Hello everyone, and today, our heroes will be finding the next mask!

Mosquito Marsh (A Few Days Ago)

Jumping out of the rift, our heroes found themselves on a dock, outside a city that was in a swamp. Within the city, music can be heard and bright lights could be found shining in the night sky.

"Huh... According to this, we're back in our original world, if only a few days in the past from where we started." Coco said as she looks at her laptop.

"That's... something." Dragnarok said as he looks into the distance. "Looks like some sort of festival."

"So it seems. Anyway, I can sense our sister, Kupuna-Wa, in the area." Lani-Loli said. "Let's get going."

With that, our heroes went onto the rooftops, where they saw various parade balloons.

Dragnarok could've swore that one of them looked like Spyro.

"I wondered what these people are celebrating?" The draconic hero asked.

"Judging the various decorations, it seems to be the Day of the Dead." Coco said.

"You don't say..." Dragnarok muttered before looking into the crowd, where he saw various humans and mutants celebrating. "Hey, what's with the mutants?"

"After Cortex's first attempt to conquer the world, mutants started appearing all over the world, to the point where they started a civilization." Aku Aku said. "Whether it be created from humans, or just came to be, mutants soon came to live side by side with humanity."

"That's... Amazing!" Dragnarok said in awe.

"Indeed. However, it's not all sunshine and rainbows." Aku Aku said with as he forms of frown. "Many humans saw mutants as nothing more than animals and freaks. Luckily, many equality groups managed to convince various governments to recognize the mutants as citizens."

"I assume PETA was one of them?" Dragnarok asked in a joking tone.

"Yes, actually." Aku Aku said, surprising the draconic hero with that tidbit. "Sadly, racism is a powerful force, as there are still humans who still view mutants as lesser beings. There is also the fact that a few humans who took a page for Cortex and made their own mutants. One of which is Sphingidae."

"Who's Sphingidae?" Dragnarok asked.

"Our version of Hawk Moth." Aku Aku said with a grim tone. "Using Cortex's mutation techniques and the butterfly miraculous, he has created mutant akumas, or the Mutakumas, as he likes to call them."

Aku Aku then shows two images of humanoid butterflies.

The first was a humanoid butterfly that was white in color. It was roughly the same size as Dragnarok and Bandicoot. It had four arms with three-digit hands. It's legs were bare, it's wings pure white, and had a calm look on it's face.

The second image was very similar humanoid butterfly, but it was dark purple in color, it's wings were pitch black with glowing purple patterns, and had a vicious look on it's face.

"Mutakumas, huh? How are they different from regular akumas?" Dragnarok asked as the images dispel.

"Like regular akumas, they are attracted to negative emotion and can akumatize people by entering objects, no matter the size." Aku Aku explained. "What makes them different is what happens when they are expelled. You know what happens when a akuma is not caught and purified, right?"

"It multiplies, the copies akumatizes turn people into the clones of the villain before the original re-akumatized the original victim." Dragnarok answered. "I never experienced this, as the only time it has happen is when Ladybug and Cat Noir first started their hero career, and I wasn't even in Paris at the time."

"Well, what makes a Mutakama different is when it is expelled, it'll start wreaking havoc, using the abilities of the villain it had helped create. It'll also re-akumatize it's victim if given the chance."

Dragnarok just let out a low whistle as Lani-Loli floats up to them.

"That's interesting and all, but we have time and space to fix!" The Mask of Phase shouted.

"Right!" Dragnarok said. "We'll discuss this later, let's go!"

And with that, they pressed on.

Moving across the rooftop, the gang saw various spirits celebrating the Day of the Dead. Some playing trumpetsand tubas, which shot fireballs, some flying around with propellor hats, others juggling fireballs on unicycles. They were so into their celebration the they didn't realize that they being a hazard.

Moving around them with the help Lani-Loli and various living party cannons, they soon reached the outer limits of the city. (While also finding another VHS tape along the way.)

While this was happening, let's switch things up, shall we?

We then find ourselves on the boardwalks, where we find Dingodile taking a stroll when his stomach growls.

"Ohoho, crikey, I'm starved!" He stated before smelling something. "Wait, is that...?" Sniffs. "Roadkill Pie?" Sniffs again. "Slug and centipede gumbo? Sniffs a third time. "Braised bat tacos with gaunamole!?"

He then runs down the boardwalk, following the scent before finding the smell's source: Dingodile's very own eatery, Dingo's Diner.

"Well now, what have we got here?" Dingodile asked before facing the reader as the camera zooms out, revealing that this was commercial on a TV. "Tired of that vile swill Papa Batfield cooks up in his filthy outhouse? C'mon down to Dingo's Diner!"

Dingodile winks at the camera before a narrator reads a disclaimer.

"Food served at Dingo's Diner may not meet the legal definition of 'food'. Consume at your own risk. Side effects of dining at Dingo's diner may include fatigue, increased body odor, risk-seeking behavior, thinking too much about your uncle, increased hunger, decreased hunger, alienation from friends and family, skin irritation, ennui, leaky orifices, oozing orifices, glowing orifices, additional orifices, gas, wumpa cheeks, remembering that girl from high school — what's she up to? Do you think she's happy? And profuse vomiting. No shirts, no shoes, no bats!"

As the commercial plays, we zoom out to see that the TV was in Dingodile's trailer home, with the mutant himself half-awake in a armchair. He then hears something from outside, causing him to jump into full alertness and look out the window. He sees a small gang of Wumpashiner Bats approaching his diner, carrying piles of explosives.

