A deafening scream pierced through the halls of Asperity. Everyone had heard it, but nobody knew who it came from. Lilith however, had a nagging feeling she knew who that scream belonged to and why. Sterling took notice of Lilith's slightly distressed expression and stood up from his seat, deliberating on whether or not he should've left to see what had happened.
"Fine, the person who had been a victim to the well was an underling of mine. Her name is Rubix." Lilith confessed briskly as she also stood up from her seat," That girl was originally a rival to Nixe. Her former name was Cure Cheer."
Dolly's eyes widened with shock, unable to quite process what Lilith had said. She blinked a few times, but still wasn't able to form any kind of response. The blank look in her eye indicated that she was lost in her thoughts, trying desperately to collect them as she repeated the statement over and over.
"Rubix and Cure Cheer...they're one in the same." Dolly said in her head, before shaking it in disagreement as her rational side finally kicked in.
"There's no way. Cure Cheer was killed in your last battle, and even if she had lived through that battle, she would've appeared much older than Rubix." Dolly pointed out," If Rubix really was Cure Cheer, then she looks as if she didn't age since the day of that last battle."
"That's precisely what happened." Lilith responded with a sigh," The well leeched from her magic for years once she had fallen into it. But strangely enough, the well preserved her body, keeping her untouched by time with nobody aware of her presence inside the well."
"The well was able to store Cure Cheer's body for so long?" Dolly questioned as she turned to Sterling who appeared just as confused as her.
"I've never really heard of anyone falling down the well but...there have been many things kept a mystery about it." Sterling explained, his tone uneasy as he pictured Cure Cheer falling into the well.
"Rubix remembers nothing of her past life, she only wishes to serve Nixe but...it appears Nixe has finally chosen to reward Rubix for her loyalty."
"Exactly...how does Nixe plan on doing that?" Dolly asked curiously.
"They'll offer Rubix all of their magic, but even if Rubix is gifted Nixe's magic, she won't be able to use it freely unless Nixe takes back the magic they originally gave to two people in Asperity." Lilith explained to the two," Myself and Danica."
"Who's Danica?" Dolly asked dumb-founded, as Sterling looked at Lilith curiously.
"This is the worst! I haven't seen a single Pretty Cure for hours and I can't even find stupid Rubix." Bounce claimed as she drew out a sigh," If this keeps up, the final battle will come and I'll have had no part in it!"
She heard the ceiling from behind giving in and she sped up a bit, only to hear the sound of the ceiling behind her collapsing onto the ground. Bounce turned around and looked at the ceiling with an unimpressed look on her face.
"Good lord, how am I to even walk around this place without being crushed by debris?" Bounce wondered aloud as she shook her head," This only started to happen when Rubix and mom left for the kingdom. They shouldn't have done that, especially mom"
"The kingdom hates mom, that much is obvious...but if there's anyone they should direct their hatred towards...it;s the Queen." Bounce thought to herself as she took a pause from walking," She's a selfish woman who waves off the problems of her kingdom, and she despises mom with every fibre of her being. I'm sure if she didn't exist the kingdom would be much happier. If it wasn't for her, maybe mom would've had a chance to prove her point about the well's corruption to the people of the kingdom."
"What am I thinking, it's not just her! That whole lousy kingdom is corrupt, and beyond saving in my opinion. We've been too lenient on them." Bounce claimed as she folded her arms," Maybe Earth really had been the superior realm."
Bounce stared at the floor for a few moments before continuing on. Lilith had told her that her father was from Earth, but he passed away early on, much too early for her to remember anything about him. Bounce always did feel a bit sorry for herself for never getting the chance to know her dad, but she didn't mind and believed that he would've been proud to see the present day version of herself.
"Ugh, snap out of it! We've been waiting for this day our whole life so there's no way I'm just gonna sit back and wait around for the rest of them to find me." Bounce declared as she started to run through the halls. She found a doorway in the long hall she didn't recognize and looked at it curiously. She looked both ways and decided to open up the door.
On the other side of the door was a room filled with chunks of crystals that looked like Everlight sprouting from the ground. The crystals were ranging from three to six feet in size and some of them looked as if they had been chipped an awful lot. Bounce looked at the crystal chunks thoughtfully, but then she heard the sound of children laughing and grew tense. She could have sworn it came from the of the crystals, so she walked over to one that may have been the same height as her and looked at it closely. In the reflection of the crystal was a group of children playing around in a playground, with some kids running around a fountain with plush toys in their hands. The sight was an eyesore to Bounce, she never did feel all that comfortable around children but a closer look at the fountain and the plush toys had her much more interested in the image on display.
"How is that possible?" Bounce asked as she watched the fountain spew light blue and pink water, while the childrens' toys came to life and played with the kids.
Bounce then heard what sounded like the floor getting ripped open and spun around to see an enormous crystal had emerged in front of the doorway.
Bounce shrugged and lifted up her t-shirt's sleeve while saying," Whatever, the crystals in here may look strong, but guess who's stronger?"
Bubbly, Fantasy, the fairies and River were continuing their search for Princess Arabella, but they were still evidently unnerved by the scream from earlier.
"Are you sure we haven't been running around in circles?" River asked the two of them warily as they continued to run.
"Positive!" Bubbly answered as she skidded to a stop," I'm not sure if you've been noticing, but me and Fantasy have been making rainbow bubbles and sticking them on the halls so we'd know whether or not we've been in these halls.
"But...wouldn't the bubbles pop?" River pointed out.
Fantasy shook her head and responded with," Bubbly's bubbles won't pop unless she pops them herself."
"Even then, it seems almost impossible to find your way in this place." Rani remarked as she eyed the endless halls nervously," I fear we may not have it easy finding the rest of our team."
"We'd be lucky enough to find any other living creature at this point." Nova commented flatly as she watched Bubbly place a bubble on a lamp.
"Hey, Bubbly, Fantasy and Knight dude, over here!" A voice that sounded like Teddy's cried out to them. The three of them saw Teddy and Hayase on the other side of the hallway, though something seemed amiss.
