Chapter 5: Reunion, Revelation, & Revolution Part 6
Guardians:
Ruby (Pokémon Adventures): The Charmer
Junko Konno (Zombie Land Saga): The Showa (Zombie) Idol
Linhardt von Hevring (Fire Emblem: Three Houses): The Sleepy Crest Scholar
Bucky Barnes (Marvel Cinematic Universe): The Veteran Sergeant
Blaze The Cat (Sonic The Hedgehog): The Fire Princess
Yamcha (Dragon Ball): The Wolf Fang Fist
Komaru Naegi (Danganronpa): The Hopeful Heart
Sapphire Birch (Pokémon Adventures): The Conqueror
Michiru Kagemori (BNA: Brand New Animal): The Shapeshifting Beast Girl
Masaomi Kida (Durarara!): The Casanova
Scott Lang/Ant-Man (Marvel Cinematic Universe): The Ex-Thief
Ponzu (Hunter X Hunter): The Queen Bee
Ashe (Fire Emblem: Three Houses): The Arrow of Justice
Waluigi (Super Mario Bros.): The Cheating Trickster
Stan Marsh/Toolshed and Wendy Testaburger/Call Girl (South Park): The Power Couple
Oswald the Lucky Rabbit (Disney/Disney's Epic Mickey): The Forgotten King
Zetsubou Members:
Monaca Towa (Danganronpa): The Li'l Ultimate Homeroom
Ultron (Marvel Cinematic Universe): The Rogue A.I.
General Tao (Dragon Ball): The Mercenary
Agatha (Pokémon Adventures): The Elder
Dr. Eggman Nega (Sonic The Hedgehog): The Mad Scientist
Big Bad Pete, Petetronic, Small Pete, & Pete Pan (Disney's Epic Mickey): The Brutes
!
Third-Person POV
Insert Song: Skeleton Dance (Disney's Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two)
Ruby, Sapphire, Junko, and Linhardt strolled through the manor with slight unease, due to the sinister atmosphere throughout its spider web-covered halls.
"EYAAAHHH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!" Junko let out a scream as her face went right through a web with a spider attached to it.
Linhardt declines, "No way. Blood is already revolting to see, but getting arachnid blood on my hand? You'd have to carry me through the rest of this place."
"I gotcha!" Sapphire slapped Junko's cheek, causing her head to spin around much to her shock, "YAAAAHHH! THE HECK'S GOING ON?!"
"You forgot she was a zombie, didn't you?" Ruby shook his head as he opened the door to the next room.
A library with what looked like hundreds of shelves filled with thousands of books was spread out before them. Junko grabbed her head and moved it back to the front before being in awe of the wave of bookshelves all around her. Large wooden rafters were above their heads and there were paintings that were turned any way but rightside up, with Ruby stopping to adjust one portrait in order to make the room more aesthetically pleasing.
"This library makes the ones in the monastery and Abyss look so miniscule… If I had the time, I could do about a month's worth of research, and that would only be a small fraction of this place!" Linhardt sounded like a kid in a candy store, browsing through the selection of novels and ancient texts.
Junko was surprised by his sudden change of attitude, "This is the first time I've seen you be so enthusiastic about anything! You enjoy your research quite a lot, don't you?"
"It's the reason why I often forsake sleep at night and choose to do so during the day, it's that important. Just being in a library this vast makes me feel at home. If I manage to fail at being a crest scholar, then librarian would be the next best choice." Linhardt plucked another book off a shelf as he explained to her.
"Huh, it's so weird seeing him be so chipper about something. I'm so used to his sleepiness or uncaring attitude that I never thought I'd ever see the day…" Ruby's eyes widened as he saw Lin sit down with his pile.
"Hey! We've got no time for this, get yer head outta those books, Green Geek!" Sapphire yelled from the top of the staircase.
Linhardt's eyebrows lowered in annoyance, "First of all, your voice should be lowered when in a library. Second, I am going to ignore whatever you just called me and oh look, a book that I was just about to read. I better get back to it and not listen to your loud insults, take care."
"Grrrr… you.. GAH!" Sapphire got tired of talking to the aloof student as she continued making her way up to the rafters.
Junko looked over Lin's shoulder and tapped it, "She does have a point, Linhardt. Maybe once we take care of the generator we could come back?"
Linhardt grunted as he turned another page, "What? And waste more time in combat than furthering the development of my mind? Not how I would want to spend this evening. Besides, there could be an opportunity to discover another way forward than what that fanged girl could have…"
"GAR!"
"AAAAAAAAAAAGGGHHHHH!" Linhardt and Junko screamed from the sudden scare from a Gengar inside the book, as Ruby did the same from another Gengar appearing from a painting.
"I think I'm fine with departing from here now, I stand corrected." Linhardt stated as he tried catching his breath.
Insert Song: The Verge of Death (Fire Emblem: Three Houses)
"Gehehehehehehe!" Gengars laughed in their faces before dropping a couple Shadow Balls on them and they chose to take shelter behind a bookshelf.