"Oi, you buggers stay outta my diner!" Dingodile shouted before getting off his armchair, grabs his Vacuum Cannon from his wall, then runs out the door. "Time for a spring cleanin'."

Immediately, he found a wall of iron crates blocking his path.

Using his Vacuum Cannon, Dingodile propels over, only to find a barricade.

Spotting a nearby TNT crate, Dingodile uses his Vacuum Cannon to suck it up, causing it to get suck on the nuzzle, he then aims it at the barricade before firing destroying it.

"Hmph! Jump on a TNT crate? What am I, a bandicoot?" The Dingo-Crocodile muttered to himself as he continued on.

Moving across the boardwalks and fighting his way through Wumpashiner bat, who were mostly Papa Batfield's goons, he soon reaches his diner, only to see it blown up.

"Argh! Bastards! I'll get every last one of yas!" Dingodile shouted in anger. Approaching the remains, he looks down in sadness. "Awww, I made all them tablecloths m'self..."

Deciding to get back at the ones who caused this, Dingodile heads for Papa Batfield's place.

Fighting his way more goons and maneuvering pass and blasting through various equipment owned by Papa Batfield, he reaches his business rival's diner. Seeing a nearby TNT crate, Dingodile sucks it before firing at the diner, blowing it up.

"Hahaha! How do you like them wumpas?" Dingodile taunted before blowing the Vacuum Cannon's muzzle.

Suddenly, rift opens right beneath is feet, causing him to fall right in.

Back with our heroes, they found a river flowing through the city.

"Not much farther, Kupuna-Wa is just up ahead." Lani-Loli said.

"Got it." Coco said as she took out the jet broads.

Jumping on his, Bandicoot floats around for a bit before crashing into a wall.

The impact causes a yellow gem to fall from the roof and into Bandicoot's left front pocket.

After Bandicoot recovers, the three jet down the river, avoiding mines and whirlpools before reaching a dock on a boardwalk, which lead out of the city.

Upon reaching the end of the walk, the jet broad were brought out as the three jetted through the water. Fighting against the current, as well as avoiding more mines.

Reaching another dock, they saw a rift open then close as some sort of restaurant boat floated underneath it, on the boat's side was painting of Dingodile, spatula in one head is right head, and a burger with bat wings sticking out in his left.

?!

Walking up the boat's driver, an armadillo mutant, Dragnarok's rings a waiting bell, getting the mutant's attention.

"Ello'! What do you want to order?" The mutant asked.

"We're not here to eat." Coco said, looking at the menu in disgust. "We're looking for a mask, have you seeing it?"

"Well, I see some sort of mask on my route." The armadillo said after some pondering. "Look, I'll cut you all a deal. my boss' business rival had blocked my route. Clear the way, and I'll take you all to your mask. Deal?"

"Deal." Coco, Dragnarok, and the masks said.

"Then hop aboard."

Getting on the boat's roof, our heroes cleared the path as the boat sails along. They cleared walls of TNT crates (As well as finding another VHS tape), before reaching a dock.

"I seen the mask down there. Good luck!" The Armadillo said before sailing off.

Getting a jet broads out once more, the three has sail along a current going down hill, all while avoiding mines, TNT crates, Nitro crates, and being fired at by Wumpashiner bat, who thought they were with Dingodile.

Along the way, Dragnarok could've swore he saw a person who looked a lot like Bandicoot, only to be wearing green pants and had a bushy eyebrows and a huge overbite, dancing.

They soon reached a dock with a food stand, and floating in front of it was Kupuna-Wa, was a sleeping. She yawns and wakes up as our heroes approach her.

"Wah? What time is it? Oh goodness, I ought to know... " Kupuna-Wa muttered before spotting the heroes. "Chris! Crash! Coco! C'mon, give old Kupuna-Wa a kiss, eh?" She then kisses Bandicoot's nose, causing the orange hero to become daze. She then notices the confused looks Coco and Dragnarok are giving her a confused look. "Don't look at me like I broke wind at a wedding. I'm Time! I see everything! And I mean everything. There's some very unexpected developments in your future. Your very near future. SHOCKING events that will CHANGE THE COURSE OF YOUR LIFE—"

Lani-Loli hastily darts in between Kupuna-Wa and our heroes.

"Yeah, just gonna stop you there before you tell us how we all die!" The Mask of Phase said nervously.

"Well, if you'd rather not know about the GIANT, mask eating monster from beyond the stars..." Kupuna-Wa said cheekily.

"Leaving now!" Lani-Loli said as he, Akano, and Aku Aku float to a rift that just opened.

"...that is your choice! Hehehee!" Kupuna-Wa finished with a giggle.

Bandicoot and Coco then enter the rift. Dragnarok was about to follow, but Kupuna-Wa floats in front of him with a serious look.

"I can see all, but you..." She started as she floats around the draconic hero with a calculating look. "I see thousands of your future, coming and going like bubbles in boiling water. Some similar but not the exact same, others completely different. Some where you follow the light, others where you dance with darkness." She then floats in front of Dragnarok's face. "But I see one thing that will come to be, for certain."

"And that is?" Dragnarok asked, a little freaked out.

"I'll give you this: Don't listen to the serpent's whisper..." Kupuna-Wa said before going into the rift.

Dragnarok stood there for a sec before going into the rift, questions pledging his mind.

And that's that!

Sorry if this chapter is a little short, but other than Dingodile and Kupana-Wa, nothing really happens in this world.

I did take the time to explain some details on Bandicoot's world.

Anyway, I'll see you next time!