Rubix took a quick examination of the four Cures that stood in front of her, the four that kept her from properly fulfilling Nixe's wishes. Each of them powered up had their own unique strengths, something that made them quite a bothersome opponent in more ways than one, but Rubix had yet to reach her physical limits, she wasn't even close.
Teddy ran straight to Rubix without warning and started hurling punches towards her. Rubix dodged each of them with ease, only paying attention to the pained look Teddy had on her face as she fought. Teddy threw another punch, but Rubix caught it and held on tight, twisting Teddy's arm behind her back. Rubix's expression was calm, yet curious and greatly contrasted the frustrated look on Teddy's face.
"If you didn't exist Nixe, I'm certain nobody would be suffering as much as they are right now." Teddy stated as she hung her head," Hayase would've had an older sister, Sterling and Lillith would've figured something out and everybody at the kingdom wouldn't have to be losing their minds over their home getting enslaved by the likes of you!"
Rubix twisted her arm even more and black and violet roots shot out from the ground and curled around Teddy's leg.
"Ah, you've always been the noisy Cure haven't you?" Nixe asked through Rubix as she let go of Teddy's arm and walked on ahead," Though I do need to correct, as you aren't giving me enough, if any, credit. If it wasn't for me, Hayase would've never even had a chance to meet his sister, Lilith and Sterling would've been separated long ago and the kingdom would've still been in the dark about their precious well's true source of power. There is a good and bad side to everything, you've all just been selective of what you deem as such."
Dolly shook her head saying," That may be true, the good and bad side to everything but I've yet to see anything positive from your existence."
Dolly, Bubbly and Fantasy darted up to Rubix, fighting against her three against one. Rubix didn't have much trouble despite being clearly outnumbered. Bubbly was the first to try and fight against Rubix, aiming a kick directly at her, but Rubix ducked and spun around, knocking Bubbly off her feet instead. Next was Fantasy who tried to trick her by conjuring up two copies of herself, though Rubix appeared to have gotten lucky and striked the real one, sending a kick into her chest and calling upon a set of roots identical to the ones that held Teddy captive to keep a hold of Fantasy.
Once Rubix was done with Fantasy, she dashed towards Dolly quicker than anticipated and was inches away from her within a mere matter of seconds. Rubix grinned to Dolly, who instinctively jumped back.
"You really aren't able to figure out what good comes from me?" Nixe asked as she spun around, her back against Dolly before she bent backwards, hanging her head back and meeting her gaze again," I can grant wishes."
Another second passed by and all of a sudden, Rubix was right in front of Dolly again, ready to attack. Dolly jumped back, barely missing a punch from Rubix and ducked for a moment before Rubix struck again.
"Yeah right," Dolly responded, rolling her eyes as she took a step back," I don't doubt that you could, but it seems you haven't really done any wish granting after all this time."
Dolly jumped back, a more serious expression appearing on her face as she said," You only trick people into thinking you grant wishes. You never gave Lillith what she wanted."
"But you can't say I hadn't tried." Nixe pointed out to her, the uncharacteristic smile still on Rubix's face," When I promised that she and her beloved would end up together, I really intend for them to be reunited...in the crypt that is!"
Dolly ran around Rubix and held out her PlayPact and scepter together shouting," Pretty Cure, Pretend mode!"
The tip of her scepter turned sharp like a sword and Dolly cut Fantasy and Teddy free from the roots that chained them. The two of them rose to their feet immediately and Dolly turned her attention back to Rubix.
Rubix didn't seem very alarmed, and only crossed her arms, drawing out an elongated sigh as she said," I'm capable of granting any wish, I don't come with restriction but time and time again, humans come to me only in their time of need, wishing for something selfish. It's never anything materialistic though, strangely enough. But it doesn't have to be materialistic in order to be a selfish wish. I like to think a wish gets reflected in the journey taken to obtain, it makes sense doesn't it?"
"There's nothing selfish about wanting to be with the one you love most." Dolly responded impatiently, her eyes narrowed as she tried to determine her next move," You just wanted to take control over someone who you knew you could manipulate to do your bidding. And you're doing it again."
Dolly held her scepter down, reverting back into its original form while she said," Rubix, you might not want to accept this, but you haven't always been like this."
Rubix smirked, offering an inquisitive look to the girl before she raised her hands up, erecting a mass of violet and black arrows to shoot up from the ground and attack the Cures. The Cures were quick on their feet, jumping out of the way and as high as they could. The arrows could reach a lot farther than they had expected, and the only one able to stand on the ground safely was Rubix.
She looked up towards the Cures, her face reflecting a more unimpressed look as her eyes fell to Dolly, curious about what else she had to say.
"You know you weren't always this heartless jerk, you were actually likeable at one point…" Bubbly pointed out to her as she narrowly stepped on the tip of one of the arrows that shot out to her," In fact, one of our own teammates looked up to you."
Fantasy lowered her head for a moment, unsure of what to say to Rubix, who she despised all this time but found herself having trouble fighting against after learning the truth. Fantasy returned to the ground and took a nervous step towards Rubix, inspecting her as she walked closer.
"It's true, in your former life...you were my hero. The hero of fortitude." Fantasy declared shakily as she took a step closer," Your sacrifice meant everything to me, to my family and the kingdom. You were truly a hero worth looking up to. There was nobody else that I idolized as much as Cure Cheer, your former self."
Hearing that name pained Rubix, it was like hearing pots and pans clatter onto the ground.
"Remember, that was your former self. The past version of you who could never compare to who you are today." Nixe reminded her softly.
Rubix had the arrows retreat to the ground and smiled at Fantasy, shaking her head as she replied with," Oh dear, did you think I didn't already know that? Of course I was aware who I used to be! Keyword being used to."
The four Cures exchanged expressions, all of them sharing the same uneasy look before they returned their gaze to Rubix. Rubix seemed so smug, there wasn't any way that she could've been lying right now. But for her to have known the entire time made no sense to any of the Cures.
Teddy rolled her eyes, running up towards Rubix as she held out her scepter that was scorching out flames from the top.
"If you knew you were Cure Cheer this whole time, then it should've been you of all people to put a stop to Nixe, not just us!" Teddy reprimanded as she swung her scepter towards Rubix, who smacked the scepter out of Teddy's hand, leaving the flames that shot out from it to create a flaming circle around her and Rubix.
Dolly urged Bubbly and Fantasy to follow her towards the flaming circle, looking towards Bubbly who already appeared to be a step ahead of her and held out her scepter.
Teddy didn't mind being without her scepter, if anything, it had become a hindrance to her since she couldn't fight properly with it in hand. Teddy took a step forward and dodged a punch from Rubix, using the same trick that Rubix used on her earlier, though admittedly her grip hadn't been as strong. Teddy fought to keep Rubix still, but at one point it seemed Rubix gave up and closed her eyes for a moment.
"You couldn't possibly understand what I feel towards the kingdom that gave up on me." Rubix said as the flaming ring around them was extinguished with a stream of water from Bubbly. A set of violet and black roots then emerged from Rubix's skin and latched onto Teddy, drawing her in close and detaching from Rubix to toss Teddy high up into the air.