The three of them walked up towards Teddy and Hayase, but it appeared the two of them were standing on the ceiling.
"Hey how'd you guys get on the ceiling?" Teddy asked the group that appeared upside down to her and Hayase.
"We could ask you the same thing!" Fantasy replied as she tilted her head. Bubbly looked towards Fantasy to see if she had any answers to why this was happening but not even she could figure it out.
"I think a reflection of sorts…" Hayase declared as he looked closer at the three of them," None of them have their hair or clothes falling down with them. So clearly, they're also still right side up ."
"...Then we aren't as nearby as we thought." Bubbly commented with a frown before she pressed her head against River's arm," Why is this place so complicated?"
"Complaining won't do us any good Miss Bubbly." River reminded her with a chuckle," But, I'm sure our paths will cross each other again soon. I don't think the rest of this organization can keep holding out like this much longer."
Teddy nodded in agreement then suddenly, the two of them heard a voice calling out in the halls.
"Lillith, Lillith?" The voice called out.
"Princess Arabella?" Knight River called out once he heard the voice calling out.
"You guys can hear that too? Then we really must be closer than we think." Teddy remarked as she continued to listen for the voice,," We're going to head in the direction where the voice came from."
"We will too!" Bubbly declared with a nod," We'll see each other soon, ok?"
The two groups separated once more and ran off in the direction of where the voice was coming from for them.
It didn't take Bubbly, Fantasy, the fairies and River too long to find a room with a glass wall where they could see two people inside. In the room was a tall girl with long blonde hair and a boy lying unconscious lying unconscious in a bed next to her. The girl was pacing around, continuing to call out Lilith's name while shaking the boy on the bed softly every few moments.
"You better not be having that talk without me." She called out before she drew out a sigh.
"It's Princess Arabella!" River exclaimed as he pointed to her," But it appears her absence from the kingdom has...changed her appearance?"
"Haven't we seen that uniform before?" Nova whispered to Bubbly, who nodded in response after a couple of seconds.
"I guess she worked at the Cafe Kiriko took us to a few months back." Bubbly declared, watching Arabella pace around the room as if she had nothing better to do.
The group looked at her curiously, surprised by the act that Arabella had yet to notice the three of them standing on the opposite side of the glass wall. She was pacing around in a more frantic manner, still checking up on Kai every few moments, but she had yet to turn around and see the three at the glass wall.
"That boy...does he have a Patchwork Heart inside him?" Rani asked quietly," Or...did it get taken away?"
River was growing impatient, and decided for the team that they shouldn't have been wasting another second here and began to call out for Arabella.
"Princess Arabella! We've come to rescue you!" He shouted, startling the two Cures and fairies at his side.
Bubbly looked over to Arabella and was amazed to find that they still hadn't got her attention. She wore an incredulous expression, turning to Fantasy to see if she had any answers. Fantasy studied the glass wall carefully, lightly pressing her fingertips against it and wondered if the glass wall was doing more than physically keeping them apart.
"Maybe this wall is like a two-sided mirror...meaning that she can't see us." Fantasy suggested as she pressed her palms against the wall in an attempt to determine what the wall could've been made of.
"But...she hasn't turned this way once since we got here." Bubbly pointed out as she took a close look at Arabella," Don't you think it seems like she's avoiding us?"
"Avoiding us?" River repeated in disbelief, " There would be no way the princess would be so ungrateful to-"
"Lilith! I can't keep waiting forever you know!" Arabella cried out her voice sounding a lot more panicked than before.
The group watched her and figured she really was ignoring them, as she appeared more scared than earlier and refused to turn to face the glass wall during her pacing.
Fantasy then noticed Teddy and Hayase running from the opposite end of the room from the display on the other glass wall. Teddy held Hayase's arm to stop him from running and pressed her face and hands against the wall.
"I think we saw her at the cafe Kiriko took us to…" Teddy pointed out, before her eyes met Arabella's. The moment their gazes met, Arabella immediately pretended she didn't see Teddy and gave her undivided attention to Kai.
"Hey we're here to bust you free! The least you could do is acknowledge us!" Teddy shouted as she banged her fist against the glass wall," Damn it, where's the door?"
Hayase pointed to a door on the edge of the glass wall and Teddy led the way into the room.
Arabella's heart was starting to race as she anxiously clung to the wall next to Kai's bed. Once Teddy stormed into the room, Arabella knew her fate was sealed and pointed to the door at the glass wall where Bubbly, Fantasy and River stood. Once she finally acknowledged their presence, her expression became more somber.
The two teams were united and stood in a half-circle around Arabella and Kai, with River taking a step closer towards Arabella. He knelt down next to her and inspected her to see if she had any injuries, but she seemed to be alright for the most part. The only thing that seemed to have been giving issues was her sense of judgement.
"I'm fine, ok?" Arabella claimed impatiently as she waved her hand to protest," But...Kai won't wake up and I don't know what to do."
The Cures and Hayase took a look at Kai who slept peacefully but Arabella looked worried as she glanced over to him. They had been asleep ever since they got here, ever since Asperity extracted their Patchwork Heart.
"I don't care about what happens to me, please just save Kai!" Arabella begged as she stood up and joined the team at Kai's bedside. She knelt next to them and held one of their hands tight, as she hung her head.
"When I got sent to Earth, Kai appeared and helped me out. Kai had been so kind to me all this time. They showed me how bad I was at everything but they didn't make fun of me. I didn't think I'd enjoy being on Earth as much as I did, but they made it worthwhile." Arabella explained as she let go of Kai's hand," I have to make something clear to you though...I'm not interested in going back to the kingdom."
The girls were surprised but it was River who was more alarmed and clamoured,
"But we've been searching for you all this time, and now you want to abandon your role as future queen?"
"Yeah." Arabella answered flatly, her eyes narrowed at River.
"Well, we were supposed to only find Arabella. The rest of the details are up to her." Teddy stated with a shrug, who only received a glare from River.
