediately struck Chad with such a powerful barrage of blows that even a Pekka would be impressed. Each and every punch was precisely, automatically calculated to cause the maximum amount of damage possible, all striking Chad in several vital areas simultaneously. Each attack moved almost faster than the eye could see, all compounded by Dan's ferocious Oraoraoras. The huge barrage of punches continued for 6 long seconds, with Dan screaming in righteous fury and Chad roaring in pain.

Then with one last, supreme blow, Dan struck Chad right in the sternum, snapping it in two and sending the evil Elite Barbarian flying against the wall and into a closet, crashing through the wooden door and landing in a bloody heap.

Song: The Hand

Ryusei_Nakao stared down his opponent. What did he know about this King, ChupilickytwaCT? Besides, of course, the obvious- that he had a sword, and was his enemy, and was currently coming straight for him.

"You dare to face me, mortal?", bellowed Ryusei_Nakao69, and raised his hand. "In my own Castle, on my own turf, my own terms? Such a foolish action will indeed be your doom!"

With a single dark gesture, he fired a bolt of black Lightning that struck ChupilickytwaCT's sword, shattering it to bits. The shards of metal flew out of his hand, and stuck into the broken ground. But the Blue King did not falter.

"It is you who is the fool, Ryusei_Nakao69!", he shouted nobelly. "For you thought my sword was my weapon."

He spread his hands, revealing what seemed to be a holographic display full of cards. They were all spells, not a single troop or building among them. "Come, foul one. Let's settle this like Kings!"

Ryusei_Nakao69 smiled. "Fine then. I'd gladly fulfill a dying man's last wish."

With an exaggerated gesture, he too summoned a board full of spells in front of him. The two Kings looked up, met each other's eyes, and got ready to Clash.

Brandy found herself awakening. Her eyes slowly opened, encrusted with dried blood and bled Elixir. There was a foul taste in her mouth, and her movements still seemed slowed. Where was she…

Then, once her vision stabilized, and her eyes began to adjust to the dark in which she now found herself, she found out. Sort of. It looked like a closet that she was in, a very dark and full one.

"Um, hello?", Brandy asked to no one in particular, hoping someone was there to hear her. "Is anyone there?"

But there was no sound, save for a seemingly omnipresent low rumble. Brandy was totally alone. Whoever had tossed her in this closet had chosen its location well.

Well then, guess I'll just get myself out, Brandy thought, and slowly, shakily stood up. Fortunately, there was no rope or chain around her, and her limbs were beginning to wake up again. Very soon, she would be able to move freely again. She started to look for a weak spot in the door, somewhere to break through without hurting herself too much in the process.

There! There was a small area, just below the doorknob, where the wood seemed to have been splintered some time previously. That was perfect. Brandy drew back her fist, positioned it to hit right behind the splintered wood, and-

The door swung open, much to Brandy's surprise. She managed to stumble backwards again, and do a sort of half-Dash to back inside the closet, barely staying on her feet from all of her unspent forwards momentum. Then she looked up, and gasped. There, in the doorway, stood the titanic figure of Orfox, frowning down at her. He scratched his head, then grinned and drew his sword.

"I found another hider!", he yelled, and brought his massive iron sword above his head to smite Brandy off of the face of the world.

Panic surged through Brandy, and she frantically gestured for him to stop. "Wait!", she shrieked. "Stop! It's me! I'm Brandy! I'm the one you're looking for!"

Orfox stopped, and his face scrunched up in confusion. "But… you're wearing a Red uniform. You can't be her." Then he swung his sword, right at her with force that could level a building.

Brandy jumped into the air, Dashing over the blade and right next to Orfox's feet. "Listen, you big idiot! I'm Brandy! You have to believe me!"

Orfox turned his gaze downwards to look at her. "Really? I'd expect tricks coming from a Red Bandit like you. All tricky ones." He raised his immense Iron Fist, ready to crush her to a pulp.

Brandy Dashed again, this time to the front of the closet, out of the range of Orfox's blows. Dashing twice within just seconds of each other so soon after waking up was tiring her, and she didn't know how many Dashes she had left. Maybe none at all. "But I am Brandy! They just put me in this uniform because they tried…to make me their own."

Her voice quieted, and she stood still. Orfox was given pause at this, and set his sword down on the ground. "Very well then, I think I believe you. But in order to make sure…"

With a flourish, Orfox pulled a large scroll out of his belt. "You must first answer this questionnaire!"

"What?", Brandy said. "Are you serious?"

"Look!", said Orfox, and pointed to a small line of print near the top. "It's written by your friend Dan himself."

Brandy felt her heart race faster. "Dan? Where is he? Is he alright?"
"Well, I don't know.", Orfox said. "I saw him run up the stairs about, I don't know, maybe half an hour ago?"

Brandy's eyebrows reached a point where, if not for the laws of both hair and physics, would have gone flying off of her face. "Okay, okay, whatever. Just give me the questionnaire, and we can be out of here."

Orfox straightened the scroll, squinted at the small writing so he could see better, and began to read.

"Alright, question one: What is your full name?", said Orfox. "Just to begin."

"Brandy the Bandit.", said Brandy. "Are we done?"

"Good. And no.", said Orfox. "Okay, question two: Who is your King, and what is your Clan?"

"Oticat, of LosDementosCT.", said Brandy. "Okay, that's all the information you need, right?"

Orfox held up one finger. "No, not yet. You see, that's all just basic, surface information. But this next question- now, that will truly determine whether you're Brandy or not. Now, for your third and final question- what is the... Mustache Incident?"

Brandy was a little taken aback by this one. She was, frankly, shocked that Dan would tell about the Mustache Incident to anyone, let alone some Barbarian King. But if she was to get out of here alive, and not underneath the crushing force of Orfox's siege blade, she would have to tell him.

So she did.

Orfox's eyes widened, and he laughed. "So that's the Mustache Incident, eh? Fancy! Well…", he said as he wrapped up the scroll and threw it into his belt again, "... that does indeed match the result we got from everyone involved. Looks like you're really her."

He took a small communicator from his belt, and held it up to his ear. "Everyone, this is Orfox. I found her."

"What?", the device squawked. "Orfox, I can't quite hear you."

The Barbarian King sighed, and put the communicator to his mouth. "Everyone, this is Orfox.", he said a little louder. "Brandy has been found, and is currently safe with me. I repeat, Brandy has been found."

"Good work, Orfox.", said whoever was on the other side. "Now, commence operation-"

Orfox shut off the device with a click, and gave it to Brandy. "Here, you take this.", he said. "I don't like it that much."

"Uh, shouldn't you be doing operation whatever?", Brandy said, stashing the device in one of her many pockets. "I mean, thank you for finding me and all, but that sounded important."