Rubix then turned around once she was free from Teddy's grip and extended her hand up high.
"Reconfigure." She called out, looking up towards the ceiling.
A grid appeared on the walls and floors of the rooms, with certain tiles glowing a bright violet colour. Moments after the tiles had glowed, they'd open up revealing giant, razor-sharp arrows inside of them. The arrows seeked the Cures out and chased them down persistently.
"I guess it's fine, I don't expect you to empathize. Not when the kingdom you're fighting for has committed crimes beyond your concern." Rubix said to the Cures, though she was doubtful they were still paying attention to her.
The Cures were much too busy trying to outrun the arrows but to no avail, as each arrow reached its respective Cure and drove them into the walls. Rubix continued to watch the team with an unimpressed look in her eyes as the Cures collided into walls and slid off to the floor.
"This is nice to watch, isn't it Rubix?" Nixe asked as Rubix stared at the Cures with a blank look in her eye," Let's show these Cures their actions up until now will have no merit and all their efforts were a waste."
These Pretty Cures were beyond help, there wasn't any hope for them if this was the best they could do. Rubix shook her head, knowing she had accomplished much more and was a lot stronger than the team, even with their strengths combined. A sigh escaped Rubix's lips before a memory flashed into her mind.
"Pretty Cure Aurora Daydream!" Cure Cheer shouted at the top of her lungs as she held out her hands, a blinding ray of light shooting out from it towards Nixe who had taken over Lillith's body.
Her attack hit Lillith dead on but she didn't appear to be affected in the slightest. Lillith only laughed at Cheer's attempt before she lifted up her arm and summoned a violet thorny set of roots to grab hold of Cheer.
Cheer didn't even have a moment to think and before she knew it, she was caught up in the roots and was getting squished in Lillith's clutch. The thorns pierced into her skin, the thought of withstanding just another second of this was unbearable.
Cheer hung her head and clenched her teeth, tears forming in her eyes as she thought to herself," I just can't' do this! I won't be able to defeat her at this rate!"
"What's the matter Cure Cheer? Where did all that can-do spirit go?" Lillith questioned coyly as the roots held onto Cheer tighter," Is this really the guardian of the kingdom I'm fighting against?"
Only a few minutes into this battle and Cheer was already at wit's end against Lillith. Cheer hadn't expected Lillith to be as strong as she was, and maybe it was her mistake for underestimating Lillith and more importantly, overestimating herself.
Cheer then did everything in her power to smile and just laugh off what Lillith said. She tried calming herself down as a reminder that this wasn't the limits of her strength, that she wasn't given the title of Cure Cheer, the hero of fortitude, without reason.
"Are you kidding me? I've only just gotten started!" Cure Cheer exclaimed as her body glowed a faint white light that repelled the roots and forced them to let go of her. Not only did the light make the roots drop her, but her bruises and scratches from the roots had disappeared too.
"You're sorely mistaken if you think I'm gonna let you trample through my kingdom, I don't have the time or the patience for the likes of you to wreak havoc on my home!" Cheer said to Lillith as she pointed to her.
Their fight raged on for much longer than either of them anticipated and the longer the fight went on, the more respect each person had for the opponent. But, Cheer didn't really care to have this fight go much longer. The kingdom may've been on its way to ruins but Earth was completely normal, and she had a science midterm to study for. As soon as she got word from her classmate how important this "midterm" thing was, she knew time was of the essence.
Cheer rose up in the air, hovering a few feet away from Lillith as she twirled around once and shouted,
"Pretty Cure, Eternal Light of Dawn!"
Lillith tried to dodge but the problem in doing so was that the attack wasn't something that would be fired, it would change the entire atmosphere around them, there wasn't any way for her to escape.
"I'm sorry you've been forced to do these things Lillith, but I won't stand for this any longer. I'm erasing Nixe from this kingdom and I'm going to help you out of all this." Cheer reassured her, taking a step back.
Just then, a powerful gust of wind appeared from the well of wonder, located a few feet away from them. Cheer turned around and the winds from the well only got stronger. She defensively held her arms in front of herself as she tried getting a glimpse of the well. It was hard to see exactly what had been going on but a thought then came to her. Perhaps this was the well trying to communicate with her in an attempt to team up. Cheer didn't waste a second and ran towards the well, wanting to see if the well really was intent on aiding in this battle.
Cheer leaned against the well and looked down into it as the winds continued to blow. She had a hard enough time trying to keep her eyes open with the wind cutting through, but the inside of the well glowed a blinding white light that left her no other choice but to avert her gaze from it.
"False alarm?" Cheer guessed with a sigh before she noticed an entanglement of roots sprouting up from behind her. The roots kept growing and growing until they reached her back and suddenly, they pushed her in. Cheer screamed, falling into the well and it no longer was shining the blinding light, reverting back to the appearance of a normal well, it's inside dark and only streaming water.
Lillith was on her knees, fighting to stand back up, but she couldn't do it. She gasped in her breaths and felt her head pounding as she tried to comprehend what just happened.
"We defeated her!" Nixe exclaimed to Lillith, who only kept looking at the well in question," This kingdom has lost its sole guardian, now we can-!"
"No, I can't move another inch Nixe." Lillith said between gasps as tears cascaded down her cheeks," I don't think I can go on like this."
Nixe could feel their patience wearing thin with Lillith, but they didn't reprimand her. Instead, they offered her comforting words.
"You have nothing to worry about, as long as we're together, I won't let anything bad happen to you." Nixe claimed, though Lillith only appeared to be half-listening," Rest assured, this fight won't be the end of-"
"I'm not talking about that." Lillith said impatiently as she balled her hands into fists, slamming them against the ground.
"I was left behind, nobody tried to find me." Rubix thought to herself as she watched the Cures struggle to their feet," I did what was needed and after that, they didn't feel the need to help me."
Hayase, Arabella, River, and Lillith finally found the room where Kai was. They remained untouched thankfully and still appeared to be at rest. Arabella wasn't content to find Kai just as they left them and ran towards their bedside. She shook her head in disbelief and then gave her attention to Lillith questioning,
"Why won't they wake up?"
"His Patchwork Heart had been taken from him and we had been corrupting it ever since." Lillith explained," At this point, it'd be a miracle if he regained consciousness."
"Well we're going to make that miracle happen, I'm not going to leave here with Kai as a corpse." Arabella declared sternly as she stood up," Also FYE, Kai goes by they, not he."
"FYE?" Lillth and River repeated confusedly.
"It's FYI, ditz." Hayase muttered under his breath," In any case, there's still few things we need to determine before we can even hope to save Kai. One, where did his Patchwork Heart go and two, exactly how was it corrupted?"
All eyes turned to Lillith who still had gaze set solely on Kai.
"We used the same shards we had been using to create Defectives, only with Kai...we hadn't made a Defective." Lillith explained briskly," The shard was left in his Patchwork Heart to make his magic usable for our purposes. One of our objectives had been to refill the empty well with the sacrifice of Kai's corrupted Patchwork Heart and…"
"Mine, right?" Hayase asked, though his blunt tone made Lillith uncomfortable," I showed up a bit late to this party, so I'm assuming there hadn't been enough time to corrupt my Patchwork heart like Kai's. But anyways, that still leaves the question of where you've kept the Patchwork Heart."
