Chapter 13: Taking Back the City, Part 1

Disclaimer: see chapter one

This is a long chapter, so get comfortable.

. . .

Noodle woke up slowly, releasing a soft sigh as the fuzziness of sleep cleared from her mind. Her lips curved into a contented smile as she felt familiar arms wrapped around her, encircling her snugly in their warmth and comfort. She snuggled deeper into the man's chest, allowing herself to relax in his embrace.

The basement room was dark, but Noodle could hear footsteps creaking overhead as her bandmates woke. It must be morning, she thought. I'd better wake up 2D so that we can grab some breakfast.

The guitarist began to squirm out of her companion's grip. Noodle heard a sleepy whimper as she shifted away from the singer; she was almost out of his reach when his fingers closed around her wrist. Squinting through the darkness, Noodle could barely make out 2D's eyes as they cracked open, could barely see his lips twitch as he murmured, "Don't go… stay… wanna sleep…"

"It's morning, Toochie," Noodle replied in a hushed voice. "Russel will be making breakfast soon. You have to get up."

"Mmhnnuhhh…" 2D groaned unintelligibly, shaking his head. "No… jus' wanna sleep… don' make me get up…"

Noodle tilted her head to the side, observing her reluctant bandmate as his eyes began to close again, his fingers still secured tightly around her wrist. She was still for a few seconds, deep in thought, before a smirk crossed her lips.

The guitarist rolled close to the singer once more. She reached over him and turned on her bedside lamp. The light was dim, but it was enough for Noodle to admire his tousled blue hair, his lidded, sleepy eyes, and his mouth, which was slightly ajar as sleepy breaths passed over his lips. Smiling, she leaned over his face, closing her eyes as her lips molded over his. She felt him tense as she began to kiss him. One of her palms pressed his shoulder into the mattress so that she could balance over him. The tension quickly left 2D as he eagerly responded, moving his lips under hers, moaning as she nipped his lower lip playfully. She felt him raise his arm, lifting it as if he were about to grab her waist-

She rolled away, breaking 2D's grip on her wrist as she hopped out of bed and stood smiling a few feet away. 2D whined, angling his face to pout up at her. "Hey, where ah' you going? We- we were-"

"Like I said, it's time to get up," Noodle said sweetly.

"But-"

"If you want me, come and get me."

Noodle almost laughed at the wide-eyed, slack-jawed expression on her confused friend's face. 2D snapped his jaw shut, frowning, then narrowed his eyes. Noodle raised an eyebrow, as if to challenge him. 2D responded by rolling onto his belly, then raising himself up until he was crouched like a cat about to pounce. 2D growled, not a scary growl, but a playful growl, the edges of his mouth curving into a slight smile. Noodle grinned slyly back, watching him wiggle his shoulders (in a way which was quite adorable) before he sprung towards her.

Noodle sidestepped him easily. Caught in the momentum of his own charge, the singer barely twisted himself around in time to prevent his face from slamming into the wall. His back hit the wall with a soft thud, and the singer braced his hands against the wall as he wobbled dizzily on his feet.

Noodle approached the disoriented singer, and in an instant had him pinned to the wall by his wrists. "Poor Toochie," the guitarist purred, leaning close to her captive. "You always get so dizzy when you stand up too quickly." She brought her lips to his neck and heard his breathing hitch as she tenderly kissed the area. Noddle pressed into the juncture between his neck and his shoulder, then grazed her teeth up along 2D's throat until she was forcing his head back while she licked just below his jawbone. Noodle felt the singer shiver in her grip. She took her hands off his wrists, stepping forward to trap him against the wall with her own body so that she could wind her fingers into his hair and pull his face down to hers. He responded to her actions passionately, tilting his head so that their faces could press closer together, sweeping his tongue over her lips and allowing her tongue to brush his as it did the same. Noodle's mouth opened as his tongue pushed past her teeth; she felt his arms leaving the wall, preparing to wrap themselves around her shoulders-

The guitarist stepped backwards. She smiled deviously as 2D gaped, gasping, his tongue hanging outside his mouth and his arms wrapped around empty air. "Well, now that you're awake," Noodle teased, watching the singer's arms drop limply to his sides, "I'm going to change. I'd recommend you grab your clothes from your room and do the same. We've got a big day ahead of us."

"Wha…?" 2D breathed, still staring at her with dazed confusion.

"See you at breakfast, Toochie," Noodle said, turning to skip towards her bathroom. She took one last look at the befuddled singer leaning in shock against her bedroom wall before shutting the door.

. . .

It was with a very confused and disorganized mind that 2D exited the basement and walked with glazed eyes towards the staircase which would take him to his room. The singer was hardly aware of his surroundings; instead of seeing the Spirit House's eerie portraits or listening to the ominous creaking of the aged wooden floorboards his brain preferred to replay his latest encounter with Noodle. He couldn't shake the image of her sparkling eyes, her playful grin, her face inches away from his, getting closer-

"Morning, 'D."

"EEP!" 2D yelped as he jumped in startled shock. The singer twisted around to meet the bemused gaze of Russel, who was watching him through the open kitchen doorway with a hint of concern in his pale eyes.

"You okay there, 'D?"

2D released a long breath as he met the drummer's gaze. "Yeah…. Yeah, I'm fine… uh… Good morning to you too."

"You sure you're good?" Russel asked, flipping a pancake as he did so. "You look a little out of it. Has something happened since I saw you last night?"

Has something happened since you saw me last night? 2D thought, staring unblinkingly at Russel. Well, Noodle and I cried a lot, talked about our worst qualities, reminded each other of our best qualities, confessed our feelings for each other, made out, slept in the same bed, made out some more in the morning-

"Yo, 'D; you still in there?"

2D jumped once more. "Oh, yeah, everything's fine. I'm fine. Last night was fine. This morning was fine."

Russel gave him a disbelieving look. "Whatever, man. If you ever feel like telling me why everything's so fine, I'm right here."

"Thanks, Russ," 2D murmured, walking quickly away from the kitchen door. He had just reached the bottom of the stairs when Russel's voice called out from the kitchen.

"Oh, I almost forgot to ask; how did you talk with Noodle go last night?"

Pretending he hadn't heard him, 2D ran up the stairs.

. . .

A shower and a change of clothes later, 2D joined his bandmates and Little Simz at the kitchen table. Storm clouds could be seen gathering past the window, leaking their dismal gray hues into the kitchen. Charlene, who had stayed up late making the sleeping powder, would be spending the rest of the day catching up on some shut-eye. However, 2D barely noticed her absence. He also barely noticed the plate of pancakes and eggs growing cold in front of him. He barely heard Murdoc and Simz talking about the effects of spiritual energy, which was now causing her chair to float a few inches off the ground and the occasional spark of blue fire to sprout from her fingertips. He barely noticed the way Russel kept glancing at him, as if the drummer knew something was up. 2D was, however, very sharply aware of Noodle's fingers, which had intertwined with his under the table while she used her other hand to eat scrambled eggs. Said guitarist turned towards him with a smile. "Eat up, 2D. your breakfast is going to get cold."

