Chapter 48: Toward the End

The room, which had been dead silent from the moment Malco delivered the finishing blow, erupted in celebration. Dozens of Mimiga all around them burst out cheering, clapping, and praising their robotic saviors from within their cages. Quote made his way over to his companions, still wincing from being slammed into the floor and that sensory overload from the Demon Crown but otherwise not damaged too extensively. His self-repair functions were already hard at work, and to his delight Curly was stirring where she lay as well. She rubbed at the top of her head with a pained grimace, but her injuries weren't much worse than his own. The same couldn't be said for Malco, who had dropped the sword and fallen onto his rear with his cracks and scratches painfully visible.

"Ooh, my head…" Curly groaned. "What happened? Did we win?"

"A-a-afiiiirmative. The Doctor has been d-defeated."

She looked just as unnerved at his condition as Quote, but Malco gave the two a smile (at least, the closest thing his face could make to one) even despite one of his eye lenses being so badly cracked it was one light poke away from completely shattering.

"Lighten up, fr-fr-friends!" he continued in a sputtering voice. "We've won, and the Demon C-Crown is no more!"

Curly's eyes widened, and she broke into a smile. She beamed at the two of them, listening to the chorus of cheers emanating from the Mimiga. Loudest of all, Quote realized, were the Colons in their cell, as they danced and hugged one another tightly, praising their "robot angels" with improvised songs of heroism.

"Come on, let's help everyone get out of these cages," she said with a weary grin.

Quote nodded and began working his way along the right side of the room, picking up Spur to blast apart the locks. With every cage he opened, its occupants would joyfully crowd around him and offer more words of congratulations. He looked behind him to see that Curly and Malco were subjected to a similar treatment, and he could practically feel the admiration in the air. The soldier was injured, fatigued, and sore, but he allowed himself to relish in their hard-fought victory. He smiled triumphantly to himself as he freed the last of the Mimiga on his side and rejoined his two allies, putting his hat back on in the process.

"I can't believe we won," Quote remarked, still grinning.

"There was n-n-never any doubt! You and Curly are unstoppable."

He put an arm around Malco to help him stand up.

"You pulled your weight too. You even got the last hit in."

The robot chuckled bashfully.

"Ha ha… the imp-important part is that we've succeeded."

Curly looked more serious all of a sudden.

"Not yet, we haven't. We still need to get rid of the Core, so nothing like this will happen again. Some of the Mimiga have already eaten the red flowers, remember?"

"I'm d-detecting its magical signature coming from the floor above us, but something is different about it t-this time. We m-must be cautious…"

Quote frowned at him.

"'We?' You're not coming with us in your condition."

"He's right," Curly added. "You have to stay behind. We'll handle it, okay?"

Malco looked like he wanted to protest, but before he could get a word out his right arm snapped off at the elbow. He merely stared at the remaining half of his limb.

"Ah… I-I see… very well, perhaps it would be best for me to avoid any f-f-further battles."

The mortified look on Quote's face was matched by Curly.

"W-w-worry not, replacing my arm should be a simple task. Go on, finish the mission once and for all! I will b-be supporting you wirelessly again."

Though still greatly concerned for Malco, Quote grabbed the sword off the floor and sheathed it beside Spur. Mimiga still crowded all around the trio, chanting happily and firing off dozens upon dozens of questions for them. Out of curiosity, he looked around but couldn't spot Sue anywhere among them. His heart sank. Had she been one of the mutants they'd passed outside? If not, then where was she?

Curly was reuniting with her children, joyously hugging them and ruffling their fur. She also did something like what she'd done to Quote earlier, gently placing her mouth on the tops of their foreheads with her lips puckered. Once again he found himself wondering what the gesture meant, but seeing how happy she was made up for the confusion. She looked positively radiant in his eyes.

"…and this is my other friend, Malco. He's been a big help to Quote and me, so I need you to look after him while we finish up, okay?"

With that, she walked back over to his side. A path was cleared in the crowd of Mimiga, allowing them to make their way to the staircase leading further up. The two waved one last time at the sea of white fur, spotting Malco in the back, and began their ascent. These steps were much longer than the first ones, leading so far up that after a while the Mimiga below were little more than a white mass.

"Curly," Quote said once they were far enough to be out of earshot, "Are you sure about this? If we destroy the Core, there's no telling what could happen to them, the Gaudi, and everyone else…"

Her smile faded.