Sapphire called out to the trio down below her, "You guys alright?! Huh?", landing on the opposite rafter was an Alolan Marowak.
The Ghost/Fire variant of the Kanto Ground type spun its wispy bones before striking Sapphire's rafter, setting it ablaze with cyan flames. Sapphire didn't want to let out a Pokémon that was too heavy and bringing Chic out would just increase the flames, so she had no choice but to take out Kirly the Gallade despite the type disadvantage.
"Night Slash!" She commanded him and it did some super effective damage on the Marowak.
Another one happens to join the party while picking up its companion. Sapphire grits her teeth as we turn our attention downstairs.
"Thanks to you creatures, I have lost all my motivation for research and for that I might actually put in the effort to put you down for good." Linhardt told the Gengars as he shot a Cutting Gale at the left one.
"Feefee, send a chill up his spine with Ice Beam!" Ruby orders his beautiful Milotic to freeze the one on the right, unfortunately it dodged and began to taunt the contest champion.
Junko saw this opportunity and struck with some magic of her own, "Sagittae! Nosferatu!", with both spells hitting the distracted ghost.
Both the Gengars got back up though, shaking off the damage they just took with some wide grins.
"These ones are tough, definitely Pokémon raised by a former Elite Four member." Ruby informs his teammates.
"They're quick and can become incorporeal as well, what do we do?" Junko asks them.
Linhardt smells the smoke from above them and then a wooden plank falls near the Gengar duo, and a lightbulb goes off in his head. Sapphire was still battling the Marowaks, while making sure Kirly was safe by throwing him Oran Berries.
"Lead them to the falling planks. Once they dodge them, that is when we strike." Linhardt gave the strategy as his fellow Guardians nodded in agreement.
Ruby and Junko played their parts in getting the Gengar twins intro position and letting them have it with the correct timing on their attacks. With the ghost Pokémon stunned, Linhardt punishes them with a powerful wind spell.
"Excalibur!"
With the Gengar taken care of, Sapphire finished off the Marowak that were unable to capitalize on its type advantage.
"Ha ha! Amazing job, Kir-LYYYYYYYYYYYYY!" The wooden support beams from under Sapphire's feet broke apart and she began to fall.
Ruby gasped before giving Feefee another command, "Ice Beam, quickly now!"
Feefee made an ice slide for Sapphire to land on in the air and when she reached the very bottom Ruby caught her in his arms.
"Gee, coulda made a bigger mess of the place. Thanks, Ruby."
"My pleasure, Sapphire."
Ruby then caught Junko looking on with her hands clasped and excitement in her eyes, alongside a smirking Linhardt with his hands on his hips. Ruby immediately placed Sapphire back on the ground and the two Pokédex holders looked away from each other with a red glow on their cheeks.
"A-Anyways, let's find the way outta here. There's gotta be another door." Sapphire coughed as she tried changing the subject.
"RUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!" A roar then echoed through the library as something big and ugly landed in front of them.
A Slobber, the large rageful blotling with sharp thinner claws and powerful lungs to pull an unlucky victim in to slash at. Those lungs are exactly what it's choosing to put to good use now as it attempts to suck in the four young heroes.
"Gah!"
"Tch…"
"Ugh…"
"Ah!"
Closer and closer they got to the monster's vicinity, Upon seeing a large hardcover tome on the desk near her, Junko grabbed it and chucked it directly into the Slobber's jaw to buy them some time.
"Wait just a moment, I saw this creature in here." Linhardt flipped through the pages of Blotling Biology before reading the passage aloud, "Aside from the usage of paint and thinner, one other way to defeat the deadly Slobber is for someone with enough mystical power to say the following incantation. Looks like this is something I'll have to do."
"No, I'll assist as well. It's why I chose to study magic at the monastery, so we don't have to rely on you too much." Junko volunteers to partner up with him, to his mild surprise.
"Very well then, might be an interesting experiment. Do you two mind keeping that creature occupied?" Linhardt turned to the Hoenn trainers.
Ruby and Sapphire nodded as they took out their starters.
"Chic!"
"Mumu!"
Blaziken and Swampert prepared to tag team the Slobber as it spat out the thick novel and growled. Junko and Linhardt prepared to read the incantation together as they faced down the beastly blotling. Both taking deep breaths in so that they won't slip up when they begin channeling the mystic energy within themselves.
"GRAGH!" The Slobber roared as it slashed a bookcase to pieces before Mumu hit it with Muddy Water and Chic landed a Blaze Kick.
"Anytime now!' Sapphire tells Junko and Linhardt as they continue to charge.
"Impatience will only make this less likely to work… okay! Are you ready, Junko?"
"Yes, let's send it away for good!"
"Clobber, clobber the ugly Slobber. Melt him away and away he will stay."
In an instant, the Slobber turned light green and began to melt into the carpet. A bubbling mass of paint-like liquid spread across the floor as everyone saw the exit door open. The trainer returned their Pokémon to their balls after healing them up.
"Urk, I'll need a long shower once this is over…" A nauseous Ruby immediately exited.
Sapphire looked to Linhardt with her eyebrows lowered, with the green-haired boy expecting another beratement.
