Chapter 24:
The Dribble Taxi made its way to Cosmo Canyon as quickly as it safely could, Dribble not wanting to tax the damaged cab beyond its limit. Mario had since put on his cape and gone outside the cab to flank it along with Luigi and the other flight capable allies. Both Dribble and Spitz were shocked and relieved that the Octoblazooka was still operational. However, both cabbies hoped that they would not have to use it at Cosmo Canyon and whatever forces were attacking it. Still, both the cabbies and the passengers knew that the attack on Cosmo Canyon was a diversion. Sephiroth still had some other plan, and everyone suspected that Bowser was a part of it.
As the cab approached Cosmo Canyon, the passengers made their final checks to their equipment and Materia, wanting to have their optimal loadout for the battle ahead. While Aerith, as well as Mario and Luigi outside, were concerned about the potential of giving Sephiroth an idea of what he might be facing when they made their attack on him, the others were not as concerned about the potential of Sephiroth learning of what their new powers might be as much as they were concerned about the damage an attack could put on Cosmo Canyon as well as the potential casualties an attack their could accrue.
Without concern for what Sephiroth might expect, Nanaki outfitted himself with the strongest Materia he could find. He took a Restore and All Materia in linked slots, a Fire and Elemental Materia in linked slots, along with a Speed Plus Materia, and a Knights of Round Materia rounding out his list. As for Aerith, she took a Speed Plus Materia, a Shield, Revive, Elemental, Ice, MP Plus, HP Plus, Comet, a Magic Counter Materia sharing a linked slot with a Lightning Materia, the W-Summon Materia Luigi had won at the Gold Saucer along with, and the newly acquired Bahamut Fury Materia. Once they were loaded out, all that was left for them to wait for the upcoming battle and hope they could defeat the attackers before they inflicted too much damage to the town.
It only took the cab about a half hour more to reach Cosmo Canyon. When they arrived, though, they could see that the attack had already begun, as several bolts of lightning lashed out at various points in the town. However, given the fact that the damage did not look to be all that great, chances were that the attack had only begun relatively recently. Nanaki offered a silent prayer that no one had been killed in the town yet, most notably his mate and cubs.
Outside the cab, Mario and Luigi were already scanning the scene, the older Mario Brother looking for Kadaj, wanting to deal with that Remnant of Sephiroth before he could get involved in the fighting. It was not long before they found the Remnants of Sephiroth, all three of them near the edge of the town, directing the Shadow Creepers and the Clones of Sephiroth that were attacking.
"Those Remnants of Sephiroth are mine," Mario declared as he focused his gaze on the trio of silver-haired fighters below.
"You won't be fighting them alone, will you?" Lady Bow asked in a concerned tone. The last thing the party could afford was for Mario to go off half-cocked against three embodiments of Sephiroth's will, and strong fighters to boot.
"Of course not," Luigi answered.
"We'll be helping him," Vivian and Parakarry added.
"No Vivian," Mario interjected. "Your Fiery Jinx will be needed to deal with the Sephiroth Clones and those beasts they're riding. You are uniquely qualified to deal with their threat quickly and efficiently. I don't mind others helping us against the Remnants of Sephiroth, in fact, I welcome it, but you're needed to help clear out the town. Everyone else can split up as they see fit. We need to end this battle quickly for more than one reason."
"Right," Vivian answered.
Once they were ready, the aerial allies banked downwards towards Cosmo Canyon with Mario, Luigi, Parakarry, and Lakilester heading towards the Remnants of Sephiroth while Flurrie, Vivian, Watt, Lady Bow, and the Dribble Taxi went towards the town. Inside the taxi, Spitz looked down at a line of Shadow Creepers and Sephiroth Clones riding them, and told Dribble, "Let's make our presence known and thin out the herd a bit. Ready the Octoblazooka!"
Dribble pushed a single button and replied, "Octoblazooka ready."
"Fire!" the bipedal cat cried.
Immediately, the robotic octopus on the back of the taxi started firing laser blasts into the ranks of the Shadow Creepers and their Sephiroth Clone riders. The laser blasts caught the Shadow Creepers and their riders completely off guard and gouged massive holes in their ranks. Each hit practically disintegrated a Shadow Creeper and inflicted significant damage to the Sephiroth Clone riding it, assuming the clone managed to survive the hit at all. Dribble, Spitz, and the passengers could only grin as they continued to rain fire down on the Shadow Creepers and the Sephiroth Clones. Each hit destroyed more of the beasts and took down more clones.
