Mixels Unite: Retold

by synonymforexpd

Three years after the event of the I-Cubit scam that shook the world, the colorful and creative Mixels have drifted apart. With the help of a terrifying new power, King Nixel scatters the Mixels to the winds and takes over Mixopolis once more. Hope is not lost, and a new, monochrome Mixel sets out to discover his past, stop the Nixel Armada, and unite all Mixels!

6. The Light, the Shadow, and the Gray

Based on the Mixels Unite fangame

Hundreds of years ago…

A tiny Mixamal lurked among scenic bushes and miniscule cog-pebbles. With it's fly-trap face and meek, studded paws, it sniffed around until a shadow loomed over it, making the creature retreat into the shrubbery it had been lurking in. The source of this was a Mixel, one that was white with golden highlights brandishing a lengthy double-pronged staff. Kneeling down, she extended a hand out, the Mixamal returning to sniff her fingers as she smiled. Creatures of Planet Mixel were truly distinct beings, hybrids of many things in a pure display of creation. No more was this clearer than here as the Brightspark Mixel patted the Mixamal.

"Sister, come along. We have our duties to attend to." Another Mixel coated in metallic gold armament said to her as the Mixamal was startled, rushing off into the foliage. "A-at once, brother. Apologies, I was…" She began. "Admiring the creatures of this world? Heh, I cannot fault you for that, Illumeena. I have caught Flaresca doing the same. We shall have plenty of time to marvel in the creations of the Maximum Mixel and the Naximum Nixel once our work is done. Come along." Refraixen said, trailing off as Illumeena frowned.

Brightsparks were far more powerful than the average Mixel, gifted with control over the celestial element of light - one that allowed access to abilities only the wildest of Mixes could dream of. Refraixen could manipulate light in a way that allowed him to warp the appearance of any object, and Flaresca could use their light to peer into the souls of any creature, but, Illumeena had a power - no, a curse - that allowed her the most tragic ability of all: the foresight of all that would come - destiny.

Illumeena had known for a while that herself and the other two Brightsparks were going to perish, but it hadn't been quite clear to her until she had witnessed the Naximum Nixel's attempts of creation. Horrid, vile and twisted entities that warped the light around them, bringing forth destruction wherever they went. It was then that she peered into the future of the Naximum Nixel, knowing they would be obliterated with a weapon created by the three Brightsparks, one that took away their lives in the act of forging.

She knew time was running out. The Maximum Mixel had already announced their intentions to leave for the cosmos once the world had been perfected, a utopia of creation. Jealousy would corrupt the Naximum Nixel as they watched their brother incinerate their spawns of destruction, deeming them unfit for the world.

When the time was right, she would inform her siblings of what would need to be done, but not now. Following after her brother, she knew there was too much hope for the world that would be crushed if her visions were to be recited. All she could do was appreciate everything they were guiding in the short time that remained.

The lines of destiny were out of anyone's control, even from the beings of the stars such as the Maximum Mixel.

Now…

Cradling their head with two of their four arms, the grand Maximum Mixel stumbled backwards in a state of overwhelmed emotions. They had never anticipated M.C.'s response to his past. "It was… destiny… He was always going to learn of his origins, yet he was devastated." A remnant of Illumeena's power still existed in the Maximum Mixel, and they had used it to peer into fragments of the future long ago.

What they had foreseen was a tale of disaster. M.C. would have learned of his origins without their guidance regardless, but by the word of their creator. They had believed if M.C. was to be told by someone other than that, crisis would be averted and the planet would be saved. However, no one else could possibly know M.C.'s history, so if someone were to tell, it would have to be them. Even if it defied the limitations of interaction they had set themself with the planet.

What they had not prepared for was befriending the Mixel. They had expected it to be an in-and-out mission akin to their many acts of upkeep they had performed in keeping the Brightsparks' temple safe over the years, but the antics of M.C. and the Mixels he had met along the way roped them in, and before long, they had made a true friend. One that had been hurt by their lies.

"I must go back. I must…" They began as they rose into the air, only to halt as a reminder of their limitations kicked in. Any further interactions would perhaps elicit a response from the greater powers of the stars. Sighing, they severed their mental link with M.C., a representation of their broken bond. Just like the Brightsparks and their own brother, every relationship they forged would end in tragedy. "My Mixel children… I fear hope is lost for them if this one is unable to unite Mixel-kind before they return."

A single tear fell from the Maximum Mixel's central eye as they looked at their massive television set linked to the minds of every Mixel, returning to their duty of observing their world.

Across all television systems in Mixopolis, an emergency alert procedure began. Recently-restored programmes under Mix TV were abruptly halted as an eerie alarm sounded around the city, catching the attention of most Mixels that were in districts liberated from Nixel control. As the Mixopolis Office's logo faded from the emergency screen, the mayor of Mixopolis - a disheveled-looking Knave - appeared behind a podium.

"Calling all Mixels… this is an urgent announcement! Although this city has been in a state of emergency for three days, the threat level was decreased shortly after many districts were restored, allowing Mixels in those areas to roam freely with caution once again. HOWEVER, recently reported intel from Mix TV has shown a MASSIVE force of Nixels rampaging through the Munchos District, perhaps the entire armada is on the move! Having moved into the Weldos District amid a recent storm, we have lost all visual contact and cannot predict where they will move next. So, as per… advice…"

The Klinker stuttered, eyeing something offscreen as whispers of what to say next were faintly audible. "It is advised that all Mixels city-wide stay inside as per a new curfew! Mixopolis City Police Department officers will be unable to enforce this… but… u-uh… j-just stay inside, okay?! This state of emergency will last for the foreseeable future. Stay safe, citizens of Mixopolis!" Knave said through voice cracks as sweat dripped down his face. Cutting back to an emergency screen, Gurggle sighed as he switched off the television.

"A state of emergency?! Look, I get that the Munchos District damage is BAD, but we can't just sit here and let those Nixels go full scorched earth on the city!" Slusho said as he lifted up from a bean bag within Dribbal's nose-home, slime dripping down from his wings. "I agree, that testa di nocca of a mayor made a big mistake, even if he's clearly having his strings pulled." Gurggle stated. "Um, actually, it's the LAW that we have to stay inside! Even if I don't agree, we can't go around breaking the order…" Dribbal said as he walked inside, making Gurggle lean back in the sofa he was cushioned in.

"Dude, we can be charged for 'assisting in the destruction of a fossil fuel' after that incident with the giant Cubit, and you think running around when the MCPD aren't even out there will hurt?" Slusho asked, making Dribbal raise a finger only to pause in defeat. "Sì, I'm with Slusho on this. If you don't want to follow us, that's up to you, fratello." Gurggle said, rising and strolling out of the house with Slusho as Dribbal stuttered, attempting to argue but only conceding as he too followed.

In the neighborhood of nose-rock homes and camper vans in the Glorp Corp District, chaos was ensuing. The fresh emergency had made plenty of Mixels believe the end times were upon them. Brushing past a crowd of panicked neighbors, Gurggle looked in concern as it appeared several had been looting supplies from both stores and the junkyard. "We gots to get past this, whoa!" Slusho said, nearly being trampled on. Even a Teethy-Croc was using the chaos to its advantage as it scuttled past with a refrigerator strapped to its back.

Squeezing out from the crowds and into a less busy path, the three Glorp Corp Mixels caught their breath. "See? I told ya we should stay inside!" Dribbal went on a reprise with his point, making Gurggle sigh. "Ugh… Normally, I'd follow your lead, Dribbal, but nobody else is going to step up here!" He exclaimed. "Someone's gots to help those Munchos." Slusho added, making Dribbal struggle to formulate an argument.

Out of thin air, a ray of light blasted through a nearby field and incinerated a batch of sunflowers, making the three Mixels whirl around in shock as they observed. "Was that an egg-rock?!" Gurggle wondered, shielding his eyes from the rays of the setting lightbulb sun as he looked to the mound of dirt that now housed the crash site. "Better go find out!" Slusho said as they rushed over. Looking down into the hole that had formed, they were surprised to see someone they recognized slumped over in the depths of the crevice. "M.C.?! What're ya doin' down there?" Dribbal questioned.

But, M.C. didn't hear this. Staring at the dirt beneath him in a state of shock, he was overwhelmed from his encounter with the Maximum Mixel. He was upset, scared, confused and angry. Not a moment had been given to him to really allow the processing of everything that had occured. What if the Mixels found out who he was? They would surely see him as a threat and cast him out. What of all the friends M.C. had made along the way? Things weren't black and white anymore with the simple Mixels versus Nixels conflict, they were gray. How was he supposed to fight alongside the species he was built to destroy, and fight against the beings he was made to benefit? All of these questions echoed in his mind in a cacophony making up one central question he had hoped to answer long ago: "Who am I?"

"Yo, M.C.? You good, dude?" M.C. heard Slusho's concern as he decided nobody could know what he just experienced, that his past would remain tied to his memories alone. Inhaling deeply, M.C. looked up to the three Glorp Corp cousins. "H-hey, fellas! What brings you guys here..?" He responded nervously. "Dunno if you noticed, bambino, but you just came crashing out of the sky in a laser beam. Mind giving some explanation?" Gurggle asked.

Immediately, M.C.'s heart raced as he was whisked away into the events that had occurred once more. The revelations that had instilled so many unwanted emotions and thoughts in him. He had to lie, nobody could know the truth. He couldn't lose the only friends he had left, nobody would trust him.

"Uh… Mixel-Moon nonsense and Orbiton tech sends you places, heh…" M.C. forced a disingenuine smirk alongside his lie, prompting the three Glorp Corp Mixels to laugh after a moment of silence. "Just like their terrible man-food… Glomp was sayin' you were goin' moon-bound, no wonder you took so long!" Slusho added.

Just then, a wisp of lightning crackled in the skies above as a storm cloud rolled in, avoiding the district the four stood in but moving along the skyline. "Great, first a Nixel swarm, now the Electroids are having fun." Dribbal remarked, making M.C.'s eye widen not only from the implications of Nixel activity, but the mention making him flash back to the memories he had relived: the moments he was born at the hands of Major Nixel.

"N-Nixels?! Oh, how long was I gone?!" M.C. pleaded, shaking Dribbal for answers. "Worry not, mio amico. You were only gone about a day. Besides, in the time you were gone a whole army of Nixels only scorched the Munchos District." Gurggle stated. "And WE were headed out to stop just that and help any Munchos in need! Whaddya say about joinin' us? Oh, all the stories Footi and Glurt shared about you are WILD! Havin' you with us'll be amazing." Slusho said. "Wow, you two are really sing-song cheery about a national emergency." Dribbal pointed out.

He would have been willing to before, but things were different now. M.C. couldn't dare think about going up against the Nixels, not now that he knew of his relation to them. Sure, agreeing with their ideals was out of the question, but above all else… he was terrified. He had to excuse himself, but how?

"I… I'd love to help out, but, uh… I'm all outta Cubits! Used em' all up Mixin' about, heh… looks like I'll have to make a quick trip to the Cragsters' quarry… you guys go on, I'll… catch up." M.C. sweated as he came up with an excuse, but before the others could do anything, a familiar horn and tire screech sounded out.

Whipping around, M.C. laid eye on Tassy hollering out and cheering, drifting through the grassy plains and kicking up slime where he went, sending Mixamals rushing to avoid the trail of destruction left in his wake. Skidding to a halt, Tassy glanced at M.C. and lit up. "OI, MATE! Been missin' ya! Little bugger in the back here's gots somethin' for ya." Tassy smirked as he rolled down his front windows, revealing an ecstatic Save, who leaped through the opening.

"YOU WENT TO THE MIXEL-MOON! You're gonna have one hell of a headline, boy! Your name's gonna be in Mixopolis lights! All the brand deals, all the recognition, all the fame! AND THAT ISN'T EVEN THE END OF THE JOURNEY!" Save spat as his foot tapped around, leading to electricity surging through the Electroid's body as he spun about in excitement. Alarmed, M.C. stumbled back. "That'd be… great. However, I just said to these guys that I'm outta Cubits, so…"

"GOTS CUBITS!" Save yelled as he shot upright with a jolt, rushing over to Tassy's trunk and lifting it open as the living taxi shuddered. Gathering around, M.C. and the three Glorp Corp cousins were surprised to see a whole stack of Rainbow Cubits loaded to the brim. "Oh, now THESE will be handy!" Slusho remarked as he dreamed of a Mix that allowed him to soar gracefully in the skies.

Dribbal focused and began a head-count of Cubits as one slipped out of the trunk, landing at M.C.'s feet as his reflection came into view against the rainbow colors. Frowning, M.C. sighed as he considered one of these ores was what flowed inside him and what he was made from. "Oops, forgot one!" Dribbal snapped M.C. back to reality as he snatched the ore from his feet. "Twenty-seven! Should have enough Mixes to get through anything!" Dribbal declared. "We gotta think smart with em', fratello, don't get ahead of yourself. There'll probably be a ton of those mostri still laying around the Munchos District." Gurggle interjected.

"Munchos District it is. Hop in, lads!" Tassy ordered as his doors flung open, slamming Dribbal in the nose and sending slime everywhere. Both Gurggle and Slusho snorted as they embarked, leaving their brother to grunt as he adjusted his glasses and followed. Save slammed the boot shut, only to catch glimpse of M.C. staring out into the horizon aimlessly.

"Munchos District's over this way, M.C.! C'mon, let's get out there and make this historic tale even grander!" Save suggested, pulling M.C. along as he snapped back to reality from his staring out into the Great Wastelands, barely visible from the mounds the group were situated on.

With a sputtering rev and a cloud of smoke shooting from his exhaust, Tassy launched into action as the Mixels inside of him were thrust around by his aggressive driving, not helped by the off-road of the Glorp Corp District. While the others were raring to go for the battle to come, M.C. was trapped in the past he had spent so long searching for.

Conflicted while thinking about who he even was, M.C. stared at his reflection in the window glass, seeing only a monster where he looked.

Ejecting traffic cones at a rate no other Weldo had seen, Forx was sweating bullets as Wuzzo made quick work of his spawn, his poorly-coordinated brother slicing them up into shrapnel for maximum effect when used. "Pronto, boys, PRONTO! We've only gots a few minutes before this blockade breaks!" Kramm ordered, covered in dust and weary-eyed as the two saluted.

The Weldos District was upside down. Rain splashed against the battle-torn streets as a thunderstorm boomed above. Nixels were pouring in from every direction, overwhelming entire construction crews in moments and laying waste to building sites in seconds with their swarms of Mixes. Scaling a hastily-constructed barricade of scrap metal and construction equipment, Kramm overlooked the crossroads of the district's main street, where various Weldos were fiercely staging a defense against the might of the Nixel Armada.

