AN: Hello all and welcome back to the one and only Fantaji Sentai Questinger. It's gonna be a fun chapter and I hope everyone enjoys, see ya next time.
Fantaji Sentai Questinger
Roll 9: The Bard's Decision
Within a grand castle located in a realm filled with fire, lava and brimstone….
A man dressed in expensive and regal looking clothing opened the door into a room that contained a glass case. He yawned as he walked into the room, removing a crown from his head and placing it into the case.
The man rubbed the horns on his head and ruffled his hair where the crown had sat, chuckling to himself, "Good night crowny I love you." He turned and left the room, darkness filling it as not a soul dared to enter. After closing the door he turned to the one lone guard and nodded at him, "Keep it safe Dale."
The guard nodded as the man left down a hallway, no doubt heading to his bedroom. The guard smiled as he heard a loud slam, no doubt that fool reached his room. Deciding he didn't have much time to lose the guard turned the door handle, entering into the room and smiling to himself, that idiot was so confident that no one would ever try to steal from him that he never bothered to establish any security measures.
Walking up to the glass case the guard opened it, taking the crown and chuckled, this was too easy. Removing a bottle from his belt the guard threw it down on the ground, smoke surrounding him as he began to disappear, before doing so shifting his form into that of a human.
As the smoke cleared and left no trace the door swung open, the man having sensed the crown had left the realm. As he walked into the room he scanned for any clues before frowning, "Well shit this isn't good." Sighing he began to walk out of the room, his crown going missing was bad, but thankfully he had an old friend who had a knack for getting people out of bad situations.
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Music rang over the speakers as Megumi Ako sat at a table at a music store. She hummed along to her own music as fans approached her. She hadn't had a signing in awhile and she had forgotten how draining they could be after a few hours. She loved her fans, sure, but some of them could be a bit… weird.
She was a little disappointed that she had to miss school for this but as an idol and performer she still had a duty to perform when her agency needed her to. As she signed another CD she looked over at her manager, "Uh excuse me Mr. Satou, what time is it?"
Her manager looked at his watch, "Almost 4:30 why, what do you want Megumi?" Megumi's eyes widened and she shot up, "I need to get to school for my club." She had promised Remlin she'd be back for the club meeting as he said he wanted them to start learning how to use similar abilities to what Yukishi had in his fight with one of the generals of Sebion.
Her manager frowned, "Megumi this signing is going to be going for another hour, you can't just leave." Megumi thought for a moment before looking at the people in line, thankfully not too many, "Hi everyone! I want to thank you for coming to see me but I gotta get going, I'll be back to do another event soon I promise!"
With that she excused herself from the table and began to run towards the back door, leaving a confused and annoyed manager. As he tried to figure out what to do he decided to take out his phone and dialed a number.
As it rang a few times the other person on the line finally picked up as he greeted them, "Hello, it's Satou, yes she's becoming a bit of a problem, too focused on school and not her main priorities. You'll set her straight? Excellent, see you soon then."
He hung up and walked over to the owner of the store in an attempt to smooth things over with them. He didn't have to worry much, his client would soon be set straight and her career would be back on track soon enough.
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*The Opening theme begins, Silhouette by Kana-Boon*
Instrumentals are heard as a guitar begins as several characters flash on the screen starting with Yukishi before going through several characters before the screen breaks revealing a book called The Legend of Kataryuko. The book opens showing several scenes like the armies of Sebion, the 6 heroes and finally the worlds splitting before the book gets halfway through and it reveals the logo Fantaji Sentai Questinger.
Isse no se de fumikomu gōrain bokura wa, Nanimo nanimo mada shiranu
Yukishi is shown walking the halls of school before transferring into a village dressed in fighter gear.
Issen koete furikaeruto mō nai bokura wa Nanimo nanimo mada shiranu
Yuto is shown being laughed at in the halls before going over to a village where people are shown to be asking him questions appreciating him, now flashing to Valanthe who is shown to be overlooking a village. Maki is shown with her back against a tree in the human world before turning and showing her with her bow in Kataryuko. Finally Megumi is running off a stage and into the streets of a village ready to entertain villagers with a lute.
Udatte udatte udatteku Kirameku ase ga koboreru no sa
Remnil is shown giving the teens their Questinchangers behind them appearing Grant Masters staring at them giving them a cold look as they prepare to morph.
Oboetenai koto mo takusan attadarou
The Questingers appear fully morphed leaping from a book into the world of Kataryuko going head first into some monsters fighting them off.
Daremo kare mo shiruetto
The five stop to look at each other before going to fight a tougher looking monster as a team.
Daiji ni shitai mono motte otona ni naru nda
The humanoid zords appear with each of them charging into battle before all give combining into Great QuestinOh
Don'na toki mo hanasazu ni
A scene of Grant Masters laughing creating monsters as a silhouette of the Questingers fight them
Mamori tsudzukeyou soshitara itsu no hi ni ka
A brief flash of Remlin casting a spell before the Questingers all begin to charge up attacks
Nanimo kamo o waraeru-sa
The attacks merge striking the screen leaving a bright light
Hirari to hirari to matteru Konoha ga tonde yuku
Finally Maki and Megumi are shown joining the other three, all getting ready to charge into battle as a 20 sided dice rolls on the ground ending the scene cutting out before the dice finishes rolling.
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She ran as fast as she could, avoiding any obstacle in her way as she burst through the door to Remlin's classroom, "I'm sorry I'm late!"
Megumi paused to catch her breath as she saw her friends looking at her rather confused. Remlin looked at her and gave her a slight smile, "Relax Megumi, we only just all got here so you aren't late." Megumi nodded, "Oh ok, so I didn't miss anything important?"
Remlin shook his head and chuckled, "No, we were waiting for you before I sent you all to Kataryuko to train, since you all want to learn a subclass like Yukishi did." Megumi went to sit next to Yuto as Valanthe crossed her arms, "I'm already annoyed the idiot learned one before me, I'm not gonna stand by and watch him get stronger than me."
