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.

8. Chapter 8

"Sources are all still unclear about just what it was that turned the Clan Castle of TheEvilOverLords to rubble yesterday morning, but we can all agree on one thing- it was tremendous. The sheer power required to pull that off could have only come from a Clan at least in Legendary League."

The Wizard in the studio turned to his partner, a Villager. She affixed the camera with a worried look, and continued talking where he had left off.

"Reports are still coming in from our on-sight reporters, but for now we are going to assume no survivors. The Red presence around the Castle was completely broken up as well, so they're not ever coming back. Just who is responsible for this? Find out… well, probably as soon as we do."

Brandy clicked the remote, and changed the channel, hoping to find one that wasn't covering the incident. But there was no such luck- a Clan Castle didn't get blown sky high and not get noticed by pretty much the entire continent.

This time, it was the all-Goblin news channel. Brandy didn't speak Gobbish yet, but she could more or less tell what they were saying by the gestures, tone, and pictures behind them. If she could speak Gobbish, this is what she would have heard:

"My, my, what an unfortunate accident seems to have befallen them."

"Yes, yes. How unfortunate indeed. But you know what is fortunate?"

"What?"

"They may have been destroyed, but all their Gold and Gems weren't."

But she could not understand what they were saying, and so Brandy didn't exactly know what the two Goblins were doing when they suddenly stood up from their chairs, grabbed a pair of sacks from the wall, and ran off camera, hordes of set crew in their wake.

She tried another channel, hoping it would just be talking about something normal, but knowing that it wouldn't be.

"-and just to prove my point, this happens!", shouted an angry, red-faced Giant. "I'm telling you, Frank, there's no end to what They will do to keep us quiet! Destroying a Clan Castle? That's small stuff. Next, they'll probably try to use their army of physic lobsters to take over the world! Are you listening, Frank? Frank?"

Frank, not listening to Alex's famously nonsensical rant, just stared straight ahead into space. Thinking was not his strong point. Neither was talking, or anything that required any sort of intelligence at all. Frank had been created for one thing and one thing only- and that was smashing pesky Brawlers. So he picked up his massive hammer and walked away, leaving Alex sputtering in anger and confusion.

"Well folks, you heard it here first!", he said, turning to the camera in a desperate attempt to keep face. "Frank knows the truth, so should you. Remember, keep on watching Infowars-"

Brandy frowned, and clicked again. This time, the channel was of two Archers and a Knight.

"Why, I think that's an interesting viewpoint on the situation, Tabitha.", said the Knight with a very forced grin. "Emma, what do you think?"

"Well Mike,", said Emma, aimlessly painting her nails, "I don't think we're really considering the gravity of this situation. One Castle got destroyed as a punishment by the gods, what happens when its another? What happens when it's us?"

She spread her arms, and turned to the camera. "What happens when the gods decide that we're not worthy?"

Tabitha, not wanting to hear Emma's crazy rants anymore, stood up and pulled down a screen. "Well, Emma, I don't know about that. Let's just focus on the facts, shall we?"

Mike stood as well, and pointed to a very grainy image of Orfox on the projection. "Yes, Emma, let's. As we can see, this appears to be proof that a Barbarian King was one of the major players in the attack. We don't know who he is or what this means, but trust me, it has significance."

Brandy sighed, and turned off the T.V. There was nothing on, not really. Just more footage of exactly what she didn't want to be reminded of. That, and old replays of T.V Royale from 3 months ago.

It was Tuesday. It had been 12 hours. 12 hours had passed since the battle to reclaim her, and Brandy could still hardly even believe that the entire experience had happened. It all seemed like a nightmare, one that kept pounding on the insides of her vision every time she tried to close her eyes.

Once the battle had been concluded, Orfox and his strange Troops had gone back to their village across the sea, and the members of LosDementosCT had all gone back to their various Castles, Troops in tow. But before she had left, Brenda had given Brandy something. It was a thin golden needle, with intricate carvings of insects covering its surface. Brenda gave no clues as to what it was, only that Brandy should keep it secret, and keep it very, very safe.

"How's the soup, Brandy?", came the voice of Agatha from somewhere behind the couch.

"It's good.", Brandy said, and picked up the bowl of soup that she had left on the end table. "What's in it?"

"Oh, nothing much.", Agatha said. "Just some chicken stock, some spices, a few vegetables, and a drop or two of Zap to give it some kick. Want me to make you another bowl?"

"Um, no, this is fine.", Brandy said, then thought for a moment. "Actually, yes, but take out the chicken. Just leave the vegetables."

"Okay.", Agatha said, and tapped her staff on the ground. In a flash of purple light, Larry jumped from the floor, which sealed behind him, and tipped his nonexistent hat. He gave his heels a little click, and flipped down onto the couch next to where Brandy sat. He started to tug at Brandy's blanket, but two stern looks from both Brandy and Agatha told him to stop it.

"I'm going to the kitchen to make more, then.", said Agatha. "Tell Larry if you need anything, and I'll hear it."

She walked away, leaving Brandy with no one but her single bony attendant. She thought about telling Agatha that she needed something, but she didn't know what it was that she needed. Only that she desperately needed something that could not quite be put into words.

It was an itching feeling, almost- to know that deep inside of her, there was some sensation, some feeling yearning to be set free, yet Brandy could not tell what it was. So she stared into the fireplace below the T.V, hoping that something would happen to tell her.

"Brandy, you okay?", Webert asked from the right side of the couch. "You look a little down."

Brandy stopped blowing on her soup and looked up at Webert, with honestly a little disgust. "No, I'm not okay. Of course I'm not okay. I just got brutally kidnapped, tortured, and repeatedly beaten up and violated for almost half a week. What part of that is okay?"

Webert stepped back and stared at the ground in embarrassment. "Oh, sorry.", he mumbled. "I didn't mean it to come out like that."

Brandy immediately regretted lashing out at him like that. Webert was a nice Bowler, he probably hadn't meant to say what he said like that. She reached out an arm for him, and gestured for him to sit on the couch next to her. "No, no, it's okay.", she said, and Webert looked up at her. "I didn't- I didn't mean it like that."

Webert flopped down onto the couch, bending it a little bit, and placed his ball in front of himself for a nice footrest. "No, I'm sorry.", he said. "I shouldn't have said something like that."

Brandy was about to counter with another "I'm sorry", but she thought for a moment first. If she said that no, she was the one who was sorry, then Webert would just say that no, Brandy had it wrong, and that in fact Webert was the sorry one, then the cycle would continue onwards, getting more and more awkward with every pass. But on the other hand, if Brandy just accepted his apology and left it at that, then there would be no cycle. Besides, Brandy needed the apology more- or at least that's what she thought. So she quietly nodded, and the two resumed silence.

"Brandy, why are you wearing your hair down like that?", came another voice. This one was the voice of Sadie, who was just about to leave for battle. "You don't usually wear it all in front of your face like that."

"Sadie?", Brandy asked, totally ignoring the Princess's question. "Are you going somewhere?"

Brandy stood up, spilling her soup in her hurry. Larry, who had just been about to doze off, or meditate, or whatever Skeletons did when they weren't doing anything else, panicked and jumped up, then ran off to tell Agatha about the whole situation. "Sadie, is Oticat about to go and battle? Without me?"

Sadie tried to choose her next words carefully, but what Brandy had said was indeed the exact truth. There was no way around it. So she sighed, and winced. "Yes…"

Oticat stopped in his tracks, just shy of going out the door. All the Troops behind him, some Rascals, a Giant, a Goblin Gang, a Wizard, and a Musketeer, halted as well. Besides those five, a Tombstone, a Fireball, and a Zap made up his secondary Battle Deck.

Oticat had tried to sneak out without anyone noticing, but Sadie had, at the very last second, made that impossible. Now he was going to have to explain to Brandy that-

Brandy sat back down on the couch again, and put her hands together. "Well, if you really want to, I suppose it's for the best. I'm not much help anyway."

Sadie blinked, then leaned down. "Hold on, Brandy. Did you just say you were no help? The Brandy I know would never say that. The Brandy I know would beg to come along and fight."

Brandy didn't even bother to meet Sadie's eye. "The Brandy you know is dead."

Her eyes misted over, and her head fell into her lap. "She died three days ago, in that canyon. Then she died again, yesterday in that Castle. Then she died again, and again, and again. She is no more."

It was a full fifteen seconds before anyone moved, or said something, or did anything. Nobody wanted to disturb Brandy, not when she was crying like this. But eventually, someone did take it upon herself to say something.

"Look, Brandy.", said Agatha, who had reappeared. As soon as Larry had told her, Agatha had returned to Brandy's side as soon as possible. Brandy pulled herself back to a sitting position, and opened her tear-streaked eyes. "You're not dead. We rescued you from that evil castle, and you are alive. You have to remember that."

She put a hand on Brandy's forehead to brush her hair out of her face, but Brandy grabbed Agatha's fingers to stop her. She slowly pushed Agatha away from her, and turned to face the wall.

Brandy, what's wrong?, thought Agatha, making sure that Brandy could hear.

Don't touch my forehead, Brandy snapped. Don't you dare.

Agatha pursed her lips together in worry. Brandy had never been so aggressive. Well, admittedly, she had, but it was a good, energetic, ready-to-battle type of aggressive, not this angry, territorial bitterness.

Brandy, why are you hiding your forehead?, Agatha thought again. What's wrong?

I don't have to tell you, Brandy thought. I don't have to tell anyone anything.

Everyone else watched this mental exchange with varying levels of confusion. Webert knew that Agatha and Brandy could both communicate telepathically. So did Oticat. But nobody else knew. To them, it just looked like a staring contest in which neither player was actually looking at each other.

It's alright, Agatha thought. Brandy, you can tell me. No one else can hear. It's alright.

Brandy turned her head to face Agatha, hurt and fury in her eyes. No, she said, and turned off the link.

Agatha had made up her mind. Brandy was clearly hiding something that she didn't want to be revealed, and she would respect that. As a Witch, she always maintained a high level of professionalism in all things she did, and this was no exception. So it surprised her that much more when Larry leapt up and pulled off Brandy's hood, scattering her bangs and revealing her forehead.

Brandy gasped, and tried to cover it up again- but it was too late. Everyone had already seen it. Everyone had already seen the huge tattoo inked across her forehead that said "Property of Ryusei_Nakao69" in bright Red letters.

Again, everyone froze. Except for Oticat, the two Princesses, and all the members of the Battle Deck, who thought that now would be the most opportune time to sneak out the door and leave. The Giant, trying to leave in such a hurry, forgot to take the Large Troop Door on the right of the regular one and hit his head on the wall. Then he remembered to take the right door, but the damage was already done, both to the wall, his head, and the silence of the moment. Soon, only Webert and Agatha remained by Brandy's side. Then only Agatha, as Webert detected that now would not be the best time to be in the room.

Agatha struggled to find words, trying to take in what she had just seen. It hadn't been there when they had rescued Brandy, had it? No. Agatha had repaired Brandy herself, and she would have seen such an obvious marking. Neither Orfox or Dan had said anything about it either, and Brenda and Chuck had not seemed to have noticed anything.

"Brandy...honey…", Agatha managed to get out, but it was too late. Brandy was already crying. It was the big, ugly kind of crying, the kind that turns your face red, and the kind that drips onto the floor.

"I- I don't know… where it came from.", Brandy choked out. "It just appeared… it just appeared… when I woke up."

Agatha gently put Brandy's head on her shoulder. "It's okay, Brandy.", she whispered. "It's okay to cry. You're a gentle Bandit. You've been through too much. It's okay to let it out."

And as Brandy cried herself to sleep on Agatha's shoulder, the Witch wondered what was going to happen next. Next, in the sudden drama that had been thrust into all their lives with the force of a dark storm.

One year earlier

Chrisintheair pulled out his best swivel chair, and sat down in front of his Clan Chat Screen. He was the King destined to become Ryusei_Nakao69- but he wasn't there yet. No, at this point, he was still just a regular King. He had not yet begun to commit the evil acts that he would eventually be known for. He was the leader of his clan, but it was not yet called TheEvilOverLords. It was, for the moment, known as Me and the Boys. It was still a fairly new Clan, only about 2 months old. And right now, Chrisintheair had some business to attend to- some very important business indeed.

"Alright, what's happening?", he asked into his microphone. "How's everyone doing?"

His closest friend, sheerpalpatations, responded with a Thumbs Up King emote. He was the one that would eventually become theSenate. "We're all well over here, Chris. How about you?"

Chrisintheair typed out a reply, but before he could send it, TheWhiteWizard interjected. He was the one to become LeChris. "Oh, I'm doing well. And my Troops are too, thank you for asking."

Chrisintheair smiled warmly. He always did like to see all of his Clanmates getting along so well.

"Okay, let's talk business.", he said. "I have in my hand, at this very moment, a Legendary Trade Token." He held up his hand to show a shimmering token, dripping with multi-colored mist. "And in my other hand, I have a spare Electro Wizard." In his other hand, he held up an Electro Wizard card, also giving off soft, color-changing hues that lit up the small room he was in. "Guess what I'm going to do with them?"

Sheerpalpatations slapped his hand down onto his dashboard. "Trade it? I'm up for it. I could use an Electro Wi-"

"No.", said Chrisintheair. "Oh no no no no no. You see, friends, I have something very… different… in mind."

"You're not going to trade?", asked TheWhiteEizard. "Then why did you show us that Token?"

"Oh, just to flex a little bit.", shrugged Chrisintheair. "They're hard to find, you know." He leaned into his camera, as if sharing a deadly secret. "I'm going to sell it.", he whispered. "I'm going to sell this Electro Wizard card."

Sheerpalpations's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "But- what- no- you can't. You can't do that."

"I can, and I will.", said Chris. "Now, what will the bidding start at? I'd say… I don't know, maybe around 50K?"

"But how?", sheerpalpatations continued asking. "What do you even mean, sell it? You can't do that…"

"I, too, am questioning about the logistics of that operation.", said TheWhiteWizard. "How would one sell a card to their clanmates, exactly?"

"Just show up to my Castle tomorrow, whoever buys the card.", explained Chrisintheair. "I give it to you, you give me the Gold, simple as that."

Sheerpalpatations and TheWhiteWizard looked at each other through the Clan Chat video call. As did Diegobrand, another member of the Clan that had just joined. In time, he would become the one known as Odurawaz. Sheerpalpations gulped, and raised his hand. He had always gone along with Chrisintheair's crazy schemes before, and he saw no reason not to try this one.

"Well, 50K, I guess.", he said. "I will start the bidding at 50K."

"Excellent, excellent.", said Chris, and starting thumbing through a notebook. "I'll mark you down for 50K, unless, of course- anyone wants to top that deal?"

He looked through the assembled Kings, which now included several more members, including Joshthevoice, affricccub, and WarofStars. There were several awkward glances between several of them, but no takers.

"Very well then.", said Chrisintheair. "I guess that sheerpalpatations gets the Electro Wizard card for-"

"60K.", said TheWhiteWizard. "I bid 60K."

Chrisintheair took a look at him, then burst into a wide smile. "Good, good!", he said, and set down his notebook. "I would expect nothing else of you. But…", he said as he took another look at the assembled members of his Clan, "...does anyone care to beat that offer?"

Sheerpalpations didn't even blink. "80K.", he said, and snapped his fingers. "I bid 80K on that card. I'm just 2 more away from max."

"Ooh, skipping 70K, are we?", said Chris. "Bold."

"100K.", said TheWhiteWizard, without skipping a beat. "I bet 100K on it. Because I, sheerpalpatations, am but 1 away from an upgrade."

The reactions of everyone in the Clan Chat successfully managed to mask another entrance. But this one wasn't a member of the Clan. He wasn't a King. He was something else, something… wrong, that dripped darkness wherever he went and exuded an aura of raw malice that seemed to eat light and devour souls. And he smiled as he appeared, an even darker crescent in a sea of inky black that almost looked like a hole in reality itself.

"I bet 120K.", said sheerpalpatations, getting a little bit desperate. "Chris, I will give you 120 thousand Gold for that Electro Wizard card."

Chris leaned back in his chair, and put his fingers together. "Oh my. That's quite a high number. Would anyone care to try and top that?"

TheWhiteWizard almost said something, but could not. Even if he did have that much money at the moment, he would rather spend it on something other than a single Electro Wizard. Like maxing out his Rascals, or buying himself a new wing of his Castle.

"Well then, it's settled.", said Chrisintheair. "This Electro Wizard card goes to-"

Song: Un'altra Persona

"One million.", came a voice. It had the grating texture of rock, yet was as smooth as water. It sounded like if pure darkness was given a sound. "I will pay you one million Gold for that Electro Wizard."

As one, all of the Kings in the Chat tilted their visions to look at the one who was speaking. His profile showed no image, nothing but an inky blackness. There was no name given underneath his window, either. Whoever was speaking, nobody knew.

"Ex-excuse me?", Chrisintheair asked. "One million Gold? I'm trying to run an auction here, and you think you can come in with such ridiculous claims?"

"Ridiculous?", said the Voice, and chuckled. "Really, mortal? Do you doubt me that easily?"

A tendril of darkness extended out from his window, and two glowing yellow eyes became visible against the void. "I'm not asking you again. Do you accept my offer or not?"

"Well, I don't know who you are.", said Chrisintheair. "So I don't know if I should."

The darkness withdrew a little bit. "Oh, yes, of course. I suppose I have not yet introduced myself. How foolish of me. Chrisintheair, I will speak to you personally. No one else will listen."
Chris looked around at the floating images of his Clanmates. He trusted each and every one of them, and knew that he would rather have them with him when speaking to this… this… whatever it was. It certainly wasn't a King. "No.", he said. "Everyone-"

The darkness made a miniscule movement, almost as if he were brushing away a fly. In an instant, every single window of every single King vanished, disconnected instantly. Chris gulped, and looked at the one remaining window. It had grown larger, and now seeped outside of its screen. It seemed like it was coming out of the Clan Chat computer, and right into Chrisintheair's room.

"I'm- I'm…", he began, but his voice caught in his throat. Whatever this mysterious entity was, it did seem extraordinarily powerful. The raw aura of fear that it radiated was unmistakable- this was no King, or Troop. Chrisintheair had only ever felt this level of energy in the presence of the gods. But finally, he worked up enough courage to finish his sentence. And as he did so, he bowed a little bit in the presence of this great being. "I'm listening."

Present day

It was Wednesday. A dark and cold Wednesday morning, or at least that was what it seemed like to Brandy. She had not actually gone outside to check the weather, of course, she would much rather stay in her room. So she did, and she did not try to go outside. There was nothing to be found there.

She sat on her bed, staring. Staring at the wall, staring at the empty, cold fireplace- but not really. She was facing them, but her mind's eye was too full to see what was in front of her. Every second of that day that she could remember played out in her head, on constant repeat, and there was no turning it off. Every time she closed her eyes, Hell greeted her with open arms.

There came a knock at the door. Without even turning, Brandy knew it was Dan. He had always knocked three short, one long. He was a Knight of routine. "Come in.", Brandy said.

Dan jiggled the doorknob, but the door didn't open. "It's locked.", he said, voice slightly muffled through the wooden frame.

"Oh.", said Brandy, and did not get up. "So it is." Normally, she would have just Dashed over and opened the door, but this time, she didn't really feel like it. She didn't know why, she just didn't.

"So, are you going to open it, or…", Dan asked. He waited a few seconds for a reply, but there wasn't one. That was weird. Usually, Brandy would have opened the door by now. The only reason he could think of why she wouldn't was if she was hurt…

Dan breathed in, focusing a small amount of power in his fist. It would be just enough to turn the locks of Brandy's door without breaking anything- he hoped. Bowza had only just begun to teach him how to use the Star in delicate amounts, rather than just violent Overdrives. He drew back his fist, took aim, and -

Brandy leisurely swung open the door, and was almost immediately struck by Dan's Star finger. Luckily, he managed to pull back his strike just in time, narrowly avoiding damaging Brandy's skull. He stumbled backwards, then forwards, then fell past her, landing in her room on a pile of wood. He spit out a splinter, and slowly got up.

"Good morning, Dan.", Brandy said with as much of a smile as she could muster. It wasn't much. "Any particular reason you wanted to see me?"

Dan swallowed. He still wasn't entirely sure that he wanted to go through with this. But he had thought all night, and most of the morning. Even if it was a very difficult decision, he had to go through with it. For not only his sake, but Brandy's. It was time to tell her exactly how he really felt.

"Listen, Brandy.", he said. "It's not easy to say this. But I think I have to."

Brandy walked closer to him, and they both sat down on the bed. "No, it's alright.", Brandy said. "You can say it, whatever it is. It's all good."

Dan's face twitched nervously. He exhaled, and began to speak. "Brandy, when I tried to save you… I wasn't enough. I couldn't beat him."

He clenched his fist, and slammed it down onto the dresser, cracks appearing in the wood. Brandy put her hands on his arm, trying to calm him down. "No, no, Dan, its okay. He's dead now. There's nothing to worry about anymore."

"No, you don't understand.", said Dan. "I wasn't strong enough to save you. Orfox was the one that took them down. I needed to be."

"Dan, you were strong enough.", said Brandy. "You were strong enough to fight them until we got there." She put her head on his shoulder. "You were strong enough for me."

Song: Stardust Requiem

Dan stood up, and Brandy almost fell over. "No.", he said. "I'm not good enough- not yet. I have to get better." He turned to look at her, tears almost in his eyes. He knew that doing what he was about to do pained him, but he also knew he had no choice. "I have to go."

"G...go?", Brandy whispered. She looked up at Dan. "What do you mean, go?"

Dan stood for a second in silence. Their eyes met, staring into each other. He saw the hurt in Brandy's eyes, and his heart ached with guilt. But he had already made his decision. Brandy didn't know what Dan was talking about- unless he meant leave Oticat's castle, and not come back. But he couldn't do that, could he? Would he?

After a few more seconds of staring, Dan fell forward into a hug. He squeezed Brandy so hard she almost couldn't breathe, tears running down his face. "I'm sorry, Brandy.", he said, so quietly that neither him or Brandy could barely hear. "I'm so, so sorry."

"Dan, what-", Brandy managed to squeak out. Dan pulled away from her, Star still sparking from his fingertips. He was crying full on now, his heart breaking in two. Brandy tried to move, but realized that she could not. Dan had paralyzed her using the Star, knowing that she could stop him if she really tried.

Shakily, he put his hand to his forehead, and golden energy flowed around his fingers. He locked eyes with Brandy one last time, and gave a sad smile. "Brandy, I know that you don't know what I'm doing. But I assure you, it is for the best."

"Dan!", Brandy screamed, trying to break the Star wound around her, but it was far too strong. "Dan!"

Dan started to flicker in and out of space, his Secret Technique Overdrive going into effect once again. "I'm sorry.", he whispered. "Goodbye."

And with that, Dan vanished. Brandy could only watch, helpless, as the best friend she had ever known, the Knight she had shared her life with as long as she could remember, disappeared without a trace, gone to somewhere that Brandy didn't know.

It took a few seconds for the Star around her to vanish. It took a few more seconds for the feeling to sink in that she would probably never see him ever again. But after that, it took almost no time at all for Brandy to sink to the floor, and scream. She screamed in anger, and sadness, and immeasurable pain. The tears mingled with her screaming, the sound coming out of her mutated into the tortured sound of pure sorrow.

Oticat burst into the room, panting frantically, and saw Brandy lying in the center of the floor. "Brandy, what is it?", he asked, rushing to her side. "What happened?"

"He's gone.", Brandy choked out, through a flood of tears. "He left."

"Who left?", Oticat asked. "What are you talking about?"

A faint shimmer of purple appeared around Brandy. It went unnoticed by both of them, seeing as how they both had different things to focus on at the moment. But it was there, floating over Brandy like an ethereal courascent of flame.

"Dan left.", she said. "He left us. Left me. He just vanished."

She punched her fist into the ground, cracking the wood. "Just like that. He's gone"

Oticat bit his lip, and looked up. He didn't know what was going on. His life had gotten insane lately. What had happened to the days where he could just donate and do wars, and everything would be fine? Not even a week ago, his biggest problem was Hog Cycle decks on Ladder. But now, he was watching his Bandit break down right in front of him, still suffering the massive PTSD from being kidnapped and almost hypnotized, and her best friend, his own Knight, had just departed for parts unknown using some ancient martial art that Oticat hadn't even heard of until yesterday.

My…, he thought. Things are not going well.

One year earlier, again

"I'm listening.",, Chrisintheair said again. "What do I have to do, to gain such power? As I now sense that you control."

"First, mortal,", the Voice said, making sure to stress Chrisintheair's comperatively lowly status as much as possible, "You must address me by my proper name. Call me Lord Grrshknn."

"Yes, Lord Grrshknn.", said Chris. "I will."

"Good, good.", said Grrhsknn. "And as you may have already guessed, I'm not exactly from around here. I am, in fact, what you might call a demon."

As Chrisintheair watched, Grrshknn slowly oozed out of the screen entirely, becoming a shapeless black mass that covered Chris's computer. The King slowly backed away, giving Grrshknn room to maneuver. He slowly formed from dark sludge into a hulking, muscular mass, reminiscent of a titanic bear. "Ah, that's better.", he said, looking at his shadowy, trailing paws. "I always did like this form most of all. Such a joy I get to assume it…"

He admired his shape for a few more seconds, then became aware of Chrisintheair standing just next to him. He seemed to be working up the courage to ask for something.

"Yes?", Grrshknn asked. "What is it?"

Chrisintheair put his hands together, trying not to show the intense fear coursing through his entire body. "Well, uh, Lord Grrshknn, sir, I do believe that you promised me some Gold for that Electro Wizard card. One million, in fact."

Grrshknn huffed in slight amusement. "Oh, yes. You mortals and your riches. Especially here, in this odd place."

He waved a paw, in some random direction. A single tendril of dark power shot out and vanished through the wall, then disappeared entirely. "There you go.", he said. "The sum of one million Gold is now in your vaults."

Chrisintheair heard a loud thud from somewhere downstairs, and the unmistakable sound of breaking metal. Hurriedly, he pulled his Kingly Communicator from out of his pants pocket and put it to his ear. "Chet?", he asked, referring to a Builder that worked on that floor. "What's going on down there?"

Chet, although he had received the call, didn't answer. He couldn't help but keep on staring, transfixed, at the immense wealth that had suddenly graced his King. Before him lay more Gold that he had ever seen in his entire life. It spilled out of the vaults, the doors shattered wide open. It spilled all across the room, packing it to near-bursting with precious metal. The entire pile glimmered with promise, promises of untold wealth. Slowly, carefully, as if it might have been an illusion, Chet leaned down and ran his hand through the pile. It was real.

Expertly maintaining his excitement, Chet put his own Communicator to his face, and spoke as slowly as he could manage. "Uh, Chrisintheair, sir?", he said. "I think you might want to come take a look at this."

"What is it?", Chris asked frantically. "What's going on down there? What was that sound?"

Chet scratched his head. "That was the sound of our vaults exploding, sir. They just sort of filled up, and then kept on going. They weren't meant to hold this much Gold."

"Really?", Chrisintheair asked. "How much do you think there is?"

Chet squinted, and took another, closer look at the enormous stack of Gold on the ground. "I don't really know, but… probably around a million."

Grrshknn smiled. Such a display of power would no doubt win the King over. And once he did, then his true plan could at last be put into motion. He had been searching for a way to get his work done without doing it himself- and at last, he had found it. In the form of one very greedy, easily corruptible King.

Chrisintheair hung up his Communicator, not even bothering to hear what else Chet had to say. Because at this point, he had already made up his mind. If this Grrshknn fellow, intimidating as he was, would gladly offer up this amount of Gold for free, then Chris could become the richest and most powerful King in the world. And his fledgling Clan could grow to become truly legendary, the elite among the elite. He might have to change the name though- Me and the Boys just didn't sound good enough anymore.

"Well, Chrisintheair?", Grrshknn purred. "Is that enough?"

Chris looked up at his new benefactor. He still didn't know who he was, really. Nor did Chris question how Grrshknn knew his name. He was just too blinded by power and greed to care. "Yes, Lord Grrshknn.", he said. "That will do nicely."

Present Day

It was Thursday evening.

"This soup is too hot.", Brandy muttered under her breath. "I can't eat it."

It was dinnertime, and all of Oticat's troops had sat down to eat. The cook, a Builder named Cook, had made a huge vat of soup. But for Brandy, apparently, it was too hot to eat.