Onboard the taxi, Aerith looked down at the effects of the bombardment and could not help but notice that the Sephiroth Clones looked to be significantly weaker than the ones that had attacked her party in the Ninja Tournament. Looking over at Nanaki, she could see the leonine creature shivering in anticipation as well as apprehension. While he was eager to engage the Remnants of Sephiroth as well as the Sephiroth Clones, he wanted to ensure the safety of his family as well and, knowing of Kadaj's cruelty, he knew that the Remnant was not above using children as shields or pawns and would not think twice about using Nanaki's family as sentient shields.
As for herself, she too was eager to engage the Sephiroth Clones and Shadow Creepers. While she had, indeed, been tested in the Ninja Tournament, she could not help but think that she needed more experience, especially with some of the Materia she had acquired. She needed to be at her best when they faced down Sephiroth and she also could not help but think that this would be good experience for dealing with any reinforcements that the former SOLDIER would use against the group when they went to face him.
After the first barrage was complete, the cab dipped down so the passengers could disembark. As it was touching down, Flurrie, Vivian, Watt, and Lady Bow flanked the cab and unleashed Fiery Jinxes, lightning bolts, and gusts of wind as the doors opened and the occupants disembarked. Each occupant shot out the door and was eager to join the fight on the ground. Once they had all disembarked, the taxi took to the sky once more to provide air cover. Nanaki, however, quickly scanned the area for Mario and Luigi and found them making a beeline for the Remnants of Sephiroth. Remembering the threat the Remnants posed in his last battle against them, he was eager to try out the Knights of Round against the Remnants, hoping that they would quickly finish off the Remnants.
As for Mario and Luigi, they made their way over to the Remnants of Sephiroth as they were pointing in the direction of the makeshift base that Nanaki had set up for Mario and his friends when they had last visited the canyon. As the Mario Brothers approached, though, the trio turned as one towards the plumbers and their escort: Parakarry and Lakilester. The Remnants smirked at the approaching heroes. It would soon be time to show the heroes their true power.
"So the Mario Brothers have finally come," Loz stated, smiling and almost quivering with excitement as he eagerly anticipated testing his might against the Mario Brothers.
"I welcome this challenge," Yazoo added, putting his hand through his hair before drawing a sword and drawing out a gun as well.
"Don't underestimate them," Kadaj cautioned. "The Mario Brothers managed to defeat Sephiroth before he joined with the Lifestream and they have access to several esoteric powers."
The other Remnants did not seem to heed Kadaj's warning, though, as electricity crackled in their hands in preparation for a Thundaga attack.
As Mario and the others approached, the Remnants opened the battle by casting Thundaga on the heroes. The bolts of lightning struck the Marios, their capes absorbing the blow but the strikes forcing Mario and Luigi to float to the ground. The third Thundaga attack lashed out at Parakarry, who ducked into his shell to avoid most of the damage but electricity still arced across the shell and he still felt the tingle of the attack. However, the damage was nowhere close to being lethal and it did not even stop him from being able to fight. The Remnants chose their battle tactics poorly, though, since none of them seemed to have an All Materia and, thus, none of their attacks struck Lakilester.
The Lakitu made them pay for their mistake as he unleashed a Spiny Surge on the silver-haired trio. With almost cartoonish speed, Lakilester tossed Spiny Egg after Spiny Egg on the Remnants of Sephiroth. Egg after egg struck the Remnants of Sephiroth, the barrage not letting up and allowing them a chance to counterattack. The Remnants seethed as they endured the assault, which was beginning to inflict noticeable damage to them, for while each individual egg was little more than an annoyance for the Remnants, it was a different story when they had to face the entire barrage.
Eventually, the barrage came to a merciful end allowed the Remnants to initiate another attack of their own. However, their movements were slow and jerky as they attempted to shake off the effects of the Spiny Surge unleashed upon them. This would be terrible for them since it allowed Mario, Luigi, and Parakarry to unleash attacks of their own on the trio. Mario and Luigi simultaneously unleashed a barrage of fireballs and lightning balls on them, a version of Thunder Hand that neither the Remnants or Sephiroth had seen before. They would soon feel how effective it was as the ball of lightning exploded among them like a bomb and inflicted damage similar to a Thundaga blast on each of them. And that was while they had been forced to endure Mario's fireball barrage as well.
The Remnants grunted with each hit as they were forced back by the attacks. "Damn!" Loz swore. "How did they get so powerful?"
"They have always been powerful," Kadaj answered. "We're just seeing it for the first time now. Still, we have Sephiroth's knowledge so we should know how they fight."
"Yeah, but the one in green just used an attack that even Sephiroth had never seen before," Yazoo interjected. "What else might the Marios be hiding?"
Just as he had asked that question, though, he took a massive blow to the head from an onrushing Parakarry. He grunted and swore at the hit as he staggered backwards.