"Yeah, I know. We might be responsible for the destruction of the island… but one way or another we can't let the red flowers be abused ever again. Do you not want to destroy it?"

"No, I think we need to go through with this…"

"Ahahaha… I like the way you think."

The third voice surprised both of them, and they snapped their gazes upwards to see Cthulhu on the stairs further ahead. He was staring at the pair of soldiers with an even wider smirk than usual.

"Well done on your victory," he hissed softly. "From the moment I first saw you, I sensed potential… that was so long ago, and yet here you stand, having surpassed my expectations. You have managed to defeat not just one wielder of the Demon Crown, but two. Once more, well done."

Quote's hand strayed toward Spur, as he wasn't sure if Cthulhu was about to attack them or not. His crooning voice and strange mannerisms didn't give off an air of trustworthiness.

"It was you who found us ten years ago, wasn't it?" Curly asked at his side. "You were there when we fought Miakido, and you separated us when we lost our memory. Why?"

He chuckled.

"Very clever, Miss Brace. I found the pair of you barely alive, and predicted that you would one day be able to put a stop to this once and for all. However, your injuries were problematic. Fearing that the Demon Crown's influence would have made you more dangerous to your surroundings than anticipated, I decided to send you away from one another until I could be certain of your safety. I left you hidden within the Sand Zone to recover, and while I didn't anticipate a decade-long reboot process, here you are nonetheless."

Cthulhu pointed a scaly, clawed finger down at Quote.

"Your friend, on the other hand, had suffered far greater internal damage. I left him in the care of an old man who possessed a great degree of engineering skill. I believe he was a deserter from the war, who had arrived to assist the other soldier robots… beyond that, I know nothing of him."

So that hermit in the first cave had told the truth. He was about to question Cthulhu further, but the hooded creature had vanished once again.

"We still don't know what's up with him," Curly sighed, "but we shouldn't focus on that right now. Let's go destroy the Core and be done with this."

Quote nodded, and they climbed the remaining stairs in silence. At the top was what had to be the highest point on the island, a long corridor dug into the mountain. It was almost pitch-black in there, but they could still see the Core waiting for them at the very back of the room, surrounded by its guardians. Two notable differences caught their attention: not only were there much more than five of the smaller creatures this time, but the moss covering all of the egg-shaped entities was an icy blue rather than brown. The Core itself still bore scars from their previous fight with it.

"Connection established," Malco's voice sounded from their receptors. He still sounded feeble, but his speech was at least clear. "Something is wrong with the Core; last time it was preventing me from contacting you… it is not dead, yet not quite alive according to my analysis."

Quote began to charge Spur's laser as they approached it.

"Let's just finish it off, then."

"That's far enough!"

He and Curly stopped short at the sound of Misery's voice. She warped into the room, standing between them and their target with a scowl. Quote could see the marks from her earlier battle with his companions; her normally smooth hair was a frayed mess, and her robes were tattered and burned. The witch looked like she was having difficulty staying on her feet.

With a slight flick of her staff, she caused a second person to materialize in front of her. Quote immediately recognized the unconscious Mimiga's blue sweater- it was Sue. She lay at Misery's feet, not moving but clearly alive.

"If you value this girl's life, step away from the Core."

The soldiers both raised their weapons in response, but the witch pointed her staff down at Sue threateningly. Not willing to take the risk, Quote holstered Spur and took a few steps backwards. Curly followed suit, her glare matching his.

Misery smirked at them.

"Interesting! Most robots wouldn't concern themselves with a single life over their mission, but you've surprised me yet again. I still can't believe you actually managed to defeat the new King."

"Why are you standing in our way?!" Curly shouted. "The Doctor is dead, your curse should be broken now! Aren't you free?"

"It's not that simple…" the witch replied shortly. "But that's irrelevant. I'll offer you two a deal: you can destroy the Core and die with this island, along with everyone on it… or you can turn around and leave, then forget you were ever here. If you agree to abandon this place, I promise to spare this girl's life. If you don't…"

Misery's sharp red eyes flickered between the soldiers and Sue, who she prodded with the business end of her staff.

"…well, you can fill in that blank yourself. Understand?"