"Lilith said she was going to collect me so we can have a talk with my father about the future of the kingdom. She promised me she'd mention abolishing the rule that the eldest must become the heir to the throne, we need to find her!"
"Um, not the main reason we need to find her but...sure whatever floats your boat." Bubbly commented sheepishly as she helped Arabella stand up.
"It's likely Dolly's already encountered her. For all we know, she could be facing Lillith all on her own…" Fantasy said, envisioning a chibi Dolly fighting a fire-breathing Lilith," We should get going."
Dolly tried collecting her thoughts once more, holding her hands out to let Lillith and Sterling give her a moment. Dolly looked over to Lillith, her stomach forming knots as their eyes met. She knew being in the presence of Asperity's leader would've probably led to a feeling of uneasiness coming over her, but she didn't expect to discuss things over with her like this.
"So...you honestly believe that Nixe is going to help you change the kingdom for the greater good, after all they've made you do?" Dolly asked, with Lillith nodding in response.
"Nixe understands my home is corrupt and they're willing to help in order to restore things." Lillith explained patiently, though Sterling and Dolly didn' appear to be convinced.
"Yeah, restore things to when there was nothing." Sterling commented flatly," I understand your desire to improve the kingdom but...Nixe won't make such a wish come true."
"Do you think that Nixe has any concern over the members of the kingdom when they've been forcing you to corrupt Patchwork Hearts of the innocent? Nixe has been taking advantage of you, the two of you aren't seeing eye to eye." Dolly explained to Lillith," All Nixe saw was a helpless young girl. You may be set on improving the kingdom, but Nixe has other things in mind."
"I…" Lillith trailed off nervously, thinking back to her first meeting with Nixe. At the time, nobody had known about her and Sterling, and she was certain nobody would've wanted them together. When she was proven right, it felt as if her heart had been shattered into pieces, but Nixe offered her comfort. Nixe offered to help her in exchange for her labour, but at this point it seemed her wishes were still far out of reach, even with Nixe and all she had done for them.
Had it been denial all these years that had kept her from splitting with Nixe? Or had it been fear? Nixe was never the nicest person, but they did allow Lillith to do things that may've been unexpected from Nixe.
The only reason it took them so many years to strike back was because Lillith wanted to learn more about the well and she wanted to spend time with Bounce, make sure she was raised properly and not pushed to the side during all of this. Reminiscing on the times when Nixe cared for both her and Bounce made Lillith even more hesitant to listen to the two of them.
"Nixe said that they'd make your wish come true, right? So tell me, after all of this, do you think you'll still be getting your wish?" Dolly asked her.
Lillith looked at her in question and then glanced over to Sterling. So much time had passed since that wish was made and everything seemed to have changed in her absence. Was Nixe to blame for not skimping out on their end of the deal? Or was it Lillith for hoping that the greater force she encountered would give her what she wanted?
Lillith stared at the two of them for a long while, a guilty expression on her face.
"I've been nothing but Nixe's puppet all this time. I let them manipulate me and my family under the belief that Nixe would fulfill an empty promise. But...Nixe has done but hurt innocent people. I've let Nixe hurt innocent people." Lillith explained as her gaze fell to the floor," I won't ask you for forgiveness, but I'll request that you keep Rubix and Nixe from finding Danica."
Lillith wasn't the slightest bit bothered by the fact that the two of them appeared confused. If anything, it looked as if she had been expecting this. She walked over to Dolly and held onto both of her hands.
"I can give you the rest of the magic I had from Nixe, but I'll just need a bit more time to fully extract it. Nixe is so focussed on Rubix as their new host, that they won't keep a watch on me." Lillith declared to her.
Dolly narrowed her eyes and then responded with," Are you able to extract your magic while moving around? Because I'd much prefer to keep an eye on you in the case that Nixe is really keeping watch over you. Whar We're going to look for the rest of my team and see if we can reverse the effects Nixe has had on Rubix while King Sterling looks for Bounce. If that's alright with the two of you."
Sterling nodded, though he hadn't expected to have been taking part in this. In truth, ever since he got to Asperity, his objective had been to find Arabella. But, Dolly appeared adamant and even if she was much younger than him she appeared to have a better grasp of the situation than him. If this had to take priority, he decided it was for the best to put his search for his daughter on hold.
"It's fine, I'll do my best to find her." Sterling answered without hesitation," What does she look like?"
"Well, she's about an inch taller than Lillith, she's loud and obnoxious as hell so you can hear her from a mile away, dresses like a skateboarder, and always wears a black beanie." Dolly listed, though Lillith was evidently unapproving of Dolly's description as she shook her head.
Sterling looked at her curiously, a blank expression on his face as he tried using context clues just to figure out what the words "skateboarder" and "beanie" meant.
"Don't worry. If you can't find her, then chances are it'll be the other way around!" Dolly reassured him as she took a hold of Lillith's hand and led herself and Lillith out of the room," Good luck!"
Sterling leaned out of the doorway and looked at the hallway, unsure exactly what either side of the hall held in store for him.
Dolly and Lillith were running through the halls of Asperity together, with the former listening close to see if she could hear her teammates' voices. To her dismay, she couldn't hear anything but the sound of her and Lillith's heeled shoes slamming against the floor. Dolly had already learned that Asperity was nothing more than one big labyrinth right now, so her hopes of finding the rest of her team were diminishing.
"In the case that we find Rubix before your teammates, what do you plan to do?" Lillith questioned as they ran.
Dolly turned to speak with her properly and said," I'm going to set her straight and remind her who she once was."
"And if that doesn't work?"
"Then we'll just have to settle things with a fight." Dolly declared with a shrug," That's what we came here to do anyways."
"Dolly?! Cure Dolly?!" Teddy shouted as the group walked through Asperity's halls with little sense of direction," It'd be easier finding a needle in a haystack with Asperity in shambles like this."