"Voin jäähdyttää sen sinulle, Brandy.", said Gunther, an Ice Wizard sitting next to her. He offered up his hands with bright eyes, but Brandy had no idea what he had just said.

"Um… what?", she asked, trying to guess what he meant. She knew that it probably meant something along the lines of give it to me, but she wasn't really that sure.

"Sanoit, että se oli liian kuuma. Anna se minulle.", Gunther said, forgetting for a moment that no one but other Ice Wizards and Royal Ghosts could understand what he said. He offered up his hands again, but Brandy had no real response.

"Give.", he said in broken English. "Give bowl to me. I make cold."

His words were heavily accented, but Brandy could tell what he meant. "Oh. Sorry, I couldn't understand you."

She gave her steaming bowl to Gunther. "Kukaan ei koskaan.", he said under his breath. He breathed out, and a wave of frost slowly started to creep over the bowl. The steam vanished in seconds as all of the liquid inside of the soup bowl was frozen solid. Proudly, Gunther handed Brandy back her bowl. He thought that he had done exactly what she wanted, so he was a bit surprised when Brandy, upon seeing her frozen soup, slammed her head down onto the table and groaned.

"Why, Gunther?", she mumbled. "Why can't things just work out?"

"You… want bowl cold?", Gunther asked. "I thought?"

Brandy looked up just long enough to fix him with an exasperated glare, then retreated back into her folded arms. "Not that cold, Gunther. Just a little bit cooler."

Gunther frowned, and Brandy held up her hands. "Don't worry, it's not your fault. Just-"

Song: Killer

A sharp shock ran through Brandy's body. It felt like a stab wound, but came from her stomach. She clenched her teeth instinctively and grabbed the edge of the table, digging into the wood as much as possible in order to help with the pain. After a few seconds, it faded- only to be replaced with another shot, this one even worse. Brandy held a ferocious curse on the tip of her tongue. She didn't exactly know why she even bothered- maybe it was because there were young Troops nearby.

"Gaaa…", she whispered underneath her breath. "What the…"

Brandy hobbled to her feet, using one hand to clutch her stomach, and pushed back her chair. She pushed it back a little too hard, however, and it fell spinning across the floor. The commotion earned her several odd looks from several members of the table, including one of concern from both Bowza and Agatha.

"Sorry, just gotta-", Brandy said, then another shot of pain flashed upwards from her stomach and hit her throat, erasing her next word. "Oh frick."

She staggered to the bathroom just down the hall, trying not to collapse. Her head swam with colors, her stomach was still under heavy fire, and for some truly bizarre reason, she had an intense craving for sharp cheddar cheese.

What is wrong with me?, Brandy thought. She slammed against the door to the bathroom, then haphazardly swung it open. Am I sick?

She closed the door again after limping inside, and stopped in front of the counter. She leaned over it, using her arms for support. Brandy felt like she was going to faint, yet she really, really wanted to go outside and run around for a full day.

No, I can't be sick, she thought. I've never been sick before. Not even once.

"Brandy, are you okay?", came the muffled voice of Agatha through the door. Her question was punctuated by three sharp raps, each from a different Skeleton. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing.", said Brandy, as she almost fell, staggered to the toilet, and very nearly collapsed. She stared into the water, noticing how red her face looked. "I'm fi-"

But she was not fine at all. Before she had even finished saying how fine she was, Brandy threw up.

"Oh my.", said Bowza, who was also listening in. "You know, for some reason, I don't think she's very fine at all."

Agatha ignored him, as she often did. He had some useful stuff to say sometimes, but most of it didn't really mean anything. "Brandy, you don't sound so good. Why don't you come on out?"

Brandy just stared at the wall of the bathroom, feeling the tingles of illness run across her skin. Acid still dripped from her teeth a little, and her arms shook. Her knees felt weak, and her arms felt heavy. There was vomit on her tunic already, and she was missing what they were serving- spaghetti.

"Brandy?", Agatha asked again, concern tinging her voice. "Are you okay in there? Answer me."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine.", Brandy said. "Well, as fine as I can be."

She stood up, and opened the door. Her face was still red, and her eyes looked a little glazed over. Her hair, usually pure white and clean, was a dirty cream and riddled with tangles.

"I think we should get you to the doctor, Brandy.", said Agatha. "Bowza, what do you think?"

Bowza raised a finger to speak, but Brandy interrupted him. "Yeah, that sounds good.", she said, and started walking towards the stairs. Dr. Jethro's office was located on the 17th floor of the castle, roughly near where all the other Wizards hung out. "Sounds good."

Dan blinked, trying to adjust to the light. He couldn't quite tell where he was. When he had teleported away, his only direction was to somewhere where he could get stronger. He hadn't bothered with specifics. But gradually, as his eyes became accustomed to the intense brightness in front of him, he could see the gracefully hovering figure of a Healer.

"Welcome.", she said, in a voice that reassured Dan immediately. "Who are you, Where did you come from, and What have you come here for?"

Dan brushed himself off, and stood at attention, sword by his side. "I am Dan, of King Oticat, of Clan LosDementosCT. I have come to get as strong as I can, to better protect those who I love."

The Healer nodded, and bowed in respect. "A noble cause, dear Knight."

She made a grand sweeping motion with her arms and moved aside, revealing what lay beyond her. "Welcome, seeker of Strength."

Dr. Jethro sat huddled over his notebooks, miles deep in thought. He had a study currently going, one that detailed the long-term effects of Dark Elixir consumption upon regular Troops. So far, the data was short, and there wasn't a whole lot to work with. But according to what they did have, the constant drinking of Dark Elixir, constant being at least one pint every day, would always lead to death. Permanent death, not the kind of death you just regenerated from. He and his colleagues would have to talk to someone, perhaps issue a PSA over T.V Royale or something.

The door creaked open, and Dr. Jethro was pulled out of his stupor as if there was a Tornado in his room. He spun in his chair to look, and saw the miserable form of Brandy shuffle in through the door, Agatha and Bowza behind her. He knew his research, for the time being would have to wait- there was a patient to treat.

"Ah, Brandy.", he said. "What brings you in today?"

"I don't feel good.", Brandy mumbled, with a voice as deadpan as a rock tumbler.

"Really?", said Dr. Jethro, and motioned for Brandy to come sit in his official Doctor's Inspection Chair. She complied, flopping down like a slug. "You've never been sick before."

"Yeah, I know.", she said. "Lots of firsts happening lately. First time being sick, first time being kidnapped and almost dying multiple times repeatedly, first time lifelong friend suddenly and literally vanishing from my life for no good reason."

Well, it appears your sense of humor is as functional as ever, Dr. Jethro almost said, but then he realized that Brandy was probably not intending it as a joke. So he just nodded, said "Hm-mh", and took out a thermometer. "Alright, I'm going to take your temperature. So just hold still, it'll be over in a second…"

Brandy flinched at such language, but she did manage to hold still, as Dr. Jethro held the thermometer up in front of her. He kept a neutral expression, but he was relieved that it read a perfect, normal heat. "Okay, looks good.", he said. "Now on to the other tests."

He started to rummage around in his pocket, looking for his other tools. Brandy cast her gaze upwards at Agatha. "How many tests does he have to do?", she asked.

"Oh, that's right.", said Agatha. "You've never done this before… just as many as he needs to, until he finds out what's wrong with you.", Agatha said, and put her hand on Brandy's shoulder. "That's how many."

After several seconds of more searching, Dr. Jethro retrieved a thin metal rod from somewhere in his mine of pockets. "Ah, here it is!", he said. "There's my favorite multi-tool."

He flipped the switch to Measure, and held it up to Brandy's face. "Don't worry, this won't hurt a bit.", he said. "Just try not to think about it- not that there's really anything to think about, at least not in the sense of hurting you, of course. Plenty of stuff to think about, but don't-"

As he stumbled through his words, everyone stared. "Okay, just forget what I said.", Dr. Jethro said. "I kinda forgot where I was going with that."

He tapped Brandy's arm. "Hmmm.", he said. Now, in the medical profession, hmmm did not always mean hmmm. Sometimes, it could mean oh, that's nice, or aha, I think I've found your problem. Of course, it could also mean oh no or you know, I think I saw something once like this, but it hadn't advanced anywhere near this far. It all just depended on the context.

He ran the tool down Brandy's cheek. "Aha…", he said. Oh, sweet Se'th have mercy on this poor Bandit, he thought. He really, really hoped that this diagnosis wasn't what he thought it was, but it looked like it was indeed.

Lastly, he waved the tool outside of Brandy's stomach, reading and extrapolating upon her latent energy. "Okay…", he said. I was right, he thought. I hoped to all the gods that I wasn't right, but here we are. Maybe, if I take another round of testing- no. This is the diagnosis. I have to tell her.

Dr. Jethro slowly, calmly tucked his multi-tool into his front pocket. He cleared his throat, and looked up at Agatha. A bead of sweat formed on his brow, and he nervously clicked his pen. If only my assistent were here to break the news, he thought. But unfortunately for him, his assistant, a Goblin, was downstairs eating dinner with everyone else.

"Brandy, there's no easy way to say this.", he said, and swallowed hard. He looked her in the eye- if he had to deliver such news, there was no way to do it but honorably. "You're pregnant."

Song: Irreversible Sadness

Brandy's heart almost stopped. Her breath caught in her throat. A raw, scraping feeling erupted from somewhere deep inside her, a rich crimson that felt like hellfire. Her mind reeled with the revelation. She almost didn't hear Dr. Jethro's next words, but they managed to trickle through.

"And you seem to be suffering from a very severe case of post-traumatic stress disorder as well- not really any surprise there, given what happened to you. You also have several regen-resisting scars, but I might be able to-"

Brandy stood up off of the inspection chair. "What?", she screamed at Dr. Jethro, almost causing him to drop his tools. "What do you mean I'm pregnant?"

"Well- I mean, um…", Dr. Jethro stuttered, and looked up at Agatha. "That's the diagnosis. I don't know how it happened. Were you and anyone you know, um…"

He twiddled his thumbs, and shrugged. His work here was mostly done, as far as he was concerned.

"It was him.", Brandy said quietly. "He did this to me."

Her mind flashed backwards in time, to the Canyon. It had been almost a week, and so much had happened since then. But still, out of all the nightmares Brandy had endured, those 10 minutes in Hell stuck with her the very most. Even now, at the very mention of it, every detail came flooding back.

"Who?", Bowza asked. He already knew the answer, but he could sense that Brandy wanted him to ask all the same.

"Chad.", said Brandy, spitting out the name. It left a foul taste in her mouth, like blood and tar. "Chad got me pregnant. He said he would."

Agatha tried to say something, to comfort Brandy in some way. But what could she say? What words could help here? What could Agatha do, to ease such pain? She searched her mind for something, but she knew that really, there was nothing. Nothing Agatha could say could help Brandy, and that hurt her most of all.

Bowza bowed his head, and ran his fingers up and down his bow. He had been afraid of this. Ever since Brandy got back, he could feel the lingering presence of Red leaking off of her, and now he knew why. Even from beyond the grave, Chad still managed to hold Brandy in his evil grasp.

Brandy's skin crawled. Crawled with fear, yes, but it crawled with hatred more. Sheer, black hatred that oozed around her soul like lava. It hurt, but in some odd way, it comforted. And then, in an instant, she knew what to do. It almost didn't feel like she was thinking it, the idea just came to her out of the sky.

"Take it out.", she said, stomping up to Dr. Jethro. "Take the baby out of me, right now."

Dr. Jethro recoiled. "Wha- take it out? I can't do that. That's not possible, not without permanently damaging you. In a way that regenerating can't fix."

"I don't care.", Brandy said. "If it means erasing every last trace of him from the world, I will wear those scars with pride."

But Dr. Jethro shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I can't.", he said, seeming to regain his composure, if only temporarily. "Its against my principles."

Brandy stared at him. She didn't see the friendly Castle Doctor, who had helped all of Oticat's troops whenever they got sick. She didn't see good old Dr. Jethro, who would never dream of hurting anyone- he had retired from the Arena for exactly that reason. But those morals were what kept him from taking the baby out of Brandy. So to her, Dr. Jethro was her enemy.

"Fine.", she said, and reached into her pocket. "I'll just do it myself."

She withdrew the golden rod that Brenda had given her, sharpened on one end like a miniature Spear. The insectile carvings glinted in the harsh light of the room, seeming to beckon to Brandy. Yes…, they whispered. Use me… remove all your troubles.

"Brandy, wait!", Agatha shouted. So did Bowza, and so did Dr. Jethro. A trio of Skeletons plunged forward to try and stop Brandy, but it was too late. Brandy held the rod aloft, and plunged it into her torso.

Larry's head fell off, and he went chasing after it. Agatha almost screamed. And as soon as the metal plunged into her stomach, Brandy immediately wished that she hadn't tried it. The pain spread instantly throughout her entire body, far more than what a simple stab would have been. She had undergone worse at the Red Castle- much worse. She had been beaten, stabbed, undergone mental assault, and had her bones crushed into powder. Yet somehow, this pain was worse than anything she had ever felt. It was as if her soul was getting stabbed, then lit on fire, then stabbed again, then finally ripped to shreds and scattered into the sea to be eaten by fish.

Brandy screamed, let go of the rod, and fell to the floor. The artifact suddenly shattered, and the pieces flew across the room with a loud bang. Then they dissolved into the ground, vanishing without a trace. The pain lessened as well, lowering to the normal level of what a sharp object stabbed into your stomach would be.

Brandy lay on the floor, her breathing heavy. Blood trickled from her tunic to the floor, forming a small red puddle on the slightly blue tile. Agatha dropped to Brandy's side, trying to pick her up.

"Brandy, what were you thinking? What did you do?", she asked, motioning with her eyes to tell her Skeletons to grab some bandages. "What even was that?"

"I don't know…", Brandy mumbled, and coughed. "Brenda gave it to me. She told me to be careful with it… whoops."

"Indeed, I'm quite curious about that myself.", said Dr. Jethro. "The explosion that that artifact caused made it seem quite powerful. The effects it will have you on will be interesting indeed- in fact, could you let me run a few tests?"

Agatha's death glare gave Dr. Jethro his answer, and he turned around. "Fine then.", he said.

Bowza stared at Brandy's soul. It was different, somehow. He didn't know exactly how, it just felt bizarre. Perhaps it was the texture, or the color, but whatever the strange object had done to Brandy, it had changed her soul in a way that Bowza had never before thought possible.

"I don't know what that was.", Bowza said. "But I do know that we'll have to keep an eye on you, Brandy."

The two led Brandy out of the room, the Bandit still shaking. Out of the corner of her eye, she could almost see a dark shape crawl along the edge of a room. But she dismissed it as nothing, and continued to walk downstairs.

Eleven months earlier

Chrisintheair put his feet up on his brand-new diamond recliner, shuffled his newspaper, and reached for a glass of soda. It was the most expensive kind on the market, as it was made from a special blend of water that could only be found from a waterfall that had since collapsed. But the King could afford it, what with his one million Gold and all. Giving the Electro Wizard card to Grrshknn had been a simple matter, and once he had, Chrisintheair's fortune was made. He hardly even had to battle anymore. Not that he particularly wanted to push past 4000 trophies anyway. If he could already get all the Cards, then what was the point? Just stay where it was easy, and grind 2v2 all the time- that was his strategy.

He took a sip of his soda, and absentmindedly scanned the paper. Oh, that's interesting, he thought. There was a story of a Clan's leader mysteriously going missing, after running out into the streets near Goblin Stadium ranting and yelling about some hideous darkness that was going to consume them all, and a Dragon that wanted to take over the world. Pretty odd stuff.

He chuckled at the foolishness of some Kings, noting that the one in question had been Blue.

"Heh, typical Blue.", he said to himself. "Nothing going on in their heads but defeat."

"Blue?", came a familiar voice from somewhere behind him, in front of him, and all around him, all at once. "What do you mean by that, Chris?"

"Oh, that's just the other color of King.", said Chrisintheair without looking up. "I'm Red, the best, and then a lot of other Kings are Blue. Only opposite colors of Kings ever fight each other. I do often wonder about the matching system on that one, to be honest."

He felt a tingling sensation on the back of his neck, and turned around. He saw Grrshknn hovering over and behind him, with an expression on his face that suggested, ever so subtly but not really, that if Chrisintheair did not comply with some unspoken command right now, that the tingling would escalate to something far more painful very, very quickly.

"Ah, it appears you've forgotten your place, Chris.", Grrshknn hissed. "Because when someone of a higher rank speaks to you, especially one such as I, you are normally supposed to assume some sort of submissive position. And right now is no exception."

Chrisintheair thought for exactly no seconds, and realized that Grrshknn was right. So as quickly as possible, he flipped out of his chair that he lay sprawled across and onto the floor in a downwards facing bow. "I'm sorry, Lord Grrshknn.", he said, his voice muffled by the carpet floor. "Is this more to your liking?"

"Hmmm…", Grrshknn said, hand to his chin, pretending to be indecisive. He often did it when mortals presented him with something, even if he immediately liked it, just to freak them out. It was fun when mortals panicked, made Grrshknn feel more in power. But finally, he waved his hand. "Yes, that is fine. Now get up, I have another assignment for you."

Chrisintheair scrambled to his feet. "You do? Wh-"

Grrshknn motioned for him to drop again. "No. You got up too fast. Go down again. Try again."

Chrisintheair resumed his previous position on the ground, then slowly rose. "I'm sorry, Lord Grrshknn. It won't happen again, I promise."

Grrshknn smiled. "You had better hope so. Now, about your next work…"

Unbeknownst to either of them, Stacy, Chrisintheair's daughter, was right outside the door. She was followed by Chad and Rick, all three of them straining not to be heard. At this point in their lives, none of them had yet grown into the pure evil they would one day become. One would call them normal, or even nice.

"Okay guys, just be very quiet.", Stacy whispered. "It would be best if I ask him alone."

"Got it.", said Chad, and gave her a right-handed thumbs up. Rick matched his gesture with his left hand, and Stacy almost giggled. She managed to hold it in, though.

Carefully, she eased the heavy wooden door open. She winced when it made a noise, and froze- but Chrisintheair did not notice. So she opened it the rest of the way, and looked in.

She had been expecting her father to be just sort of lounging about, reading the newspaper and relaxing, studying strategy, speaking with his clanmates, or maybe just taking a nap. That was what he did normally on most days. So Stacy was totally unprepared to see her father deep in conversation with what appeared to be a huge, black, bear-shaped storm cloud hovering violently in the room with him.

"-and you are to speak of no one you know about this.", Grrshknn finished. "Not your Clanmates, not your friends, no one except the ones that will accompany you on this mission. Do you understand?"

Chrisintheair nodded. "Yes. I understand. We find the target, we go in, grab the target, and turn it in to you. Hey, what are you looking at?"

His last words were directed towards Grrshknn, who was looking over Chris's shoulder at something. "Oh my.", the demon rumbled. "It looks like we have a visitor."

Chrisintheair turned to where Grrshknn was looking, and his heart almost jumped out of his chest. He saw Stacy standing at the entrance to the room, staring up at Grrshknn's menacing form, frozen in fear. She quavered in his presence, not daring to make a sound.

"How annoying…", Grrshknn said. "I'll have to remove her."

The storm of darkness hanging in the air dripped down to the floor, and coalesced into the shape of a hulking bear. Grrshknn's teeth jutted from his jaw like railroad spikes, and his eyes glowed a deep yellow. Stacy shrieked in terror, and turned to run.

"Grrshknn, stop!", yelled Chrisintheair, throwing out his hands. "Don't!"

Grrshknn did stop in his tracks. However, he also turned to face Chris, shocked that he would even dare to give orders to someone like him. "Stop?", Grrshknn said slowly. "Do you really think you are in any position to give orders here, Mortal?"

"I'm- I'm sorry, Lord Grrshknn.", said Chrisintheair, and slowly dropped to the floor in a bow. "I didn't mean for it to come out that way. But she's my daughter, and I would rather not you kill her."

Grrshknn sat upright, and stroked his chin. "Hmm, yes, I suppose that you mortals do tend to put odd amounts of priority on these things you refer to as children.". He snapped his fingers, and resumed his previous shape as a storm cloud. Very well then, I will spare her. If…"

"If?", Chris asked. "What's if?"

"If your daughter joins you on your quest tonight. And she, too, follows my orders."

"Okay.", said Chris. "Thank you, Lord Grrshknn, for sparing her. I promise, she will not disappoint you."

He slowly walked towards Stacy, making sure to not accidentally scare her. "Stacy, I have someone to introduce you to."

Present Day

Song: Hesitation

It was a balmy Friday evening. It was also a lonely evening, as Oticat had left to go battle. The only Troops that were left in the Castle where the ones he was not using, which was many of them. But even though many were there, the Castle still somehow managed to seem empty. A Hog Rider wandered the halls, looking for something to do. A Goblin Giant wordlessly chomped down on a Cheez-n-Onion Monstroburger, while his two Spear Goblins played Go Fish. A trio of Fire Spirits danced in a fireplace. A dark shadow roamed the corridors invisibly, searching for someone, or something. Brandy sat alone in her room.

After much deliberation and advice, she had at last taken up a hobby that didn't require her to go outside, or talk to anyone. That hobby was painting, and she found that she quite enjoyed it. There was no one she had to talk to, no one to bother her, just her, the paints, and the smell of oil gently wafting through her room.

She ran her brush through a patch of cadmium red, and slowly dragged it across the canvas. Dr. Jethro had given her three weeks. Just three weeks until her pregnancy entered its final stages. Brandy's own attempt at removing the unborn baby had been unsuccessful, and the stabbing with the mysterious artifact had only made things worse. Now, she saw things that weren't there, and heard things that had never been spoken. Secretly, she feared that she was going insane.

Brandy washed the red off of her brush, and dipped the bristles in a pool of green. With long, broad strokes, she outlined and filled in a cape. It was her cape, in fact- this latest painting was a self portrait.

Nobody knew what to do. Nobody knew how to fix her. Even though TheEvilOverLords were all dead, their presence and consequences still hung over everyone like a curtain of darkness. Nobody mentioned them, but everyone knew exactly what everyone else was talking about- when a conversation ended abruptly. When someone erupted into a coughing fit, and had to rush from the room. When someone stared uneasily into a corner, everyone knew exactly what was on their mind.

With fingers trembling from the effort, Brandy oh-so-carefully dipped a single hair of her brush into a drop of blue that lay on her pallet. She brought it up to the canvas, trying not to let the paint get anywhere but its intended mark, right in the center of her eye. She concentrated, letting her absolute attention fall on what she was doing. Almost, almost there, almost-

Then a slight scratching sound on her bed behind her jolted her out of her trance, and the brush slipped, sending a tiny scratch of blue all the way down the painting.

Brandy turned around and huffed. "Excuse me, do you mind?", she said. Then her eyes registered what exactly it was that she was looking at, and she almost nearly screamed.

On her bed sat a man. He did not resemble any troop she had ever seen- the closest would be a Royal Ghost. And even that was only because of his near-translucence. A long black cloak ran down from his neck to his feet, and under that he wore an elegant suit. But the oddest- and to Brandy, the most terrifying- feature was his face. It was covered with a simple mask, quite like hers. Only his, instead of being black, was a pure ivory white.

"Hello, Brandy.", he said. "I do hope you are feeling well."

That was when she did scream.

Downstairs, Kars was busy working out. He had just finished his daily regiment of 75 bar presses at 300 lbs each, and was just about to go to his secondary cooldown of 100 leg presses, each at 480 lbs each. It was a magnificently grueling workout, but it took a lot of effort to maintain his prime Lumberjack physique. He had to, if her was to go around without a shirt all the time. He slammed a stack of iron weights onto the bar, then heard a high-pitched scream from upstairs.

"Woah.", he said to himself after a few seconds. "I wonder what that was."

He looked around to see if anyone else was in the gym, and he saw that there was. Webert lay passed out across a pulley complex, snoring, empty bottle of Dark Elixir still in his hand. Until Kars started to shake him. Then he woke up, ceased his snoring, and dropped the spent glass to shatter on the floor. "Hey! Webert! Wake up!"

Webert scratched his stomach and burped. "What? What is it?"

Kars gestured wildly and aimlessly to somewhere upwards. "I just heard a scream. Wanna go check it out?"

"A scream?", Webert asked. "What kind of a scream was it?"

Kars scratched his head, and took a quick, refreshing swig from his bottle of Rage. "I don't know, but it sounded high-pitched. Sounds like it came from the 17th floor."

Webert's eyes snapped open with alarm. He was suddenly stone-cold sober. "17th floor.", he whispered. "Brandy."

Without even bothering to explain, Webert grabbed Kar's arm, and took off stomping across the floor, dragging the Lumberjack behind him. Kars was a little surprised, but overall took it in stride, and gulped down another drink of Rage as they ran.

"Hey, Double.", said Trouble, a Rascal Girl. "What do you think that was?"

She looked up from their game of Rock-Paper-Scissors to where the scream had come from, the floor above them.

"I dunno.", said Double. "Maybe someone found our spider."

She tapped her fingers on the ground in a beat, and popped a piece of gum into her mouth.

"No, I don't think so.", said Trouble. "We hid the spider on the 18th floor, remember?"

She stood up, and adjusted her eyepatch. She, too, grabbed another piece of gum.

"Oh yeah.", said Double. "What do you suppose it was, then?"

They looked at each other, and locked eyes. Before, they had been using words. But between Rascal Girls, words were but a mere familiarity. They knew each other so well, talking to the other was like speaking into a mirror. Information was communicated night-instantly between them, ideas thrown back and forth, arguments proposed, paths of action shot down, rebuttled, and revised, and finally a plan arrived at in less time than it took until they simultaneously blinked. They both smacked their brother on the head, and he awoke from his nap.

"Doug, wake up.", said Trouble.

"We've got something to do.", said Double.

"Is it something to mess with?", asked Doug, not skipping a beat from their usual banter.

Then the three all locked gazes, and smiled.

"Wha- what-", Brandy said, stumbling over her words, and almost fell backwards. She pointed at the mysterious figure, her hand trembling. "What are you?"

The man on her bed smiled warmly. "What am I? Well, I don't think that's the right question to ask here. Now, who am I? That I will answer gladly."

He stood up, and offered out his hands. "I've been watching you for some time, Brandy. Ever since you stabbed yourself with that arrow shard. That was a good thing to do, by the way."

Brandy made no movement. "Arrow?", she whispered.

"Ah, yes.", said the figure. "That artifact that your friend gave you? The one you tried to terminate your child with? That, Brandy, it what's known as a Stand Arrow. Or, at the very least, a tiny fragment of one."

"What are you talking about?", Brandy asked. "What does any of that mean?"

The figure took a look over Brandy's shoulder, and his face hardened. "Hmmm… it doesn't ap"pear you actually have one. The Arrow fragment must have been too small for you to get one. It only enabled you to see me."

He furled his cape around himself, and touched his fingers to Brandy's forehead. "Yes, you have more than enough fighting spirit. If you were to be hit with a full Arrow, you would develop quite the Stand."

Brandy tried to push him away, but her hands went right through as though he wasn't there. "Okay, sir, man, whoever you are, I'm sure that's all cool, but what is a Stand? Who are you?"

The figure withdrew, and smiled. "Oh, I'm sorry. I guess I haven't quite introduced myself. You may call me-"

The door burst open, and Webert stomped through. Kars swung into the room from Webert's arm, and landed in a fabulous crouch. Behind the two were the Rascal trio, puffing from lack of breath. "Woo.", gasped Trouble. "I don't know-"

"How you all can run like that.", finished Double, without missing a beat. "It's hard."

"Brandy, what happened?", Webert asked, and ran to her side. "Are you alright?"

"Webert, why are you asking me what happened?", Brandy asked. "Look! He's right there!"

She pointed at the figure, still unnamed, who had gone back to sitting on her bed. "Get him!"

Webert stared at the spot were Brandy was pointing. He blinked, then again, then finally rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't missing anything. But then, he was sure. There was nobody there.

"Oh, Brandy.", said the man. "I suppose I should tell you- you are the only one in this Castle that can see me, or hear me. It's just me and you."

He began to float upwards, and bowed. "And Brandy? You may call me-"

Right before he vanished, he stared deep into Brandy's eyes. She felt the deep, deep red, so deep it was almost black, penetrate her seagreen irises, and stab right into her soul. "The Phantom."

And with that, the Phantom was gone, vanished just as mysteriously as he had appeared.

"Uh, Brandy?", Webert said. "I don't see anything. Are you sure there's someone there?"