"It's in the room where we've kept the well, we decided that if Kai's Patchwork Heart would be corrupted, it'd be easier to just mix the corrupted heart with an untainted one." Lillith explained to the team, though Arabella didn't seem all that approving of Lillith's explanation or reasoning.
"I guess that makes sense, an untainted Patchwork Heart wouldn't be so hard to corrupt if exposed to the corruptive magic of another…" Hayase thought aloud," That is assuming untainted doesn't necessarily mean pure..."
River was growing tired of all this idle conversation and finally asked the question," So how are we supposed to reach the room where you've stored the well when this place is in a complete disarray?"
Lillith pursed her lip, and then walked towards the light in the room. The room was lit with a single candle mounted on the wall by an ornate holder, though it really wasn't needed as light was already pouring in beyond the glass walls.
"Any bright ideas?" Lillith asked into the largest gem on the candle holder.
Jack's face flushed red as he saw Lillith gaze into one of the screens with a blank look in her big eyes. He didn't think she had already noticed him. Jack then looked at the multitude of screens, trying hard to determine the quickest route to the room where the well was hidden.
Jack furrowed his brows, unable to find anything of use to the team, grumbling to himself," Damn it, I haven't seen anything leading to the well's room in a while. That can't be a coincidence…"
"C'mon Jack! You can't be this useless at a time like this!" Jack said to himself as he crossed his arms and closed his eyes to concentrate," I feel like Domino had explained how to do something like this before…"
An idea came to him, but he wasn't certain it would've worked. He then went to the keyboard and started to type in commands quickly.
"Disable the screens that aren't working and by default, more footage of different areas will show up, right?" Jack said to himself as he typed away. The screens that didn't show anything due to either something blocking the lens or were in a dimly lit room were disabled and more screens showing different views from Asperity appeared. Jack noticed all the new viewings from the screens, but he wasn't ready to celebrate just yet. The new sights on the screen were even less useful to him, though they did display clear footage of the areas they were in so at this point it became a process of elimination.
At first, Jack was tempted to just disable as many screens as he could but then a thought came to him. It was likely that the room holding the well didn't have a screen inside of it, plus it wouldn't have been of any use for him to have a view inside of the room. That wouldn't indicate how far away the team was from it, it would've been better to find a screen to it's entrance.
Jack eyed all the screens carefully, trying to see if any of them would've been useful to keep. Jack kept an eye out for a room with a door, as most if not all the rooms in Asperity didn't have any doors and the select few that did had probably crumbled away at this point.
Jack disabled a few more screens and came across one with poor lighting, but he was able to see a door on it. He grinned excitedly and then pressed a button that had the lens move around so he could get an idea of where the room was.
Jack nodded his head and then looked down to the paper on his desk where he scribbled the approximate location of each room the screens showed him.
"Ok...think I got it." Jack said to himself, holding down a button on the keyboard and saying into the speaker on the desk," I'll meet you outside that room, I can lead the way!"
"If you don't think we'll understand now, then you're probably right." Dolly said as she held out her scepter, conjuring up a bright violet whirlwind," We won't understand if you won't even tell us what happened!"
The whirlwind blown towards Rubix was dodged by her effortlessly, but the whirlwind didn't disappear so easily. Instead, it only got stronger and pulled her in, along with the arrows that continued to fly around the room.
"Yeah, I mean...you have done some really bad things but...you haven't really done anything to justify your actions. All you've been doing is praising Nixe and letting them take advantage of you." Bubbly pointed out as she summoned out a set of raging water tendrils with her scepters. The water tendrils worked in tandem with the whirlwind, and once the whirlwind dispersed, the tendrils only got stronger.
Rubix got caught up in one of the water tendrils, holding her hands in front of herself to keep the damage to herself to a minimum. Once the tendrils returned to the ground, Rubix landed on her feet, but she was soaked from head to toe, and her hair came down from her bun, falling to her shins.
Fantasy cringed at the sight of Rubix with her hair down, taking note of just how similar she looked to her former self. Fantasy shook her head, chiding herself for not realizing it sooner.
"You want an explanation? Fine." Rubix said as she conjured up a bright blue translucent cube and stood on top of it," Exactly how do you think I joined Asperity?"
The Cures exchanged curious glances, but Dolly answered without hesitance and responded with," It was when Lillith found you in the well right?"
"Why do you think I was there?" Rubix asked as she took a seat on the cube that only flew up higher," Lillith may have been the one to push me, but it was the kingdom at fault for not even making the effort to look for me, only assuming I went down with Lillith. The kingdom had no interest in searching for me, and everything went back to normal despite my absence. I'm sure if such a thing happened to you girls you'd question your choice of becoming a Pretty Cure."
"But...strangely enough, I don't feel regret from becoming a Pretty Cure." Rubix confessed as a smile rose to her face while she sprawled out on the cube," Since if it wasn't for the untimely end of my career as Cure Cheer, I would've never met the real me!"
"Yes, that's completely right Rubix! None of this would've been possible without you!" Nixe praised as Rubix swung her right hand over the gridded wall.
The tiles on the grid opened up again but no arrows were shot out. Instead, the room went dark for a moment and then suddenly, the Cures found themselves trapped in cubes identical to the one Rubix was sitting on.
"Ok, I've had my fun. I think I'm getting bored now." Rubix admitted as she tied her hair up back into a bun.
"Rubix! Do you really think Cure Cheer would have approved of all of this?" Fantasy blurted out as she pressed her hands against the cube's surface.
"Why would it matter?" Rubix said as she leapt off the cube and placed her hand against the opposite side of the cube where Fantasy's hand rested," It's not like she's here."
Bounce was screaming as she was hurling down to Earth with the fairies, having not expected to have been practically cannoned out from the crystal's entrance to the human world. This was a lot more uncontrollable and fear-inducing than her usual method of travelling between the two worlds.
Bounce and the fairies crashed gracelessly into a bush and immediately sprung to their feet, looking around for the groups of kids playing with their toys. It wasn't too much of a challenge, as it seemed virtually every child in the park was playing with an animate stuffed toy.
"This is insane…" Bounce said to herself as she surveyed the children running around her," I've never seen so many kids with talking stuffed toys."
"So...does this mean all the magic from the well went to Earth? There's no other way these toys could've been brought to life!" Nova remarked, with Rani nodding in return.
"Perhaps this newfound source of magic can become of use to us right now...but the question is...exactly where is the magic that's bringing these toys to life?"
Bounce then brought Rani's attention to the fountain in the park, and Rani's eyes widened with surprise. The well's magic had been collected in yet another body of water, but how would they be able to bring this to the Pretty Cure?
Jack led Hayase and Lillith to the well's room, his focus on only the map he drew for himself as he ran to the room. He looked behind himself every few moments to see if the two of them were able to keep up with him now that the pent-up adrenaline he had finally got a chance to release it.
"I'm staying with Kai, you can all go on ahead." Arabella said to the group before they left," I don't want anything to happen to them in my absence, the risk is too great."