"Lilith? Lilith, where are you?!" Arabella called out, keeping her distance from River and the rest of the group, except Teddy and Hayase. Everytime River tried to get a bit closer or even engage in conversation with her, Arabella would ignore him and continue calling out for Lillith.
"You know, for a future queen she's not as mature as I expected…" Bubbly remarked, scrutinizing Arabella who only crossed her arms impatiently as she walked.
"I'll admit, it's a bit disheartening to see the princess like this." River commented, a guilty look in his eyes as he glanced at Arabella.
"Well, we did make her leave Kai behind." Fantasy reminded the team," She doesn't seem to have much concern over the fate of the kingdom. All she wants is to ensure Kai's safety."
"Teddy, is that you?" The group then heard a voice call out. The sound of that voice got them excited, all of them certain it was Dolly who called out to them.
Around the corner of the hall emerged Dolly and Lillith, the former excitedly rushing over towards her teammates. She was relieved to have finally been reunited with them after all this searching through Asperity and all the missteps she took while looking for them.
"I'm so glad I found you guys after all this time!" Dolly confessed, resting her head on Bubbly's shoulder's for a few moments," You have no idea what I've gone through in your absence."
River suddenly unsheathed his sword and held out his slightly damaged shield, glaring at Lillith as he questioned," What is she doing here with you?"
The Cures only just noticed the dark magic exuding from Lillith and they stood ready to fight alongside River, but Dolly shook her head and only gave a wave of dismissal.
"Don't worry, she's not the one we have to fight against." Dolly assured her team," Lillith is willing to help us end things with Nixe who's currently using Rubix as a host."
"I'm sure you'll all have trouble trusting me...I don't blame you if you do, but I want to at least correct these mistakes. I've had enough of Nixe manipulating me and my loved ones." Lillith declared resolutely.
The team appeared to be divided on Lillith's claim. River, Fantasy and Hayase didn't seem to be all that convinced by Lillith's words but everyone else seemed willing to at least give her a chance.
"If you're brave enough to admit in front of everyone you've been in the wrong for what you've done, I think you can be trusted." Bubbly replied as she took a step forward, joining her hands with Lillith," Plus, you're a lot cuter than I expected! You're like...fun-sized!"
"I'm what?" Lillith asked cluelessly, not fully understanding how her petite stature and her height of five foot and one inch deemed her to be fun-sized.
"Anyways! I guess since we got reunited quicker than expected, our only hope in defeating Rubix without the need for a final battle is finding Bounce." Dolly debriefed to the team," She's the only person aside from Lillith with Nixe's magic and Rubix won't be able to gain control as a host to Nixe if other people are withholding Nixe's magic."
"Bounce? We haven't seen her since we got here." Teddy reminded her skeptically," That stuck-up brat could be anywhere in this place."
"Is anyone there~?!" Bounce shouted as she tried to break open the crystal that encased the door," I don't plan on sitting around here all day you know!"
Bounce turned around and slid down against the crystal encasement, seating herself on the floor in defeat. She shook her head and looked towards the ceiling hoping that if the room's foundation was going to give in, it'd be now.
"It's bad enough I didn't do anything useful to get us to this point, but now I can't even prove my worth in this final battle? This bites." Bounce lamented as she lightly hit the back of her head against the crystal coated door.
Bounce then rested her cheek on her fist, feeling her heart sink a little as she thought about the events from today and the last few weeks. It was clear that progress had been achieved all thanks to Rubix, so it only made sense that Lillith and Nixe doted on her, though Bounce thought it would've been nice if they could've spared some of that attention for her.
Bounce then shook her head vigorously and pulled her hat down all the way over her head, her voice muffled as she said," I don't have the time to be thinking of stuff like this, I gotta fight in this final battle!"
Bounce then lifted up both of her sleeves and started her attempt in punching her way out of the room littered with crystals. Her first punch was most likely going to be her last, as she heard a popping sound that was followed by a searing pain in her hand momentarily.
"Son of a-!" Bounce shouted, before she noticed bits of the ceiling falling to the ground. She looked up expectantly, but it seemed that was all that would happen. Bounce groaned, but then a thought came to her. If the ceiling was giving in, that had to have been because someone was stepping on it from above.
Bounce took a deep breath and yelled out as loud as she could," Hey, anybody up there? I'm stuck in this room!"
Sterling, who had darted past the hallway, took a halt after hearing Bounce's cry from down below. From up here, her shouting was quite faint, but it was so quiet in these halls that Sterling couldn't have missed it.
Sterling ran back into the hall and knelt close to the floor, hoping to hear the voice again.
"Rubix, mom?! It's me, Bounce!" Bounce shouted, cupping her hands and holding them near to her mouth. An uneasy expression arose to her face as she looked up towards the ceiling. Had her mind been playing games with her and there was nobody waiting for her on the other side of the ceiling? She squinted at the ceiling, hoping to see some more debris drop down.
"Don't worry, I'll get you out of there soon!" A voice shouted back to her.
What she expected to be relief instilled into her was instead a feeling of tension as she took a step back, trying to determine who's voice that was. If it was someone from the kingdom who managed to sneak their way in, she'd be done for. Imprisoned and without much luck to receive help from Lilith or Rubix was what Bounce expected if the person who found her had the intentions she was nervous about.
"I can't just tell them to go away, that'd only make me even more suspicious looking…" Bounce said to herself as she leaned against the crystal coated door," My best bet would be to hide and hope they create an exit out of this room. But...can I stay unseen for that long?"
The room was dimly lit, so maybe if she found the right spot, she'd stand a chance at hiding long enough for her rescuer to assume he had been hearing things.
"How am I supposed to get into that room?" Sterling asked himself, still sitting on the floor as he pressed his palms against the surface. It didn't feel as steady as he expected, but it didn't seem likely that simply pressing down on the ground would've led to its collapse.
"I should've brought Lilith with me, she'd probably know how to break this or at least where the entrance to this room is." Sterling said to himself as he looked both ways. There didn't appear to be a doorway leading to the lower level. In a place like this, it seemed all you really needed was luck on your side to get where you wanted to go.
