A few hours later, Poppy woke up from her short nap. She groggily looked around, then at the clock that was on the wall next to the bar. Refocusing her vision she saw it read 5:48. "Morning, sleepy head." She looked to see Jace and Janet both still in there their nightwear and towels.
"Why are you guys up early?" Poppy looked annoyed at the two early birds. "We usually wake up early," Janet answered. "We do morning exercises and all that." Poppy just grumbled and went to the bathroom.
-Symphony of the Eight-
Poppy dressed in her normal aviator gear and soon after exited the bathroom. The team started to wake up as she weaved through some of the tired bodies, heading to the deck. She closed the door and went to the controls, taking it out of auto pilot and putting on the head set.
"Control this is Pelagius 456c. We are 30 miles from your position and are requesting to land, over." Poppy waited for a few moments. But then she received a reply. "This is Control to Polagius 456c, you're clear for landing. A hanger is already open for you to at the back of the airstrip. Welcome to New Mexico." To her surprise, they didn't have any remarks. Poppy sighed in relief, glad she didn't have to deal with assholes that wondered, 'Why is a kid flying a jet,' and all that crap.
After landing the plane in a hanger, the group grabbed there their things and exited. The heat immediately hit them as they exited the plane. "Whoa, that's some good heat!" Ness remarked, stretching.
"Not that bad," Cien commented looking out the hanger. "Wait, are we in the desert? Ugh, I hate the desert!" Janet complained as she leaned against the plain. As the last of the group exited Green already started to sweat. "I'm with you on that one." Green tiredly wiped the sweat already starting to form on her brow. "Well that doesn't matter, because according to the map the Sanctuary is some were in the desert." Lexi argued as she looked to Ness.
Ness took out the sound stone, and the map immediately appeared. But it showed the landscape and how close they were. "Looks to me that the sanctuary is about 20 square miles from hear here, past Vegas." Ness pocketed the stone.
"Wait, you mean Los Vegas? Uh, well that'll be fun to go through." Leon smiled, already thinking of the things they could do. "We'll be kids in Los Vegas. We can't even drink yet." Poppy blew the stray hair on the face and looked to the group as they all agreed. "Who cares, if anybody asks or try's tries to do anything to us, we can take care of them." Phil spoke up, pushing his way to the front. The group also agreed with him.
"Whatever we'll figure it out eventually." Lexi scratched the back of her head, turning to the entrance of the hanger. The outside was hotter than it was in the hanger, as the group continued. "Aren't you guys hot in those?" Green asked, walking behind Leon and Zane.
Leon just shrugged as he continued along with Zane. "Alrighty then." Green let up. The group called a van to take them to Vegas. Nothing eventful happened even though it felt like forever to actually get there.
When the group made it, it was around 11. When they made it, the city was already crowded with tourist and attractions alike. "Ya, let's party! Wooo!" Leon was running from the group in some random direction but was caught by Cien who dragged him back. "We need to get to the next Sanctuary as soon as possible!" Cien stated letting go of Leon.
Janet crossed her arms. "You're just eager to get to there because you might be able to beat me afterwards, emphases on the 'might.'" Janet gave a sly smile to her rival. "Ha! I could beat you without the boost!" The two were about to lunge at each other but Zane grabbed Cien as Leon grabbed Janet.
"You two need to chill out." Lexi scolded as the two looked away. "Whatever!" The two said in unison.
"You seem to have quite the hotheads." A calm voice giggled. Looking around the group's eyes landed on a short girl with ruby red hair and a Lolita dress. "Hi, are you guys having trouble?" The girl gave a friendly smile. Zane's eyes lit up as he zoomed past everyone, getting down on a knee in front of her and grabbing her hand.
"May I ask why such a fair woman is here in such a city? And may I be so rude but to ask what the lady's name is?" Zane took her hand and kissed the back of it. "What's with him?" Green whispered to Ness who just shrugged.
The girl giggled again. "My, what a gentleman! My name's Tsuskuyomi. I wanted to ask if maybe you needed help." The girl had a voice teetering on the seductive side. No one seemed put off except Leon, Jace and Paul.