"Then I'll stay with you." River declared, though Arabella seemed against his decision," If the risk is that great, are you in any place to refuse help?"
River then turned his attention to Hayase and Lillith, saying," Be careful on your way and do whatever it takes to reclaim Kai's Patchwork Heart. And I want you to stay extra vigilant."
Hayase sighed as he heard River's words resound in his mind, he sounded just like his mother.
"This is it!" Jack exclaimed as he skidded to a stop," Now all that's left is to take back that Patchwork Heart!"
Hayase opened the door to the room and all the only things found in the room were the well and the Patchwork Heart lying beneath a glass cover in the well's bucket. They could barely see a thing in the room as it was far too dark, but nobody was complaining since they finally reached the well.
Hayase walked up towards the well and placed his hands on the glass cover for the Patchwork Heart.
Jack exhaled a sigh of relief and smiled while saying," I almost can't believe we made it."
Jack then noticed Lillith growing uncomfortable in the room as she looked around it warily. Jack looked at her curiously, but then he felt a shiver crawl his spine and he could sense a very corrupt form of magic in the room, but it wasn't from the Patchwork Heart.
Hayase removed the Patchwork heart from the well, still keeping in its glass container. Once he turned around, he finally saw the distressed expressions on the siblings' faces.
"What is it?" Hayase asked them.
"We gotta get out of here." Jack declared as he tried to make a run for it, but out from the shadows appeared a giant Defective that took the form of a skeleton with bright violet eyes.
"What is that thing?" Hayase questioned as he held onto the Patchwork Heart tighter.
"I...I don't know. They got rid of all the Defectives, maybe Nixe had been hiding this thing from us just in case?" Lillith suggested as Jack clung to her frightfully.
"That thing is way too big and has way too much magic to be a Defective!" Jack claimed as he pointed towards it in panic," It's a, a Deluxsive! No, no uh...a Deluxor!"
"It's probably only here for one reason, to protect the well and this thing." Hayase surmised while motioning to the Patchwork Heart," Collectively, we likely don't have enough power to stop it, our best bet is trying to escape."
Rubix took one last glance at the Cures before she went to bid them farewell. They had tried to escape from the cubes through a more physical approach but it proved to have no effect on the cubes. Rubix was impressed though, not by the fact that the Cures were still struggling to fight against her but that they couldn't even figure out how to break through her cubes.
"Don't worry, I don't have any intention on ending your lives." Rubix reassured the girls as she crossed her arms," That's too easy. These cubes can act like a portal and transport you to any other dimension in the universe, preventing you to return. You could be sent to a primitive world where you're all still breathing through gills, or you could be taken to a place where humanity dies out and I could just leave you four to bicker amongst yourselves over your bitter defeat. I quite like that option if I'm being honest."
Teddy leaned against the wall of the cube and slid down against, her eyes narrowed at Rubix who only continued to list the other choices she had in mind. Teddy then glanced over to Dolly on her right, who appeared to be too lost in thought to even listen to Rubix's musings.
"It seems the only way to get out of here would be to perform a purification attack on the cubes." Dolly thought to herself as she lightly kicked the bottom of the cube, "But if we were to do that, would we still have enough power to defeat Rubix and Nixe? We aren't really in a position to waste our energy unless it's a necessity. I'm sure Rubix already thought ahead for this. Not only that, exactly what can we say to convince Rubix she's doing the wrong thing? It's clear that she won't listen to reason. But...I can't imagine how much pain she's been in this whole time. At this point, it's a matter of getting through to her."
Dolly then looked towards her scepter, her face appearing unsure as she held it tighter. The last thing she wanted was to expend any power needlessly. If by chance she used up too much power and couldn't defeat Rubix, she wouldn't have been able to forgive herself. But the idea of not being able to have another chance to fight against Rubix and get sent to another dimension seemed even more unforgivable.
Dolly then held out her scepter, and yelled as loud as she could," Pretty Cure, Dressing Dolly Parade!"
The cube shattered, unable to contain Dolly's attack and allowing her to literally break free from the cube. Violet mist shrouded the area where Dolly's cube once was and once it dissipated, Dolly could be seen brushing off her dress and readjusting her hair bow.
"You know, I met some friends of yours at the Kingdom. Remember the Celestians? They really miss you." Dolly stated as she held out her scepter towards Rubix.
Rubix looked at her inquisitively and opened her mouth to speak, but decided against responding.
Teddy, Bubbly and Fantasy followed Dolly's lead and broke the cubes through using their purification attacks. Each Cure held their scepter up high inside the cube.
"Pretty Cure, Teddy Bear Picnic!"
"Pretty Cure, Brilliant Bubbling Carnival!"
"Pretty Cure, Fantastic Daydream Jubilee!"
Once all the Cures broke free from the cubes, Rubix didn't appear as intimidated as the Cures expected, though Dolly had a feeling as to why.
Rubix conjured up a pair of bright pink and blue cubes that floated on either side of her. Another cube appeared from beneath her and she took a seat on it.
"To be honest, I would've been disappointed if you hadn't figured out how to break through the cubes, it's really a good thing that you're the leader huh?" Rubix remarked as she looked to Dolly," But it seems the leader has overlooked a certain something."
Dolly furrowed her brows, putting her scepter away for a moment as she said," Even if we might not have enough power magically to defeat you, that won't stop us from trying!"
"Then I won't stop you from trying." Rubix said as she stood up on top of the cube as the cube grew taller. The cube resembled more of a rectangle and once it was as tall as Rubix, she purposefully slid inside of it. When the rectangle disappeared, Rubix's form changed. Her hair had turned white with the ends their former mauve tone and her skin was now dulled to gray. Her outfit was much more extravagant being a light gray, black and white dress, easily a much more befitting choice for the new leader of Asperity. Nestled into her hair was a little black tiara similar to the one Lillith once wore but much more flashy with a mass of diamonds embellished into it.
"I have to admit, I can't get enough of your persistence, I think I'm growing quite fond of you girls and your keep trying attitude." Rubix remarked as she brought her hands close to her face," It's a shame that's all you'll be able to do though. Just keep trying until you're handed defeat."
Rubix then snapped her fingers and a pair of black and violet flames held in white intersecting rings appeared from her hands.
"I've been awfully kind, humoring you girls until the very last second, but I think it's about time we wrap things up. Plus, I think you should get some first-hand experience on fighting the former hero of fortitude at the top of her game." Rubix claimed as she floated a few feet up, holding her hands out in front of herself. She blasted the flames towards the Cures and they narrowly dodged her attack, but the flames only grew larger once they reached the ground, making it impossible for the girls to maneuver around the floor.
Dolly and Teddy were surrounded by the growing flames, finding themselves unable to find a way out.
"Can't you blow the flames away?" Teddy asked Dolly in desperation, her back against her fellow Cure's as they watched the flames pass them in height.
"That's not how that works." Dolly responded as she clutched the brooch on her bow," Rubix's just keeps unveiling more attacks and overpowering us. We won't be able to keep up at this rate."
Teddy sighed impatiently and responded with," That's really not the kinda talk I want to hear from my lead Cure. She's outnumbered, it's not like she's stronger than us."