Sterling sighed, folding his hands as he said," If I could just dig through this with a-"
Just then, Sterling got hit in the back of the head with something that seemingly fell from the ceiling. He heard the clatter of the object hitting the ground moments after and turned around to find a shovel behind him.
"I guess this will work…"
Jack could be seen typing away in the master computer room where Domino had his final battle in, looking closely at one of the few functioning screens left before him. Asperity was in such a mess that the technology in the organization couldn't even hope to keep up with the chaos, but luckily some of the functions were still able to be used.
Jack was jittery at the keyboard, keying in as many commands as he could from the top of his head. When he saw that the shovel went and knocked Sterling on the head, he grinned and got back to work.
"Damn it, none of the screens wanna reboot…At this rate I'll never be able to locate the Pretty Cure, Lilli or Rubix..." Jack muttered to himself as he typed away," It's not like these things had much hope to work after the motherboard got fried, I oughta consider myself lucky I'm still able to punch in commands like this."
Jack was quiet for a few moments as he watched Sterling begin to chip away at the ground beneath him. Watching him made Jack's stomach twist up restlessly, and he was almost tempted to take a pause from his work just to see Sterling enter the room beneath it.
The screen had been flickering on and off, but Jack had seen the room where Bounce was trapped in. He would've gone to save her, but if Sterling was closer by, he figured it'd be a waste of time for him to go and try to find her in the shambles Asperity was in.
"Bounce is finally going to meet him. I know it's probably weird for me to say but...I'm a little psyched." Jack admitted with a somewhat forced smile as he turned around," I just wish you'd be able to see this too."
Bounce pretended she didn't hear the sound of the ceiling getting chipped away and that she didn't stand a chance of being found. But, with the ceiling above her continuing to fall apart, she knew soon enough she was going to get stuck here with somebody from the kingdom.
She was sitting behind one of the largest crystal chunks in the room and was doing a good job in keeping herself hidden since the crystal completely obscured her figure. She did wonder though how long it'd take for her to get discovered once the person chipping away at the ceiling arrived.
Bounce then shook her head and gripped her hand into a fist, saying to herself quietly," If I just sit here allowing myself to feel helpless, then I've already let them won! I'm better than that. When that person comes down here, they're going to wish they never met me!"
It wasn't long before Bounce's rescuer came leaping down from the hole they created. Sterling stood in the center of the room, looking around at the crystals with an inquisitive look in his eye. He looked closer at the crystals, unable to make sense of the images they were projecting. He didn't want to look too much into them, since he came here to rescue Bounce.
Just then, Bounce emerged from her hiding spot, a smirk on her face as she held a pair of neon green and black spheres in both her hands.
"Looking for me, Laruan Kingdom scum?" Bounce questioned, though as soon as Sterling saw her, he stood completely frozen. Bounce seemed rather irritated by the fact that Sterling was without a reaction from her surprise appearance, and the fact that he only continued to stare at her was creeping her out.
"What is it? What are you looking at?" Bounce questioned impatiently, as she disengaged the spheres.
Sterling was still taken aback, but he felt a bit less tense as he responded," You haven't noticed yet?"
Bounce gave him a quizzical look, narrowing her eyes at him before realization hit her hard. Same amber eyes, same green hair, same facial structure. It couldn't have been a coincidence. But it still didn't make sense to Bounce. This person before her, who was most likely the king, couldn't have been her father. He was supposed to be a nameless earthling, that's why she had dark brown hair as a kid and could blend in on earth with ease. Though her dark brown hair did grow out in her late teens. And now it was the exact same colour as the person who stood before her.
Bounce watched Sterling with an indecisive expression, before she remembered what she said before he got here and the situation at hand, thus leading her to conjure up another set of black and green spheres.
"If you really are my dad, then you're the absolute worst excuse for a dad and a king I've ever seen!" Bounce shouted as she flung the spheres towards him," What kind of dad would leave his family to fend for themself while pretending they didn't exist? And would let everyone turn against them? Not to mention leaving for a woman that only wants to fuel that hatred?"
Sterling didn't say anything in response, and Bounce was shaking with anger at this point. Both of the spheres had narrowly missed Sterling, though it was hard to tell whether this was because Bounce was so mad she couldn't aim properly or she was deliberately missing him.
"Now I see why she has some of Nixe's magic." Sterling thought to himself," Lilith couldn't have hoped to have kept her alive during that final battle, but Nixe managed to protect her by guarding her with their magic. Now that same magic must be flowing through her."
Sterling walked towards her and Bounce was getting nervous, stepping back to maintain the distance. Bounce kept stepping backwards with every step Sterling took and soon, she backed herself into the wall.
"I...I never knew it had been you. Mom always said my dad was from earth." Bounce explained as she hung her head," She may have said he died before I was born but she also said he was very kind to her and always took good care of her. She said he made her feel safe and important, that nobody would ever replace her. But I guess that wasn't true, was it?"
"I'd never want anyone to go through what Lilith had to suffer. And I wish I hadn't only just met you today. I wish I hadn't been pressured into the role of king and had been brave to abandon the role when I had the chance. If leaving the kingdom back then meant you and Lilith would've been unharmed and happy today, I would've done it without a second thought. I never intended for Lilith or your family to have been subjected to this kind of treatment and...I'm sorry. I'm sorry I didn't do anything for you all and allowed my kingdom to view you as the bad guys. If we're able to get out of here unharmed, then I promise I'll do anything to make you and Lillith receive the forgiveness you rightfully deserve. "
Another step towards Bounce was taken, and Sterling knelt slightly to look her in the eye.
"Lillith may have had to raise you on her own but I'll admit, she did a good job. It's good, you stand up for what you believe in, and you're willing to call people out. It's a skill you must've developed on your own, since Lilith and I had always been timid." Sterling said as he put a hand on her shoulder," I don't think you're all that bad, despite what you may think."