Orfox shook his head, then drew his sword. "Nope, we've got no time, and more important things to do. Now come on-"

Brandy got ready to run, and Orfox's eyes narrowed, eagerly anticipating the bloodshed that was about to be unleashed. "Let's go save your friend."

Dan stood there, his breathing heavy from the exertion, one arm hanging by his side, and covered in many places with blood. Most of wasn't his. He stared at the entrance to the closet, mentally daring Chad to come out of where Dan had punched him, but really wishing he wouldn't. 10….9...8...7… come on..., he thought. Don't get up….

But sure enough, the Elite Barbarian's seemingly impossible strength and durability won out. There was a small flash of red light, and Chad rose from the crash site.

"My my, Dan.", he said. "That was quite a powerful strike there. Sunlight Yellow Overdrive, you called it?"

Dan stared at him, not quite sure what Chad was getting at. But he began to concentrate energy in his lungs, just in case.

"But…", Chad continued deviously, "... no matter your strength, you cannot beat me on my own turf. It is impossible!"

He opened his eyes, and smirked. With a slap of his hand against the side of the wall, Dan's side of the room seemed to come to life.

Song: Virtuous Pope

Sharp spikes of metal erupted out of the floorboards, stabbing Dan in the foot. The bricks opened up, and started dispensing dozens of miniscule darts. They didn't quite manage to get through Dan's armor, but they were starting to. Dan tried to rush Chad, sword outstretched, but a pair of flailing metal pipes blocked his way, thrashing madly around.

Dan growled, and slashed ferociously through them. The two pipes fell to the floor and shattered, but 4 more appeared within moments. The metal spikes finally burst through Dan's shoe, and pierced his skin. The corners of his mouth pulled downwards in pain, as he tried to fight off the hydra-like pipes that were still coming.

Chad laughed. "Oh, how pitiful! You spend so much time trying to come after me, training to become… what? Some sort of ultimate warrior? And then you can't even get past some training drones! What happened to your Star?"

Dan would have thrown back some sort of witty comeback, but he couldn't. He couldn't think of one, and he couldn't waste breath. He was currently concentrating as much Star as possible in the back of his arm, for when that one final strike came.

But as the nearly endless pipes closed in, he thought he might need it…

"So this is how it ends.", said Chad, with an air of smug certainty. "You fail, just barely before you finish. But meanwhile I, Chad, will continue to have whoever I want, whenever I want, for the rest of my long, happy life. Whether its girls like Valeyrie or cheap trash like your precious Brandy, my wishes cannot be denied!"

The words Chad spoke reached Dan's ears. He stopped fighting for just a moment, as the phrase cheap trash like your precious Brandy found their way into his brain, and were comprehended. Then his grip tightened hard enough to crack stone, his eyes practically lit up with hatred, and he turned to face Chad. A pipe dived for him, but one of Dan's fists shot out without any thought at all and crushed it to bits.

"And come to think of it, Dan?", Chad said, and raised his finger. "Even though Brandy was just some trash, she was good at one thing." He ran his finger down his cheek, as if crying. "She was just so good at sobbing."

Dan felt his mind snap. Pure Rage, mixed with all the Star that he had concentrated, rushed through him like a boiling river, and he roared. With a mighty sweep of his arms, he threw aside all the pipes that surrounded him, and they shattered like onion skin glass.

He pushed power to his legs and fists, and jumped. Scraping across the ceiling of the room, he almost looked like a fabled Mega Knight, soaring like a holy meteor about to do justice.

Oh, thought Chad. I think that was the wrong thing to say.

Dan landed near the Elite Barbarian, creating a small shockwave that almost blew Chad off of his feet. But even as soon as he touched down, he came out swinging. The force of his sword stroke collided with Chad's like an avalanche collides with a dead tree, and the Elite Barbarian's blade shattered into a thousand pieces.

"You dare defile her?", Dan screamed, and his sword lit up with the force of the Star. The metal screamed from the heat, sheer energy radiating from it. "Take this, Chad! In the name of all the Star…"

Chad tried an underhand kick to the chest, but the attack actually bounced off of Dan's armor. It looked to both of them as if nothing could stop Dan's rampage. But that didn't mean Dan would waste time- no. He was not like that. Quite the opposite, in fact.

"I, Dan the Knight, for the honor of Brandy…."

Dan grabbed both of Chad's arms in the space of less than half a second, and threw them upwards. The shock and terror on Chad's face was eminent, a total opposite to the blinding rage on Dan's. He swung out his sword behind him, and it glowed with the fury of a thousand suns.

"Strike you down!", Dan roared, and swung his sword upwards. Chad had no way to block the blow, and it sliced through his neck, severing his head from his body.

Chad's head rolled away for a few seconds, the helmet still staying on. The body fell backwards, and dissolved into chunks of Elixir. The head persisted for a few more seconds, until it, too, vanished. Only the helmet remained, the last reminder of the monster that Dan had slain.

Dan dropped to his knees, and breathed a sigh of relief. He had done it. All of his training had finally paid off. It had been a long, hard battle, but Chad was dead. Brandy had been avenged.

His gaze wandered upwards, to Rick and Valeyrie leaning against the side of the wall. They almost seemed to be… laughing. That was odd, Dan thought. Even though he knew them to be monsters, certainly even they would be horrified by their friend and brother's death. There had to be something more going on here…

And then, Dan saw a flash of movement out of the corner of his eye, and everything made sense.

ChupilickytwaCT and Ryusei_Nakao69 carefully sized each other up, making sure not to make the first move. Neither knew exactly what the other would be using- although Chup could guess that his Red foe had some pretty underhanded tactics up his sleeve. He was right.

Ryusei_Nakao69 flicked one hand, that spun with the purple of Elixir, and the red of him. A card vanished from the magical display in front of him, and reappeared in the air- a Tornado.

Then it vanished again, and the air began to move. It spun around, concentrating into a grey whirlwind between them.

"How odd of you.", remarked ChupilickytwaCT. "Playing that Tornado, when there's no troops around. Did you mean to play tha-"

A swarm of Blue Bats flew in through a nearby window, and saw Ryusei_Nakao69. They chirruped as one, flew to attack, and immediately burst upon the flawless prediction Tornado.

"In response to your question, Chupilicky…", Ryusei_Nakao69 said as he smiled evilly. "Yes. Yes I did."

ChupilickytwaCT gulped, and prepared his own card. Here was an opponent that didn't seem normal. No. He didn't just not seem normal, he wasn't normal. There was something far too sinister about Ryusei_Nakao69 that Chup wanted to get to the bottom of- but he couldn't. Because after this battle, the Red King would be dead… with any luck.