"Um… yeah…" 2D stammered, poking one of his pancaked mindlessly with a spoon. "Hey- ah- Noodle…" 2D became painfully conscious of the many faces at the table which flickered towards him curiously as he spoke. Even Murdoc was glaring at him. Lowering his voice, 2D faced Noodle and continued, "Is there- ah- a way, that we should tell… people…" 2D glanced nervously at his companions seated around the table. "Um… people we know… about stuff? Stuff that's happened- ah- recently? Like, intimate stuff?"

Most of the faces around the table looked confused. There were a couple of raised eyebrows. Noodle just smiled. "Well, if you kissed me in front of them, that would make it obvious enough."

Little Simz's eyebrows both went up. Russel choked briefly on a piece of pancake. Murdoc chuckled softly. 2D stared down at Noodle with wide eyes. "Well… yeah, I guess that's one way to do it-"

"Then again," Noodle continued, tilting her head to the side, "Russel did get a bit alarmed last time you kissed me. This time, I should probably kiss you."

"We- mmph!" Before 2D had time to properly react, there were hands fisted into his hair, a face crashing into his, an insistent pressure coaxing his mouth to open and drawing a long moan from his throat. His arms wrapped around her shoulders, trying to hold himself steady as his mind reeled. There was a sharp clatter, like silverware falling to the floor, and a loud, clear noise- did Murdoc just wolf-whistle at us?

The couple broke apart. After a few moments of dizzy gasping, 2D regained enough of his wits to observe Murdoc (who was clapping for the show he had just witnessed), Little Simz (who had gone back to eating her food rather than watch the pair make out), and Russel, whose left eyelid was twitching. 2D watched nervously as the large man picked up his glass of orange juice, raised it slowly, and took a long sip. "You know what?" The drummer said, staring at no one in particular as weary words escaped him. "I think I'm done trying to keep up with you people. As long as Noodle's okay with whatever is going on, I'm just going to stop caring whether or not the world makes sense."

"That's the spirit, Lards!" Murdoc cackled, tapping his own glass of orange juice against Russel's. 2D let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He felt a familiar weight leaning into his arm.

"That wasn't so hard, was it, Toochie?" Noodle cooed up at him, smiling brightly. 2D found himself smiling back.

"Yeah," 2D hummed, tilting his head to touch noses with the guitarist. "Maybe we should show people that we love each other more often."

"Okay, break it up, break it up!" Murdoc cried, waving his hands as if to shoe the couple apart. "As much as I love soaking in the happy ending of your little love predicament, we've got work to do! Someone needs to get famous for ridding this city of zombies and demonic spirits!"

Noodle sighed, pulling her face away from 2D's. "Murdoc's right, we need to start making plans. Finish your breakfast, 2D, then we'll go take a look at what we're dealing with."

. . .

There were a number of places 2D would rather be on a rainy day than standing on an exposed hilltop. Nevertheless, here he was, having taken a short drive from Saturnz Barz to stand with his bandmates under a slate-gray sky filled with rolling clouds and the occasional flash of lightning. The singer shivered, rubbing his hands over the wet goosebumps on his arms as he looked beyond the hilltop towards the eerily glowing city.

Most of the view was obscured by low clouds and fog. The older side of the city, which 2D knew was the side closest to them, was completely hidden, its low brick buildings sunken beneath the eerie mist. Further back, however, the downtown skyscrapers could be seen poking through the clouds like floating islands. One particular building towered high above the rest, soaring over the lowest layers of clouds until its top was lost in its own personal cloud of glowing energy.

"Clearly, there's something big at the top of that tower," Murdoc said, waving one hand towards the ominous structure while his other hand stroked a scythe he had brought with them for protection. "I'll bet that's where the spirit that possessed 2D is getting cozy."

"It's at the center of the city," "Little Simz chipped in. "We'll have to fight our way through however many zombies are in our way before we can face the big spirit."

Behind 2D, Russel grumbled, "That won't be easy, especially if these zombies can regenerate like the ones at the Spirit House did before we banished the two spirits."

"Hmmm…" 2D glanced curiously towards Noodle, who had a thoughtful expression on her face as she spoke. "The big spirit has already shown that it is willing to turn over control of its zombies to minor spirits. We may have to take down another enemy, similar to the two spirits at our house, so that we can confront the big spirit without having the zombies to worry about."

Struck by sudden inspiration, 2D grinned. "Ooh! It's like a video game!"

The present company turned towards him, looking, for the most part, very confused. "Care to explain how this apocalyptic and very real scenario is like a video game, Dullard?" Murdoc growled.

Blinking, 2D elaborated, "Well- you know- in lots a' video games, you have levels, and you have to fight through each level, and there's usually- ah- a 'boss' at the end of each level. So- ah- level one was the spirit house; we had to fight all the zombies and then defeat the bosses, which were the spirits. Now we're on level two, and we have to fight more zombies then find and kill whatever's controlling them, the second boss. Then, we'll be on level three, where we'll have to fight through the spirit's last defenses and then fight him. The last boss is always the biggest and the hardest."

Russel looked mildly impressed. "Well, that actually is a pretty simple way to understand this mess. Good job, 'D."

Noodle smiled and squeezed 2D's arm. The singer blushed.

"Congratulations, Faceache; your brain did something right. However," Murdoc muttered, casting a serious look over the group, "I'd like to remind us all that there's no 'restart' in this game, and no magic fairies or funny green mushrooms that'll heal you if you get yourself killed. If you die, you're dead. And I'd rather not waste my time trying to build replacements for all of you."

"Aww, Murdoc, you really do care!" Noodle teased.

Murdoc responded with a low growl. "I just want you lackeys to know that If I die and any of you make it out of this alive, I'm going to haunt you for the rest of your miserable life."

2D gulped, looking at his toes. He'd rather be haunted by Moby Dick himself than have Murdoc's spirit pulling his pants down for the rest of eternity.

"We're all taking the same risks here, Muds," Russel responded.

"Yes, and we're all going to be very careful," Noodle supported. "We're in this together, and we're all going to help each other make it out of this mess alive."

Murdoc grumbled, rolling his eyes (one of which continued to roll long after the gesture had been completed). "Whatever. Let's start making plans. How are we entering the city?"

"I was going to drive my truck," Little Simz began, "but with all of the spiritual energy I've contracted, it's taking a lot of focus not to start floating, and I don't want to accidentally set my dashboard on fire. If someone else drives my truck, I can fly behind it." Little Simz removed a set of keys from her pocket, tossed them into the air, then caught them. When she turned to 2D, the singer's muscles tensed, his nerves twinging under her analytic gaze. "You. You're the one who sliced that stupid worm spirit in half, right?"

2D nodded nervously. His eyes widened with surprise when she tossed the keys towards him. He reached out quickly to catch them before they hit the ground. The singer looked quizzically up at the rapper, who spoke once more, "I expect to see zombie guts all over the grille when I get my truck back. Don't disappoint me."

The singer nodded. "Yes, mam."

"What? Dents gets to drive?" Murdoc howled. "Look at his eyes, how's he supposed to see the road properly? I should be the one driving!"

"If I remember correctly," Russel responded, his eyes narrowing at the bassist, "'D's eyes were injured in car accidents. Two separate car accidents. Caused by the same person. Maybe that person is the one who shouldn't be driving."

2D grinned, so happy to have Russel's support that he was hardly bothered by Murdoc's silent fuming.