"Any progress, boss? Please tell us there's SOME good news." Wuzzo asked through strained breaths, his chainsaw-nose aching from the amount of strenuous work it had been put through in the past hour. Putting a walkie-talkie to his ear, Kramm's expression only dulled as his eye widened. "Boss, are ya there?! Nixels are after capturin' the construction tower! We need more folks over- AGH!" The sound of a Weldo being overwhelmed by the armada was the last thing Kramm heard on the line as it cut, leaving only static to play as the Weldo leader grunted.

"No amount of destruction work is gonna save our district, boss! We need to think of somethin' or we're all gettin' Nixed!" Forx barked as the Weldos before the barricade began to be pushed back by a concentration of Nixel forces. "We can't, those Nixels have gots the construction tower!" A hammer-headed Weldo was launched against the makeshift blockade by a ten-foot tall Nixel Mix, promptly being Nixed as Kramm shouted and ducked to the ground. "NOW!"

Overturning a modified cement mixer that had been loaded with the shrapnel of cones, Wuzzo's nose whirred as he clanked it against the machine. A single spark landed against a fuse that had been wired through it, leading to an explosion that rocketed shards of plastic into the faces of the oncoming Nixels. "FALL BACK!" Kramm ordered, the three members of the Weldos' wrecking crew rushing away as the roars of Nixel Mixes were all that could be heard.

Ducking around a corner and behind a cinder-block wall, the three Weldos panted. "Great, now Murpingdale Street's overrun. What're we supposed to do?!" Forx wondered aloud as Nixels flew by, prompting him to keep his head back to avoid being spotted.

"If those Nixels keep the construction tower, there's no tellin' what'll come out the other end of it. They could level the whole town, we need to tear it down!" Wuzzo suggested, prompting a look of pure shock from Forx. "Ya kiddin', whippersnapper?! We go out there now and we get Nixed immediately, we need to call out for help!"

"No one's left to help, ya'll. Hate to say it, but there's no way any Mixel out there's gonna come rushin' head first into the heart of the storm, let alone with the fact nobody wants to Mix no more." Kramm lamented, pulling out a yellow-black Cubit and looking at it longingly.

"I ain't stickin' around to watch everythin' go Murp-up! We barely get enough chances to do OUR jobs and tear things down, so I ain't lettin' this one pass!" Wuzzo declared, preparing to storm off with his chainsaw-nose happily revving as Forx grunted. "Wuzzo, you've cut through more houses than our insurance can count, but you ain't gonna be able to take down the landmark of our tribe alone."

Catching sight of a pigeon-rat sniffing at a manhole cover, Kramm had an idea. Sure, one that would probably result in more explosions than necessary, but he and his brothers were known as the 'Weldo wrecking crew' for a reason. "Forx's right." Kramm said, making Wuzzo look at him sadly while his nose powered down. "You'll never be able to take that tower down on your own… but, there's a couple of things down in the underground that could come in handy, heh."

"What're we talkin'? Egg-rock cannons or giant Mixeloptors? Nobody's ever been down there bar you and the other crew leaders." Forx stated. "I've gots an idea… a stretch of one, but an idea nonetheless. If we're quick…" Kramm said, lifting open the cover and exposing a lengthy ladder as approaching footsteps sounded.

Turning his eye to the end of the alleyway, Kramm caught sight of a small army of Nixel Mixes that had finally caught up. "Schnixel." He cursed, gritting his teeth as Wuzzo and Forx looked to one another and nodded. "We'll take it from here, boss." Wuzzo said, making Kramm raise an eyebrow. "Don't disappoint with the demolition!" Forx yelled.

Not having a chance to react, the two shoved Kramm back as he cried out. Slipping down the abyss that was the manhole, the Weldo caught grip of the ladder as he glided down its length and looked to the opening above being sealed shut, presumably with a whole mountain of debris. Shaking away the despair he felt, Kramm tensed up as he continued down, slowly being illuminated by the vast underground complex of Weldo machinery as he landed in the great underground site of the district.

Aboveground, a Nixed Wuzzo and Forx lumbered about while the Nixels around them laughed it up. As the two Nixed Mixels stalked off, a beefy Nixel Mix's laughter was interrupted by the feeling of a sudden - yet soft - object slamming into their shell. "NIX?!" It roared, placing one of their many hands against the anomaly and peeling off what appeared to be a monochrome cupcake.

Just then, a horn blasted from the other end of the street, catching the attention of the Nixels as they faced another incoming swarm lined with peculiar Nixels. Those marching ahead carried cannon packs that had been decommissioned long ago, which suddenly began firing a barrage of helmeted Nixels. Not sure what to expect, the lead Nixel Mix was suddenly swarmed by the Nixels that had landed before it. Fangs dug into its shell and flesh while claws flew about, slowly tearing the Mix apart as the fourteen Nixels that made it up flew apart unconscious.

"NIX, NIX!" A Nixel shouted as the oncoming swarm rushed around it, those of Major Nixel having declared civil war on the Nixel Mixes. Before long, Nixel-on-Nixel brawls engulfed the streets of the Weldos District, a muddied conflict breaking out and ushering in true chaos, all the while the Nixed Mixels among them stumbled about, clueless.

Some time had passed since Tassy had realigned with an actual road surface after skidding and tumbling through the swamps of the Glorp Corp District, but he was now cruising along gently in an alleyway on the outskirts of the Wiztastics District. Even in the often-forgotten parts of the town, magical trinkets and affairs were plentiful. "Sheesh, this place gets old fast." Gurggle rolled his eyes as he watched a whole group of Wiztastic performers emerge from a top-hat doorway at the back end of a tent.

"WHAT?! This place is totally magical, dude! Have you ever SEEN those sky-high rollercoasters and how they soar through the open air?" Slusho retorted. "Um, actually, those are illusions with screens intended to make you BELIEVE you're up there. Sorry to burst your snot-bubble." Dribbal snorted. "No, that's not what I mean. I was referring to the Mixaphants that come rampaging through our village when their spells go wrong." Gurggle face-palmed.

"Say, M.C., isn't this the place where you had your CLIMACTIC battle with the titanic monarch that is King Nixel? Oh, the novelizations we could make of that…" Save asked as M.C. flashed back to the experience of being initially defeated by the tyrant, now knowing him as a sort of relation in his bizarre existence alongside the Major. "Uh, yeah… he really leveled the place." M.C. remarked, staring out and catching sight of Magnifo orchestrating a repair crew in the distance for the grand central tent that had been flattened in the battle of the district.

"Man, you oughta show some of the tricks you used to defeat him. Last time he went that big it took a fifty-one Mixel Max to take him down!" Slusho stated, reminiscing on the Mixamajig scam from years ago. "It wasn't really me doing all of it, dude, just the others that happened to show up." M.C. rejected the idea of helping in the battle, even despite his contributions. Surprised, the three Glorp Corp cousins went silent, only being broken up by Tassy's hollering and horn as he spoke through the internal radio.

"Gentlemixels, we have now entered General Mixopolis. Please fasten your seatbelts for it might get a little bit bumpy." No sooner had Tassy said this did he come to an abrupt halt, throwing everyone violently forward against the windscreen. "Ugh… great, MCPD blockade…" Gurggle lamented as he stared through the window at a series of police vehicles and Mixels barricading the street into the main body of the city ahead. "Told ya." Dribbal said.

Looking tired and holding a cup of coffee, an MCPD officer with a donut for a head approached Tassy. "City's on lockdown. No one's gettin' through tonight, for your safety and ours." The officer declared as the Mixels within Tassy eyed one another. "Um, you see, I left my spare tire out near the Munchos District and one's REALLY about to burst, lad…" Tassy sweat as he pulled out an excuse to get through, refusing to give up.

"Hm… well, it's not safe to plow through when Nixels' gots the city center under control. Don't sweat about the tire, my boys gots plenty." The officer offered as he whistled, summoning a smaller, wheeled MCPD Mixel carrying a pile of tires to be fitted. "You gots it, Sergeant Polistry!" They saluted as they began to spread out the tires, looking for a perfect fit to Tassy's.

Sighing, Tassy flickered his eye-headlights as Save took notice, knowing what had to be done. "This story is about to go one of two ways… MIX!" Save yelled, pulling out a Rainbow Cubit and jamming it into a CD slot embedded in the dashboard, warping his and Tassy's forms as their Cubit formed a pitstop of sorts, swiftly re-arranging tires, limbs and windows all the while the Glorp Corp and M.C. hovered in a state of surprise. Before long, a Mix of Save & Tassy had formed with an open-roof design as the four Mixels slotted carefully into the seats.

Not even getting a chance to react, Polistry was blown back as the Mix blasted off at lightning-speed, slipping through a gap in the blockade as the various officers spun around. "We gots a runner… finally, something interesting! Wanna swing by Mixes and grab some coffee?" Polistry asked. "Yeah… I could go for a refill." The pitstop officer replied, strolling off as the MCPD turned a blind eye to the other side of the barricade, not noticing a group of Nixel Mixes grinning ear to ear as they slipped by to the juggernaut-sized patty wagon left abandoned.

Soaring down the empty main street of Mixopolis, the Save & Tassy Mix chuckled. "We lost em'! Wow, and we were totally expectin' to crash by now." The other four Mixels went wide-eyed as they laughed following that statement. "When they catch up to us, you know we're gonna get arrested, right? WE'LL BE IN PRISON FOR YEARS! Haven't you SEEN the sentences they give?!" Dribbal panicked as snot flew everywhere with his words. "Says here the highest sentence they give is a week." Slusho remarked, reading off of his cell phone as Dribbal stuttered.

Chuckling at the discourse, Gurggle felt the breeze of high-speed driving pass against his skin. "Heh, I could get used to some azione for once. Say, what about you, M.C.?" Gurggle looked over his shoulder to see M.C. staring out at the city in awe, not even noticing the wind making his ears flap wildly.

Even as the lightbulb sun was setting, this area of Mixopolis was breathtaking to M.C. Skyscrapers truly lived up to their name as they pierced the clouds with their wacky architecture and Mixamal-esque features while neon highways were lined with the wildest structures imaginable. Combinations of elements and features from every tribe's style were everywhere, a true show of the unity Mixopolis was meant to be about. He had only seen the most obscured views of this part of the city from the peaks of the Frosticons District, but it was even better in person. It was a shame, then, that no Mixels were to be sighted. Everyone had been driven indoors and the roads had been torn up by Nixel stampedes heading out to destroy. What unity was there really when nobody could stand up and resist?

"It's… amazing." M.C. uttered as a single tear slipped from his eye, prompting him to quickly brush it aside and whip around to a confused Gurggle with his head back in the game. "I mean, yeah… the wind and the speed… beautiful, ha!" M.C. forced a smile as Gurggle laughed. "Whatever you say, bambino." The Glorp Corp Mixel chuckled. Listening on silently, Dribbal noted that M.C.'s tone was off. He didn't understand just why and what yet, but M.C. didn't feel like the same cheery yet clueless Mixel that had assisted in taking down the Blob Nixel. Something wasn't adding up with the whole 'laser beam from the sky' nonsense, something had happened.

What interrupted the awkward interaction and Dribbal's thoughts was the deafening siren of an entire convoy of MCPD vehicles. Looking into their rear-view mirrors, the Mix went wide-eyed as they glanced upon the building-sized police truck that was catching up with them. "Oh, schnixel, they caught up!" The Mix panicked, swerving aside to try and shake off the approaching vehicle to no avail.

"That's a Wagonator-grade vehicle, a bit overkill for us!" Dribbal stated, fixing his glasses as he stared at the beast-like vehicle. "I don't think the MCPD are pilotin' that one, bud…" Slusho pointed out that Nixel Mixes were swarmed around the body of the Nixed vehicle, as well as piloting its raised cockpit and loaded inside of its containers. At the sight of the Nixels, M.C. started hyperventilating before quickly shifting his powers to that of an Infernite, spitting fire at the front wheels as the vehicle leaned to one side and avoided his attack.

"Hang on, we're about to make a detour!" The Mix said, not waiting for the others to prepare as they lifted their front wheels up and faced the sky, using their massive electric boosters to launch up. Barely hanging on, the four Mixels screamed as the Mix tumbled onto another highway lane bridged above the previous, watching the titanic wagon screech to a halt as Nixels stared up at the group. "Good thinking, they'll never get up now!" Gurggle breathed a sigh of relief.

As if to spite him, the Wagonator's suspension lowered like it was getting ready to leap. Turned out, it could do that. Relaxing its shock absorbers, the vehicle sprung up and flipped over the Mix, slamming into the road beside it as they took off once more, continuing the chase.

"Still gots a few minutes until we get to the Munchos District! Guys, we'll need ya to help out here!" The Save & Tassy Mix yelled, speeding up and maneuvering around the Wagonator as it attempted to run them off the road. Spikes protruded from the rims of the vehicle's wheels, slamming into the side of the Mix as sparks flew and the Mixels were jolted around.

"That beast isn't givin' up, we needs to Mix!" Dribbal declared, pulling out a Cubit as he held onto his seat for dear life. Terrified at the notion of Mixing and potentially revealing what he knew to anyone, M.C. looked for a way out of the situation, only to watch Slusho & Gurggle's bodies warp as they Mixed and began spinning their wings rapidly to send snot rockets flying.

Sighing, M.C. latched onto Dribbal's Cubit, somewhat expecting to Murp as the two were crushed under a pile of giant books, the bottom of which flipping its pages open as the Mix was revealed. "Hm… we need a plan!" The Dribbal & M.C. Mix declared. "You're right, it's already in action!" Slime flew as the Slusho & Gurggle Mix continued flinging slime against the Wagonator, striking a Nixel Mix in the face as it bellowed in response.

Rolling their eyes, the Dribbal & M.C. Mix snorted, attempting to eject a ball of snot the size of an egg-rock only to get a messy lump in return. "Huh? C'mon, this is supposed to be amplified…" The Mix attempted to snort again, only to sputter into a coughing fit. With their wings in a blur spinning slime out, the Slusho & Gurggle Mix looked to the other Mix and watched their struggle. "You've gots a nose the size of Mixel Land, what's stoppin' the flow?!"

Locking their three eyes on the Wagonator, the Dribbal & M.C. Mix committed to the small amount of slime they had produced and flung it, watching as it splattered against the windscreen. Almost immediately, a Nixel Mix latched onto the layered front exhaust swiped across the window with its blade-like arm, freeing up the view once more.

Enraged, the helmeted Nixel Mix piloting the contraption jammed a limb into the dashboard, making fire cascade from the giant exhaust pipes lining the sides of the vehicle. Gaining speed at an alarming rate, the Wagonator slammed against the rear end of the Save & Tassy Mix, outspeeding it as it pushed the Mix along.