"Dude you guys feel that?" Leon asked the other two boys, who both nodded in agreement. "I can't really remember what it is, though the signature it's so weak I can hardly feel it anymore." Leon gave a suspicious look at the new girl.
"Well cutie, maybe we should go see the town?" The girl grabbed Zane's hand and lead led him away from the group. "Goodbye everyone!" Zane waved as he was lead led on by the girl, sounding quite lovesick.
"Uh, should we follow him?" Paul asked, glancing back at the group. "Ya, that'd be a good idea." Ness said, going ahead of the group. Zane was being led by the red-head as they turned a corner into a busy street. The group looked around the corner as the two completely disappeared on the busy streets, filled to the brim with tourists.
"How are we supposed to find the Zane in this crowded city?" Green asked, looking around but not really able to look over people's heads. "We'll split up!" Ness answered, turning to the group. "Leon and Janet, you're group one. Cien and Green, you're group two. Jace and Poppy, you're group three. Lexi, Paul and I will be group four. Ok!"
"Ugh I begrudgingly accept your judgment." Jace retorted being a smart ass. Poppy angrily punched him on the arm. Jace grunted as he rubbed the spot. "It was a joke geez." Poppy still wasn't amused as she turned her back to him.
"Each team has a psychic with them so we can all communicate with each other if we find anything, alright? Alright let's go find us a prince!" The teams separated. "You have no idea how gay that sounded." Paul muttered under his breath as he followed there their 'leader'.
-Symphony of the Eight-
-Group 3-
As everyone dispersed in each direction, Jace and poppy stayed wear where they were. Jace closed his eyes, much to the confusion of Poppy. "Uh, what are you doing?" She asked, scratching her head.
Jace opened one eye looking to his partner. "Leon, Paul and I felt some kind of energy from that girl. It was faint, but it was there." Poppy gave him a perplexed look. "Wait, you guys new knew she was bad news?"
Jace stopped his thinking and looked in the air. "Well ya, I guess we didn't don't know why we didn't stop her." Poppy put her hand to her face. "Are you stupid or somethin'?"
"Stupid is what stupid does Ma'am." Jace said in a really cheesy southern accent. Poppy looked like she was about to strangle her teammate until he started up, looking towards a large hotel. "I feel something… wait it's that same aura from before!"
Jace ran through the crowd, weaving through them while Poppy, on the other hand, just pushed people that got in her way. As they got closer, Poppy looked around until she saw a flash of white go inside the hotel.
"Hey, there they're over hear here!" Poppy ran ahead as she saw the dress turn a corner. With her superior speed, she tackled the dress down in and through the double doors. "Ha! Got you!"
But looking again, it wasn't Tsuskuyomi…and the dress she had was a Lolita dress but more stylized for a… wedding. "Get off me!" With surprising strength, the bride threw Poppy off of her. Jace caught up to her and took a look around, realizing exactly what happened. "Oh…shit…"
"You ruined my wedding day, you asshole!" The bride yelled at the teen. "Me! Who wears a dress like that to a wedding!" The groom, a black haired man in a style similar to Zane's, walked up next to Jace, with a pissed of look on his face that demanded him to explain what was going on.
"Uh, sorry about ruining your big day. Our friend has gone missing. Have you seen him? Same hair style, green armor, and he's with a ruby haired girl in the same dress as your wife."
His face shined. "Oh, ya. They actually passed us a little while ago. I think they were on there their way to a casino. Sorry don't know which one." He shrugged his shoulders not remembering. Refocusing his attention to the two girls fighting each other, Jace took a large sigh and smiled.
-Team 4-
"Alright, so they went this way I think." Ness said, unsure as he led the group. "This guy can't led his way out of a paper bag." Paul whispered to Lexi. She giggled as Ness caught what he said. "Hey! You think you can do better than I can?" Ness got up to his face.
"Hell ya I can." Ness just gestured Paul to the front of the group as he looked around.