"... You did good, Green Geek. You too, Junko!"
"Huh… Thank you." Linhardt replied with both of his eyebrows raised.
Sapphire grinned as she ran off to catch up to Ruby. Linhardt wiped a bit of sweat from his forehead as he sighed in relief from the battle ending.
Junko's hand unclenched from her chest as she sighs as well, "That was terrifying, but exhilarating at the same time. We defeated a monster just like that!"
"It was a much more simple incantation to read than most, though admittedly the amount of energy needed to use it was unexpectedly much. With that in mind… I appreciate your assistance, you really have gotten some magical prowess." Linhardt complimented her.
The Showa Idol smiled as she raised her hand slightly up so that Lin could give her a high-five. After nearly twenty seconds of leaving her hanging, Linhardt reciprocated the gesture and their hands clapped together. Linhardt softly smiles himself, as he sees the floofy-haired girl beam at him with joy.
The group of four continued to ascend each floor of the manor, from the unsettling Stretching Picture Room, to the large pipe organ in the shape of the devil, Chernabog. It was no problem with the collaboration between them all, which soon led them to their last stop: the attic.
"We're about to take care of the generator in this land, we'll let you know if things go south or if we're ready to leave. The train station? Okay, sure thing, see you later." Ruby turned off his earpiece communicator as the conversation ended, "Once we're done here, we'll all get on the train directly to Dark Beauty Castle."
Linhardt recalled what he found outside the mansion and his mind began to worry, "If we even make it out of here…"
"Hm?" Junko who was walking beside him heard a bit of what he said to himself and now she's wondering what was up.
Sapphire then kicked the door in and there stood Agatha, right in front of two Monokuma generators.
"Two of 'em?!", the forest-raised Pokémon trainer exclaimed at the sight.
"Stay calm, child. I will not be activating them until I take care of you. You may have managed to defeat a few of my Pokémon in the library, yet I still have more by my side."
Right as she said that, out came two more Gengars alongside a Haunter, an Arbok, a Crobat and a Golbat, a Mismagius with a pair of Misdreavus, two Weezings, and a Muk. Ghost and Poison types surrounded our team.
Agatha slammed her cane down and made a challenge, "Four of you using your own Pokémon, and three of my Pokémon for each of you. Knock out all of them and I'll shut down the generators myself."
Sapphire grabbed some Pokéballs off her belt and enlarged them, "I'm just gonna send you and yer Pokémon flying, whether you play fair or not."
Linhardt raised a finger to object on something "Um, excuse me miss, but I'm not a—"
Agatha pointed at him using her cane, "Then borrow some of them from your companions, I will not allow any other type of fighting here! My tools for battle shall strike you down without any need of any robotic army. This a test on whether or not you are strong enough to survive an encounter with…. Ahahahahaha! No, you won't have to worry about that, after all, this will be over before the battle begins. Now enough with the formalities! Let's get started…"
Junko handed Linhardt Fuwafuwa the Whimsicott and Ruby gave him Fofo the Castform.
"We'll let you know just how to command them." Ruby offered him even more help.
"Don't you dare! If you don't play fair, then I don't." Agatha told them in a serious tone.
Linhardt whipped out the journal he had been writing in and he flipped around to see what he observed about each of their Pokémon, which includes the moves used.
"If anything, this gives me the chance to research what it's like to actually control these creatures. At least there's some benefit to this battle."
Junko turns to her three allies and tells them, "Good luck.", before taking out her Salamence, Ryū and Ai, her Espurr.
Sapphire chose her Donphan and Tropius, Phado and Troppy, while Ruby opted for Rara the Gardevoir and Nana the Mightyena.
The Muk, Arbok, and Haunter went after Junko, Linhardt fought one Weezing and the two Misdreavus, Ruby is going for the Mismagius, a Gengar, and the Crobat, as the second Weezing, the Golbat, and the other Gengar attacked Sapphire. (Got all that?)
Insert Song: Battle! Elite Four Agatha (Pokémon Masters EX)
"Misty Terrain!" Ruby told Rara.
"Rain Dance, please." Linhardt informed Fofo calmly.
Rain was pouring down from the holes in the roof of the manor and the wooden floor began to glow with a pinkish aura. Fofo transformed into its rain form, and the Misty Terrain prevented any status conditions from affecting their Pokémon.
"Dragon Claw, Ryū!" Junko's Salamence sliced at the Arbok and managed to KO him.
Agatha stared at Junko after her attack, impressed at the power showcased by the girl.
"That's the Salamence we sent to attack that one city… where have I seen this girl's face before?"
Sapphire chose to aim for one Pokémon at a time, " Rollout on that Golbat, Phado! Then use Aerial Ace to finish it off, Troppy!"
"Nana, Crunch!" Ruby tells her and she did heavy damage to the enemy Gengar.
"Moonblast." Linhardt bluntly said the move he wanted Fuwafuwa to make.
"Ai-san… Psyshock!" Junko shouted as her second move.