With the force of this, the two Mixes in the seats were split apart as they were thrown around. Barely staying together as their tires grinded against the road, the Save & Tassy Mix gritted their teeth and attempted to speed up, the energy bursting from their engines striking several Nixels directly and dislodging them from the Wagonator.

Cackling, two Nixel Mixes boarded the Mix, leaping from the Wagonator onto the trunk of the Mix. "Oh, no you don't!" Gurggle yelled, spinning around a lime Cubit and holding it high, joining hands with Slusho and Dribbal as the three spun around inside a tumble-dryer, exploding into their Max. Wasting no time, they shoved their bubble wands far up their nostrils, sloshing them around and yanking them out as goop dripped from their heads. Taking a deep breath, the Max blew hard into the ring of the two, sending a giant bubble of slime expanding outwards and sucking up the two Nixel Mixes, floating off as the two vehicles sped on.

"Nix… NIX." The driver of the Wagonator slammed a fist against one of many buttons in the cockpit, activating hydraulics as steam bellowed from underneath the mechanical monstrosity. Suddenly, flaps opened from a rectangular structure underneath, revealing even more Nixels that crawled out along the frame of the beast. "If you guys are gonna do something… do it QUICK!" The Save & Tassy Mix yelled, seeing a sign for Weldos-branded roadworks ahead.

With a thousand eyes staring upon him and the Glorp Corp Max, M.C. was frightened. He wondered if any Nixels even recognized him: knew of the project that the Major had undertaken. Questions were arising. If any of these Nixels knew, why had they relentlessly attacked him throughout his adventure? Was he unrecognizable now - truly a Mixel? No, no, he couldn't be, but he surely wasn't a Nixel-aligned monster either.

Channeling his tribe-shifting powers, M.C. stood up and stared at the Wagonator. With a mixture of rage and resentment, he was engulfed in fire as his Infernite powers activated. Spitting a fireball, it was quickly followed up with Glorp Corp slime and a barrage of Spikel barbs, shifting through his powers rapidly as they made contact with the exposed engine. All of these elements at once overwhelmed the machine, prompting it to stutter and sputter with smoke erupting from the exhaust.

All this would amount to was making the Wagonator speed up.

Unable to break away, the Save & Tassy Mix screamed as they realized they were about to burst through the roadworks. Opting to bail rather than go over, most of the Nixels ducked and rolled onto the open highway, the pilot Nixel Mix being the only one left. Bracing, the Mix burst through barriers and felt the open air under their tires, looking down to see a great fall as the highway came to an end.

Bracing, the Mix gently embedded itself in a pile of melted ice cream as the three Glorp Corp and M.C. followed soon, surprised. Not long after the Wagonator went flying overhead, slamming into a chocolate lane as the three picked up on where they were.

"Hey… we made it to the Munchos District! I TOTALLY knew our chances of doing so were high!" Dribbal exclaimed, pulling himself up from the frozen delight as he wiped his nose with an attempted streak of confidence. Embedded head-first with his legs the only thing sticking out, Gurggle's body language was telling of his distaste for Dribbal's words as Slusho ignored him, chuckling as he noticed ice cream in place of his wing slime.

Emerging from the pile unscathed, Tassy laughed as Save hastily raised his journal above to keep it dry. "And so our adventure of massive proportions continues! Next stop…" Save declared, turning around with the other Mixels to face the main body of the district as his expression went grim.

Past the dazed and overturned Wagonator was the district in complete ruin. It was too far away to fully grasp amidst the pizza-rocks and cotton candy trees, but there seemed to be smoke rising from the estate, with a clear sign of Nixel activity: thousands of their footsteps engraved in the ground. "Before we move on… that Wagonator was Nixed! If we don't help em', they'll just get back up and turn this place on its head, innit!" Tassy pleaded as the Nixels that had previously been Mixed stumbled out of the Wagonator, scampering off at the sight of the Mixels. "Eh, no problem. M.C., just call in that little cloud amico of yours and we'll be off." Gurggle suggested, making M.C. start to panic as he flashed back to his experiences with Pippy - no, the Maximum Mixel.

"Um, yeah, you see… during my time outside the city…" M.C. began, his heart racing as he tried hard to avoid telling the truth. "Pippy… they started panicking. Out of nowhere, they stopped showing up. Now, thankfully we had freed everyone that needed to be freed, but… without Pippy, we can't do that." He grimly stated, believing that Pippy was the only way of restoring a Mixel's colors.

"What're you talking about? A Cubit can restore someone's colors fine and dandy." Dribbal stated and raised an eyebrow. "In a rare case, Dribbal's right. Watch!" Slusho enthusiastically pulled out a Rainbow Cubit, hopping over to the Wagonator and cracking open the Cubit, releasing its rainbow essence onto the vehicle and restoring their colors.

Grunting, smoke puffed from the Wagonator's exhausts. "Right, lads, I'm gonna stay back here and help this one back on their wheels. You lot go on because I can't really drive on… food." Tassy said. "Me too! I've always wanted to report on a Wagonator!" Save gleamed at the opportunity.

Looking off into the horizon, the four Mixels looked at the trail of destruction left in the wake of the Nixels. "Too late to turn back now, c'mon!" Gurggle said, rushing off. Conflicted, M.C. followed, reflecting on the rapid use of his powers and starting to question the extent of his abilities as the Mixelized Creation.

Hanging back for a moment, Slusho noticed Dribbal eyeing M.C. suspiciously. "Everything okay, bro?" Slusho asked. "There's something off about M.C. I mean, a laser from the sky? Sure, WILD things happen in Mixopolis… but that AND him not knowing of Cubits being used to heal? The cloud thing disappearing? Whatever that outburst of powers was? Things aren't adding up… Plus, something about our Mix was REALLY weird. No snot came out." Dribbal was puzzled, adjusting his glasses as he thought about things.

"I dunno, weird stuff tends to follow M.C. Besides, you get a clogged nose from time to time. Wouldn't worry about it, let's go!" Slusho trailed off, leaving Dribbal stuttering as he collected his thoughts. Things were off, and he knew it, but his usual nerdy tangents made it crystal clear that neither Slusho or Gurggle would listen to him. He had to wait, it seemed. Perhaps he could talk to M.C. about it directly. The Mixel was pretty much friends with everyone, after all.

Swallowing his suspicions, Dribbal followed.

Not a care in the world came over Berp as he marched along to the tune of his own whistling, neither eye opened in his trance. He had memorized the paths of the Munchos District a while ago, so there was no need to stare for obstacles in peace times while he fetched treats as part of his waiter duties. Carrying towers of plates with every delicacy imaginable - weenie-burgers, bar-b-cubes, steak-flowers - he gently tossed them around his four arms, a true mastery in his carrying to prevent the wobbly stacks from toppling.

"And, here we are!" Berp happily said, not realizing that the party table he was to serve was now split in half. "Gots it all right here, folks! Triple-decker Hamlogna delights! Exotic tongue-leaf stew! A can of peas! Dig in and- wha?!" Berp's expression went grim as he placed down the stacks, only to hear the shattering of plates as he finally opened his eyes.

The village was in ruins. Impenetrable jawbreaker huts had been cracked wide open and not a Mixel was in sight. The centerpiece of the settlement - a pristine chocolate fountain - had been reduced to shards as the brown liquid it had showered in flowed through the cracks of the candy footpaths. "Mixmallows! I guess that's what happens when ya go on three-day long food runs, Berp, everyone gets crazy without a bite to eat." He grunted, deciding to gobble up what had fallen to the ground - even the shards of plates.

"Sheesh, they really did a number on the town." Berp remarked, unaware of the situation as he strolled through the ruins of the main street. "Hm, maybe Waka knows. He tends not to get caught up in the frenzies… poor guy." Looking up to a giant pineapple apartment complex, Berp strolled towards it, eyeing it strangely as he noticed the juicers nested against its based were unmanned - something that remained a constant even during a frenzy.

"Berp?" Believing a starving Muncho to be behind him, Berp sank his four arms into the ground in a panic, pulling up small handfuls of saffron and salt and blowing them in the direction of the figure. Turns out, it was four figures, and none were hungry Munchos. Now with faces covered in dust, the four coughed and sputtered, prompting M.C. to shift into a Frosticon and use his chilly breath to clear the air.

"My bad, thought you guys were ravenous Munchos! Ya see, I ran kinda late getting food for a party, so they kiiinda tore up the whole town." Berp chuckled, prompting looks of confusion from the Glorp Corp. "Uh, dude…" Slusho began. "Did you not see the Nixel Armada tearing through here like there's no tomorrow?! It's all over the news!" Dribbal yelled.

"Pfft. Nixels? Dribbal, this is the year 518! Ain't no Nixels still around. C'mon, help me find Waka, he'll tell you everything." Berp chuckled, strolling off to a hut at the base of the giant pineapple. "He's not kidding, cameriere! Mix TV reported it and all, and we JUST fought a whole batch that were Mixing and taking over an MCPD truck!" Gurggle pleaded, only making Berp snicker harder.

"Mixing? Oh, this is great! You guys would do perfect at the Wiztastics' joke-a-thon. Anyhow… WAKA! Open the door, it's Berp!" He yelled, knocking the door thrice before it collapsed in front of him, sludging against the ground with its fruity texture. "Huh. Uh, Vaka and Waka? Anybody home?" In reply, Berp only heard the sound of a distinct sobbing in the darkness of the Muncho hut. Grasping the light switch and yanking it down, horror fell upon the Mixels' eyes as they witnessed what sat before them.

It was Vaka! …Except, it was just Vaka. With the entire bottom half of Waka removed, a disheveled and seemingly heartbroken Vaka lay on the floor without arms or legs; only his head. Sobbing with a pool of tears flowing around him, Berp stepped forward in utter shock. "Berp..? Is that you?" Vaka asked meekly.

"Vaka… did Waka get tired of food output or something? WHAT HAPPENED?!" Berp picked up Vaka and shook him for answers, only prompting a torrent of tears to erupt from the now-singular Muncho's eye. "Waka… Ve… I… WAAA!" Vaka wailed and used Berp's chest as a tissue, snorting right into it.

"Can someone explain what's going on, please?" M.C. asked, growing slightly impatient as the three Glorp Corp looked equally baffled at the display. "Uh, how best to put it…" Dribbal pondered. "This is Vaka, who is usually conjoined to his twin Waka…" Slusho stated. "How is this possible? Even when splitting from Mixes you two stay together." Gurggle questioned the scenario.

"It vas terrible… the Nixels came through here vith their blasphemous Mixes and even those horrible Nixel-aligned Mixels were here too!" Vaka recounted, making the others squint at Berp as he took in the information. "Okay… the Nixels are actually back. Guess I owe Volectro a LOT of Mucks…" Berp sighed. "Why? Vat did you bet?" Vaka asked, sniffling. "That a Nixel invasion would happen while I go on a snack run with my eyes closed. Pretty hyper-specific to the scenario we just went through, heh."

"Cut the assurdo, fellas! We gots a situation at hand. Vaka, how did you end up… without Waka?" Gurggle cut in and asked, making Vaka well up with tears once more. "Waka… as the Nixels came through, one of those evil Mixels followed… they… we couldn't even see them clearly, but they almost looked like a Murp…" He said. "Murphy…" M.C. cut in, immediately realizing the threat at hand as he thought about the close encounter with the living Murp in Klinkerton.

"Whoever they are… they had something powerful, a weapon capable of splitting Mixes." Vaka grimly declared, making the room fall silent save for the sound of a Trufflemuncher gently licking up the puddle of Muncho tears, the Mixamal having snuck in without anyone noticing.

"It was so fast… we Munchos take pride in our will to Mix even when ze rest of Mixopolis won't. And so… it wasn't long before even our best Mixes and Maxes were torn apart by whatever they had. We tried our best to defend, but eventually, even we were struck by ze weapon. When I woke up… Waka was gone."

"Adds up with how this town's EMPTY. No Nixel nor Mixel in sight!" Dribbal added. "Maybe… they've been taken somewhere? It's not unlike the Nixels to used Mixels as zombie slaves." M.C. suggested as he thought of past encounters with Nixed Mixels. "If that's true, there's no doubt Waka was taken too. But, what kinda of area around here would there be to use them on?" Gurggle wondered.

A tremor violently shook the Mixels to the ground as Vaka-Waka's various belongings were thrown about, crystallized food items with bite marks shattering against the floor as they were rocked from their shelves. "Whatever that is, because it doesn't feel like Krader going off-course underground!" Berp determined. "They do say 'a house visited by a Cragster can't stand.'" Slusho jested.

Gathering outside, M.C. was forced to duck aside as a huge chunk of strawcake came crashing down, burying Berp. "Mm, fruity!" His muffled words could be heard before his head popped up atop the mound, his mouth stuffed to the brim. Vaka gasped as if his breath had been sucked away. At first, the Mixels believed Waka had taken the lungs of both Munchos, but no, he had sighted a problem.

A mountain-sized strawcake was something that had been brought into the Munchos District during the shift to Mixopolis. Not much thought had been given to it at the time, as there were dozens just like it back in Muncholand. The district was never going to be identical, but the Munchos had agreed a giant reminder of their old home would be a nice sight - or even housing location for the more extreme Mixels.

What nobody had realized at the time was that the exact cake they had decided to transport housed a massive reservoir of soda as if it were a volcano, and over time the roof of the cake began to seep in and cause minor eruptions that coated surrounding huts in batter. Not that it lasted long, given the Mixels it affected were Munchos. With care, this had been put under control, and no chunks of cake were sent flying again.

"ZE NIXELS ARE GOING FOR MOUNT MIXANIC!" Vaka screamed, noting the presence of figures moving against the looming form. "The giant cake?" Dribbal asked, making Gurggle and Slusho drool as they caught sight of it. "You don't get it. That ain't just no ordinary cake, Dribbal. Within that is a whole chamber of sugar-sensitive soda, and it just so happens most of this district is loaded with that! Only a couple drops and that'll go up like an Infernite. If she blows, Mixopolis as a whole will take years to clean up!" Berp panicked.

"Then what're we waitin' for? Let's go dig in- to the Nixels, I mean!" Slusho hollered, speeding off with Gurggle as Dribbal chuckled.

"Nix… Nix…" A Muncho lulled about, freshly Nixed as a demonstration for plenty of eyes to see atop Mount Mixanic. "And THAT'S what ya get if ya don't work! NOW, HUSTLE!" Sour Poppa demanded, making Murphy roll his eyes as the terrified Munchos got back to work, hauling giant sweets and uprooting those embedded into the natural terrain of the summit.

"Child, you're performing this with major inefficiency. Simply call in the minions we have been assigned and have these insects NIXED! The speed at which this mindless task will be achieved shall be - according to my calculations - FIVE HUNDRED PERCENT FASTER!" Murphy demanded, waving his arms around like a fool as the Nixel swarm sat aside, several munching away and the treats that made up the mountain.

