-Pi x 6-
As valiant as the effort was, Ooo's combined force brought an atmosphere of chaos and destruction in its wake. The grasslands looked like a warzone, wrought with craters, burns, and divots. Countless contraptions were emptying their loads into the sky, aiming for the apocalypse-bent wizard currently attempting to avoid a most painful end.
Elodeus lashed out, destroying another several catapults while their operators retreated to another kingdom's defensive position. The wizard was about to tail them with another blast, but was suddenly knocked off course by an explosion. Searching the skies, he spotted a squadron of candy planes circling around, lining up for another round of missile fire.
Beginning to show signs of wear, but refusing to give in to what he perceived as lesser beings, Elodeus fired out a network of lightning strikes from his staff, which promptly tore the aircraft to pieces. Before he could cut down the parachuting pilots however, another round of slime shells broke his concentration.
"Damn! I thought I destroyed all of you!"
Slime Princess folded her arms.
"Not a chance, punk! Hit him hard!"
The tanks all unloaded another round of fire, which Elodeus swerved to avoid. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to dodge the volley of spells that came next. The wizard went tumbling through the air, rapidly approaching the ground as everyone watched with anticipation. Sure enough, he wasn't able to stop his momentum fast enough to avoid collision.
He was dragged a good hundred feet before the friction finally halted his movement. By that point, Elodeus weakly got to his feet, his shield flickering more erratically. Now on the ground, Princess Bubblegum received a pair of binoculars from a nearby ally and studied the wizard's circle. It had but a quarter of its figure remaining.
"We're almost there, guys. Just keep hammering him."
Those nearby acknowledged, fanning out and resuming the assault while Elodeus' barrier struggled to keep its master safe. The evil wizard looked around helplessly, seeing the overwhelming force of Ooo focused solely on bringing him down. The very sight made him sick. He tightened his fists, glared and showing his teeth.
"I WILL NOT LOSE TO MERE MORTALS!"
He threw out his arms, causing the barrier to suddenly expand, shocking the gathered forces. The gang backed away, in danger of being consumed as other kingdoms were beginning to. As soon as the sphere engulfed them, no matter what power or technology they possessed, everything shut down.
The remaining fire elementals cried out as they fell out of the sky, while the catapults suddenly fell apart, now useless. The gang watched in horror as every asset gathered in the grasslands was nullified, either drained of all offensive capability or outright crippled physically. The barrier then proceeded to rupture, blowing away all of the weakened inhabitants and the remains of their weapons. The blast caused no real damage to the terrain, but singlehandedly wiped out the entirety of Ooo's defenses.
Peebles found the sense to look back at Elodeus himself. To her surprise, the circle was now drained of the last of its power, now appearing grey and meaningless. The wizard was panting heavily, taking a knee as he recovered from the strain. The others all grouped up behind PB, studying the effects of the rupture.
"Holy cow, that was nuts," Jake surmised.
The dog's companions agreed, staring at Elodeus as he got back to his feet, although rather tipsy. Marcy then frowned.
"I don't get it. How come we weren't thrown back by the shield?"
Susan quietly looked down at her chest, noticing a glow.
"We not alone in this fight."
The others all looked down as well, noticing a faint golden circle etched into their bodies. All eyes went wide, stunned by the development. Elodeus noticed it as well, giving the group a look of astonishment.
"Impossible! It should take centuries for true light to reconstitute itself!"
The Ooocians observed their strange markings, pondering what could've caused them. Elodeus was about to shout out more denouncements, but stopped as his body suddenly jerked. As everyone watched, the wizard began to cringe, gripping the front of his robes tightly as if they were hurting him.
This was evidenced by a cry of pain from the vile being, who stumbled around as the grey circle on his front began to pulsate, each second causing him to suffer.
"Argh! This is... not possible! Their souls should be long gone! They can't resist me any longer! Argh!"
Elodeus fell to his knees, as the circle finally unleashed a burst of light, nearly obscuring the wizard from view as the Ooocians shielded their eyes. All they could hear was the energy being dispersed and the cruel entity's continued screams. At long last, six beams of light burst forth, spinning and twirling around in the air before shifting course and entering the center of each circle glowing on the gangs' bodies.
Immediately, they felt a surge of incredible power, spreading through their veins, filling their exhausted and weakened muscles with renewed vigor and will to drive on. Each of the golden rings then changed colors, becoming a corresponding match to a group of individuals that they thought were gone forever.
"The Arcs. They've given us their strength," PB mused.
Elodeus snarled at the group.
"What is the meaning of this!? Tell me now, gum woman!"
Peebles tightened her fists as she stared back at the wizard.
"Arrogance can topple giants, and that's just what has occurred here and now."
She stepped forward.
"The humans you thought weak have fought back, escaped your grip and lent their power to us."
Elodeus growled.
"That's my power, you insignificant shrew!"
PB shook her head.
"No."
Her companions all formed up beside her, prepared to end the confrontation.
"Power belongs to those who have earned it. The Arcs put their heart and soul into reversing their race's terrible mistake. They never used their abilities for personal gain, only to further the cause."
The others all placed a hand over their hearts.