Agatha wasn't shouting her commands like they were, it was like a routine that they memorized for a long period of time. So much so that they didn't need to communicate through words, a connection between a trainer and their Pokémon that can only be forged through many years of battling. That is what makes Agatha elite.
Switching out a tired Phado for Rono the Aggron, Sapphire panted heavily from shouting her commands too loudly.
"About… half of 'em… left to go…"
"Tch, I knew that they wouldn't obey my commands for very long. They really do need to see a trainer as strong enough to give them orders, like a competent strategist leading an army…" Linhardt gets back up after getting knocked silly by a Misdreavus Power Gem.
Ruby tosses him a few Pokéblocks, "Feed the green one to Fofo, and the pink one to Fuwafuwa. That should help with getting them to listen for a while."
"Sapphire, they're down to just six, but they're not slowing down. What now?" Junko asked her new companion as Agatha was getting impatient.
With just a swipe of her hand, her beloved ghosts launched multiple Shadow Balls at the four young trainers. Junko gets knocked to the wood floor and the rain drops landed on her face to wash off her makeup.
Agatha's eyes go wide at the sight of her patchwork face, "You… you're the zombie girl we put that prototype tracker in…"
"Agh, so it was true… Why did you do this?" Junko asked as she picked herself up.
Agatha cackled softly as she tells the tale, "We were searching for candidates for Team Zetsubou's killing games and we just so happened to stumble upon a world where the undead could become idols… we picked up three candidates that all looked promising, and we chose you to be the recipient of a new device that would allow us to locate participants even when security cameras were offline."
Junko gasped, "Killing game…? That means that two of my friends are…"
"Placed in a scenario where they could end up killed or even driven mad and kill others. Fascinating concept, and we did the same to your worlds as well." Agatha's sinister smile causes the others to flinch.
Linhardt looked truly disgusted after hearing this, "That explains the missing students. Bernadetta… she's probably…"
"No wonder our seniors and juniors couldn't help us, some of 'em were taken and put into those murder games!" Sapphire's already bad mood got even worse.
"In the end however, our rosters were filled up quickly and we had no room for the likes of you. So we tossed you away, along with our other candidates that didn't fit the mold…" Agatha turned away as our heroes had to contemplate this new information.
"That's why so many of us were not in our home worlds… you kidnapped us and others we know!" Ruby accused her.
Agatha was quick to deny it, "Not all of you, we were of course looking for those around the teenage to twenties in age range. The rest of you likely were sucked into the rifts we created by traveling through the multiverse, popping in out of nowhere like irritating insects on our conquest to power. Oh you poor, poor, children…"
The four of them looked absolutely crushed after hearing this news about either themselves or people they know. Playing with their lives and breaking reality all for the sake of fun and conquest. In response to everything that old hag had just told them, Ruby and Sapphire's fingers pressed the buttons on their Mega Bracelets, Junko's hands start to get chilly with ice and Ai the Espurr began to glow brightly, Linhardt tossed his borrowed Pokémon their Pokéblocks and whipped out his Wind Tome.
No more playing around and following her rules.
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Rara has Mega Evolved into Mega Gardevoir!
Rono has Mega Evolved into Mega Aggron!
Congratulations! Junko's Ai evolved into Meowstic!
They all glared at the old woman with immense anger as they gave up on doing things her way, unleashing attacks from left and right. Bombarding the ghastly elder with everything they've got, from both Pokémon and magic tomes.
"EARTHQUAKE!" Sapphire roared.
"Dazzling Gleam!" Ruby orders Rara.
"Psychic! Dragon Pulse! Blizzard!" Junko's voice deepened as she said that, as if she were using her singing voice.
"Weather Ball, Giga Drain… and Excalibur!"
"AAAAAGH!" Agatha cries out when she gets blasted away herself, getting knocked right into the eye of one of the Monokuma Generators.
The old woman's aging body could surprisingly still move after that, but she was still cornered by the "poor children" she mocked earlier.
"Game over, grandma." Sapphire tells her as right behind her was a stack of Agatha's Pokémon, all KO'd from that final rush.
Ruby looked over the damage done to the generator and turned back to his companions.
"It looks like this one won't need any work. Let's take care of the other one and get to the train station."
"You've all managed to impress me… congratulations, but my apologies, children. It's unfortunate that I have to break the news that you won't be making it out of here alive." Agatha then pressed a button on a remote and the other Monokuma generator activated.
As the robot bears poured out of the machine's mouth, a certain sound begins to resonate throughout the attic, making everyone stop in place.
"Sapphire, what was that move that you yelled out a minute ago?" Linhardt asked.
"Er… Earthquake?" She answered.
Linhardt took a second to take a breath before responding to that.
"... Run."
And run they did, as the wooden floor below them began to give way and break apart, along with floors below them too. The entire manor was crumbling to the ground and the pressure was beginning to take effect on the hilltop it was sitting on. Not to mention crowds upon crowds of Monokumas chasing them.
Sapphire had a fainted Agatha over her shoulder as the four of them tried to escape the destruction.
"The exit's too far from here, we can't run all the way there in time!" Junko informed the group.