"Nah, nah. I'M in charge, split-face! Ya gots to follow MY lead, or I tell the boss that the robot ya made was what sent ya flyin' back here!" Sour Poppa smiled grimly as Murphy glanced at him with malice. "Touché. Oh, great Muncho child, shall I grovel to you next in the same vein you demand of these peasants slaving around us? Even more excellent, perhaps I tell the leader of this assignment YOU set yourself WITHOUT consulting HIM. What will he think of that, hm? YOU DON'T CALL THE SHOTS!" Murphy barked in response.

Staring at each other with intense rage, the two Mixels caught several Nixels pointing and laughing at their fighting. "Stay the course. Against better judgement, I shall trust that your plans amount to more than a giant explosive reaction." Murphy sighed, stalking off and observing the laboring Mixels, stopping abruptly as one halted to salute him.

"What might you be doing, peasant?" Murphy stared down the Muncho with a look of distaste. Trembling, the Mixel stuttered. "I-I'm saluting y-you, s-sir." Waka muttered as Murphy squinted. "That is not the task required of you. Working is."

Spinning his claw hand and whipping out a monochrome weapon, a blast of energy blinded anyone who dared look away from their task - but most of all, the bolt that connected with the Muncho engulfed him in pitch-black crystals. Blowing away the wisps of smoke from the barrel of the weapon with his icy breath, Murphy cackled as the Mixel broke free of its crystalline prison, now Nixed. Wasting no time, Greggplant returned to work, uprooting a large candy cane and hauling it off to the crater of the mountain. "Ah… this Nixelite-powered weaponry warms even this half-frozen heart." Murphy grinned, noting several Nixels staring at him. "Soon, there will be no need for these pitiful minions." He thought.

Meanwhile, at the base of the monumental galette, the six Mixels stared up at the peak of it piercing the cotton candy clouds, a rare phenomenon that only occurred in the presence of high sugar concentrations. Normally, such a giant treat would send a Muncho into a feeding frenzy, but its significance to the district prevented Vaka or Berp from digging in, regardless of their temptation.

"Hm, seems this here mountain is at least a hundred THOUSAND feet high. How're we supposed to get up it fast?!" Dribbal wondered, prompting Slusho to look at him questioningly. "Did you read that off Mixipedia?" He asked, smirking as Dribbal attempted to hide his mobile phone behind his back. "Not like it's correct anyhow. The thing's only a couple hundred feet tall. We COULD take the paths…" Berp began. "BUT THE NIXELS WILL SPOT US! Berp, it is time for climbing action!" Vaka interrupted him.

"Oh-ho! I've gots an idea…" Gurggle grinned, pulling out a Cubit and looking to M.C. "Yo, M.C.!" He called out, prompting the Mixel to turn out of another trance in which he reflected on the experiences prior. "Psst, don't tell the others, but we should Mix and race up before them." Gurggle leaned in and whispered into M.C.'s ear, making the Mixel frown. "I don't think-" He tried to plea, but Gurggle had already forced the Cubit into his hand. "Let's DO THIS!"

Warped into dough, two giant hands whirled around the flattened Mixels into one spiraling piece, twisting and turning into a Mix with colossal feet yet nimble as a butterfly. "LAST ONE ATOP THE MONTAGNA'S A STINKIN' PIPE-PECKER!" The Mix hollered, catching the attention of the other four Mixels before proceeding to lunge upwards, sticking to the near-vertical incline of the hill and stepping up it with their slime-drenched feet.

"Berp, we MUST win this. It is our mountain, ZE MUNCHOS WOULD BE SHAMED FOREVER, AFTER THEM!" Vaka ordered, making Berp spin around pronto. "You gots it!" He yelled, holding Vaka out with two arms and using the others to scale up after the Mix. "Hey, no fair!" Dribbal pleaded, Mixing with Slusho and springing after them.

Bouncing along, the Gurggle & M.C. Mix happily stuck to the sides of the mountainous cake… until they didn't. Slipping about after one wrong step, they wobbled and found themself latching onto the incline, digging their hands into the soft surface as they looked down, watching the slime strip from their feet and drip down. "What in the Mixes..?" They attempted in vain to stick their feet again, failing as the others zoomed past.

Watching as the Slusho & Dribbal Mix rocketed past them with a pillar of snot, Berp locked his eyes on the upcoming ledge. "THEY'RE GOING TO WIN! BERP, DO SOMETHING!" Vaka pleaded. "Let's hope my jugglin' doesn't fail me now!" He extended two arms out from the mountain, throwing Vaka from one to the other as he planted his feet into the incline and released the grip of his other two hands, now using all four arms and spinning an unhappy Vaka around before launching him.

With the ledge just barely in reach, the Slusho & Dribbal Mix glanced back down, seeing the tiny purple form of Vaka rocketing towards them. Their pupils shrinking, they immediately looked back up and scrambled against the mountain, to no avail. Although he was gone in a blur, the Mix caught sight of Vaka's smug grin as he came to a mid-air halt, slamming back down atop the ledge as the Mix caught up. "YES! Take THAT!" Vaka gloated as the two Glorp Corp split and sighed, Berp soon coming over the edge and grinning at the success.

"Yeah, yeah… surprised the other two didn't get up first with that kinda headstart." Dribbal pointed out. A few moments passed before the Gurggle & M.C. Mix slumped over the ledge, promptly splitting apart as Gurggle gasped for breath. "Slime block? Guess that's what a hot-head like you gets, ha!" Berp joked, noting the sludge of Gurggle's exposed toes slowly producing once more.

"That wasn't… it felt like…" Gurggle stammered, looking at M.C. in confusion, having believed the Mixel to amplify powers - not reduce them. There was no time to question this, however. A rumble stronger than the previous knocked the Mixels to their feet before a large chunk of cake ejected from the wall beside them, nearly taking Dribbal with it.

Shortly after the ejection came a figure, stumbling to the ground as he looked up to see his friends. "SNAX! Were you rummaging around in there AGAIN?" Berp asked, helping his Muncho brother up as the tremors ceased. "Uh, not this time…" He replied innocently, immediately going wide-eyed as he spotted a form atop the nearby summit. Turning around, the other Mixels caught sight of a Nixed Muncho lumbering about, entranced hard enough to not notice them as they stalked off with a giant strawberry.

"Yeah, we gots a good idea of what they're doin' up there. A couple of Nixels, right?" Slusho asked, making Snax shake his head rapidly as he shoveled cake debris into his gob. "Dude, they gots two of those 'N-Mixel' up there with a whole batch of Nixels chuckin' sweets into the soda volcano usin' half the town as mooks. It's rough, only a few more's gonna blow the whole thing!" Snax explained. "Is… is Waka…" Vaka's lips trembled as he attempted to ask the question.

Blinking in disbelief at the sight of solely Vaka, Snax put two and two together. "So that's why Waka's up there…" The moment Snax had mouthed this, Vaka had to be restrained by Berp as he attempted to hop up the spiral pathway to the peak. "We need a plan, hang on!" Berp pleaded. "I have one… FINDING WAKA!" Vaka bit into Berp's hand, making the Muncho shriek as he released his grip, leaving Vaka to hop off at speed. The others looked to one another, sighing as they trailed after Vaka.

"HAND OVER WAKA, OR FACE- Wha?!" Vaka stumbled to a halt as he reached the summit, facing a swarm of Nixels that cackled at the sight of him. Bracing, Vaka was surprised at what came next. "HALT!" Sour Poppa's voice sounded as the Nixels moved aside, revealing the Muncho alongside Murphy. It was then that the other Mixels caught up to protect Vaka, both Murphy and Sour Poppa going wide-eyed at the sight of M.C.

"Thought ya said that jerk was outside the city!" Sour Poppa hissed. "The monochromatic nuisance WAS in Klinkerton, child. Do you expect me to account for every possible outcome?!" Murphy replied, catching Dribbal's attention as he stored the information of M.C.'s prior whereabouts. "YEAH! You're the smart one, you SHOULD be ready for this!" Flames essentially erupted from the two Mixels as they glared at one another with gritted teeth before looking back at the group of Mixels. "Finish the task. I shall pick them off." Murphy adjusted his goggles, the reflection of Vaka barely gleaming as he realized too late that the Muncho was coming in for a headbutt.

Slamming into Murphy's face, Vaka leaped from the Murp as he growled. "WAKAAA! WHERE ARE YOU?!" The Muncho screamed out as Murphy reached for him. Thinking quickly, M.C. shifted into a Muncho and uprooted a candy cane by biting through its base, grasping it and slapping Murphy across the face with its great length. "Gurggle, Dribbal, go help those Mixels! We'll shield Vaka!" M.C. ordered, the two reluctantly nodding as they set off.

"YOU!" Murphy reacted quickly as he latched onto the curved end of the sweet and hurled it over his head, taking M.C. with it as he slammed the Mixel into the ground with force. With a mixture of his intangibility and electricity, Murphy essentially teleported after M.C., punching the Mixel in the jaw and picking him up, holding him up and tightening his grip by freezing over his claw hand.

"You… I do not appreciate how our last encounter went. Allow me to MAKE IT UP TO YOU!" Murphy taunted, but only became surprised as M.C. began to break free of his grip by shifting into a Cragster and prying his claws apart. Bursting free, M.C. ducked aside as a slimy spitball came flying, drenching the Murp in sludge as a Mix of Slusho & Snax giggled, blowing a bubble of slime that blew up in their face.

Roaring, Murphy was engulfed in electricity as the slime burned up around him. No sooner had he done this did Berp repeatedly slam pieces of food against him as if they were weapons, quickly juggling them with his arms. "It is one peasant after another around here." Murphy muttered, annoyed as ice grew around his arm, taking a jagged form resembling icicles. Turning a glowing white as he went intangible, Murphy warped straight through Berp, re-materializing as the four treats the Muncho had been holding were slashed in half with precision.

Mourning the four breadsticks as the Mix distracted Murphy, Berp looked to M.C. and had an idea. "M.C.! Get over here, I've gots a bang-for-your-muck idea!" He pointed with four finger guns, then proceeding to pull out a Cubit as M.C. sighed. Flicking the ore, the two were morphed into seeds and embedded in planters, slowly growing outwards as trees as each others branches began to intertwine into a six-armed Mix. Picking up several candy canes, the Mix charged into battle.

On the other side of things, Gurggle and Dribbal struggled to outmaneuver a barrage of levitating jawbreakers and toothpicks being hurled at them by Sour Poppa's wand. At this point, the Muncho workers had taken note of the chaos and either made a run for it or began to fight back, taking on the swarm of Nixels with groups of Mixes and Maxes as Gurggle and Dribbal sped by, freeing any that were Nixed. "STAY STILL!" Sour Poppa screamed, nearly striking Gurggle with a triple-decker wafer. "Thinking about it, bambino… thought it about it, no!"

Enraged, Sour Poppa held out his lollipop wand, a black aura emanating from it as a blast of energy fired. Barely ducking aside, an outcrop of a pitch-black crystal exploded from the impact, a shard nearly striking Gurggle in the face. "What in the Mixes is THAT?!" Gurggle wondered. Dribbal adjusted his glasses as he examined the crystal by prodding the pointed end of it with his finger. "Hm… seems to me like some spray-painted amethuby ore. What is-"

Almost immediately, his skin was pierced even from the gentlest of touch. Traveling up his bloodstream was Nixel essence, muting his colors as his entire body began to be Nixed. Horrified, Gurggle pulled out a Cubit, holding it out to Mix with his brother and cease the Nixing.

"I'll be taking THAT!" Sour Poppa's wand activated as it grabbed ahold of the Cubit, but Gurggle held on as the two tugged for it. "LET GO!" The Muncho screamed as Gurggle yanked back at the stroke of an idea, ripping the ore apart as its essence exploded outwards, coating the nearly-Nixed Dribbal as his colours were restored. "Do NOT touch that thing, whatever it is!" Dribbal gasped for air. "That is NIXELITE! A dandy thing that Nixes whatever it touches. I am DONE with you two, SO GET OFF THIS MOUNTAIN!" Sour Poppa roared as he prepared for another attack, whistling for the Nixels to move in.

Hopping along, Vaka panted. Turned out not having legs made movement a lot more exhausting, especially when the Munchos fleeing around him and sledding down Mount Mixanic to flee the chaos weren't willing to carry him. "Waka… where are you..?" Vaka's vision was starting to blur as he bumped into another Muncho, shooting him back into reality. "Oh, my apologies! Are-" Vaka gasped mid-sentence as he looked up at the form before him. It was unmistakable, a one-of-a-kind Mixel he knew better than anyone - Waka.

"WAKA! There you are, quick, let's find-" Realization began to kick in as Waka's hand firmly gripped Vaka, one that was not the typical purple of a Muncho. Turns out, Waka was Nixed. Tossing Vaka back with great force, the lumbering zombified Waka stumbled after him as tears formed in Vaka's eye, not wishing to fight his brother. "Waka…"

On the other hand, an intense battle was occurring between Mix and Murp. As one more candy cane was tossed into the crater by a group of Nixels, an eruption of soda sent the patch of cake Murphy and the two Mixes were standing on soaring upwards. Bursting through a cotton candy cloud, this deterred no one as the Berp & M.C. Mix scooped up six pieces of icing and tossed them at Murphy, the Murp slicing through them with an ice-covered arm. Zipping around with his intangibility, Murphy grunted as the Slusho & Snax Mix struck him head-on with a slimed-up pizza. "ENOUGH GAMES!"

Engulfing himself in electricity, Murphy pulled out his Nixelite weapon, firing off two bolts of energy that immediately split apart the two Mixes. With his slime drained temporarily, Slusho hovered in place as M.C. latched on to his foot, watching as a dazed Berp and Snax began to fall back down with Murphy. "Oh, schnixel! Wait… for once, I must allow my lack of flight to take priority…" Slusho had an idea. Looking at M.C., the Mixel too caught on, pulling out a Cubit and looking at it longingly before bracing for what would come next.

"PEASANTS!" Murphy yelled, grabbed Berp by the neck and kicking him into a chunk of cake. Tossing a candle at Murphy, Snax was quick to dodge with a whimper as it was sent flying back by the quick-moving Murp. Hurtling through the cotton candy clouds, the sound of a Cubit's activation caught Murphy's attention as two tendrils of goop wrapped around him. "WHAT?!"

With enough force to shatter a jawbreaker, the Slusho & M.C. Mix came soaring downwards with their grounding slime wings and crashed into Murphy, taking the Murp with them as no more than a second later they plummeted back into the peak of the mountain. With the chunks of cake crashing around them, Berp and Snax softly landed in piles of icing, cheerily mowing through them as a treat.