Yukishi laughed at her comment, "Well you better catch up fast then Valanthe, cause thanks to Maki I'm already learning another one." Valanthe cast a side eye to Maki who simply shrugged, "I'm helping him learn how to use a bow, he's helping me improve my skills with a sword, I saw it as a fair trade."
Megumi looked at Yuto who was being quiet, "Aren't you excited to learn new skills too Yuto?" Yuto frowned for a moment before nodding, "Yeah, I just don't want to make any bold claims yet until I really master a few spells Remlin was helping me with." Megumi smiled at him, causing him to go red in the face, "Well I'm sure those spells are gonna be super cool and powerful!"
Yuto nodded, "Well anyways enough about me, how'd the signing go?" Megumi sighed, "It was fine, I think I annoyed my manager by leaving early but I just didn't want to be late today. I promised Remlin after all that I'd be here." Remlin looked over at her and nodded, "I appreciate your dedication Megumi, I know you're busy and while I don't 100% know what it is you actually do besides play music I understand your career is important."
Valanthe crossed her arms and shook her head, "Honestly you don't want to know anyway, I looked into what Megumi does and she has better patience than me cause I would end up punching the first person who got creepy with me." Remlin sighed and took out his spell book, "Alright before we get distracted any further shall I send you all in?"
The team nodded and with a flick of his wrist they were sent into Kataryuko, leaving Remlin seemingly alone. As he sat down at his desk, needing to grade papers he barely reacted as a portal opened in the room.
Remlin frowned and didn't look up from his papers, "I thought we agreed you wouldn't enter into this world on account of you being you." The figure who had arrived through the portal approached his desk, "And normally I wouldn't risk pissing you off but to be brutally honest we have a fucking problem." Remlin put down his pen and pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly annoyed, "What did you do now?"
He knew he would regret asking that as his visitor would begin telling him the details of their current problem, and why it was now a problem for him and the Questigner's as well.
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Kushiraba Palace(Kataryuko)
Vrefaris sat in his throne as he watched his generals arrive into his throne room, Igritorn appearing behind them. All of them except for Uvubras who was off doing whatever he pleased and Young Grant Masters who was currently experiencing a little stay in the dungeon to help him understand his place within Sebion.
As Vrefaris watched them enter and kneel before him Hereth raised a finger, "Yes Hereth?" Hereth gestured towards Igritorn, "Lord Vrefaris not that I like to question you but why is he here?" Vrefaris looked at Igritorn who was remaining silent in fear of angering him further, "Something has happened, something good that will require his services so therefore he is here."
Malin, being the smart one, looked at him and smiled, "I could tell you were in a good mood my lord, do tell us what good news do you have?" Vrefaris smiled, "Imagine my surprise this morning when I received a letter, a letter from a foolish thief who managed to do something we have been trying decades to achieve."
Hereth stood up and raised an eyebrow, "And that is?" Vrefaris let out a small laugh, "Steal the crown of the king of hell." Not able to contain himself, Igritorn shot forward, "You mean the crown that allows whoever wears it to command the armies of hell and access to all their abilities?"
Vrefaris flicked his wrist and sent Igritorn restrained into a wall, "No talking Igritorn, but yes that very crown, and imagine my surprise when all this simple thief wants is gold in exchange for it." Malin said nothing for a moment before standing and looking at Vrefaris, "We've been trying to take over hell for centuries and with this crown we could finally do it. Lord Vrefaris the king is bound to be desperate to get his crown back, allow me to retrieve it from the thief."
Vrefaris frowned, "I was going to send Hereth, on account of your personal issues in this matter Malin, but very well, just don't let feeling get in the way of this. However, just to ensure you have proper muscle in case the king of hell sends allies, I will be sending Igritorn with you."
Malin looked over at Igritorn, glaring daggers at the large dragonborn before nodding, "I understand Lord Vrefaris we will not fail you." Vrefaris flicked his wrist and released Igritorn from the wall, "See that you don't or else both of you will be joining Young Masters in the dungeon."
Malin nodded and turned to leave, she needed to make sure she was prepared before leaving. Finally after all these years she would finally have an opportunity for revenge against that revolting man, finally she would have a chance to hurt him like he had hurt her.
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Tokyo, Japan
Megumi sighed as she walked down the hallway to her apartment, for the first time in two weeks since they'd moved in she'd be alone for the night. Valanthe had stayed behind as Remlin asked to speak to her about something, and Maki had decided to stay in Kataryuko for the night as it was the weekend and they didn't need to worry about school.
She had gotten so used to living with them that it was going to be a little lonely but she was tired anyway so she figured she could enjoy a bath and then go to sleep for the night. As she entered her apartment she was shocked to find two people sitting on her couch, "Mom? Dad? What are you two doing here? I thought you were on vacation in America?"
Her parents frowned at her as her Father stood up, "Well we were but then we got a call from your manager that you had left a signing early to go do something for that stupid school of yours."
Megumi felt the color drain out of her face, "That's true but it was just a one time thing, It won't happen again I promise." Her Mother crossed her arms, "Megumi do you remember what our agreement was when we agreed to let you play pretend and go to school?"
Megumi frowned, "That I wouldn't let it get in the way of my career and would remain dedicated to my job as an idol." Her Father nodded, "And you haven't been sticking to your end of that agreement now have you?" Megumi frowned and shook her head, "I've been trying to, what are you trying to say?"
Her Mother got up and began to walk towards her, "Megumi your father and I have decided you'll be returning to your idol career." Megumi felt a pit in her stomach as she didn't want to hear those words, "No please, I like being a normal girl please don't pull me out of school."
Her Father barely looked at her as he shook his head, "You broke your side of the agreement and because of that you'll be facing the consequences of your actions." Megumi wanted to say something but found no words could come out except two she knew all too well, "Yes sir."
Her Mother smiled at her before walking past her, "See that wasn't so difficult now was it, we'll give you until the end of the weekend to say goodbye to whatever friends you may have made with your limited time in school. Until then we'll see you later sweetheart."