Cooly, Chup selected a Fireball from his own display, and held up his hand. The flame began to concentrate in his hand, sweat beading on his brow from the heat.

"Oh, using a Fireball, are we?", Ryusei_Nakao69 mused, and selected another card. "Fortunately, I have a little number here that will-"

He was going to say "put that right out." He had a Freeze in his hand, and was ready to play it, but ChupilickytwaCT put a small wrench into those plans by not actually launching the Fireball. Instead, he flicked his other wrist out with a small burst of electricity, shooting a high-level Zap that smacked into Ryusei_Nakao69's leg. He grunted in surprise and dropped his Freeze.

"-will do nothing!", Chup shouted. With a wave of his hand, the Fireball changed into a bottle of Lightning, and he chucked it at the Red King.

Ryusei_Nakao69 winced, and crossed his arms. The holographic board folded up to match his actions, and a pair of black wings appeared across his front. The Lightning hit in three devastating bolts, but they were absorbed by whatever Darkness Ryusei_Nakao69 was using in order to protect himself. "How feeble…", he whispered, and uncrossed his arms, the board going back to normal. "I was expecting more than just a cheap trick."

"A cheap trick, you say?", ChupilickytwaCT said. "That wasn't a cheap trick- this is a cheap trick!"

With a great flourish, he pulled a card from his row and flung it at Ryusei_Nakao69. He braced himself for impact- but nothing happened. Slightly curious, he peered down to where the card had fallen, and saw nothing printed. The card, upon closer inspection, was just a slip of paper.

Ryusei_Nakao69 looked up, annoyed at being tricked in such a manner, and saw ChuplickytwaCT laughing. "How's that for cheap tricks?", said the Blue King. "You should have seen the look on your face."

Song: Third Bomb

Ryusei_Nakao69 growled, and clenched his fist so hard it began to bleed. He cast aside his board of cards, and placed one hand upon his chest. ChupilickytwaCT's eyes grew wide.

"It seems you are nothing but, ChupilickytwaCT.", said Ryusei_Nakao69. "Some leader you are."

His hand suddenly burst into swirling black energy, and he gasped in pain. "It does not matter what strategy you throw at me, for my dark power is unrivaled. I will beat you."

ChupilickytwaCT merely smiled. "Oh, don't go counting on that just yet. You see, I do still have one trick left."

"And what is that?", Ryusei_Nakao69 said, and thrust his hand into the air. A new board of cards, some that had never before been seen by anyone, appeared in front of him. "A prediction Rocket? Multiple cards played at once? Bringing in troops? What? For you, it can't be very good…"

ChupilickytwaCT waved his hand in dismissel. "No, no, none of those.", he said, and narrowed his eyes. "Cheddar."

"Cheddar?", Ryusei_Nakao69 asked. "What does cheese have anything to do with-"

But his question was answered when something just sort of appeared behind ChupilickytwaCT. Although it wore the standard uniform of a King, it wasn't quite one. The silver skin and highlights gave that much away. And he realized that when he said cheddar, he wasn't talking about cheese.

"Apprehend this one for me, will you?", ChupilickytwaCT asked. "I've got to go."

The robotic figure stepped forward and cracked his knuckles. "Certainly, sire.", it said with a metallic voice. "He will be defeated. All who stand before I, Trainer Cheddar 3, always will be."

ChupilickytwaCT gave a short whistle, and his Baby Dragon ran up to him. With a jump, he was on, and flying away. Ryusei_Nakao69 tried to bring up a card with his Dark Elixir, but Trainer Cheddar 3 had already summoned a half-dozen maxed out Troops, all ready to attack. There was a Bandit, a Mega Knight, a Night Witch, a Sparky, a Lava Hound, and a Lumberjack- all robots, just like him.

Trainer Cheddar 3 had never really felt emotion before. He was a robot, after all- all the Trainers were. But now, as he was finally about to use his raw, unmatched power outside of a Training Camp, where he was about to do something with actual consequences, he felt something resembling happiness creeping up inside of him. And as the steel fist of his robotic, maxed Lumberjack connected squarely with Ryusei_Nakao69's face, the curve of a smile began to creep up his face.

Dan spun, bringing his sword up to protect his face, and Chad leapt out from where he had been hiding. The real Chad, not his cleverly deployed Clone that he had made after Dan's Sunlight Yellow Overdrive. It had been quite a good play, and Dan had only figured it out at the very last second.

"Hey Rick, Rage me!", Chad shouted, and swung downwards. Dan swung upwards, and their swords met in the middle, sending the peal of colliding steel through the room like the ripple of a bell. Dan growled, and his hands started to glow. "Chad… you…", he muttered, and breathed in.

"Sure thing, bro!", Rick yelled in response to Chad's request. He dug through what little pockets he had, and grabbed a bottle of Rage. "Watch this.", he said to Valeyrie. "It's gonna be good."

With a small grunt of exertion, he tossed the bottle in Chad's direction.

"My might pushes…", Dan said, building up for another overdrive. "With strength unparalleled, towards your heart!"

His arms and sword lit up with a golden glow, and Dan's strength instantly doubled. With a ferocious expression on his face, he pushed downwards, slowly forcing Chad down to the ground. Either he would end up on the ground, where he was vulnerable, or his sword would slip, leaving him wide open. Either way, Chad was dead- or so Dan thought.

But as soon as the Rage thrown by Rick hit the ground, it flowed into Chad's body. He gasped in what seemed like pleasure as his muscles grew larger, and his skin glowed purple. And Dan watched in horror as Chad slowly pushed off his sword, and flung Dan backwards. The Star fled from his arms, and back into the air.

Song: Cornered

"You thought you were enough, didn't you?", Chad asked, and swung his sword in a circle, slicing off part of the floor. "You thought your Star and your training was enough to beat me, didn't you? Well, it was…"

He ran his sword down his arm, slicing open a thin cut that dripped blood. He licked the blood off of the sword, and stared Dan in the eye with a gaze that defied sanity. "Until I started trying."

"You-", Dan said, and rushed forward. Chad raised his sword to block the blow, Dan's movements seemingly in slow motion compared to the Rage-fueled Elite Barbarian's.

"I what?", Chad said, and flicked his blade in such a way that spun Dan back. "I win? I'm better than you? I'm about to end your miserable little life? Because all of those are true, but…"

He raised his sword above his head, and Dan raised his blade to block. "Metal…", he said, "Metal is a perfect conductor! Metal Silver-"

Chad swung downwards, and Dan attacked up. But at the very last second, just before the two swords hit, Chad withdrew for just a second, pulling back his blade. Dan's stroke continued upwards, missing Chad's head, and sending Dan falling back. The unspent Star energy flew into the rafters of the room, lighting up the wood with a golden flame. Chad scoffed, and slashed his sword across Dan's chest. Dan grunted in pain, and brought his hand up to the cut. He winced, and gave a low, ragged breath.