"We need reinforcements!" Loz cried at the top of his lungs as he watched his brother take the hit from Parakarry. Mario quickly took advantage of their distracted nature by unleashing more fireballs on them as Luigi powered another Thunderhand lightning ball. The Remnants of Sephiroth took more hits and it was clear as day that the damage they were suffering was beginning to mount, for their jackets and pants were now marred with numerous tears and even entire patches missing. In addition, blood could be seen running down their faces.
Knowing that it would take time to summon reinforcements, time that they did not have, the Remnants decided to go with what they knew best, engaging Mario and Luigi in a physical fight. Knowing they would take damage from the initial fireball barrage, they still drew their swords and charged the plumbers, heedless of the Koopa Paratroopa dive-bombing them and the Lakitu unleashing another Spiny Surge on them. Still, it would not stop the onrushing fighters and they managed to reach the plumbers, engaging them in a three-on-two fight. However, they were about to learn that the Marios were no slouches in close combat, either.
Luigi drew his hammer as the Remnants rushed towards them. Having equipped his Hammer with a Mega Quake badge, he smashed the hammer into the ground as they reached Mario. The moment the hammer hit the ground, the ground shook and seismic waves spread out from the point of impact. The ground cracked as the seismic waves spread out, and over the onrushing Remnants, inflicting noticeable damage on them and causing them to stagger forward. Knowing what Luigi had been planning, Mario had taken to the air to avoid the impact and was quick to add a barrage of fireballs to the counterattack.
More fireballs rained down upon the Remnants as Kadaj attempted to slash at Luigi but the broken ground made his approach difficult, allowing Luigi to avoid his rush. Meanwhile, Loz and Yazoo went to float up towards Mario, only for Parakarry and Lakilester to initiate more attacks on them. Parakarry ducked into his shell and rammed into Loz, knocking him to the ground and allowing Lakilester to bombard him and Kadaj with another Spiny Surge. However, that left Yazoo, the physically strongest of the Remnants to engage Mario.
Rushing towards Mario, he pulled back his sword and thrust it towards the plumber. Mario managed to dodge the thrust and retaliated with a side kick to the Remnant's chest. His kick connected and did force Yazoo back a few feet but it did little more than annoy him in the grand scheme of things. Yazoo quickly rushed Mario once more, this time, attempting to perform a horizontal slash. His swing missed but he followed it up with a kick of his own which managed to connect with the plumber. However, the kick did not inflict enough damage for Mario to lose his cape and he retaliated with a punch that managed to connect with Yazoo's head. Yazoo felt the punch and was dazed for a moment but it did not inflict any debilitating damage on the Remnant. Still, the Remnant could not help but be surprised at Mario's strength and power. He had never fought anyone with this level of strength before, not even Cloud Strife since Cloud Strife had been afflicted by Geostigma at the time and was not at his best. Still, he was beginning to see why Sephiroth was so concerned about fighting the plumber once more. While Mario had needed help to beat him both times, he had managed to get it and the plumber just never gave up. What's more, he had yet to fight using the Star powers he had used against Sephiroth in their last fight. If Mario could fight evenly with him while for all intents and purposes holding back, what would he be able to do if he used his full power? Could he possibly be able to defeat Sephiroth even after his creator had joined with the Lifestream?
He backed off once more and prepared to cast Firaga on the plumber, hoping that the pillars would not only damage Mario but also protect him from any counterattack by either the plumber, or his allies. After the spell had been cast, pillars of flame sprang into existence and surrounded the Remnant of Sephiroth, forcing Mario to back away to avoid being burned by the pillars. He quickly ascended and opened his cape once more to as to be able to absorb any normal magical attack that the Remnant would unleash on him, the plumber suspecting it would be Thundaga. Just as expected, a bolt of lightning lashed out at him before the Firaga pillars had dissipated and struck the plumber's cape once more, causing the plumber to float back down to the ground. This time, though, Mario decided to surprise Yazoo by spinning in the air and then rocketing to the ground, performing a Ground Pound move just as the Firaga pillars dissipated. The move caught Yazoo off guard and Yazoo was too slow to avoid the slam. The plumber slammed into the head of Yazoo and caused him to stagger forward. The plumber quickly returned to a standing position and performed a spinning back heel kick that caught Yazoo in the side. The impact sent him staggering several feet to the side, giving Mario time to draw his Ultra Hammer.