"Ok," Noodle brought them back on track. "If 2D drives, Murdoc and Russel can share the truck with him. Little Simz can fly behind them, and I can bring up the rear on my motorcycle. Does that sound good to everyone?"

One by one, the bandmates nodded in consent. Despite the dire situation, 2D felt a flash of pride. They're trusting me to lead the way!

"Let's get back to the house then," Russel suggested. "We'll grab some weapons, get in formation, then hit the city."

With that said, the band began to walk (or, in Little Simz's case, float) down the hill to where the truck and Noodle's motorcycle were parked. 2D took a deep breath, holding his head high. We're ready for this. I'm ready for this. I won't let them down.

. . .

"Come on, one last push!" Russel bellowed.

2D strained as, side by side, he and Murdoc shoved a large, mounted machine-gun across the bed of Little Simz's truck. With a heavy thunk, the device hit the back window.

"Okay, good! It's there!" Russel hollered, giving them a thumbs-up as the exhausted duo climbed off the truck.

"I still don't see why you couldn't have pushed it in place yourself," Murdoc grumbled at the drummer.

"What, you think just 'cause I'm big, I should do all of the heavy lifting?"

"Well, you already tote that oversized gut around, what's a few more pounds to that?"

"Muds, do you want to have your nose broken again? 'Cause I can make that happen."

"Boys, stop fighting!" Noodle scolded. "If you're done setting up the gun, then throw some more weapons into the back and climb in. 2D," Noodle said, turning to the singer, "Make sure you have something in the front seat to defend yourself with. You'll have to focus on your driving, of course, but you should ideally be able to bat away anything that comes near your window."

"Bat away…" 2D smiled. Sauntering to their weapons trailer (and feeling like a video game character about to select their weapon), 2D seized a long, wooden baseball bat. Exiting the trailer, he playfully swung the bat around, loving the feeling of the heavy wood swooshing through the air.

"A baseball bat?" Little Simz questioned, raising an eyebrow. "Did you play ball when you were a kid?"

"Nah," 2D responded, "But my friends used to take me out in their car to swing at mailboxes. I was mostly brought along so that they could blame me for everything later. Eventually, I decided that if I was going to be the only one taking the blame, I may as well just go out and do it by myself. It took a while and I crashed two cars, but I learned how to swing and drive at the same time."

"An excellent skill to have," Murdoc declared, "but not nearly as impressive as speed snatching. You drive up to some pedestrians with shopping bags, preferably those just coming out of the liquor shop, and quickly snatch what they've got as you shoot past them." As if to demonstrate his point, the bassist sprinted past Russel and, as he was doing so, reached out to snag the strap of a large gun and pull it out of the drummer's hands. Murdoc stood smirking a few meters away, basking in Russel's glower, the gun hanging by its strap from his outstretched hand. "It's much more rewarding game, in my opinio-"

VROOOOM!

Noodle flashed past Murdoc on her motorcycle. The bassist was left gaping, staring at his now empty arm. All heads turned to Noodle, who now had the gun strap hooked over the end of a long hockey stick. She smiled sweetly at them. "You're right, Murdoc. Speed snatching is a useful skill to have. I think I'll keep this gun with me."

2D, Russel, and Little Simz laughed while Murdoc sighed in resignation. "Ah well. Let it never be said that I didn't raise you to get what you want, my protégé-in-crime."

Noodle rolled her eyes, still smiling. "Whatever you say, Murdoc. It really is about time we hit the city, though. Does everyone have their bag of powder?"

Heads nodded. 2D ran a hand over his pants pocket, where he could feel the bulge of his powder-filled Ziplock baggie. "We're all set, Noodle," Russel confirmed.

"Ok," Noodle responded. "Remember; save your powder for when we find spirits; we have a limited supply and it would be wasted on the zombies. If everyone's ready, let's load up."

With that said, the bandmates walked to their respective places. As 2D climbed into the Driver's seat of Little Simz's truck, he could feel the vehicle shift under the weight of Russel and Murdoc hopping into the bed of the truck. 2D slammed the door shut beside him. Glancing at his rearview mirror, he saw Little Simz standing behind them. Her feet slowly left the ground; she was floating, ready to fly.

2D's attention was then seized by a revving engine. He saw Noodle on her motorcycle circling them, making three complete loops before turning sharply and pulling up beside his window. She tapped on the glass. Grinning, 2D started his own engine and rolled his window down. "What's up, love?"

"I just wanted to remind you to be careful. Keep your window down, so that you can hear us if we need to give you directions or tell you something important. Bat anything that comes within reach of your door. I'll be right behind you." She leaned towards the window. 2D leaned forward and met her halfway, catching her lips in a short but comforting kiss. When they pulled away, they spent a few moments smiling at each other, 2D admiring her vivid eyes, seeing his own affection mirrored back at him. "Are you ready, Toochie?"

"Yeah," 2D responded with a wink. "I'm ready for anything."

Noodle nodded, revved her bike, then shot off, circling the truck once more before pulling behind Little Simz. Watching through his mirror, 2D could see them exchange a few quick words before Noodle shot him a thumbs-up. They were ready.

2D took a deep breath, fixing his gaze onto the road before him with determination. He was ready. His foot pressed onto the gas and the truck lurched forward.

The singer could hear his bandmates whooping as they sped down the road. Sure, they could die today, but that wasn't going to stop them from living up every moment of it. 2D allowed his own howls to fill the air, joining his band in a chorus of excitement. Level 2, here we come!

The strange caravan shot down the empty roads. As they approached the city, an eerie mist began to surround them, shrouding the landscape in mystery. Turning on the headlights, 2D stared forward with concentration, waiting for the fog to clear. He could feel the energy of the city, they were almost there now…

The fog cleared. They were in.

The old section of the city was filled with ancient brick buildings, some of them halfheartedly restored, others collapsing in on themselves. Zombies crept around every corner, gathering swiftly as they heard their intruding enemies approach. They lumbered onto the road, trying to block the band's path. 2D pushed the gas pedal to the floor.

WHAM! THUMP!

The truck jolted as it ran over sickly green bodies. 2D turned on the wipers as half-rotted zombie fluid splattered across the windshield. Running over the zombies was fun, but it was slowing him down; the faster zombies were now able to approach the truck instead of merely standing in its way. 2D could hear their machine gun firing at the surrounding hordes; he could see the zombies ahead of him falling before they could clutter the center of the road. Someone was trying to clear the path for him.

Willing the truck to go faster, 2D seized his baseball bat from the otherwise empty passenger seat. A skinny, green zombie with a missing eye was approaching his window. It groaned as it approached, reaching towards him-

Then got a facefull of baseball bat.

2D cheered as the zombie fell, and felt the truck clear another body before shooting down a clear stretch of road. Glancing into the rear-view mirror, the singer saw Russel at the helm of the machine gun, blocking his view of anything else behind him. Turning to the side-view mirror, 2D could see Little Simz flying, shooting balls of blue energy at any zombie that got too close. Beyond her, Noodle was swerving through an obstacle course of the fallen undead, swinging her hockey stick to behead every zombie she could catch. 2D grinned to himself. They were doing well.