"Found her." Paul pointed to the red head girl, as she looked to have bumped into another girl with a similar dress. But she didn't stop as they kept going into a Casino.
Ness just crossed his arms as he followed the suited teen.
-6 hours later-
"Were Where are they!" Lexi yelled as the team exited another Casino. "I'm getting really sick of Vegas." Ness inquired leaning against a wall. Paul was about to have a rebutt until heard faint gunfire. It was distant but it was there.
-Team 1-
The two teammates searched high and low for there their love-sick friend but to no avail. So now they were just walking down the street.
"I can't believe I got stuck with you of all people!" Janet annoyed that she was stuck with some white-haired boy. "What? You upset that you didn't get into Ness's team?" Leon teased. This gave him surprising silence to the usually mouthy girl. "You've been listening to my loud-mouth brother haven't you?"
This earned a chuckle from the white haired boy. "Maybe."
The two continued in an awkward silence. Well as silent as it gets in Vegas. Leon was about to speak up until he felt some sort of presence. Something dark, and familiar. He looked around seeing the girl with the ruby hair walk into a casino with a black haired boy in tow.
"There they are!" Leon ran to the casino with Janet close behind. They walked up to the doors but were stopped by the bouncer. He was tall and stocky like any bouncer, and bald too, just to top it off the Cliché cake this guy makes.
"You can't come in kid. You're not old enough, and besides, you're not on the list." He held up a clipboard with some names on it. Janet just rolled her eyes and continued going. But the man put his hand on her shoulder to stop her from coming in. "Listen, didn't your mommy tell you to listen to your elders." Janet raised an eyebrow as she grabbed the man's hand and twisted it. The bouncer yelped in pain as he fell to his knees.
"Please, augh you're on the list! Go right in!" Janet let go of the man's hand as he got up rubbing it. "Come on let's go." Janet signaled Leon to follow, who stopped for a second next to the bouncer, taking the clipboard from his hand and wrote writing on it and gladly giving it back to the bouncer as he continued on his marry way. 'You're a bitch…'
"So you saw them in hear here right?" Janet asked looking around the casino. "Ya, I saw them come in here they have to be around here somewhere. The two looked around the slot machines and still didn't see her. Leon looked around, seeing Tsuskuyomi and Zane walking through the crowd to the elevator on the far side.
"This way." Leon signaled, running to the elevators. As they made it, it was going to the top floor. "There, at the top." Pressing the 'up' directional arrow, it felt like centuries when before it finally arrived.
-Group 2-
Cien and Green weren't having as much luck as the others however, finding themselves in a back alley-way. "Geez, where is everybody? Is it usually this empty outside the main roads?" Green asked looking around. "Ya, the tourist come here for the gambling mainly." Cien looked around every corner, trying to find something.
"Cien, what exactly is the deal with you and Janet? Did something happen between the two of you?" Green was trying to make conversation while looking for any clues. "No, there's nothing wrong with me. I just can't stand her and her attitude." The back roads were abandoned completely devoid of anyone.
"Is it me or is it getting darker than usual?" Cien inquired, looking at their current surroundings. Nothing save the street lights illuminating some of the dark, however the darkness felt more….black. The street light, seamed seemed to lose its light, as the inking darkness almost seamed seemed to swallow them. It was starting to overbear the two as it seemed to close in on them.
"What is this!" Taking out her bat, Cien swung at it but all it did was go through it.
Not knowing what to do the girls went back to back. But then Green remembered something. Unsheathing her sword it started to be bathed in a golden light. The darkness hissed as the mass started to retreat and started to form. "What the…" Cien squinted, her eyes looking at the new shape it was starting to make.
Cien readied her baseball bat, getting ready for what was about to come. "Whatever that is, it can't be good." The two where were battle-ready as the mass shaped into what looked to be shadow versions of them. "Uhhh." Cien said as the two shadows charged.
With a slash of her sword Greens shadow disappeared in an instant, and with a swing of Ciens bat the other shadow disappeared as well. "Well that was anti-climactic." Green said as she smiled to her friend.
