"Remember, rule number... yadda yadda. Winners take all, losers get nothing," Hades cocked his long spindly fingers in gun motions and vanished in a plume of sulphur and hellfire.

"Hey you! Give up before I have to crush you," the blue woman, Undyne, warned Aqua as her body rippled with power. Aqua narrowed her eyes, her hand flashing to reveal the metallic keyblade she wielded when you first met her instead of that weapon her armour used.

"Counter offer... move before I make you," Aqua warned, her voice like steel. Stitch looked hesitant to use his guns and the weird yellow one, Reuben sighed as the collar around his neck began to pulse.

"So...cuz, I sort of ended up going to this place and this really smooth talking merchant sold me on this collar and well... he promised it would give me all the energy I needed and now I make Leroy look like a scout girl when the thing turns on," the creature sighed.

"I... remove it and we don't fight," Stitch said easily and Reuben made a show of pulling on the black collar band and the thing was firm like steel despite it being fabric.

"Ahah... who knew 'cursed items' were so clingy?" he chuckled, looking dearly like he wanted to be eating something.

Your own foe, the floating cat doll, hung in the air limply for a moment. It raised one paw and the air crackled with an energy you had never sensed before. It wasn't elemental or power from bonds... but something different.

The closest thing you could pin it to was Mitsuru's power to summon her inner soul and heart. It had flavours of that but in a different direction.

There was a loud gong from somewhere beyond the empty seats and Undyne was gone, an explosion as Aqua met her attack head on. Undyne had summoned a spear from somewhere and the Keyblade seemed to actually struggle against pushing it back.

"You feel that? That's my Heart pushing your key down. It won't be stopped!" the fish woman yelled and Aqua's knees buckled for a moment.

Aqua's grip tightened on her weapon as some thought hit her.

"I... won't lose... another friend!" Aqua snapped back, the air around her crystallizing. You, the cat, and the two Stitch-beings had to throw themselves to the sit as the centre of the arena became a growing roaring glacier. Spears of ice stabbed out as Undyne flipped and weaved through the air, smashing any ice that got too close, showing a cut on her cheek and a smile that has no light to it.

This started the fight proper as the action set cat and Reuben off. Reuben's eyes went red as the crystal around his neck glowed and the cat flew in, coated in that strange energy. You had to focus now, Aqua and Stitch had their fights, you had yours.

Speed battle
Eraqus: 100 (crit)
Mew: 95

The cat doll shot forward, dragging one claw along the stone seats, leaving thin but clear grooves as it flew at you. At the last moment, it slashed up, releasing a tremendous amount of energy as its claws looked double their normal size in a strange buzzing energy.

You calmly, easily... leaned back just a tad and the entire thing shot over you, barely giving you a nice breeze. But being this close to the blast and the doll in action, you learned something about how to perhaps mimic how it moved its energy with your own magic.

Learned: Force

Force(Neutral): The ability to tell physics to punch someone. Physical defences can counter. Cost 1 NP.

Now, it was your turn to act. You needed room before this thing turned your body into a silly string. You gathered your cubes, firing them as they formed to do some damage and push Mew back.

Mew looked up slowly as four pinkish cubes smashed into its face. Whatever force was operating the thing was beyond slow to react.

Cube damage: D4
Mew HP: 5047

The cubes did more than merely smash the doll, but continued flying until each cube pinned one of Mew's limbs against the arena's walls.

Crit fail for Mew: Unable to act during his turn

The doll struggled, pushing your cubes back enough to get a limb free, but by then you had your Volume of Lies flipping randomly as fire gathered in your other limb.

"If I were afraid of spooky dolls, this would be where I'd burn my dread," you mused and launched the orb of fire that eagerly dove towards Mew.

With all but one limb trapped, the fireball had little issue smashing into the creature and the body was consumed as its fabric like body charred around the edges easily.

Mew HP: 4737

The fireball erupted, causing a dust cloud to rise as Mew was sent high into the sky, a smoke trail following it. It flipped in the air and began to dive towards you, claws extended. It must really lack any possible long-distance attacks.