Kars, from across the room, poked his head up from behind an empty Giant Chest. "Can confirm!", he shouted. "Nothing there here, either!"

Brandy just waved her hand, and closed her eyes. "Of course you don't see anything, Webert. There's nothing there, not anymore. He left."

"Who left?", asked Webert. "Who was there before?"

"I'm still not sure.", said Brandy. "But he called himself the Phantom."

There were several long, mostly noiseless seconds. Brandy contemplated what this mysterious stranger and his incomprehensible lingo could mean for her. Webert wondered if this was it, and Brandy had finally gone truly insane. Kars had found a hidden stash of Gems, and was wondering if he should tell Brandy, or just leave it because she already knew it was there. And Double stepped in between Brandy and Webert, holding up a piece of gum.

"Gum?", she asked Brandy. "It'll help."

Brandy looked at the gum. Then she looked down at Trouble, up at Webert, towards the wall where the Phantom had vanished, then back at the gum again. She sighed, and reached out a hand. "You know what?", she said. "Yeah. I'd love some."

She popped it into her mouth, feeling the odd flavor roll around on her tongue. "Mmm, what flavor is this?", she asked Double. "I've never had it before."

"Oh, you know.", Double shrugged, and Trouble stepped in to finish her sentence. "Gum flavor."

Far, far away, in a place nobody knew for certain, someone stood hunched over a camera's screen station. On it, they were rewinding a recorded video of Brandy meeting the Phantom. Over, and over again. A sly smile lit up their face.

"Well?", came a voice from behind. "Have you got it working?"

The figure didn't turn around, but they could feel who was behind them. There was no mistaking the overwhelming aura of someone like Grrshknn.

"Yes, Lord Grrshknn.", said the someone. "He is in place, and the haunting has begun."

"Excellent, excellent.", Grsshknn said appreciatively. "And you are sure this will work? Don't forget what happened to the last mortal I entrusted with a job."

"Oh, don't worry.", said the figure, eyes glinting with pride. They pushed a small switch, and the viewpoint zoomed into Brandy's eyes. One could see, if they looked closely, a small marking of a Red Crown, almost imperceptible to the eye. Pleased with their work, the figure leaned back, and pointed into the air. "[Phantom of the Opera] has no weaknesses."

11 months earlier

Penny the Archer walked alone, huddled alongside the treeline, trying to escape the pouring rain. She had little success. "Where is she?", she whispered to herself. "Where did Suzie go?"

She was referring to her sister, who was supposed to come on a walk with her. Penny had assumed that Suzie had been right behind her as they went outside, and had just been quiet for some reason. But when Penny arrived at an unfamiliar patch of trees, and had tried to ask Suzie for help, she had realized that she had been alone for several miles.

A twig snapped, and Penny jumped. One hand flew to her bow, and the other outwards in some token gesture of defense. There was no telling what could be out here in the dark woods, especially now that it was nearing nightfall. As Penny stared into the treeline, keeping a close eye out for any movement, she thought she could hear whispering. Whispering that sounded evil.

Song: Himeru Omai

And then, Penny did see something. A Red King, in a long black cloak, step out from behind a mossy oak tree. His eyes glinted with something evil, and he held a long sword in one hand.

"He- hello?", Penny said to him. "Who are you? Can I help you?"

Chrisintheair stepped closer to Penny, bringing his sword behind him. "There you are.", he said, and smiled. "Penny, was it? Yes, your king was wondering where you were. He called me to come and pick you up."

Penny took one look at Chrisintheair, and knew immediately he was lying. For one thing, her Clan was only 17 members, and she knew every King. For another, she had told their King exactly where she and Suzie were going; there was no reason for him to call. But the most obvious reason was that she was Blue, and Chrisintheair was Red. So rather than waste time, she just turned and ran.

Chris watched her go, then realized his mistake as her Blue clothing became more obvious in what little light there was. He cursed himself mentally, then drew his sword and ran after her, vowing to make up something better in the future.

He put a finger to his ear, activating his communicator. "Chad. Rick.", he said. "You're up."

Penny sprinted through the dark forest, keeping a close eye out for roots, boulders, bones sticking up out of the ground, discarded empty Chests, anything that might trip her up. She fully expected to run into something. But she expected to run into a Goblin, or maybe a Skeleton- not two Elite Barbarians, looming in the treeline over her.

"There she is, Chad.", said Rick. He loosened his grip on the tree branch, preparing to fall.

"Yeah, I know, Rick.", said Chad. "You don't really have to tell me." He loosened his grip all the way, then fell with a soft thud onto the dirt. Rick followed suit soon after.

Penny stopped running, and skidded to a stop. In front of her were two Elite Barbarians. Behind her was an angry King with a sword. And she was just a level 6 Archer, in now way suited for melee combat. She was trapped.

"Listen, little Archer.", said Chad. "I know this looks scary, but it's really not. All you need to do is just come with us. Just follow us, come back to our castle, everything's gonna be okay."

"Yeah.", said Rick. "What he said."

Penny just cowered in fear, too scared to even speak. Her mind swirled, and her feet felt like they were going to collapse underneath her. Was this even happening? Was this real?

"N- no.", she managed to squeak out. "I'm not."

"Oh, come on.", said Chrisintheair from behind her. He walked out from behind a tree, twirling his sword. "I really do think you are. You see, you only have two options."

He took another huge step towards the tiny Archer, and stuck his sword underneath her chin, tilting her gaze upwards. "You either come with me and the boys, or…"

Quick as a Zap, he ran the blade of his sword across Penny's chin. A thin cut appeared in a flash of pain, and a drop of blood hit the ground. "You die."

Hating that she did so, but not seeing any other options, Penny gave in. Very slowly, she took her bow from off of her back and dropped it onto the ground. It was immediately snatched up by Bol, Rick's Goblin friend that he had brought along with him, and stuffed into a sack. Penny eyed it fearfully- all Troops that had a weapon hated being without one, in almost any circumstance. But, true to his word, Chrisintheair put his weapon down, and put an arm around Penny.

"See, that wasn't so hard.", he said. "I'm glad you cooperated, otherwise I might have had to put on the force a little bit… and no one wants that, right?"

Penny shook her head, and Chris shoved her into the waiting arms of Chad. He stared down at Penny with a slight smile, and slammed her against his waist.

"Well everyone, let's go.", said Chris. "Mission accomplished."

Back at the Castle, Grrshknn waited. He waited for Chrisintheair to return, to see if he had what it took to carry out his mission. He hoped that he could do it. It had taken so long to select a King that would be willing to do the sorts of things that Grrshknn demanded. Perhaps, through Chrisintheair, Grrshknn could finally complete his mission… but that was something to think about later. For now, he would wait to see if Chris could complete the most basic of tasks. Luckily for him, he did not have long to wait.

Chad was the first to burst through the door, holding a triumphant fist in the air. "We did it, Lord Grrshknn!", he shouted. "The operation is done."

Next was Rick, who shared an enthusiastic fistbump with his brother. After that was Chrisintheair, a proud smile on his face and an eerie glint in his eye.

"Where is the target, Chris?", asked Grrshknn, hovering over a newly built obsidian throne. He casually lit his finger on fire, then snuffed it out. "Show her to me."

"Oh yes, her.", said Chris, then beckoned to the door. "Come on in, Penny. We need you."

Penny slowly walked in, her arms bound with ropes. She was almost paralyzed with fear, but her mind was starting to get working again. She would get out of here somehow, she knew it. Get back to her King, and get back to Suzie.

"See, Lord Grrshknn?", said Chrisintheair. "I told you I could do it."

Grrshknn reclined in the chair. "Ah, so you did. Excellent."

Chrisintheair waited for a second for Grrshknn to say something else, but he never did. He waited a few seconds for something to happen, but nothing came to pass. He tapped his foot on the floor, then spoke. "So, what now?", he asked. "Did you specifically need an Archer for anything, or…"

Grrshknn waved his hand. "Oh, no, you can untie her now.", he said. "I have no further use for her."

Rick, immediately upon hearing this, knelt down next to Penny. With one swift slice of his razor-sharp sword, her ropes fell to ribbons, and she was free. Almost.

"Alright, guess you're our Troop now.", he said, with an exorbitant flex of his muscles. "You can wander the castle, or make friends, or-"

Penny would have used this opportunity to politely decline, then escape. But she never got the chance to. Because faster than anyone could blink, faster than anyone there could move, Grrshknn stretched a tendril across the room and snatched Penny, bringing her to his mouth. She tried to scream, but there was no air in her lungs. She tried to struggle, but Grrshknn's grip was tight enough to break mountains and bend rivers.

"And one more rule, Chris.", Grrshknn spat, and narrowed his eyes. "You are free to do as you wish. But never forget-"

His eyes glowed, and locked with Chrisintheair's. A chill ran through the King's body like corrupted ice. "I make the rules around here."

Then he uncurled his tendril that was wrapped tightly around Penny, opened his mouth wide, and tossed her in. The poor Archer didn't even have time to scream before her body met the destroying void that was Grrshknn's mouth. Her atoms were torn to pieces in less than a second, killing her instantly, and her soul was absorbed into Grrshknn's for what would surely be an eternity of torment. A thunderclap shook the room with the force of the death, and a black shockwave spread out from the obsidian throne.

"Never forget that I make the rules, Chrisintheair.", said Grrshknn once again, and began to fade away. "Or next time, that could be you."

Then he disappeared, leaving everyone in the room with a shocked silence that seemed louder than the clap of thunder he left with.

Present Day

It was a peaceful Saturday, somewhat in the early evening. It was around that mark of the day in which one would start to get a little restless, fearing that nothing would be done with the day, but knowing that there was still a lot of time left to do it.

Several Troops had chosen to spend the time at the table, playing a rousing game of Desert's Gambit. The rules were simple- draw a card, and perform several actions based on what card you drew. If you couldn't, then you were out.

Chez, a Dart Goblin, drew the top card of the deck- a 6 of Elixir. This meant that he had to mimic any Troop that costed exactly 6 Elixir.

"Well Chez, 6 Elixir Troop.", said Agatha. "Hmmm, I wonder what you're going to do."

Chet immeidatly tucked his blowdarter underneath his arm, and strode off across the table in a manner like the walk of a Giant Skeleton. He swung his jaw back and forth in a mock underbite, and then stopped at the edge of the table.

Chet stopped right in front of Brandy, who didn't even blink. She showed no indication that she had noticed, and she might not have. Her eyes were glazed over, staring into some imagined or unimaginable distance. She looked directly ahead, not taking in anything that her senses told her.

"Uh, Brandy?", Chet rasped, his voice horse from all the time he spent blowing bubbles and shooting darts. "What am I?"

Brandy didn't move, still deep inside of her stupor. Chet spread his arms open wide, but there was still no answer.

"Hey, Brandy?", he asked again, tapping Brandy on the shoulder with his blowdarter. "You awake in there?"

Brandy startled and turned around sharply, almost knocking Chet over. "Oh, yeah, sorry. I'm fine." She rubbed her forehead, and her eyes started to close again. "Just a little tired, that's all."

Agatha noticed the state of Brandy's hair. Normally, it was bright white and clean, flowing like wind. But today, it was flecked with streaks of dirty cream and grey, hanging in strings and clumps. Brandy's face also seemed less smooth than normal, and her mask had begun to collect dust.

"Brandy, when was the last time you took a shower?", Agatha asked. "You look awful."

"Oh, I don't know.", said Brandy offhandedly. "Probably about a week ago?"

"Go take one.", said Agatha. "I really think you need one."

Brandy stood up and pushed her chair outward, not bothering to put it back in. "Okay.", she mumbled, and headed upstairs. Bowza and Agatha both watched her go.

"I'm worried about her, Agatha.", Bowza said. "She's not acting like herself."

"Cut her some slack, Bowza.", said Agatha. "She's still trying to recover."

"But she's not.", Bowza said.

"Not what? Not recovering?"

"No. Not trying."

"What are you saying, Bowza?", Agatha asked. "Of course Brandy's trying to get better."

"Oh, no, not her.", Bowza explained. "She's not the problem here. No, there's something… else. Something within her that keeps her from progressing. I'm not sure what it is."

Agatha frowned. "Do you think it could have something to do with that thing she stabbed herself with?"

Bowza ran his fingers up and down a magic arrow. "I certainly think it does."

Brandy turned the knob of the water to Hot, and a cascade of liquid poured down onto her. Warmth flooded across her skin, and she relaxed a little bit. She had heard that people who didn't get enough warmth from those around them took longer showers and baths to compensate. That made sense to Brandy.

Perhaps she needed someone. Someone that could love her when she needed it. Someone to hold her, and tell her everything would be alright.

"You don't need anyone.", a voice in her head whispered. "It's better to be alone."

"No.", another voice rebutted. "You're right. Surround yourself with others. Lose yourself in them."

But Brandy ignored them. Besides, she wasn't just taking a shower purely for the sake of taking one. No, she had to get clean. Perhaps if she got cleaner, she would feel better. Anything would help at this point, to ease the ever-present ache within her.

Brandy looked down, and saw the swell of her pregnancy. Despite all of her efforts, she had been unable to remove it. The one person that could, Dr. Jethro, would not. Brandy didn't know what to do if her pregnancy finished. She refused to even think about it.

She poured a smallish dollop of shampoo into her hand, and rubbed it vigorously across her scalp. She brushed her bangs out of the way, and turned to get a better angle. But as she did so, Brandy saw herself in the mirror, her forehead now bare.

Song: Himeru Omai

With all that had happened in the last few days, Brandy had almost forgotten about the tattoo. But still, there it was. Taunting her, calling out to her. They had tried everything to remove it- Heal Spells, vigorous washings, even lightly scraping away the skin itself - but still it remained, stubborn as the dusk. Without even thinking about it, Brandy's fingers moved to touch it. She noticed that there was another part to it, above the previously existing text. It now read "Brandy the Bandit, property of Ryusei_Nakao69" I'm deep crimson letters.

Brandy was so focused on staring at it that she almost didn't notice the shape enter the room. But notice she did. And the first thing she noticed were the distinctive helmet horns of an Elite Barbarian.

Instantly, Brandy pulled the shower curtain back and tried to cover herself up as much as possible. Her mouth went dry with sheer, numbing fear. She tried to scream, but all that came out was a weak-sounding squeak.

You're cute when you squeak, came a voice inside of her head. When you're scared. I like that.

A huge, sweaty hand grabbed the edge of the shower curtain, and prepared to rip it aside. Brandy's legs almost gave out from under her, and she scrabbled to get away- but there was nowhere to run. Brandy was trapped.

The Elite Barbarian nonchalantly pulled the shower curtain aside. Upon seeing Brandy, her face as white as her hair, his look was one of genuine surprise.

But Brandy didn't have time to notice. A dark shadow swooped down from the ceiling, delivering a savage kick into the middle of the Elite Barbarian's chest. He stumbled backwards and crashed into a cabinet, as the formless shadow coalesced into the Phantom.

"Fear not, my angel!", he shouted, and brandished a silver sword. "For I, the Phantom, shall annihilate this menace, and save you!"

Song: Capture the Target

"Wait, what?", Brandy asked from behind the curtain, but her words went ignored. The Phantom soared out the door with a flourish, leaving Brandy alone in the bathroom. After thinking for a moment, she took the opportunity to put on a clean tunic.

The Phantom swept through the air, looking for the Elite Barbarian. His gaze lingered across various parts of Brandy's room- her bed, her dresser, her collection of empty Magical Chests. Normal Bandity stuff. At last, after a few more seconds of searching, he found his target, trying to extract himself from a hole in the wall. He had flown straight through the brick after hitting the cabinet.

"Don't think you can hide from me, villain!", the Phantom bellowed, and flew towards the Elite Barbarian. "Your fate is certain!"

The Elite Barbarian finally managed to extract himself from the wall, and flopped out onto the floor. His helmet almost came off, but he managed to keep it on.

"Whew, what a hit.", he mumbled, and rubbed his forehead. "What even hit me? I didn't see anything…"

The Phantom reached his foe's position, and raised his glittering rapier over his head. "There's no escape!", he yelled. "It's time to meet your maker!"

But to the Phantom's disappointment, the Elite Barbarian didn't look even remotely scared. In fact, it was as if he hadn't even noticed the Phantom's threat. But then he realized that he actually hadn't- the Phantom was a Stand, and thus not visible to anyone but other Stands and their users. He mentally slapped his own forehead, then sheathed his sword and whipped his cape around himself. Among his other abilities, the Phantom possessed the unique power to make himself visible to anyone he pleased.

He appeared in the Elite Barbarian' vision, and once again drew his sword.

"Lament your own sins, villain!", he roared. "For your time has come!"

He swung his blade downwards, and it slammed against the Elite Barbarian's in a crack of metal, ferocious grinding cracks screaming out across the room. The Elite Barbarian struggled mightily, but the supernatural force of the Phantom made jest of his efforts.

"You may be strong, monster, but I, the Phantom, am far, far stronger.", he said, with a look of righteous, yet slightly bored fury. "As long as I live, you shall never lay a hand on my angel!"

He pushed harder, and the Elite Barbarian's defense almost broke. The Phantom's sword reached bare chest, and began to cut into the skin.

"Who… are you?", the Elite Barbarian managed to squeak out. "What are you? What are you talking about?"

The Phantom ignored him. "You don't get to know that, filth. Did!"

He prepared to push harder, and cut his opponent in half, when Brandy's shout rang out across the room. "Stop!"

At once, at her command, the Phantom not only immediately raised his sword, but also vanished, reappearing at her side. "What is it, my love?", he asked. "Do you not want me to destroy this foul beast, the one who would harm you thus?"

Brandy turned to look at him. "Well, no.", she said. "He may be an Elite Barbarian, but look what else he is."

She pointed at the coughing, gasping figure on the floor, and the Phantom understood. "He's Blue."

Brandy leaned down, reaching one hand out towards the Elite Barbarian. "Are you okay? I'm sorry, my friend here didn't know you were Blue."

He blinked, and slowly got up. "Mate, what are you?", he said. "Like, what even?"

The Phantom started to respond, but Brandy silenced him with a wave of her hand. "He's… someone. But who are you? Why are you here?"

Her face grew red, and her voice grew higher and louder. "And why were you poking around in my private bathroom?"

"Oh, shoot, that was yours?", asked the Elite Barbarian. "Sorry, I didn't know. I've never been here before."

"Are you new?", Brandy asked. "No, you can't be. Oticat's still in Arena 9."

The Elite Barbarian stuck out his hand for Brandy to shake. "Naw, I'm Chup's. Name's Dave, and my brother is Dujanovic. Both Level 13."

"Huh", said Brandy, and shook, slight nervousness itching across her skin. "I'm Brandy."

Dave blinked, and realized who he was talking to. His eyes widened, and he pulled back, tripping over a pile of Gold, but managing to catch himself before he fell. "Oh, you're Brandy!", he stuttered. "You're the Bandit who was- oh, I am so, so sorry! I apologize!"

He regained his composure and straightened his helmet. "I didn't know. Me and Dujanovic were just staying over- you know, for fun, and I needed to go to the bathroom, but I didn't know where any were, and so I just found some random room that looked abandoned- I didn't know you were in the bathroom when I opened it, really."

"Abandoned?", Brandy asked, slightly indignantly. "My room doesn't look that bad, does it?"

"No,", Dave began, "But there's dust over everything and all the windows are closed and it doesn't look like anyone's been here for a while."

Brandy was about to respond, when she realized that Dave was right. For days on end, all she had done was sit. Sit in front of the fireplace, or at a table, or in front of the T.V, or on her painting stool, or in her bed. She realized that it had been over a full week now that she had gone outside, or partied, or explored the castle, or even stolen something. She just didn't feel like herself at all.

"Oh.", said Brandy quietly. "I guess you're right. Say, you weren't trying to look at me in the shower, were you?"

Dave waved a hand, as if to brush the notion off. "Naw, Brandy.", he said. "I'm gay."

"Cool.", Brandy said. "Well, it was… interesting. But I should be alone now."

"Okay.", said Dave with a flick of his finger. "See you later."

He turned, and walked out the door. Almost immediately after he did so, the Phantom swooped down in front of Brandy's face and crossed his arms.

"It seems you were getting quite… casual with him, hmm?", he said, and leaned down to stare into Brandy's eyes. "Certainly you of all people would not allow an Elite Barbarian to come between us, right?"

Brandy backed up. "Okay, for one thing, he just said that he was gay. For another-"

"Gay?", asked the Phantom, and moved forward to match Brandy's retreat. "What does that mean?"

Brandy backed up further, running into the pillar set in the middle of her room. She looked up into the massive figure of the Phantom, his emotions mostly hidden by the porcelain mask that covered his face. Was that what she looked like to other people? Brandy hoped not.

"Well, uh, he's not attracted to me.", she said. "He's attracted to other guys."

For a moment, the Phantom stopped moving forward, thinking about this new revelation. "Interesting…", he said to himself. "I wonder what causes that. Clearly, this is a phenomenon that warrants further investigation…"

"And for another thing,", Brandy said, interrupting the Phantom's train of thought, "what do you mean, us? I don't even know you."

"Why, I'm your Phantom.", said the Phantom, and spread out his arms. "And you're my angel. Don't you see? We were made for each other…"

The sight of the Phantom's immense, billowing sleeves looming over her triggered Brandy's memory, and she lashed out. A quick blow caught the Phantom's cheek, and he recoiled in shock. Brandy growled, and raised a fist.

"No.", she said. "Do you hear me? No. I don't know you, I don't want to know you."

The Phantom ran his long fingernails down his cheek, feeling where Brandy had hit him with what seemed like some sort of weird fascination. His eyes grew dark, and he rose into the air. "You have no choice, Brandy!", he said. "Behold, everything I've done for you! All of our memories together- do they mean nothing?"

"What memories?", Brandy said, her voice raising to that of a near-scream. "What have you done for me? Nothing! I don't know you!"

"Please, just love me!", the Phantom shouted, small crackles of lightning billowing throughout his robes. "Please, it is all I ask of you!"

For a moment, the sheer desperation in the Phantom's cries gave Brandy pause. Perhaps, this creature, whatever he was, did deserve at least something. But then her reason won out over the strange emotion, and she swiped again at the air.

"Go away!", she yelled. "Leave!"

The Phantom recoiled into the corner of the room like a slapped child, and hid his face. "Fine.", he said quietly. "Then, my love, I will leave you. For that, truly, is devotion."

Brandy watched as he vanished into the crack where wall met ceiling. And for the first time in days, she felt something other than sadness, fear, and rage. She couldn't quite place her finger on it, but it definitely felt yellow.

10 months earlier

It had been one month since Grrshknn had sent Chrisintheair on that mission. It had seemed to be innocent at the time- well, as innocent as kidnapping a random Archer could be. But within mere seconds of the group's successful return, Penny had been obliterated by Grrshknn, for no apparent reason other than to show off. Her last scream still haunted Chris, stuck in his mind like a bleeding itch that wouldn't go away. He could barely believe that he had permitted such a thing to happen. He was the Leader of his Clan, the top King- but Grrshknn radiated such an overwhelming aura of might that Chrisintheair was almost afraid to find out what would happen if he crossed the demon.

"Uh, Dad?", came the voice of Stacie, and the door to Chris's study creaked open a little bit. "Someone's here to see you."

Chris slowly swiveled in his chair, turning to face his daughter. She looked worried, most likely for good reason. "Ah, I'll be there in a minute.", he said nervously, and placed his hands on both sides of his chair.

From behind Stacie, a cold wind swept into the room. It was imperceptible at first, but quickly picked up in intensity. At first, it felt like a cool breeze, then the winds of Frozen Peak, then a dark winter night, then a Freeze shot from a Cannon. Particles of ice began to form on the walls around the door, and Stacie's eyes widened in alarm. She tried to step away from the door and into the room, but her feet were stuck to the floor from the frigid cold.

"Dad, what's going on-", were her last words, before the ice froze the rest of her into a block, and she stopped moving.

"Stacie!", Chrisintheair shouted, and leapt up out of his chair. He ran over to where she stood, and stared at her frozen face. He could see her eyes moving in panic, but there was otherwise no response. "Stacie, can your hear me? If you can hear me, look up."

Stacie's eyeballs looked upward, and Chris heaved a sigh of partial relief. "Well, at least that's one good thing. But how do I get you out…"

He thought for a moment, then got an idea. "Aha! Certainly Timothy could get you out of this. He'll be able to melt this ice."

He pulled his communicator out of his pocket, frantically thumbing through the directory in order to find his most trusted Wizard. But as he scrolled ever downwards towards the T's, he saw a blinking notification in the corner of the screen. Low Battery.

A quick, random glance at Stacie sent a pulse of panic through Chris's heart. He could see the bottoms of her feet dissolving, turning into Elixir. She was dying, both from the cold and the lack of air. Her eyes frantically back and forth, pleading for her father to help her- but he could not. There was not anything he could do to save her.

Song: Guardia

But as Chris placed his hands onto Stacie's icy tomb, another wind came from the hall. This one was as hot as the summer wind over Bone Pit, and it roared with a fiery intensity. It rushed over the block of ice, and cracks appeared all over the surface. Chris backed away, and covered his face with his arm as the ice both blew apart and melted, all at the same time. Stacie fell to the floor, gasping for breath, unable to stand. Chris looked up, to see a now-familiar black shape take form in the doorway.

But before he addressed the newcomer, Chrisintheair crouched to his daughter's side, holding her up. "Stacie, are you okay?", he asked, his face bent with worry. "Are you alright?"

As her feet slowly knit back together, Stacie held up a dazed thumbs up, her arm trembling. "Yeah.", she said. "Yeah, I think I'll be okay."

"Good.", said Chris. "Let's get you on the couch."

Holding her by the back, he walked Stacie over to the couch and lay her there. "Okay, let me know if you need anything.", he said cautiously. "I've just got to talk to Grrshknn real quick."

Grrshknn was watching these proceedings with something at least resembling interest. He was a demon, he had never had a family. But to him, the dynamics of mortals, most particularly that of friends and loved ones, were sources of endlessly fascinating study. It was one of the only things that he did not understand, connection.

"Ah, Lord Grrshknn.", Chrisintheair said politely. "For what reason have you come?"

"Spare me the pleasantries.", growled Grrshknn. "I have many things to do, and in very little time. I don't even know why I bothered to spare your daughter from a stray Freeze…"

"Oh, that was you?", Chris asked with wonder. "Where did the Freeze come from?"

"I have enemies, Chris.", said Grrshknn. "Let's just say it was one of them, and leave it at that."

"Oh. Okay.", said Chris. "But, why have you come?"

"Simple.", Grrshknn said, and held up a massive claw. He expertly sketched out a picture in mid-air, which drifted precisely through the air and came to rest on Chris's outstretched hand. Holding it up in front of him, he could see it was a picture of a Witch.

"Get yourself one of these,", Grrshknn said, "And I will give you great rewards indeed."

Chrisintheair stared at the oddly drawn picture. Part of him wanted to say "Yes sir, thank you sir, right away sir,", and take some random Witch from anywhere at all. But another part refused. The part that still held his conscience. He had seen, in every horrible detail, exactly what had happened to Penny. The two halves of him argued for a while, until he made up his mind.

Chrisintheair folded the paper into four parts, and tucked it into his left jacket pocket. He cleared his throat and, with immense bravery, stared Grrshknn straight in the face.

"No.", he said. "I'm sorry, but I can't do it. I will not allow another Troop to meet the same fate as the Archer."

Chris fully expected Grrshknn to get angry. Maybe a verbal tirade, maybe a slap, maybe he would just disappear. But Grrshknn did something that Chrisintheair did not expect at all- he smiled. Smiled widely, and spread out a bundle of arms in strange, unknowable shapes.

"Oh no, you misunderstand, Chris.", he said. "I said get one for yourself, not for me. And in return, I will give you a small bit of my own dark power."

Chris thought this over for a bit. "So, I get another Witch, and also some cool demon powers? What's the downside here?"

"There isn't one.", Grrshknn said. "It's a fair trade, really- for one as powerful as I, giving you a little power is almost stress removal."

"It's a deal, then.", Chris said. "I accept."

He extended his hand, and Grrshknn offered one of his own tendrils of inky smoke. The two beings shook. One faded back into darkness, and the other stumbled back into his chair and wondered just what exactly he had gotten himself into. They both thought that the bargaining session went rather well, and had managed to gain some real benefits for himself. But, of course, this is what we all think sometimes.