Now split apart, M.C. and Slusho stumbled about as the dust settled, revealing an enraged Murphy barely even scratched as he wiped a small stream of blood from his lip. Before he could get a word in, however, two distinct hollers from both the left and right caught the attention of everyone. "WE NEED A CUBIT, WE NEED A CUBIT, WE NEED A CUBIT!" Vaka pleaded as he bounced towards the group, a Nixed Waka giving chase. "US TOO!" Gurggle yelled, carrying Dribbal under his arm as Sour Poppa and a swarm of Nixels gave chase.

"DOES THIS CACOPHONY OF PEASANTRY EVER CEASE?!" Murphy roared as an aura of lightning began to form around him, his eyes glowing a bright red before he noticed something - he was levitating. At first, he thought this could be a whole new power, but, life is full of disappointments. Looking to Sour Poppa, he observed the Muncho holding out his wand, activated and lifting up the Murp. "ENOUGH OF YA RUINING MY FUN!" Sour Poppa yelled.

With just the slightest tilt of the lollipop wand, Murphy, alongside his Nixelite blaster, was sent rocketing at mach speed over the city, disappearing into the horizon as the shocked Mixels looked at the Muncho, even the Nixed Waka was terrified through his trance. Noticing a distinct lavender gleam from the cake debris, Sour Poppa brushed away the mushed up food and pulled out something that put a grin on his face.

"I have had just about enough of the buncha ya RUINING my day, kicking over my toys and destroying my fun! Now… I GET TO RUIN YOURS!" He declared, lifting up piles of cake and plucking a hungry Snax from one as he morphed them around the Cubit shard he had just recovered, creating a giant pile of cake. "Bon appétit!" Sour Poppa cackled, raising the pile over the peak's crater and letting it go. Wasting no time, he whistled for the Nixels and leaped over the edge, using a Nixel Mix as a board as he sledded down.

"The… he… wha-?!" Slusho was utterly confused. "THAT THING'S GONNA BLOW THE WHOLE MOUNTAIN! We need a Mix, PRONTO!" Berp ordered. "Um, HELLO?!" Vaka caught the attention of everyone, being held in Waka's jaws as the Nixed Mixel slobbered all over Vaka. Holding a Cubit, M.C. realized he could link the two Mixels together and restore Waka's colors. "Quick, grab it!" M.C. held it out as Vaka bit the Cubit. Forcing Waka's hand onto the Cubit, the ore activated.

Buried by a giant cake, a candle atop it was lit, only that this wasn't a candle - it was a stick of dynamite. Burned to the fuse, the explosive detonated, sending chunks of cake flying as the Vaka-Waka & M.C. Mix stood triumphant. No time was to be wasted. The Mix leaped into the crater, much to the surprise of the other Mixels as they realized the Mix had no way of getting back up.

Plummeting, the Mix locked eye contact with the chunk of cake as the soda reservoir slowly came closer. Close enough to grab it, the Mix opened their two mouths wide, devouring the entire slab in mere moments. What was unprecedented was the hard object they sank their teeth into as they remembered the Cubit shard. "Woo! Now what…" The Mix looked from the shard to the reservoir, going wide-eyed and screaming.

But, in the nick of time, a lasso of slime roped around the Mix and yanked them back up with the shard as a Mix of Dribbal & Snax held a fishing rod lined with snot, grunting from the weight of hoisting up the Vaka-Waka & M.C. Mix. "Whew, close one!" Gurggle wiped sweat from his forehead as the two Mixes fell back, splitting apart as the Mixels took a breath.

"Ugh… Vaka..?" Waka began to come to his senses as he groaned. "WAKA! I missed you so much, did they hurt you?" Vaka looked down at his conjoined twin, ecstatic to finally be together again. "I don't think so… oh, I missed you too! Being separate feels TERRIBLE without you." Waka smiled as Vaka chuckled. "As they say, there's no input without ze output!" Vaka laughed, Waka joining in for a moment until he realized what that meant.

"I don't mean to interrupt this sweet little reunion, but…" Dribbal began, snorting and adjusting his frames. "We oughta stop that kid! Who knows what he'll do next!" Snax continued as the group realized Sour Poppa was still out there.

Sour Poppa tumbled about as the Nixel Mix gave way under his feet, splitting apart as he and the swarm were sent crashing into a sundae lake. Gasping for air as he resurfaced, the Muncho grimaced as he heard his Nixels suppress their cackling at his failed cake-boarding. With a growl, he raised his wand. "Ya darn things, shut your traps or-"

"Poppster..?"

Any thought the Muncho had was frozen as his real name was uttered. Slowly turning around, a demon of his past was standing there - or so, someone he viewed as such. "D-dad..?" He stammered, a moment of silence befalling the two as his gumball machine-headed father struggled to find the words to say. "Nix, NIX NIX!" One of the Nixels clamored, Mixing with another and roaring as they lunged at the Muncho father.

But, they froze in mid-air as Sour Poppa raised his wand, ripping the two Nixels apart before they could hurt his father. "Don't do that." He ordered as the two Nixels were dazed, rejoining the swarm as Sour Poppa turned away, signaling for the Nixels to retreat in an act that made the swarm question him. "Why?" The father asked as he extended an arm, not noticing the tear falling from his son's eyes as the Nixels built around him, carrying off to parts unknown.

"Whoa, what was that?!" Gurggle asked, sliding into the ground as the other Mixels followed to varying results, Vaka-Waka being the only to make a smooth landing as everyone else either ended up embedded in the soft ground or faceplanting. "Mr. Ius? You're pretty brave for standing like that against them." Snax pointed out as he chewed through the baby mixmallows he had landed in. The Muncho didn't respond, however, he only stared blankly where Sour Poppa had been.

"Yo, Gumschlott, you there?" Berp asked, referring to the Muncho by his first name and piercing his trance. "My son… he's on the side of the Nixels…" Tears fell from the Muncho's eye as the other Mixels looked to him. "Vat?! Why would he…?" Vaka wondered. "I… Poppster's always been one looking for attention and respect in our family, I just never thought… having eight kids is rough, and I failed him." Gumschlott wiped a tear. "Hey, no need to beat yourself up…" Slusho tried to say, but the Muncho ignored him.

The same way he had seen Anglow before, M.C. was starting to realize that the N-Mixel Armada wasn't so black and white, but gray. "It might not be entirely your fault. Those N-Mixel folks… I've managed to reason with one of them before, he's not gone all bad, I just know it." M.C. declared, making Dribbal raise an eyebrow as he noted this, Gurggle looking to his brother with similar suspicions. "My friend… please, help my son. He may never speak to me again, but his heart is not one of evil." Gumschlott begged, M.C. nodding in agreement. "He can't be far, let's head out and-"

Crackles in the sky interrupted M.C. as the thunder storm came into view overhead, starting to block out the dimming lightbulb sun. It was then that the smoke and destruction of the Weldos District was silhouetted in the near distance from the group, making everyone gasp. "The Newzers were reporting on this… we need to help, those Weldos won't stand a chance!" Slusho suggested, getting ready to head out. "If this place is anything to go by, then yeesh, it'll need a bunch of hands to help them out." Berp stated, a grin slowly forming across his face as he gave four finger gun gestures. "I'll look for Poppster… stay safe, Mixels, that situation seems dangerous." Gumschlott said.

"As long as I don't gots to digest oil coffee and gear dinner, I'm good!" Waka said, Vaka starting to drool at the thought. "No time to waste, let's go!" Snax declared, setting out as the others followed, bar Gurggle and Dribbal as they lagged behind M.C. "You finally noticed?" Dribbal asked quietly as Gurggle shrugged. "Something's off. That Murp mentioned Klinkerton, but I thought that bambino was on the moon!" He pointed out.

Wisps of lightning far in the sky above interrupted the two as they nodded, knowing to bring this up later when there was less pressing matter.

Mechanical arms sprung into action as their gearbox revolutions began, spotlights flickering on one-by-one as the cylindrical interior of the Weldos' construction tower was primed for use, a circular platform rising into view as King Nixel stood in the center of it. "Ah, perfect… get it going, minions." He ordered as Nixels scaled the walls, carrying satchels loaded with Nixelite as they began to Nix the materials reservoir.

Removing his cloak, King Nixel exposed his metal skeleton as he was hoisted up by the mechanical arms, removing his head from the rest of the body. With the brittle endo-skeleton tossed aside, several arms plucked freshly-purified Nixelite steel from the walls, arranging the sheets in the form of massive mechanical components that began to make up a beefy new body for the king. One by one, pieces were attached, forming circular shoulder pads as spiked arms were attached with clawed hands that could shatter mountains. With hips added alongside shock-absorbing legs and feet, the cherry on top of King Nixel's transformation was a golden crown to replace the damaged, ancient one he had previously donned. He was complete - upgraded.

A circular array of lights shone upwards as a hatch opened on the roof of the tower, King Nixel slowly rising through it as his hefty new form was revealed to the world. With one finishing touch, he picked up his tattered cloak and strung it around his neck, now acting as a cape as he admired his new armor. "This is nothing short of Nixcellent… MWA-HA-HA!"

No audience had gathered for him as Mix TV cameras had disengaged hours ago due to the storm, but one silhouette was visible at the other end, another rectangular form with sloped ears that was holding a hexagonally-tipped staff - Major Nixel.

"Major. Come to witness my rebirth, have we?" King Nixel howled at his own words as Major Nixel simply stared him down, unmoving. "You know, at first, I was quite enraged when you abandoned your post back in the Wiztastics District. However, some retrospect allowed me to understand that your presence was unneeded… not due to your strengths, but that your lack of will to do what is necessary for victory is ever-present."

Again, Major Nixel was unmoving, only squinting as his gaze was locked with the deranged tyrant's. "From the very moment our greatest triumph has been achieved, I could tell that you have despised our Mixes. Can you not tell that they are simply a means to an end? A trump card? Heh, I am aware of your pitiful 'beliefs', Major. It is why I knew of your attempts at sabotage."

"The Negative Cubit factory in the district of Glorp Corp, the damage done to the monument of the Brightsparks… No Mixel could have known of that. Tell me, what is your intent? I know that you hold the prism on your person, you would never leave it among our clashing forces below." King Nixel called Major Nixel's bluff as the latter held his staff outwards. "My intent is to remove your royal high-horse from his position of power, ceasing our miserable failure of a takeover and reclaiming my leadership, you abhorrent disgrace of a leader!"

Light flashed around the two elite Nixels, illuminating them for the briefest of moments. After a long silence, King Nixel laughed. Not just a laugh, but a cackle. A deafening, never-ending display of insanity as he almost sounded as if he were choking from the words Major had spouted. With moments passing, he sighed and looked back to the Major. "Weak words, Major. I know that you hold the Brightspark Prism, and if you will not go quietly… so be it."

The next strike of lightning marked King Nixel's move as he lunged forth, claws extended as he reached for Major Nixel. A battle of the ages had begun.

Rain beat down as the Mixels arrived on the outskirts of the Weldos District, having followed the trail of destruction Nixels had left in their wake. There was an unmistakable mist that had blocked out view of the ground level, perhaps from the chaos the Nixels had brought forth. "Y'know, maybe the Weldos aren't doing too badly. They love their wild mechanical monstrosities that spew steam after all." Waka suggested, but this notion was struck down almost immediately the fog cleared, revealing a sight that silenced everyone.

The pure might of the Nixel Armada was on full display. Entire battalions of troops were sifting through the streets and abandoned construction sites, horrendous Nixel Mixes at the forefront overturning traffic cones and cranes as countless Nixed Weldos lumbered about. However, it didn't appear to be the orderly chaos that all of these Mixels had experienced of the Nixels in past encounters. No, it was something else entirely - groups of Nixels were tearing each other apart.

"What in the-?!" M.C. was bewildered as the other Mixels caught wind of the situation, Dribbal squinting as he took notes. "Hm… fascinating." He remarked. "You mean to tell me these freaks knocking each other senseless is fascinating?!" Berp shouted, a ten-foot-tall Nixel Mix being toppled by individual Nixels nearby and violently ravaged as it was torn apart. "We'd better find cover, because we're being served like cocktail weenies out here!" Snax suggested as three zombified Weldos whipped their heads in the group's direction, beginning to stumble towards them.

While the others glanced around, M.C. was dazed as he noted that Nixels armed with weaponry and isolated were the ones taking on Nixel Mixes. Had some sort of ridge been formed in the armada he was born to serve in? He was so entranced that he hadn't noticed the Nixed Weldo lunging at him. A quickly-formed Mix of Gurggle & Vaka-Waka glued the Weldo in place with a mixture of slime and melted sweets, finally snapping M.C. back to reality. "M.C., we've GOTS to go!" The Mix yelled.

A deafening creak of metal boomed nearby as the group looked up, watching a rusted crane start to shift forward - it was falling. Leaping aside, the Mix, M.C. and Snax barely avoided the crash, a ridge of debris separating them from the other Mixels. "Nix? NIX, NIX!" A Nixel called out, having finally looked to the Mixels and signaling for reinforcement with a whistle. "MOVE!" Snax ordered, the Mix splitting apart as Vaka-Waka, Gurggle and M.C. followed the Muncho as they ran from the swarm, ducking into a materials dump as a stampede rushed by outside.

"Whew, close one…" Waka remarked, turning into the expanse of the yard only to gaze upon a plethora of Nixels scanning the area. "Schnixel, duck in here!" Vaka pointed to a concrete pipe as the four leaped inside, a Nixel shining a flashlight where they had been standing only a moment later as the sweep continued.

"Agh, what're we gonna do?! Now we're split apart from the others and pinned down with no plan!" Snax flailed about in a panic, halting as the sound of metal scraping against the outside of the pipe became audible. Instantaneously, the cylinder was sliced in half, sending the two chunks flying as the Mixels stumbled to the ground, looking up at the Weldo that had cut through the concrete as if it were nothing.

With cackling Nixels making up a search party gathered around his feet, a Nixed Wuzzo stared at the Mixels as they looked up at him in awe. Instinctively, M.C. prepared to whistle for Pippy before reality loomed over him, sucking up a tear. "SCATTER!" Gurggle yelled, the four Mixels jumping aside as the Nixels lunged for them. Instead of giving chase, Wuzzo opted to slice the pipe into chunks, dropping them one by one as three Nixels stuck around with an idea.

"Cubits, chaps!" Waka suggested, hacking up two Rainbow Cubits and tossing one to Snax, who handed it to M.C. as Gurggle touched Vaka-Waka's. Activating simultaneously, the four Mixels were morphed into spheres and racked around in a gumball machine. With the adjustment of the slot, two larger balls came rolling out, uncurling into the two Mixes.