But out of nowhere hundreds of shadows surrounded them. "Oh, crap." However the shadows looked to the opposite direction. They all seeped back into the ground and the shadows looked to slithered away.
The two heroines looked to each other, and then ran towards the source as well.
-Symphony of the Eight-
On top of the roof, Leon and Janet walked up to see Zane who had a blank expression on his face no longer love struck. "He's so cute isn't he?"
The pair looked around trying to find the source. "He's my little love puppet. He was so open for love he completely fell under my spell."
The two's eyes went straight back to Zane to see Tsuskuyomi in front of him. "But, then again, a Succubus will do that to you." She went up to Zane and stroked his cheek.
Leon sighed with the realization. "No wonder your power seamed familiar. Damn demon, you need to go back to hell were where you came!" Leon whipped out his Glock 18's pointing them at the now revealed demon. Janet took her gloves from her pockets putting them on, and getting to a fighting stance.
"Oh, trust me hon, I've tried." She reached her hand out as a black claymore started to form, on the hilt an eye opened up and seamed to stare at the two heroes.
"Shall we begin?" The demon smiled.
Leon opened fire at the girl. But all the bullets were easily deflected by her sword as she swung she even managed to deflect a few back hitting Leon in the gut and Janet on the shoulder. But none seamed seemed to mind. Figuring this wasn't going to work Leon decided to do it the old fashioned way.
Taking out Alastor it started to crackle with electricity. "Oh, nice sword." Janet complimented cracking a smile. Leon smiled back. "Ya, I know."
Leon performed a stinger as he got up close to their opponent. The two exchanged blows but both were only parrying the other. He swing swung she blocked, she swung he blocked, and so on. The two of them were at a stalemate. "Not bad, but not good enough." She taunted.
This made Leon visibly angry. "Let me have a go." Janet went up to the ruby-haired girl.
"Hm, no weapon that makes it easier for me." Tsuskuyomi swung her word at the tom-boy who simply dodged. Taking another few swings the girl only hit air as Janet kept dodging. "Stand still!" Janet took another leap back. "Nope, after seeing the way you fight. I realized your style is similar to Jaces and besides Jace hasn't been able to land a hit on me since we were little.
Janet raised a brow as she cracked he knuckles. In a moments, Janet was on Tsuskuyomi, starting off with a roundhouse kick. She ducked as sent an upward slash. Janet shifted her body, dodging the blade as she landed on her feet.
Jabbing, she connected to the side of the succubus's ribcage. Tsuskuyomi grunted as she made a horizontal swipe. Janet back flipped and preformed a hand spring landing next to Leon, crossing her arms. "Gee, what a blowhard." Janet joked as they both laughed out loud.
Tsuskuyomi blushed hard as she became visibly angry. Charging, she stabbed at Janet. Time seemed to slow down as Janet's hand glided against the flat of the blade and she reversed the grip, taking the blade into her hands and held holding it against the demons neck.
Leon whistled. "Impressive." But his face turned serious. "Let our friend go!" The succubus rolled her eyes. "Fine, I was done with him anyway." She snapped her fingers as Zane suddenly fell to his knees groaning.
"Well then, I had my fun with you." Tsuskuyomi almost flew back as she got away from Janet. The blade started to shake as it flew out of Janet's hand and into Tsuskuyomi's.
"Now I mustn't leave the heroes without some fun while I'm gone." She manically laughed, as she disappeared in an inky darkness.
"She was just toying with us the whole time." Leon turned from Zane who was coming to. "Should have known that wasn't her full power." Leon finished.
Suddenly the inky darkness started to show up in the shapes of Janet, Zane and Leon, all of them filling the large roof. "Geez, this is stupid!" Janet got into a fighting stance.
"Ugh, what happened?" Zane shake his head clear. Janet backed up to the others smacking Zane. "Aw, what was that for!" Zane complained as he spring sprung up from were where he was crouching. He then looked around, completely shocked but ready. Taking out his Jain Long sword, he got into his battle stance. Leon threw a grenade but immediately regretted it as the whole building seemed to shake.
"Damn it I can't use my grenades. It would blast this whole building apart."