Her parents, not even bothering to ask her about anything else, walked out the door, leaving Megumi to merely fall to her knees as tears began to fall from her eyes. Things couldn't end like this, but she wasn't strong enough, she couldn't dare defy her parents.
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7 Years Ago
A 10 year old Megumi looked excitedly as she had finished singing a new song she had learned for her parents. She jumped up and down in excitement, "How did I sound? Have I gotten better?" Her Father nodded, barely paying attention, "Very good, you've gotten very good at singing with all that practice, have you been practicing your instruments as well?"
Megumi nodded, "I played the guitar earlier and was going to practice piano after singing." Her Mother smiled at her, causing her to be filled with more excitement, "Very good sweetheart, the more you learn the better chances you have to pass your audition."
Megumi jumped up and down again, "Since I'm doing a good job can I go play outside?" Her Father frowned, "Now you know the rules Megumi, the audition is coming up and we need you to practice every minute you possibly can." Megumi frowned, "But I thought since I was doing so well maybe I can be normal and play outside."
Her Mother knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder, "Megumi you know you aren't normal, you're a talented little girl who's going to become famous and make lots of money to take care of her parents when they are old."
Her Father nodded in agreement, "We just want what's best for us.. I mean you, and what's best for you is staying in the house and practicing your music, not going to school or playing outside" Megumi sighed and nodded, "Ok, I'll go and sing some more in my room."
She turned and went back to her room, she needed to keep practicing so her parents would keep loving her. But maybe one day, if she made them proud enough they'd finally let her be normal and have friends.
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Present Day
Yuto sat across from Megumi as they sat in a local cafe, it wasn't a busy spot and it was usually where Megumi knew she could go and not potentially be recognized by anyone. As Yuto took a sip of tea he looked at her, "You seemed pretty down on the phone, everything ok?"
Megumi shook her head, "My manager called my parents after I left that event yesterday, now they want me to leave school and go back to my career full time." Yuto's eyes widened, "What did you say? Leaving school means leaving us and the Questinger's."
Megumi nodded, "I couldn't say no to them, so I agreed and they gave me the rest of the weekend to say goodbye to everyone." Yuto sighed, "I don't want to overstep my bounds here but your parents sound controlling. Megumi we need you, you're our friend and teammate we can't save the day without you."
Megumi shook her head quickly, "They aren't controlling, they just want what's best for me." Yuto took another sip of tea and raised an eyebrow, "Really? Megumi they barely gave you an option and told you to say your goodbyes to your friends, that sounds pretty controlling."
Megumi took a sip or her strawberry smoothie and reluctantly nodded, 'Ok they're maybe a little controlling. Hey Yuto if you don't mind me asking, what's your relationship with your parents like?"
Yuto thought for a moment before smiling a bit, "My parents are great, they're a little protective since I've been bullied all my life but besides that they understand I'm my own person and let me make my own decisions and my own mistakes. They also love when I bring Yukishi over so it's nice to have parents who like my best friend."
Megumi smiled sadly, "I wish things could be like that for me, I would love to be able to do things like you and Yukishi can, you two seem so independent." Yuto frowned, "You can too, if you want to stay in school then that's your decision to make." Megumi shook her head, "It's not, they've always made the decisions for me, the first time I ever made a decision for myself was deciding to go to school."
Yuto took another sip of tea and tried giving her a reassuring smile, "You shouldn't let your parents control you, make your own decisions." Before Megumi could respond Yuto's phone beeped as he took it out to check it. Yuto took it out to check the text message he'd received, "It's Yukishi, he said Remlin needs us and he claims it's super urgent."
Megumi sighed and nodded, "Well guess we can't keep Remlin waiting, but can we continue this conversation later?" Yuto nodded as the two got up from their table and ran out of the cafe, going to see what urgent business Remlin needed them for.
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As all 5 of them had gathered in Remlin's apartment they found themselves face to face with a man who looked like a demon, with large horns, purple skin and piercing eyes. None of them spoke before Yukishi looked at their teacher, "Uh Remlin not that I question you often but why is Satan in your apartment?"
Remlin frowned and sighed, "Well you aren't that far off, everyone this is Dangan Fame the King of Hell who I've had the displeasure for the most part of knowing for a long time." Dangan flashed Remlin a smile, "Love you too Remlin."
As none of them spoke for a moment, Yuto raised his hand, "Remlin, why are you friends with the literal King of Hell?" Dangan chuckled a bit, "I think the better question is why am I friends with someone as deadly as Remlin." Valanthe crossed her arms, "It's been 2 minutes and I already can't stand you."
Dangan smiled, "I have that effect on people, just ask your friend's adoptive father." The others turned to Maki in confusion as Yukishi raised an eyebrow, "Wait Maki have you met him before?" Maki nodded, "I met him once when I was with my adoptive father Tordryn, in his own words this guy is a fucking asshole. Speaking of that, where is Tordryn? Last time I saw him he went off with you for something."
Dangan shrugged, "Let's say he's running some errands for me, nothing to worry about, he still has about 200 years to live give or take." Maki glared at him, "Alright I agree with Valanthe for once, I don't like him either."
Remlin sighed and felt a headache forming, "Ignoring Dangan's less than stellar personality, he is here with a legitimate problem. For about 200 years Sebion has been waging a war against Hell in an effort to take control of it and use it's demonic armies for their own purposes; they hadn't been successful since they didn't have the Crown of Hell which controls Hell."
Dangan nodded, "That is until it was stolen from me two days ago, and I'm not all powerful without the crown so I need some help to get it back." Valanthe glared daggers at him in annoyance, "Such a powerful item and you simply allowed it to be stolen? Are you a moron?"
Dangan waved off her question, "In my defense it's usually secured inside of my castle, however a rather skilled doppelganger infiltrated my castle and stole it right out from my nose." Yukishi crossed his arms, "So we have to get the crown back before the thing can get it to Sebion is what I'm guessing?"