Chad threw back his head and laughed. "Oh, how the mighty have fallen. What fancy words and shiny tricks will you try now, Dan? Or will you accept the inevitable, and die?"

His words were punctuated by another slash, this time across the arms. Dan growled, and glared at Chad as hard as he could. I swear, he thought. I swear, beast, I will bring you down!

He yelled, and gathered all the energy he could in his arms. Even though he was bleeding from multiple places, he still found the strength to fight on at his fullest. He swung his sword upwards, right towards Chad's smug face.

"Chad!", Dan roared. "You may be stronger. You may be quicker. You may be more experienced. But I will-"

With a single lightning-fast, lightning-strong blow, Chad swung his sword underneath Dan's. The blades met in an instant- and with a horrible sound of screaming metal, the entire top half of Dan's blade shattered into a thousand pieces.

Dan staggered backwards, and stared at his sword in disbelief. It had served him dozens of battles in the Arena- he didn't think anything could actually break it. But Chad's raw power had managed to do what even direct clashes with Pekkas could not.

"Your sword is broken, Dan.", Chad said. "What will you do now?"

He leapt forward, and Dan shifted into a defensive stance. But with half of his sword missing, it didn't do much. Chad slammed a hard elbow into Dan's chest, sending him sprawling backwards onto a broken dresser. The wood dug into Dan's arms, a thousand tiny cuts all sending twinges of pain through his body. Chad smiled evilly, and raised his sword. "This ends here.", he said. "Consider yourself lucky. You won't have to see what happens afterward."

He swung his sword downwards, intending to cleave off Dan's head.

But the heroic Knight wasn't finished yet. Even with half a sword, he still managed to match Chad's assault, their metal clashing with a mighty clang and flash of sparks.

But even though Dan was struggling mightily, Chad's raw strength was still massive and overwhelming. And with the Rage boost on top of that, he was simply far too much to handle. He pressed downwards, advancing slightly further every second, getting closer to slicing Dan in half.

Beads of sweat dripped off of Dan's brow, mixing with the blood that still flowed. There was no air in his lungs, nothing to use The Star with. Chad was stronger than him, more experienced, and didn't even seem to have been winded by Dan's strongest attacks. And then, Dan realized something.

He was going to die. Right here, right now, there was no way for him to get out of this situation. In mere seconds, his grip would falter, or the rest of his sword would break, or something, and Chad would kill him. But that was alright. He would just respawn back at Oticat's castle. His life didn't matter- all that did in this operation was Brandy. And Dan knew, somehow, that someone had already rescued her. So even if he died, Dan would be happy. But that didn't mean he still wasn't going to fight, as hard as he possibly could.

Chad pressed harder in a sudden burst of energy, and Dan felt his sword start to press against his chest. This was it.

"I must congratulate you, Dan.", said Chad with a false warmth. "You've given me the best fight I've had in ages. Nobody has ever before put up this kind of resistance- not your precious Brandy, not anyone. So, thanks."

Thanks?, Dan thought. I'll show you thanks, you sadistic, callous, basta-

A trio of flaming arrows hit Chad directly in his unprotected shoulder, sending him for a loop and off of Dan. A shocked expression hit everyone's face, and Chad growled. "Who the-"

Dan didn't waste a moment. He saw that Chad had finally let his guard down, and so he seized the golden opportunity.

"ORA!", he yelled, and stabbed the remnants of his blade into Chad's exposed stomach, as deep as it would go. Blood spurted from Chad's mouth, as his eyes widened in shock. His hand flew to the wound, and he tried to move backwards. But Dan's sword still stayed in him, and did not let him escape.

Rick and Valeyrie turned to where the arrows had come from, and saw Sadie, a defiant expression on her face, with a now empty bow. At the very last second, she knew what had to be done, and had overcome her usually timid nature.

But now, as she saw an Elite Barbarian and a Valkyrie looking at her, anger etched on their faces, she thought perhaps she should have ducked down again after firing, instead of posing dramatically like Elizabeth had told her to do. Intimidation my bowstring, she thought. I should have hid.

Song: Shoot towards the Decisive Battle

Dan swung his arm around, dislodging Chad and sending him flying. The Elite Barbarian lay bleeding on the ground, one arm to his stomach, one eye closed in pain.

"I tell you Dan,", he groaned, "that right there? That's a lot more damage than your girlfriend ever did."

"She's not my girlfriend.", Dan spat, and prepared to strike again.

"Really?", Chad asked. "Cause that is one fine piece of meat you're missing out on, let me tell you."

Dan roared in anger, and rushed forward. Although Dan couldn't see it, Chad smiled to himself. He had played Dan right into his trap like a record. As soon as Dan reached him, and swung with his broken sword, Chad struck out with his own, sending Dan's blade spinning away.

It flew out of sight, past a hole in the wall, and fell into the inferno that was the war-torn castle below.

Dan barely had time to react before Chad reached out and grabbed his arm, yanking him to the ground. Dan tried to raise an arm in defense, but Chad stomped on his hand and pushed him into the floor. Even though Chad had been beaten down repeatedly and was bleeding from the stomach, he still managed through some unholy power to keep on fighting like he was fresh. "Rick!", he shouted. "There's a couple of Princesses over in the corner! Bag them and save them for later!"

"Already on it, bro!", Rick shouted back, as he strode casually towards Elizabeth and Sadie, now trapped in the corner. "Nice of them to show up to the party."

"I think I hear bones outside.", Valeyrie said. "I'll go check it out."

Chad gave her a thumbs up, and Valeyrie ran off. If somebody had sent a Skeleton Army to stop them, Valeyrie could take care of it easily. "You do that, babe.", he said, then looked down at Dan. "Now, for you…", he said.

Sadie drew back her bow, and Elizabeth fired a volley of arrows right at Rick, but they had little effect. He was ready for the attacks, and brushed them aside like paper. Sadie fired, but the arrows missed. She was too scared to fire, focusing only on what would happen to her and Elizabeth next.

"Come on girls, don't fight it.", said Rick slowly. "Just give in, come with me. We'll have a little fun…"

Dan, although pressed against the floor, tried to take a deep breath, to gain some Star. But his lungs were ripped, and flattened against the ground. He couldn't take more than a few ragged gulps of air. Chad grabbed his face, and twisted it upwards to see Rick grab Sadie by the collar and lift her into the air. Elizabeth tried to run, but Rick grabbed her too.