"Ha, let's get Mixel-" The Snax & M.C. Mix's streak of childlike confidence was interrupted by a ring of concrete being tossed into their gob, struggling to munch on it as the Gurggle & Vaka-Waka Mix sighted a three-Nixel Mix that was tossing the debris Wuzzo was cutting. "Move, don't want to end up being squashed into risotto!" The other Mix cried out as the Snax & M.C. Mix bit through the chunk, reeling from a chipped tooth and rushing after the Gurggle & Vaka-Waka Mix as more chunks of debris came flying.

On the other hand, the other group wasn't doing too well a few blocks south. In fact, they were probably worse off. Sliding down a crumbling panel of stone, Slusho leaped atop a generator, looking back as a helicopter-esque Mix of Dribbal & Berp caught up. "Man, everyone can fly BUT me…" No sooner had he said this was he shook about as the entire construction complex he had sifted through was engulfed in an explosion, Nixels swarming through as the two took off running once more.

"Ain't no way we're beating all those guys, we need to find a safe spot!" The Mix declared as they picked up Slusho and hovered up a crane, watching as Nixels plumed around its based and began gnawing through the frame. "We'll never get away if they keep following us… something tells me we need a distraction." Snax thought.

"Dude, what kind of distraction do you expect? Some mountain of dynamite?" The Mix sarcastically asked. "Hey, look! A mountain of dynamite!" Snax pointed out cheerily, noting an entire city block dedicated to a heap of explosives. "Wow, talk about convenience." No sooner had the Mix said this did the Nixels sever the base of the crane, sending it tilting away from the Mixels as it began to fall.

"You might wanna pull it towards the heap, not away!" Snax suggested, prompting the Dribbal & Berp Mix to fire slime from their nose that latched onto the falling crane like tendrils. It took a great deal of strength to start pulling it with its weight, and the Nixels had started to take notice. Scaling up the frame, Snax started to panic as the horrific Nixel Mixes approached. "HURRY!" He hollered and waved his arms around as the Mix grunted, yanking the slime with enough force to tilt it in the direction of the dynamite stack.

"WOO! That oughta distract em'!" The Mix declared. Growling, the Nixel Mixes that were just within arms reach of the two still attached to the crane looked to the mountain before them, whimpering moments prior to the impact.

Immediately upon touching down, a chain reaction of explosions contributed to one massive mushroom cloud that sent out a shockwave great enough to send platoons of Nixels on the ground scattering, as well as knocking the Mix out of the air along with Snax. Split apart, Berp crash-landed in a block of dampened quick-cement, instantly solidifying as the Muncho's head was stuck on dry land. "Uh, a little help?" He asked as the other two landed in the back of a truck filled with dust taken from the Great Wasteland, coughing about.

A heavy footstep booming throughout the cement yard they had landed in caught their attention as they turned to face a Nixed Forx. "Uh oh." Dribbal remarked as the Weldo charged at the truck, ramming into it head-first and ejecting the two Mixels upwards. Crashing into the ground, both Snax and Dribbal were dazed as Forx turned around, charging with intent on Nixing both of them.

Bracing, Snax and Dribbal opened their eyes after the sound of a whoosh and the feeling of being dragged aside. Turns out, they had been pulled away from Forx by a familiar face - one that had left a trail of flames where he ran. "Sup, party people! Mind if a few of us lend a hand?" Zorch chuckled, helping the two to their feet as a Mix of Krader & Jawg burst from the ground with their rock-hard teeth. "Zorch?! How did you-" Dribbal began, being pat on the head by the Infernite. "Don't sweat it, not hard to miss this battle when it's all Mix TV's reportin' on!"

Grunting, Forx rushed at the Mix, being caught by their two arms mid-charge and slammed back into the ground. "Zorch, Cubit!" They ordered. "You gots it!" Zipping around, the Infernite leaped and tossed a Rainbow Cubit at the Weldo, bonking off his head and into the crushing grip of the Mix. With rainbow essence bursting outwards, it splashed onto Forx, washing over him and restoring his colors.

"Argh… why did I headbutt a truck..?" Forx asked aloud as Snax pat him on the shoulder. "Welcome back! Dunno if you saw this, but we're in a bit of a pickle!" Snax declared. "Wait… what're you whippersnappers doin' here?! This is not only a restricted area, but under HEAVY NIXEL SIEGE!" Forx flailed his chain about, tapping Snax and Dribbal on the head with it. Clearing his throat, Forx looked to Berp still embedded in the ground. "Little help?"

Sighing, Forx strolled over and tapped the concrete with his foot, shattering it and freeing Berp. "Thank you! Gots any food around here?" The Muncho asked, his stomach growling from having gone more than a minute without a bite to eat. "Ugh… vending machine's over there." Forx pointed with his chain, making Berp glare as he darted over to it, gnawing on its metallic shell for the bags of gear-chips inside

"Alright, lemme ask again. What're ya'll doin' here?" Forx asked. "Too many Nixels!" Jawg barked. "We see Mix TV report, it bad! Us already free, WE COME TO HELP OUT!" Krader declared. "Oh c'mon. Newzers always make it seem worse than it is. This situation's perfectly under control!" Forx stated, a massive explosion rising behind him courtesy of Nixels.

"Heh, sure doesn't look that way! You're welcome for the entire squad of backup we brought in, by the way, look!" Zorch zoomed around the corner of the lot, beckoning for the others to follow as they looked upon an entire army of Mixes made up of Mixels from the nine tribes M.C. had first encountered. With Weldos being freed by the minute, it seemed that the odds of the battle were actually turning in the Mixels' favor as Nixels were beaten back, ceasing their spats among one another as they tore into the groups of Mixes.

"Holy… well, if you folks don't mind, I'VE gots to go find Wuzzo!" Forx declared, preparing to stomp off only to be halted by Zorch. "Hang on, guy's probably Nixed. Let us help ya find him, heh!" He offered, not giving the Weldo a chance to respond as he whistled. Then, a puff of magical dust appeared in the air beside the group, dropping a frazzled Wizwuz as the Wiztastic landed upside down, quickly spinning over eagerly. "Howdy! What's the situation?!" He asked, his hooked tail wagging as he was ready for a command.

Holding out a Cubit, Wizwuz bit into it as him and Zorch were flattened by a vice, peeling up Mixed as they excitedly bounced around. "Let's hope this works!" The Zorch & Wizwuz Mix uttered, barfing up a magic spell laced with smoke that formed a portal underneath the feet of the gathered Mixels, sucking not only all of them into it, but also the vending machine Berp had been trying in vain to bite through.

Blocks away, the battle against a Nixed Wuzzo had gone upside down. Tackling the three-Nixel Mix to the ground, the Gurggle & Vaka-Waka Mix was launched through a pile of sandbags, quick to munch through them as if they were treats and burp a steady stream of goop onto the Nixel Mix. "We've gots hideous, go free Wuzzo already!" The Mix ordered to the Snax & M.C. Mix, the latter holding a Cubit and ready to blow it open.

Grunting, the Mix froze as they looked to their hand, watching it wobble and warp like jelly. Before long, they split apart. M.C. gasped for air in a state of exhaustion, a combination of his experiences and lack of rest starting to crash down as he tried to clear his sullen look. "Uh, what just happened?" Snax asked, curious as ever while M.C. only grunted. Dumbfounded, the Gurggle & Vaka-Waka Mix had turned their gaze away from the Nixel Mix, giving it a prime opportunity to uproot a street sign and slam it into the Mix, sending the two Mixels sprawling as they split apart.

Cackling, the Nixel Mix was interrupted by a circle of flames wisping above. After a moment of confusion, a blast of smoke and magical dust teleported the group that had gone for Forx as well as the Zorch & Wizwuz Mix, all bar the Mix landing in a pile and burned from the experience. "Oh-hoo! Looks like we rolled in on a battle!" The Mix got giddy, hacking up a spell-laced fireball that struck the Nixel Mix head on and sent all three Nixels soaring in different directions.

"Hey, where's Berp?!" Slusho wondered as Wuzzo revved his chainsaw nose, getting ready to approach only for another blast of magic to send Berp and the vending machine crashing into Wuzzo. Slicing straight through the machine, Berp was ecstatic as the gear-chip bags went flying. "Finally! Thank you, dearest Wuzzo!" The Muncho shook the Weldo's hand profusely and started swallowing bags with his others. Taking the opportunity, a Cubit slammed into the side of Wuzzo's head, followed by Krader's fist as the ore exploded, splashing rainbow essence over all three of the Mixels and restoring the Weldo's colors.

"Hm… chips and Cubit juice, tastes like sugar!" Berp remarked as Krader helped up Wuzzo behind him. "Whew… oh, I forgot how awful being Nixed is. Thanks for the save." Wuzzo fell to his back, giving a thumbs up as his lack of coordination made standing a chore. "Get up, boy, we've gots work to do!" Forx ordered, slapping Wuzzo's foot and spinning the Weldo back up. "Sure thing bo- hey, you're not Kramm!" Wuzzo pointed at Forx, before the two remembered what had happened to their boss earlier. "KRAMM'S IN THE UNDERGROUND!" They yelled in unison.

"Uh, a little context?" M.C. asked as the other Mixels caught up. "Okay, so basically, before we got uh, Nixed, we shoved our boss down into the underground to find somethin' that'd blow these Nixels out of the city! Problem is… we don't know what's down there." Wuzzo rattled off, prompting an eagle-eyed stare from Forx. "Klinkers Inc. trade secrets ya-" Forx began, having his head patted by his brother. "Oh, please. They went bust years ago, they don't own us now!" Wuzzo chuckled as steam plumed from Forx's ears in frustration.

"Might wanna tell your capo he gots backup." Gurggle suggested. "Yeah, we totally gots the place under control, heh!" Zorch stated, Krader and Jawg smiling in response. Then, a form came rocketing into a pile of concrete powder, the dazed heads of Zaptor and Flurr popping out. "Too big a Mix…" Flurr muttered. Turning around, the Mixels caught sight of a titanic Nixel Mix carrying a billboard with an advertisement for Big Boxer Joe plastered onto it, using it as a weapon. "Okay, might wanna find boss!" Krader suggested, taking off with Zorch. "Go!" Jawg ordered, Mixing with the Infernite and speeding into battle.

"Great, we had everything under control…" Forx crossed his arms, prompting looks of confusion from the others. "You sure? There wasn't anything but Nixed Mixels for miles!" Vaka argued. "Aren't you folks the whippersnappers that fell for that Mixamajig yawn? We don't need your help!" Forx rudely yelled. "Forx… a little Mixing won't hurt nobody. C'mon." Wuzzo whispered to his brother, prompting the Weldo to storm off. "Uh, sorry. He's not too keen on Mixing." Wuzzo said.

"Eh, most of Mixopolis is like that. He'll come around." Berp juggled chips around, tossing two to Snax and Vaka. "Well, if that Kramm is in the underground, let's go find him." Dribbal suggested. "Thing is… it's a restricted zone, we're not really supposed to be down there so we don't know where any of the hatches are…" Wuzzo waffled, slightly nervous of the trouble he'd get into. "Found one." M.C. said, lifting up a gunmetal hatch to reveal an abyss of a drop.

"Whoa… last one down has to pay for the next party food!" Berp hollered, leaping down it and swiftly followed by Vaka-Waka and Snax. "Uh, that hole has to be as deep as Mixel Land potholes! Statistically-" Dribbal was interrupted by Gurggle shoving him into the tunnel, following with a dive as Slusho gently climbed down. Lastly, M.C. latched onto the ladder, looking at Forx and Wuzzo as they lulled about. "Aren't you guys coming?" He asked.

"It's against company policy to be down there, ain't no way! Especially now that you let all them non-employees down, Wuzzo!" Forx argued. "Oh come on! There's a Nixel invasion occurring, surely some rules can be broken, right?" M.C. snapped, surprising both of the two and even Slusho below, who took note of M.C.'s odd behavior. "Kramm might need help… I'm down!" Wuzzo declared, rushing over to the hatch and cannonballing in, making M.C. go wide-eyed as he was taken with the Weldo's fall. Sighing, Forx followed suit, slowly climbing down and shutting the hatch behind him.

In his freefall, Berp came to a realization: jumping down a deep hole probably wasn't going to end well. Starting to panic, his fears were alleviated as he finally reached the bottom and felt a soft cushion of a landing - as he literally landed into a giant cushion. "Huh, that's convenient. Ah…" He relaxed and sank into it, only to start hearing the sound of the other Mixels getting louder as he realized they were nearing.

Attempting to get out of the way, Berp was landed on by Vaka-Waka, followed by Snax, then the three Glorp Corp, M.C., and Wuzzo as he gasped for air under the weight of the other eight Mixels. "Welcome to the underground of our district! I say that to myself as well." Wuzzo stated as he stood up.

Before the Mixels was a giant conveyor belt in a curved, yellow corridor with white linings along its length. Small construction cranes with claw arms stood in rows along the belt, but both it and the machines were seemingly inactive. In fact, the eerie silence of the place was haunting. "Hm… ECHO!" Snax yelled, as his voice reverberated around the halls, prompting an elbow from Waka. "Nix?" A voice from around the corner sounded, leading to all nine of the Mixels rushing behind a crane as a Nixel turned the corner.

Eyeing the place where the Mixels stood, another Nixel walked up to the one investigating the sound. "Nix, nix." They said, making the two turn back around as the Mixels breathed a sigh of relief. "What're they doin' down here?!" Slusho wondered. "Probably saw us shove Kramm down here and found another way in." Forx replied. "Better hope there aren't more round that corner." Waka said.

M.C. noticed something. In the roof of the place, there appeared to be an outcrop of pitch-black crystal identical to not only the ammunition Murphy had used earlier, but the same as that he had witnessed in the Brightspark Monument. Something was connected there, but he didn't quite understand it.

Slithering around the corner, the nine Mixels each peeped their head into the grand central atrium of the underground construct, surprised at what they saw. A vast expanse of platforms overseeing Weldo and Klinker machinery was overrun with Nixels examining the equipment, one even trying out a small mech. In the furthest corner seemed to be a massive mech armed to the teeth, one that the Nixels seemed interested in the most. "Hey… doesn't seem to be any Mixes out there." M.C. remarked, noting that all Nixels were separated from one another.

"Folks, we need a plan." Forx stated. "Oh ho, we've gots one! You take one hot-head with a thrill for action!" Gurggle began, striking a pose as Slusho slid over to him excitedly. "A hot-head to be with a desire to soar! AND…" Slusho continued, pulling a nonchalant Dribbal aside. "A brainiac nobody listens to… and you get…" He said. "THREE THRILL-SEEKING GLORP CORP!" Gurggle and Slusho yelled, Dribbal holding out a Cubit as the three were spiralled into their Max. "I like their style!" Wuzzo grinned, revving his nose as the Munchos too Maxed. Stuttering, Forx was bewildered as the two Maxes and his brother charged into action, even making M.C. smirk as the Mixel held out a Cubit to Forx.