"Their determination and desire to rebuild took your false light, revealing its actual form as true light."
Elodeus was at a loss for words, unable to fathom how the humans' essences had escaped his magical imprisonment. He lowered his gaze to the ground, trying to calm his enraged mind. The Ooocians all gathered together, worried he might lash out at any moment. The wizard then performed an act that stunned them all.
He raised his staff, almost appearing to be readying an attack. But instead of pointing it at any of them, he brought it closer to his face and opened his mouth. With one last motion, he inserted the bottom into his gaping jaws. The gang watched in shock as the length of the weapon slid down his throat and into unknown depths that somehow allowed the vile being to do so without critically injuring his digestive track.
When the object was fully consumed, Elodeus lowered his head to eye the group and swallowed, completing his act. Several of them shuddered. The wizard raised his hands, which ignited in white magics and granted him an increasingly intimidating aura. Everyone took a step back, worried at what abilities their foe now had access to.
"Now, you will face the terror of false light!"
He threw his hands forward as if pushing, but instead unleashed a beam of pure white that drew closer and closer to the gang. Not expecting the speed of the strike, they were too stunned to avoid it. However, infused with canine instincts to protect, Jake stretched himself into a large wall, hoping to at least save his friends. The blast from the beam instantly blew away the top layer of dirt all around the gathered Ooocians, obscuring their view from Elodeus, who watched impatiently to see the dog's fallen body.
Instead, he was in for a world of surprise.
The clearing revealed Jake, still standing strong in his wall form, with everyone else safely behind his magically molded guts. They were just as astonished as Elodeus.
"Jake, how did you..."
The yellow dog just shrunk back to normal and looked himself over.
"I don't know, maybe he missed?"
A light erupted from his chest, cutting off further investigation for a brief moment. All eyes widened as they observed the previously faint golden circle now blue and solid. For a minute, no one spoke.
"N-no way..."
Jake grabbed his gut, disbelieving that such a phenomenon was occurring. The moment was interrupted by an agitated Elodeus.
"Don't you turn your back on me!"
The evil wizard shot a second volley of white light, which caught Jake off guard. The impact was true to hit, seeing as the scene wasn't as hidden by dust as the first strike. On the other hand, it still baffled Elodeus.
"How, how!?"
The magical dog stood, braced for a hit, but completely unharmed. He soon realized nothing had happened and cracked open one eye.
"Am I dead?"
The gang shook their heads, still amazed. Jake wiped his brow.
"Good, I was getting hungry, and I promised myself I wouldn't die hungry."
Several more blasts hit the canine's back, but he ignored them for the most part. Not because he was being rude (although that was unnecessary considering who they were against) but because he barely felt the energy in the first place. Confused he turned around, eyeing an enraged Elodeus.
"Yo, jerk face, aren't you gonna hit us or something?"
The wizard raged, then was about to throw another blast, only to be startled when MArcy appeared directly in front of him.
"What the-"
His face was bashed by her ax bass a second later, sending the cruel being flying. He reoriented himself mid-flight and looked to the group below, only to see Marceline preparing another swing. This one changed his trajectory, leveling him straight into the ground. Groaning, he climbed out, with observable rips and tears all along his shifting robes, along with a cut across his cheek.
"How are you doing this?"
Marcy's boot was suddenly planted on his chest, bringing him to the ground. The vampire slung her ax over her shoulder, glaring down at the pinned wizard.
"You might have had control over their minds, but the Arcs all had free hearts, hearts aligned with true light. They passed it on to us, and since we aren't direct descendants of it, we can use it to borrow their powers to kick your butt."
She raised her ax, preparing to cleave the vile being in half. However, shaking her statement out of his head, Elodeus held out his hand and blasted the vampire off of him. She backed away in the air, waiting for her skin to stop sizzling and her dizziness to wear off. Unfortunately, the wizard was quickly in her face, sending a punch point blank to her nose.
Upon reaching its target though, Elodeus' hand phased right through the girl. Bewildered, he watched the image fade away. A laugh rang out, directing his attention to his back, where Ice King was hovering, a white circle imprinted on his tunic. Elodeus quickly fired another beam, shattering the floating old man, which confused him.
The confusion was furthered when his arms and legs were suddenly frozen.
"What in-"
He was interrupted by a bash to the head, piledriving him into the ground once again. Elodeus growled as he pulled himslef up yet again.
"Tell me now! What is happening!?"
All sense of gravity suddenly vanished, causing the wizard to rise into the air as if being held by a string. He then noticed PB standing nearby, focusing on him.
"What's happened is that 'your' power has now been turned against you."
With that, she swung the Elodeus to the left, where Susan was waiting for him. A single well-placed punch to the evil being's chest instantly broke most of his ribs, causing him to cough up blood before his body went hurling through the air at high speeds. The journey was stopped only by a massive network of vines, which trapped him like a spider web. Weakly looking around, he spotted Flame Princess, her eyes closed as if in deep thought.