A few Nobody slides to the left and a cha cha back caused Mew to land in a tumble, swiping blindly around itself. The thing really seemed like someone should be guiding it...

A tiny section of the arena seating flew overhead with Stitch clinging to the underside. Reuben sped along the wales, ripping a metal bar from one of the two gates. An eerily aimed throw had the platform speared through the middle, uncovering Stitch in a moment of panic. Stitch grew his extra arms and made his cousin dodge laser blasts as Stitch's new hands kept working on something you couldn't quite see. Where on the Worlds did he get a screwdriver?

Reuben made the act of dodging angry energy easy as his deceptive cuddly form maneuvered like a weapon hard-programmed to dodge a lot more and with less time.

There was a horrible screech of metal and the woman Undyne was set skidding back into a wall hard enough to send spider cracks all along its surface. One her many spears lay broken at her feet before it vanished into particles of light.

You couldn't see Aqua until she cut her way through a large pillar that Undyne must have used to bat at her. She didn't look too ruffled but you had to admit you basically pulled Aqua out of a death universe for her kind. With a few nights' rest under some wizard, she clearly hadn't lost her strength.

But... a few more years in that realm might have truly begun to sap her strength to the point of being too weak to continue fighting the Darkness.

"You shouldn't have worked for Hades. Whatever he offered you... you can find on your own," Aqua said as she walked forward rather casually for someone in a fight. The blue woman pushed herself out of the hole she made in the wall and spat with a grunt into the sand.

"You don't get it. He's the god of death. He's my only lead to know if everyone I lo... everyone I've been looking for is even alive!" Undyne snarled and from around her form, three spears formed, slightly more transparent.

"I've pushed myself to roam the Dark, I took every step myself! When my body tried to crumble, when my Heart wanted to break, my determination kept me walking! I've been to so many damn worlds that I can't remember how long I've look... but this is my last chance. I can't take another walk in the dark..." she panted, as if the memory of it alone was exhausting.

Did Undyne just say she... walked through corridors of darkness with no protection... more than once?

"I've alread...dy... with one hit..." Undyne grimaced, gripping her chest as she glared Aqua's Keyblade. She punched the ground with her fist in a scream of rage. You tried to speak, but she ignored you utterly as she shook.

"Damn it!" she cried to the blue sky. She grabbed one her spears and used it to climb back to her feet.

"Stop giving me those pathetic eyes," she told Aqua annoyed and five more spears appeared behind her.

"If I give up... if I let you win then I can never face them again. I won't let you do that!" she pointed and her grin stretched with energy that you couldn't fathom. Aqua looked troubled and she looked down.

"You fight for someone... I know that so I won't let you do this to yourself," she said and took a fighting stance against Undyne. The moved as Undyne's form flickered unsteadily as if her sides were on the verge of falling apart. Aqua's Keyblade made an arc of light, stretching her shadow.

That was all you could watch as Mew was beginning to gather itself and you needed to make a move. You launched a point-blank fireball, that the cat did its best to move away from, slightly scrambling on all fours but to no luck.

Damage: 10
Mew: HP: 3727
Total remaining NP: 7/10

The blast was enough to cause visible heatwaves to form. Mew laid there for a moment scorched. Then it twitched as something flickered over it, a strange translucent shape of a human with a cap or some head covering.

Mr Mew began to glow slightly more.

Then it began to move, the energy that had once been around it now flowed from it in greater intensity.

Shi-key mode activated: +5 to dodge and accuracy rolls. Cost D5+5 HP.
HP: 2720. All rolls suffer -2 due to being under 50%

Whatever it was doing had let you back up slightly and ready yourself for another action. The fireball soared towards Mew who seemed far more alert as whatever 'existence' was inside it seemed to grow closer to death.

How that made it stronger and better was beyond you but the Cat flipped over the fireball with a meow and landed not far off to deliver a sharp spin, landing one of its feet into your face.