"Yet she is. But...that's not the problem." Dolly claimed as she clutched her brooch tighter," I knew it'd be damn near impossible to defeat Rubix, with or without our best efforts. It's no use trying to get on her level in terms of power, we need her to realize that she has nothing to gain from betraying the kingdom and her former self."
"It's no surprise Rubix feels underappreciated, I guess I would too." Teddy admitted as she looked towards the ground for a moment, " But that still doesn't give her a reason to side with Nixe like this."
"Lillith was promised to have her wish granted if she let Nixe use her as a host, did the same thing happen to Rubix? If so, what was it that she wanted most?" Dolly thought to herself before a giant bubble appeared in front of them. The two Cures looked up and found Bubbly and Fantasy riding a pair of giant seahorses made from bubbles.
"We don't have anytime to waste you know!" Bubbly reminded them as she pointed to the bubble," Jump off of it and we'll make you guys some seahorses of your own in just a jiffy!"
"Envy Cross!" Jack shouted as he formed an 'X' with his arms in front of the Deluxsor," You've now been subjected to my hypnosis. You will now want the opposite of your desires and serve only me~"
The Deluxsor stared at Jack, a confused expression on its face as Jack held out his index finger and requested it to follow his finger's every movement.
"He's quite the actor." Hayase said to Lillith quietly as the two tried tip toeing to the room's exit.
"Admittedly, he's always been like this." Lillith responded sheepishly, averting her gaze from Jack to avoid any second-hand embarrassment.
Hayase and Lillith were braced against the walls, side-stepping towards the exit of the room in desperate hope that Jack's little improvised "attack" would keep the Deluxsor occupied for as long as they needed. Jack's plan seemed to have been working surprisingly enough, but it was hard to tell how long Jack could manage to keep the Deluxsor distracted.
"Can't be... doing this...n-n-n-need to protect t-the well….and…." The Deluxsor said, startling Jack as he had yet to learn the Deluxsor could speak until now.
The Deluxsor glanced over to the well and finally remembered the Patchwork Heart had been taken.
"...the heart." The Deluxsor looked around the room and found Lillith and Hayase halfway towards the door. The Deluxsor pushed Jack away and started to run towards the two of them.
Hayase and Lillith ran towards the door, but the Deluxsor sealed off their exit by blasting a black sphere to it that turned into a barrier.
"Are you sure Nixe never mentioned this thing to you?!" Jack questioned incredulously, scrambling to his feet as he pointed to the Deluxsor.
Lilith made a face at Jack and Hayase ran past the Deluxsor in the opposite direction, heading straight for the well. Hayase stood on the well, his feet on the edges of the opening to it. He ripped the cover off of the Patchwork heart and held it in his bare hands. It felt somewhat like a plush toy, though he tried holding it with the utmost care, worried that something would've happened to Kai if he didn't.
"You want this thing, right?" Hayase asked the Deluxsor, who nodded vigorously in response," Well, that's too bad. It's gonna come with me into the well if you don't back off."
"Get down from there, there's no way you're doing that!" Lillith yelled to Hayase indignantly, though Hayase only ignored her.
"He's a lunatic…" Jack said with a groan, though he was in truth somewhat impressed by what he saw.
"Doesn't….even m-matter." The Deluxsor pointed out to him," The heart….h-heart was meant to go in the well."
"That may be true, but the last thing you'd want is this Patchwork Heart to get mixed in with mine." Hayase advised as he held up Kai's Patchwork Heart," This heart that's been corrupted by Nixe's magic will only have its corruption reversed if it gets in contact with my Patchwork Heart. I'm in possession of this heart's adversary and my magic will not only create a purified Patchwork Heart but it will also replenish the well of the magic it's lost."
Hayase then made the Patchwork Heart levitate from his hands and a glowy blue aura that resembled the night sky flowed around it.
"It'd be quite beneficial to us if this Patchwork heart were to return to normal, maybe even stronger because of my own. Of course if Nixe found out, they'd never forgive you." Hayase warned the Deluxsor.
"Guess we have two actors in this room." Lillith thought to herself as she narrowed her eyes at Hayase.
"How in the hell are we supposed to bring this back to Asperity?" Bounce questioned as she pressed her hands against the well's edge," What, do we pail it all into jugs and carry it there?"
"She's thinking too literally." Rani commented with a sigh as she and Nova looked into the fountain," It'd be nonsensical to even think we could carry this fountain there, but how else can we give the Pretty Cure the extra magic they're probably in dire need of?"
"Something like the cube Domino designed for us might have come in handy for this." Nova remarked as she looked at her reflection in the well.
Bounce shook her head as she looked into the fountain, frustrated beyond belief when suddenly, someone tugged on her sweater. She turned around and found one of the animate plush toys, a plush zebra to be exact, standing with its owner.
"Do you guys...need the fountain?" The zebra asked out of concern.
Bounce exchanged expressions with the fairies and nodded to the zebra seconds later. The zebra smiled at her and joined her in looking down into the fountain.
"We might not fully understand the workings of the fountain, but what we do know is that it gave life to all of us plush toys." The zebra plush said while its owner stroked its mane," The power of this fountain...it wasn't always here, was it?"
"Obviously not." Bounce said with a scoff, only to get elbowed by Nova," It's from a kingdom worlds away, the Kingdom of Toys. We need its magic to help the people who are trying to save the kingdom. Things aren't looking so hot now, so we'll need any kinda magic we can get our hands on."
"Kingdom of Toys?" The zebra plush's owner repeated curiously," You mean like the kingdom in the book series? Is it really real?"
The little girl got up in Bounce's face with her own face full of excitement. Bounce leaned back awkwardly and glanced over to the fairies while nodding hesitantly.
"That's like one of my favourite stories of all time! If it's a real place, then there's no way we're going to refuse to help!" She exclaimed.
"Shh Kotomi, I think you're overwhelming her." The zebra plush said to her," Anyways, we're going to figure out a way to combine our efforts to help save this Toy Kingdom and I'm not talking about just the two of us."
"Everyone get over here!" Kotomi screamed to the rest of the kids in the park, startling Bounce and the fairies. Kotomi was much louder than the group expected since her voice was so soft.
All the kids and their plush mates gathered around the fountain and Rani explained the situation to all of them.
"Right now, we need to help the Pretty Cure out by creating something like a powerup item that uses the magic inside the fountain. Something like the toy toppers they insert into their scepters would be ideal but in a case like this, we won't be too picky." Rani explained to the kids and their plushmates, though they didn't seem to fully understand and only nodded to convince Rani otherwise.
"So to summarize, we need to build some that sorta looks like an oversized key, ok?" Bounce said to the kids.
The kids nodded and got to work, splitting into four groups to search for materials to use.
"Is this actually going to work?" Bounce asked the fairies once the kids were out of earshot.
Dolly just dodged a punch from Rubix, but was immediately kicked in the stomach moments later. Dolly staggered a few steps back, but Rubix wasn't finished with her quite yet. She conjured up a dark sphere with intersecting rings and blasted it towards Dolly. Dolly didn't have much time to dodge since she had yet to recover from Rubix's kick, but luckily, the bubble seahorse Bubbly made for her swooped in and flew her up high and out of range from Rubix's attack.