A second later, a thunderous detonation sounded in the far distance. Elodeus noticed it was from the direction of the Fire Kingdom. This was proven soon after, as a hailstorm of flaming rocks descended from the heavens. His eyes grew wide as he was helplessly obscured by the torrential downpour of molten boulders. FP opened her eyes, staring at the now mangled vines and ashes. She carefully approached the damaged vegetation, placing a hand on it.
The green circle on her chest glowed slightly brighter, instilling a reaction from the plantlife. Moments later, the vines had regenerated themselves, the retreated back underground. The smoke had finally died down, revealing Elodeus' scorched form. Nearly half of his robes were burned away, revealing the black clothing he wore underneath. Even that had numerous ashen spots and stains caused by the grey dust that had resulted from the blast.
Regardless of the extensive injuries, he manage to get to his feet and immediately fired another beam at FP. She reacted on instinct, shooting back a stream of flames. Astonishingly, the wizard's power was still overpowering hers as he began to take slow steps towards her.
"You... think... you... can win? You pitiful weaklings have no use in this world."
He intensified his attack, completely eradicating FP's inferno and knocking her back. She stayed on her feet, but was unprepared as Elodeus was suddenly behind her, placing his magic charged palm against her back.
"Now die."
Flame Princess closed her eyes, fearful of the upcoming explosion. However, instead, she heard a strained shout from the wizard. Swinging around, she found Jake's stretchy arm containing Elodeus in a rope-like fashion. Naturally, the evil entity tried blasting away the appendage with his powers, but didn't manage to even put a scratch on it.
"No.. no, this can't be."
The rest of Jake stood several feet away, giving a hard look to the wizard.
"It can and it is."
The magical dog whipped his arm, snapping Elodeus into the air, where he panicked at the loss of control. Meanwhile, the others had all arrived, bracing themselves for the finale. Elodeus began to fall, coming closer and closer to the ground. Just before impact, he was leveled hard in the jaw by Susan.
"For brother!"
The wizard was sent flying along the grasslands, having his face dug into the dirt every few feet as he tumbled like a rag doll. He barely noticed Marceline appear just ahead of him. He definitely noticed however, when she slammed him skyward with her bass.
"For V!"
Reaching a height of several hundred feet, Elodeus could just feel his consciousness, thinking he'd caught a break. Unfortunately for him, about a dozen Ice Kings soon materialized all around him.
"For Quad!"
Ice lightning struck like bullets, pelting every inch of Elodeus' body and not giving up an inch of slack. He was far too weary by this point to distinguish what was an illusion and what was actually hitting him. Finally, IK stopped and allowed the beaten wizard to resume his fall back to Earth. At the last moment, a wind current unnaturally blew him to the side. What followed next was a sharp kick to the side from Flame Princess, whose strike painfully shattered the rest of his ribs.
"For Tres!"
Elodeus didn't even bother moving or even studying his surroundings by this point. He simply submitted as Peebles snagged him out of midair and repeatedly smashed his form into the ground, causing a deeper crater with each slam. After a minute, she charged a psi blast.
"For Duo!"
The psychokinetic burst shot Elodeus directly at Jake, who stretched his invulnerable hand into a massive spiked fist. The evil wizard could not resist. Broken and in utter disbelief at the power his enemies wielded, he could accomplish nothing else.
How did this happen? For these... vermin, to actually beat me. What power could bring them such might, what force drives their motives, what is the structure that binds them together?
He was surprised to hear a telekinetic reply from Princess Bubblegum, who had apparently been listening in.
It is our bond as friends and family, including the Arcs.
In the final moments, Elodeus could feel nothing but loss and anger. False light had failed him.
"For Finn!"
Although no more bones were broken, the wizard felt that his very being was shattered by Jake's fist. His motionless body was flung back the way it came, his robes torn to almost nothing, multiple wounds and bruises all over him, and magic completely drained. It took some time, but eventually he stopped skidding across the landscape and came to rest, nerves too out of touch to even move a finger.
Susan, Marcy, Ice King, FP, Peebles, and Jake all gathered up around the fallen wizard, seeing if he had anything left in him. Elodeus took several minutes to force his aching eyes to swing around and glance at each and every one of them. Each face held not a hint of pity or empathy, only disdain and a subtle mask of relief. It made him just that more spiteful.
Initially trying to speak, he only coughed more and tasted his own blood. Regardless, he didn't give in and pulled all of his breath into his last able statement.
It was a laugh.
"You think that's it? Aren't you forgetting, fools? I am immortal. You can pound me into this rock for all eternity and it would not banish the presence of false light."
The gang gave a collective frown, looking up at each other. They hated to admit it, but what Elodeus said was true. They had no way of sealing the victory. As the wizard's breathing began to stabilize, they all gazed sadly at the ground.
"Hey, could someone here explain what's going on?"
The group swung around to face the newcomer, startled by who it was.
"I swear, either someone here has to be dead or alive. I don't do zombies."
Eyes went wide.
"Death?!" they all said in bewilderment.
A/N: Hey, look at that, I managed to get in a bi-weekly update.
DJ Rodriguez: I would say you were correct.
Fiery Crusader: I sorta hope he'll become somewhat quieter and become a deeper thinker. That could go a long way in his maturity.
TheMentalAdventurer: I know, Prismo needed more appearances!