"Charles, did you brush your teeth yet?", asked Yaga. She stirred her coffee, and cast a stern look at one of her Skeletons before resuming her gaze outside the living room window. She was a Witch, and a fine one at that. She had recently begun to explore a Witch's innate power of mind magic, and was getting quite good at it. She was still only level 8, but there was a lot of room to go.

"Yes, mother, I brushed my teeth.", said Charles the Knight, mustering up as much sarcasm as he possibly could. "What do you think?"

"I think you didn't.", said Julia the Bandit, as she walked out of the stairs. "I think you're just making it up, and that you brushed your teeth with butter instead."

Charles turned to look at her. "Butter? Honestly, Julia, I don't even know how you come up with this stuff."

Julia shrugged, and frontflipped downwards next to Charles and Yaga. "Dunno. Just good at it, I guess."

"Hey, everyone!", said Deadfreance II, their King, as he swung open the big double doors to the living room. "Who's all ready to battle today?"

"I know I am.", said Julia with a mischievous smile. "Been working on some new slides."

As if to demonstrate, she slid across the floor, Dashing at the last second to disappear through a table leg.

"I'm ready.", said Yaga, and tilted her staff forward. "I haven't-"

She stopped. The latent energy of the room had somehow just changed. She wasn't sure quite what it was, but it was something, she could feel it.

"Yaga, what's wrong?", Deadfreance II asked. "What's going on?"

"I don't know, exactly.", growled Yaga. "Just be careful-

A sudden vision came into her mind, a few seconds into the future. One of the walls imploding, and dark, menacing figures coming through. "Everybody get down!"

Julia instinctively ducked. Charles was a bit slow on the uptake, but he soon dropped to the floor as well. Yaga was already on the ground when she had shouted, but Deadfreance II didn't hear her quite right. It took him a few more seconds to drop once he saw everyone else doing it. But by then, it was already too late. The wall burst open with a terrifying crunch, and Chrisintheair leapt from the impromptu portal. Flanking him where Chad and Rick, with Stacie and Veronica right behind them. "Greetings, mortals.", Chris said in a tone of voice he had silently picked up from Grrshknn. "Do not fear, I've only come for your Witch. And maybe some Gold, I don't know. You got any?"

"Like frick you are-", started Yaga, but Chrisintheair flicked out his hand. A spastically twisting rope shot out from his sleeve, and wound around Yaga like a constricting snake. Her arms couldn't even move to use her staff, the grip was so tight.

Julia screamed in anger and Dashed forward, but Chad was already there. He absorbed the brunt of Julia's blow with his stomach, then picked her up and tossed her into a stone box behind him, towed by a team of Hogs. She twisted in the air to try and lessen the impact, but she was blown into unconsciousness the second her cheek hit stone.

Charles stood still for just a moment, then made his move. It was more out of fear and blind panic than anything else- Charles had never been very sociable. He raised his sword to swing at Chad, then stopped. He grunted in pain, and staggered backwards as a line of blood ran from his mouth. He collapsed against the wall, the trickle from his mouth flowing downward to match the river from his chest where Chad had, with a single blow, cut him wide open.

"Deadfreance II…", he mumbled, and stretched out a single hand. "Help…"

Then he fell entirely into a puddle of Elixir, and was no more.

Deadfreance II was panicking, both inwardly and very much outwardly. The sudden attack had left him with no time to think or prepare, and now two of his Troops had just been kidnapped right in front of him, with another temporarily dead. He tried to say something, but the words died in his throat. He tried to do something, but his body would not respond. All he could do was stand there in silence, as Chrisintheair loaded up the cart with Yaga and Julia, two of his favorite troops.

"Thank you for your cooperation.", Chrisintheair said, and saluted. "As such, I'll leave you alone, and I will not kill you."

Not even such a bold-faced provocation was enough to break Deadfreance II's fear-induced stupor. All he did was watch, utterly helpless, as Chrisintheair sped away.

10 months later

Song: Sekibetsu

It was not a good Sunday. The weather was dull, and uninteresting, a blank sheet of almost rain covering the sky. Oticat had gone on a 6 battle losing streak, and the general mood had spread throughout the entire castle. But it wasn't the only thing to do so- Grapak the Spear Goblin had caught a rather nasty cold, and several Troops were bedridden because of it.

Brandy stared out of her window, gazing at the grass below. It lay flat upon the ground, weighed down by the heavy dew. Occasionally, a bird would flap past, but even that spot of color would disappear after just a second. The leaves were turning, as late summer headed into early fall. Soon, the snow would come, and the world would be white. But before that, there was the rainy limbo to slog through, the middle ground of grey.

Brandy slumped down onto her arm, and huffed. She pulled her hood further over her face, trying not to think about the future or what it held for her. She didn't know what was going to happen. She didn't know what she wanted to do with her life. Most of all, she had no idea what she was going to do with a child.

There came a knock at her door. "Come in.", Brandy mumbled, and turned her eyes to see who it was. She thought it would probably be Agatha again, coming to check on her for the third time that day. But instead, the door opened, and no one came through. The air wavered for a bit, and the door closed.

"He-hello?", Brandy asked, and shifted in her seat. "Who's there?"

The air frizzled again in front of her, and then dropped to reveal the tall, dark figure of the Phantom. He withdrew the rumpled air from the ground into his cloak, and drew closer to Brandy.

"You again?", Brandy snapped. "What? What do you want?

Hurt flashed across the Phantom's face, but he tried not to let it show. Instead, he opened his arms for an embrace, his cloak opening as well.

"Please, Brandy.", he said. "I know you don't know me, but that can all change. I know what you feel, and I wish to cure you of it."

"You don't know what I feel.", Brandy said. "Nobody does. You can't understand what I went through."

"But I do, Brandy.", the Phantom pleaded. "I can feel the pain of others, and draw it into myself. I just want to help."

Brandy carefully considered her options here. If what the Phantom was saying was true, then maybe he could help. Maybe he could fill the hole inside her soul. Maybe things could finally start to look up. But if he was lying, if he was trying to trick her, then opening herself up would be disastrous indeed.

"Please.", the Phantom said, gesturing towards himself. "I know what you dream of, Brandy. I know what horrors scar your mind. I know what visions haunt you, when nobody else can. I am your Phantom, and you are my angel. Please, just try to see that. Just give me a chance."

Brandy didn't say anything. She slowly moved one arm, into the ideal position to jump up and dash away. She fully expected the Phantom to try anything- to grab her, to chase her. But instead, he did something she did not expect. He began to sing.

Song: All I ask of you

"No more talk of darkness.", he crooned, his rich, smooth voice echoing throughout Brandy's room. "Forget these wide-eyed fears…"

Brandy slowly relaxed her arm, looking up into the Phantom's gentle face. His eyes seemed to glow with a blue-green light, just like hers.

"I'm here. Nothing can harm you… my words will calm and guide you…"

He reached out his hand, his eyes telling Brandy to take it. She slowly, cautiously did so. His words felt right, resonating inside of her head.

"Let me be your freedom, let daylight dry your tears…"

Slowly, with immeasurable gentleness, the Phantom lifted Brandy off of her feet. He didn't try to push her against himself, he just let her stand.

"I'm here with you beside you, to guard you and to guide you…"

He extended his other hand, and Brandy took it. Ethereal music began to play from somewhere unknown, and they began to sway together in the darkness of the room.

"Say you'll love me, every waking moment… turn my head, with talk of summer time…"

A small, nearly imperceptible pulse of energy thrummed outwards from him, coating the walls of Brandy's room with richly painted vines and flowers. The green grew, replacing the default blue.

"Say you need me, with you now and always… promise me, that all you say is true..."

He lifted his arm, and Brandy spun around in a slow circle. She grabbed his hand again, and looked up. Even though he was almost two feet taller than Brandy's slight five foot frame, she felt like she was staring right at his face.

"That's all I ask of you…", he sang, and at last pulled her closer to him. She hesitated, then let herself be pressed to the Phantom's chest. The music swelled, and his voice almost cracked with emotion.

"Let me be your shelter, let me be your light…"

He turned Brandy around to face the room, first making sure to surround her with deep black fabric. With a wave of his hand, a vision appeared.

"You're safe, no one will find you… your fears are far behind you..."

It was of her, several years in the future. She looked happy, a smiling young Bandit sitting next to her on the grass.

"All I want is freedom, a world with no more night…and you always beside me..."

As Brandy continued to watch the vision, she saw that her uniform was a solid green, instead of the mixture of blue and green that it usually was. The Phantom came and sat beside her, and the two lovingly embraced.

"To hold me and to hide me, then say you'll share with me… one love, one lifetime…"

The music faded, and he put his arms around Brandy. A faint vestige of struggle fought to be heard, but Brandy let it fall. Strangely enough, she felt at absolute peace with the Phantom, odd as he was. His presence felt right, like he was the key that would open the lock on her mind.

"Please.", he whispered, and Brandy felt her heart jump. "Think of it. No more teams. No more battling. No more strife, or pain. Just rest, and love. Forever."

Brandy's eyes closed, and she relaxed. As she fell limp in the Phantom's arms, his cloak spread out and solidified, to form a makeshift bed. He lay next to Brandy, and slowly ran his hand across her face.

"Sleep, Brandy.", he said. "It's alright. You can rest now."

Brandy felt herself fade into unconsciousness, but she did not try to fight it. And as she did so, the Phantom folded himself up next to her, hiding her with his cloak, protecting her from the world as they fell asleep as one.

Several minutes later, when they were both asleep, another knock came at the door. This time, it really was Agatha. "Brandy?", she asked. "Are you awake?"

But there came, for obvious reasons, no answer. Agatha knocked again, to the same result.

"Brandy, could you answer me?", she asked, with increasing worry. There were several seconds of silence, broken only by the subtle undertones of the castle settling down for the night.

"Okay, I'm coming in.", Agatha said finally. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

She twisted the doorknob and entered the room. Her eyes were already naturally adjusted to the dark, so she immediately scanned the room for Brandy. But Agatha was not a Stand user, so she could not see the cloak of the Phantom, nor where Brandy lay.

"Huh.", Agatha said after a few seconds. "Guess she must be somewhere else. Oh well…"

She walked away from the door, still holding a photograph in her hands. "I was going to tell her the truth. It'll have to wait…"

10 months earlier

Song: Golden Frieza theme

Slowly, Julia awoke. She blinked the crust of sleep from her eyelids, and the blurry shapes in her vision began to form into those of Red Royal Recruits, standing guard slightly below her.

The sight registered in her brain, the shock giving her a boost to adrenaline that woke her the rest of the way up almost immediately. She blinked and opened her eyes all the way, taking in the bizarre sight before her.

Okay, let's see what we got, she thought, trying to stave off the panic. There's a bunch of Royal Recruits all standing guard in front of me, and a huge crowd of Red Troops, and I'm stuck on a pedestal, and there's Yaga next to me, in the same situation.

Julia carefully considered the implications and details of this predicament, then came to a conclusion about her current state of being. Well, frick, she thought.

"Yaga!", she whisper-hissed to her right. "What happened? Where are we?"

"We were both kidnapped, I think.", the Witch replied. "It happened so fast, I don't quite remember anything very clearly."

Julia started to say something, but was cut off by the loud blar of a trumpet. Her vision was naturally drawn to a King, looking down at the chamber from the top of a flight of stairs. Red and purple smoke curled around him, while he menacingly posed. Even from here, Julia could feel a strange, evil aura leaking off from him.

Chrisintheair began to slowly walk down the stairs, making sure that each step was as full of power and presence as possible. Once her reached the end of the flight, he spread his arms open wide, as if to welcome Julia and Yaga. A pair of Pekkas stepped behind him.

"Friends!", he shouted, and widely grinned. "Do not fear, rejoice! For your meaningless lives now have new purpose."

Julia's breath caught in her throat. Even though she tried to fight it, she could feel the overwhelming fear cast by the general situation crawl up her back, and gnaw at her chest. Fortunately, Yaga, always the brave one, spoke when Julia could not.

"Who are you?", she snapped. "What is this place? Why did you take us?"

"I told you.", said Chrisintheair. "I took you to give you a new life, here in the best clan, under the best king. I'm sure you might be feeling a little confused, but don't worry- everything's going to work out for the better. I promise."

"You know, you got some nerve-", Julia cried, finding her voice, but was suddenly cut off by a Royal Recruit slamming his shield across her face. She fell backwards, hitting her head on the hard plastic of the podium.
"Now, now, don't be like that.", Chrisintheair said. "Remember, these are our new friends. Don't hurt them."

Yaga tried to reach for Julia, to comfort her somewhat, but she could not move from the magical restraints that held her in place.

Song: Un'altra persona

Chrisintheair turned to the air, and put his hands together as if in prayer. He fell to his knees, and shouted into nothing. "Lord Grrshknn, look! I've done it! I've gotten them."

Yaga watched him with morbid fascination. Who, or what was he talking to? There was no such troop as a Grrshknn, and it seemed like an odd name for a King. But maybe, if Yaga kept on watching, the mysterious recipient of Chrisintheair's plea would show himself.

Almost immediately upon thinking these words, a searing headache flew to the front of Yaga's mind. She dropped her staff as her hands flew to her head, trying to lesson the immense pressure.

"You want to see me?", a voice boomed inside of her thoughts. "Good. Get used to the sight."

The air over Chrisinthair swirled with darkness, and Yaga's headache only increased. A low, evil hum sounded from all directions, and a portal opened in mid-air. And as Chrisintheair watched excitedly, the demonic force that was Grrshknn slowly moved out of it, and into the normal world. The crowd gasped with both shock and horror, as the otherworldly form of the demon hovered in the middle of the room. Grrshknn pondered the situation in front of him for a second, then arched an eyebrow in pleasant surprise. "So you have, Chris.", he rumbled. "So you have."

He floated over to Julia and Yaga, picking them both up with storm clouds of arms. He held them in front of his massive, tusked maw, then let them fall onto the pedestals on which they were bound. "Good.", he said, and turned to leave. "Do with them what you wish."

But before he could, he heard Chrisintheair cough behind him. Grrshknn stopped, his trail of smoke coming to an abrupt halt. "Lord Grrshknn, sir?", said the King. "Didn't you forget something?"

Grrshknn instantly went from a tall, dark cloud to an overly muscled bear, arms folded, on the floor in front of Chrisintheair. Even though he was pressed up against the ground, he still towered over Chrisintheair like a Pekka over an Archer. "Oh, did I now? Tell me, Chris, what did I forget?"

Chrisintheair gathered his thoughts, trying to hide his nervousness from the demon looming over him. It was hard to think, with the intense yellow eyes of Grrshknn boring into his soul.

"You promised me power, Lord Grrshknn.", he finally said. "You told me that if I completed this assignment, you would give me power."

Grrshknn mockingly tapped his chin with his claw. "Oh yes, I suppose I did. Totally slipped my mind, that one… very well then. Here you go."

One of his claws lit up black, and he slowly brought it towards Chrisintheair's forehead. "Hold still now, this won't hurt a bit-"

The second Grrshknn's claw touched Chrisintheair's forehead, there was a great flash of red light, temporarily blinding anyone in the room.

Once the light subsides, Chrisintheair lay on the floor, utterly still. His eyes were open, although no signs of life flickered within them. Murmurs spread throughout the crowd, Troops pushing their way to the front to get a better view of what seemed to be their King's death.

Rick nudged Chad on the shoulder. "Yo, did he just-"

"No.", Chad said. "No, he couldn't have. Yeah, there's no way. Why would he?"

They looked at each other. Would he?
Grrshknn looked at the anxious crowd, and sighed. Mortals clearly had no idea about the process of imparting demonic power. The gifted would typically show no signs of life for several hours at first, then would the bonuses start. But he knew that this crowd didn't have that kind of attention span. So Grrshknn decided that, really, it wouldn't be all that big of a problem if he sped up the process a little bit.

With a wave of his paw, and a massive surge of effort, Grrshknn grabbed the latent time strings around Chrisintheair's body. Growling from the energy it took to do so, he yanked on the fabric of reality, sending Chrisintheair's personal time stream through a short boost that served as more than enough time for the King to awaken.

Song: Dark Rebirth

Chrisintheair tasted blood. His vision was blurry, and his hearing faint. Yet despite this, he could feel something else surging through him. Something dark, ancient, and very very powerful.

He opened his eyes, and saw Grrshknn staring back at him. A faint overlay ran across his vision, displaying Grrshknn as Friendly.

"Yes, I'm alright.", Chrisintheair said, knowing that that would likely be the first question everyone would ask him. "In fact, I've...never...felt...better…"

Even as he spoke, Chrisintheair could feel it. He could feel Grrshknn's demonic power flowing through him, turning his blood to magic and his skin to iron. His fingers tingled with the urge to destroy, and his heart beat with an unnatural swiftness.

His head turned on its own, and he saw himself in a mirror. Running down from his eyes to his mouth were two long, black strips of charred flesh. He tenderly put a finger to one, but felt no pain, only a strange pleasure.

"In case you were wondering, I put those there.", said Grrshknn. "Think of them as a reminder of where you got this power."

"Yes…", Chrisintheair said. "This...power…"

Without even really thinking about it, he ran his fingernails down his cheek. They swiftly drew blood with an inhuman sharpness, but the wound closed almost instantly. He scratched again, with the same result. Intrigued, he slashed all the way down to his shoulder as hard as he could. A spurt of blood jumped out of the wound, but his skin automatically knit shut without trouble.

Chrisintheair began to laugh. It started out as a low chuckle, then a harsh bark, then an aggressive cackle, then finally ended as a demonic ohohohohohoho that echoed beneath the bones of every Troop in the room.

"This power…", he said. "I've never felt anything like it before! This strength… this vigor… this raw, untempered might!"

He looked at his hand, crawling with tendrils of dark mist. His mind became filled with names he had never known before- he assumed they were names of cards, but he didn't really know- yet. He would find out, he promised himself. Void Wizard. Rakastamoss. Blackness. Rakshadanore. The Dark Torrent.

"I have to try it out.", he whispered. "I must… this power cannot be wasted."

He looked down the room, and saw Julia. "You.", he said. "You will be my first test subject."

Julia's heart spiked with fear. She saw the half-King, half-Demon creature lock eyes with her, and her body automatically scrambled to get away. But the magical restraints held her in place, and all she could do was scream.

"Don't worry, Julia!", Yaga said. "I'm sure everything will be fine. Just hold on."

Julia looked at Yaga, her eyes trembling with terror. "You really think so?"

Yaga tried to give her best reassuring smile. "Julia, I know so-"

Then, in a flash, Chrisintheair was upon her. He grabbed Julia's head, his claw-like nails digging into her flesh. "Hmmm, you seem to have a strong mind. Let's just take a little look, shall we?"

Yaga screamed, and Julia lashed out with her leg. The impact connected firmly with Chrisintheair's stomach, but if he felt it, he gave no indication. He squeezed tighter, and his hand began to glow red. "I think I'll start with maybe a hard reboot."

"No!", Yaga and Julia shrieked as one, but it was too late. The pulse of destructive mental force burst outward from Chrisintheair, and into Julia's soul.

"Julia, fight it-", Yaga began, but she could already tell it was too late. Within a mere second, the power of the evil King had spread completely throughout Julia's mind, and completely destroyed it.

When Chrisintheair let go of Julia's head, the Bandit fell face forward. Her eyes, although moving, showed absolutely no emotion. Yaga could tell that there was absolutely nothing within her mind anymore. The Bandit she had known and loved was gone.

Chrisintheair picked her up, and looked into her blank eyes. "Oops, seems that I went a little overboard.", he said. "I'll have to be more careful next time. Now tell me, Julia, a little bit about yourself."

"Julia?", Julia asked robotically. "Is that my name?"

Oh, I really did do a number on her, Chrisintheair thought. "Yes, that is your name? Now, could you tell us about yourself?"

"I cannot.", Julia said. "I am nothing. I have no memories, I cannot say who I am."

"Huh.", Chrisintheair thought. "Interesting indeed…"

As Yaga watched, her blood began to boil. She affixed her glare of rage on Chrisintheair, and clenched her fist. He would pay for what he had done, she would make sure of it. Even if it meant she died from the effort, at least some justice would be done. This monster had to die before he erased anyone else.

"And you, Witch…", Chrisintheair said, and turned to Yaga. "You will be taken to the dungeon. I'n not sure what I'll do with you, but I will do something. I've just got to get these powers under control."

"You...you…", Yaga said, shaking from pure anger. She looked up, and her eyes flashed. "You won't get away with this!"

She lunged forward, right into the waiting arms of Nidavaleer, the Mega Knight. He looked to Chrisintheair, who nodded assuredly, and the silent titan carried Yaga off towards her doom.

"Chris.", said Grrshknn. "Before I leave, I have one more thing to say to you."

"What is it, Lord Grrshknn?", Chrisintheair asked. "What more do you have to give me?"

"Your name is no longer fitting of your new stature.", Grrshknn said. "You need a new one."

"I do.", said Chrisintheair. "I think I do… but tell me, what shall I know be known by?"

"Hmm…", Grrshknn said, thinking. "How about you take a knee, while I decide?"

"Certainly, Lord Grrshknn, sir.", said the currently nameless king, and kneeled down into the correct position. "I will wait."

"Okay, I've got it.", said Grrshknn, after about ten seconds of thinking. "I know your new, eternal, name."

He put his claw on the King's shoulder, then beckoned for him to rise. "Arise, my champion.", he said with pride. "Arise… Ryusei_Nakao69."

Present Day

It was a very sunny Monday morning. As the light drifted in through the window into Brandy's room, she slowly woke up. Sleep fell off of her, and she sat up. It was a bit odd, to her, that she was on the floor. She wasn't on the Log, leaning up against the wall. She hadn't been sleeping in her bed, either. She tried to think about why she was on the ground, then she remembered. The Phantom…

Brandy rubbed her eyes, and got up. She flipped her hood onto her head and adjusted her cloak, remembering the night before. How the Phantom had sung to her, how he had drawn her in, covered her in adoration. His promises of peace and safety still echoed in her mind, like sweet Elixir.

She pulled on her boots, opened the door, and looked out. It seemed as though everyone else was already awake, given that most of the doors were wide open, and those that weren't were only that way because there was no door at all. Some Troops were like that. Brandy sniffed the air, and smelled the aroma of pancakes coming from downstairs. Her stomach unexpectedly rumbled. Dang, when was the last time I ate?, she thought, and hurried down the stairs.

Song: Silver Twist

Crink the Mini Pekka joyfully flipped another batch of pancakes from off the griddle to the ready plate with one arm, and used the other to expertly pour a helping of batter onto the stove. He chirruped with happiness at the opportunity to do what he liked best- making a ton of pancakes. He wasn't sure why he liked it, but he did all the same.

"Oy, Crink!", shouted Webert happily. "Could I get another round?"

Crink rotated on his torso, picking up a stack of 36 as he did so. "PAN. CAKES.", he said, and stabbed his sword through the stack, leaving a neat hole. With masterful precision, he flung the stack onto Webert's plate, where they slapped down with a pleasing smack.

"Thanks, dude.", said Webert, and started to eat them. He didn't need or want for silverware.

Crink grabbed his sword with one hand, twisting it to free it from the socket. It fell to the table, and he grabbed a bottle of maple syrup. He twisted the bottle into his hand socket, and smiled as much as his unchangeable robot face allowed him to.

Bending down, Crink grabbed his feet- or were they shoes?- and flipped the bottom off, revealing a pair of roller skates. He gently glided out of the kitchen and into the dining room, where almost all of Oticat's troops had assembled to eat. The only empty chairs were the ones that belonged to Brandy- and of course, Dan. It had still been days since he had left, and he had sent back no word. Some were beginning to believe that he would never return.

Brandy arrived at the bottom of all seven flights of stairs, and looked out over the scene. A small spark lit inside her heart, and a bit of the dark cloud of despair that had hung over her for days began to break apart. Maybe, with the Phantom guarding her and loving her, everything would be alright. Maybe… but she could only hope.

"Hey, Brandy!", Agatha said, and waved her over. "Looks like you're finally awake."

"Finally?", Brandy asked. "What do you mean, finally?"

"It's 10 o' clock.", said Agatha. "And judging from your face, you only woke up… 3 minutes ago. Speaking of which, where were you last night?"

"I was just in my room.", said Brandy. "Asleep. Why do you ask?"

"Really.", Agatha said. It wasn't much of a question. "Because when I came to check on you, you weren't there."

"Oh, his cloak must have hidden me.", Brandy realized. "And when he left, that's why I was sleeping on the floor."

Agatha's mind lit up with alarm instantly at these words. "Him?", she asked. "Brandy, were you… sleeping with someone?"

Brandy's face slightly reddened, and she waved her hand. "Oh, no, not like that.", she said. "We were just sleeping. That's all we did. Nothing else."

"Okay, but who?", Agatha pressured. "Who was it?"

Brandy hesitated a bit. She wasn't sure if the Phantom would like her telling anyone, but she did it anyway. "It was the Phantom.", Brandy said. "In sleep he sang to me, in dreams he came… he's wonderful."

Agatha racked her mind for anyone that could possibly be named "The Phantom." A Royal Ghost, perhaps? But Oticat didn't have any, and judging from what happened the last time Brandy was around one, she wasn't likely to be sleeping with any anytime soon. Royal Ghosts were terrible singers, besides. "Is… he a Troop?", Agatha ventured.

"No.", Brandy said. "I think he said he was a… a Stand? Yeah, that was it."

"A Stand…", said Bowza, placing his plate on the table. "I feel like I've heard that somewhere before."

"Oh, good morning Bowza.", Agatha said. "Perhaps you could help me figure out what Brandy is talking about."

"Well, what are you talking about?", Bowza asked Brandy. "What's been going on in your life lately? Besides the obvious, I mean."

"Well, I met this wonderful man.", Brandy admitted. "He calls himself the Phantom. I don't know what he is, but he wears a cloak and a mask. Just like me…"

Bowza and Agatha met eyes, and exchanged a bit of mental conversation.

Do you think she's hallucinating?, Bowza asked. I don't know what else could be going on.

No. Agatha answered. I think this is real. Do you remember that thing she stabbed herself with a few days ago?

The spear? Yes, I do, Bowza replied with a flick of his eye.

But that's just the thing, Agatha said. It wasn't a spear. It was an arrow. It was called…

Bowza's memory jogged, and his eyes widened imperceptibly in shock. Agatha nodded.

A Stand Arrow, they both thought in unison, and turned once again to look at Brandy.

"Um, hello?", she asked, startling the two back to reality. "Did you guys hear me?"

"Oh, sorry, no.", Bowza said. "We were… thinking. What were you saying?"

Brandy sighed. "I said that I think I want to go for a walk this afternoon. I'm feeling better today."

"I think we could do that, Brandy.", said Agatha. "It's good to see you're improving."

"Yeah.", Brandy said wistfully. "It's because of the Phantom."

Bowza was about to say something, but was cut off when Plap the Goblin slapped his hand on the side of the table. "Letter for you, Brandy.", he said. However, he said it in Gobbish, so nobody but Bowza understood.

Song: Himeru Omoi

"Ah, a letter.", Bowza said, quickly snatching the letter out of Plap's hands before he had a chance to eat it. "And for Brandy, how delightful."

He handed the letter to Brandy, who took it with excitement. She delicately retrieved a letter opener from somewhere within her cloak, and held it to the fold of the envelope. "I bet it's from Brenda.", she said. "Asking me about something random, probably."

She slit open the envelope, tipping over the letter into her hand. She took the folded up piece of paper in between her fingers, opened it, and gasped. Her face turned white, and the paper fell out of her hand.

"Brandy, what is it?", Bowza asked with alarm. "What's wrong with the letter?"

With lightning speed, one of Agatha's Skeletons grabbed the falling paper, and briefly glanced at it. His jawbone fell to the floor, and he showed his two siblings. Their jaws dropped as well. Bowza extended his hand towards them, silently asking for the note. They dutifully handed it over, after taking another awe-struck look. Bowza unfolded the letter, and his eyes widened in shock. "Oh, in T'im's honor.", he whispered, and before Agatha could even ask, handed it to her. She took it, saw it, then crumpled it up, her face turning a lighter shade of purple from the anger.

On that letter were two things- both words and a picture. The picture was of Chad, wearing nothing but his helmet and posing dramatically. The words were "You're looking nice today, Brandy. Thinking of you."

Brandy grabbed her head in her hands, pressing it against the table. "No.", she whispered. "This can't be happening. They're dead, I saw it. They're all dead."

"Larry.", Agatha snapped. "Check the date on that envelope. When was the letter sent?"