Dangan nodded, "Correct, my spies have at least been able to track it to the general area it's in, my wife can meet you there and help you track it." Maki let out a small scoff, "Wait someone actually tolerates you enough to marry you?" Dangan winked at her causing her to feel a shiver down her spine as Remlin felt like he needed to reign the royalty in, "Alright that's enough, I'll send you to the area, Dangan you'll be staying here with me for now."
Dangan nodded as Valanthe frowned at Remlin, "Good luck trying not to kill him, Remlin, though I don't blame you if you do." Remlin sighed and waved his hand, sending them into Kataryuko as he looked over at Dangan who whistled innocently, this was going to be a long wait.
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6 Years Ago
11 year old Megumi let out a sigh of relief as she had just finished her first ever audition. She had done the best she could and as she waited with her parents to find out if the agency was going to sign her she hoped she was good enough to finally make her parents happy.
Finally after what felt like forever a man entered into the waiting room and smiled at her parents, "Mr and Mrs. Ako? We thought your daughter was incredibly talented and we would be honored if she would join LIBERA as one of our many talents."
Megumi watched as her parents went wide-eyed and practically jumped up and down, "We'll finally get some money out of our kid!" The man chuckled as he walked over to her and looked down at her, "I hope you're ready Megumi, you're going to be working 24/7 in order to entertain people all over Japan."
Megumi frowned, "But I just want to play music and make people happy, why do I have to be working all the time to do it?" Her Mother looked at her, glaring briefly before smiling, "Because you've always wanted to be an idol sweety, it's what you've been practicing all your life, to make people happy with your music and to make your parents be very happy."
Her Father nodded in agreement, "That's right and we always wondered why we had you and now we're finding out why, you don't want us to be sad do you?" Megumi shook her head, no she wanted her parents to love her, she wanted to feel like she was doing good by doing what they wanted. Megumi looked at the man and nodded, "Ok, I'm ready to be an idol!"
Her parents smiled and embraced her in a hug, Megumi for the first time in what felt like forever feeling them hugging her. This was good, this is what she wanted, she'd get to make people happy and get her parents love at the same time. It didn't matter if she couldn't be a normal girl, she'd do whatever her parents wanted to make them happy.
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Kataryuko(Present Day)
The Questinger's arrived in the area Dangan had claimed his wife would be, Yukishi turning to Yuto, "So what do you think the queen of Hell will be like? Because I certainly didn't expect the devil to be like that." Yuto shrugged, "At this point I've learned to expect anything."
Valanthe scoffed at the comment, "Honestly I'm shocked that someone who even annoys Remlin could manage to get married." As they stopped walking they heard a voice from behind them, "Honestly Dangan is much more than meets the eye, it's best to not underestimate him."
The five turned to find an elf standing there, brown hair with the tips dyed purple. She wore a brown leather shirt that exposed her midriff and she wore a coat that went down to her ankles, she smiled at them as Maki frowned, "You're Dangan's wife I take it?" She nodded, "I'm Seliana, one of Dangan's many wives."
Valanthe pinched her nose, resisting the urge to kill the king who put them in this situation, "Of course he's a weirdo like that." Seliana giggled a bit from her reaction, "I've been scouting the area but haven't been able to find the thief, what I have heard from our spies however is Sebion is sending one of Dangan's children who works for them to make the deal with the thief. If we could find either the thief or them first then that would allow us to stop this deal and get the crown back."
Megumi raised an eyebrow, "Wait children? Does he have multiple, that this doesn't seem like a big deal to you?" Seliana shrugged, "Dangan has had many children over the years during his reign as king, I stopped counting around 80 or so, some of them are bound to be a bit rebellious."
Maki let out a small groan, "I think I'm starting to understand why Tordryn didn't want me to go near him, he sounds horrible." Yuto sighed and walked towards the front of the group, "Let's just put aside how weird the literal king of Hell is for a few minutes, I think we should split up to cover more ground to find the thief."
Yukishi nodded in agreement, "Well there's six of us so it shouldn't be too hard of a search." Valanthe crossed her arms and nodded, "I'll go off on my own, I can search better without anyone slowing me down." As she started to walk away Maki put a hand on her shoulder, "No way, I'm not letting you go off on your own when we're dealing with a thief, I'm not letting someone like you out of my sight."
Valanthe broke free of her hold and narrowed her eyes, "And what's that supposed to mean?" Maki glared back at her, "You know damn well what it means, I said I'd trust that everyone else trusts you, I still don't and I don't want you alone with a thief and a crown that contains the power of Hell itself."
Before an argument could get any worse Yukishi stepped between them, "How about I go with both of you, you trust me right Maki? So you can watch Valanthe and I can make sure Valanthe doesn't try to kill you for not trusting her alone." Maki paused for a moment before nodding, "Fine, just because you'll be foolish enough to get in the middle of us."
Valanthe nodded, "Whatever, just know you couldn't stop me if I really did want to hurt her." Yukishi sighed and turned towards Yuto, "We'll go search this way, keep in contact ok?" Yuto nodded as he turned towards Seliana and Megumi, "Well I guess it's just us, wanna go search together Megumi… Megumi?"
Yuto looked to see that in the chaos of Maki and Valanthe arguing that Megumi had walked away. Seliana smiled at him, "She said she was going to search on her own." Yuto frowned but nodded, "She has a lot on her mind, I guess she just needs some time to think on her own." Seliana nodded, "Well I guess we'll be searching together then."
The two went the other way of the others, hopefully someone would be able to find the thief and the crown, at least before Sebion could. They wanted to avoid a fight if they could, but if it came down to it they would fight whoever got in their way to get the crown back.
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She didn't search long before deciding to duck into a small tavern in the town they were in. Megumi sat at a table, ordering water and sat in silence, staring down at the table. She had so much on her mind, could she really abandon her friends?
Could she really abandon this world where she finally felt free and could make her own choices? But if she didn't then her parents would be upset with her and she didn't want to make them hate her. She knew they were controlling but all she ever wanted was their love, and by being an idol she got it, and sure it wasn't too bad, she got to play her music for everyone.