Unfortunately, these zombies, like the ones at the Spirit House, fell for only a moment before piecing themselves back together and lumbering to their feet, continuing to pursue the band. The zombie crowds were getting thicker as they drove. Despite his best efforts, Russel was having trouble keeping 2D's path clear and they were slowing down. 2D glanced from side to side, adrenaline coursing through his veins, watching as zombies lined the sidewalks and threw themselves in front of the car. We need to find what's controlling them soon! 2D thought. But where is it? Is it near the center of the city? Or is it hidden away where it thinks we won't look? Or is it actually the big spirit, controlling everything instead of letting a smaller spirit help this time? The singer bit his lip. How are we ever going to figure this out?

2D heard banging on the side of the truck. Sticking his head out the window, 2D saw Murdoc making noise to get his attention. "Hey, 2D! Take a left up here!"

2D scrunched his eyebrows, confused. "A left? Why?"

"My eye told me that we need to go left!"

"Your eye?" 2D exclaimed, his eyebrows shooting up.

Murdoc pointed a long fingernail towards one of his eyes, which was pointing resolutely to their left even as the bassist tried to look at 2D. "This is my demonic eye! I think all the spiritual energy around this place is what's been making it act up lately. If we follow it, it should lead us to where the energy is concentrated!"

Not entirely understanding the mechanics of the demonic bassist's eye but nevertheless choosing to trust him, 2D nodded. "Okay, we'll follow your eye!"

"I'll tell Russ to shoot in the direction we need to go. Just follow the falling bodies!" With that, Murdoc disappeared behind the drummer.

2D turned forward to see that the next intersection was nearly upon them. He cut the wheel; the truck's tires screeched as they curved sharply to the left. Fortunately, the zombies seemed unprepared for this move, and 2D smiled as they coasted down a relatively clear stretch of road.

They plunged deeper into the city, managing to stay abreast of the worst crowds of zombies. The old brick buildings gave way to more modern ones made of glass, steel, and malfunctioning neon signs which cast a surreal glow over their path. Whenever the undead crowds began to get to thick, 2D would lead them in an evasive maneuver, taking a sharp turn down an empty-ish street to shake the zombies off. Then Russel, guided by Murdoc's instruction, would use the machine gun to point 2D back in the direction they needed to go.

2D leaned over the steering wheel, gritting his teeth. Although the zombie crowds had thinned slightly, he could definitely feel the strange energy now, a sort of unearthly tingle which made him feel simultaneously excited and scared. This is how I felt when I touched the spirit piano… 2D shivered at the memory of the insurmountable spiritual pressure forcing him to sit at the piano, to remain still as ghostly threads seeped out from the keys and crept into his body- No! I can't think about that right now! I have to stay focused! I have to stay brave!

Bullets from their machine gun clattered over a right-turn symbol painted over the pavement. 2D pulled on the wheel and led the way down the indicated road, checking his side mirror briefly to make sure Little Simz and Noodle were still on his tail.

Bullets pinged off the walls of an alleyway and 2D followed, glancing warily at the tall, narrow walls converging on either side of him. It struck him as odd that there were no zombies blocking his path; after all, it would only take a few of them to strategically clog this tight space. 2D tilted his head to the side, pinching his eyebrows together. Something wasn't quite right.

Exiting the alleyway, 2D found himself in a spacious parking lot. The lot was surrounded by a tall chain-link fence and further enclosed by a cubicle of apartment buildings. There were cars piled against the sides of the lot, shoved into the fence as if a huge monster had found the lot full and seen fit to manually convert the space into a giant arena.

2D drove into the center of the lot, twisting the wheel so that the truck turned back to face the alleyway before he parked (This way, he thought, we'll be able to get out quickly if something we can't handle shows up). Once the truck had come to a stop, the singer poked his head out of the window, observing his surroundings. He could see his bandmates doing the same, scanning the area for supernatural inhabitants. However, the parking lot was unnaturally quiet. 2D tentatively opened his door and stepped out of the truck to get a better view of the lot. All he could see between himself and the enclosing walls of stacked cars and fence was a field of cracked asphalt, dirtied with the occasional piece of litter.

2D narrowed his eyes. Something definitely felt not right about this.

"Muds, this place is deserted," the singer could hear Russel inform the bassist. "That eye of yours is no compass. We need to look somewhere else."

"No! It's here, I can feel it!" The truck bounced as Murdoc jumped off the back. 2D watched as the bassist wandered around the clearing, holding one hand over his good eye so that the bad eye could lead him. The bassist slowly ambled back from whence they came, towards the entrance of the alleyway. 2D sighed, his head drooping with disappointment. Well, it looks like Murdoc's eye was a bust. Now how are we supposed to find-

"Aargh!" Murdoc hollered, slapping a hand over the mystic eye. The man hunched over, appearing to be in pain.

"Murdoc! Are you okay?" Noodle revved her bike and shot towards the bassist, concern in her eyes.

"It's… Arrr!" Murdoc groaned, panting as he struggled to force the words out. "It's spinning! It won't stop spinning! Rrrr! Bloody eye keeps twisting in its socket!"

Noodle parked beside Murdoc and hopped off her bike. "Here, let me see it-"

"No! Don't touch it, it already hurts enough!"

"Just let me look at it!" Noodle grabbed the bassist's wrists and yanked them away from his face. 2D couldn't see what was going on with the eye, but he could see Noodle flinch, so he knew that whatever Murdoc's eye was doing wasn't pretty. "Kuso… Eyes shouldn't be able to twist like that…"

"Try moving him!" Little Simz called. "If his eye's acting like a compass, it should stop spinning if you move him off whatever it's attracted to."

"Good idea," Noodle agreed. Firmly grabbing Murdoc's shoulder, Noodle led the cursing man a few feet to the left, and almost instantly his breathing began to even as tension visibly left him.

"Oh, that's better," Murdoc sighed, rubbing both eyes with the heels of his hands before turning to look at the spot where he had been standing. 2D looked as well; the spot was marked by a circular storm drain lid. Noodle approached the spot, her eyes on the lid-

The lid began to rattle.

Noodle paused. The whole group held their breaths as the heavy-looking lid continued to shake, its metallic clatter piercing the eerily silent air. Then, as quickly as it had begun, the rattling stopped.

2D watched as Noodle tilted her head in thought, his own mind full of curiosity. And, of course, fear. This reminds me of something, 2D thought, wracking his brain, but I can't remember what… Noodle continued to approach the drain lid, squatting beside it, digesting it with her analytical gaze. Slowly, the guitarist reached out, her hand gradually creeping forward until she gently laid it over the lid. She ran her fingers over the lid, bringing her nails to the edge where it met the pavement. Using both hands, Noodle pried at the lid, managing to get one side up and beginning to lift it away.

2D massaged his fingers through his hair, pleading for his brain to work. What does this remind me of?

Suddenly, the lid was knocked out of Noodle's hands as a small, dark shape sprung out of the drain. Noodle leaped backwards, watching tensely as the small creature rounded on her and hissed menacingly. The moment he saw it, a memory clicked in 2D's mind.

A raccoon! Just like the one from my closet! Indeed, the small animal had feral eyes which were practically burning with hatred for the present company. This animal, unlike the Spirit House's raccoon, appeared to be rather healthy, its thick fur shining with shades of smoky gray and midnight black, teeth bared, claws sharp, alert and ready to fight.

2D wasn't impressed.