Larry gave a smart salute, and grabbed the torn envelope from Plap just before he took a huge bite. Ignoring Plap's protests, he scanned the paper for any numbers. It was only after a few seconds of staring that he remembered he couldn't read.

I read? No., he signed to Agatha, because he also couldn't speak. You read? Yes. Read paper.

Agatha grabbed the envelope from him, and saw the date- the letter had been sent almost 3 weeks ago. For unknown reasons, it had arrived only today.

"Brandy, it's okay.", she said. "This letter's old. They're still dead. Don't worry."

But Brandy didn't respond. Even if it was just for a moment, the picture on the note had sent a dark torrent of evil memories running through her mind. Her skin tingled, and her heart beat faster with the recollection of her trauma. She gripped the sides of the table, and tried not to freak out any more than she already was.

"Brandy? Did you hear me?", Agatha asked. "Can you hear me?"

"What?", Brandy asked breathlessly. "What is it? What?"

"I said that this is an old letter.", Agatha explained. "There's nothing to worry about."

Brandy's breathing slowed, and her muscles started to unclench. The tingles running up her spine lessened, but did not stop completely. The memories stopped coming, and she was able to barely push them to the side. She pushed her chair outwards, and stood up.

"Okay.", she said, but the dark aura of the past still clung to her soul. "I- I think I'll go to my room."

"That's fine.", Agatha said. "I understand. Do you still want to go on that walk?"

Brandy hesitated for a moment, then sighed. "Maybe. I don't know. We'll see."

Agatha was about to say something else, but Brandy abruptly Dashed up the stairs, ending the conversation. A gust of wind blasted outwards in her wake, blowing Larry's head clean off his shoulders and into a pile of maple syrup.

"Should we try talking to her?", Agatha asked, but she already knew the answer.

"No, not yet.", Bowza replied. "At this point, it will only make things worse."

His glowing white eyes narrowed, and he turned towards the rightmost door- the way that lead to the massive downstairs library. "Right now, I think our time will be better spent researching."

"Researching what?", Agatha asked, but she thought she might have already known the answer to that as well.

"Stands.", Bowza said. "We need to learn about Stands."

Brandy made her way up the stairs, her heart still beating in her chest. Even if the letter was old, the sight of Chad naked had sent memories pulsing through her head- memories that she would much rather forget. Even if the letter was-

She stopped. The letter was old, yet it seemed as though it had been sent that day. Which, Brandy realized, meant that Ryusei_Nakao69 and TheEvilOverLords had been spying on her for weeks before they actually took her. They had clearly been planning her capture for a long time.

The thought made Brandy uneasy. "Why?", she whispered to herself. "What did I do to them? What is it about me that made them want me so much?"

But she refused to lurk on the thought any longer. She pushed it out of her mind, and continued onwards towards her room.

Once she reached the door, she sighed. Even though it had been around a week since she had been rescued, sending the entire enemy castle into the stratosphere, the time she had spent there still haunted her. Even in death, Ryusei_Nakao69's influence still remained.

She opened the door, and flipped on the light switch. Dave had been right- her room was an absolute mess. Dust covered everything, and half the floor was strewn with random objects. Her collections of random things, once carefully ordered and organized, now lay strewn across tabletops with no semblance of order. An entire empty Giant Chest lay shattered against the wall. It was time to clean up.

Song: Approach

"Ah, visitors.", said Tef the Library Goblin. "What can I do for you today, Bowza and Agatha? Check out a book? Find some references? Anything, all you need to do is ask."

He propped his elbows up on a desk, looking up at the two that had just entered the front of the vast room.

"We're just here to do some research, Tef.", said Bowza. "Nothing more."

"Ah, research.", Tef sighed. "Wonderful thing, that. Anything in particular that you're looking for?"

"Stands.", Agatha said. "I don't suppose you'd have that, would you?"

Tef's pupils diluted in thought. "Well, this library has information on such a vast amount of subjects I don't even know it all. I'm sure we have something, over there in the S section."

He pointed his thumb towards the left-back of the many stacks of bookshelves, and Bowza gave a quick nod. "Thank you, Tef. Your help is most appreciated."

"Hmm, let's see…" murmured a deep, rich voice in the middle of the B section of the library, although nobody heard. "Where's the Bandit book…"

An ethereal hand thumbed through the rows of books, searching for the one he needed. "It should just be here, but it's not…"

A Wizard came strolling through the aisles, books on Spells stacked up over his face. He couldn't see where he was going, but made up for it with sheer memory. But his memory was foiled when instead of going through a normally clear space in the aisle, he bumped into something. He mumbled out an apology, then craned his neck to look at whoever he had bumped into. But to his surprise, there was nothing there.

"Ah, this one will be helpful.", said the Phantom. "Tell me, friend, where is the book on Bandits?"

But the Wizard was not a Stand User, and thus did not see him. He just kept on trying to get past the invisible figure of the Phantom, with increasing frustration and no results. The Phantom realized his mistake, and with a wave of his hand, made himself visible.

"Tell me, friend," he said, his words slightly more strained than before, "Where is the book on Bandits?"

Had the Wizard been a little less distracted, he would have reacted to the Phantom in terror. But his thoughts were somewhere else, so he just pointed to the bottom of the shelf, grunted, and left.

"Thank you, sir.", said the Phantom, although the words fell on no ears but his own. He knelt down into the floor and ran his gaze across the bottom shelf, reading such titles as A Bandit's strategy guide, The Story of Juno, the Primal Bandit, and Physiology of a Bandit. It was that last one he was looking for, and he pulled it out with a smile.

He thumbed through the pages quickly, only bothering to read the headings at the top of each page. "Average weight… average height… average names… aha! Here we are, intimacy."

He opened the book to its full width, and began to read. Unique or special erogenous zones… he thought. Around the hollows of the eyes, yes, the small of the back, the bottoms of the feet, the ears…

He withdrew a little bit, and frowned. The ears? That certainly was a weird spot, but…

If this is what will make Brandy happy, then so be it, he thought, and slammed the book shut.

He briefly considered reading some of the rest of the book, but then though against it. He had no time. He was supposed to report back to his user.

"Stands… Stands… Stands…", muttered Bowza to himself, running his finger along the line of books. "Hmm, don't see anything- Agatha, is there anything on the right side?"

"No.", Agatha said, who was looking at the right side of the bookshelves while Bowza checked the left. "Not yet."

"Do you think any book exists?", Bowza asked. "I've never even heard of Stands until recently. There's most likely very little information on them at all."

"Yes, but a little is still something.", said Agatha. "And if there's something, than there's a book on it."

Bowza nodded in agreement, and looked forward. His gaze almost passed over a very small, weathered book on the bottom shelf- almost. But a small piece of silver glinted off the spine, catching his eye. Oh?, he thought, and leaned down. He extracted the book from its shelf, and smiled. He wasn't sure exactly what he had been looking for, but "Everything we know about Stands" seemed to be it.

"Is that it?", Agatha asked. "Did you find it?"

The book was thin, probably only about 20 pages. The cover, which accounted for most of the book's weight, was covered in raw chunks of gold, silver, and platinum. A strange light hummed off the pages, and distant whispers seemed to be coming from within. "It is.", Bowza said.

He opened the book, cleared his throat, and began to read aloud so could hear as well.

"A Stand is the physical manifestation of one's spiritual and mental energy.", he said with curiosity, learning even as he spoke. "There are several different types- close-range, remote, bound, and ability Stands, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. One can only have one Stand."

There was too much information on the rest of the page for Bowza to read aloud, so he stopped talking and just scanned the page. The information excited him- he had no idea there was such an odd thing in existence.

"Bowza, what does it say?", Agatha asked, slightly impatient. "What did you find out?"

Bowza read for a few more moments, then looked up. "Well, I found out what's going on with Brandy. Sort of."

Song: The Stardust Man Appears

Brandy rummaged around in her dresser, reaching for anything that wasn't a spare uniform. She had started cleaning- well, sometimes cleaning and sometimes finding something from months or years ago, staring at it, then putting it back without cleaning anything. Also, she had found several spiders.

Her hand hit wood, signaling that she had hit the back of the dresser. It was clear of anything that didn't belong there. Brandy pulled her arm out, and set her sights on a Super Magical Chest leaning against the wall. It was in good condition, fortunately for her. Even though it was empty, a Super Magical Chest would fetch quite a bit on the open market. Ever since their phasing out and replacement with Mega Lightning Chests a few months back, they had become ever more desired by collectors. But Brandy couldn't remember what she had been using it for. She would just have to find out.

Brandy cracked open the lid to the immense Chest, sending up a huge puff of dust as she did so. Coughing, she waved the dust away, and looked inside. Dozens of black boxes, all stacked up, filled the Chest to the brim. "What are those?", Brandy whispered to herself, and reached in.

She grabbed one of the boxes, feeling around for any sort of lock. There wasn't one, just a button to be pressed for opening. She did so, and the box cracked open, revealing dozens of thin white sheets. "Cards?", she mumbled. "Are these Cards? Did I just hit the motherload?"

But as she pulled one out to inspect, she realized they weren't Cards at all. A pang of memory hit her heart as she realized that they were photographs.

"The Phantom that Brandy keeps on talking about seems to be a long-range Stand.", Bowza said. "His user could be anywhere, most likely far out of our reach. The reason we can't see him is because we're not Stand users. I don't know what plans he has for Brandy, but they most likely aren't good."

"Didn't that say that Stands are given to those who are stabbed by an Arrow?", Agatha asked.

"Yes, it did.", Bowza asked. "Why?"

"Well, Brandy stabbed herself with it.", Agatha said. "And then the Phantom started appearing. What if he's her Stand?"

The two were silent for a moment, as they considered this implication. The only sound that could be heard were the various coughs and hums of Wizards studying and books being moved around.

"Yes…", said Bowza finally. "That could be. Especially once you factor in the fact that Stands are typically born from whatever their user wants most."

"And the Phantom seems to want to bring Brandy comfort, and protection.", Agatha said, catching on. "And those two things do seem to be the things that Brandy wants most right now."

"Well then, we'll leave the Phantom alone.", Bowza said. "We don't want Brandy getting hurt."

The two stood up, and shook hands. Their study session had concluded in a most positive manner.

"Say, do you think we'll ever run into one of those Stand Arrows again?", Agatha asked. "I think I might want a Stand."

"Perhaps.", Bowza said, and put his arm around her. "If the stars are right."

As they left the library, they did not sense a pair of curious eyes watching them. They couldn't, for they could not sense the Phantom.

"Aw, this one's of me.", Brandy said. "This looks like one of my very first battles- look how excited I am."

In the picture, Oticat had just won. Trevor, the Giant that Webert had replaced, was hoisting a Golden Chest above the group, with Brandy riding on top. She had both fists raised to the sky, and her expression was wilder than a Hog on Dark Elixir. Brandy sighed wistfully, placed the photo to the side, and pulled out the next one.

"Oh, and this one's of me too.", she said. "Huh, this one was taken just a few weeks ago."

This one was of her, pouring herself some Elixir from the cooler in the workout room, during a party. It was from the back, and it seemed totally candid. It was, Brandy thought, honestly a little creepy. She put that one to the other side and pulled out another.

"And this one's of me, too.", she said, suspicion clouding her voice. "And it's of me sleeping?"

Trying to fight the alarm growing within her, Brandy began frantically pulling out photographs from the box, taking a moment to look at each one before dropping them to the side. Each and every one of them was of her- in various, seemingly random times of her life.

"Okay, maybe that's just my box.", she said, trying to calm herself. "Maybe if I take out another one, it'll be of someone else."

With shaking hands, Brandy pulled out another box. And then, she noticed something that she hadn't noticed before. On the box from before, it read in white chalk "Subject collection 8."

She checked the box that had just barely been pulled out. It read "Subject collection 9."

Brandy took a step backwards in shock. Had someone been taking pictures of her without her knowing? How had they stored them here, right underneath her nose? Who would have done this? It would have taken her entire life in order to catalog this many photos.

Brandy thought she was about to put the rest of the pictures away, and go ask someone about it. But to her surprise, she found that her body was instead drawing out another picture. This one was of her, same as all the others- but in this photograph, Brandy was young. Very young, in fact- judging from the photo, she couldn't have been more than 6 years old.

Brandy's mind raced. 6 years old? How was that possible? She had only been unlocked about 2 years ago, and Brandy knew that she was more than a mere 8 years old. No, wait.

She wasn't. Or was she? Her mind swam with questions. What was she thinking, about age? Troops didn't have real ages, they were born fully formed out of Chests. But if that was true, then why was age even a concept that Brandy understood so naturally? She had never heard anyone talk about it. How did age even work? Why were some Troops just naturally more mature than others?

With a sharp mental shock, Brandy realized that more and more of her world suddenly started to not make sense. Was it natural for Troops to be born from Chests? Or was normal birth more common, and Brandy just didn't realize it?

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts, and Brandy looked up. She hurriedly shoved the photo into a random box, and shoved the Super Magical Chest against the wall. "Yes, come in.", she said.

A dark shadow slipped through the door, and Brandy's heart lifted. Maybe the Phantom could explain it. He seemed to know quite a lot. She stood up. "Oh, Phantom.", she said. "I'm so glad you came-"

But then, the shadow revealed its face, and Brandy's relief turned to icy fear. The figure wore not the benevolent masked face of the Phantom, but the helmet and curved horns of an Elite Barbarian. He smiled, and cracked his knuckles. "Hello, cutie pie.", he said.

Song: Shoot Towards the Decisive Battle

"You… you…", Brandy tried to shout, but her words came out as a damaged whisper. "You can't be here. You're dead."

The ethereal figure of Chad spread out his arms. "So I am, Brandy.", he said. "So I am. But fortunately, that just opens up more room. You see, in this form-"

He drew his sword, and tossed it to the right. With a glimmering whine, it flew back to his outstretched hand. He ran his tongue across the blade, a wicked leer in his eye.

"I have many more things I can do. More places I can go.", he said, and drifted forward towards Brandy. "No defense can stop me, no wall can bar me entrance."

Brandy backed up, looking for something to throw. Her hand scrabbled around her desk, finally landing on a folded piece of metal- Dan's old mustache trimmer. This detail went unnoticed by anyone, however, as she curled her fingers around it and held it up.

"Stay- stay back.", she stuttered. "I'm warning you. I'm-"

She tried to say not afraid of you any more, but deep down, she knew that wasn't true. Intense, blinding fear still radiated through her like a plague, bubbling up from her subconscious.

Chad spread his arms open wide, and dove towards Brandy. She quickly rolled to the right, and he smashed through the front of her bed. She got up and started running for the door, trying to make it out before he got her. If she found someone, anyone, they could help.

"Thinking about leaving, Brandy?", Chad boomed, and folded in on himself. "I wouldn't, if I were you."

Brandy kept on running, not looking back. She was just footsteps away from the door when Chad reappeared in space right in front of her, and spread his cloak like a billowing wind. Brandy yelped and immediately backpedaled, trying to run in whatever direction Chad wasn't. She wasn't thinking clearly, her mind racing with overwhelming terror.

"Where are you going, Brandy?", Chad chuckled. "Don't you want to say hi?"

He raced after her, his massive shadowy form growing. His eyes glowed crimson, and he left a trail of near-visible evil as he went. Brandy turned around, and saw the nightmare bearing down on her faster than she could run. There was only one chance for her now.

As Chad closed the distance, Brandy breathed in. She concentrated the energy of her Dash into her fist, setting it vibrating with light blue waves of force. She moved her hand behind her, getting ready to punch. If such a powerful technique didn't take Chad down, nothing she could do would.

Chad's ghost crossed the rest of the room in a second, and reared up in front of her. A deep scream could be heard from somewhere within him, almost as if there was something trapped inside. "Brandy, put your fist down. You know you want to come with me."

Brandy's eyes narrowed. "Like death.", she growled, and threw her fists forward in a rapid-fire barrage of punches that tore the air around them. "Doraoraoraoraoraora!"

But even as the blows tore through Chad's ethereal form, they did nothing to harm him. He merely sighed and grabbed both of Brandy's arms. "And here, I thought we were doing so well."

He twisted Brandy's arms behind her back, and she grunted in pain. He flowed onto her bed, bringing her with him, and pressed her into the mattress. With both her arms restrained by his weight, he withdrew his hands and held them up.

"Go ahead, Brandy.", said Chad. "Scream all you want, there's no one that can hear you. I already dampened the door's sound. Nothing will get through."

Brandy squirmed and kicked, but the pressure of Chad's body over hers was too much to escape. He savagely forced one hand inside her mouth, yanking it open, and started to slowly run the other across her stomach. Brandy's heart beat faster, and she tried as hard as she could to escape Chad's grasp. But there was nothing that she could do.

"Oh, poor, poor, Brandy.", Chad crooned mockingly. "If only all that strength we gave you meant anything against my power. But it doesn't…"

He forced Brandy's mouth further open, and started to slide his other hand lower, past Brandy's belt. He saw her terrified eyes, with a hint of confusion in them. "Oh? What's that? What do I mean by the power we gave you? Well, since I'm such a nice guy, I'll tell you."

Drool dripped from Brandy's mouth, and Chad's finger ran up and around her inner thighs. A tendril of darkness grew from the umbra of evil that made up Chad's body, winding around her legs and arms. At the edge, it carried a thick leather strap, a hard plastic ball in the center.

"When you almost fought your way out of our Castle, you showed astonishing strength for a mere level 9 Bandit.", said Chad. "And why do you think that is?"

Chad jabbed his lower hand higher, and Brandy screamed. But the sound was absorbed by the door, and was heard by nobody but the two.

"We gave you that power.", Chad explained. "During those two days before you woke up, you weren't really unconscious. Your mind just naturally redacted the memory, because what happened to you was too mind-breaking for anyone to stand."

The tendril of darkness slapped the ball gag against Brandy's mouth, tying it in within a second. Now free, Chad's other hand traveled down Brandy's face, drawing a line of ink as it went.

"We decided to experiment on your body.", Chad said. "For almost two straight days, you were continually almost destroyed, then rebuilt. Almost no part of your body is the same, now. Once our curiosity was satisfied, we rebuilt you- into the perfect little slave."

Chad's lower hand started to move faster, sending spasms of panicked energy throughout Brandy's entire body. She strained against the gag, but it only dug deeper into her. Chad's other hand reached her chest, and began to squeeze random areas.

"You see, you may look Blue on the outside.", Chad said, and the cloak of shadows around Brandy began to close in. "But on the inside, where it really counts-"

A pulse of dark power traveled through both of Chad's hands, and into Brandy. She felt her control on her own body weakening, and her vision turning a sickly shade of crimson.

"You are nothing… but… Red!", Chad growled, and the cloak covered Brandy completely. She couldn't see. She could barely hear anything happening outside, which was nothing. The only thing that was happening to Brandy, from her point of view, was Chad's total violation of her body and mind. His upper hand, quickly bored of Brandy's chest, moved down to her stomach, and felt around. His evil face lit up with sadistic glee.

"My, did I do that?", he asked. "What delightful handiwork. Once I take you, you're going to help me raise him, and however many other children I choose to fill you with. I think I'll call him L-"

Song: Fight to Antagonize

Chad stopped in mid-sentence. He choked on his words, and the darkness began to withdraw. The gag dropped from Brandy's mouth, and she breathed in a massive breath of much-needed air. The tendrils of darkness vanished abruptly, and Chad fell backwards onto the floor. He looked up, and snarled in rage. "You're…"

Brandy looked over her shoulder, and saw the most welcome sight she could imagine. She gasped with relief, and hope flooded her mind and body. "You're…"

The sword hanging in the air where Chad had been withdrew, and floated neatly back into the scabbard of its master. Black eyes glinted nobly, and the low light shone off the white of a mask.

"The Phantom!", shouted both Brandy and Chad, with either happiness or rage.

"You filth…", the Phantom growled, with barely contained fury. "What are you doing to her?"

"That's none of your business, boy.", Chad said, and stood. The wound in his chest slowly closed, and the darkness appeared around him once again. "Now if you do-"

The Phantom didn't wait for Chad to finish his sentence. Instead, he ducked under Chad's reach, drew his sword in a flash of light, and swung upwards, severing the ghostly Elite Barbarian's arm. Chad bellowed in pain, and tried to reach for his sword with the other, but the Phantom was already on it. Almost vanishingly fast, he switched the sword to his other hand, and cut off Chad's other arm.

Chad roared in pain, but he wasn't done yet. He concentrated his dark energy, and his arms began to regrow, shoot by shoot and tendril by tendril. "Phantom…", he growled. "What… what are you?"

"You don't get to know that information.", the Phantom replied, and raised his sword. He slowly rotated it behind him, in a stance that everyone there recognized as the Cutter's Folly. It was incredibly destructive, but only if you couldn't defend against it. And judging from Chad's current state, it looked like he couldn't.

The Phantom's eyes narrowed with hatred. Pure silver light flickered on the edge of his blade, and he slowly brought it forwards. "Goodbye."

A terrifying storm of sword strokes hit Chad full on, right in the face and chest. With his arms still regrowing, he had no way to defend. "Horahorahorahorahorahorahorahorahorahorahorahorahora!", the Phantom screamed, each upslash and downfall of his blade slashing open Chad's ghostly skin in some new place. Light purple Elixir flowed from the wounds, puddling up on the floor, until Chad had been cut to ribbons by the attack rush that the Phantom had unleashed.

He stood there for a few seconds, then wiped the blood and Elixir off his blade. He gently sheathed it, turned, and put two fingers to his forehead.

"Arrivederci."

He stood there for a few more moments, then turned to Brandy. She slowly got up, and walked over to him. She looked up into the Phantom's face, her eyes trembling.

"You… you just saved my life.", she whispered. "You killed him."

But the Phantom just stared over her, into a distance only he could see. "Alas, it is not so.", he said. "For that was not the ghost of your dead tormentor, but something else."

"It wasn't him?", Brandy asked. "Well then, what was it?"

The Phantom folded his arms. "It was another Stand.", he said. "It appears that there's an enemy Stand user somewhere afoot. I think it's long range."

Upon hearing these words, faint flickers of meaning echoed at the back of Brandy's mind, but not really anything she could get a grip on. She would have to find out more about Stands later- maybe Bowza would know. For now, the dark pain that gripped her mind would have to be healed.

She lay against the Phantom's chest, to his somewhat surprise. "Hold me.", she said. "I need you to hold me."

The Phantom was a little taken aback by her suddenness, but recovered quickly. "Okay.", he said, and wrapped his arms around Brandy. "I will."

His long arms grew even longer, twirling around Brandy like vines. His tall, lanky figure towered over her, yet he felt cozy as a fireplace. His delicate, watch-maker fingers traced a pattern around the edges of Brandy's mask, sending strange twinges of delight through her body.

"Why…", she whispered, even as he did it more. "Why does that feel so good?"

"I don't precisely know.", the Phantom admitted. "But according to my research, the borders of your mask are just one of the special pleasure zones on your body."

"Re-really?", Brandy asked, blushing. "What… what are the others?"

"Well, did you know your ears are one?", the Phantom said, and slowly drew his fingers up towards Brandy's earlobes.

"My ears?", Brandy asked. "But that doesn't make any se- oohhh…."

The Phantom gently ran his finger along Brandy's earlobe, sending a wave of strange ecstasy through her. He barely squeezed, and Brandy's body tightened involuntarily. "See?", he said. "Your ears…"

Brandy let out a small moan, and her eyes closed. Passion, awoken from despair by the Phantom's loving embrace, surged through her. Slowly, one of her hands worked its way down the Phantom's torso, towards his legs.

"Phantom.", she whispered, trying to remain in control of herself. "I…"

"What is it, Brandy?", the Phantom asked. "Go on, tell me."

Brandy smiled, and her face turned red. "I love you. I want you. Take me."

She leaned in further into the Phantom's depths, and uttered the words she thought that she would never say. "I'm yours."

"No.", said the Phantom, and covered her eyes. "I'm yours. And yet, you are mine. You see, Brandy, love is not just one way. It flows equally, like a sacred river. Neither side can exist without the other, granting their utmost devotion. So don't say you're mine. Because we are each other's."

Brandy listened, taking in every word like it was the last gulp of Elixir in the desert. "You're right.", she said, and turned around, burying her face in the Phantom's cloak. "You're so right…"

They stood there, for a moment, until Brandy looked up. "Please.", she whispered, her voice warm. "I want to… want to…"

She didn't finish the sentence, but the Phantom knew what she was asking. He stroked her face, and smiled lovingly. "I know, Brandy. I want to, too."
He began to slowly walk towards the bed, carrying Brandy with him. "So let's do it."

He lay down, and Brandy with him. They stared at each other. Brandy knew that for the first time, she wanted to do this. All the other times, it had been forced. But now, this time, it was to be pure.

The light turned off, and the door locked automatically. And they loved each other, until night fell over them like a warm blanket, and peace filled their souls.

8 months earlier

Song: Dark Rebirth

"Chadwick.", said the voice of Ryusei_Nakao69. "Richard. Tell me, what have you brought me today?"

"Oh, just another Night Witch, my lord.", said Chad, and smartly saluted. Rick tossed up the unconscious body of the Night Witch onto the table where Ryusei_Nakao69 sat. "We found her in the woods, just sort of wandering around."

"Hmph.", Ryusei_Nakao69 sat. "She's not the best, but she'll do."

He stood up, pushing his chair off the platform where he sat. Shadows pooled around him like water, coming from both the low light and his own evil presence. "Besides, I have much more… important… matters to attend to."

He looked at himself in the mirror, and ran his fingers down the long black scars that now adorned his cheeks. Sometimes, when no one was around, he would just sort of sit there, and wonder what he had become. What kind of King he was, consorting with demons, and kidnapping innocent Troops. But then, the dark power of Grrshknn would return to him, and the thoughts would be eliminated completely.

"Call a Clan Meeting.", he said to no one in particular. He knew that even if he addressed nobody, someone would answer all the same. "I have some big news, for the future."

"Yes, sir.", Chad said, and sharply saluted. "I will."

He and Rick both left the room, leaving Ryusei_Nakao69 with his thoughts.

I wonder…, he thought. I know I can destroy things with this power, but what can I create?

He waved an experimental hand, and thought of that most basic of objects- a single Gold coin. As he did so, he felt his hand slow in mid-air, as if he was trying to wave it through molasses. He almost stopped, but when he saw a shining coin slowly appear on the table, he continued with redoubled effort. Once he moved his hand all the way to the side, the Gold coin lay complete on the table. Ryusei_Nakao69 picked it up with curiosity, gave it a quick examination, and saw nothing wrong. He had just created a completely legitimate Gold coin out of nothing, with his sheer power.

A pity a single Gold coin is worth hardly anything, he thought. Perhaps if I tried it with a Gem, or a Card, or one of those new-fangled Trade Tokens that were announced yesterday. Yes, that would be a far more worthwhile use…

He tried to make something again, this time using both hands. He just so happened to be quite hungry, so he thought of a plate of freshly cut cheese. As he yanked his hands through the air, a nondescript white plate appeared, with strips of equally white cheese on top of them.

Reaching for one, he found that it did not crumble to the touch- no, it felt like a fine mozzarella. He picked it up, and took a delicate bite. Ryusei_Nakao69 started to chew on it, not noticing in time that his finger was still in his mouth.

But even as he bit down on his own fingertip, cutting off the end and sending blood spilling into his throat, Ryusei_Nakao69's eyes widened with delight. The taste of blood filled his mouth and covered his tongue, but he was not repulsed. In fact, he found that he quite liked the taste. It sent a strange feeling coursing across his skin, some form of demonic power.

"Er, Lord Ryusei_Nakao69, sir?"squeaked a small voice from somewhere nearby. "We're ready for you now."

He looked down, to see a Goblin cowering behind a curtain, clipboard in hand. He seemed very afraid, for good reason. But to Ryusei_Nakao69, that reason was no reason at all.

"Glarb,", he said, and bent down. "Why are you afraid of me? I'm still your King. I haven't changed. Well, I have, but not in any large fashion."

His fingertips lit up black, and he ran them down the scars on his cheeks. "I may look different, but inside, I'm still the King you've always known."

Yet even as he spoke, Ryusei_Nakao69 tried to convince himself of this fact. The truth was, he hadn't fully felt like himself since Grrhsknn had given him his dark rebirth. Every day when he woke up, the sensation of demonic strength would flood through him. It felt stranger each time, yet also seemed more familiar.