Ruby then remembered a spell that Linhardt could use, "Can you warp us out of here like you did back then?"
"I could barely use Warp on two people without getting exhausted, with five including myself that could—"
Suddenly, the manor starts to tilt as everything begins to fall down the large chasm. The Monokumas were digging their claws into the floorboards and were climbing up, even using each other as platforms.
"JUST TRY!" Ruby shouts at Lin as a chandelier nearly lands on them.
Linhardt takes out his Warp Staff and grumbles to himself, "Rude. Very well then… WARP!"
.
.
.
.
.
.
Thankfully… the spell was successful and they landed near the outskirts of Lonesome Manor. Watching it fall down into the depths, along with the dozens of Monokuma units that were only just produced.
Mission accomplished.
"That was a close one… Linhardt? LINHARDT?!" Junko frantically shakes the boy, worried about his condition after using up all of his energy to warp them out.
She turned him over to see his face and… he was asleep. Feeling relieved, yet also annoyed, she just hugged him as the two Hoenn trainers breathed easy.
Ruby activated his earpiece once more, "This is Ruby, we're done here."
"Aw, come on! Ya can't lock me up in here, I'm the one who runs this jail!" Big Bad Pete clenches the bars of his cell, the other Petes placed in the three other ones next to him.
"Just be glad we didn't stuff you all into one." Ponzu tells him as she brushes her clothes off and exits Town Hall.
"Great, we'll be there to pick you up in about thirty minutes." Bucky turns off the earpiece as he gathers his group up.
Yamcha and Waluigi were caught trying to mimic the pointing pose of the Walt Statue before immediately stopping when they got odd looks from Bucky and Ponzu.
Yamcha rubs the back of his head, embarrassed, "S-Sorry, the kids got out okay?"
Bucky nodded, "Yeah, gonna take the extra time we need to catch our breath before we get going to the Dark Beauty."
"Uh oh, it doesn't seem like we're getting that extra time. Look over there!" Ponzu called for their attention.
The storm over the castle has gotten bigger, and now she saw something else as well: people fighting Blot-O-Kumas near the castle entrance.
"Who's this guy with the cape?" She asked as Bucky ushered her to hand him her goggles.
He looked through and immediately recognized who she was referring to, "Strange?".
"I know it's strange, but—"
Bucky cut Ponzu off, "We need to go."
Bucky informs Ruby, Oswald, and Blaze of the situation on his communicator as he runs to Mean Street Station.
"All aboard!" The cow train conductor yelled out as everyone took their seats, "Before we set off, is there anyone visiting from out of town?"
"CHOO CHOO NOW, STUPID COW!" Waluigi yelled from the back impatiently.
"Geez, I was just asking…" The conductor pulled the lever sadly as the train took off and began to pass by each station to pick up every group.
Once everyone was gathered, they began an open discussion.
"Why are we bringing them along? They need to be locked up first!" Masaomi refers to the Zetsubou Generals all in their own section of the train car.
"Yeah! This guy tried to murder us!" Wendy pointed at Tao, whose body just flopped into the aisle.
Blaze questioned the reasoning as well, "There's a likely chance that they will escape, why risk it now?"
Ponzu pointed to the sky, "Those clouds are not your usual thunder clouds, and there are already people there fighting Team Zetsubou as we speak."
"Really, who?" Ashe's eyes went wide at the new info.
Bucky begins to reveal what he knows, "From what I could tell, it was that black hedgehog you know, Blaze…"
"Shadow?!" Blaze recognized that description.
"... And one Dr. Stephen Strange. A powerful sorcerer that keeps tabs on dangerous threats in our universe."
"You're kidding—ow!" Scott felt the pain of his earlier injury come back to bite him with that sudden movement.
Junko (with Ruby reapplying her makeup) put a hand on his back to check on it, "Don't move too much, please! We just need to wait until Linhardt wakes up…"
The green-haired healer was snoozing away in his seat, as Yamcha tried to keep his head from leaning on his shoulder.
"And it's more likely that their leader will punish these three for failing again, rather than setting them free. If you're really worried about them escaping, keep an eye on them." Bucky referred to the still unconscious generals.
Oswald shrugged, "If you say so, fellow old-timer. If they try to pull something, I'm zapping them."
After a few more minutes of riding the rails the conductor pulls into the station at Dark Beauty Castle. The once stunning structure where firework shows were hosted every night was now a fortress to those dedicated to the spread of despair. Everyone ran as fast as they could in the moment, most of them still tired from the battles they recently faced. Michiru was carrying around the generals inside her enlarged tail shield.
"Hurry, I can hear the fighting from here!" Blaze said from the front of the pack.
"Eh? What is that sound? That was so close to being one of the best naps I've ever had…" Linhardt awakened as Yamcha had been carrying him under his arm.
The Guardians arrive at the location Ponzu saw and it was a warzone, robot parts scattered all over and melted Blotlings spread across the stone pathway.
"Hey, Strange!" Bucky calls out to the Master of The Mystic Arts as he uses a magical whip to swing a Blot-O-Kuma into the depths.