Yeah, I guess it's kinda scary, 2D thought as he observed the hissing animal, but after all the spirits and zombies we've fought, a raccoon just doesn't seem like a big deal anymore.

"A raccoon?" Murdoc howled. "We race through the city like heroes, follow all of the magic spirit signs, and arrive at this stupid parking lot to find a blasted raccoon? When this is over, I'm tearing out this eye myself!"

"Hey! Don't smack-talk Ringo!" an unknown voice boomed.

The bandmates heads jerked towards the drain. 2D's eyes widened as a man rose out of it. Mind you, the man didn't climb out of the drain, he rose out of the drain, floating upwards, standing straight and tall with his pale arms folded over his chest. He was wearing all black, and, like Murdoc, bore an upside-down cross necklace. There was also something strangely shimmery about him… almost translucent… it was as if this figure were a picture painted on mist. The floating man drifted beside the drain opening, and his feet touched the asphalt. The raccoon, chittering cheerfully, began to run in circles around his feet. The strange figure crouched down, smiling as he scratched the happy animal's ears, then stood back up, observing the band with a condescending glare.

"Who the devil are you?" Murdoc growled, eyeing the mysterious man suspiciously.

The man's gaze swept over Murdoc, looking him up and down as if he were sizing the bassist up. "I," he replied, "am called Hal Muerto. I am the leader of this area's official demon-worshiping group, the Spirit Seekers. Or, at least, I was. They're all dead now."

2D didn't like the way Hal was looking at them. It was the way Murdoc usually looked at him whenever the singer accidentally said something punishably stupid, and it typically meant that he was about to get his face smashed in. However, 2D thought it would only be polite to console him for the loss of his friends, so he approached the group gathered around the drain cover, stuttering as he went, "Um- ah- hello, Hal. My name's 2D. I'm sorry to hear about your loss."

Hal turned to the singer. 2D stopped in his tracks when Hal's gaze met his, shivering involuntarily as the figure's cold gray eyes pierced him to his core. Hal smirked, taking the upmost pleasure in 2D's discomfort. "Oh, there's no need to console me. Who do you think killed those pathetic idiots?"

Oh… That doesn't sound good at all. Hals's gaze was cold and frightening and 2D wanted to look away, but he felt Noodle take a short step closer to him, her warmth and courage flowing into him as she gently grasped his arm. The singer took a deep breath, straightened his spine, and held the man's gaze. "You- you killed them? Your own friends?" 2D felt a spark of anger inside of him as he thought of his own friends, who he would never dream of hurting like that. Sure, he often wished he could lock Murdoc in a closet or something for his own protection, but he would never kill them! "Why would you do that?"

"Because it was necessary," the man replied casually. "I needed human sacrifices to activate the spirit piano. I only wish I'd had more followers. Then, it wouldn't have taken all this time for the piano to reach its full strength."

"You activated the spirit piano?" Noodle said, anger evident in her voice. "You're the one who started this whole mess? What were you thinking!?"

"I was thinking that, with my many spiritual skills and accomplishments, whatever demon-spirit was locked in the piano would surely want to keep me around to serve him. I could be spiritually tied to the demon."

"What's the fun in being tied down?" Murdoc responded incredulously. "you can enjoy meddling with demonic powers without being stuck at the side of some needy apparition!"

"Yes, of course, and I enjoyed my freedom for a while," Hal replied. "But the more I learned, the more I realized the benefits of being tied. For one thing, you receive powers you could never dream of. Also, you live as long as your master lives. In other words, if your demon lives forever, you live forever."

"And if your demon gets banished, you get banished," Murdoc growled in reply.

"Precisely," Hal affirmed. "You understand, then, why I can't let you approach my master."

Silence hung over the lot. The bandmates stared tensely at Hal, who stared back calmly. The raccoon circled his human's feet, making a noise similar to a cat's purr. After a few long seconds passed, Murdoc broke the silence with a dismissive huff. "You think you can stop us? What are you going to do, sic the dumpster-rat on us?"

The Raccoon hissed, and Hal snarled, "Ringo is my familiar, and If I were you, I would start showing him some respect right now. Your life might just depend on it."

"Ooh, poor little Hal is upset because I was mean to his stinky, striped sewer-critter," Murdoc mocked, pulling faces as he did so.

Hal's face contorted with anger; he looked like he was about to add to the number of times the bassist had had his nose broken. However, the tension broke as 2D (whose mind had been dwelling down a somewhat different path) curiously asked his own question. "Wait, wait… I don't think I understand… Why is Ringo your friend? I mean, he's acting like sort of a smart raccoon, but you said you killed your other friends, so shouldn't he be afraid that he'll be killed to? I mean, I think I'd be scared, if I were Ringo-"

Hal cut 2D off with a terrible, bone-chilling laugh. "If you were Ringo? You could never be Ringo. As you yourself said, Ringo is a very intelligent raccoon." Hal knelt down to scratch Ringo's chin. "He understands that what I did to the others was a necessary sacrifice. In fact, he's made his fair share of sacrifices. Who do you think recruited the raccoon you found in your closet? Where do you think the blood we used to write on your walls came from?" 2D gasped, looking down at Ringo in horror, noticing Hal's evil reflected in the critter's eyes. "You see, 2D, like souls find each other, appreciate each other's talents, and become very successful through their collaboration. But weak souls, like yourself, are here to be used by the strong. You are worthless on your own. You only become of value when someone comes along who knows how to use you, how to kill you slowly for their own benefit."

"That's not true!" 2D and Noodle shouted in unison. 2D could feel the guitarist's anger on his behalf merging with his own indignation as he continued, "I'm not worthless, and I'm not used! I have friends who respect me!"

"Yes, respect," Hal sneered. "Is 'respect' what it's called when someone hits you with their car? Deludes you? Kidnaps you, traps you on a piece of trash, and surrounds you with your worst fears until you obey his orders?"

"Shut up!" 2D and Murdoc both shouted at once. This time, Murdoc picked up the argument, hollering, "Don't you dare compare me to you! I'm not like you!"

"Oh, sure," Hal sneered sarcastically, "You're not like me, you're not like your father, you're not like your brother…" Smiling, Hal stroked Ringo, who arched his back into his hand. "But I must say, you aren't half as nice to your human 'friends' as you are to that raven of yours… what's his name… Cortez?"

"I- wait- how do you even know about Cortez? How do you know about any of this?" Murdoc hollered, looking livid.

"Oh, I know all about you," Hal chuckled, standing up straight and crossing his arms over his chest. "I've seen all that my master can see. I'm afraid that your spiritually-tuned eye has been a disadvantage to you in that respect; it provides a rather clear window to your soul- what's left of it, anyway, and that's not much. As for your singer…" 2D felt chills as Hal's gaze turned to him. "You got very intimately acquainted with my master, now, didn't you? He's been inside you… we both have… we've seen, manipulated, and ravaged every piece of your mind, body, and soul, creeping through your veins, exploring your most intimate memories and feelings, making you our own..."

2D found himself trembling, flashing back to his possession, to the helplessness and the pain… Subconsciously, he wrapped his arms around his chest. He felt contaminated.

The singer was so wrapped up in his personal wave of emotion that he jumped when he felt Noodle move beside him. The guitarist stepped in front of him, her body tense, and threatened in a low voice, "Leave 2D alone."