"I- I guess you're right, Chris.", said Glarb, then realized his slip. "I- I mean Ryusei_Nakao69. I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it.", said the King, with a wave of his hand. "Now open the curtain. I have a speech to make."

He moved past the still nervous Goblin, and onto the stage. Glarb obeyed orders, and pulled on a hidden rope. The thick, blood-red cloth of the curtain moved upwards, revealing Ryusei_Nakao69 at the podium. He didn't know it, but blood still dripped from the corners of his mouth, giving him a truly ghastly appearance.

"Everyone, thank you for coming.", he said with an evil grin. "I have some important news to discuss. Yes, very important indeed."

He spread his arms open wide, the flickering torches on the walls hiding his face under a blanket of shadow. Yet his eyes shone through, casting an eerie red light.

"With Lord Grrshknn's help, I have ascended far past the lowly station of King, and become something far more.", he said. "And now, I would like to do the same to all of you."

There were reactions among the audience at once. Some of them recoiled, the very thought of being transformed hideous beyond belief. Others leaned forward in their chairs, not wanting to miss any opportunity at power. A few didn't know what to think about it, looking around at their neighbors for guidance. But no matter what anyone thought, Ryusei_Nakao69 definitely had their attention.

"I've already made plans to upgrade the Castle.", he said, attracting the panic of several idle Builders. "But don't worry Builders, you won't have to do a thing."

They relaxed, if a little confused, and Ryusei_Nakao69 continued. "Lord Grrshknn will work his magic on the entire structure, and make it a Castle worthy of one such as I. Speaking of which…"

He pointed at the audience. "Co-Leaders, choose your favorite Troop. And come with me."

He walked off the stage, leaving the audience in confused ranks. The current Co-Leaders- sheerpalpatations and TheWhiteWizard- both looked among their assembled Troops. It was hard to pick one as their favorite. But the Troops weren't entirely sure that they wanted to be Chosen. They did not know what would become of them if they were.

"Er, um…", sheerpalpatations stammered, trying to choose. He soon realized that he couldn't, and so he just pointed to someone random. "Bailey.", he said. "Come with me."

"Fred.", TheWhiteWizard decided. "I have chosen you."

Bailey blinked, and pointed to herself. Sheerpalpatations nodded, and waved his hand in beckoning. Well, hope nothing bad happens, Bailey thought, and hopped over a row of chairs to follow her king.

"Uh, okay, sir.", Fred said, and cracked his knuckles, slamming one fist against an open palm. "Let's get this."

TheWhiteWizard followed sheerpalpatations and Bailey up the stairs to where Ryusei_Nakao69 was waiting, the huge figure of Fred in tow.

Once the two had caught up with him, Ryusei_Nakao69 opened a hidden door on the wall with a flick of his wrist, and ushered them inside. "Quickly.", he said. "We don't have much time before he gets here."

"Before who gets here-", Bailey began, but her words were cut off. For the darkest shadow she had ever been in the presence of suddenly spilled into the room, instantly dousing the lights and burying them all in darkness.

Song: Un'altra Persona

A face emerged from the nothing. Long, gaping tusks flashed into being, illuminated by vicious yellow eyes. Thick, matted fur formed from the inky shadow, and the hulking form of Grrshknn landed on the floor. He made so sound or vibration, but the hard stone floor buckled underneath him, all the same.

"Ah, I see you've brought me the chosen.", he said. "But, tell me, where are yours?"

"You- you mean Chad and Rick?, asked Ryusei_Nakao69. "Oh, they're right here."

The two Elite Barbarians walked out from the wall, in full formation. "Hey, what's up?", Chad almost asked, but decided against it. One look at Grrshknn convinced him otherwise.

"So everyone's gathered, then.", Grrshknn growled. "Good- now we can begin."

His face grew, and split. It spun around to each and every Troop and King, staring them each into the eye. "Yes… yes…", he said. "You will do nicely indeed."

His claw lifted, then refracted into a dozen different angles. Each one hovered over a forehead, then began to move down. Bailey sucked in her breath, and TheWhiteWizard flinched.

"Now, now.", Grrshknn said. "Hold still, or I won't be able to complete the process."

He gently touched his claw to each forehead of the Chosen, and there was a massive, deafening explosion of red.

Song: Another face, same mind

Once the energy cleared, and the Troops and Kings began once again to open their eyes, Grrshknn was nowhere to be found. But his power still remained, buried deep within a certain six individuals.

"Are you alright?", asked Ryusei_Nakao69, seeing his two closest friends in such a state of shock. "Bit of a knock there, wasn't it?"

Sheerpalpatations looked up, his hand on his forehead. His skin stung with power, and his head swam with visions of demonic vigor. "I…", he said.

"I am sheerpalpatations no longer.", he finished. "From now on…"

He clenched a fist, and crimson flowed from his hand to his forehead. "I am thesenate."

"I agree, thesenate.", said the King known formally as TheWhiteWizard. "Because I, too, have changed my name. From now on, you may call me…"

He stared forward, with a hard gleam in his eye. "LeChris."

Fred clenched his muscles, marveling at their newfound strength. He had always been very strong, because he was a Giant, but this was just on a whole other level. He felt like he could bring down a Princess Tower with a single shot. He felt like he could take on an Army, and win. He felt invincible.

Chad, too, had been changed. Most of the power had flown from Rick into him, and he was thus now far stronger than his brother ever had been. The edges of his helmet's horns twisted into enraged shapes, and his sword slightly glowed blood-red. He affixed Rick with a look, and they both bumped fists and grinned.

Only Bailey, staring confusingly at her hands, had seemingly not been affected. She didn't feel any different at all, just a little exhausted from the ordeal. What's wrong with me?, she asked herself. Am I not worthy? Did I do something… wrong? Is Grrhsknn going to be unhappy about this- about me?

But a voice in her ear soon lessened her fears.

"Don't worry, Bran- I mean, Bailey", Grrshknn rumbled. "Your power will come, eventually. You have the potential to be stronger than all these others, but you are not ready to handle that yet. But I assure you, when you need it most, your powers will manifest."

And then he really was gone, leaving in the air only dust, darkness, and the stench of rotting souls.

Ryusei_Nakao69 clapped his hands together. "Well then!", he said with authority. "Now that we've renamed ourselves, I think its only fitting that we rename the Clan."

"I say we call it the Chad Fan Club.", said Chad, but no one really heard him. It sent a little twinge down his face.

"Yes, meandtheboys just doesn't really cut it anymore, now does it?", said LeChris, stroking his beard. "We need something… better…"

Ryusei_Nakao69 got a sudden, inspired idea, and put his finger up in the air. "I've got it!", he said, and everyone turned to look. "Meandtheboys is no longer! From now on, we are…"

The tip of his finger lit up with a miniscule fire, adding just the right amount of dramatic effect to his words. "TheEvilOverLords."

Present Day

It was a quiet Tuesday. The sky was blue, unsullied by any clouds or rain. It had, however, rained last night, and the air was cleaner for it.

Brandy stumbled out of her room, pushing her bangs from her eyes. She didn't really remember a whole lot from the night before, only that it was soft, and warm, and comforting, and that the Phantom came. In fact, she could still see his kind face, seemingly glowing in her memories.

She walked down the hall, then stopped in front of a gaping hole in the floor. "What the…", she muttered, and bent down to take a better look. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that next to the hole, there was a torn fragment of green cloth. That could only mean one thing- this was the work of Goblins.

Brandy stood up again, hands on her hips, and looked around. She would have normally called for a Builder to come and fix it, but she noticed the room that she was closest to- Kars.

Kars lay snoring in his bed, a thousand tiny and a hundred not-so-tiny cuts adorning the wooden bedpost. His axe barely hung from his right hand, and his bottle of Rage from the other. His beard was in a tangle from his sparring with Webert the night before.

A single knock came from his door, but he did not stir. Although he could hear it just fine, he didn't want to get up from his splitting headache.

Another, more persistent knock sounded, this time followed by 5 more. Kars opened one eye, but continued to snore.

There were three aggressive taps, and Kars finally rolled out of bed. He fell to the door, and yanked it open to see Brandy standing there, a tentative smile on her face. "Hey Kars.", she said, and gave a little wave. "There's a big hole in the middle of the hallway. Wanna help me fix it?"

Song: Killer

"Uh, sure!", Kars yelled, as he yelled everything. "Let me just grab my axe, and I can go!"

"But you're holding your axe, Kars.", Brandy pointed. "See, it's just there in your hand."

Kars looked down, and indeed saw that he was already holding his weapon. "Oh!", he shouted in surprise. "Okay then!"

He strode out the door, Brandy quietly following. Next to Kars, anyone was quietly doing anything. He reached the hole, knelt down beside it, and took out his axe. With a fierce chop, he sliced through several stray planks of wood, casting them aside in dust. "Little buggers!", he yelled. "Gotta get rid of them while you can!"

Brandy giggled, and a shadow leaning across the room suddenly stood up straight at attention.

Bowza sat in his favorite chair in the reading room, in front of the fireplace. He aimlessly nocked, loosened, and nocked again an arrow, running his fingers up and down the bow. Something was bothering him, scratching away at the back of his mind, but he didn't know quite what. Something…

A heavy footfall sounded at the entryway, and Bowza turned his head. There stood Webert, with a quizzical look on his face. The tips of his ears were slightly red with second hand embarrassment. "Uh, Bowza?", he asked. "Did Brandy, um… invite anyone over?"

"No, I don't think so.", said Bowza. "Why?"

"Well, I was going to see if Kars wants to work out with me, and I passed her room. And I heard sounds that sounded like, well…"

He made a series of gestures with his hands, not wanting to say the words aloud. Bowza's eyes widened, and he stood up. "You- you don't really mean that-"

Webert nodded. "I do. I don't exactly know what's going on, but I know what I heard."

Bowza slammed his fist into his open palm. "This cannot be right.", he said to himself. "This clearly warrants further inves-"

His words were cut off when a deep cry of pain came from above. It seemed to be coming from the Legendary floor, based on the echo and fadeaway. It sounded like…

"Kars.", Webert said with alarm. "That sounded like Kars."

Kars screamed again, as a shining silver blade pierced his throat. He slashed the air in front of him, but could not see what he was trying to attack. The axe slipped harmlessly off ethereal robes like water off of glass.

Brandy quickly saw what was going on, and gasped in horror. "Phantom?", she shrieked. "What are you doing?"

If the Phantom heard her, he gave no acknowledgement. He just gritted his teeth, stabbed his sword in further, and wrapped a gloved hand around Kar's torso. Rage filled his eyes with a purple twinge, and his ghostly muscles bulged underneath his long black sleeves.

"Phantom, stop!", Brandy screamed in desperation, and the Phantom blinked. He looked at the dying Lumberjack held at swordpoint in the air in front of him. He saw Brandy clinging to his robes, begging to let Kars go. His scowl of rage immediately turned to a gasp of regret, and he withdrew his sword.

Kars fell to the floor, holding his throat and trying to breathe. He tipped his bottle of Rage to his mouth and drank heartily, the resulting rush of energy healing his wounds.

"Phantom, what was that?", Brandy asked, furious. "Why did you attack him for no reason like that?"

"I'm- I'm sorry.", the Phantom said. "I just saw you a man I'd never seen before, and I thought that he was dangerous, and, well…"

Bowza, Webert, Randy, and Agatha rounded the top of the stairs, and saw a strange sight. Kars lay bleeding but recovered on the floor, and Brandy appeared to be arguing with nothing. Randy closed his eyes and sadly giggled.

"Phantom, I appreciate the thought, I really do, but-", Brandy gestured wildy. "But you can't do that! You can't just go around attacking people because you don't like them!"

"Really? You seem to do it all the time.", the Phantom almost said, but he didn't. Instead, he closed his eyes and bowed, his hands in front of his face. "I see.", he said to Brandy. "I recognize my mistake, and will not do it again. Thank you, Brandy, for teaching more about the society in which you live."

And with that, he vanished into thin air.

Song: A Lurking Evil

"Uh, Brandy?", Webert asked. He was the first to speak. "Who were you talking to?"

Brandy turned around, and saw the group. She stammered, and put up her hands. "Um, well, you see…"

"That was the Phantom, wasn't it?", Bowza asked. "That's who you were talking to."

"Yes.", said Brandy. "Yes, it was."

"Who's the Phantom-", Webert asked, but Bowza kept on talking. "I've been meaning to ask you, Brandy- you said the Phantom was a Stand. Is he yours?"

Brandy shook her head. "No.", she said. "He said that the Arrow fragment wasn't complete enough to give me one, just to let me see them. He must be someone else's."

Bowza and Agatha traded worried looks, Bowza stroking his chin in thought. "Hmmm…", he mumbled to himself. "Very, very interesting."

In the castle of SpaceKrakenX, someone was always rushing off somewhere or other. A level 12 Castle was very large, very full, and often very chaotic. This time, the one doing the rushing was Brenda, his Bandit.

"Hey, Brenda.", said Marc, a level 12 Giant Skeleton. "Where are you going? There's gonna be a battle in soon minutes."

"Sorry Marc, not now.", Brenda apologized, and ducked into a closet. "I've got to go somewhere."

As Brenda closed the door, Marc scratched his head. He wasn't exactly the brightest of Giant Skeletons, but even he wondered where Brenda had been going every day, every few hours, for this past few weeks or so. It was enough to make anyone suspicious- well, almost anyone. Probably not an Ice Golem.

Oh well., he thought, and walked away. Bandits are strange ones. Now come along, Bomb. We have much to discuss.

His Bomb chittered, and Marc gave it another treat. It would be useless to try and explain how.

Somewhere, far away

"Mistress?", the Phantom said, to a shadowed figure in an elevated chair. They sat in void, nothing surrounding them for an uncountable distance. "I'm here, and ready to report."

"Ah, good.", said the figure in the chair, and leaned forward. "I'm listening."

"I did what you asked.", said the Phantom, the corners of his mouth pulled down in a scowl. "Brandy trusts me completely. Her guardians suspect nothing. The plan to take her soul for Grrshknn shall be completed within the week."

"I see.", said the Phantom's user. "I hate to do this to her, but I see no other choice."

The figure in the chair stood up to reveal the worried face of Brenda. "She's always been my friend. I remember when Oticat first found her. Watching her first battle."

She placed her hand on a tall, limitless sheet of black glass, barely able to see her reflection within. "But… that was a while ago. Things have changed."

The Phantom stood up again. "Should I-"

Song: Un'altra Persona

A massive door hundreds of feet in size swung open, revealing a billowing shadow within. Brenda and the Phantom both turned in surprise and mild panic. There stood two figures- one tall and muscular, the other shorter but no less powerfully built. The shorter one was the familiar bear of Grrshknn, the other was unknown to Brenda. The two appeared to exchange words, then the taller figure vanished and the door slunk back closed.

"Lord Grrshknn, you've returned.", Brenda said nervously. "I- I didn't think you'd be back so soon."

"What I do is none of your concern.", Grrshknn rumbled, striding past Brenda and onto the front of the nearly invisible platform. "How goes the plan?"

"Um, well, my lord.", Brenda said. "I gave her the Stand Arrow. And as expected, she used it on herself. And my Phantom of the Opera is currently working his magic."

"And what of her Stand?", Grrshknn inquired. "Is it any threat that needs to be taken care of?"

"No.", said the Phantom. "In fact, she does not have one. The fragment of the Stand Arrow was incomplete and damaged. She is only able to see Stands, not manifest them."

Grrshknn thought about this for a moment, tapping out some blasphemous rhythm on the glass table in front of him. "Good.", he finally said. "That's a pleasant surprise."

Brenda watched him think, and silently reflected on how she had come to be in this situation. It wasn't exactly her fault that she had developed a Stand. She had just been poking through SpaceKrakenX's attic one day, and found the Arrow. She had put it in her pocket, and had just so happened to land on it during a backflip over the stairs. Once the Phantom of the Opera had appeared, however, it only took a short amount of time for Grrshknn to find her. And after that, he had almost instantly forced her to work for him. He had given her a choice- either work for him, eventually giving him Brandy's soul- or have him slowly and brutally murder every single member of the LosDementosCT. Brenda, ever the logical one, had reluctantly made her decision. Why Grrshknn didn't just take Brandy himself, Brenda didn't know- but she suspected that it had something to do with the taller demon that showed up occasionally. She did have a plan- one that would get her, Brandy, and the Clan out safely. But it was a very long, complicated plan, and she needed to play the long, complicated game.

"Carry out the final steps.", Grrshknn growed with a wave of his paw, and began to disappear into the ambient darkness. "Remember, I will supervise you in the last phase."

"Understood, my lord.", Brenda said, but Grrshknn had already disappeared. She sighed, and sat down on the translucent steps. The Phantom appeared at her side instantly, worry etched across his face.

"Don't worry.", they both said. "We'll get out of this… somehow."

Back at Oticat's castle

"Whose is he?", Agatha asked. "Do you know?"

"No, I don't.", Brandy said. "I'll ask him the next time I see him, I guess."

Bowza exchanged a few choice mental words with Agatha, their conversation flickering like wind.

We should get rid of him, Agatha thought. He may seem nice, but who knows his real motives?

No, not yet, Bowza argued. It is imperative that we find his user. If we don't, then nothing else we do here will really matter.

Well, a third voice interrupted, what I really think is that we should just leave him alone.

The voice was so casual, and so smooth, that neither Bowza nor Agatha even registered that it was a newcomer to the conversation for a second. But after a few seconds, they did notice.

Who's that?, Bowza asked, and looked around for any possible third person. Where did that voice come from?

It's me, the voice said, the very picture of impeccable, evil charm. Of course.

What do you mean, me?, Agatha asked, also trying to search for the source. Who are you?

Oh, you know…, the voice said. ME.

For a microfraction of a second, an image flashed across both their minds. It was of a demon, with long flowing hair, spiked black armor, and a grin that dripped insanity. They only saw him for less than a blink, but the sheer presence of the image caused them both to cry out, and slump against a wall.

"What… was that?", Bowza moaned, and slowly got up. "Who was he?"

"I- I don't know.", Agatha said, leaning on her staff for support. "But he seemed powerful. More powerful than anything I've ever seen."

"Who is this?", Brandy asked with somewhat alarm. "Who are we talking about?"

Bowza raised a finger to answer, but no words came out of his mouth. He thought for a bit, then realized why that was happening.

"I don't know.", he admitted. "There was just this… image of an individual I've never seen before. And I hope to never see him again."

"But he's gone now.", Agatha said, and Bowza nodded in agreement. "Hopefully, that's the end of it."

"Actually, Agatha, I was going to ask you something.", Brandy said nervously. "Bowza, you too."

"Sure, Brandy, what is it?", Bowza asked.

"I… found something.", Brandy continued, nervously fidgeting her hands. "While I was cleaning up my room. It's something weird."

"There's been a lot of weird things happening lately.", Agatha sighed. "One more couldn't hurt."

So they walked towards Brandy's room, fear and trepidation following close behind.

Song: Stardust Requiem

Bowza opened the door, flicking on the light with the edge of his bow. A large spider ran away from the center of the floor, and was impaled by Agatha's staff.

"What was it you wanted to show us?", Bowza asked. "I do hope it was not that."

"No, no.", Brandy said, and walked over to the Super Magical Photograph Chest still leaning half-open on the side of the wall. "It's this."

With hands trembling from the fear of the unknown and unexplained, Brandy lifted out the photograph from the night before, the one that showed a much younger version of herself. She held it in front of Bowza and Agatha, and their eyes widened. "Could you explain this?"

Bowza looked at Agatha, who stared back. Both of them could explain the situation, but neither of them wanted to. No matter how it was worded, this was not something that could be explained away easily. But finally, Agatha closed her eyes- and with maternal obligation, opened her mouth to speak.

"You know, I was wondering myself when the best time to tell you the truth would be.", she said. "But I guess that if you're asking about it yourself, then the best time is now."

She put a hand on Brandy's shoulder, and breathed in. "The truth is, Brandy… we didn't get you from a Legendary Chest."

"Is… that it?", Brandy asked. "That doesn't seem that bad-"

"In fact, we didn't get you from any kind of Chest at all.", Agatha continued. "We found you on the path home, after a battle."

"But- but- what do you mean you didn't get me from a Chest?", Brandy asked. "How was I born?"

"You were… born.", Agatha said. "From natural parents. We're not exactly sure, but we think that they're an Archer and a Wizard. The note that they put on your forehead didn't exactly reveal much."

"I- I don't think I follow.", Brandy said. "What exactly happened?"

"Brandy, you're adopted.", said Agatha. "We found you on the side of the road, at the age of 3 weeks, crying your little mask soaked, with a note on her forehead that said: Please, someone take her in. We cannot raise her."

Brandy stared down at the floor. She had no idea what to think. Cascading emotions swirled around inside of her like a hurricane, yet none of them came to the front of her mind. The only thing that filled her immediate consciousness was a strange, unsettling emptiness. Her mouth kept on talking. "Tell me more.", she said. "I- I have to know."

Agatha started to speak, but Bowza raised his hand, signaling that he was to take over. "You grew quickly.", he said. "As all born Troops do. Within months, you went from walking around the Castle to Dashing. You stole so many things we lost count. You calmed down a little bit once you met Dan, though. And within a year, we decided that it was time to take you, for the first time, into battle."

"Then why don't I remember anything?", Brandy asked. "If I was alive during that time, I should have memories about it, right?"

Bowza shook his head. "The mind is an odd place, Brandy. It can completely obscure entire times of your life that you would wish to remember, yet scrape every detail of a darker time into your memory like a carving in stone."

Brandy sighed. "I guess that's true.", she said. "Especially for me."

There was a small bit of silence.

"As long as we're at it…", Brandy said. "I have another question to ask you guys."

"That's okay.", Bowza said. "Ask us anything."

"Well, another Stand appeared last night.", she said. "It wasn't the Phantom- it looked like Chad. And it-"

She stopped, but Agatha understood. She motioned for Brandy to continue, and she took a deep breath before doing so.

"He told me that while they had me, they, um… experimented… on me. That they rebuilt my body. That they-"

Brandy's next word choked in her throat, and tears welled up in her eyes. Agatha put out her arm, and Brandy sat next to her on the stairs. "They they turned me into what they wanted. A slave. That now I'm more Red than Blue."

Bowza closed his eyes, and examined Brandy's aura. He frowned at the results- not totally in sadness, but in interest as well. Her color was not the light blue it had always been, but a light purple, swirling with more concentrated chunks of both blue and red.

"So I wanted to ask, since you guys can see Auras… is that true?", Brandy asked, looking up with hopeful eyes. Agatha looked to Bowza, knowing that he had already checked. Bowza opened his eyes again, and slowly nodded. Brandy's face fell.

"Well, yes.", Bowza said. "Sort of. You see, he told you that you were more Red than Blue- that's not true. You are still more Blue than Red, but they've… mixed. You are now a sort of curious Purple, a fusion that I've only heard of once before."

"Agatha.", Brandy said. "You can read memories. Can you tell me… what they did to me?"

Agatha stretched out her hand to Brandy's forehead, but hesitated before the touch. "Are you sure you want to know? I don't think you need any more of this."

"I do.", Brandy said. "I want to know what they did to me. I need to."

"Okay…", said Agatha, and put her hand on Brandy's forehead. Brandy let Agatha's mind in, as their two consciousnesses flowed into one. Within seconds of the joining, Agatha reached Brandy's memories. This time, the box was held open by Brandy's own mind avatar, as Agatha's dived in. There was a flash of purple light, and the box shut.

Agatha found herself swimming down a deep tunnel, full of boxes on the walls. Upon closer inspection, one could see that the boxes were labeled with a picture, a date, and a few words, signifying the memory. Agatha could see the most recent memories, of her and Brandy's conversation floating around at the top, and memories from just a few days ago sifting around deeper. But Agatha needed to find one very specific set of memories, from over a week ago, locked away by Brandy's subconscious. Fortunately, she knew exactly what to look for.

Agatha held her staff in front of her and dived deeper, scanning the sides of the tube for any locked boxes. After about a minute of diving, the sides of the tube changed color, to a deep, dark, Red. Agatha could tell that these were the memories formed during the time that Brandy was held prisoner at TheEvilOverLord's castle, but there were a great many of them. The one she was searching for still remained hidden.

But then, as she dived even deeper, into a place where the walls were black and raw, there was only one memory on the walls. It thrashed and bellowed behind a thick black lock, the chains rattling in its anger. Agatha mentally prepared herself for whatever she would find, and put her finger on the box.

Red light filled the room, torches covering the walls. Blood and body parts hung from various spots around the room, from weapons and hanging machinery. Ryusei_Nakao69 placed one finger on the lever, pushing it forward ever so slightly. Brandy, suspended from some infernal machine, screamed in immense pain. A digital readout from behind her showed her vitals and pain levels, the bar going down on one and up on the other.

"My, that certainly seemed to do the trick.", he said, and smiled. "But what about this one?"

He pushed a button, and the needle in Brandy's forehead retracted. A ray hovered itself over her torso, and gave a shrill blast of noise. Brandy buckled and writhed in her restraints as unimaginable pain shot through every single one of her nerves like a white hot flame.

Her vitals shot up, but not as high as her pain levels, which had now gone past the limit of the readout.

"Don't quit yet, Brandy, we're just beginning!", said Ryusei_Nakao69, and flipped another switch. "There's still the skinning and surgery to do…"

A huge scalpel came down from the ceiling, and positioned itself over Brandy's stomach. She screamed in absolute terror, but could do nothing but watch.

"My lord, won't that kill her?", asked LeChris, from behind in the control panel.
"Not if I have this going at the same time.", Ryusei_Nakao69 said. "Watch."

A black light flowed over her, and the scalpel slashed. Brandy screamed again as a line appeared in her stomach, and-

Agatha recoiled, her mind burning. The sight was embedded into her vision, the screams still echoing in her ears. She gasped at the revelation of the sheer, incomprehensible horror that Brandy had been subjected to. It was worse than she had ever even imagined. With a heavy heart and slow movements, Agatha put back the box and began the long swim back up.

Bowza could see Agatha and Brandy twitching in the trance, but knew not what was going on. He knew that they were searching for a memory, but beyond that, nothing. He just waited for them to emerge from their search- until finally, they did. Agatha's eyes opened with a gasp, and Brandy's with a cry of pain. They stared at each other, then fell into a deep embrace that lasted for many seconds.

"You were right, Agatha.", said Brandy. "We shouldn't have gone so deep."

"No, no.", Agatha whispered. "You know now. You know the full extent of your pain, and that is the first step to recovery. Real recovery."

"That's good to hear.", said Brandy, and slowly broke off the hug. "I do see now, the depths of their depravity. I know exactly what they did to me. But you know what? I'm fine with it. I'm fine with all that, and with knowing what I now know."

"You are?", Agatha asked. She found it a little hard to believe.

"Yes.", Brandy said. "It may be hard news, but it proves something. I took the worst they could offer, and I survived. I made it out. And even though there are effects, they will fade, with time. With you guys helping me, and the Phantom by my side, I know that I'll make it out of here alright."

Bowza gave a gentle smile, and they all stood up. The three hugged one more time.

"I'm glad to hear that, Brandy.", he said. "I think we all are."

But as the three stood together, they were unaware that another was regarding their conversation with great interest. A shadow slipped from the corner and into a closet, then formed into the shape of the Phantom. He sighed, and traced the sides of his mask with his hands.

It had pained him. To hear Brandy talk about him being by her side. Because he knew that one way or another, they would soon be apart. Either Brenda's plan would succeed, and Brandy's soul would be Grrshknn's for all eternity, or Brenda's plan would fail, and she would die, taking the Phantom with her. It was a lose-lose situation, but it was also one he saw no chance of escaping. If it were up to him, he would rather die and leave Brandy alive. But he was Brenda's Stand, so he had no choice but to follow her orders. Reluctantly, he began to speak to her.

"Mistress?", he said. "The plan is ready. Operation Soultake will begin in just a few hours."

"I see.", said Brenda. "Then if all is set, proceed when you are ready."

"Yes, mistress.", said the Phantom, and tried to disguise the aching in his voice and heart. "I will."

Later that evening, Brandy sat at the table, finishing up the last scraps of her dinner. The rest of the day had gone fairly well. She had finally gotten outside of the Castle for the first time in a week, and the sun on her face had felt very refreshing. Dinner had also been nice- Barry the Builder/Cook had served her favorite food, Worcestershire salad. And now, she was looking forward to her nightly visit from the Phantom.

"Oticat? Agatha?", she said quietly, gaining the attention of both Witch and King.