"Barnes, Lang?! What the hell are you doing here? And… is that Oswald the Lucky Rabbit?"
Oswald was once again taken aback, "Excuse me, how—"
"Photographic memory. You debuted in 1927 in Trolley Troubles, Walt Disney lost the rights to Universal before you got traded back to the Disney company in 2006 for Al Michaels... It was a trivia question the other night." Strange answered in as much depth as he could.
"Huh… maybe a lot more people remember me than I thought." Oswald realized.
"Was gonna ask you that same question, doc. You got dragged into this mess too?" Bucky smashed the head of a Monokuma with his boot.
"We were informed of this conflict by our spiky associate over there while we were in the middle of looking for some things. And it just so happened that he had one of them." Strange pointed to Shadow, who just threw three Chaos spears to take down three Bomber Monokumas.
Shadow crossed his arms as he saw the Guardians, "Hmph, was wondering what took you all so long to show up. Now would you mind cutting the chit chat and keep dwindling their numbers?"
"Good to see you're doing well too, Shadow." Blaze rolled her eyes.
"America Chavez, nice to meet you all!" The girl with the star portal punch greeted them.
"So the Insectoid Thief and the Assassin with the Iron Fist have descended upon the battlefield. And with them the cavalry, fuhahahahaha! Perfect, now our enemies find themselves truly outmatched by our might!" Gundham Tanaka rambles as the majority of the Guardians look confused.
Strange just brushed him off, "He's eccentric, just let him have his fun and ignore what he says. We're pretty held up here, so if you all are planning to chase after those responsible, some of you stay behind so we can take care of this quickly. "
"I'm going up, I need to get to my brother before those bozos do anymore things to him! If anyone wants to help out, follow me, this is my second home so I know the layout. " Oswald tells the others as he departs.
Komaru, Masaomi, Ruby, Yamcha, Ashe, and Michiru followed the Lucky Rabbit through the castle as the rest dealt with what remained of the army. Scott tried to go with them, yet Junko and Blaze held him back.
"No no, I can still go. They're out there rescuing Mickey freaking Mouse, I gotta… agh."
"You can't fight in your condition, let us defend you while you're vulnerable. Linhardt, get to healing, quick!" Junko tells the green-haired boy to patch up Scott.
Linhardt got out his Faith magic tome and enveloped his hand in light, "Immediately thrown from one conflict to another…"
Oswald's group hit a split path and the toon was considering his options.
"Up here, this is the way to the Fireworks Control Tower! No wait, they'd probably be in the Throne Room! Er… maybe they're…"
"C'mon, make up your mind, Ozzie! They could be planning to escape!" Yamcha tells him in annoyance.
"Agh, fine! You three, go to the Throne Room, while we go to the Control Tower!" Oswald points to Michiru, Ashe, and Masaomi as he, Ruby, Komaru, and Yamcha went up the stairs.
"I… need to drop this extra weight. Gah!" Michiru's tail went back to normal size and the three generals flopped to the stone floor.
Ashe looked at Tao in particular with disdain, "Allow me to make sure they will stay put."
The freckled boy planted arrows into the sleeves of Agatha, Tao, and Eggman Nega so they wouldn't move. The three of them took off for the Throne Room, as the cyborg eyes of Mercenary Tao began to flicker on…
"Another fork in the road? This castle is like a maze, how did that rabbit manage to live here?" Masaomi complained.
Two hallways, both illuminated by lanterns and showing no discernible differences.
Michiru looked both ways and made her choice, "I'll use my cheetah speed to check out that left side first, I'll be right back!"
Quickly dashing through that hallway, Ashe and Masaomi awaited her return. This made the blonde teen bored and he tried to strike up a conversation.
"So…. I see that you and Junko have been getting along well, huh man?"
Ashe gave him an honest smile, "Of course, she's so caring and easy to approach. I'm happy to call her a friend."
Masaomi raised his eyebrow in a cocky way, "Is that really how you see her, only as a friend? I'm sure you have some other thoughts in your head about her, heh heh."
"Huh? What are you accusing me of? Junko is an amazing person, even despite her background as an undead being. She has a spectacular singing voice and we both have admirable dreams to follow. I could never have any terrible thoughts about someone that kind to me!" Ashe defended himself and her.
"Look, you want to be a knight, yeah?" Masaomi asked.
"Y-Yes..?" Ashe answered awkwardly.
Masaomi leaned up against the wall, trying to look cool, "And knights in stories always try to save damsels. What I'm trying to say is that go for that chance if you want to be like that, express your good feelings about her through words, actions, whatever makes you comfortable … do it. I see you two being all blushy around each other and I know what could happen if one of you doesn't make a move. Show her how much she means to you, capeesh?"
Before Ashe could respond to the advice, Michiru came running back.
"Nothing over there! Let's try this path, guys!"
"Think about it, okay? After all, love is a leveler." Masaomi told Ashe as the three of them took the right path.
…. Then another Michiru runs out of the left pathway just like the previous one.
"It was a dead end, the other way should… hello? Where did you two go? Ashe? Masaomi?"