"Ugh… okay." Forx conceded, tapping the ore with his chain as a power drill blasted the two Mixels apart. A wrench came in next, tossing the loose parts of each Mixel into one conglomerate that was broken again and then perfected, a Mix having formed. With an even more powerful cement mixing jaw and a will to ram into anything hostile, the Mix rushed after the others.

Walking up to a vending machine on the central platform, two Nixels cackled as one slid in a counterfeit Muck bill. "Nix… NIX!" One screeched in laughter as a bag of cookironis gently lifted out, the operation a success. Picking up the batch, a shadow loomed over the two as they turned to face a starving Munchos Max. Screaming, the two rushed away without the bag, leaving the Max to feast on it, satisfied. Noting the other three staring at them, the Munchos Max stared back. "What?" They asked.

"NIX, NIX!" Another Nixel noticed the scene, whistling for backup as an entire swarm appeared instantly. "This oughta be good… CHARGE!" Wuzzo yelled. As soon as the Nixels rushed, the Glorp Corp Max leaped up, striking poses in mid-air before blowing a massive bubble and entrapping dozens of Nixels, gently pushing it away. Lunging at the Max, a Muscle Nixel prepared to strike, only to be hit with the vending machine as the Munchos Max tossed it, sending the beefy Nixel flying into the distant wall. "Cookironis are out of date… bleh." The Max said.

Struck in the face with a cupcake, the Maxes turned their gaze to a squad of Cannon Nixels. Preparing to attack, the Forx & M.C. Mix rushed by with Wuzzo on their back, yodeling as he slashed right through the weapons. Turning around, the Mix headbutted through all ten of the Nixels, sending them flying. Wobbling, they suddenly split prematurely, making the two Maxes split thinking the battle was over. "Alright, now, where's Kramm?" Wuzzo wondered.

Boarding the platform, hydraulics discharged and gears ratcheted as a form loomed over the nine Mixels. Looking up to a stolen mech, a Nixel grinned in its cockpit as the mech's modifications revealed themselves. Revealing a series of missile launchers, the Mixels ducked aside as a barrage was unleashed, severing a chunk of the platform as both the mech and the group slammed into the ground below.

"WATCH OUT!" Snax yelled as a jackhammer arm narrowly missed him, the mech getting stuck in the floor as the Nixel forgot to deactivate it. "Quick, we need more Mixes!" Vaka stated as Dribbal sneezed up three Cubits, tossing them upwards as various Mixels latched on. With a funnel sucking in six of the Mixels, Mixes of Dribbal & Forx, Gurggle & Snax, and Wuzzo & M.C. were formed, scattering about as the battle continued.

With a tread-esque chainsaw for feet, the Wuzzo & M.C. Mix drifted about, distracting the mech and signaling for the others to get a hit in. Wasting no time, the Dribbal & Forx Mix launched a rocket of snot and chains that wrapped around the mech, holding it still while the Gurggle & Snax Mix froze the mech's feet with a mixture of slime and candy. Taking the chance, the Wuzzo & M.C. Mix mounted the mech, slicing it in half as the Nixel was grabbed by Berp, being held upside down. "Howdy, 'buddy'! Tell us, where's Kramm?"

In a control room above, Kramm feigned confusion in operating the controls of crane equipment in the open area. With a Muscle Nixel standing behind him to keep an eye and ensure no foul play was at hand, Kramm sweat bullets knowing he was running out of time. "So, this doo-hickey takes a minute to calibrate. Just hang on…" He waffled, knowing his eleventh excuse of the hour wasn't going to land.

Then, the door to the room came flying into the Muscle Nixel, knocking the Nixel unconscious as it sprawled out of the shell. Whipping around, Kramm watched as the Mixels entered the room, with his two Weldo brothers at the forefront. "BOYS! Ya made it out safe!" He rushed over, catching the two in a hug that Wuzzo enjoyed and Forx found uncomfortable. "Heh, happy to please, boss!" Wuzzo saluted. "Look, I know we're in the underground…" Forx began.

"Heh, ya really give a nut about those rules, huh? Don't ya worry about it, it's a crisis! We gots room for some levity." Kramm assured Forx, making the Weldo feel at ease for once. "So, I take it these bunch freed you two?" The Weldo boss asked. "You bet we did, but, not with a bit of help from a bunch of other Mixels!" Gurggle said. "There's a whole army up there, whatever you came down here for, forget about it!" Snax added.

"Good to know, but nah. What I'm wonderin' about is our construction tower, what we use to forge entire building equipment, trucks, all that jazz. Nixels seemed to be taking it over before I went under." Kramm said. In the corner, the unconscious Muscle Nixel began to snore as saliva drooled from its mouth, prompting an idea from Kramm.

Some time later, the Muscle Nixel awoke to the sight of a blinding light. Not only that, they were upside down. Hanging from the ceiling by the foot. Seeing the light now as a projector as the Mixels were crowded around it, the Nixel squirmed about, unhappy with the current predicament. Grabbing the maintenance chair, Kramm wheeled it around and placed himself in it, facing the Nixel as he shut off the projector. "Here's how this is gonna work. Ya give us answers, and we stay happy, gots it?"

Spitting in Kramm's face, the Nixel only grunted with a trademark 'Nix', no different than any other Nixel. "Told ya." Forx remarked. "Nixels are incapable of speaking the Mixel language, except King and Major Nixel, of course. Doubt you're gonna get anything out of it." Dribbal rattled off, making M.C. think about the two figures he feared so greatly. Noting something about them that he figured must have to do with their speech, the Mixel snapped his fingers.

"Mustaches!"

Everyone looked at M.C. with utter confusion as he said this, but the Nixel seemed to immediately know what he was talking about. "I, uh… you know how those two have mustaches..? What if that's why they're the only two that can talk?" M.C. suggested. "I mean, it'd make sense." Slusho shrugged. "Sure, but where are we supposed to get hair from?" Vaka asked.

That's when everyone turned to Forx, staring directly at his two strands of hair that made up his combover. It took a moment for the Weldo to realize what everyone was staring at him for, but once he did, he was not happy. "Oh, not a CHANCE! Don't ya know this took eight years to grow?! NO WAY!" He yelled, not noticing Wuzzo having snuck up behind him. In a rare moment of extreme precision, the Weldo swiped through the two of Forx's hairs, leaving the strands to fall to the ground gently as Gurggle picked them up. "And a touch of slime should do!" The Glorp Corp Mixel snorted, placing a batch of goop in between the strands to keep them together.

Mourning his now-bald head, Kramm comforted his brother as Gurggle stuck the faux-mustache to the Nixel's face. "Nix… ugh, you miserable MIXELS! Wha-?!" It worked, the Nixel could now speak the Mixel language. "Alright, buddy. You're gonna talk, or we're gonna tear that mustache from your face once more." Wuzzo declared, making the Nixel sweat at the thought of losing such a luxury.

"Okay, okay, fine! I don't know, because I'm under Major Nixel's rule, but we have intel to state King Nixel is using the tower to upgrade himself, with Major going after him! That's all I know, I SWEAR!" The Nixel yelled, having the hair torn off once he finished by Kramm. "That rotten-! How dare he use OUR tower for that?!" The Weldo seethed. Meanwhile, M.C. took note of this, the thought of the two Nixels plaguing his mind.

"So, what's the plan here?" Berp asked. "Oh, I've gots JUST the machine for this. But, I'll need help puttin' it together, c'mon!" Kramm ordered, rushing out of the room as the Mixels followed. Picking up his former hairs, Forx lamented the loss of the two strands as he took them along with him, sobbing as he went.

Before long, the underground construction zone was in operation once more as massive machine parts were hauled along each of the four conveyor systems leading to the central atrium. With the blade of a giant jackhammer being hauled in by a Mix of Dribbal & Kramm operating the crane, Forx and Snax leaped aboard to provide maintenance. "Wow, this stuff is awesome! I'd love to be able to work at a place like this." Snax remarked, drilling nails into the shell surrounding the blade. "I'll admit, kid, it is pretty cool at times. If ya want, after this invasion junk, swing by a couple times. Kramm and I'd be down to give ya some tutorials." Forx suggested, his mood lightened by the Muncho's curiosity and wonder. "FOR REAL?! Oh, that'd be amazing, thank- WHOA!" Snax lost his grip on the blade, slipping and crashing into the platform below, but still giving a thumbs up as Forx chuckled.

"Keep her moving, c'mon!" Gurggle beckoned with lights as the giant jackhammer was hoisted along, being fitted against the arm of a colossal mech. Leaping down, Kramm overlooked the titanic form before him, grinning. "Alright, one round of bolts and it's DONE!" He said, high-fiving Gurggle as he caught sight of M.C. staring out over a railing. "Hey, what's up with the kid? Guy's not made a contribution to all this." Kramm asked.

"That's M.C… I dunno, something's up with him. He's gone on all these adventures before, but he seems… distant." Gurggle noted. "Eh, nothing a round of hammerin' can't fix. Hey, little guy, catch!" Kramm tossed a Cubit at M.C., the Mixel turning around only to get slammed in the face by it with his reaction time delayed. "Ouch." He remarked, picking up the Cubit as Kramm chuckled and grabbed on. Tossed into the back of a cement mixer, the two Mixels were strewn about and ejected in the form of a jackhammer-esque Mix.

Bouncing place, the Mix leaped up onto the giant tool, slamming bolts into place and fixing the jackhammer to the rest of the mech. However, after finishing the last, the Mix rumbled and twisted about, before splitting. Falling to the ground, both Mixels slammed into the platform with a grunt, the Mix having come to a premature end. M.C. knew that his mental state was causing his Mixes to end early or fail in their attempts to amplify a Mixel's power, but he had to keep things a secret. Nobody could know what he had gone through, even when he was being spread thin by it all.

"Kid… what in the heck was that? I've done a few Mixes in my day, and none of em' have ever felt so… off?" Kramm asked, making M.C. stutter. "I-I don't know what just happened." He said, Kramm squinting at him. Interrupting the two was the cheering of the others as they noticed the completion of the mech, snapping both of them back to reality. "Alright! So, what's this little guy do?" Wuzzo asked. "Okay, I call this one the 'Big Shot'! Why's that? Simple, it walks up to somethin' you want gone, latches on, and BOOM! After a bit, it's ATOMIZED, gone entirely!"

"Whoa. Seems like a bit overkill." Vaka stated. "Eh, we can rebuild the tower. Sometimes we knock buildings down for fun, anyhow, heh." Kramm chuckled. "What's the jackhammer for?" Snax asked. "Show, baby! All the power comes straight from the mech's core itself!" Kramm stated, making the others grin in respect. "Well, what're we waiting for? Let's get this out there!" Slusho excitedly bounced around. "One more thing. Forx, Wuzzo, I need the two of ya to run it!" Kramm held out a Cubit, the two grabbing on and being sliced apart by a sword, their chunks blasting aside and revealing the Weldos Max.

Wasting no time, the Max took a running start and leaped into the cockpit of the mech, quickly plugging their grand drill arm into the control board as the colossal beast disconnected from its crane arms. "Get aboard, ya'll!" The Max ordered, all seven of the remaining Mixels latching onto the arm as the mech lowered to the ground, getting ready for a jump. Opening a hangar door above, the mech simply leaped straight through it, landing in the streets of the district as the battle raged on around them.

"STATE TARGET." An automated voice from within the mech sounded. "Construction tower, go!" The Weldos Max ordered. "TARGET CONFIRMED, GOODBYE." The seat of the mech ejected, launching the Max into a nearby building site as the other Mixels followed suit, watching as the mech took off down the street. Planting its feet at the base of the tower and latching onto its sides, the machine started to charge up, a deep whir sounding throughout the district to denote its power.

"And that does it! Assumin' the king's still inside, he'll be toasted! Mission accomplished, boys!" Kramm yelled, splitting from the Max and high-fiving the other Mixels, cheering. M.C. stood alone from the others, simply staring out over the district as he watched Mixel-on-Nixel brawls occur. Truly, he felt distant. He had heard Gurggle say it himself. M.C. wasn't like the other Mixels, in fact, he viewed himself as a monster. He was made to destroy them, yet he didn't. He had no reason to help them out on their quests, yet he did. All he had done had led up to his best friend's revelations that only revealed one thing: his lack of identity - all he had being based on whatever identities those Mixels he met had.

Sobbing, the other Mixels caught note of M.C. as the three Glorp Corp looked to one another, knowing what each other was thinking. Stepping forth, Dribbal cleared his throat, only to silent. He really didn't know what the Mixel was going through or what had happened to him - assuming the lack of his companion was something bad, but he had to say something, he and everyone else was worried for him. "M.C… What's going on?" Dribbal finally asked, piercing the Mixel's facade as he swallowed a lump in his throat. "Uh… whaddya mean?" M.C. replied, brushing away his tears in a panic. "Kid, we can all tell somethin's up. We ain't buyin' this gig." Kramm crossed his arms and grunted. "Everything is fine, guys. What's there to worry about?" He tried to keep up the disguise even further.

"Compagno, ever since you fell out of the sky in a laser beam, you've been acting nothing like before." Gurggle remarked. "Every one of your Mixes… they've been acting more like Murps." Waka added. "And that Murp talking about the junkyard outside Mixopolis, you never mentioned that!" Berp interjected. All of the evidence against M.C. was piling up as more was added, and it was enough to break him.

"I SAID, EVERYTHING IS FINE!" M.C. roared, a rare display of anger that silenced everyone as they looked at him in surprise, his expression quickly turning to one of regret as he heard himself echo. "I… I'm not everything you guys want me to be. I don't even know who I am anymore, not after…" M.C. choked on his own tears as they fell freely. "I'm no Mixel, but I sure ain't staying around to watch King Nixel tear this town apart."

With that, M.C. shifted into a Weldo, a chain-linked wrecking ball ejecting from his left arm as it latched against a steel girder across the street, grappling off into the horizon as he heard the others calling for him. He couldn't hold back tears anymore as he glanced up at the central tower, locking eyes with its sky-piercing roof as he took off, leaping from rooftop to rooftop as the other Mixels processed the situation.

"We… we gotta go after him. Slusho, let's Mix!" Kramm extended a Cubit, making the Mixel light up as he eagerly bit the ore. Sucked into a tornado generated by the Cubit, a Mix of the two with well-oiled wings free of slime was formed, one that laughed as they took off into a flight after M.C., finally experiencing euphoria as they soared through the air. Looking back, a variety of other Mixes took after them, landing the streets but getting caught up in the skirmishes below.

Lunging from a roof to the tower, M.C. warped into a Cragster and burst through the wall of the building, tumbling into a chamber lined with electrical wires and neon lights. Scanning the room, M.C. spotted something - the power source: a yellow Cubit shard. Plucking it from its pedestal, neon lights shut off as machines whirred to a stop, the tower deactivated. Pausing for a moment, M.C. thought about everything. King Nixel was up there - maybe not in the active construction zone, but he was there. He had one chance for revenge against the Nixel leader - the commander that likely had his creation ordered.