"Yes, Brandy? What is it?", Oticat asked, with a forkful of food held halfway to his mouth.

"Well, I've been thinking, and…", Brandy said, and looked up. Her eyes brightened. "I've been feeling a lot better lately. I think I might want to try battling tomorrow."

Oticat smiled. "That would be just fantastic, Brandy. I'm so glad you're feeling better. But if you're battling tomorrow, you really should get some rest. In fact, it's-"

Oticat pulled back his sleeve and glanced at his watch, his eyes widening with mild surprise. "Why, it's already 9:00. Best be in bed."

"I agree.", Brandy said, and got up. A wry smile came across her face, and her heart fluttered with the thought of seeing the Phantom again. "I really should."

She Dashed up the stairs, leaving behind no trace but the ruffling of other's clothes and a skid mark on the floor.

"I wonder why she's so eager to go to bed.", Oticat said. "Is she late for something?"

"I think she just wants to see the Phantom again.", said Agatha, a slight twinge of worry in her voice. "She seems so utterly infatuated with him."

Oticat choked on his soup. His eyes bugged out, and Sadie gave him a hard whack on the back until his throat cleared out. He sputtered in confusion a few more times, and took a deep breath.

"What?", he asked, his eyes frantic. "Did you say… the Phantom?"

"Yes.", Bowza said. "From your reaction, I take it that you know him."

"Well, sort of.", said Oticat. "SpaceKrakenX always talks about someone named the Phantom that follows his Bandit around wherever she goes. I don't exactly know who he is, but I do think we're talking about the same person."

Agatha and Bowza looked at each other in shock. They had found the Phantom's user. But then, they both realized that this was a good thing. Brenda and Brandy were friends, and Stands always followed their user's commands. If the Phantom truly was Brenda's Stand, then there was nothing to fear.

Brandy sat alone on the edge of her bed. She had brushed her teeth, washed her face, and combed her hair- everything to get ready to go to sleep. But she was missing one now important thing. The Phantom had not appeared.

"Hello?", Brandy asked into the quiet room. "Phantom? Are you there?"

But there was no answer, just the soft, almost unheard sound of the wind whistling through the outside trees. Brandy strained her eyes, trying to see into the darkness, but saw nothing but the shadows of her room. She blinked, wondering why he had not appeared. She checked the clock on the wall- it was 9:12, 12 minutes past when he usually appeared.

I guess he's not coming, Brandy thought sadly. The edges of her eyes watered, and she wiped them with the back of her hand. Why? Why did he abandon me like this?

But such questions would be better left for tomorrow. So Brandy pulled her blanket over herself and went to sleep.

"Brandy… Brandy..."

Brandy sat up in a field. The sky, although the sun blazed brightly overhead, was as dark as midnight. A tree behind her began to grow, stretching upwards into infinity. Tiny bottles of Dark Elixir streamed from a broken Pump in front of her, then coalesced into a metal hand.

"Brandy… Brandy…", the voice said again. Brandy stood, looking around for the source, but found nothing. The ground shook underneath her feet, and a crack opened in the air.

"Who's there?", Brandy asked, still looking around. "Anyone?"

A woman in grey armor leapt from the crack in the air, and looked around. She put her fingers to her head, and spoke into a shining metal box just above her eye. "This is Kelen.'

Then she broke apart into thousands of drops of steel, and reformed into a Wizard and an Archer. They looked worried, holding a green cloak in their arms.

"Brandy? Brandy?", said the Archer. "Where are you? Come home!"

Brandy started to run to them, but the ground buckled underneath her feet. It tore open into a vast chasm, and Brandy fell into darkness.

As she fell, a well-lit green meadow flashed by. A very tall, older Bandit sat on a stump, slowly plucking at the strings of a lyre. She hummed out a melody, copying it on her instrument.

"As I'm filled with silver fire…", she sang, plucked out a note, then frowned. "No, that one isn't right."

Then she looked up at Brandy, a stern look in her eyes, and vanished.

Brandy landed on her feet at the bottom, looking around at her surroundings. There was a huge pedestal, with a gigantic chalice resting on top. Evil-looking red liquid bubbled over, an occasional drop landing on the floor with a shrill hiss.

"My world will be perfect.", a deep, titanic voice rumbled from everywhere at once. "My world will be-"

The chalice cracked open, and the image along with it. Brandy's vision was replaced with one of Ryusei_Nakao69, scratching wounds in his face with a sharp knife. He seemed worried, almost afraid, although Brandy did not know of what.

"Please, just give me more time.", he said, his voice distorted through the gurgles of blood. "That's all I need."

"Your time is no more, mortal.", bellowed a deep voice, and a dark claw appeared over him. Ryusei_Nakao69 cowered, but the claw did not fall. Instead, it turned to Brandy, with a pair of glowing yellow eyes behind it. "You now belong to me."

Brandy tried to run, but it was like running through stone. The claw rose into the air, then turned into an impossibly huge figure. It was covered entirely in a black cloak, through which a scythe and a skull could barely be seen. It pulled back the hood, revealing for a bare moment a young man with deep orange skin and short tan hair. Then it turned again to the skull, and swung the scythe downwards.

Lights Out, it said, and Brandy could feel herself being pulled into the void.

Brandy awoke with a start, very nearly yanking herself out of bed. Breathing heavily, she instinctively struck up a fighting pose and Dashed to the far side of the room, then stopped when she realized there was nothing to fear. Her hands still shaking with fear, Brandy sat down on the nearest thing to present itself, which was an empty Gold Chest stacked against the wall.

"Brandy?", said a familiar, comforting voice. "What happened? Are you alright?"

Brandy looked up, and saw a friendly shadow gliding across the room. Her eyes brightened, and her face lit up in a smile. "Phantom!", she said, and hopped down from the Chest.

He met her next to her bed, and they hugged. "Where were you?", she asked. "What happened?"

"I'm sorry, I was just a bit late.", said the Phantom. "Stand business and all that. But Brandy, now that I'm here…"

Brandy looked up. "Hm?"

"I have something I want to ask you.", the Phantom said, and his eye twitched. He knew fully well the outcome of this situation, and it was one that he did not relish. But if Brenda ordered it, he could not disobey.

"What is it?", Brandy asked. "You can ask me."

"Do you want to leave?", he said. "Leave it all behind?"

"Leave… what behind?", Brandy asked. "My room? Because we could do that- go somewhere else, I mean."

"No, I mean your life.", said the Phantom, and gave a grand sweep of his arms to emphasize his point. "All of it. The battles, the rivalry between colors, all the constant, unending conflict and hatred. Wouldn't you like to leave it?"

"No.", Brandy said. "I like it here. I'm feeling a lot better."

"You may feel that way.", the Phantom said. "But reality has other plans."

He pointed to Brandy's stomach. "The birth of your child is not far off- just one or two days, I'd suspect. Once it is born, what will you do?"
"Well, I'll raise it, I suppose.", Brandy said. "And everyone will-"

"No.", said the Phantom, cutting Brandy off. "They will not. They have too many problems of their own to help you with it. And, if the truth must be told, they somewhat tire of supporting you."

Before Brandy could speak, the Phantom waved his hand, showing an image of Bowza still in the dining room.

"You know what, Agatha?", he said. "I think that Brandy should stop leaning on us. She's not a little kid anymore, she needs to grow up."

"I agree.", Agatha said almost automatically. "If she comes to me with one more pointless question, I've half a mind to just tell her to go away and get somebody else."

"Wha-", Brandy gasped, but the Phantom closed the portal. "And certainly, you cannot raise it on your own. Not if you hope to have anything approaching your old life back. A child is fantastic amounts of work. Why do you think your parents abandoned you?"

Brandy recoiled, hurt. "Phantom…", she said, "Why are you saying these things? What's gotten into you?"

The Phantom sighed. "I know, Brandy. I've never been anything but nice to you. But sooner or later, the truth has to come out. And the truth is that only I can help you. Come with me."

He stretched out his hand, but Brandy hesitated. "I- I don't know.", she said. "I don't want to go."

The Phantom had expected something like this to happen. But just like so many other things, he had a contingency plan. So he put on some light, slow, music from beyond, opened his mouth, and began to sing.

Song: Music of the Night

"Nighttime sharpens, heightens each sensation…", he crooned, and magic flowed from him into the room. It surrounded Brandy like a cloud, and she felt her hesitation begin to fade.

"Darkness stirs and wakes imagination…"

Brandy blinked repeatedly, feeling her eyelids grow heavier. Her thoughts began to grow fuzzier under the Phantom's calming influence.

"Silently the senses abandon their defenses…", the Phantom sang, and reached out his hand once more. Brandy felt herself slide upwards, and slowly take his hand in hers.

"Helpless to resist the notes I write… for I compose the music of the night…"

The Phantom slowly floated off of the floor, Brandy following him into the air. Some part of her thought that this was wrong, that she shouldn't be doing this. But whatever part of her was leading decided to go along with it anyway.

"Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor… grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender…"

The Phantom spun Brandy around, and dipped her underneath his cloak. The shadows covered her, and Brandy's eyes closed.

"Hearing is believing, music is deceiving…"

The Phantom stood up straight again, removing his cloak. Brandy wobbled on her airborne feet, but the Phantom put his hand on her back to steady her.

"Hard as lightning, soft as candlelight…", the Phantom sang, and leaned in close to Brandy's glowing face. "Dare you trust the music of the night?"

Brandy slowly gave an imperceptible nod. The final vestige of her resistance screamed at her from the back of her mind, but it was ignored.

"Close your eyes for your eyes will tell only the truth… and the truth isn't what you want to see…"

The Phantom leaned in further, and Brandy kissed him. They hung together for a moment, then pulled slightly apart.

"In the dark it is easy to pretend, that the truth is what it ought to be…"

They slowly floated down again onto the ground, touching down lightly without a sound.

"Softly, deftly, music shall caress you… hear it, fear it, secretly possess you…"

Brandy was too under his spell to realize it, but the Phantom was telling her directly what he had done. Over the past few days, everything he had done- the saving, the singing, even the illusion of the enemy Stand- had all been leading up to this one, final moment. The one where he would take her soul for Grrshknn, and then his angel would be no more. It pained him to do so, but he knew it had to be done.

"Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind…"

He reached across Brandy's face to her ears, giving them a gentle caress. Waves of unburdened pleasure rushed through her, and she moaned out loud.

"In this darkness which you know you cannot fight... "

The Phantom's cloak grew to fill the room, surrounding Brandy with soft waves of blackness. "The darkness of the music of the night…"

Upon hearing the word "night", a back area of Brandy's brain lit up a little bit. She had heard Knight, and that reminded her, for the first time in days, of Dan.

But as the Phantom continued to sing, sending his strange magic into her heart and mind, the memory collapsed into nothing.

"Close your eyes, journey to a strange new world… leave all thoughts of the life you knew before…"

The Phantom gestured upwards, and a sky appeared on Brandy's ceiling. Hundreds of stars flared to life, revealing totally new constellations.

"Close your eyes and let music set you free… only then, can you belong to me…"

The Phantom floated over to Brandy's bedside, pulling her gently in tow. From within the seemingly endless folds of his cloak, he retrieved a glittering silver knife.

"Floating, falling, sweet intoxication… touch me, trust me, savor each sensation…"

He put Brandy on her bed, sitting up. He gently offered her the knife, and looked deep into her eyes.

"Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in…"

Brandy saw the knife, and knew what she had to do. She would leave everyone behind, but they didn't really care about her. And if she got to spend forever with her Phantom, then everyone would be happy.

"To the power of the music that I write… the power of…"

Brandy took the knife, and slowly raised it to her chest. She took a deep breath, and prepared herself.

"The music of the…"

Brandy hesitated for just a swift second, saying a brief goodbye to everyone she had ever known. She looked up, into the Phantom's face, and he gave her a single nod.

"Night..."

Brandy plunged the knife downwards, and into her heart. The ambient music swelled to a magnificent chorus, bolstered by the burning sensation coursing through Brandy's head. She dropped the knife into her lap, as the blood rushed downwards. It was red at first, then began to turn purple. She reached out for the Phantom's hand- and he took it, as Brandy collapsed into Elixir.

A tear rolled down the Phantom's cheek. He knew that with her body destroyed underneath his spell, her soul had gone straight to Grrshknn. It was over. He would never see her again.

"Only you could make my song take flight…", he sang to an empty room, slowly shuffling along the ground. He looked up, and let the sadness flow. "Helped me make the music of the night…"

Then he vanished, leaving the room as dark and empty as a tomb.

Brenda stared in disbelief through the Phantom. He had done it. His song had actually convinced Brandy to give up her own life, just to follow him. It was a little hard to believe.

The Phantom materialized at the bottom of the black steps, one knee folded in a somber crouch.

"It is done.", he said, with a heavy voice. "She is no more."

"I know.", Brenda said, not looking up. "Don't have to tell me twice."

As Brenda stared downwards at the floor, silently mourning her friend, a tendril of a shadow crept around her leg.

Song: A lurking evil

"Have you done it, Brenda?", asked Grrshknn.

"What?". Brenda asked in surprise. His voice was far higher than it normally was, without the normal menacing edge.

"Uh, I mean- have you done it, Brenda?", Grrshknn asked, the barest hint of nervousness sneaking into his voice. "Have you collected her soul?"

"Yes, Lord Grrshknn.", Brenda said. "The operation is complete."

"Good, good.", said Grrshknn. "Now, when can I expect her soul to arrive?"

"There is a slight delay.", said the Phantom, echoing Brenda's thoughts. "But she should appear right where you're standing in 3...2...1…"

There was a glimmer of blue and green light. Then it faded, and nothing happened.

Grrshknn ever so slowly swiveled his head to stare at Brenda, and she felt a bead of sweat drip off her brow. "Brenda?", he asked. "Where is she?"

"Um… I don't know.", Brenda said. "She should have just appeared."

Her mind raced, trying to find out any way this could have happened. She was excited that Brandy had found a way to circumvent it at the last second, but she had no idea how.

"Well, you should know soon.", Grrshknn said, lazily sharpening his claws on a nearby blank surface. "For your own sake."

Brenda bit her lip and stared at the emptiness in front of her, wishing she had a digital readout of some sort to mess with. "Phantom?", she whispered. "What do you think happened?"

"I don't know.", the Phantom said, just as quietly. "But I'm glad it did."

Grrshknn stopped tapping. His giant ears perked up, and his eye rolled down from the front of his face to his cheek to get a better look at Brenda and the Phantom. "What?", he asked. "What did you just say?"

"I- I said that I figured it out, Lord Grrshknn.", said the Phantom with an elaborate bow. "When Brandy's soul was removed from her body, we all assumed that my power would bring it to you. But the natural regenerative ability of the Blue territory in which she resides prevented that from happening. I expect that she will be reforming in just a few moments."

Grrshknn's claws hung in the air for a few terrifying moments before he once again began to drum on the glass. "Good, good!", he said with a wide smile. "Now go. Collect her soul manually. No songs this time."

"But sir-"

"What?"

"I can't do that. It has to be willing."

Grrshknn frowned, and tapped his claw against his forehead. "Hmm.", he said, then his face perked up with an idea. "Very well then.", he said, and waved his hand in the Phantom's direction.

A bolt of dark lightning flashed between them, and the Phantom suddenly lit up a violent black. He fell to the floor, groaning in agony, and Brenda crouched at his side.

"There you go. I've boosted your powers, and you will now be able to take souls manually. But I had to remove some of your durability to do so, so you'll have to be careful."

The Phantom looked up, his eyes smoldering. "I will."

Brandy felt herself being pulled back together, with the strange regenerative magic of Blue. It was the same magic that was used in the Arenas, only not as strong.

A massive headache pounded in her skull as Brandy's spilled Elixir came back together, and her muscles ached as they were knitted into one piece. But within a few seconds the process was finished, and Brandy sat alone in her bed.

"Hello?", she asked. "Phantom? Where did you go?"

But there was no answer. None, except for the gentle scratching of something underneath Brandy's bed.

"What…", Brandy whispered, and looked down to see what it was. There was a single Skeleton, scratching around on the floor in an attempt to relieve the boredom.

"Larry?", Brandy asked. "What are you doing here?"
Larry looked up, shrugged, then resumed his self portrait.

"Huh. Strange.", said Brandy, then registered something in her peripheral vision. She turned to look, and saw the worried figure of the Phantom, black smoke leaking from his eyes.

"Phantom!", Brandy said, relieved. "What happened? I did what you asked me to, but-"

The Phantom swooped over her, uncharacteristically aggressive. "Your soul.", he said. "Give it to me. Now."

Brandy's heart stopped for a second. "What?", she asked. She desperately wanted what she had just heard to be a trick, or an illusion, or at the very least a prank. She did not want the Phantom to turn on her.

"Your soul, Brandy!", the Phantom screamed, and drew his sword. "If I don't have it now, everyone will die!"

Brandy jumped up onto the back of her bed, trying to escape from the mad phantasm. "I don't understand.", she said, trying as hard as she could to remain calm. "Why?"

"Give me your soul, Brandy!", the Phantom screamed in pain and fear, and lunged. "Now!"

That was all Bowza, stationed in a warrior's crouch outside the door and listening in through Larry, needed to hear. Quick as Lightning, he threw open the door, nocked an arrow, and fired.

The Phantom turned in response, but he was not fast enough to dodge the magical arrow of light. It pierced him in the cheek, went all the way through, and exploded on the other side.

The Phantom screamed in pain as his hands flew to his cheeks, then fell. "Your… soul…", he coughed out. "If I don't have it, everyone you know will die."

But Brandy wasn't listening. She just screamed at the sight of her Phantom lying on the ground, defeated, and about to die.

Bowza nocked another shot and fired, shooting the Phantom straight through the back of the head. The Phantom gasped in pain, and closed his eyes. It was clear he would not be able to get Brandy's soul, and he refused to take it manually. Before he died, he would at least explain.

"It's not my fault.", the Phantom said. "Nor Brenda's. We were forced to do it. By someone named…"

Brandy crouched by the Phantom's side, tears welling in her eyes. "Phantom, I don't understand.", she said. "Please, don't die!"

She looked up, and saw Bowza for the first time. Her heart beat faster with the discovery of betrayal. "Bowza!", she screamed. "Don't!"

But it was already too late. Before Brandy could get the words out of her mouth, Bowza had nocked another arrow, and fired directly through the Phantom's heart. He gasped in pain, grabbed Brandy's ear, and pulled her closer to his mouth. "Grrshknn…", he whispered, and disappeared into thin air.

Song: Irreversible Sadness

Brandy stared in utter disbelief as the Phantom vanished from reality in her arms. His last words had certainly been some sort of message, but Brandy hadn't really been listening. She had been panicking too much, and now she regretted it. She would get no more chances to hear it.

Brandy looked up at Bowza, sheer, undisguised hatred blazing in her eyes.

"You…", she said, and Dashed forward. "You killed him!"

Bowza tried to dodge out of the way, but Brandy was too fast. She landed a solid kick on his chest and a hard punch to his jaw, and Bowza slammed into the wall. Brandy kept going and landed on him, then grabbed his shirt.

"I hate you!", she screamed, and raised a fist to strike. Bowza did not try to block the blow, for he could already feel the Phantom's spell fading from Brandy's mind, and knew that the attack would soon be over.

"I won't ever forgive… you for… this…", Brandy said, then blinked. Where exactly was she? What was she doing? What had happened in the last few minutes?

She let go of Bowza's shirt, and slid down to the floor. She Dashed in place to try and jog her memory- ah yes, that was it.

"Oh Se'th…", she whispered to herself. Only now, once she was free from the Phantom's spell, did she realize exactly what had happened over the past few days. She could see that Ryusei_Nakao69's plan to get her had only slowed down somewhat, not completely stopped. Even though he was dead, he had somehow gotten this Phantom to take Brandy for him. And he had come so close.

"I was so stupid…", Brandy mumbled. "All the songs, all the declarations of love…"

She sat down, all the now-painful memories flooding into her mind. "Oh Se'th, I had sex with him! While I'm pregnant! What was I doing?"

She felt Bowza's hand on her shoulder, and looked up. He gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure you have questions, Brandy. Let me answer them."

"Yeah, I have questions.", Brandy said. "First of all, what was he? I don't really remember anything from the past few days."

"He was a Stand.", Bowza said. "The physical manifestation of one's energy- specifically, your friend Brenda's."

"You mean- that was Brenda talking to me?"

"More or less."

Brandy sobbed into her gloves. "First Dan leaves me, then Brenda betrays me and almost kills me, what's next?"

"Now, Brandy, don't-"

Brandy looked up, and shot a look at Bowza that would have cut open steel. "I'm going to get some sleep.", she huffed. "Don't talk to me."

Bowza stood up, knowing that sleep was, in fact, the best thing for Brandy to get in this situation. Brandy climbed into her bed, pulled all of her covers all the way over herself, and was asleep within moments.

The Phantom reformed, coughing and sputtering, next to a pale-faced Brenda. Grrshknn loomed over her, palpable anger written across his face.

"So.", he boomed. "I see how it is. You pretend to work for me- and then when it suits you most, you sell me out to the very targets I assign you to take?"

Brenda and the Phantom looked at each other. Do you have a plan?, the Phantom's eyes said.

Oh, trust me, said Brenda's. I certainly do.

Brenda looked up at Grrshknn. WIth bold faced determination or foolishness, she spoke.

"Yeah, pretty much. Honestly, frick you."

As if to top off the insult, she performed the rudest gesture a Troop could give- one pointer finger under her chin, and the other drawing a small circle around her nose.

"Why, you little brat!", Grrshknn bellowed, and drew himself up to his current maximum height of 84 feet. His massive claw swung downward towards Brenda to crush her, the glass melting around her feet to prevent any escape.

"Phantom of the Opera!", Brenda yelled. The Phantom disappeared, then reformed again in full battle armor, ready to protect Brenda at all costs. He raised both his sword and shield to block Grrshknn's blow, but they were ineffectual against a demon. The pillar of Grrshknn's arm slammed into the ground like an avalanche, crushing Brenda to Elixir and the Phantom to mere black smoke.

"Hmph.", said Grrshknn. "Looks like I'll have to get new servants… again."

He folded himself together into a singularity, and vanished.

But unknown to him, Brenda's plan had worked. Upon seeing what had happened to Brandy, she had immediately come up with it- almost immediately, anyway. Once Grrshknn had crushed her, her spirit had just gone back to her room back at SpaceKrakenX's castle. But Grrshknn still thought she was dead, which meant she was finally free. Free, and safe.

Brenda appeared in the middle of the air over her floor, but swiftly dashed to her bed. The Phantom appeared beside her, still looking worried.

"Hey, relax.", she said. "We all made it out safe."

"Yes.", said the Phantom. "But Brandy still believes you have betrayed her. We'll have to tell her the truth."

Brenda frowned. "Yeah.", she said. "We will. But not right now."

She closed her eyes and, utterly exhausted from the day's events, fell asleep almost instantly. All that it took was 5 minutes and a gentle lullaby from the Phantom.

3 months ago

Song: Himeru Omai

Ryusei_Nakao69 sat alone in his room, slowly counting his Gold. The coins clinked softly as they fell from one hand to another, the sheer decadence of the room almost physical.

"Hmmm… 140750, 140760…", he hummed, counting in stacks of 10. The Gold from his last assassination had been delivered uncounted- the payment had been agreed on as "all I have" from the King he had been hired by. So far, there was still a lot more uncounted than counted. Rysuei_Nakao69 was beginning to think that he might have been a little overpaid. Which reminded him...

"Barley?", he asked. "Set aside enough money for my Princess's allowences."

A nearby Barley unplugged itself from the wall, which it didn't need but it really needed someplace to stay anyway, and rolled over to the King's table. "Certainly, sire.", it said cheerfully. "And just to make sure, that is Veronica, Stacy, and Chloe, correct?"

"Yes.", said Ryusei_Nakao69 without looking up. "Veronica, Stacie, and the new one. Veronica gets ten thousand Gold and 25 Gems, Stacie gets the same, and Chloe gets whatever Troop we captured last until I either wipe them or sell them."

"Understood, sire.", the Barley said, and bowed. "I will deliver them posthaste."

Still bowing, it rolled backwards out of the room until the door shut behind it automatically. It would get lost, with the current state of the demonic castle.

"Ah, there's nothing I have to today.", said Ryusei_Nakao69. "All my Chest slots are full, no Tournaments command my attention, and I already have started the Clan War today. Yes, nothing to do but just sit back, relax, and count my money."

He started to stack his coins again, when the hair on his arm began to pick up. His heart skipped a beat, and he hurriedly stood up and pushed his hair and beard into place. He had already learned what the hair meant- Grrhsknn was coming.

Song: Un'altra Persona

The door to the room slammed open in a cold wind, almost coming right off its hinges. An ethereal howl from beyond ripped into the counting room, giving a random Goblin a near heart attack. It was more of a lung attack.

A dark mist poured into the room, and assembled itself into the shape of a bear. It stood behind Ryusei_Nakao69, who had not dared to move since Grrshknn had arrived.

"Good time of day, Ryus.", Grrshknn purred. "I have another job for you. Should be easy, it's just kidnapping."

"Ah, good.", Ryusei_Nakao69 said, and allowed himself to move. "So what is it this time? A Night Witch? A Pekka? A Sparky? Because I assure you, we can handle them all."

Grrshknn summoned a floating square of glass in his left hand, and showed it to Ryusei_Nakao69. "This Bandit.", he said, pointing to a picture. "I want you to get this Bandit."

"Ah, a Bandit.", said Ryusei_Nakao69, not really listening. "Don't you worry Lord Grrhsknn, I can-"

"I don't think you heard me.", Grrhsknn growled, and Ryusei_Nakao69 instantly sat up straight. "I said I want this particular Bandit. Not just any."

Ryusei_Nakao69 took the picture, read the information on it, and looked up. "I see.", he said hesitantly. "This will be quite a job. I hope I'm getting paid well?"

"You choose your hopes well, Ryus.", Grrhsknn said. "For I am paying you the very modest reward of one million Gems."

Ryusei_Nakao69's ears popped, thinking that something must have gone wrong with the input. There was no way that Grrshknn was actually offering to pay him one million Gems… right? Such a sum was unheard of anywhere. No one had that much- no one.

"One- one- one", Ryusei_Nakao69 stuttered. "One million gems?"

"Yes.", Grrshknn said. "But this is to be very special one. Here are the details…"

Grrshknn pressed his claw to the back of Ryusei_Nakao69's neck, and mentally transferred to him the plan, the specifics of location and date, and where she would be going after capture. Specifically, with Ryusei_Nakao69 for a month, then her soul would be given to Grrshknn for his own purposes.

"I understand, Lord Grrshknn.", said Ryusei_Nakao69 slowly. He clenched his fist, and grinned maniacally. "I will take her."

"Good, good.", said Grrhsknn, and disappeared. "Take her for me."

Ryusei_Nakao69 closed his eyes, and again went over the plan in his head. "I wonder why Grrshknn was so specific about her.", he said. The image of the chosen Bandit popped into his vision, and he turned it over and around. "I wonder what sort of challenges you'll pose… Brandy."

Present Day

It was a darkened Wednesday. The sky had gone overcast at dawn, and had remained so until the present hour, 4:00 in the afternoon. Oticat was off battling, grinding for his 35th crown reward just before the season ended. He was using a sort of Giant Skeleton bait deck, inspired by SpaceKrakenX. He didn't think it would work, but he was trying it anyway. "Go ahead, try it!", SpaceKrakenX had said. "It works for me, it'll work for you!"

But he wasn't doing the full deck- because that required a Bandit. And Brandy was in no condition to battle at the time. She was still back at the castle, with the cold blanket of sorrow still draped across her.

Brandy tapped a button on the remote, and the channel on TV Royale changed again, this time to the Upcoming channel. On it were ads for upcoming Challenges, new Cards, occasional new updates to the rules of the Arena, and a new Season every month.

As Brandy watched, motionless, a smiling Princess appeared on screen with a pair of sunglasses on her forehead. She flipped them downwards onto her eyes, smirked, then flipped them back up. The words "Season 3: Be Legendary" briefly flashed across the screen, before it went dark.

Be Legendary, Brandy thought. Is that what the gods are up to these days? I wonder what it will be…

She flicked the remote again, this time changing to the news channel. A frantic Villager stared into the camera, still shaking from something. Brandy could see a massive gash torn through trees, smoke still rising into the air.

"As you all can see, there's something that happened here.", she said nervously. "Something large. We're not sure what it was- but we think it was a Dragon. Not much else that could burn through 100 meters of woodland like that."