Dolly examined the ground beneath her, up in flames yet again due to Rubix. Rubix's flame attack seemed to be indistinguishable, even with Bubbly's powers. So if it wasn't water that could have any effect, it must've been time. The flames from before diminished after a while and it seemed Rubix wasn't able to do the attack so freely, but did fighting up in the air really bring her that much of an advantage?
Dolly looked down towards the ground again and to her surprise, the flames on the ground had vanished.
"Wait, is Rubix finally running out of stamina?" Dolly wondered as she looked towards Rubix, who only had that smug look present on her face," No, that's not it. She's got something up her sleeve!"
"Reconfigure!" Rubix cried out as she held out her arms. The tiles of the room opened up again and shot arrows towards the Cures, but this time the arrows were headed straight for the Cures' seahorse. Each girl had her seahorse popped and descended back to the ground moments later.
Fantasy sat upright, rubbing her back tenderly as she said," It's a good thing those flames weren't here to catch our fall."
"No, but chances are Rubix's got something worse in store for us." Teddy pointed out as she narrowed her eyes at Rubix who only soared higher into the air.
"Phosphorus Decadence!" Rubix shouted as she extended her right hand up high. Out from her hands appeared a giant white sphere of energy, radiating heat and magic just as purely dark as Nixe' Cures looked at the floating white orb curiously that only rose up into the air until it reached the ceiling. When the orb hit the ceiling, it flashed a light so bright the Cures shielded their eyes out of impulse. After that, the orb returned to Rubix's palm, though it hardly fit into it until the orb bursted into pieces that looked like snow. Rubix blew the orbs pieces out of her hands and they scattered back onto the ground.
"Was this...some kind of dud?" Dolly asked quietly as she inspected the flakes in the air before she took a look at Rubix.
"Guys look!" Bubbly instructed as she pointed to the flakes in the air. The flakes that had once resembled snow turned black and scattering around the Cures.
Rubix then returned to the ground and finally gave the girls an explanation.
"I was never really going to send you girls off to another dimension. You're all far too valuable for something that." Rubix declared as she waved a hand in dismissal," I'm going to corrupt each of your Patchwork Hearts, and then I'll be harvesting them."
The Cures just stared at Rubix, at a loss of words while she laughed at them.
"Congratulations, you've made it this far into your final battle and as far as I can see, you've all exhausted your strengths. Don't feel so bad, there was absolutely no way you could've prepared yourself from something like this." Rubix claimed with a shrug," When matched against me, your defeat was as certain as the sun rising."
The Cures weren't able to even move an inch, not only because of lacking the stamina for it, but Rubix's words had gotten to them.
Fantasy wasn't responsive, a glazed look only appearing in her eyes as she hung her head. Bubbly only looked around to check on her teammates, more worried about them than herself. She could feel her heart sink as she saw all their dejected expressions, wishing she had power over Rubix to make her pay for hurting the kingdom and her friends like this.
Teddy was not yet willing to accept defeat as she grabbed a hold of her scepter, desperately trying to get some kind of attack, anything to use against Rubix.
Teddy held her scepter tight with both her hands, shakily getting back up to her feet as she declared," I swear I'm going to put an end to you for all the suffering you've caused to the people I hold dear.. I'm taking you out whether it's the last thing I do!"
Dolly didn't appear despondent as the rest of her team, though she wasn't quite ready to look Rubix in the eyes just yet, letting her gaze fall to the floor.
"Are you sure you want to do this Rubix? Because honestly, I'm still not all that convinced by your resolve, not to mention you'd be letting a lot of people down by doing this." Dolly pointed out to her as she slowly lifted her gaze towards Rubix," You'd been waivering since the very start, I distinctly remembered getting overwhelmed by your power the first time we met, thinking we'd get defeated out of nowhere but then...you spared us that day. You've proven time and time again that you're more than able to get rid of us, but you can't even bring yourself to do that."
"There's inconsistencies in yourself. You may have been given comfort by Nixe when everyone deserted you, but you don't have it in your heart to defeat a fellow Pretty Cure." Dolly said as she stood up slowly, placing her hands on your hips," You've been continuously rejecting your former self, but she's had more influence on the kingdom and even our own world than you think."
Dolly then reached for her PlayPact and whispered to it," Show Rubix Cure Cheer's legacy, Pretend Mode."
"Rubix, you can't continue to waste time like this, these girls have nothing important to show you and you know that." Nixe advised Rubix from her head,
"I only want to further humor them, this should be entertaining for the both of us anyways." Rubix responded quietly.
The PlayPact projected a giant image stretching from one end of the room to the other of the kingdom, looking just as it always did, but the sight of it only bored Rubix and led her to offering her own commentary.
"Is this all you have to show me, the kingdom that gave up on me?" Rubix questioned with a scoff.
"You're not looking at it properly." Teddy replied flatly as she side-eyed Rubix," This was the kingdom after it had been saved by you. If it wasn't for you, your home would've been destroyed by Nixe ages ago."
"I get it, I saved a kingdom that didn't bother to save me, how heroic." Rubix said sarcastically, though she couldn't bring herself to look at the projection," A tragic hero, that's all my legacy will be and that's only what people will see me as."
"Nope." Dolly said with a single shake of her face," You brought hope to not only your own home, but ours too."
The PlayPact then projected an image of a large group of children reading the Lost Kingdom of Toys books in the library. Rubix scrutinized the image, unable to understand exactly what she was seeing.
"Sooooo, there was this woman from the kingdom who wrote some stories about her home and she went as far as including you as the heroine in one of the books. So now kids on Earth have taken a liking to you and may or may not think you're one of the coolest superheroes out there." Bubbly explained as she held her hands in front of the projection.
The name Lost Kingdom of Toys sounded quite familiar to her, but she didn't focus on that as much as the sight of the kids reading the story and getting excited as they got to Cure Cheer's part.
"This is the part where she beats up the bad guy! She always saves the day with a big smile on her face," A little girl declared as she held out her copy of the book to her friends to show the picture of Cure Cheer," If I can get the chance, I'd really like to meet her someday!"
Dolly glanced over to Rubix, who didn't appear all that affected as she hoped. She didn't mind all that much, she knew getting through to her wouldn't happen in an instant.
"Not only has Cure Cheer inspired kids and adults alike in the two kingdoms, but she gave hope to a young girl who aspired to be just like her someday." Dolly stated, leading Fantasy to offer her a puzzled look," That very same girl got the chance to become a Pretty Cure just like her idol, and despite learning about Cure Cheer's fate, she still doesn't want to fight against the person she admired all her life."
"Fantasy has nothing but magic to rely on when it comes to fighting as a Pretty Cure and yet despite the fact that she probably has just enough power for one last attack against you…she probably won't." Dolly claimed, though Rubix didn't seem all that convinced.
"I...I'll have you know I'm not scared of you!" Fantasy blurted out, her tone uneven while her face flushed red," I...I've just been having a hard time accepting that this is what's become of the person I looked up to most."