As for the other two Remnants, they were having troubles of their own against Luigi, Parakarry, and Lakilester. The Lakitu stayed back to bombard the Remnants with Spiny Surges and sometimes larger Spiny Eggs while Parakarry would rocket to and fro, slamming into each Remnant, dazing them and causing them to stagger from the impacts. And this was before taking Luigi into account. The younger Mario Brother was quickly proving his strength as he continuously slammed his hammer into the ground, producing numerous earthquakes, causing the two ground-bound Remnants to lose their footing and fall to the ground. The plumber would often give quick checks to make certain that he was not damaging the town with his Mega Quake smashes. So far, the town did not seem to be taking any damage from his attacks. He was, however, seeing the Shadow Creepers and Sephiroth Clones attacking the town, only to be blasted by the Dribble Taxi or ignited by Vivian's Fiery Jinx. As such, he felt that he could focus on dealing with the Remnants of Sephiroth. And to make things even better, reinforcements for his side would soon arrive in the form of Nanaki.
Nanaki arrived on the scene as he watched Mario and Luigi engage the Remnants. While the Marios were more than holding their own at the moment, Nanaki wanted to end this fight as quickly as possible so the whole force could focus on clearing Cosmo Canyon.
"Mario, Luigi, disengage and head into town," Nanaki called. "I'm going to end this fight now!"
The plumbers had no problem leaving the Remnants of Sephiroth to Nanaki and they backed away from the trio of silver-haired fighters. Parakarry and Lakilester also backed away and joined Mario and Luigi as they went to head into town to help Aerith and the others clear it of enemies.
As for Nanaki and the Remnants of Sephiroth, when the Remnants saw the plumbers and their allies retreat, they looked over at Nanaki and grinned. They outnumbered the leonine beast three-to-one and did view Nanaki as a threat to them.
"You were a fool to call off the Mario Brothers," Kadaj chided.
"And the only ones more foolish were them for abandoning you to death," Loz added.
"Do you really think you can beat us?" Yazoo inquired. "You are but one creature, and not a SOLDIER or Jenova enhanced fighter, either.
Nanaki said nothing, though, merely closing his eyes and willing the Materia to summon the Knights of Round. Instantly, thirteen knights appeared before Nanaki, prompting the eyes of the Remnants to go wide with shock and fear, as they remembered how the Knights of the Round had been used to defeat Sephiroth during Meteorfall. They knew that they were no match for the Knights. Their end was near, but they had no intention of going down without a fight.
As the Knights of Round launched their attacks on the Remnants, the trio silver-haired fighters prepared to launch Thundaga attacks on Nanaki, hoping to take down the leonine creature before they fell. However, the Knights of Round were faster and managed to strike first. Fire, Ice, and Comet spells were unleashed from range on the Remnants of Sephiroth while the close-range Knights engaged them, thrusting and slashing at the Remnants with their lances and swords. Drastically outnumbered and clearly outgunned, the Remnants were unable to do anything as they were annihilated by the Knights of Round. The Remnants were skewered and cut to pieces by the close-range Knights while the long-range Knights annihilated the remains of the Remnants. After the last remains of the Remnants were destroyed, the Knights of Round promptly vanished, their purpose having been fulfilled. With the Remnants of Sephiroth having been destroyed, Nanaki went back into Cosmo Canyon to help the others clear out the town.
During Mario, Luigi, Parakarry and Lakilester's battle against the Remnants of Sephiroth, the other allies were busy dealing with the Shadow Creepers and Sephiroth Clones inside Cosmo Canyon, proper. Vivian was putting her Fiery Jinx to great use incinerating entire platoons of Shadow Creepers and Sephiroth Clones and reducing them to ashes. The clones attempted to retaliate by casting Blizzaga on the Shadow Spirit but she was able to duck into the shadows and evade the attacks as the rest of the allies laid waste to them.
Watt unleashed numerous lightning bolts on the clones and Shadow Creepers. While individual bolts of lightning were sufficient to take down Shadow Creepers, the Clones of Sephiroth proved to be tougher and were able to withstand the lightning bolts, though not without cost as they still suffered moderate to heavy damage. This allowed the others to finish off the stricken clones. Kooper and Koops joined the fray by ducking into the shells and using Shell Toss on Shadow Creeper and Clone of Sephiroth alike. While their attacks alone were insufficient to kill either the Creepers or the Clones, they did distract their enemies enough that they did not see several other attacks coming from their allies. Flurrie also used gusts of wind to either pin her enemies or blow them off their feet and render them vulnerable to attack by the others. A few times, though, either a hurting Clone of Sephiroth or a Shadow Creeper kept their guard down and allowed Flurrie to flatten them with a body slam. Bombette also rushed towards Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth and detonated amongst them, gouging massive holes in their ranks, the Bob-omb regenerating several seconds after detonation. Admiral Bobbery also tossed numerous Time Bombs into the ranks of enemies, causing massive casualties to the enemies when they detonated. Still, despite the tremendous damage and losses the heroes and allies were inflicting on the Shadow Creepers and the Clones of Sephiroth, more surged into the town and it looked like there would be no end in sight for them. For each one that fell, two seemed to take their place. As for Goombario and Goombella, they were doing their best to call out movement patterns and places where enemies were entering the town so the heroes could intercept them. All they saw, though, were more enemies surging into Cosmo Canyon.