Insert Song: Blot Interior Combat (Disney's Epic Mickey)
"I can see light! This is the end, I know it!" Komaru reached the top of the stairs first as everyone else caught up.
Oswald took a few steps into the tower before a voice stopped him in his tracks.
"You know, fireworks are so cool when they make them explode into different shapes and colors. I wonder what would happen if we strap you all to one, it'll probably be so pretty to watch!"
"M-Monaca?! I thought you were in space?!" Komaru recognized the little pickle-haired demon girl.
Monaca giggled, "I was, until my ship ended up sucked into a rift and I met so many new friends! They saw how bored I was with the hope and despair nonsense, so they showed me how wonderful other worlds can be!"
Right as she mentioned her "friends", out walked the three generals that were brought to the castle with them.
"Heh heh heh heh heh, once again that boy with the silver hair was too weak to take our lives… And it did nothing but lead to the deaths of his allies…" Tao smirked.
Yamcha immediately got into a fighting pose, "No problem, we'll just kick your butts again. Plain and simple!"
Eggman Nega laughs in his face, "Ohohohohohoho! Indeed it's simple… for us that is. Let me introduce the fruits of my collaboration with Miss Towa… Behold, Shadow Ultron!"
His footsteps clanged with every step, along with the sound of something dropping on the floor. His shadow extended far into the room before he even entered, giving the four Guardians a sense of dread. As he entered the room Oswald immediately fired a stream of electricity from his remote, and the inky android used his Blot abilities to neutralize the blast and strike Oswald into a wall from afar.
"Oswald!" Komaru and Ruby ran over to the former cartoon star.
Shadow Ultron, an unholy combination of magic and machine. With the extraction of both the Shadow Blot's remains and the heart from Mickey Mouse, a Green Chaos Emerald lodged in his skull, further empowered by Yen Sid's Brush and spare Phantom Ruby energy, all contained within a cold husk of black titanium alloy. A shadowy cloak and horns formed from corrupted paint and thinner flowing from his body, with the heart of the most popular cartoon character locked behind a cage shaped like iron bones.
A shivering Yamcha gulped, "This guy's power… I can feel it…"
"Can you now? Then allow me to display more of it, since I think that first move was pretty lacking." Shadow Ultron's robotic voice stunned the martial artist into silence as he made his next move.
Black tendrils grew out of the android's back, sharp and ready to impale anyone it touches. Monaca's eyes sparkled in anticipation and turned to our heroes with sadistic glee.
Oswald sat back up and scowled at the murder bot, "I knew they were up to no good when they took him, can't believe I didn't see this coming. Using the remnants of the Blot and everything else they did… he can tear everything apart."
Agatha softly cackled, still hurting from the battle before this, "Exactly, and in doing so… he will make new realities that bend a knee to our very presence. Worship us as gods even…"
"We are at your command Master Ultron, now continue to get rid of the threats to our new multiverse!" Tao laughed as his cyborg eyes flickered.
Tao continued to laugh as Ultron's tendrils were raised higher…
SHANK!
The four heroes gasped as they witnessed something truly horrific. Tao and Agatha were stabbed in the back with those tendrils, and their colors slowly began to fade.
"... 'Our'? You didn't even think I would notice your plans to turn against me? That I would even allow organic beings like you to rule alongside me? Hahahahaha…."
Eggman Nega looked on in pure terror, "No… no! I need to activate the failsafe now before— GURK!"
Ultron grabbed him by the throat right as he was about to press his remote control and chucked him out a stained glass window.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA—"
Monaca leaned her ear to the window and waited for the sound of a splat on the ground, yet she paused when it wasn't there.
"Um… I feel like I should have heard the sound of a rotten egg crack by now, weird. Whatever!"
Ultron then turned his attention to continuing to drain the life out of the two generals before him.
"A-Ack…" Agatha uttered out as her skin drooped and her eyes rolled to the back of her head.
Tao's body went limp and when the tendril detached from him, he flopped to the ground as if he were the bearskin rug in the shape of a cyborg man. Ruby swallowed his vomit at the sight of this as Komaru sought to aim her Hacking Gun at Ultron.
Yamcha lowered her weapon for her and shook his head, "We need to get out of here now…"
"But we…" Komaru tried to argue, but she couldn't.
She looks into Monaca's green eyes with a mixture of fear and anger as the young girl stepped forward.
"Oh Komaru, it was much better for me to become 'a pathetic excuse for a human being' at first, yet I still felt inside that wasting away in that room wouldn't amount to anything! Thanks to my new family… I feel reborn again, hope and despair don't matter in a reality where I get to stay young and make everything the way Monaca wants it to."
Insert Song: Easter Egg (Disney's Epic Mickey)
Monaca whipped out the magic paintbrush and prepared to wave it around. Oswald then heard a whisper from somewhere and turned to his left, and a renewed grin spread across his face. And it was then that Oswald got the idea to fire his electric beam at her this time, directly at the hand holding the brush.
"Yowie! Hey, that was mine!"
Oswald shook his head, "Nope."