Fantasy's eyes met Rubix's and she thought she'd see a look of disdain from Rubix but instead her expression was neutral as if she was waiting for Fantasy to continue speaking. The thought of blathering on about how much she admired Cure Cheer over the years was beyond embarrassing, but she didn't see any other options available so she took one giant breath before she began.
"When I was young I'd always be playing pretend at home and every time I did I was pretending to be Cure Cheer. It drove my parents crazy but I didn't care and kept doing it until my last year of elementary, from there I'd casually write down the adventures I had as 'Cure Cheer'." Fantasy explained as she created her own projections on the ceiling that depicted her younger self jumping off of a couch," Before I'd play pretend as Cure Cheer, I had an imaginary friend I modeled after her, though her personality may not have been completely accurate, but I kept hold of that imaginary friend for much longer than expected, to a point where having her around made me feel like I had always been friends with Cure Cheer. And then, when I became a Pretty Cure, my only goal in my mind was to become just like you, because well...being like Cure Cheer meant everything to me."
"But I've been selfish, I know that Cure Cheer, well your...former self, definitely wouldn't have approved of my actions right now. I'm only thinking of what I want, and choosing to ignore everything you've done up until now." Fantasy declared as she held out her scepter," I won't let you off the hook anymore!"
The everso irritated, impatient look in Rubix's eye was replaced with a more complacent and somber look. She appeared to be thinking deeply to herself, though she had zoned out on Fantasy. Fantasy reddened a bit, from getting stared at for so long. But nobody chose to interrupt her train of thought in this deciding moment.
"Nixe, did you know about this?" Rubix finally asked," That this had been cultivated in my absence?"
"How was I supposed to know?" Nixe questioned, their voice echoing through the room," Regardless, nobody came looking for you, you had been left for dead. If it wasn't for me-"
"-You said I'd find happiness that wouldn't end here. You conditioned into thinking that there wasn't anything left for me in the kingdom. That I would have no one to return to." Rubix reminded them, who only grew impatient with Rubix and her tone.
Teddy then chimed in with," I can guarantee you that's most definitely not true. In fact, there are actually quite a few people you left back in the kingdom still waiting for you to return after all this time and I know some select few people on Earth who'd be overjoyed to reunite with you.."
"Earth?" Rubix repeated cluelessly before she dropped to her knees, holding her head as a sharp pain struck through it.
"I refuse to watch you fall further into these girls' ploy," Nixe concluded while Rubix tried tuning out their voice," Because of you, it's come down to this."
Rubix shook her head, the pain only getting worse and worse as she said," This is my own fault, I wasn't meant for this...my past self even tried getting me to come to my senses by projecting flashbacks of my old life, but I was sure the person who I am now was who I was supposed to be. You promised me a new life and led me to believe my old one wasn't worth continuing. But Nixe...I can't let everyone look up to a traitor. I'm sorry Nixe, I just can't do this for you."
"At this point, you don't get a say in what you can or can't do. I'm taking over from here." Nixe declared from inside Rubix's head," Remember, you had everything at hand's reach and you didn't even need most of my power for that."
The Cures cautiously stepped a few feet away from Rubix who's corrupted magic seemed to only get stronger as she became more unstable.
"Rubix is trying everything to reject Nixe's influence, but it's not working." Dolly said as she watched Rubix," We have to help out!"
Rubix tilted her head back for a moment and a giant shroud of black mist formed around her. The mist took on a more solid form around her and morphed into a humanoid appearance. The figure that enveloped Rubix was still sitting down and once it stood up, it stretched past the ceiling but had no issue in breaking the ceiling apart just so it had more room.
"That thing is like 40 feet tall! How are we supposed to fight against something we'll look like ants to?" Teddy questioned as she gestured towards the figure.
Dolly looks towards the figure, shaking her head as she looked at the torn up ceiling where the projections had been.
"After all this, it seems Nixe couldn't care less about Rubix's feelings." Dolly declared as she watched the figure," Actually, no, they never cared for her. Not if they're willing to let her suffer like this."
The figure then slammed it's hand into the wall and it's fist broke it apart. They held out their hand as if they were grabbing for something and looked at the wall inquisitively.
The Deluxsor had grown impatient, and decided against what would've been wise and fought to retrieve the Patchwork Heart from Hayase.
Lillith had put up a shield of sorts around the well to keep the Deluxsor away, but it was attempting to physically break apart the shield. It wouldn't have been long now until the shield was broken and Hayase would be left defenseless.
"I'm running out of options...I might have to actually go through with what I said." Hayase said as he gripped the well even tighter.
"I can't keep up with it! At this rate, it's going to get a hold of the heart and Hayase!" Lillith said as she and Jack watched Hayase back up closer into the well.
Jack shook his head and called out," Don't you try running away, you gotta fight it back!"
The shield finally snapped apart into pieces and Hayase looked up to the Deluxsor with a blank look in his eye. He stood petrified, feeling defeated even though he was still in possession of the Patchwork Heart.
"Me, fight against it? There's no way that would work, I don't stand a chance against it." Hayase said to himself quietly," But...if I were to jump into the well, then I wouldn't be protecting Kai's Patchwork Heart, the heart that Arabella wanted us to reclaim more than anything."
Hayase had zero clue on how to attack, but he then remembered his attempts to break free from the Everlight encasement. Right now, he didn't have the time to overanalyze or overthink, all that was left was to trust in his own abilities.
"This is gonna sound like I thought of it on the spot but…" Hayase said as he extended his hand out," Azure Supernova!"
A dark blue beam of stars shot the Deluxsor straight on, but it didn't even get a chance to recover from the attack as a giant hand broke through the wall and took the Deluxsor away.
The three of them exchanged expressions and Lillith surmised," Nixe is pulling out all the stops, the Pretty Cure have left them at wit's end."
"With all these hidden aces, are the Pretty Cure going to be alright?" Jack questioned nervously.
The figure pulled its hand out from the wall, feeling only a little bit energized as it fused with the Deluxsor.
"So my equipment's been used…" The figure said to itself as it inspected its palm," It's a shame Rubix fell victim to the likes of you girls, but I guess once a Pretty Cure, always a Pretty Cure."
"You...you used Rubix for your own gain! She never even realized how you wouldn't put her feelings into consideration, all you did was feed off her misery!" Dolly shouted to them.
The figure seemed irritated by Dolly and leaned towards her, appearing much more intimidating up close as they asked," Need I remind you that you too hadn't cared for Rubix's wellbeing until you discovered her true identity? If you never learned about her past, you would've just fought her with as much hatred as you always did. And maybe then you would've stood a chance to defeat her."
"Trying to defeat her would've been pointless, and we wouldn't have gotten anywhere if that was our goal." Teddy spoke up as she stepped forward," Rubix was hurting this whole time and she wanted someone to empathize for her, not offer her a solution that would only hurt her more."
The figure then grabbed a hold of Cure Dolly and Teddy and threw them into one of the few walls that remained intact in the room.
"That girl always punished on her own, cursed to be unappreciated, unwanted and used up for her strengths until the very end." The figure said to them," Nobody truly wanted Rubix until she had disappeared. But lucky for her, her struggling ends here, along with yours."
Bubbly tried running towards Dolly and Teddy, but Fantasy stopped her by grabbing a hold of her wrist.