"Actually, Trish, we're kind of moving on from the whole Dragon idea.", said another reporter, a Bandit. "You see, we investigated the area further, and it wasn't burnt by fire."

"It wasn't?", asked Trish. "Then what burned it?"

"We don't know.", the Bandit said as she scratched her head. "Maybe a-"

Brandy pressed another button, and the TV turned off. She didn't need to listen to this. News nowadays was nothing but scandals and sensationalism, made to bring in views and very little else.

She got up from the couch, mildly stretched, and slowly walked over to the kitchen. No one else was around. She wasn't sure where they were. The only sound that could be heard was the gentle ticking of a clock, Brandy's own breathing, and a scratching sound at the door.

Her attention turned to the door, looking through the glass in the middle. Her muscles tensed, expecting the worst, but she sighed in relief when she saw that it was just Brave, Oticat's Baby Dragon, begging to be let in.

"Oh, Brave.", she said. "I thought you were inside already. Who let you out?"

She stood up and walked over to the door, opening it to let Brave in. She looked down to scratch his forehead, and gasped in shock when she saw what was hanging from his jaws.

It was the severed head of… something. It was really too mangled and burned to tell what it had been, but it had clearly died in pain. Its mouth hung open in an expression of shock, several teeth cracked to bits.

"Brave!", Brandy yelled. "What is that? Go! Go! Get out of the Castle with that!"
She pointed out the door, and Brave hung his head in shame. He turned, dropped the head on the porch, and kicked it backwards. He turned around, sat down, and looked up at Brandy expectedly.

"Wait.", Brandy said, "What was that?"

She moved past Brave, giving him a small pat on the head. She looked around for the head, and found it lodged underneath a bush from the force of Brave's kick. The lower jaw had broken off and lodged into the ground, leaving the rest of the head in ever worse condition.

Brandy delicately picked it up and held it in front of her face, looking for any identifying markings. Weird, she thought. Why hasn't it dissolved into Elixir yet?

But open tapping on the skull a few times, she found her answer.

This is wood, Brandy realized. This is just some wooden dummy.

Her heart lifted in relief. It would have been a terrible fate, for anything to have been burned to death this way. Horrible, that is, for anyone but an Elite Barbarian. All of them except Chup's surely deserved whatever they got-

But then upon closer inspection, Brandy realized that that is what it was. Once she swept the grime and burned grass off the top, she could quite easily tell that it was the half-destroyed skull of a wooden Elite Barbarian.

"Interesting…", she whispered. "I wonder if this has anything to do with what was on the news earlier?"

She was about to go and tell someone, when she remembered that there was no one around to tell. So she just tossed the head back to Brave and went back inside.

Once inside, Brandy flopped down at a table in the kitchen. This room, too, was abandoned.

Except for Brave, who sat eagerly by her side, panting as if waiting for something.

Brandy caught his eye, and he closed his mouth.

"What is it, Brave?", Brandy asked. "You want a treat?"

Upon hearing the word Treat, Brave's eyes lit up, and he started jumping around on all fours. He yelped in excitement, and a puff of flame came out of his nose.

"Alright, calm down.", Brandy said. "I'll get you something."

She stood up and walked over to the fridge, going to get some meat for Brave. He followed her, right on her heels, waiting for the blessed moment when he would finally, after almost a full hour of not getting one, get a blessed Treat.

Brandy opened the door, and scanned the shelves for a treat. Her eyes fell on some sliced meats- and beyond that, a half-full bottle of Dark Elixir. Instantly, her mind flashed back to weeks ago, before the whole thing had started, when Dan had been drinking Dark Elixir to try and cope with his depression. What was it he had said?

"It's the only thing that takes away the pain anymore."

Ah yes, that was it. Brandy took the meat in one hand and, looking around to make absolutely sure that no one was watching, took the Dark Elixir in the other.

"Here's your treat, Brave.", she said, tossing the meat to the Baby Dragon, who began to gulp it down almost instantly. "And…"

She popped open the cap on the Dark Elixir, and tilted it back. "Here's mine."

The Dark Elixir poured down Brandy's throat, and she almost spat it out. The strong taste that assaulted her tongue was nothing like the sweet, fruity taste of regular Elixir she had drunken before- it was more like spiced up sand, or flavored stone. But strangely enough, the sensation did seem to dull the constant pain that flowed through Brandy's mind and soul.

Brandy took the bottleneck out of her mouth and gasped, breathing in the air. The Dark Elixir seemed to be working, but even so, Brandy knew that she shouldn't be drinking it. It was deadly for her, and she knew it. But then… why did it feel so right to be doing it?

She turned for the stairs, heading for her room. She took a single step into an entryway, took another swig of the Dark Elixir- and paused in midair. Webert was sitting at a table, back to her, mumbling softly to himself as he prepared another gallon barrel of his own Dark Elixir.

"Oh, hey Agatha.", he said drunkenly. "Whassup?"

Shoot, thought Brandy. Why is Webert here? Why is he the only one here? And why does he think I'm Agatha?

Then she saw the massive pile of Dark Elixir empties on the table next to him, and realized it was because Webert was stone drunk.

"Um… not much?", Brandy said, trying her best to mimic Agatha's voice. "I guess."

"Same.", Webert said slowly, and poured himself another glass. "Just downing my nightly requirement. We Bowlers have to drink a lot, you know. In fact-"

He started to turn around, and Brandy's heart skipped a beat. As quick as she was able, she Dashed up and grabbed onto the lip of the upper doorframe, swinging around to brace herself against the wall and hide from sight.

"I need to drink at least 25 gallons of Dark Elixir every day or I'll-"

Webert paused. Even in his drunken stupor, he was confused how who he had assumed was Agatha had just vanished from sight. He looked around to try and see where she had gone, but his vision was blurred from the Dark Elixir. He couldn't see anything but a vague blur.

"Uh, okay.", he said. "See you later, I guess."

He turned around again, and resumed his drinking. Brandy waited for a few more seconds until she heard him gulping down the Dark Elixir, then slowly, carefully dropped from the doorframe without making a sound. She scrambled up the stairs, bottle still in hand, and vanished. Black drips fell as she went, making a telltale trail of guilt on the stairs and floor. But there was no one around to see them- at least, not yet.

Once Brandy reached her room, she stopped before opening the door. She had been going to go to bed, but a thought interrupted her from doing so.

"Is there a point?", she asked the empty hallway. "Is there a point in going to bed? I'll just wake up again. I'll just sit around the Castle again. I'll just go through the same cycle again, not changing, not progressing, not-"

There was a sharp pain in her stomach. Brandy fell onto her knees, and grasped at her torso. There was another shock of feeling, and Brandy realized what was happening.

It's coming, she thought. The baby's coming.

Webert downed one last barrel of Dark Elixir, wiped his mouth with his chin, and shakily stood up. Alright, that's enough for now, he thought, and fell to the floor with a loud crash because not only was he drunk to the sky, he had also stood up too fast.

The door opened, and Agatha entered the room. Larry ran in front of her and immediately began to stab some wooden paneling on the walls.

"Don't touch that, Larry.", Agatha said, and recalled the Skeleton to her. She saw Webert sitting on the floor, a look of both confusion and bliss across his face, and her brow knitted in confusion.

"Agatha?", Webert asked, rubbing his eyes to make sure they did not decieve him. "How did you come in through the door? I was talking to you just like, 30 seconds ago."

"What?", Agatha asked, confused. "No you weren't."

Larry slowly, silently sneaked out from underneath Agatha's dress, and ran over to the stairs. He didn't know why, but he did. His run was halted, however, when he stepped in something dark and sticky. He lifted up his foot. Had he had eyes, they would have widened. The eye sockets he did have, however, could do something better.

His magical eyesight detected footprints of a boot, size 8, rushing up the stairs in a very distinct pattern. Within seconds, he knew who it was.

"But you were talking to me.", Webert said, pointing to the spot where Brandy had been. "And then you vanished for no reason."

"I think you're just drunk, Webert." said Agatha. "I assure you, I wasn't- hm?"

Larry tugged at her dress, pointing urgently towards the stairs. "What is it, Larry?", Agatha asked.

Larry, because he could not speak, quickly moved his hands to communicate. First he put two circles around his eyes: the sign for Bandit. Then he mimed drinking with three fingers: meaning Dark Elixir. Finally, he pointed towards the stairs again, and made a little figure run across his hand.

"Brandy?", Agatha asked. "Drinking Dark Elixir? You really think so?"

Larry frantically nodded his head, and tugged at Agatha's hand. Agatha turned to Webert, and raised her staff.

"Webert, I'm going to go talk to Brandy. You stay here, keep a watch out for everyone else."

"Okay.", Webert slurred. "Where is everyone else, by the way?"

"At the Clan Meeting.", Agatha said. "I was just in the woods."

If given enough time, Webert would have thought up a response, something witty or clever. But only a second later, Agatha went up the stairs to go give Brandy a talk.

Brandy lay in her bed, listening to the wind outside. After a few short kicks, the baby had calmed down, leaving Brandy with no distractions anymore. Nothing at all, to distract her from the slow existential sorrow that gnawed at her soul. She tried to think of anything to cheer her up, but there was nothing. Her best friends? No. One had abandoned her, and the other had tried to take her soul. The rest of the Troops? They clearly didn't care about her. They had all gone somewhere else, and left Brandy behind to rot. Oticat? Of course he didn't care. If he did, he would have upgraded her, or at the very least taken her into battle. The Phantom? Even if he had cared for Brandy instead of just putting her under a subtle spell, he was dead.

But as she mentally eliminated everyone that she knew from the list of people that cared about her, another influence began to work its way into her mind.

"There's still us, Brandy.", came the sinister, yet perfectly polite voice of Ryusei_Nakao69. "We'll always be here for you, no matter what."

"Go away.", Brandy mumbled, turning over. "You're dead. We killed you."

"Yes, that much is true.", the voice continued. "But you can always still join us. All it takes is one good blow, somewhere a little outside of your comfort zone…"

A sudden vision of a rocky cliff leapt into her vision, and Brandy's eyes opened. She sat up out of bed, to see Agatha standing at the open door.

"Brandy?", Agatha asked. "We need to talk."

Normally, such words would have sent Brandy into a small panic. But she didn't feel much of anything from it at the moment. She didn't feel much from anything at all. "What?"

"I noticed you were drinking some Dark Elixir.", Agatha said, and walked closer to Brandy's bedside. "Why?"

"Why?", Brandy mumbled. "Maybe because it's all that helps."

Song: Irreversible Sadness

Agatha reached Brandy's bedside, and noticed an empty bottle of Dark Elixir that had been haphazardly kicked under. "That isn't a good thing to say, Brandy. Not a good thing to think."

Brandy stood up in anger. A thin purple line rose from her arc of motion to the ceiling. "You think I care?", she said loudly. "Does it matter what's good or not?"

Agatha pondered her next words. This was one of the telltale signs of depression- violent mood swings, substance abuse, not feeling. Not feeling was the worst one. "Yes-"

Brandy didn't let her finish. "No. No, it doesn't. It used to, but not anymore."

She sat down again. "Look at me, Agatha. I'm ruined. The baby will probably be born tomorrow morning, and then I'll be nothing but a stay at home mother, to the baby of the one who destroyed me. I can't do this. I can't."

"We'll… help you, Brandy.", Agatha said, and tried to put a hand on Brandy's shoulder. But it was slapped away before there was a second.

"Oh, that's it.", Brandy said. "You'll help me. Sure. Just like you're all helping me now. You leave me alone while you all go off who knows where, no one talks to me, no one helps me with anything."

"What about yesterday?", Agatha asked. "Kars helped you with the hole in the floor."

"That doesn't count.", Brandy said bitterly. "That wasn't really me- that was me under the Phantom. Once he's gone, everyone starts avoiding me like death. Figures that the one time anyone wants me is when I'm not myself."

Agatha couldn't believe what Brandy was saying. This was the not the Bandit she knew. Alien emotions flowed out of her like a dark torrent.

"Brandy, what's gotten into you?", she asked. "The Brandy I know would never-"

"Hmph. The Brandy you know?", Brandy snapped. "And who's that? A sweet, gentle soul that would never hurt anyone? That Brandy doesn't exist anymore. I grew out of that."

Agatha closed her eyes, and looked into Brandy's mind. She was expecting to find some sort of influence, some sort of spell, anything that would be making Brandy act this way. But she found nothing. The chaotic emotions that Brandy was feeling were all hers.

"Brandy, you're being ridiculous.", Agatha said. "You're doing this on purpose."

Brandy's eyes narrowed, and Agatha knew that that was the wrong thing to say. A thin line of purple flashed across Brandy's eyes- then vanished. Suddenly, all the rage drained from Brandy's mind, leaving behind only a deep well of sadness.

"You're right.", Brandy said, just loudly enough for Agatha to hear. "I did do this to myself. It is my fault."

"What? No.", said Agatha. "Nothing about this is your fault."

"But it is.", Brandy said. "I stole that sword for Dan, and then I got left behind, and then I had to take the footpath. If I hadn't stolen it, if I didn't steal, if I- if I wasn't a Bandit, then-"

Agatha put her arms around Brandy to steady her. "Woah, woah.", she said. "Brandy, hold on. You're thinking out of control here."

"No I'm not.", Brandy said. "It really is my fault. I shouldn't have dragged you all into this. Maybe I should have stayed at their castle."

Song: Dark Rebirth

Agatha hurriedly checked Brandy's mind again. This time, she did see faint strings of Red creeping their way in.

"Brandy, don't think that.", she said. "You cannot think that way."

"Or maybe…", Brandy said, and reached out a hand for another bottle of Dark Elixir, cleverly hidden by her bedside. "Maybe I should just drink the rest of this."

Agatha grabbed Brandy's wrist, stopping her hand in midair. "Brandy, you can't. You can't possibly drink all that. You'll die."

Brandy locked eyes with Agatha, her deep blue and slightly red matched with the light purple of the Witch. "I know. That's why I'm doing it."

Larry, having snuck his way out into the world again, heard this statement. His head fell off in utter shock, and he ran across the room trying to put it on again. The corners of Agatha's eyes watered, her heart filled with sorrow at Brandy's words.

"No.", she said. "Brandy, you can't, and you won't."

She stood up, bringing Brandy onto her feet. "Brandy, listen to me. You are not ignored. You are not hated. We all love you- everyone in the castle. For weeks now, we have done nothing but let you rest, and sleep, and recover from what happened."

She stood over Brandy, looked right into her soul, and poured as much mental magic as she could into her next words. "Brandy, how can you say we don't care about you when we literally created an entire army just to get you back?"

Brandy's eyes turned fully blue for a second, then the Red crept back in. She sat down on the bed and stared into empty space. "Because… because…"

The Red part of her tried to find an empty space in Agatha's logic, but it was having a hard time. The influence began to fade from her, until the Blue part of her mind made a tactical error, and the Red gained the mental high ground once more. A purple light grew around her, and she stood up.

"You might have cared about me once.", she spat. Agatha knew what was about to happen, but she did not quite belive it.

"But not anymore.", Brandy said, and struck. Quick as a Zap, her fist flew forward with the power of Dash, hitting Agatha in the jaw. The Witch flew back in shock and pain, bracing herself with the bottom of her staff. She saw Brandy jump from the floor to the window, and slide open the glass.

"Brandy, what are you doing?", Agatha yelled, and quickly summoned a trio of Skeletons. As fast as they could, they all swarmed forward, trying to stop Brandy before she leapt- but it was too late.

"What I should have done a long time ago.", Brandy said, and Dashed out the window.

Song: In the Air Tonight

She fell through the air outside of the Castle, her Dash protecting her from the impact when she hit the ground. But due to her jarred mental state, it wore off half a second too early, and a sharp jolt of pain shot through Brandy's legs upon impact.

Agatha leaned out the window and reached out her arm, Larry almost falling as he leaned alongside her.

"Brandy, come back!", she yelled. "What are you doing?"

Brandy shakily got up, and looked back at Agatha. A brief expression of shock crossed her face, before it was buried in the fury. Ignoring Agatha's cries, Brandy crouched, and took off into the woods as fast as she could. She didn't know where she was going, but that didn't matter. All that did was that she had to get away.

Agatha leaned back into Brandy's room, and put her hands to the side of her head. Momentary panic surged through her, before she calmed down and assessed the situation.

Alright, what do I do?, she thought. I just made Brandy so mad she ran away, I have no idea where she's going, and me and Webert are the only ones here. There's Brave, too, I guess, but he hardly counts.

She threw open Brandy's door and ran downstairs to the kitchen, her cloak blowing behind her.

"Webert!", she shouted once she reached the bottom of the stairs, looking around frantically for the Bowler. "Webert, where are you?"

Webert looked up from the couch that he lay sprawled across, slowly gnawing on a leg of chicken. "I'm here.", he said. "What do you need me for?"

"Brandy ran away.", Agatha said. "We need to go after her."

Webert dropped the chicken leg into his lap. He nodded, and lumbered off towards the door.

"Webert, where are you going?", Agatha asked, and summoned her Skeletons. She silently gave orders, and all three of them ran off to carry them out.

"I'm going to get Oticat.", he said. "He'll know what to do."

"Oticat's an hour walk away.", Agatha said. "We don't have that much time- and you're drunk anyway. You shouldn't be having any ideas. Here-"

Agatha pulled her communicator out of her pocket, and gestured for Webert to do the same. "Start making calls. I'll call Oticat, you call everyone else. See if Brandy went to another castle.

Without saying another word, Webert pulled out his communicator and dialed the number for the first king he had on dial- SpaceKrakenX.

"Yes, yes, Brenda's doing well.", SpaceKrakenX said to Oticat, at the Clan Meeting. "She seems very much relieved about something, although I can't imagine what. Would you like any more punch, perhaps?"

Oticat waved his hand, "No, no, that won't be necessary. But I think I might know what Brenda's so happy about."

"Really? Wha-", SpaceKrakenX began, then his communicator rang. "Excuse me for one second."

"Of course.", said Oticat, and SpaceKrakenX pulled out the device from his pocket. He held it up to his ear and scowled. "Who is this? Whoever it is, it had better be good."

"Hey, man.", came the slurred voice of Webert. "Is Brandy at your place?"

"How should I know?", said SpaceKrakenX. "I'm not there."

Shoot, thought Webert, and nearly hung up. "Can I speak to Oticat?", he said.

"Sure.", SpaceKrakenX said, and handed his communicator to the mentioned. "Here you go, Oti. He's one of yours."

Oticat took the device and saw the caller ID. "Hello, Webert.", he said. "What can I do you for?"

"Brandy ran away.", Webert said flatly. "She took off into the woods, and we don't know where she went."

Oticat's heart stopped cold. "What?"

Brandy ran through the woods, vines and branches slapping at her face. She had no idea where she was, or where she was going. In the far distance, she could see the glowing peaks of Spell Valley, some Kings still battling despite the late hour. She wished she was there, just a bit.

A huge tree suddenly came up in front of her, and Brandy stopped. She charged up her Dash, drew back a fist, and launched herself forward to cleave right through.

But something odd happened. Instead of her fist striking the tree in a powerful blow, it slipped intangibly inside. She could see the glowing blue outline of her arm moving around inside the wood, illuminating the bug-eaten twists and turns. Brandy pulled it out just before it became solid again, taking a chunk of wood along with it. She stared at the hole she had made in the tree in amazement for a second, before throwing the chunk aside and running even faster through the dark woods.

A deep ravine appeared behind some bushes, and Brandy leaped over it without a thought. Landing on a roll on the other side, she sprang up and gave a bush a flying kick. She didn't know why, but a Gem rolled out of the flattened Bush and came to rest by her shoe.

Brandy regarded the Gem with disinterest. The green, inviting glow would normally have given her an urge to steal- but not tonight. Tonight, the only thing that was on her mind was running. So run she did, past the group of trees, and further on into the night.

As she ran, a gaunt, haggered figure watched her go. A cloak was pulled closer to guard against the cold night, and the figure shivered. She wanted to stop Brandy running, but she knew that she wasn't fast enough. Her hands shook as she pulled her gun closer to her chest. She too only slightly knew where she was going. But Brandy's direction told her that she was on the right path.

"What do you mean, she ran away?", Oticat asked, trying to keep his voice down. "Why would she do that?"
"I dunno.", Webert said. The shrug in his voice was almost visible. "Maybe Agatha knows. I'll put her on the line-"

"Hello? Oticat?", Agatha asked suddenly, having finally gotten her old, run-down communicator to work. "Don't worry. I can explain everything."

"Do it.", Oticat said. "Tell me."

"Brandy's… not herself.", Agatha began. "There's some other influence controlling her. We just had a conversation, and it must have angered her for some reason. She attacked me and ran away, and-"
"Wait, she attacked you?", Oticat said in disbelief. "Really? Brandy?"

"I can hardly believe it either.", Agatha said, shaking her head. "But that's what happened."

Oticat looked up, eyeing the room for his troops. To his relief, he saw Chuck leaning against his Hog on the far wall, enjoying a drink with his fellow Riders.

"Chuck!", he said, motioning for the Hog Rider to come over to him.
"Oh, sorry fellas- gotta go. Hee hee!", Chuck said, and rode over to Oticat. "What is it?"

"Brandy ran away from the Castle.", Oticat quickly said. "I need you to go search for her. Take whoever of your friends you want. She was last seen heading-"

He turned back to the communicator- "Which way was it, Agatha? West? Okay, thanks."- then back again to Chuck. "West, towards the sea. Go and find her."

Chuck smartly saluted, and whistled towards his group. They all rode over, and he quickly explained the situation. They all nodded, and raised their hammers into the air. "Did someone say…", Chuck began, and they all reared up on their mounts.

"Hog Riiiiiiiiidddeeerrrr!", they yelled as one, and rode off through the double doors. Somewhere in the room, more than one Villager covered her child's ears at the use of such language.

Brandy burst, gasping and heaving from the exertion, through the dense treeline and into a narrow clearing. She sucked in the night air, trying to calm down her lungs before they exploded. Even for her, 15 minutes of running at top speed through thick forest was exhausting.

But within a few minutes, her altered body righted itself, and her breathing returned to normal.

But what did not return to normal was her heart. It still hurt, with the sorrow of a broken soul.

Tears dripped down Brandy's face, and she slowly leaned forward. Her mind wandered, searching for anything nearby to connect to, but there was nothing. There was no Blue presence here, or Red, or anything. This close to the sea, it was only wilderness.

"Please.", she said quietly, directing her plea to anyone who would listen. "I…"

A deep sadness gripped her heart, as everything that had happened in the last few weeks came flooding back into her mind. The kidnapping, the torture, the terror, the slow, aching depression, all of it. Brandy started to cry, her shoulders heaving from the sobs. She fell to the ground, and took a deep, hoarse breath.

"Please… I can't take it anymore.", she said, just loudly enough for her to hear. "Please, if anyone's out there listening, someone…"

She stared upwards into the sky, looking at the infinite, uncaring stars overhead. "Take this suffering away from me."

She took a look forward, and saw the sea.

Lights glinted off the surface of the water, small ripples of fish and squid breaking the top of the waves. She could almost see the huge swarms of tiny animals rising to feed, as they did every night. The moon hung overhead, huge and full. Brandy sat down on the grass, and took a minute to just exist.

The night sea air smelled quite pleasant. The sounds of the wind and water soothed Brandy's ears and mind, like a massage after a hard day. And if she looked very closely, so hard that she strained her eyes, Brandy could almost see the explosions from the Continent of the Clans, across the sea.

Her aching mind began to calm down from the soothing atmosphere of the seacliff, and she thought. What had been so bad, back in the castle? What was it, exactly, about Agatha's words that had made her so furious? Why had she run away? Why had she abandoned her family?

As soon as she thought the word "family", a vivid memory flashed through her mind. It was of her, albeit a very young version, splashing in crystal-blue waves. The sun was shining, birds were singing, and a tall, bearded man stood watch over her.

"Honey, don't let Brandy wander out too far.", came the cautious words of who assumed Brandy was her mother, relaxing on the seaside. "It could get dangerous."

"Oh, don't worry. I won't.", said the man, and leaned down. "I'm not letting you go anywhere, am I, my little sunshine?"

Then the memory faded, and Brandy returned to the field of night. She stood up, wondering when that had been. Sometime before her parents had gotten rid of her, she assumed. But why would they leave her like that, if they seemed to love her so much? Why would-

"It's simple.", a voice hissed. "They got sick of you."

Song: A Fearsome Foe

"What?", Brandy whispered, and looked around. But there was nothing, and nobody. The voice came from inside of her own mind.

"Of course they would.", the voice said again. "Why wouldn't they? Who would ever want to be around you?"

"Who's there?", Brandy yelled, but there was no one to respond. "Who are you?"

"You were their mistake.", another voice bellowed, deeper and more powerful than the last. "They got rid of you as soon as they could."

Dark crimson winds started to pick up around Brandy's feet, the grass bending in unnatural ways around her.

"Just like you left your King, and your Castle.", a third voice screamed, like sharpened nails on a chalkboard. "You had to leave them. It was only your nature."

Brandy slammed her hands against her head, trying to drown the voices out, but they were too loud, and too persistent.

"There's only one thing to do now.", said one. "To finish the job."

"Throw yourself off the edge.", rumbled another. "The ocean calls for your soul."

"You call yourself a Bandit?", screamed a particularly vicious one. "How pathetic!"

"You don't deserve to be called anything.", one said, frightfully calm. "Quite simply, you don't deserve to exist."

Brandy closed her eyes, and tried to enter her mind to fight off the intruders. But ghastly visions of death and suffering crossed her vision as soon as she did so, and Brandy automatically opened her eyes again.

"Do it.", one said. "Throw yourself off the edge, and save the rest of this worthless world from your misery."

Far away, in his lair, Grrshknn heard faint sounds. He heard the sound of Brandy screaming in pain and anger, and the winds of evil spirits swirling around her soul. He got up from the table where he sat, and looked to where Brandy was. His crooked mouth curled up past his face into a cursed smile, and he laughed.

"Yes!", he bellowed. "By Rakshadanore, we've got her now!"

He pumped his fist into the air, then a thought occurred to him. "I should join them.", he said out loud. "Yes, that would be quite fun."

"You're finished.", screeched one of the voices. "You have no hope."

"Death is the only way out.", another shrieked. "Use it."

The cacophony of Brandy's mental assault had began to spread, attracting demons from many dark places. More and more swirled around her, all uniting to get her to end her own life. Most of them had never seen Brandy before now, but to them, that mattered not. All that they saw was a soul to take for themselves.

"Give in to me!", Grrshknn shouted, at last joining in. "It is the only thing you can do!"

Brandy tried harder to shut out the voices, but she could not. She looked down, trying to focus on the grass, the water, something natural- but her terror was only compounded when she saw that her legs were moving. The influence of so many demons had at last moved beyond her mind, and into her body.

Brandy screamed, as her body walked steadily towards the edge of the cliff. This is it, she realized. This is how I die. There's nobody around to see it.

As Brandy was pushed to the edge of the cliff, all the demons combined gave one last roar of satisfaction. The ground underneath her began to crumble, and all Brandy could think about was how her desperate plea, her most humble prayer, had not been answered.

"Beautiful night, isn't it?"

Song: Legend Unicorn Theme

The words came quietly in the dark torrent of demons, yet cut through them like a blade through butter. All at once, they vanished, and the ground stopped crumbling. Brandy regained control of her legs, and she backpedaled away from the edge as fast as she could. Turning, she saw the one who had spoken the words of her salvation.

It was the man from Ryusei_Nakao69's castle, the one in brown. The one who had given her those words of encouragement, the one who had stopped time and bent space. He wore a monocle over his right eye, and even now was pulling what seemed to be thrashing red string out of Brandy's head. He wound it together into a ball, crushed it between his hands, and threw it over his shoulder into the sea. It screamed as it fell, before hitting the water with a splash and falling to bits.

"Wh- wh- what was that?", Brandy asked in sheer astonishment. "Who are you?"

The man in brown brushed off his suit jacket, looked at her, and smiled. "That, my dear, was the last vestiges of a mutated hypnotism spell. Very potent, nasty stuff that. Good thing you held on for as long as you did, or I might have not gotten here in time. And as for who I am, well…"

Having finished dusting himself off, he adjusted his suit jacket, tipped his checkered top hat, and gave Brandy a wink. "I'm afraid my true identity is a little beyond your comprehension at the moment. But if you wish, you may call me God."