But being normal and going to school, making real genuine friends, she couldn't give that up either. She let out a sigh as she felt a desire to just slam her head down on the table and just end all the painful thinking there. She turned however as she heard a giggle, seeing a woman with red skin and horns.
She raised an eyebrow at her, "Copper for your thoughts?" Megumi frowned, "Oh uh it's nothing, don't worry about it." The woman laughed again and took a seat across from her, "I've been watching you looking pretty upset for the past 10 minutes, I was curious what got a pretty young thing like you upset."
Megumi let out another sigh, maybe talking to someone she didn't know could give her some fresh insight to her problem, "I'm having problems with my parents, they're controlling and want me to drop out of school in order to go back to entertaining people full time but I'd rather be happy with my friends."
The woman nodded slowly, "Ah a bard I see, well do you like entertaining or do you do it to just please your parents?" Megumi shrugged, "I mean I do, but I hate how much I have to work just trying to get their love and attention even though I hate that they never let me just feel normal. I'm sorry I probably sound weird and confusing."
The woman shook her head and smiled, "Trust me, I understand your problems, I have issues with my own Father." Megumi's eyes widened, "You do? How do you deal with him?" The woman frowned, "For a long time all I wanted was his love and attention, competing with a lot of my half siblings to get it, but eventually I realized that he was never going to give me what I wanted, he was never going to be the man I wanted him to be. So I decided to prioritize my own happiness and control my own life and now I'm better off than I was before."
Megumi nodded slowly, "You know that sounds nice, my happiness should be my number one priority, not pleasing my parents." The woman smiled and nodded, "Yup, control your own destiny and stop being what your parents want cause honestly they'll probably never give you the love you want from them."
Megumi stood up, talking things over with this woman really gave her the clarity she needed, "You know what you're right, it's time to be my own person. I'm staying where I am, with my friends, and I'll still entertain but when I want to. If my parents don't like it then oh well."
The woman watched as she left, chuckling at how odd that conversation was and how she didn't even get the girl's name. As she stood up she turned to see a large dragonborn approach her, "Malin it's time to go find the thief, are you ready to go?"
Malin nodded and stood up, "Yeah yeah, let's go cause that pathetic King of Hell a world of pain." Igritorn nodded and the two exited the tavern, ready to go get the crown of Hell and achieve further domination by Sebion of the world.
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Yukishi wanted to groan as he walked in between Maki and Valanthe, but he knew doing so would cause at least one of them to hit him. The two hadn't spoken since they'd left to look for the doppelganger and they were getting nowhere as they walked through town.
Trying to break the silence Yukishi couched, "So uh does anyone know how we'll tell if it's the doppelganger anyway? It can change shape can't it?" Valanthe glared at him, "If you had bothered to pay attention to us when we were walking here you'd know that a doppelganger can't change their eye color, which is usually a unique shade of purple."
Yukishi nodded, "Right well I haven't seen anyone with weird eyes yet." Valanthe scoffed at him, "Well I don't expect an idiot like you to be able to notice a detail like that." Before Yukishi could retort, Maki glared daggers at her, "Would you stop being mean to him, maybe you could be trusted more if you were less cold hearted to everyone around you."
Valanthe scowled, "I'm only mean to people who annoy me, and currently that's you and him, I don't need to be babysat Maki, I'm not going to go running to Sebion the minute you take your eyes off of me." Maki shook her head, "Not to Sebion, just to your adopted Father instead."
Valanthe was practically ready to strangle her, "Don't bring Uvubras into this, I'd sooner stab him than have an actual conversation with him." As the two stopped to argue, Yukishi looked over to see a man carrying a bag with him and purple eyes walking quickly away from him. He turned to the two, 'Hey uh I think I just saw the guy we're looking for, he's going that way."
The two continued to ignore him as the doppelganger noticed them and began to take off running. Yukishi, feeling himself growing annoyed got in the middle of them, "WOULD YOU TWO STOP! Your arguing just caused our target to run away, so how about you stop it for five minutes so we can get the stupid crown back and then you two can kill each other or whatever."
The two looked at him for a moment before narrowing their eyes at him, "Us? It's your fault that he ran away!" Yukishi had to admit the two of them sounded almost way too similar in that moment as they began to yell at him, slowly regretting his actions, "Alright you know what doesn't matter let's just go meet back up with everyone." They stopped yelling at him for a moment and nodded as they began to walk back towards the center of town, finding Yuto and Seliana having already met up with Megumi.
Yuto looked at Yukishi and raised an eyebrow, "Any luck finding the doppelganger?" Yukishi frowned, "Well we had found it, but it ran away but it was definitely no one's fault." Yuto looked at Maki and Valanthe glaring at him and decided he wasn't going to ask. Selian put a hand on her chin, thinking for a moment, "If we could figure out a way to draw it out then we could catch it by surprise and get the crown back without even having to resort to any violence."
As they all thought for a moment Megumi suddenly had an idea, she could do what she did best, "Hey Yuto I have a question." Yuto looked over at her, "Yeah what's up Megumi?" Megumi thought for a moment before speaking, "I remembered once when you were explaining to me what a bard was that through their performances they can entrance unsuspecting people into joining in right? Well if the doppelganger is on its guard it wouldn't join right?"
Yuto nodded slowly, "In theory, if you were to perform and had two people helping you it would resist the spell and go about its business while everyone else in town joined in dancing." Megumi smiled and snapped, "Then how about I put on a concert, with the help of two dancers and everyone else can wait to jump the doppelganger."
Maki nodded at the idea, "Not a bad plan but who would be dancing with you?" Sudden realization hit her as Megumi looked at her and Valanthe causing Valanthe to shake her head, "No, absolutely not, I am not dancing in this thing, use the idiot instead."
Megumi pouted at her and cupped her hands together pleading, "Please! You and I both know Yukishi isn't coordinated enough and you and Maki would have an easier time learning the dance and following my lead than anyone else." Valanthe wanted to say no but couldn't really resist her pleading, "Fine, but if you tell anyone about this then I'm going to be pissed."