HP:1311

Then the cat got in close, its eyes blazing as it tried to surround you with that mental energy. You slithered away as the space you were in pulsed with energy that began to squeeze the loose rubble inside. You came in at its side as the ability wasn't easily shut off. Your book clocked the doll in the kitty jaw and little stars surrounded its head.

Mew: 2018

There was a blur that shot past as Rueben and Stitch grappled with each other. Reuben matching Stitch with four arms and a snarl. They tumbled down the seats for some time before there was a mad whirl of something and both creatures began to spark and steam rapidly rose both of their bodies into the air as the device Stitch had made was stuck to both of their hands.

Reuben paused first then twitched as he flashed, rapidly shrinking into a tiny marble that slipped out of the collar of the berzerk charm. Stitch grinned before he flashed too. Stitch's ball began to fall and from the darkness of the gate where Undyne and the others had emerged, two strange... gremlin things pressed into the gate, grinning with bulging eyes at the sight of Reuben and Stitch defenceless in the arena sand.

One was portly and a pinkish purple, the other thin with alarmed eyes and a pointy head. You moved to rush past Mew, but the moisture Stitch had sucked out of his and Rueben's body made the steps slick and you slipped like a wet sock out of the machine. Mew was upon you, its vicious claws finally finding flesh.

Torn Psyche Claw: Does 4d2. If damage is full 8, then damage of skill increases by 1. If the damage is 4 then attack is reduced by 1.
Damage: 4
HP: 117

The attack seemed to sink deeper than a wound. You felt the claws rake across your chain of memory, deeper into the pressure that kept your body stable.

And in the moment of brutal connection, you felt how was filled with a singular purpose. A single goal it would perish to accomplish. A... dying wish?

'I wish... we could be together again. All of us... Neku... all I have of us now are dreams. I hope Jos-'

The world changed.

There was no more world for that moment.

You stood on a giant glass stain window with only a shattered outer ring remaining. It had none of the images that would be in the middle... more just an echo of what was left behind than any real Heart. You saw your own in the distance for a moment, patchy and unpainted bar a few rough looking parts. But slowly, more light floated into it over time. There was no light for this Heart.

"I'll be waiting for you- every day, in front of Hachiko...till you come back," a girl said sadly, floating in thin air inside the ring. Her form was so faint you could barely make out a girl with a strange hat.

She hugged herself.

"Hello," you called and the girl turned, you couldn't make out any features beyond red hair.

"I... will wait," she seemed to struggle for a moment as she touched her face.

"This face... is what he knows... I... can't... wait," she seemed to buzz in and out of coherence.

"Are you another lost soul? Though, you still seem to be reaching out for someone. That's more than I had in the beginning," you said and the girl shook.

"Lost... lost? Neku...I promised I'd wait when I... Eri. I stopped being Eri," she muttered to herself as the doll floated behind her motionless.

A piece of the edge ring crumbled with a tinkling of glass.

"You usually look different? I know someone like that. Still, if this person you are waiting for is truly such a dear friend to you, what would your appearance matter?" you tried and her form flickered wildly to a slightly less petite woman with short dark hair with glasses. twitched and this girl shook her head, snapping back to her first faceless form.

"Who am I? How could I still be like this? How can I be wasting my second chance?" she sobbed painfully aloud.

"I cannot answer those for you. I do not know you nor do I know your struggles. But, from my own experiences and travels, I do know that people are never really as alone as they believe," you promised. "If it would help, would you like me to wait with you?" you held a hand out, showing there was something beyond this loneliness from this poor echo.

In response, from your own station, so small and incomplete, streams of light flowed to you in warm ribbons. They formed a glowing path for the girl to walk towards you and she took a step.

"Please... I just need to close my eyes, let me know... if my friends... come looking for me," the girl said with relief as if the idea of not needing to be awake was a relief beyond measure. She fell to pieces of light and floated into you.

"I will do all that I can." you promised.