"What do you plan to do after you retrieve them, fight against Nixe in this condition?" Fantasy questioned quietly, her eyes vacant as she held Bubbly tighter.
"If we don't at least try, then we're done for! But I can't let this team go down without a proper fight!" Bubbly declared as she then tried pulling Fantasy up," Cure Cheer is still alive and she wants us to save her, we don't have anything else to lose!"
Bubbly managed to pull Fantasy off of her feet and the two of them ran to their teammates while barely dodging the hands of Nixe.
"Fantasy, your hero is still alive and you have a chance to do what she did for your mom's kingdom years ago. Doesn't that fill up with adrenaline and make you want to try even harder?" Bubbly asked as they continued to run.
Fantasy looked down at the ground for a moment, knowing that Bubbly had a point.
The two of them reached Dolly and Teddy who yet to separate themselves from the wall they collided against. Their exhausted expressions were telling, they didn't have a lot of fight left in them.
"Can you guys stand?" Bubbly asked as she knelt next to them.
"We've been trying to…" Teddy answered as she continued to struggle to her feet," It feels like Nixe went and broke some bones."
"At this point, they're just fighting us for their own amusement. Nixe is certain we can't do anything in the condition we're in." Dolly stated as she found herself having difficulty breathing,"We have to try a purification attack, we don't have any other choices left."
"But it won't happen if we don't have any power left to perform it." Teddy reminded her impatiently.
"I don't care, there's nothing left we can do!" Dolly pointed out to her, her tone much more impatient than expected.
Just then, a light appeared before the Cures that disappeared moments after, revealing a view of the human world where a bunch of kids and living plush toys were standing at a fountain with Bounce and the fairies standing in the center atop the fountain.
Bounce and the fairies held out four keys and a portal showing them the Pretty Cure appeared. The kids were bewildered and stared at the portal but Bounce only grinned and tossed the keys into the portal as she shouted,
"We're counting on you!"
The keys flew up into the air before the Cures before dropping into their hands.
"New toy toppers…? Just how did Bounce and the fairies get a hold of these things?" Dolly asked before the four keys projected an image to the Cures.
"We finished making our key!" One kid standing at the fountain yelled as they held out a key made from sticks, tied with leaves and tin foil.
"Amazing!" Bounce remarked as she took the "key" from the child's hand lowering her voice to a whisper," It looks like it came from a trash can."
"We finished ours too!" Another group declared, holding out a key created from rolled up paper and decorated with pencil crayons.
"We're done too!" Yet another group yelled as they presented a key made from clay that was decorated with dandelions.
"Us too!" The final group shouted as they gave Bounce a key made out of an emptied water bottle decorated with markers.
"Alright, these will do just fine!" Bounce declared to the children," Good job team!"
"Will these actually work?" Bounce whispered to the fairies, who nodded in response.
Rani then gestured Bounce over the fountain and Bounce sighed, nodding as the fairies already told her what to do.
"Well of wonder, we ask only for your help in helping the Pretty Cure." Bounce said as she folded her hands together, internally cringing at what she was saying," Please infuse these keys with magic powerful enough to defeat Nixe and save the Pretty Cure, all of them."
The keys that had been placed on the ledge were now floating up and were each bathed in a bright light. Once the light disappeared, each key took on a new form, looking a bit more presentable and usable for the Pretty Cure. The kids cheered excitedly and Bounce grabbed a hold of the keys as a portal to Asperity opened in the sky.
"The kids and their plushmates...made these for us?" Fantasy questioned as she took a closer look at the key in her hand.
Dolly took one last more look at the key before she clutched it tight in her hands, saying," We won't let their efforts go to waste, come on!"
Dolly stood up and held out her scepter, urging the rest of the team to follow suit.
"Playtime begins! Patchwork Form Deluxe!" The four of them shouted in unison as they put the keys into their scepters.
The four Cures received an upgrade from their already upgraded outfits, their uniforms turning white and gold and detailed with much more lace than before.
"Wow, I didn't really think we could get an outfit cuter than the original Patchwork form!" Bubbly remarked as she twirled around to fully inspect the upgraded outfit.
Dolly felt her heart begin to race, and she felt the wounds from before healing themselves. She didn't feel good as new, she felt much better than that. She had never felt so much power flow through her until now, it made her worry if she'd be able to withstand the power for long. No, they didn't need to do that, the girls wouldn't allow this fight to go on much longer anyways.
"Nixe, it's the end of the line for you!" Dolly shouted out as she and the Cures jumped up high, getting to Nixe's eye level.
"What, you think a new set of clothes will help you stop me? That's by far the most Pretty Cure thing you could ever say!" Nixe cackled as they extended their arm towards the Cures, but their hand had been repelled by a mysterious force.
"I think we can both agree this has gone on long enough, right?" Dolly said as she held out her scepter," Your actions have had a ripple effect, hurting people even outside the kingdom, altering their lives for the worse. But, you're finally going to get what you deserve after all this time."
"Honestly, I can't stand to watch you girls act so high and mighty, especially you leader, whilst forgetting I've yet to even use half of my own power." Nixe claimed haughtily," If anything, it'll be you four who shall get what you deserve!"
"We'll see about that!" Bubbly responded as she twirled her scepter around," I'll bet by the time we're through with you'll there won't be anything of you left!"
"You've hurt the people we cared about for far too long, and we won't let you get away with that anymore." Teddy declared as she held out her scepter.
"I want to restore and create the kingdom anew, I want the kingdom to be a place people can live in happily or come and go as they please without worrying they'll never see the kingdom again." Fantasy claimed as she took a deep breath," But that can't be done with you around!"
The four of them held their scepters up high, and shouted in unison,
"Pretty Cure, Eternal Playtime Oasis!"
A massive ray of multicoloured light held by purple, gold, blue and white rings was launched straight towards Nixe. Nixe held their hands in front of themselves in defense, trying to shield themselves from the Cures attack.
"They can't go on like this forever, they'll be drained of their powers and I'll remain triumphant!" Nixe exclaimed, though they weren't having it easy trying to fend the attack off.
"No Nixe, we're not giving in until you've met your defeat!" Dolly cried out as she clutched her scepter as tight as she could.
"Then in that case, we'll just be going at it for an eternity, clearly you girls have yet to comprehend the extent of my powers!" Nixe shouted, though slowly, their body was vanishing on them.
The Cures attack only got stronger and Nixe wasn't able to keep up their defense for long.
"No, I absolutely refuse to be overpowered by a group of children who weren't even a match for Cure Cheer, this isn't happening!" Nixe shouted in desperation," I won't be defeated by children who couldn't defeat the one who only had a taste of my magic, this is absolute anarchy, I won't stand for this!"
Nixe finally disappeared completely and all that was left in their place was Rubix, lying on the floor unconscious.
The team fell utterly silent for a few moments, the four of them still in disbelief of what had just happened.
A few moments passed and finally, Cure Bubbly exclaimed," We did it!"
The Cures cheered and hugged each other, in both complete relief and joy. Their efforts weren't wasted, they actually saved the kingdom.
Teddy then knelt next to Rubix and wondered what things would be like after this.