"Man, we're getting nowhere with these guys," Goombella called.
"Yeah, it's like two more arrive just as we destroy one," Goombario agreed.
Ms. Mowz soon sided up next to the Goombas and asked, "So, any ideas? The last thing we need to start using a lot of our attack items to deal with these guys, especially since they seem like nothing more than rank and file soldiers. These Clones of Sephiroth are nothing like the ones we faced during the Ninja Tournament."
"I have one," Aerith replied as she walked towards the heroes, her clothes looking dirty from all the fighting. "Just tell the others to fall back a bit. It's time for us to see what Bahamut Fury can do when fighting for our side."
"Bahamut Fury?" Goombella asked. "You're going to use it so soon after it got finished trashing the Dribble Taxi and possibly stranding us here for a while?"
"Do you have any other ideas?" Goombario retorted. "We need to finish these things off quickly before they do more damage to Cosmo Canyon and possibly our own base here. If what Aerith has said about Summons is true, then it should fight at our side without a problem."
"It will," Aerith assured them.
Seeing no other options for a quick finish to the battle, Goombella nodded and said, "Alright, do it. Let's hope Bahamut Fury finishes them off quickly."
Aerith nodded and then took a few steps back. As she did so, Goombella contacted the allies in the town and told them, "Everyone fall back and try to herd the Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth into a massive pack. Aerith has a plan for dealing with them all at once."
The others did not have to be told twice and fell back, forming a line and making sure that the Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth were focused on them rather than focused on the town or its civilians. The Dribble Taxi also backed away so as to conserve fuel and energy for dealing with any remnants to the forces that they were facing now. They just hoped that the large size of the taxi, relative to the other heroes and allies, would not give their enemies the bright idea to try to flank them and attack them from behind.
Once the allies had formed a line, Aerith went over to them and closed her eyes as if in prayer, a prelude to a Summoning. After gathering her magic and thrusting her staff forward, she cried, "Summoning Bahamut Fury!"
The other allies' eyes went wide as they heard her make the call for the dragon that had caused them so much trouble no less than an hour ago. Almost immediately after Aerith's call, a loud roar could be heard all throughout the canyon. Looking into the sky, the party saw the majestic golden dragon hovering above the town and looking down at the Shadow Creepers and the Clones of Sephiroth. Without having to be issued any orders, Bahamut Fury began its assault as its wings began to glow and a ball of energy formed in its mouth. Looking down and focusing on the monsters and Clones of Sephiroth, it unleashed a massive Exaflare attack on them. The golden blast of energy crashed into the center of the enemies' ranks and instantly vaporized both Shadow Creeper and Clone of Sephiroth alike. It then began to sweep its beam towards the largest remaining concentration of enemy forces and vaporized them, too. Several Clones of Sephiroth tried to launch a counterattack by firing off several Thundaga lightning bolts and even a Blizzaga snowflake on it but the attacks were either ineffective against the dragon, or were outright dispersed by the dragon's own Exaflare.
As soon as the second rank of enemy fighters and monsters was destroyed, the beam swept to the other ranks of enemies, the beam forming a small furrow in the ground. The dragon, however, was very careful to not let the beam find its way towards any civilians, structures, or even the allies that had fought so hard against it while the Remnants of Sephiroth had commanded it earlier.
The allies could only watch in wonder as Bahamut Fury was making a mockery of the Shadow Creepers and the Clones of Sephiroth. Vivian began to think that Bahamut Fury might have been a match for the Knights of Round Summon that Aerith had found during the Ninja Tournament. As for Aerith, though, she knew the real secret of Bahamut Fury's power. Aerith had a great deal of magical power and was also fighting for the Planet. While the Remnants of Sephiroth were strong, they did not have Sephiroth's skill and since they were just pawns, they did not have the respect of Bahamut Fury, even if they could give it orders. As such, the dragon may have technically fought for them, but it did not have the will to win that it did now.
The group continued to watch as Bahamut Fury no fired off a barrage of Hexafang spikes at the remaining Clones and Shadow Creepers, impaling many of them, with some of the spikes skewering two or three enemies at a time. The Clones of Sephiroth continued to spray attacks at it, only to get its attention and to cause it to fire off another Hexafang barrage on them. After the final barrage of Hexafang, Bahamut Fury vanished from the battlefield, but its effects would remain for a long time. In mere minutes, the assault force that was attacking Cosmo Canyon went from thousands to only a few dozen. And things were about to get worse for the attacking forces.