"See, he's an open door," came a smug child-like voice from behind you. You turned to see the boy in the lab coat, Ienzo, standing on the edge of your station, touching his chin. Next to him was the massive form of Lexaeus who nodded once. The man's form was a weird black cloak slightly bleeding into some strange soldier uniform. It looked like his clothes had melted together then froze in this between states.

"Well. I didn't expect to see either of you again. What's it like lingering here?" you asked easily. Ienzo thought about it.

"It's less about lingering and more being. It's a passing of consciousness when you see or hear things that resonate with us vs slumbering in your experiences. We are not Ienzo nor Lexaeus or Aeleus. We are fragments that require less than a full Heart to be content. I, a lost piece of of simmering hate and confusion formed when our Master left us or so I thought. Lex here is the cast off that won't fit into his Somebody. Given how little here, I actually fear how much personality the real Aeleus has now," Ienzo said dryly and the giant man turned away with a huff, vanishing.

"We shall help the girl find a permanent form after the fight... speaking of, weren't you in a hurry to do something in the real world?" Ienzo asked innocently, his single exposed eye a child-like amused smugness.

Right... Stitch and Reuben. You made to move but Ienzo just clicked his fingers and you shot up as Mr Mew collapsed down into a motionless pile, strings cut. You turned to see something completely different than when you went to sleep.

It turned out that this little heart-to-echo-y remains of a human girl had not occurred as fast as Ienzo's meeting.

Crit nat 1 fail: Time has passed. Hades got cold feet. Things are on fire.
Aqua and Undyne moved around the arena, avoiding snapping jaws as a giant reptile with three heads hissed and flicked tongues, one side of the wall demolished to show where the creature had burst in.

"GET ON THE HYDRA'S BACK!" a strange little squat man screamed from the gate.

Scan kicked in to show how well this had gone.

Hydra: 5000 HP
Each head adds 500 HP!
A creature that can regenerate any wound and if any limb were to be removed, it will grow back. The head will even split into two to form more heads. A legend said if the heads were to ever reach 100 in number, the animation budget would run out.

Scan was being strange and you had an idea on why... It should worry you what Ienzo was able to pull inside your bud-like core that could be a Heart one day.

But you couldn't feel worried so instead you made a mental note to find some fake eyebrows and stare disapprovingly at the child-fragment later. Aqua dodged far enough back to see you up and looked relieved.

"Hades minions stole Stitch. They went through that gate and I think it leads under the arena. Undyne and I will keep this thing busy... Hercules should be coming and he's supposed to be strong," Aqua panted slightly trying to smile as if the idea was amusing but she had no humor to laugh.

"So go after the thieves that stole our friend. Understood. Anything else I should look out for?" you said and Aqua looked pained but simply shook her head.

"Hades knows if I win this fight... he has to pay. But if he gets Stitch, he can make a new deal to get out of the first one. But Undyne seems strong and she's on outside now-" Aqua explained.

There was a mighty crash as Undyne lifted the entire Hydra and slammed its many heads into the stone arena with a scream.

"BECAUSE I CAN!" she roared.

Really, after that, how could you not be inspired?

"I said get on the back, not get it on its back!" the little goatman said with a 'oy vey' headslap.

-
Mr Mew beaten by unusual means 45 exp gained!
Total: 55
Shiki's will has become...

Peerer of the Abyss: Psychic:
A mid-close ranger fighter that can inflict a series of attacks with psi energy. Able to affect the chain of memory slightly and able to wield arts that require a solid mind and self.
Can use almost any mix of weapons as psychic mediums. Guns and gloves are most common.

Mental Blast: Ignore physical and elemental defence and do 2 damage. Does not affect machines or golems. Cost 1 Np

Barrier: Gain +4 physical defence shield for two turns but can be dismissed in one. Cost 2 Np

All physical attacks gain +3 to accuracy in close range.

Costume
A paperboy's cap and a silver visor cover the exposed nobody's face. A silver buttoned up coat and business shoes.