Megumi jumped for joy, "Yes! Alright, Yuto, Yukishi and Seliana get ready, it's time to put on a show!" It didn't take long for them to find a small platform to convert into a stage as Megumi stood on it with her lute, Valanthe and Maki behind her, both not being particularly happy with their predicament. As Yuto and Yukishi hid around a corner, making eye contact with Seliana across from them, they nodded at each other.
Megumi, seeing the signal, played a loud chord on her lute, causing the people in town to turn their heads in her direction. Feeling energy flowing through her Megumi smiled as she began to play her lute, the upbeat melody slowly drawing people in as all 3 of them began to dance as well.
Watching the show Yukishi chuckled, "You know if this was anyone else I'd probably never let them live this down, but I'd rather not be stabbed or shot with an arrow." Yuto nodded in agreement, "At least the plan seems to be working so there's that."
Megumi began to pick up the pace, her dancing going faster as she still managed to continue playing the lute, Maki and Valanthe managing to keep up as the beat got faster. Watching everyone in town slowly join in on the dance, Seliana made a signal towards Yukishi and Yuto as they spotted a man with purple eyes walking away from the crowd.
Yukishi made a signal to the 3 performers as they ran over to the man, Yukishi tackling him to the ground, "Hi buddy sorry to steal from ya but you stole this first so I guess this is fair." The doppelganger tried to fight him off as Yuto grabbed his bag, pulling the crown out, "I got it, time to go."
Yukishi nodded and swiftly punched the doppelganger in the face, dazing it as Seliana poured some dust onto its face, "Sleeping powder, let's get out of town before Sebion arrives."
The two nodded and they signaled to the girls, Megumi playing a final chord on her lute as the three finished in poses. Megumi waved to the electrified crowd, "Thank you so much everyone! Glad you had fun and see ya!"
The 3 wasted no time practically running off the makeshift stage before the crowd could come back to their senses, Maki and Valathe both giving each other a look that said they'd never speak of this again. Joining back up with the others the group made for the edge of town, hoping to slip out before anyone could stop them from leaving with the crown.
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As the team walked towards the edge of town, Yuto turned to Megumi who had been silent, "Megumi that was really impressive, managing to get everyone in town to join in."
Megumi looked at him and shrugged, "Oh I wasn't really trying to do that, I was just focusing on entertaining everyone." Yuto smiled at her, "Well you did a good job." Megumi turned away to hide the slight blush on her face, "Uh thanks, I appreciate it." It was a new feeling to her, actually being praised by someone who meant it. It just helped to show her that her parents never actually cared about what she did, only what she did for them.
Seliana looked over at Maki and Valanthe who hadn't spoken since they'd left, "Oh you two did a good job too, stop acting all stoic and just admit it was fun." Valanthe said nothing as Maki sighed, "Fine it was kind of fun, but dancing isn't something I'd go out of my way to do ever."
Seliana smiled and winked at her, "Well you just need to find the right person who'll make it fun." Maki quickly looked over at Yukishi who seemed oblivious to the conversation as she nodded, "Maybe who knows." Valanthe frowned as she shook her head, "Dancing isn't for me, regardless of who I find to dance with."
Seliana shrugged, "I'm starting to wonder if fun is even your thing." Valanthe said nothing as Yukishi looked over at the older elf, "So is the King going to meet us at the edge of town?" Seliana nodded, "He said he'd be on his way the minute he knew Sebion wasn't in the area, he feels the sooner he has the crown the better."
As they continued to walk they found themselves suddenly blown back from an explosion in front of them. As they recovered they found Malin and Igitorn standing before them with a group of Yamblin's, "Hi there Questinger's I can't help but notice you have something that Sebion would really like, care to just give it to me now or should we tear it out of your cold dead hands."
Megumi's eyes went wide, "Wait, you're the one who gave me advice in the tavern? I thought you were nice, not an evil witch!" Malin frowned, "Allow me to properly introduce myself, Malin Fame, grand artificer of Sebion's armies, and trust me sweetie I am nice as long as that stupid isn't involved."
Seliana seemed to glare at Malin, "Malin, you dare go against Dangan like this? After everything he's done?" Malin scoffed, "I'm doing this because of everything he's done, Sebion was my one chance to finally show him how much I despise him, so I don't care what I have to do, I'll make sure the last thing he sees before he finally dies is me, stabbing him through the chest."
Before Seliana could protest Ignition slammed his foot on the ground, drawing his weapon, "QuestinRed, I've returned to kill you, and once I finally do I'll be back in Vrefaris's good graces." Seliana scoffed at the Dragonborn, "Igritorn, you bring shame on the Wildteeth clan, your ancestor Orann would be ashamed of you." Upon hearing this, Igritorn roared at her, "Do not bring him or my clan into this or I will kill you too when this is all over."
Yukishi put an arm in front of Seliana, "Ok as much as I'm enjoying you roasting them, why don't you hang back with the crown and let us handle this?" Seliana nodded as the group stood against the enemies, bringing out their QuestinDice and slamming them into their changer's, "FIGHTER!" "WIZARD!" "ROGUE!" "RANGER!" "BARD!"
The Five went towards the buttons and pressed them as they called out, "QUESTINCHANGE!" Bathed in their respective colors lights, the changers began to announce, "D20!"
"Dive In! Fight for Glory!(Questinranger!) Fighter Classssss!"
"Dive in! Knowledge is power! (Questinranger!) Wizard Classssss!"
"Dive in! Lurking in the shadows! (Questinranger!) Rogue Classssss!"
"Dive in! Hunter in the trees! (Questinranger!) Ranger Classssss!"
"Dive in! Magic in the music! (Questinranger!) Bard Classssss!"
The Questinger's emerged from their respective lights as Red first held up his sword, "The Brave Fighter: QUESTINRED!" Next was blue who spun his staff around , "The Intelligent Wizard: QUESTINBLUE!" Then was black simply got into a fighting position, "The Sly Rogue: QUESTINBLACK!" Green aimed an arrow at Igritorn, seemingly staring him down, "The Keen Ranger: QUESTINGREEN!" Finally It was pink, strumming on her lute, "The Playful Bard: QUESTINPINK!"