"Strange...you've seemed to inherit a lot from me." Sterling remarked as he touched her forehead," Same looks, same bitter voice, same sense of impatience. It's actually refreshing if I'm being honest. It seems the only thing you inherited from Lillith was her height."
Bounce glared at him and questioned," Was that a short joke?"
"Wasn't it obvious?" Sterling retorted, a genuine smile on his face.
Just then, a figure fell into the room from the hole Sterling made and looked at the two of them with content, before an unsettling smile arised on their face.
"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." The figure said to them, the smile on their face only getting bigger.
The group had been waiting around for Lillith to complete the extraction of her magic so Dolly could take ownership of and somehow destroy it. Lillith told the group a purification attack would've been enough to destroy it, but there was a chance Nixe could outsmart them and cast it away, being able to separate themselves from the magic they originally gifted to Lillith.
"But if Nixe were to do that in the first place, then they wouldn't have to worry about reclaiming their magic from Lilith and Bounce." River pointed out, not fully following Lillith's explanation," They could've been engaging in their final battle with us by now."
"Yeah but, it appears to be a last resort type of move for Nixe." Dolly explained as she drew out a diagram on the ground with some chalk Fantasy conjured up," Lillith and Bounce were both holding quite a bit of Nixe's magic and Nixe is really running out of resources right now. Without any Defectives or any underlings left to fight in their place, Nixe's probably trying to secure their victory by reclaiming all that magic.``
"I know it may seem hard to believe but just like us, I really think Nixe is at wit's end." Dolly confessed as she drew a black scribbly cloud to represent Nixe," I think we could easily get this plan to work, we just have to hope Sterling's found Bounce and they're on their way."
Teddy and Hayase weren't sitting in with the group and Teddy had been awfully quiet around Hayase ever since they escaped the Everlight encased room together.
Teddy was sitting her back towards Hayase on a stone, and while Hayase knew she was frustrated with him, he wasn't ready to approach her about it yet. He figured he'd rather wait until they finished saving the kingdom.
Bubbly was staring at Arabella for a few moments before she nervously said," Um, there's been something I've been meaning to ask you about. Did you always know Kai had the King's Patchwork Heart?"
Everyone in the group fell silent and all eyes were on Arabella. Dolly in particular kept a close watch on Arabella, who was trying her best not to let a disdainful look appear on her face.
"No, I would've never guessed it." Arabella answered casually," Kai may be good at his job but...I really did think that was as far as his talents went. I was certain he was a normal earthling...I'm not even sure how I could've failed to notice."
"Maybe there was a seal on his magic?" Fantasy suggested to her, but Arabella shook her head.
"Kai's an earthling through and through. He always talks about the gigantic family gatherings he has, he can't achieve stuff like that if his family had been spread out in the kingdom."
"Then...maybe it's reincarnation." Teddy suggested,though nobody seemed to be on board with her," Kai's been an earthling all his life, he probably knew nothing of the kingdom until now. But maybe in a past life, he was someone much more prominent in the kingdom."
"But, to get reincarnated into a whole other world?" Dolly asked skeptically before shaking her head," Well, I suppose stranger things have happened. Lillith, how much longer?"
Lillith then unclasped the choker she was wearing and took off the pendant from it, handing in to Cure Dolly.
"If you can find Danica, then we'll be able to defeat Nixe without hurting Rubix." Lillith explained," Despite how cruel she may seem, she's a member of the kingdom and I won't stand for Nixe treating her as a pawn."
River then stood up abruptly and said," While you all do that, I'm going to go back and find the room where we left Kai. I feel guilty for leaving him behind when he meant so much to you Arabella."
"Then I'm coming with you." Arabella replied firmly," You won't have much luck trying to retrace your footsteps, plus...after all Kai has done for me on Earth, the least I could do is protect them in this last battle!"
Lillith glanced towards Dolly and then Arabella and River, as she chimed in with," Nixe may have been the one to remove Kai's Patchwork Heart, but...I think I know how to claim it back. I'll follow with you two to help."
Dolly then clapped her hands together, getting everyone's attention and announced," Ok, so...while you guys go find the room where Kai's been kept, we'll look for Bounce and Sterling. Don't do anything too risky, just find Kai and his Patchwork Heart, and don't go looking for trouble. That's what we're here for."
"What are you going to do?" Teddy whispered to Hayase," It's totally up to you."
Hayase looked over towards the other group, Teddy could tell he was worried for them, since heaven knows what they'd be getting themselves into once the group divided itself. There may've been strength in numbers here, but saving Kai took priority over the size of their team.
"You wanna go with them, don't you?" Teddy asked him, who nodded after a few moments.
"River and Lillith are running low on magic, and Arabella might not be able to fend off whatever they encounter on the way to that room. It's better off I join them, they could use the help."
Teddy responded while nodding," Just remember what Dolly said, don't go looking for trouble. Best case scenario, you find Kai without running into Rubix. Only try to find us if you think it's safe to, alright?"
Hayase nodded in agreement and stood up, parting ways with the Pretty Cure to join the rescue team for Kai.
Teddy started walking with the rest of her teammates in the opposite direction, turning around only for a moment to catch a fleeting glance at Hayase.
"He's been hiding this secret all this time, and yet he chose to never tell either me or Tadashi." Teddy thought to herself,"There must've been a lot of pressure on him to keep quiet about this for so long."
"It's weird, I didn't think I'd ever see her like this." Hayase thought to himself as he walked with the other group," Had she always been this mature, or did she grow up when I wasn't paying attention?"
"Hey Dolly, do you think Bounce will have enough time to extract her magic out the same way Lillith did?" Fantasy questioned," I know we've yet to encounter her, but I keep getting this feeling that Rubix is gaining on us."
"Yeah, I don't feel like it'll be much longer until we meet with Rubix again. Dolly admitted, her voice sounding frustrated as she looked down the dim narrow hall that awaited them," In all honesty, I don't think we'll have enough time to get Bounce to fully extract her magic. At this point, our only hope would be to keep Rubix away from the pendant with Lillith's magic from Nixe. It'd be nice to prevent a fight from happening but if we're being realistic, our chances of such a thing are quite low."