Just as Bahamut Fury had vanished from the battlefield, Mario, Luigi, Nanaki, Parakarry, and Lakilester appeared in the canyon, having dealt with the Remnants of Sephiroth. They could tell that all they had to do was perform a mop up action against the remains of the assault force but they were not going to celebrate until the last Shadow Creeper and Clone of Sephiroth had been destroyed. To that end, the group immediately charged towards the nearest remaining group of Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth and unleashed massive barrages of fireballs, Thunderhand Lightning balls, Spiny Surges, and Firaga pillars.
The attacks inflicted massive damage on the enemies, with several of them being outright incinerated. The others took stock of the situation and realized that they were in a no-win scenario. However, they would not go down without a fight. While Mario went to deal with them, the other allies went to assist them but Mario called them off, calling, "Go, I've got this! Clear out the rest of the canyon!"
The others nodded and went to search the canyon for any remaining stragglers. As they left to clear the town, the remaining Clones of Sephiroth and Shadow Creepers launched their attacks on the Mario Brothers, Nanaki, Parakarry, and Lakilester in the form of Firaga and Thundaga. Nanaki stepped forward to intercept the Firaga attacks since he had the Elemental Materia linked with a Fire Materia on his Escort Guard armor, so he could absorb the Firaga attacks and, had he been injured, convert them to health. He then countered with some Firaga pillars of his own, incinerating more of the Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth, with Mario and Luigi firing off more attacks on them, eventually destroying all of the enemies. However, before the last Clone fell, he fired a blast of Thundaga at the Octoblazooka mounted on the Dribble Taxi, having seen the havoc it had wrought in the initial stages of the battle. Electricity arced across the Octoblazooka but it did not explode and it seemed to still be functional. The moment he had launched that attack was the moment Nanaki's Firaga attack had incinerated him. After a few more moments, all of the Shadow Beasts and Clones of Sephiroth facing Mario and his party were destroyed.
After his fight had ended, Mario proceeded to help scour the rest of the town to make sure that all of the Shadow Creepers and Clones of Sephiroth had been destroyed. His partners and friends were doing a good job of clearing out the canyon, though, and by the time he had gotten around to helping, he only had a small handful of Shadow Creepers to deal with. Once those beasts had been finished, the battle was truly over.
Mario and the others met at the center of the town square and took stock of themselves, each other, and the situation. So far, everything seemed to be going fine for them. None of them had suffered significant injury and the town did not seem to have suffered that much damage. There had been some damage from the initial fires set before the heroes had arrived but so far, according to reports, miraculously, only minor injuries had been reported among the inhabitants of the canyon and the damage that had been done was easily repairable. Now that the battle had truly ended and they had taken stock of themselves, the allies allowed themselves a few moments to celebrate.
"We did it!" Goombario cried, jumping into the air. "We beat them all!"
"And we saved everyone while doing it," Nanaki added as his mate, Deneh; and cubs, Seto and Bugenhagen, came out to meet him.
"Welcome home Nanaki," Deneh stated as she came up and rubbed her head against his. "Thanks for the assist against those beasts and the Sephiroth Clones."
"Dad, you're back!" Seto exclaimed.
"Did you find what you needed?" Bugenhagen asked.
"We did," Aerith answered. "And more. We've got the tools we need to take down Sephiroth and cure the whole Lifestream."
"And what happens to you after that?" Seto asked. The question caught Aerith off guard.
"Yeah, what does happen to you after that?" Bugenhagen reiterated.
Nanaki as well as the Mario Brothers cast quizzical glances at Aerith, eager to hear her answer. She looked over at each of them, one of who was a friend from long ago with the other two being new friends, but friends that she had gotten close to during this adventure.
"I don't know," she eventually answered. "While the Lifestream did send me back, I had returned with the same injuries that I had entered the Lifestream with, too, so I don't know if I'll simply rejoin it at the end of the adventure or if this is truly a new lease on life."
"Personally, I'm hoping for the latter," Nanaki stated, walking up to Aerith and smiling. Mario and Luigi both nodded in agreement.
"I hope that once this adventure is over that you'll stay here in the canyon for a bit longer," Deneh told Nanaki with a subtle wink that caused the two cubs to look away.
"Alright then," Mario declared after all the pleasantries had been exchanged. "Let's get everything organized and make our final preparations while the Dribble Taxi is repaired as best as can be and refueled. Then, once we're ready, we're headed to North Crater so we can deal with Sephiroth once and for all."
"Yeah!" the rest of the party exclaimed.