"Look what you've done, Dan.", Chad whispered. "If you hadn't tried to fight me, perhaps you might still be alive. Perhaps those two Princesses wouldn't have to meet this fate."

"You…", Dan mumbled. "How? How are you… so strong? It doesn't make any… any sense..."

Chad raised an eyebrow. "You want to know? Really? Well then, seeing as how this is the end of your life, I'll tell you."

He drew his blade along his tongue, and a black blood dripped out, pooling on the floor in front of Dan. "I'm not just a normal Elite Barbarian anymore, Dan. I rejected my humanity long ago, along with my King. Now, we are far more. The power of Him flows through my veins like Elixir."

He stomped on Dan's head once more, pushing his face into the ground and away from the sight of Rick tying the two Princesses together and hanging them on the wall, then snapping their bows in half.

"But you know what, Dan?", Chad said with a cruel glow in his eyes. "I think I'll keep you alive. Your Star has many secrets that I'd like to know for myself, and the only way to know how it works is to torture it out of you."

Chad looked down at Dan. Even though his eyes were closing, and blood dripped from his mouth, his hand still twitched in the direction of the door. "Brandy…", he mumbled, almost too quiet for Chad to hear. "Brandy… be safe…"

"Oh, you're worried about Brandy?", Chad asked. "Don't worry about her, she's alive. We want to keep her in good physical condition, you know? And you know what?"

Chad leaned in close to Dan's head, making sure he heard every word of what Chad was about to say. "Once this is all over, we'll be sure to make her very, very happy tonight. And if you're good, you might even get to watch. Who knows? Maybe one day, we'll even let you help."

Chad whispered diabolically into Dan's ear. "You're not a virgin, are you? Don't worry if you are- we can fix that right now."

Dan's mind snapped. His anger was too much to hold- but sadly, this time, it did not help. Even though sheer rage pulsed through him like air in a gale, his body was too devastated to even move. The only thing he could do was scream. Scream, as Chad pressed down on his skull. Scream, as Rick slowly started to pull apart Sadie's clothes. Scream, as-

Scream as the door slammed open, and the snapped off handle of a Valkeyrie's axe flew in, slamming into Chad and sending him slamming into the ground. And not even a second afterwards, the axe itself came spinning towards Rick, sending a deep gash up his back.

Song: Jonathan Joestar Theme

There, in the doorway, stood the enormous figure of Orfox. He held Valeyrie in one huge hand, and his sword in the other. His eyes lit up with purple fury, and he gave a tremendous roar that seemed to shake the room.

"Chad…", Valeyrie whispered, naked terror in her eyes. "Help."

"Valeyrie?", Chad said as he got up from the collapsed wall that he had been launched into. "Valeyrie!"

"Holy Se'th.", Rick said, and turned from the Princesses. "What is that? What the frick is that?"

Orfox snarled, and squeezed tighter on Valeyrie. She screamed as thousands of pounds of pressure slammed into her on all sides, and then- she popped. Valeyrie popped like a big, Elixir-filled Balloon, spraying everything around Orfox with droplets of the stuff.

Chad roared, and swung his sword. "You're gonna die for that, you-"

But even Chad was nothing compared to the towering titan that was Orfox. In one swift motion, he grabbed Chad with his iron-plated gauntlet, snatched Rick with his other, and held them both up to his face. "Daniel, my boy.", he said. "Are you hurt?"

"Hurt?", Dan groaned. "What do you think?", he said, as he barely managed to roll himself over.

"You dare restrain us like this?", Chad yelled, and pushed as hard as he could. "Just watch. Within mere seconds, you will-"

Orfox looked both Chad and Rick straight in the eyes, and they stopped. Stopped moving, stopped talking, just stopped everything. "Impudent gnats…", he growled. "Begone!"

And with that, he squeezed harder, and the two Elite Barbarians popped into pure Elixir.

Dan smiled weakly. The work was done. Chad and Rick were dead. And there was the Valkyrie, too, but she didn't matter as much. Brandy had been avenged at last, for real this time. As he saw the purplish-red of the floor change to a brilliant, beautiful blue, he knew that all Red presence in the room had been truly eliminated.

He coughed up blood, and rolled over on his side. He was still dying of his injuries- that was bad.

Brandy appeared from behind Orfox. "Did you do it?", she asked timidly. "Are they de-"

Then she saw Dan, almost dead on the floor. "Dan!", she yelled, and Dashed over to him. She put her head on his chest, relieved to see that his heart was still maintaining a healthy beat. "Dan, are you alright?", she asked frantically. "What happened? Oh, Dan…"

Dan opened his eyes, and turned his head to look at her. "Br- Brandy?", he asked woozilly. "You're alright…"

"Dan, we did it.", she said. "We're winning. We're forcing them back."

"Oh… good.", Dan said, and his eyes started to shut again.

"Dan! Dan! Stay awake!", Brandy said, and shook him. "Dan, Orfox is going to Heal you. Hold on."

A second later, a steady stream of Heal came down onto Dan. He felt the golden light as his dire wounds were knit shut and reversed, but many cuts, bruises, and burns still remained. But to Brandy's immense relief, he managed to stand up. He saw Brandy- cut, bruised, a black eye, burned in at least one place, exhausted, covered in dirt, sweat, grime, and who knew what else- but alive. Brandy saw Dan- and exactly the same.

Brandy pitched forward and hugged him, wrapping her arms around as tight as she possibly could. "Dan, you're alright…", she said. "Brandy, you're okay…", he said. The two hugged each other for several more seconds, not wanting to let go.

"Brandy,", Dan said, "I'm- I'm sorry. I couldn't save you. I wasn't strong enough."

"No.", Brandy said. "It's alright, Dan. You're strong enough for me, and that's all that matters."

Orfox watched them for a few more seconds. But once the time hit 8 seconds, he decided that the standard limit for heartfelt, emotional reunions was over, and that it was time to get back to business. "Right!", he said, and clapped his hands. "Let's go."

He clenched his massive Iron Fist, and a purple light roared out from within him. At once, a team of Barbarians popped into existence, and saluted him. "Sir, Orfox, Sir!", one of them shouted. "Orders, sir!"

Orfox pointed to Sadie and Elizabeth, still tied up and hanging from the wall in one corner of the room. "You lads see those two? Free and secure them at once."

"Sir, yes, Sir!", the group of Barbarians shouted as one, and ran off. Once they reached the two, they immediately began untying, distributing Heals, repairing weapons, and admistiring jackets to compensate for torn and destroyed clothing.

Orfox pointed to a shattered window, leading out into a hallway. "You two, head outside.", he said. "Brandy, Chuck and Brenda be waiting to pick ye up. Dan, head with and protect."