All 5 gathered as they posed, "The legendary heroes who'll save the world one roll at a time, FANTAJI SENTAI QUESTINGER." QuestinRed pointed his sword at Malin and Igritorn, "Let's start the quest!" Malin scoffed as she held up her hand, signaling the Yamblins to attack.
The Questinger's charged at the Yamblins, beginning to fight them off before QuestinRed found himself being hit from behind by Igritorn, tackling the fighter and sending him flying, Igritorn being intent on fighting him alone. QuestinBlue turned to where he'd been knocked to in concern, "YUKSIHI!"
A Yamblin charged at and he braced for an attack before QuestinGreen flipped over the Yamblin, digging an arrow its eye before landing behind Blue, "Focus on the battle, I'll go make sure the big idiot doesn't kill him." QuestinBlue nodded as he went back to the battle, emitting lightning out of his staff and striking several Yamblins before coming face to face with Malin.
Malin smirked, "Your magic doesn't seem bad, but I think mine's a bit better." She plunged her staff down into the ground and sent several bolts of fire at QuestinBlue who quickly tried jumping out of the way, but didn't in time, thankfully QuestinPink began to play a different melody on her lute and a shield appeared in front of him, saving him. QuestinBlack jumped at Malin, her two daggers meeting her staff as Malin frowned, "I always wanted to fight you Valanthe, now I get to!"
She removed a pepperbox from her belt, pointing it at her and forcing Black to jump backwards, "We're gonna need to work together to beat her, she's capable of having both magic and inventions up her sleeve." QuestinPink nodded, "I'll support you two and you take her on."
The two nodded as QuestinPink played a new melody, making QuestinBlack feel faster and Blue had more energy as he shot another bolt of lighting forward as Malin tried blocking it, not seeing Black charge at her and striking her, sending her back a bit. Malin frowned but readied her staff and pepperbox, "If you think a little teamwork is going to take me down you're going to be disappointed."
QuestinPink readied her lute, "Well we'll keep coming then till we take you down." The 3 readied themselves as they knew the fight was far from over. Meanwhile with QuestinRed and QuestinGreen, Red continued to try and dodge Igritorn's wild strikes as Green fired arrows into him but they continued to break off against his skin.
Igritorn laughed as sent Red back, hitting Green as they fell down, "I know your every trick QuestinRed, this time I'll kill you and then I'll kill your friend." As they got back up, QuestinRed chuckled to himself, "Well then I guess I'll just have to bring out a few new tricks again, ready Maki?" QuestinGreen nodded as they hit the dice on their changers, "Sounds good to me, let's trade weapons shall we?"
The two changers glowed as they sprang to life, "EXPERIENCE GAINED! SUBCLASS SET: FIGHTER: A-A-A-ARCANE ARCHER! EXPERIENCE GAINED! SUBCLASS SET: RANGER: M-M-M-MONSTER SLAYER!"
QuestinRed held out a bow as he aimed an energy arrow at Igritorn, QuestinGreen charging forward wielding a longsword, slashing at Igritorn, causing him to feel a bit of pain, "You actually hurt me? How?" QuestinGreen smirked underneath her helmet, "I have hunter's sense and slayer's prey, letting me see your weak spots and increasing the damage I do to you, pretty helpful if you ask me. Yukishi go for his joints!"
QuestinRed nodded and shot several arrows into his shoulders and elbows,causing the Dragonborn to drop his sword, "He's weak let's finish it!" QuestinGreen nodded as she pressed in her dice, "RANGER: SLAYER CRITICAL STRIKE!" "FIGHTER: ARCANE PIERCING STRIKE!"
A massive arrow made of energy formed in QuestinRed's bow, he fired it as it flew straight, piercing through Igritorn's armor as it shot him backwards, QuestinGreen hitting him with a slash of green energy from her sword, both strikes sending him flying. Igritorn barely managed to stand as he spit out blood, "This isn't over, I will defeat you one day." He turned to run, as QuestinRed turned towards Green, "Come on let's get back to the others."
Meanwhile with the others Malin was being put on the defensive, maintaining an energy barrier. As she noticed Red and Green returning she decided she needed to end things quickly, "It's time to get what's mine!" She shot forward, reaching for the crown as the Questinger's tried to intercept her, however everything seemed to move in slow motion as she got near Seliana.
However in a quick moment a massive sword appeared in front of her as the king of Hell himself appeared, taking the crown for himself and placing it on his head. Malin stopped short as Dangan once again empowered by the crown pointed a pepperbox of his own at her and struck his sword into the ground, "That's enough of that I'd say." The Questinger's stopped, knowing they'd won as they watched Malin glare at Dangan, "No dammit, not you."
Dangan frowned at her as he put away his weapon, "That's enough of your temper tantrums, wouldn't you say daughter?" Malin scowled at him, "You call me daughter like it has any meaning, you drove me into Sebion's arms. You never cared about me or ever cared about being a Father to me!" Dangan sighed as tried taking a step towards her, "Oh come now Malin, you're one of my favorite children, you know that I love you."
Malin frowned, "What was my Mother's name?" Dangan thought for a moment before looking at her, "Vex'ahlia?" Malin shot at him with her pepperbox and screamed at him, "Not even close!" Dangan put his hands up in defeat, "Ok so I'm not perfect, but please Malin we can work this out without you working for the bad guys."
Malin scowled at him, "I've chosen my loyalties, next time we meet I will kill you and take your crown, count on it." She disappeared within a purple portal as QuestinBlack sighed, "I always figured she had Father issues but honestly meeting her Father I kind of get it."
Dangan frowned and turned towards the Questinger's, "She's my mess to clean up so please try to avoid killing her if you can. For now I must be off, Seliana and I have some things we take care of, thank you for your assistance Questinger's, I'll be calling on you in the future."