Dolly's mind flashed back to the first time she read the lost kingdom of toys books and thought about the illustration she saw of Cure Cheer. While it may have only been a drawing, the kind look in her eyes coupled with her unwavering smile had originally brought reassurance to Dolly. That no matter, everything would've been alright, that it was ok if she was scared or nervous, Cure Cheer probably had been too and maybe that was why her smile was so captivating. Perhaps Cheer had been braving through her all battles, as worried and unsure as Dolly was, but still managed to pull through for the sake of those around her, those who weren't able to fight for themselves.
Dolly took a quick look over to see how her teammates were doing. Everyone seemed a little tense, but they definitely didn't have a clue exactly who they were facing. So finally, Dolly took it upon herself to break the news to them.
Dolly took a step forward and turned to face her team, it was evident how much hesitance was building up in her as she took longer than usual to collect her thoughts.
"Our current enemy is a former ally. She was the one to protect the kingdom from Nixe before us." Dolly explained to her team, her heart starting to race," Rubix is Cure Cheer. Our goal is to defeat Nixe and to save a fellow Pretty Cure, I'm sure after all we've been through that doesn't seem like too much, right?"
Dolly looked at her teammates once more, each of them with a very different expression on their face as they each nodded in response. But the person who she tried her hardest to not look in the eye was Fantasy. This news was going to hurt her way more than the others. But thankfully, Bubbly caught on quick and placed her hand on Fantasy's shoulder, offering her a smile.
"Don't worry, this just means you get to save the person you looked up to all this time. You're going to be your hero's hero!" Bubbly beamed to her, with Fantasy nodding in response.
"If this all turns out ok...then Hayase will get to meet his sister." Teddy thought to herself," And maybe then his parents won't be so strict about his use of his magic."
"After this, it's no more fighting. I'm sure you all understand that." Dolly said to the team," We can all return to our normal lives after this, and we can actually do things together that normal friends do like go to the movies, try out new cafes together and...all the other fun stuff you can do with your best of friends. I've never really had friends as close as you guys, so forgive if I mentioned something weird."
"Sometimes I feel as if we're unlikely friends, but I don't quite mind." Dolly stated as she averted her gaze from her team and instead looked at the ground," I wish we didn't have to have met under these circumstances, but...aside from all the fighting and headache, this has been fun!"
The Cures nodded in agreement, and Dolly continued on.
"Um, I...I hope we can continue to have more fun in a normal manner when all this is over. I think I'd have a hard time trying to leave you guys after everything that's happened." Dolly explained nervously as she started playing with her hair," And lastly, I want to thank you all for everything you've done up to this point. You're all very important to this team and to me, and I know each of you bring a unique strength to this team, so I'm certain that Rubix is going to be defeated and Cure Cheer will be coming home with us."
"Keep your hands off me you freak!" The Cures heard a voice shout on the other side of the wall in the hallway. The Cures ran close towards the wall and heard the sound of Bounce shouting and supposedly fighting someone off.
"Rubix must've already found her!" Dolly exclaimed as she drew back from the wall," We gotta find a way to get-"
The wall that kept them apart was suddenly blown apart and Bounce was thrown into the other wall in the hallway. She slid to the ground, clutching onto her chest tight as she heaved in her breaths.
Dolly knelt next to her to see if she was ok, but all Bounce could focus on was Rubix and the smug expression on her face as she admired a black and violet gem between her fingers.
"Wow, this is quite nice. Finally, you've been put in your place after all this time." Rubix remarked as she placed the gem in her palm, closing it around her fist," I was beginning to think I'd have to be stuck working with you for this one last battle against the Pretty Cure. But it turns out, there's no place for you here. Not when you continue to act like deadweight while I carry this team."
Bounce was beyond mad, sitting upright as she bashed her fists into the ground and yelled," I wish you were never fished out of that well! If you weren't here, none of this would be happening!"
"Very observant Bounce!" Rubix exclaimed as she clapped her hands once, taking steps closer to her," If I hadn't been found in the well, if Nixe hadn't chosen me and picked your sorry excuse of a mother for their host, we'd never get as close to victory as we are now. None of this could've been achieved without me."
"Ugh, you're so stupid! You know that?" Bounce questioned as she stood up and started walking towards Rubix," I'm on your side and you don't want my help? Fine! Then don't come crying to me when those Pretty Cure brats smash your face in!"
"We're right here…"Teddy said under her breath, eyes narrowed at Bounce.
"Then tell me Bounce, exactly what good can you do?" Rubix questioned as she grabbed Bounce by the scruff of her shirt," After all this time you've proven yourself to be a freeloader who has no respect for the one member who had been actually getting things done in Asperity. Now the team has disbanded and all that's left is us. But...I don't need your "help" anymore. You served your purpose, I'll get everything else done, like always."
"Lillith did tell me how she'd rather you not get caught up in all this and I thought it was because you're the weakest link. But...that reason didn't sit well with me." Rubix stated as she threw Bounce to the ground," She was scared of the power that lied within you. At least, what she thought you had within you. You're all talk, and now you're really without use. So just let the grownups get to business and it'll all be over soon."
Bounce looked down at the ground, shaking with anger as she felt her heart race at an uncomfortable rate.
"Beat her." Bounce muttered as she pressed her palms against the ground," I don't want you guys to win just for things to stay the same. If you want my support, then you have to fix the kingdom and you have to obliterate this backwards jerk!"
Fantasy looked at her in question, saying,"It sounds more like you'd only side with us under the promise that we'll hurt her rather-"
"We'll do it." Dolly said as she knelt in front of Bounce as she grabbed both of her hands," We're going to give you a kingdom you'll want to call home...and we'll beat her into a pulp, she deserves it anyways."