Slowly, Dan and Brandy broke off their embrace. "Well, let's go.", Brandy said.

"Yes,", said Dan. "Let's."

They both ran towards the window, and leapt out towards freedom.

Brenda slid down a banister standing up, aiming right for the group of Skeletons bunched at the bottom. They were a swarm, yes, but if she had just enough momentum- and she thought she did, based off of some random last second calculations that she was even now doing in her head- then she could take them all out at once. Her earpiece beeped, and she put one finger to it.

"Brenda, I'm in trouble.", came the voice of SpaceKrakenX from the other side of the line. "Got in a little over my head, and they have a Dragon. Not a Baby, an actual, full grown Dragon. Deliver Brandy to Chuck at once. Go."

"Wait, wh-", Brenda said, but the line went dead. She turned off the device, and turned her attention to the Skeletons below. Tucking Ryusei_Nakao69's stolen Pass in her pocket, she leaned further in, waiting until the very last second, and-

She Dashed while leaping off of the banister, surfing across the Skeleton ranks like a Fish on a wave, knocking them all apart. They dissolved behind her, and soaked into the floor. She rolled to a stop, then stood up again. Deliver Brandy to Chuck, hmm?, she thought. Well, I know where Chuck is, so Brandy should be somewhere near there. I hope…

Taking a quick look at her pocket compass, she saw that she was currently facing North. Chuck was to the West of her, so she turned and started to run.

It was a good thing that Brenda just so happened to be very observant and quick-thinking, even for a Bandit. Because had she not seen the glint of gunmetal poking out from behind a fractured door, the avalanche of shotgun bullets that followed might have killed her, and the events of the next few minutes would have played out quite differently. But as it was, she did notice, and Dashed to the side just as the hidden Hunter behind the door unleashed his attack from point-blank range, reducing the wood to bits and tearing a few small holes in Brenda's cape.

Brenda stopped sliding, now able to take a good look at her foe. From the looks of him, the Hunter appeared to be only level 9, far below Brenda's level of 12. An easy target.

She drew her club, and prepared to attack.

Dan and Brandy landed on a fragile catwalk, suspended over a blazing fire that consumed an entire grand ballroom. The heat from the blaze reached them, almost an Inferno in its intensity.

"Brandy!", Dan said. "What do we do?"

"Do?", Brandy asked. "Well, we just walk across it. Look."

She started to walk out on the narrow beam, but Dan held back. He looked at the raging fire down below, then back up at Brandy. "I'm too heavy.", he said. "It can't hold me."

"Oh, come on.", Brandy said. "How much do you weigh?"

"280.", said Dan. "Same as always, and 180 more than you. I can't make it."

Brandy hopped backwards. "No, look. Just follow my steps."

She slowly walked forwards, across the catwalk, Dan carefully copying her every move. "See, just nice and slow, take it nice and easy-"

Up ahead, the board cracked. A column of sparks rose up from it, and the wood started to snap. Brandy's eyes widened, as she saw the structure of the entire beam weaken. It was going to fall, with them still on it.

"Dan, hold on.", she said. "I've never done this before, and I'm not sure it'll work."

"Wait, done what-", Dan started to say, but his sentence was cut off by a huge burst of air. Brandy dashed from the board they were on just as it fell into the blaze, Dan in tow, and landed on the one next to it. The rush of energy had been quite unlike anything Dan had ever experienced. Brandy had also not ever carried anyone with her when she Dashed before- good thing it had worked.

"What made it break?", Dan asked. "It looked fine when we got on it." He wiped the sweat and blood from his brow, then looked forward into a dark maze of rafters.

"I don't know.", said Brandy. "It did look fine…"

Then she saw it. A vicious-looking pair of glowing red eyes loomed out from the darkness, and a low rumble sounded from in front of them. A chill of primal fear ran down Brandy's spine.

"Oh, what is that?", Dan said to himself. But once the beast moved forward, he got his answer.

A fully grown, adult Dragon heaved itself forward, the specialized glimmer lines of on the side of its body full of flame. An evil look gleamed in it's eyes, and it's teeth dripped with drool and Elixir.

"Holy frick.", Brandy said. "Is that a-"

"Yeah.", Dan said, and gulped. "I think it is."

The Dragon pushed itself further out of the scaffolding, and pulled back its head. The scales on its belly began to glow red, signaling that it was about to breathe fire. Dan held up his shattered sword, and Brandy a piece of wood she had found, but both of them knew that there was no point in trying to block a flood of plasma.

"Dan, do you have anything that could help us out?", Brandy said. "Because I know I don't have anything."

Dan breathed in, the bleeding in his throat making the task tough. But he still managed to collect enough energy from the air surrounding him to work, and Star glowed from within him. "You know…", he said, "I think I do."

The visible base of the Dragon's neck turned orange and red, as the fire came closer. "With one final breath…", Dan said. "What are you talking about?", Brandy hissed. "Whose final breath?"

"My heart rings, and space bends.", Dan continued, and closed his eyes. He held Brandy tight, not wanting to take any risk of losing her on the way. She stared up at him in confusion. " Dan, what's going on?"

The Dragon moved the fire up to his mouth, and closed his eyes in preparation to attack. The huge burst of flame would turn all the beams in the area to dust, leaving anyone on them to fall to their almost-certain deaths. Almost certain, because Fire Spirits would still survive.

"For the honor of the fallen!", Dan said, as he completed his Overdrive Verse. "I whisk away, to a safer place."

The Dragon unleashed his attack, white-hot flame flying over every surface at higher speed than it was possible to run away from. Brandy closed her eyes, and held on to Dan tighter. "Secret Technique Overdrive!", Dan yelled, and both he and Brandy vanished in a twinkling of golden light.

The Hunter pulled a small switch on his giant shotgun, and a roll of bullets slotted into their chambers. He closed one eye and aimed right for Brenda. But she was already crouching, steam rising from her body as she prepared to Dash. The two faced each other, knowing that it would all come down to who attacked first. If the Hunter fired, then Brenda could activate her Dash in response and easily take him down. But if Brenda attacked first, then the Hunter could attack, leaving her heavily injured if not actually dead. It was quite an RNG matchup.

"My, nice mustache you've got there.", Brenda suddenly blurted out. "Do you wax it?"

"What-", the Hunter grunted, and his grip on the trigger of his gun relaxed for just a second. That was all Brenda needed. In less time than it took the Hunter to realize his mistake, Brenda Dashed, bursting through the rubble on the floor, and straight for him.