He pulled his wife in close to him and soon the two vanished into a portal of fire. As the Questinger's stood in silence suddenly Pink realized something, "I still have to deal with my parents, sorry guys I'll see you later." She began to run off as she tapped her changer, teleporting her back to the real world.
The rest of them looked confused but QuestinBlue sighed, "I'll fill you guys in later, for now let's just get back to Remlin before anything else crazy happens." The other's nodded in agreement, on that they could all agree.
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Several Months Ago
Megumi fell onto her couch as she looked at her blank notebook, she'd been struggling to write anything in it. She just wasn't having any good song ideas anymore and she was losing her love of performing. Concerts were starting to feel like chores and she was worried she was going to work herself to death.
She turned as her parents entered the room, her Father dressed in expensive clothing and her Mother having several valuable pieces of jewelry on, "How's our favorite idol doing?" Megumi frowned, "Not good, Mom, Dad, I can't keep doing this anymore. I'm overworked and I'm losing my love of performing, is there any way I can just take a break."
Her parents frowned as her Father shook his head, "No we've talked about this Megumi, you need to keep working so we can make more money and live comfortably, and you want us to live comfortably don't you?" Her Mother nodded, "Besides what do you intend to do? Go to school?" Megumi frowned for a moment before nodding, feeling a fire in her voice, "That's exactly what I want, I want to go to school, I'm tired of constantly working and doing nothing else. If you want me to even keep doing this at all you'll let me go to school."
Her parents gave each other a look, they'd long tired of her arguing with them on this. Her Father sighed, "Fine, as long as you promise that you'll maintain your career and not let this whole silly school idea get in the way you can go."
Megumi's eyes widened as her face began to fill with excitement, "Really? Yay I finally get to be normal!" Her Mother laughed at her reaction, "Oh but just know sweetie you'll never be normal, we've never bothered keeping what you do a secret, everyone will know who you are and you'll never actually be normal. They'll never treat you the same but whatever, enjoy your attempts at feeling normal. Just don't come crying to us when it doesn't work out."
As they left Megumi began to feel a pit in her stomach, her Mother was right, she couldn't be normal. No, she couldn't listen to them, if she could find just one person who saw her for her, just one friend then she could be happy. Then she could finally feel like a normal girl.
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Present Day
Megumi arrived back at her apartment to find her parents waiting for her, both looking at her with confidence, "There you are sweetie, did you say all your goodbyes?" Megumi said nothing as her Father crossed his arms, "We've been discussing with your agency about a world tour, first you'd go all over Japan, then the rest of Asia and maybe if you get popular enough the United States too."
Megumi frowned before shaking her head, "No, I'm not doing that or leaving school or my friends." Her Mother raised an eyebrow, 'Excuse me? Did you just talk back to us?"
Megumi nodded, fire in her eyes, "Yeah I did and I'm here to tell you to get out, I'm not letting you control my life anymore. I want to stay in school, I have friends who make me happy, I have things I do that make me happy, and I've finally realized that you two don't make me happy. I'll keep up my career but at my own pace, and I'm going to find a new agency that's right for me, not for you. Now get out of my apartment and leave me alone, you aren't controlling me anymore."
Her parents wanted to argue but couldn't upon seeing for the first time in her life, anger on her face. In the end they couldn't control her, she had finally broken free of their gripes and now they were powerless against her. Her Father turned towards the door and barely looked at her, "Fine, I hope you're happy because we won't be in your life anymore."
He walked towards the door as her Mother simply stopped to stare at her, "I hope school and your friends are worth it sweetie, because you won't have any family anymore, we won't love you." Megumi scowled as she followed them, watching as they turned back towards her, "You never cared about me anyway."
With that she slammed her door in their faces, letting out a sigh of relief. However as the revelation that they were actually gone hit her, she fell to her knees, tears beginning to fall. She should be happy, she was free from her controlling parents and could finally live her own life.
But here she was crying, she still loved her parents, she didn't want it to come to this but she knew she needed to do this. Still questions raced through her head, her parents handled her finances, they handled negotiations and meetings with management, everything they did for her she'd now have to do herself. Why was she so weak that she was already regretting her decision?
She needed to be strong, she could do this, she could live life for herself. Still she was alone now and that stung, that is until she heard her phone go off, a text message from Yuto asking her how things went. Megumi stood up and wiped her tears, her parents were wrong, she had friends, she wasn't alone.
She'd made the right decision and she needed to stop the tears, she was going to be alright. She sent Yuto a reply and asked him if he wanted to meet up, Megumi wouldn't let herself regret this decision, she would prove her parents wrong.
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Megumi and Yuto sat in the same cafe they had found themselves in a few days prior. Except this time it was night and they were eating parfait's instead of drinks. Yuto frowned at her, "Are you sure about this Megumi? Cutting off your parents is a big deal."
Megumi nodded sadly, "They never cared about me anyway, if I ever want to live my own life I need to not have them controlling my every move. Though I'm worried that my Mom was right and I'll never have a real family who loves me." Yuto smiled at her, "Well we may not be related but you have us, the Questinger's can be your family."
Megumi nodded and smiled, "Yeah, you're right, as long as I have you guys and I get to do what I love and play music then I'll be fine." Yuto took a bite of his parfait and nodded, "Mhm, we're all here for you, whenever you need us."
Megumi smiled again but still she couldn't help feeling a bit empty inside, the Questinger's were great but she still wanted a real family. She shook her head and pushed those thoughts out of mind, no she was happy.
She had friends who liked her for her, that was all she needed, and even if she felt a bit lost she didn't need to worry. She would figure out what to do next, as long as she had Yuto and the others everything would be ok, and that made her happy.
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TO BE CONTINUED!
Next time on Fantaji Sentai Questinger!
Maki and Valanthe look in horror as Uvubras commands the other Questinger's to attack
"They're under my command now, and they will kill the both of you!"
Maki and Valanthe are hiding in a forest
"We can't reach Remlin, we're going to have to survive until he finds us."
Valanthe is yelling at Maki
"You think I like the things I did? That Uvubras raised me? I hated every second of it so stop punishing me for it!"
THE END!