Hal looked curiously at Noodle, his eyes scanning her with obvious interest. "I would have loved to take a peek inside of you… Unfortunately, your idiot friend is so protective that, despite his lack of brains, he managed to keep my master away from you."

A spark lit inside of 2D's mind. I'm not contaminated… I'm not weak… I'm strong! Stepping forward, he stood beside Noodle. "We can fight you and your master off any day," 2D announced, fighting the tremor out of his voice.

Hal only laughed, shaking his head pityingly. "Such brave words from such a pathetic man… Well, let's put those words to the test, shall we? You think you can beat me. I think I shall take great pleasure in proving you wrong."

2D tensed his muscles, making fists to prevent his fingers from twitching nervously. Murdoc and Noodle were also facing the man with fierce expressions, and 2D could hear Russel and Little Simz approaching behind him, backing them up. "You're outnumbered," Murdoc sneered evilly, shooting Hal a wicked grin full of pointed teeth.

Hal cocked his head to the side. "Am I? I could've sworn I saw some of my friends around here earlier. SERVANTS! COME TO ME!"

Hal's shout was strangely amplified; it echoed around the clearing, fusing with a new noise, a bone-chilling groan which grew louder with each passing second…

Car doors were flung open with loud bangs! All around the edges of the clearing, zombies were exiting the cars in droves, crawling out from the earth beneath them, forming a ghastly ring around the lot. 2D glanced quickly from side to side, his heartbeat accelerating, his eyes going pale. He sniffed the air. The clearing smelled like roadkill on a hot day.

"Have fun trying to defeat my undead army!" Hal cackled, watching the band as, one by one, they turned away from him, bracing themselves to face the zombies who were closing in, advancing sluggishly across the clearing.

2D's fists trembled as his gaze flickered from Hal to a zombie standing just beyond his left shoulder. The zombie was wearing a tattered "Save the Whales" T-shirt. 2D cringed, feeling slightly sick.

But he also felt slightly angry.

He helped that spirit possess me! 2D thought, flames sparking in his chest. He tried to help it possess Noodle! This whole stupid spirit situation is all his fault, and now he's threatening us with sodding zombies! The singer tore his eyes from the zombies, staring instead at Hal's smug smirk. "We don't need to fight them!" 2D shouted, hoping his bandmates could hear him over the chorus of undead groans. "You're controlling them! We just need to get rid of YOU!" 2D raised his fist. He didn't usually do things like this, but he had seen Murdoc do it plenty of times, so he knew how to do it properly. Planting his feet firmly on the ground, 2D twisted his body forward, pushing all of his weight and momentum through his shoulder, through his arm, into his first-

2D's knuckles met Hal's face.

Hal disappeared in a puff of red smoke.

2D lost his balance, his body following his fist and falling roughly onto the pavement. He felt his face scrape the blacktop and winced as his chest hit the hard surface with bruising force. The singer coughed; the red smoke from Hal was still drifting around his face and he had breathed some of it in, causing his chest to burn. 2D groaned.

He could hear himself groan…

The zombies had gone silent.

2D sucked in a breath when he felt a hand clamp onto his shoulder. "Toochie? 2D, are you okay?"

2D looked up at Noodle, relaxing at the sight of his friend. He began pushing himself off the ground. "I've felt better, love. Did… Did I beat him? Are the zombies dead?"

Noodle offered the singer a hand up, which he accepted gratefully. Glancing around the clearing, 2D observed that the zombies were very much alive, standing still and watching him as he rose to his feet. The singer frowned, confused. "But… Hal disappeared! If he's gone, how can the zombies still be standing?"

"You tell me, Dullard!" Murdoc growled, glancing briefly at 2D before observing the zombies once more. "So much for your video-game-boss-controlling-the-zombies theory. Utter bollocks."

"Hey, don't blame this on 2D!" Noodle scolded the bassist angrily.

Russel chipped in, "Yeah, man; D's tryin'."

Murdoc made some angry retort and Noodle and Russel continued to argue with him, but 2D could barely hear them. Something had gone off in his brain when Murdoc insulted him. The singer narrowed his eyes, glaring at Murdoc. That burning sensation in his chest was back.

He was seeing red.

"He was right." 2D muttered.

The singer's voice carried eerily through the air, and despite their loud argument, all of his bandmates heard him and turned to face him, looking confused. Except for Murdoc. He looked vindicated. "You see? Faceache agrees. His idea was idiotic."

2D approached the bassist, a strange blankness in his eyes. When he was two feet away Murdoc pushed out his hand, saying, "What, do you want a hug? Why don't you just mind my personal spa-"

WHAM!

Murdoc was on the ground, clutching his nose. 2D looked down on the bassist, feeling his face contort with anger as Murdoc replied, "Dammit, Dullard! What the-"

2D kicked him in the ribs, earning a sharp gasp of pain from the bassist and a surprised cry from Noodle. "Toochie! What are you doing?"

2D hissed towards Murdoc, "Hal was right. You use me." 2D aimed another kick at the fallen bassist. "you hurt me." Murdoc tried to grab 2D's oncoming foot, only to cry out as it stomped painfully onto his fingers. "You're abusive, controlling, just like Hal, and just like your sodding father!" 2D felt Russel grab onto him, trying to hold him back. Rage built up inside of the singer, he felt like he was burning-

"Ouch!" 2D heard Russel bellow as the hands let go of him. "Man, what's up with you? You feel like your on fire!"

"Then maybe you should STAY OUT OF MY WAY!" 2D bellowed, rounding on the shocked drummer, fury bursting out of him like an explosion. There was red mist floating before his eyes; 2D couldn't tell if it was just in his head or if it was actually floating around him, a physical representation of his mood. Rounding back on the bassist, 2D knelt down, grabbed the stunned man by the collar of his shirt, and raised him into the air. He walked to the edge of the lot, followed closely by his bandmates (who he could hear shouting at him, although he couldn't tell what they were saying). Murdoc struggled in his grip, kicking and thrashing. As he reached the edge of the lot, the zombies cleared a path, allowing 2D to slam Murdoc against the dirtied side of a white van.

"Mate, you're possessed again!" Murdoc howled into his face, his mismatched eyes wide and frantic. "Let me go! This isn't you!"

"IT'S NEVER BEEN ME!" 2D screamed, his spit and red mist flying through the air in front of him. "It's always been you, your band, your stupid music, and who cares if poor little 2D gets hurt while you're doing what you want? After all, I'm YOUR SINGER!"

"Listen, mate-"

"DON'T CALL ME 'MATE!'"2D screamed. "After all you've done to me, after all of the pain you've caused me! You never apologized for anything! You never cared! You tried to break me in every way possible! For an entire album, you made me want to die!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Murdoc cried in panic.

2D leaned forward, pressing the bassist into the van, watching him struggle for breath as 2D's fist on his collar pushed his throat into the painted metal. "It's too late now. I'm done with you."

2D felt his mouth hang open. Red mist was spilling out of it, but he didn't care. He could see the mist pool onto the ground below him before creeping back up, crawling over the bassist's feet and legs. He watched as Murdoc looked down, his green face contorting with fear as he saw the mist rise up around him. "Look, ma- 2D, I admit it! I've been bad! I've controlled you! After all of this is over, you can be done with me and never see me again! But right now, something else is controlling you, and it's not going to be any nicer to you than I have been! Fight it off! Don't do it to save me! Fight it to save yourself!" Sucking in one last breath, Murdoc closed his mouth, holding his breath as the red mist curled around his face.