"Damn right she does." Bounce said as she dusted herself off, while the rest of the Cures looked at Dolly curiously.
"Well, it wasn't like she'd be coming back home unscatched, not after all this." Dolly reminded the team," She needs to learn her lesson before she receives a welcome back."
Dolly turned to face Rubix and said," It's about time we settled things, wouldn't you agree?"
Rubix nodded, a forced smile on her face as she met eyes with Dolly and responded," Indeed, but...I believe you have something of mine."
Rubix closed her eyes and clasped her hands together for a moment, as soon as she separated them, the floor around the Cures and herself came tumbling down, leaving them in a much bigger room better suited for a final battle. Rani and Nova were separated from the team and left with only Bounce.
Bounce scurried back into the room, with the fairies following after her, where all the crystal chunks were, looking for King Sterling. Sterling couldn't be found in the room and Bounce only hoped he was somewhere safe as she looked at the images projected on the crystals.
"This was where the well's magic went..." Bounce said to herself as she looked at yet another projection of children playing with animate toys," It's flowing through earth, no wonder we couldn't get our hands on it. Well, not when we didn't know where to look…"
Bounce thought about Rubix's words again and gritted her teeth, slamming her fist down on one of the crystals' surfaces.
"I want to make her suffer, I need that self-righteous jerk to lose." Bounce said as she pressed her hand against the crystal's smooth surface. Her hand then somehow slipped into the crystal and she stared at it inquisitively, before an idea came to her.
Dolly was in the grasp of a dark violet hand that extended from Rubix's palm, writhing around in its grasp as she tried to keep the hand from squeezing the life out of her.
"I know Lillith gave you the rest of her magic borrowed from Nixe, will you just hurry up and give it back to me?"
"Never! There's no way you're getting this thing back!" Dolly shouted as she tried to break free.
Teddy then leaned towards Bubbly and Fantasy and asked them," Do you think breaking this thing would have the same effect as purifying it?"
"I doubt it, I feel like the magic in the gem would just have an easier time returning to Nixe..." Bubbly answered, her gaze still on Dolly and the gigantic hand around her.
"But it's not like we could purify it right now, even if Rubix is preoccupied with Dolly." Teddy pointed out," Dolly's being all noble again, but at this rate her efforts will be in vain."
Suddenly, a giant hand identical to the one holding Dolly sprouted out from the ground and clung onto Teddy, carrying her up a couple feet into the air.
"I'm tired of these games, I know you're the one who really has the pendant with Lilith's magic." Rubix hissed as she made the hand grip Teddy tighter.
"Yeah, and what are you going to do about it?" Teddy asked as she held the pendant up in her hands, igniting a flaming sphere in her palm that caused the pendant to catch fire.
One of the fingers on the hands twirled around Teddy's extended arm and retrieved the pendant despite the fact that it had caught fire and was nearly unrecognizable at this point. Once it got a hold of the pendant, the hand dropped Teddy without warning and receded back into the ground. Rubix smiled brightly, letting go of Dolly that very instant as the hand that burrowed into the ground resurfaced in front of her.
She took the pendant into her hands and crushed it within her fist. The pendant's magic seeped into her skin and she hugged herself before she extended out her hand, taking note of the fact that her skin was turning the same shade of grey as Lillith's.
"Finally Nixe, I can serve under you properly and help bring your goal to life!" Rubix exclaimed as she spun around," But first...I need to bid you girls farewell. I can't keep having you kids run around like this while I'm trying to make Nixe's dreams a reality."
The magic exuded from Rubix was unreal, it was so hard to believe that this was a former Pretty Cure they were in the presence of when the only magic they could sense from Rubix was ominous and threatening. Rubix had always been someone the team had learned to be cautious around, but now just the idea of being in the same room as her made most of the team uneasy.
Rubix was already a handful on her own, but just a taste of Nixe's magic made her feel all sorts of unlocked power thrive within her. It was slightly overwhelming, making her heart race and her head pound, but it didn't matter to her. All she wanted at this point was to appease Nixe in any way possible.
"Don't worry Rubix! Even if you have offered yourself as a host to Nixe, you're still the same old insufferable jerk to us!" Dolly exclaimed as she clapped her hands," But...admittedly, it'd be nice if we could get the chance to meet the real you, the one who hadn't been toyed with and brainwashed by Nixe."
Rubix raised her eyebrows, an unimpressed look appeared on her face as she placed her hands firmly on the ground, causing four hands to arise and grab each of the Pretty Cure. The hands were quick, none of the Cures had even seen them shoot out from the ground while Rubix only smirked at the sight of the team.
Rubix continued to watch the Cures, she enjoyed getting to see them struggle like this, but then Nixe gained control of her and took matters into their own hands. Nixe balled Rubix's hands into fists and made the grip of the giant hands even tighter around the Cures.
Rubix nodded vigorously as clenched her fists as tight as she could. The Cures looked like they were having trouble against the hands and judging by the looks on their faces, they wouldn't last much longer. Rubix smiled to herself and took a step forward, saying to the team,
"Why am I not surprised this is all you girls could manage? You've been outclassed, it couldn't have been helped. After all, you girls have only been at it for a few months. That's nothing in comparison to-"
Just then, Rubix was kicked hard in the back, so hard that she fell forwards onto the ground. She turned around to see the Cures standing behind her, with Teddy standing an inch ahead of them. Rubix was dumb-founded, near certain that the cures had been in the clutches of the hands but as she turned around, she found that both the Cures and the hands had disappeared.
Rubix's eyes widened in realization as she pointed to Fantasy saying," You tricked me, didn't you?"
"Well, of course." Fantasy answered with a chuckle as she and the rest of the team conjured up their scepters," We're not really in any position to let you have the upper hand, are we?"
"Playtime begins! Patchwork Form!" The four of them called out.
Rubix took a good look at the team in their powerup forms, nodding as she said," Fine, it wouldn't be fair if you didn't fight me with everything you had."
"Same goes for you." Dolly responded as she held her scepter in front of her face.