Steeling himself up, M.C. burst through the ceiling of the power bay with his Cragster powers, shifting into a Flexer to start scaling the primary construction zone's walls. Maybe it wasn't the best idea to go alone, but he didn't care. All M.C. wanted was some sort of resolution to the core of his issues. Holding back tears, the estranged Mixel continued on his self-destructive path.

"M.C., wait!" A voice rung out, freezing the Mixel as he looked down to see Kramm and Slusho leaning on a platform below. "Whatever you're goin' through, kid, it's not worth facin' that tyrant alone! You'll get Nixed INSTANTLY!" Kramm yelled. "Dude, just talk to us! We're your friends, no matter what…" Slusho continued. "Don't… you guys know nothing about me." M.C. choked on his own tears as he warped into an Electroid, jamming his fist into the wall and overriding a switch to seal a hatch shut between him and the two Mixels.

Up above, the battle of two Nixels raged on. Major Nixel narrowly avoided pillars of Nixelite crystals being formed around him, courtesy of King Nixel's upgrade. "GIVE UP, WEAKLING!" The King bellowed, slashing through his own crystals as Major landed a solid blow with his staff. Leaping back to avoid being torn in two, Major grunted as he activated his backpack of machinery. With hydraulics ejecting steam and the whir of automation sounding, all sorts of mechanical maestros suddenly extended around Major Nixel: mechanical arms carrying giant flyswatters, refined Nixelite blades, and even heavy-duty rocket launchers. With a smirk, Major roared as a barrage of missiles erupted and seeked King Nixel.

Leaping around, King Nixel narrowly outmaneuvered these before grabbing a missile out of mid-air, whirling around and flinging it back as his tattered cape blew over him. Anticipating this, Major Nixel simply skewered the explosive with his blades, carefully disarming it as he plucked out its innards. Glancing back at the dictator, Major's eyes widened as his form was directly in front of him, reeling back as he came in for a slash. Thinking fast, Major deflected this blow with his blades, quickly striking with the flyswatters and sending a chunk of the King's golden crown flying. With maddened eyes, King Nixel twitched before letting out a bestial cry. "ENOUGH TRICKS!"

Even with his reaction time, Major Nixel could never have been ready for what came next. A series of quick slashes tore right through Major's flyswatters, sending their heads flying aside as he moved onto the blades, only for them to be whittled away slowly. With a deafening shriek, King Nixel sliced through four of Major's six mechanical extremities and grabbed the final two, tearing them from Major's back as the Nixel was left with only his staff to defend himself. Unwilling to give up, Major roared and struck the king with the flat side of it, tilting his mustache.

"Stand down, or…" Major began, only to be interrupted by the King's twisted cackles. "Or what, Major?" He jested, lunging for the Nixel and grabbing his staff. "That's the difference between you and I, Major." He began as he tore the weapon in two, tossing one end aside as he gripped Major with his empty claw. "Only I am fit to rule, as your plans… they will ALWAYS end in FAILURE!"

Roaring, King Nixel dug the sharpened scrap of the staff through Major's suit, striking the metal roof below as Major wheezed from the blow. "You… will never…" Unable to finish, Major's mustache was shredded in one fell swoop of King Nixel's claws, sending tufts of hair scattering as the storm winds blew. "Nix… NIX? NIX, NIX!" Major panicked, his ability to speak plucked away as King Nixel cackled. "Weak as always, Major."

With a final slash, Major Nixel's entire suit was blown open, sending the true form of the Nixel sprawling as he watched the Brightspark Prism he had been carrying go flying, coming to a rest at the feet of one small Mixel. Glancing up, he recognized his creation instantly: the Mixelized Creation project from so long ago, a memory that had been forced back into his mind by an unknown force. Gritting his teeth, Major knew there was nothing he could do about it now, so he slipped away as King Nixel focused his gaze on the Mixel, out of sight as he scaled down the tower.

"Ah, we meet again, Mixelized Creation."

Lightning traveled between the clouds with a thunderous roar as the Nixel's words cut through M.C.'s mind, flashing back to his learning of the past. "Oh, surprised that I know? Please. After our little… encounter, I saw to it that I would research as to why I recognized you. What do you know it? You were a creation of the Major." King Nixel grinned as he slowly started to circle around M.C., like a shark playing with their prey.

"You know, creation, there is still a place for you in my armada. No Mixel will ever accept you once they learn the truth, so… it would be wise." King Nixel sarcastically suggested, eyeing the prism at M.C.'s feet. Picking up the artifact, M.C. stared down the disillusioned tyrant as he put the prism away, his silent look a rejection of the offer.

"Oh, please. You don't get it, creation. Balance is the key. Where Mixels live to create, we must tear it down in our endless cycle. Even the ancient Brightsparks knew that the key to existence is the harmony between light and shadow, why is it that you stand in between?" He asked, a moment of silence - bar the storm - befalling the two. "No matter what, you will never truly be a Mixel, creation. Join me, be the weapon you were created to be." Tears flowed from M.C.'s eye as he gritted his teeth following the King's words. Locked in eye contact with the tyrant, the time was now.

"Get out of this city."

Shifting into a Wiztastic, M.C. teleported behind the King, warping then into a Cragster and landing a solid blow to the back of the Nixel, sending him flying as he spun around and dug into the roof with his claws. Following up, M.C. zipped by in Electroid form - having taken notes from Murphy - as he zapped the tyrant, calling down on the storm above and channeling dozens of strikes directly on him. With one spit of Glorp Corp slime, it was charred by the storm and exploded, leaving a screen of flames and smoke.

Weak at the knees and deprived of energy, M.C. only emoted in horror as he watched King Nixel's girthy form step through the fire. "Is that all you got?" The tyrant asked sarcastically, proceeding to lunge at the Mixel with claws extended.

Below, Kramm narrowly dodged out of the course of a stray wrecking ball, watching as it bowled through entire battalions of Nixels. "Kramm, we need to stop that thing, ASAP!" Slusho yelled, only for Kramm to grimace. "We can't… I built those parts so that once it starts… it won't stop." He grimly stated. "But… we gots to try, c'mon!" Slusho prepared to move out, only to be halted by a swarm of Nixels rushing around the corner, pushing back the Mixes that were fighting against them.

M.C. teleported upwards with his Wiztastic powers to avoid a pillar of Nixelite forming almost instantly, having to soar about mid-air with his Orbiton abilities in order to stay alive. "If you cared about balance, then WHY would you get Nixels Mixing? Everything I know about this world says it's wrong, so surely that changes things, huh?!" M.C. asked, morphing into a Frosticon and sending a blast of ice at the King, tearing through his cape.

"A childish notion! Nothing changes when you simply use a means to an end." King Nixel retorted with a laugh, retracting the Nixelite shards and landing a solid punch on M.C. as the Mixel reeled, taking the moment to shift into a Lixer and slap the Nixel across the face with his extended tongue. "Think about it, you're using creativity to destroy! Is that really balance between creation and destruction?!" M.C. objected.

"I am destruction, pest."

Below, Kramm was saved by a Mix of Vaka-Waka & Wuzzo that sliced through a Nixel Mix, giving the Weldo a chance to rush towards the giant mech. Leaping inside its cockpit, he fumbled at the controls, jamming his jackhammer arm into the slot to no avail. "TARGET CONFIRMED. OVERRIDE REJECTED." The machine stated, ejecting Kramm from within. "No, no! M.C.'s still up there, C'MON!" He slammed his arm into the foot of the machine, attempting to whittle away at it to no use, panicking.

Roaring, King Nixel extended his arms outwards as spikes of Nixelite crystal ejected from his backside, targeting M.C. as he narrowly dodged. "Everything that is built by these pitiful creatures must come crashing to the ground in a cycle of destruction and rebirth, as is the natural balance of existence. Then, there's you. You are not natural, you are a mistake!"

Lunging, M.C. had no time to react as King Nixel sunk his claws into the Mixel, picking him up only to slam him back down into the roof multiple times while he wheezed. There was no way M.C. was going to win this, but he didn't care. Shifting into a Spikel, he sent a barrage of spikes launching for the King, only to watch in horror as they bounced off of his armor effortlessly. Rushing for M.C., the Mixel braced as King Nixel slashed him across the face, landing blow after blow as a shockwave rang out from the force of the King slamming M.C. into the roof.

Grabbing M.C.'s arm as the Mixel cried out in agony, King Nixel held him over the edge of the roof. "Tell me, what are you even trying to accomplish? You cannot defeat me, so why continue? The Mixels will never accept you as one of their own, so why see yourself as one? I can see through your facade and your lack of identity is ever-clear to me. What purpose is there to your meaningless existence?"

With tears rolling down his face and gritted teeth, M.C. tried in vain to continue. Everything King Nixel was saying was eating away at him, because he knew it was all true. He had no identity. He had no purpose. He didn't even know who he was beyond what everyone else told him. Shifting through a muddied mess of gradients as all of his tribal powers conjoined into one, useless mess, M.C. whimpered. "Pitiful. A bio-weapon with the power of every element… one of the Major's few strokes of genius. Albeit, poorly executed."

"Sometimes, taking a fine chisel to the work of a failure perfects it… but some are beyond saving." King Nixel declared, whipping around and slamming M.C. into the roof with a force that sent a shockwave blowing through the clouds, the Brightspark Prism flying out of M.C.'s possession as it skidded towards the center of the rooftop.

The life beaten out of him, M.C. gasped for air as King Nixel released his grip, the tyrant turning his attention to the Brightspark Prism. "Finally… the ultimate weapon." Upon uttering these words, King Nixel cackled - a disgusting, putrid sound that echoed throughout the city as the Nixel airship came into view. Major was gone - presumably - and the failure that was the Mixelized Creation was never going to find the strength to continue. As the blast doors opened and King Nixel stepped aboard, laughing as he looked to a beaten M.C. "Home base, minions. The time has come." He ordered, prompting the Nixel Mix pilots to veer the airship out of the storm.

M.C.'s vision began to blur as he rolled onto his back, looking to the sky above Above, only thunderclouds could be seen as flashes of light wisped from one to another. "Pippy…" He held one hand up to the stars, knowing his link had been severed but still trying nonetheless. Below, the mech had finished charging up, and with a single flash of a neon red, it was engulfed in a blast of light.

In the blink of an eye, the entire construction tower was atomized - only small remains and clouds of dust remaining. Free-falling, M.C.'s consciousness began to fade as the city seemed to be rising around him. Before it all faded to black, the final thing he saw was one glimmer of light.

On the ground below, a Mix of Berp & Forx prepared to ram into a titanic Nixel Mix, only for it to halt and turn to a Nixel with a megaphone. "NIX! NIIIIX!" It bellowed, seeming to have caught the attention of every King Nixel-aligned minion in the district. One-by-one, the Nixel Mixes scampered off, funneling back into the Munchos District only to be lifted up into the Nixel airship by a Nixelstorm vacuum.

With only Major's forces left, there wasn't much of a battle to fight, but that didn't stop the Weldos looking for someone to get back at as they took to the streets. "CHARGE!" A Weldo foreman hollered, prompting a retreat of the splinter faction of the Nixel Armada as various pieces of equipment were left behind. "Whew! All's well that ends well, huh?" Gurggle remarked as Kramm hurried by in a panic. "M.C.!" He cried out, making the Mixels nearby go wide-eyed.

Stirring as he was gently let down into a pile of debris, his fall broken by a familiar force, M.C. caught sight of a blurry, yellow form, someone he knew all too well. "P-Pippy… why..?" He muttered through strained breaths, eliciting no response as the being blipped away, a single tear falling as they went. It was then that another form burst through the dust, followed by others that all gasped at the sight of him.

"Guys… I…" M.C. held up his arm, only to halt as tears overcame him. Stuttering, M.C. didn't know what to say. King Nixel's words to him had cut deep, he only had that one question to ask anymore: who am I?

"Kid… you gots to tell us what just happened." Kramm finally said. Looking to the worried faces of the Mixels and knowing he couldn't run his facade any longer, tears flowed down M.C.'s face as he whimpered through choked breaths. It was all over, but he didn't care anymore. Where he once had hope for the future - to restore unity across Mixopolis - King Nixel's words had made him question everything.

"I'm… I'm a monster."

Up above, the storm clouds finally began to dissipate as the Mixel-Moon and thousands of atom stars started to shine through. All M.C. could do in that moment was sob as the truth of his origins spilled out.

"Ever since my disillusions began those many years ago, only one remained a constant."

King Nixel flashed back to the vision that had occurred to him following his defeat in the Wiztastics District: a mangled distortion of reality where the giant Cubit he had taken from the Cragsters ran its energy through him, making him take the form of a titanic beast that laid waste to Planet Mixel.

Marching through the remains of Mixopolis Park as he kept his gaze fixed on the Brightspark Prism grasped tightly in his claws, Nixel Mixes forsake the notion of lining up in rows and instead roared in support, any orderly fashion of the Nixel Armada obliterated. "When it first occurred, nothing of it was clear to me. But now, I understand it is a premonition of destiny: the inevitable restoration of the Naximum Nixel's will."

Stepping towards his crystal throne, a gleam emitted from his crazed eyes before he slashed through the seat like a knife through butter, watching as it was ground to dust by a single swipe of his Nixelite claws. Then looking to the colossal Cubit as his minions roared with applause, he grinned, placing the prism on a recently-constructed pedestal as two Nixel Mixes with scientific equipment moved in.

"This artifact once forged the weapon that slayed the Naximum Nixel, a story passed down to us through generations. A legendary tool that even the Mixels were unaware of… minions, see to it that it is reverse-engineered." King Nixel ordered as the Nixel Mixes saluted, a third hauling in a cart filled to the brim with Nixelite crystals, harvested fresh from the crevices and ravines of the Great Wasteland.

"Finally… finally. Once this work is complete, there will be no more Mixels. Mixing will be reserved for Nixels, and us ALONE! Just as the will of the Naximum Nixel states… Ha… Ha-hah… HA-HA! AHA-HA-HA! AAAH-HA-HA-HA-HAA!"

A truly demonic, vicious laugh sounded around what was once Mixopolis Park. With Major Nixel presumed out of action and the Mixel resistance led to believe their efforts in liberating Mixopolis were succeeding, King Nixel's plan was going perfectly. He had all the time in the world to wait for his giant Negative Cubit as ordered, so why not trample in the face of the Mixels once more? Why not start with something that would instill fear - a Nix Festival? King Nixel overlooked the Nixel Mixes that had gathered before him, content with what had been achieved. "Now, we celebrate. Soon, we triumph."

The countdown to the final Mix had begun.

TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER 7