2D leaned forward, breathing onto the man. He wasn't sure why, but he wanted Murdoc to breathe the smoke. He had the feeling that it would make him suffer, like he had. He looked into the bassist's eyes and smirked cruelly. Murdoc couldn't hold his breath forever.

Something pushed against his elbow. Maybe it had been trying to get his attention for a while and he just hadn't noticed it. Suddenly, Noodle was there, standing on a car tire so that her face appeared between his and Murdoc's. 2D grimaced, snarling angrily, "get out of the way!"

Noodle shook her head, holding her breath against the smoke. 2D growled, more mist spilling out of his mouth. So be it, then. They can both breathe the smoke.

wait…

2D stared into Noodle's eyes, seeing the strange combination of love and defiance etched into her face.

This is Noodle! I can't hurt Noodle!

Why not? She's protecting Murdoc. She's in league with him.

No… She wants to protect me. She doesn't like it when he hurts me!

Then why is she standing in your way?

I don't know!

Then let her fall! Let me possess her!

Possess? It that what this mist does? Wait a minute… If the mist is coming out of me…

2D's eyes widened.

Don't fight it, 2D. It was Hal's voice piercing his mind. I can free you from him. I can free you from all of them. Together, we can be powerful!

No… Not Noodle… Not me… "Not again!"

2D wasn't sure if he had spoken that last thought out loud, but he could feel Murdoc's shirt slip between his loose fingers as he closed his eyes. His head was pounding. He curled his fingers into his hair. "I don't want to be controlled anymore!" He screamed. "Get out! GET OUT!"

There was a sensation like an explosion in his chest. 2D flung his head back as a deep red plume of smoke leaped out of his mouth, hanging in the air above him. Feeling suddenly empty, 2D's knees buckled. He would have crashed onto the pavement if Noodle hadn't suddenly appeared beside him, wrapping a strong arm around his waste to hold him upright. Together, they stared up at the cloud of red smoke, which bubbled angrily in the air above them. Hal's voice boomed out from the smoke,

"You pathetic fool! You've missed out on your chance for revenge, and now you'll die a spineless wimp!"

2D flinched as the smoke flew back towards the ground. Fortunately, it turned away from him, instead angling towards the upturned sewer cap, where Ringo the raccoon sat waiting. Ringo opened his mouth, welcoming the smoke as it poured into his body. 2D watched in horror as the raccoon swelled, growing as it absorbed the smoke, its eyes glowing brighter as it increased in size. The raccoon grew rapidly, he was the size of a dog… of a horse… of a truck…

2D tilted his head back, swallowing as a raccoon roughly the size of a tyrannosaurus loomed over his head. Ringo roared. The zombies groaned.

"Toochie!" 2D looked down at Noodle, seeing his frightened expression reflected in her eyes. "Go back to Little Simz's truck! You, Russel, and Murdoc can try to take down Ringo with the machine gun while Simz and I hold back the zombies, okay?"

"O-okay," 2D responded shakily. Noodle stood on her toes and kissed his cheek before rushing back to her bike. Taking a deep breath, 2D ran back to the driver's seat of the truck, motioning towards Russel and Murdoc for them to join him.

As 2D slammed the door shut behind him, he felt the truck jolt as his bandmates jumped into the back. Twisting the key he had left in the ignition, 2D put the vehicle in drive. He was staring directly at the raccoon through the windshield, its red eyes glowing like brake lights. Behind Ringo, 2D could see Noodle and Little Simz flash past; they were driving (and flying) in circles around the truck and the raccoon, preventing the zombies from entering their arena.

2D's foot hit the gas. The truck lurched forward, gaining speed quickly. Ringo responded by charging towards them. 2D could hear the machine gun firing. Ringo flinched as the bullet's hit him, but they didn't seem to be penetrating his fur, instead bouncing off and falling to the ground. 2D gritted his teeth as he prepared to collide with the approaching raccoon.

They were feet away… Ringo raised his front paws and caught the front of the truck, bringing it to an abrupt stop. Air bags deployed. 2D grunted painfully as he received a face-full of inflated fabric, but he refused to remove his foot from the gas. The tires spun and roared, and through the scent of the blood that was trickling from his nose, the singer could smell burning rubber.

The truck shifted. 2D gasped as he felt the front lift off the ground. Ringo was going to flip them over!

He heard panicked shouting from the bed of the truck. Murdoc's gravelly voice shouted, "The eyes, Lards! Aim for the eyes!" The machine gun fired…

The truck bounced on its front tires as it hit the ground, 2D yelped as his neck was flung forwards and backwards with whiplash. He could hear Ringo screech with pain. The raccoon's screech sounded strangely human, as if Hal were screaming from within the creature. The airbag had by now deflated enough for 2D to see through the windshield. Ringo had backed up a few paces. The raccoon hunched over, its paws clasped over its eyes, its nose brushing the ground. Its head was bowed at the level of the truck.

2D hit the gas one final time, launching the truck forward, racing towards the demonic raccoon's head. The truck shuddered as it hit Ringo's skull with a resounding crack. The raccoon stopped screeching. Its body fell to the ground, limp. Lifeless.

2D stared, panting, his knuckles blanched white over the steering wheel. He could see zombies falling to the ground around them, their undead groans replaced by thuds as their bodies hit the ground. The singer raised a trembling hand to wipe his nose; it hurt terribly, and his hand came away red. The airbag had probably broken it.

"Toochie! Toochie!"

He could hear Noodle running towards him, her voice growing louder as she approached. The singer slowly opened the truck door, stepping out carefully onto his shaking legs, looking up as Noodle flung her arms around him. 2D released an unsteady breath, his face falling into her hair as the guitarist's arms tightened around him.

"We did it, Toochie! The zombies died with the raccoon! Hal must have been trapped inside of Ringo when he died!"

2D brought his own arms up around Noodle, savoring the feeling of her steadiness and warmth. "I'm so glad you're okay… I… I nearly let him possess you…"

"But you didn't let him." Noodle tilted her head up, her eyes shining wetly as she smiled up at him. "You beat him." 2D smiled back, leaning down to meet her as she stood on her toes, bringing a hand behind her head as he kissed her deeply. The singer closed his eyes, sighing as he felt her face pressed against his. When her nose brushed his nose, he flinched, pulling his face back suddenly with a whimper. Noodle looked up at him, concerned. "What's wrong, 2D"

"My nose," 2D groaned, feeling his face throb. "I think it's broken."

Noodle raised a hand to his face. He could feel her fingertips gently skimming over his nose. 2D winced as she pressed lightly against the bridge of his nose, feeling the cartilage beneath. "Yes, I think it is broken… I imagine that's where the blood smeared on your face came from… Are you going to be alright?"

2D grinned through his pain. "I've been injured worse, love."