The Hunter hurriedly adjusted his grip and took a haphazard shot, the bullets flying just to the right of Brenda. A few of them did manage to hit her, but they were destroyed upon contact with her Dash Field. Brenda slid underneath the broken doorframe between them, and slammed a foot right into the Hunter's stomach. He grunted in pain, and almost dropped his gun. He tried to reload again, knowing that a direct shot from this distance would deal immense damage to Brenda. But he never got the chance- instead, he got his skull smashed in by a quick axe kick, and he dissolved.

Brenda looked up. It had taken her exactly 13 second to dispose of the Hunter- 13 seconds wasted. 13 precious seconds that could have been used to get into position. And if she knew anything from her many battles, it was that timing was everything.

"Chuck!", she said into her earpiece. "I'm gonna be a bit late! Is everything going alright on your end?"

Chuck the Hog Rider stared dreamily off into space. His fingers absentmindedly stirred themselves around in his pot of ink, and his quill pen tapped out random patterns on the back of his Hog. "Let's see, what rhymes with flower?", he thought, and stood a little straighter. "Maybe… power? Yeah, power."

"Chuck!", Brenda suddenly yelled in his ear, and he snapped out of his stupor. He very nearly dropped his equipment, but managed to keep it all on Trigger's back. Fingers still shaking from the shock, he put one finger to his earpiece. "Uh, yeah, I'm here.", he said. "And I am most definitely ready, yes ma'am."

"Good.", said Brenda as she strode quickly through a burning hallway. "Get ready. I'll be with you in just a few seconds."

Dan and Brandy reappeared in a quiet corner of an attic. There was a thick dust that covered everything, and looked as though it had not been disturbed in years. A detailed illustration of a massive red Dragon covered the floor, and the walls were decorated in old, faded papers.

"Dan?", Brandy asked, looking around. "Where are we?"

"Exactly where we needed to be.", said Dan, panting from the exhaustive effort of teleporting both Brandy and himself. "Just a little… off."

He pointed to a section of wall. "They're expecting us, just on the other side. We'll have to break through."

Brandy nodded, and raised her fists. "Right. Just punching?"

Dan breathed in, and his hands glowed with golden light. "Right."

The two both paused for a second to gather strength, then attacked.

"Oraoraoraoraoraoraora!", Dan shouted, pummeling the stone wall with a barrage of high-intensity, Star-fueled punches that cracked the rock.

"Doraoraoraoraoraoraora!", Brandy yelled, lashing out with weaker, but more precise blows that further fractured whatever Dan broke.

The combined attack of both of them soon caused the wall to crumble, revealing the open air beyond. Brandy had almost started to jump through instinctively, but Dan caught her by the cloak and she managed to pull back.

"What- what?", Brandy asked. "Are we just supposed to jump?"

"Yeah.", Dan said. "But don't worry, there's someone waiting to catch us. This is the plan, I went over it with them like a thousand times."

Brandy looked through the hole, trying to catch a glimpse of the ground, but the angle was too tight. She couldn't see anything. "You can't tell if there's anyone down there.", she said. "What if there's not?"

Dan just smiled. "Don't worry, Brandy.", he said. "Just jump. Its a leap of faith."

He grabbed Brandy's hand. To her surprise, he jumped right out the window, and she fell after him.

Song: Third Bomb

Orfox grabbed his earpiece, almost yelling into it. "Oy, Bowza!", he roared. "It's time! Activate Operation Tremors!"

There was no answer, because Bowza was dead at the moment. It would still be a few more minutes before he reformed, in his room, back at Oticat's castle.

"Bowza? Bowza!", yelled Orfox, but there was still no answer. He growled in frustration and punched a few buttons, trying to change the communication channel to All, but his fingers were too big. The small, fragile device broke and fell to the floor. Orfox growled in frustration, and slammed his fist into the wall. It broke.

"Curse it…", he mumbled to himself. "Bowza went and got himself killed. Who's gonna set off Tremors now?"

Inside of the room where Fred and Bowza had killed each other, there was quiet. A few shreds of blue cape and red glass stirred in the hot wind, but that was it. No movement at all, until a Battle Ram burst into the room from outside, and a loud crack echoed throughout the whole space. The Ratzo Brothers fell from their now broken Ram, and stumbled into the room.

"Where's Bowza?", one of them said as he scratched his head. "He was supposed to meet us here."

"I dunno.", said the other. "But I found this weird button, next to this random cape."

He held up a flashing blue button, labeled Operation Tremors. It also said "WARNING! DO NOT TRIGGER UNLESS SITUATION DIRE!"

"Cool.", said one of the Ratzo Brothers. "What does it say? I can't read."

"Shoot, neither can I.", said his brother. "I'm gonna push it."

His brother gave him an enthusiastic thumbs up, and the Barbarian pushed down on the button.

As Brandy fell, she could see Chuck scrambling to put away what looked like a set of stationary. That was odd. She could also see a streak of blue, blazing at top speed towards where it looked like they would land. That was good, she guessed. But what was it?

Dan pulled her tighter to him, and she knew there wasn't much time to find out. They were going to hit the ground in just a few seconds. Just in enough time to look up Dan, and ask him exactly what he thought he was doing, and why he had decided to fling them both to their deaths.

But as it turned out, there actually wasn't enough time to even that. Brandy and Dan covered the last few feet to the surface of the earth, and landed in somebody's arms.

Brandy opened her eyes. She had closed them, because that is the standard thing to do before you hit the ground while falling. And she saw, looking down at her, the face of Brenda, maniac energy radiating from her.

Song: Killer

"Whew.", she said. "Looks l caught you just in time, my thief."

"Heh, yeah.", Brandy said, and groaned. "How did you do that? Catch us, I mean."

Brenda gently set them both down, and shrugged. "Just a neat trick with my Dash I thought up. Maybe I could teach you sometime. That'd be cool."

"Yeah.", said Brandy. "It would."

"Thief?", Dan asked, confused. "Why did you call her that?"

Both Brandy and Brenda looked awkwardly at each other, then at Dan. "Well, thief's sort of our word.", said Brenda. "But you can say…", Brandy said, trying to think of some sort of abbreviation for it, but gave up after a few seconds. "You know what? You can say it."

Dan slowly nodded. "Um, thanks. I guess."

Brenda pointed to Chuck, who was making some last minute preparations to Trigger. "Brandy, go get onto Trigger with Chuck. He'll take you home. Dan, can you still fight? You look like you're in pretty bad shape."

Dan tried to roll his arm, to show that he was fine, but it caught in a weird position and he winced in pain. "Yeah, I'm- ow. Okay, maybe I'm not okay."

"I think you should come with me.", said Brandy. "You've done enough."

The two got onto Trigger, and Chuck scratched the Hog's cheek. "Alright, old boy, ready to run?", he said. "Because you gotta run like you've never run before."