Meanwhile, over near the Northern Continent, Bowser had taken the opportunity to get some sleep in the submarine's cramped captain's quarters while he and his children waited for the tide to rise high enough for them to pass. Since the submarine could idle with only one or two crew members being necessary, the others took the opportunity to get some much needed rest. Each Koopaling got about an hour to an hour and a half of rest before they awakened to give their siblings some relief.
After about three hours of waiting, Wendy was stationed at the helm with Lemmy studying the map and Larry at the sensor station. The sensors soon indicated that the tide was high enough for the submarine to attempt to cross the channel.
"Hey Wendy, go tell Dad and the others that the tide's high enough for us to make the attempt to cross!" Larry called out excitedly.
"Got it," Wendy answered as she departed from her station and went over to the intercom to awaken her father and the others. "Hey Dad, hey everyone, the tide's up so we can cross that channel now!" she cried into the comm at the top of her lungs. That should be enough to get everyone into gear. Lemmy and Larry had had to cover their ears at their sister's loud proclamation.
After a few minutes, Bowser arrived on the bridge along with Morton, Iggy, and Roy while Ludwig and Bowser Jr. had gone to the engine room to make sure that everything down there was running properly. Once the Koopalings had taken their stations, Bowser sat back down in the Captain's Chair and proceeded to issue his orders.
"Take us through!" he commanded.
"Aye, aye, Captain King Dad," the Koopalings responded in unison.
The Koopalings then guided the submarine through the narrow channel. They surfaced to the point where the tower had broken the water's surface but the submarine was, indeed, able to navigate its way through the channel. The Koopalings still took it slow so as to avoid running the submarine aground and stranding themselves in the channel. It did no take long for them to clear the channel, though, and once they were clear, they proceeded to make their way north.
"We've cleared the channel and are headed north," Larry reported.
"We should reach the northern part of the continent and the outskirts of North Crater within the hour," Lemmy informed Bowser.
"Alright," Bowser exclaimed, pumping his fist into the air. "Now we're in business. Take us north and get us to that crater as quickly as possible. I don't want to give Mario and his allies a chance to catch up to us on the chance that they are pursuing us. And besides, they're likely to be coming to North Crater to fight Sephiroth anyway. When we get close, make sure you guys outfit yourselves with some good Materia since we'll be in the fight of our lives up there if we're forced to face Mario before repairing and taking over the Starship Mario and heading back to Hylia."
"Yes King Dad," others answered before getting back to work guiding the submarine to the northernmost part of the Northern Continent.
Back in Cosmo Canyon, Mario and the others were organizing their supplies and seeing what they had left for the upcoming fight. So far, he was surprised that they still had a healthy amount of healing items and super-powers. However, they had used up a lot of their attack items during their adventure but they still had enough at least to outfit all allies with at least one attack item.
There was even some good news from Dribble and Spitz. Spitz had come over to Mario and Luigi to inform them about the condition of the Dribble Taxi. "Hey Mario, about the cab, we've got some good news and some bad news," Spitz began. "First, the bad news. That last lightning bolt cast by that Clone of Sephiroth fried the laser emitter on the Octoblazooka so we're not good for much more than transportation if we are forced to engage any defenses around the crater unless you want us to spend several hours fixing it. Since time is likely of the essence, I thought you might not want us to fix it right now. The good news, however, is that the hyperdrive, fusion battery, and fuel line aren't as badly damaged as we feared from the initial diagnostics. Each of them is repairable and we even have the parts necessary to fix them. We should have everything ready within the hour. Once that's done and the cab is fully fueled, we'll be able to go to North Crater at pretty close to top atmospheric speed so the trip shouldn't take too long."
"Awesome," Mario exclaimed. He then turned back to Luigi, Nanaki, and Aerith and called, "You guys hear that? The cab should be ready within the hour and if nothing else happens, we should even be able to get home."
"That's great, bro!" Luigi exclaimed.
Aerith and Nanaki also smiled for Mario and Luigi. It looked as if things were finally truly going right for them. Not wanting to slow down the plan, the group quickly got back to work organizing everything, helping out Dribble and Spitz with the cab, as well as organizing their supplies so they would have their best equipment for dealing with whatever they would face in North Crater.
During that hour, Mario made certain to equip himself with the badges he thought would give him the best chance of beating Sephiroth. Among those badges was a Feeling Fine badge, a Defense Plus badge, a Happy Heart, and a Happy Flower badge, which would restore health and stamina, respectively during battle. In addition, he also equipped his hammer with a Mega Smash badge and a Piercing Blow badge. He also outfitted himself with numerous super-powers as well as taking two Life Shrooms and some Jelly Ultras as well.