"Um, ah, hey, Face- I mean, 2D," Murdoc said, edging hesitantly closer to them. 2D looked up towards him, noticing that the bassist limped slightly as he walked, hunched to the side as if his ribs were hurting. Murdoc looked away, avoiding eye contact. "Er, I reckon that you- or Hal- whoever was speaking, had a bit of a point about me being- well- somewhat similar to my father, and, well, I guess I do have a thing or two to- ah- apologize for…" Murdoc shuffled, looking down as he kicked a zombie skull. "So- ah- listen up, cause I'm never saying this again. I'm sorry. And I guess I understand if, when this whole zombie apocalypse thing is over, you need some space-"

2D stepped around Noodle and Murdoc winced, raising his hands protectively to cover his nose and his left ribs. He gasped with surprise when 2D wrapped his arms around him, hugging him tightly. "Thanks, Muds. And I'm sorry too, about punching you, then kicking you, then trying to let Hal possess you."

"No need… I guess I deserved that, a bit," Murdoc muttered, wincing. "But, speaking of the kicking, I'd appreciate it if you eased up on the hugs. Still quite a bit sore."

2D let go, stepping back and smiling at Murdoc. Seeing Little Simz watching them curiously, he asked, "Hey! Do you want a hug too?"

Little Simz took a step back. "No thanks, man, I'm good."

2D looked around the lot, spotting Russel standing by the giant dead raccoon. "How about you, Russ?"

Russel ignored him, picking up a disembodied zombie arm and using it to poke the raccoon. "This would make a cool piece of taxidermy… I haven't had a lot of time for the hobby lately, but this guy might just be worth getting back into it for. Do you guys think it'll shrink?"

2D saw Murdoc roll his eyes- actually, just one of his eyes. The other eye, sort of like a bubble rising through water, rolled up until its pupil was pointing towards the sky. 2D looked up. Thick, glowing clouds still hung high above them; the rain from that morning had faded, but the atmosphere still felt thick and stormy.

The singer felt a presence at his side. Noodle was standing beside him, her gaze following his into the clouds. "We've still got one more battle to fight," she said softly.

2D nodded, glancing from her to the thickest patch of clouds, gathered above the tallest high rise. "The final boss," he whispered, thinking back to video games.

He felt Noodle's hand wrap around his own. "We're almost there," She encouraged, glancing towards him with positive energy shining out of her smile. Glancing back at her, 2D couldn't help but feel bolstered by her warmth, a smile spreading across his own face. He listened happily as she continued, "Then we'll have a safe house to stay in, and we can focus on making music and having fun. Maybe I'll even teach you how to ride a motorcycle."

2D squeezed her hand. "I look forward to it, love."

BOOM!

2D and Noodle jerked their heads towards the sky. 2D's breath hitched as he saw lightning lance across the clouds, numerous streams of electricity seeming to join together before shooting towards the ground- towards them.

"Get down!" He heard Murdoc shout. 2D dropped to the ground, feeling pressure on his arm as Noodle did the same. His belly pressed against the ground, 2D saw the huge bolt of lightning beam towards Ringo's body, hitting it with pavement-shattering force. For a moment, the whole raccoon glowed, it's rings lighting up like some sort of monstrous neon bumblebee. Then, light shot out from under the raccoon, dancing across the pavement. 2D got the chills as the lights flew past him and Noodle, the hairs on the back of his neck rising. His eyes followed these lights for a moment before flicking back towards the raccoon. It seemed as if the remaining energy in the raccoon was gathering at the raccoon's right eye.

The eye was pointing towards Russel.

"Russ, look out!" 2D cried. He was too late.

Light shot out of the eye towards the drummer, who was bowled over, falling backwards and rolling as the light danced across his body before cutting off like unplugged Christmas lights. He lay on the ground, still.

"RUSSEL!" Noodle cried, jumping to her feet and running across the pavement. 2D followed close behind, and he could see Murdoc running their way as well. When Noodle reached Russel, she knelt beside him, shaking his shoulder. "Russel, are you okay? Wake up! Say something!"

As Russel failed to respond, Noodle moved one of her hands under his neck to take his pulse. There were tears in her eyes. 2D could feel his own eyes watering. Russel was like a brother to him. And to Noodle… Russel was the closest thing to a parent she had ever had. Heck, he was her father, regardless of what biological rules were usually applied to the term.

Noodle released a heavy breath. "He has a pulse. He's breathing, too. I think Russel's just unconscious."

2D let out his own breath, relief flooding his mind. He heard Murdoc reacting similarly.

He heard Little Simz approach them from behind. She stopped abruptly, paused, then asked, "Hey, what's up with his foot?"

Noodle glanced towards Little Simz, then towards Russel's feet, one of which appeared to be swelling. In fact, the swelling seemed to be spreading. His whole leg was getting bigger… both of his legs… his chest… his head…

"He's growing! It's like Plastic Beach all over again!" Murdoc cursed loudly, taking a step back. 2D, Little Simz, and Noodle also began stepping backwards as the drummer grew. It was, indeed, just like Plastic Beach.

Then another odd thing happened. Russel began to float.

2D watched with wide eyes as the drummer rose slowly above the ground. The singer stared for a few moments before he was distracted by a loud creaking noise. Turning around, the singer's jaw dropped.

Everything was beginning to float.

Metal grated against metal as cars rose gradually into the air. Litter flew up as if moved by a breeze he could not feel. 2D could feel his own clothes shifting against his body, tugging upwards towards the sky.

"It's attracting the objects!" Little Simz shouted, pointing towards the thick group of clouds which were now glowing even brighter than before. "I think the big demon-spirit is trying to surround itself with whatever it can find! Now that the zombies are gone, it needs protection!"

Murdoc sprinted across the clearing. 2D saw him jump to catch their truck (which had just begun to float into the air), landing in the truck bed. When Murdoc jumped back down, he held two scythes. Murdoc ran back to his bandmates and threw one of the scythes to 2D. "Now that we're all armed," the bassist growled, glancing at Noodle (who had a gun strapped to her back) and Little Simz (who had fire flushing out of her fingertips), "Let's each grab onto one of these floating objects. If Simz is right, they'll take us right to the Big Demon."

"I'm staying with Russel," Noodle said, grabbing the edge of the drummer's shirt as it lifted off the ground. "2D, do you want to come with me?"

2D nodded, running forward. Sticking the handle of his scythe in his mouth, 2D began to climb up Russel's shirt alongside Noodle. He grunted as he dragged himself over the gigantic drummer's stomach, accepting Noodle's helping hand as she pulled him up. Taking the scythe out of his mouth, panting, 2D looked down a few meters to where Little Simz stood beneath them, beginning to rise off the ground herself, aided by her recently acquired spirit-powers. Murdoc was running back towards their floating truck. He managed to snag his scythe onto the bumper and pull himself into the truck bed, waving towards the others to show that he was all set.

2D looked at Noodle. She was sitting in the center of Russel's stomach, glancing towards the drummer's face, worry evident in her eyes. Sitting beside her, 2D wrapped an arm comfortingly around her shoulders. She leaned into his grip.

2D looked towards the sky, the luminous clouds reflecting off his dark eyes. He could feel the drummer rising beneath them, lifting them towards the center of the storm. It was time to face their Final Boss.

. . .

Coming up next: FINAL BATTLE! Gorillaz take on the big demon-spirit thingy! Will they all make it through alive, or will sacrifices have to be made to bring the apocalypse to an end? Last chapter before the epilogue! IT ALL GOES DOWN SOOOOON!"