Quote snarled, but didn't have the chance to further react as the room suddenly began to tremble. The Core and its small counterparts shivered from the movement but otherwise remained still. After a few seconds, the tremor stopped abruptly, leaving a tense confusion in the corridor.

"ALERT!" Malco shouted in their heads. "I'm detecting an impossibly strong magical energy! It's… it's the Doctor!"

"You shall not escape…"

The voice was definitely his, but it emanated from no discernible source. All around them, a sinister laugh echoed across the room. Misery turned her head with an expression between fury and horror.

"What? Who goes there?!"

Seeping out of the floor was the same red gas that the Doctor had evaporated into, in the center of which was the Red Crystal. It hovered in the air between Misery and the Core, throwing an eerie light across the room.

"Ha ha ha… oh, have you forgotten the voice of your master already? Foolish girl."

His voice was coming from the gemstone itself, with an unsettlingly delighted tone.

"The Red Crystal truly is spectacular. Raw power fills me even now… my physical body may have been destroyed, but my mind is fully conscious and clearer than ever. See me as I am, a super-human!"

Sue had woken up by then, and instantly fled to Quote and Curly upon seeing the swarm of red gas behind her. She hid behind the two as they gripped their weapons in anticipation of whatever the Doctor had in store. Misery didn't bother stopping her, instead staring at the Red Crystal with clenched teeth and tight fists.

"What's wrong? Does my new form frighten you? Am I dreadful to behold, Misery? AM I?"

"Silence!" the witch growled, taking aim with her staff. "How dare you try to cheat death, scum?! You sicken me! Begone!"

She chanted loudly, casting bolt after bolt of lightning at the Red Crystal. Her spells had no visible effect, merely passing through it and harmlessly striking the side of the Core.

"How unfortunate…" the Doctor's voice crooned. "A fool who forgets her master has no need for free will. You shall spend the rest of your days in your rightful place as my puppet."

The red mist surrounding the gem shot forward and enveloped Misery, causing her to let out a screech of agony. Quote could only watch in horror while she began to change in shape. Her body stretched to nearly twice its original height, tearing her robes apart in the process. Misery's hands and feet became oversized claws, her eyes bulged and became entirely black, a short tail poked out from her back, her ears extended to be shaped like knife blades, and her lower face contorted into a form not unlike a rounded beak with her nose disappearing altogether.

"W-we've got to go!" Sue called, snapping Quote and Curly's attention to her as she made a run for the stairs.

In a brief flash, Cthulhu had appeared before them. He waved a hand at the Mimiga, and she vanished from the room altogether. Something was different about his expression. He no longer had a toothy smile but rather a concerned grimace.

"I've sent her down to your friend below. She will be safe there while you- aargh!"

His body went completely rigid, and his gaze locked with the transformed Misery's. Quote saw a familiarity in the way they stared at each other; even in her mutant form the witch looked at him as if surprised he was there. Her arm was outstretched, and it appeared that by some nonverbal spell she was preventing Cthulhu from moving.

"And who is this?" the Doctor's disembodied voice chuckled. "Another puppet? Strange, you exhibit a magical power similar to Misery's… very well! There's always room for one more in my army. Come and join her!"

The Red Crystal sped toward him. Quote, in a desperate attempt to stop it, fired a blast from Spur, but the effort was in vain. It circled around the hooded man, showering him with energy before abruptly disappearing into thin air. Cthulhu began a transformation of his own, growing like Misery had and tearing his cloak open to reveal a human-shaped body of orange scales. His claws didn't increase much in size, but the main change was to his upper body. He sprouted sharp-pointed green tendrils along his face until only his bulging white eyes were left uncovered. Two points on his back stretched outwards, unfurling into leathery, bat-like green wings.

Even the Core was changing. In its darkened, smile-shaped center, a red mass began to form and took the shape of a human face. Two empty black holes glared out at the soldiers, with a nose being just barely visible below them. The face glowed as fiercely as the Demon Crown's eye had, and a peal of the Doctor's laughter rumbled out from it.

"You two aren't leaving this place alive!"

The transformed Misery and Cthulhu snarled and hissed at them, positioning themselves in front of the Undead Core. Quote began to charge Spur's laser, with Curly raising her gun at his side.

"Ready?" she asked, confident despite their overwhelming odds. "Let's put this guy down for good."

He nodded and pulled King's sword out as well, steeling himself as the real battle began.