As for Luigi he took more attack items than super-powers, having a feeling that if Sephiroth brought out reinforcements, or if they ran into Bowser and the Koopalings by some good fortune, that he would need a lot of area of effect attack items. He also took a Hammer Suit and a Penguin Suit should he need an ice power-up or some additional defenses against any fire-based attacks, which he would need if he ran into Bowser and his children. He still took some healing items, including the two Special Sodas that he had yet to use, as well as some Jelly Ultras but he hoped he would not need them. As for badges, he also took a Defend Plus along with a Feeling Fine badge, as well as a Happy Heart and Happy Flower. For his Ultra Hammer, though, he equipped himself with a Mega Quake and a Fire Drive badge. Once he was finished, he went to join his brother and wait for the others to get ready.
As for Aerith and Nanaki, the half Cetra woman equipped herself with her trusty Princess Guard staff, equipping it with a W-Summon Materia, a Master Summon Materia that was in a linked slot with the MP Turbo Materia, the Bahamut Fury Materia, HP Plus, MP Plus, and Magic Plus. For armor, she stayed with her Minerva Band and equipped it with a Master Magic Materia in a linked slot with Quadra Magic, a Lightning Materia linked with an Elemental Materia, a Speed Plus, and another HP Plus Materia. For her accessory, she took a Ribbon, which would protect her from numerous status conditions.
For Nanaki, he wore his Limited Moon headdress and equipped it with Contain linked to Quadra Magic, Ultima linked to MP Turbo, Barrier linked to All, and Restore linked to All. For armor, he kept his trusty Escort Guard and equipped it with Knights of Round, Full Cure, Revive linked with All, and Destruct linked to All. For his accessory, he took a Reflect Ring. Once he was ready, he went and joined the others while they waited for the Dribble taxi to be repaired and fueled.
It took a little less than an hour for the Dribble Taxi to be repaired and refueled for the trip. Once it was ready, though, the party wasted no time boarding it. In order to rest up for the fight ahead, Mario, Luigi, and the other flight-capable allies boarded the taxi as well. Before he boarded the taxi, Nanaki went to tell his family that he would not be long and would likely be home before dinner.
"I'll hold you to that, Nanaki," Deneh told him.
"Go for it, Dad. Kick Sephiroth's butt!" Seto and Bugenhagen cried, giving several roars of encouragement.
"Don't worry, I will," Nanaki answered his family.
Before he boarded the taxi, though, Mario and Luigi got out and went over to him and handed him ten thousand gil that had been won during the Ninja Tournament, giving him the requisite 3200 gil that had been owed to them for the Special Sodas. Nanaki, however, was not interested in receiving any money, especially since if they failed here, they may need the money for other things.
"You don't have to do that," Nanaki told them.
"Take it," Mario insisted. "You paid for the Special Sodas out of your own pocket. Besides, if all goes well and we can get home, gil won't be all that useful since we use different currency."
Seeing that Mario would not be moved, he eventually accepted the ten thousand gil. With that out of the way, he then boarded the taxi, followed by Mario and Luigi.
Aerith was the last to board and managed to find a seat next to Luigi in the back of the cab. As she sat next to him, she could not help but smile as she looked at him. While the younger Mario Brother was hiding it well, he was actually pretty scared of what they were about to face; and he should be. Still, despite his fear, he was more than willing to engage what was probably the strongest enemy he had ever faced in his life, or a squad of enemies enhanced with Jenova cells and Mako energy.
Once everyone was onboard, the doors closed and the windows rose. As they rose, Mario noticed that the cracks had closed, meaning that either the windows had been repaired or replaced. Once the doors closed, Dribble called back to the others, "Okay everyone; fasten your safety belts. We're heading towards North Crater at high speed!"
The passengers heeded the bipedal dog's advice and fastened their seatbelts. Once they were buckled in, the taxi began to move. It accelerated a bit before quickly taking off into the sky. Once they had reached a safe flight ceiling, the cab rocketed off into the distance to the north. Deneh and the cubs watched as the taxi rocketed north and uttered silent prayers for the safe return of Nanaki as well as the rest of the allies.
Over in the Lifestream, Sephiroth had sensed the loss of his Remnants and the failure of the attack on Cosmo Canyon. He knew that he did not have time to seethe or come up with a contingency plan. He had to make do with what he had since he knew that Mario and his allies were making a beeline towards North Crater. He also sensed Bowser and his children making their way towards North Crater as well, along with the ball of Mako. He then considered the situation, as well as the condition of the fallen Starship Mario. Perhaps there was a chance after all. And if things went right, perhaps Mario's plan would fail even with the new Great Gospel tome. All that was needed was to ensure that Bowser and his kids faced off against Mario and forced him to split his forces against two targets.