"You aren't doing it without us right?" A voice was heard. In a flash of light, a black laser cleared a path. Jace ran up to Janet with Poppy close behind, who was shooting any shadows that got near.
"I felt that you were in danger so I got hear here as fast as I could." Jace took out his claymore as he slashed a sword beam at the closest shadows, two of them disappearing.
Zane stabbed and slashed every shadow he came into contact with. Leon was with Poppy as they both shot anything that came into range, and Janet was throwing the shadows off the building. They were starting to drive them back. Until another hundred showed up!
"Now, that's unfair!" Poppy yelled as they began closing in on the small group.
But then a golden light shined throwing the darkness as the shadows backed away from the small group as while the light shined. The team covered their eyes as darkness hissed and went to a more secluded corner of the roof disappearing as it did so.
As the light dissipated, the figure holding the light became clearer. "You guys alright?" The group uncovered there their eyes as they saw the source. "Green?" Zane asked, squinting his eyes.
"Ya, we all heard the commotion up hear here so the rest of the teams are here too." She gestured to behind her as the others came up and walked to the rest of there team.
"Well that wasn't very fun." Zane said sitting down on the concrete. "I'm with you there." Poppy sat down as well. "Ok, now what?"
"Well, we got Zane back. I guess we should continue to the Sanctuary." Ness went up to the edge of the roof, but a gasp escaped his mouth.
"What? What is it?" Cien asked.
A rumble started to shake the building as everyone had trouble keeping balance. Then, black hands grabbed the sides of the buildings, pulling it up. It looked to be an inky black demon with the only thing that was truly visible the red eyes, which were the only things visible.
"Now this might be more fun!" Janet said, her aura getting stronger. It roared a very primal roar at the group.
It shot red lasers that came so quickly nobody had time to dodge.
But, nothing came. Looking up, they saw that Jace was having a beam-struggle with the beast. "Can you guys hurry and make a plan!" Jace yelled, trying to keep the beam at bay.
Poppy quickly scanned the creature, already an idea already brewing in her head. "Guys some of you need to take care of the hands. Ness, does this thing have legs?" Ness shook his head.
"No, it was only climbing by its arms."
Poppy nodded smiling. "We need to try and weaken its body. It should fall off the building afterwards."
Poppy quickly looked for approval from her fellow teammates, who all nodded in agreement.
Jace nodded as he put all his might into his beam as it repelled the demon's own laser, dazing it. "Come on let's go!" Ness yelled as the group split up again. Loan and Zane worked on its left hand, as Green and Cien worked on the right.
Ness sent a PK Rockin' Omega to the chest of the beast as it looked like it was visibly pushed. Janet ran up to the beast punching the beast in the side of its face as hard as she could. As Its grip seemed to loosen. But then, it quickly took its right hand and swatted away the nuisance on its face. Janet was launched to the other side of the roof, making a hole to the next floor.
"Janet!" Leon called out. Jace doubled over, grabbing his head. Green took this chance and readied an arrow as it glowed with light. The beast looked to her as she shot the arrow, as it connected connecting to it to the forehead.
The beast cried in pain as it had its right hand up to its face. Seeing the chance Zane and Leon put all there their power into the next cut as the demon let go of the building. It finally fell and with a big splash a puddle of darkness landed on the street below, but it quickly evaporated.
"Woo ya." A voice rang. Looking behind them, they saw Janet was climbing out of the hole. Leon approached his friend outstretching his hand. "Need some help?" He asked.
Janet smiled as she took it.
A/N: Wow sorry it took so long to get this out but it was kind of hard to do what I wanted lately. Anyway I hope you enjoyed this longer chapter there is definitely more to come soon! I just put up a poll on my profile asking were you guys what to go next since it's in no particular order.
Ps: To those who sent in the hero OCs I will be sending you PMs asking you very important questions, immediately after this is out! It's very important.
I'll have the next chapter out as soon as I can.
Disclaimer: The characters and places used belong to their respected owners. Nintendo owns Earthbound and you know all that good stuff.