Trigger snorted, and pawed the dirt with his hoof in agreement. He was ready.

"Come on, you two.", said Chuck. "Let's get you home."

And so it was, that as the four rode off into the distance, that Brandy the once-innocent Bandit, covered in blood, sweat, tears, and sorrow, finally headed back towards home.

And Dan put his head on her shoulder and fell asleep, knowing that he had at last brought the ones who had taken her to justice.

And Chuck swung his hammer and yelled "Hog Rideeerrrr!", at random intervals. Because that is who he was.

LeChris wiped the Elixir from his eyes, and pointed through the haze. With Ryusei_Nakao69 currently missing and presumed dead, he had taken the lead. "My warriors!", he shouted, trying to spur on what Troops he had remaining. "They think they've beaten us, but they do not know the true glory of TheEvilOverLords! They attack us through trickery and deception, but our power is overwhelming! We shall defeat them today!"

The Troops he was speaking to gave a cry of aggression, and charged forward. He could not actually see what they were, because of the thick, choking smoke that filled the entirety of the room. The fight, although it had spread to practically every inch of the Castle, had not left the Grand Ballroom- indeed, that was where the fighting was thickest. A layer of Elixir coated the floor like water in a wetland, troops slipping and slogging through it, not caring about anything but killing.

ChupilickytwaCT put his hand to his eyes, trying to peer through the gloom. After leaving Trainer Cheddar 3 to deal with Ryusei_Nakao69, he had come back here to lead his troops. "Come on, guys!", he shouted to try and rally everyone around him. "Just hold them back for a little while longer! We're trying to get Operation Tremors online!"

The Kings behind him, including Oticat, sheltered themselves from the onslaught of dusty wind. "We can't, Chup!", shouted Stankyleg, another Co-Leader and ChupilickytwaCT's closest friend. "The chosen instigator is dead!"

Oticat turned to him in shock. "Bowza's dead?", he asked. "What happened?"

"Well, I don't know.", said Stankyleg. "He probably fell victim to some abomination just roaming around this place."

Oticat's earpiece suddenly rang, and he swiped it to answer. "Yes? Hello?", he said.
"Hey, boss!", shouted one of the Ratzo brothers at the top of his lungs. "We found this weird blue button, and we pressed it! What do you think will happen?"

As if in response to his question, a Giant Skeleton briefly became visible through the gloom. He threw a Goblin off of his face, and stomped on a Musketeer, then a harness on his chest suddenly blinked. A hatch opened in the middle, and a half-dozen Clone spells fell out and hit the floor. Almost instantly, six Clones of the Giant Skeleton appeared next to the original.

ChupilickytwaCT saw it, and grinned. That meant that somehow, they had done it. The fact that it was happening right in front of him meant that it was happening all over the Castle. Operation Tremors had started.

There was an audible echoing screech that could be heard from everywhere in the Castle as hundreds of Clone spells all triggered more or less simultaneously, creating many hundreds of Giant Skeletons- or more importantly, their Bombs, all ready to explode at the slightest touch.

"Everyone, fall back!", ChupilickytwaCT said into his earpiece. "If all goes right, the whole Castle's about to collapse, and nobody wants to be inside!"

Everyone that had an earpiece on- all the Kings, all the Troops fighting, Kars, Webert, the Ratzo Brothers, Orfox, Brenda, Trainer Cheddar 3, everyone- all heard his warning. And they all, no matter their condition, pressed a special button on their harnesses. With a soft pop, the bizarre technology wired to them activated, and they all just teleported away. This left many enemy Troops very confused.

LeChris punched the air, and cheered. "We've done it!", he cried triumphantly. "They're leaving! We've won! Everyone except those pesky Giant Skeletons…"

Ryusei_Nakao69 had been mere seconds away from being flattened by a robotic Mega Knight. When the stroke did not fall, he opened his eyes in curiosity, and saw that all of Trainer Cheddar 3's Troops had oddly vanished. But instead of celebrating, he knew instinctively that there was something going on. So he opened up his Kingly Communicator, and opened a direct chat with LeChris. "LeChris!", he barked. "What's going on?"

"You're alright, my lord!", said LeChris happily. "We won! They all left, except for a few Giant Skeletons. But don't worry, we'll get those cleaned up right away…"

A surge of alarm pulsed through Ryusei_Nakao69's heart. Even if LeChris, for some strange reason, had forgotten how Giant Skeletons worked, old Ryus had not. "LeChris, wait!", he yelled. "Don't attack them! Don't even touch them!"

"Why not?", LeChris asked.

"Have you forgotten, you idiot?", Ryusei_Nakao69 practically screamed at him through the communicator. "Giant Skeletons explode!"

"Oh, right.", said LeChris, silently but frantically motioning for his Troops to stop whatever they were doing and stay absolutely still, and especially not to attack the Giant Skeletons. "How silly of me. I seem to have forgotten-"

And then, he saw it. Everyone saw it. A single boulder slowly rolled across the room, as fast as a Golem taking its evening stroll, but no less devastating- it popped each and every Giant Skeleton Clone in the entire Grand Ballroom. All eyes followed to where it had come from, and they saw Webert's Clone, still maintained. "Jobe!", shrieked LeChris. "Why?"

Slowly and methodically, though still in the space of just a few seconds, Webert's Clone took off his makeup, and cast aside his false beard. He shrugged, and grinned. "Oops.", he said.

In the second that followed, everyone tried to escape. But in the second that followed that one, the timer on the Bombs had already expired. And in the second that followed, the Bombs exploded with a blast of near-volcanic proportions, utterly destroying everything in the Grand Ballroom, collapsing the entire ceiling, and setting off a huge chain reaction through the upper and further sections of the whole Clan Castle that finally culminated in a gargantuan explosion that blew the entire superstructure to bits, utterly annihilating any Red Troops and Kings still inside, and sending up a column of debris that apparently reached all the way to Legendary Arena, if the news stations covering the story the next day were to believed.

Oticat and ChupilickytwaCT sat on a rocky outcropping overlooking the destruction. More Kings sat down on the ledge beside them, some putting on 3-D glasses and opening bags of popcorn. The 3-D glassed didn't make much sense in retrospect, but they looked cool at the time.

"Well boys, we did it.", said ChupilickytwaCT, his voice bursting with pride. Here was his tiny little Clan, hand-raised and hand-grown, that had just successfully managed to take down a near-legendary Clan with 3000 more Clan Trophies than them at least. And Oticat's Bandit had been recovered as well, so that was nice. What was her name? Brandy? Ah well, very nice. And they had done it with nothing but grit, determination, skill, planning, the element of surprise, magical breathing powers, and a lot of help- a lot of help. "TheEvilOverLords are no more."