And leaping over her and swiping the brush from midair was the Sorcerer's Apprentice himself, who fired a splash of blue paint from the brush at her after landing on his feet.
"It's mine, ha-ha! Ow…' Mickey Mouse stumbled as he had not fully recovered, while a paint-stained Monaca threw a tantrum.
"The rat's free?! Get them now, Ultron!"
Yamcha then got into position for something, "Close your eyes, everyone. Gonna take a page out of a good pal's playbook."
"O-Okay!" Ruby shut his eyes, as did everyone else.
"SOLAR FLARE!"
Yamcha released a big flash of flight to both stun Monaca and hinder Ultron's reticles. He then grabbed everyone there and quickly flew out the broken window.
For now… it seemed that they survived another day.
"It looks like we'll be able to play with me for much longer. Good, it would have been boring otherwise if I didn't have any toys to break." Ultron told Monaca as she rubbed her eyes.
"Urk, those meanies hurt my eyes and took my paintbrush! You better kill them right away next time!"
"Now where's the fun in that?" Ultron rejected that idea as he raised his hands to the sky, "I've now grown bored of this rundown theme park, it's time we get a change of scenery…."
Holding Monaca atop his shoulder, he channeled energy from the Phantom Ruby and the Chaos Emerald. A dark violet cloud began pouring out of his exoskeleton as he rocketed through the tower's ceiling and took to the sky. He creates a massive construct of what appeared to be the original Shadow Blot (with his face of course), and begins to claw through the clouds above until he manages to tear a hole through reality.
Little by little, he widened it, looking to open a door to another world to conquer.
"This is it, the throne room!' Ashe walks in in awe of the many paintings and the giant stained glass window at the center of the room.
Masaomi whistled as he took a look at it all himself, "Impressive, I take back what I said about that rabbit, I can see why he chose to live here."
"Michiru" laughs softly, "Yeah! It is impressive… how easily you two fell for it!"
In an instant, Ashe was unconscious and Masaomi was pinned to the ground.
"Kagemori, what the hell are you doing?!" Kida shouted at her, who then decided to drop the act.
"Hoo, this cosplay felt too hot to keep on. All of it is real fur, and in this kind of weather… it felt like turning on a heater in a desert! Hey, I've got a delivery for Mr. Orihara?" The faker fanned herself as sweat dropped from her face.
And it was then that a silhouetted figure stood up from the throne at the end of the room, giving a condescending laugh as he got up in Masaomi's face.
"Ah, exactly as ordered, you'll definitely be getting a tip. Long time no see, Kida."
Masaomi's teeth clenched as he said his name, "Izaya…"
Izaya Orihara… the former info broker of Ikebukuro. He wears a black coat with brown fur lining that goes down to his hips, along with a plain black long sleeved v-neck, pants, and dark brown shoes. Was known to start gang wars in the city by handing out information to certain groups' leaders. Other than the Yellow Scarves and Blue Squares conflict, he orchestrated another large-scale event with the Dollars gang. Also known for his rivalry with the monstrously strong Shizuo Heiwajima.
The man smiled at the boy with the yellow bandana as he turned to his cohort.
"Your cosplays are always so spot on, Tsumugi. Thank you for doing me this favor."
Tsumugi Shirogane turned back into her familiar self, shedding the skin of the fake Michiru and breathing a sigh of relief.
"This participant had better be worth it, okay? Ultron's going berserk up there and we need no other issues at the moment."
"Participant? What are you talking about?! Who is she?!" Masaomi kept on throwing questions, but Tsumugi continued to hold him down and not answer them, only giving him a twisted smile.
Izaya answered them instead in his own twisted way.
"You know, I am very proud that you managed to make it this far, being sent through a multiversal rift isn't something many people can handle. As a result, you've earned a reward! An all-expenses-paid trip, you're gonna love it when you get there. A beautiful resort full of—"
"SHUT THE HELL UP, YOU BASTARD! I'm not going anywhere until I get the chance to finish what Shizuo did to you all of those months ago…"
Izaya pulled out a needle full of anesthesia, and injected it into the struggling boy, "Shhhh, don't you worry. Once it starts, you won't remember any of this…. At least for a little while. Good luck, Ultimate Wannabe."
Masaomi couldn't scream or say anything else as his eyes shut and his body went limp.
"Why that Ultimate title in particular?" Tsumugi asked Izaya.
The man smirked, "He was a wannabe casanova and a wannabe joke-teller, as well as a wannabe hero just now. It was a tossup between that and Ultimate Jokester, but he will certainly be a key player regardless. These killing games are quite fascinating though, like placing lab rats in a maze. While the thought of lives being taken away is unfortunate, the tension and excitement of it all is wonderful to behold!"
Tsumugi smiled before responding, "Exactly, glad you see it my way. I look forward to watching your game once Sird's wraps up."
"As will I, Ms. Shirogane, yet with this one… I have a feeling that it will be one to remember. Now then, help me lift him, please?" Izaya asks her as they abducted the knocked out teen.
A few minutes later the two of them left with the incapacitated Masaomi and the real Michiru walked in before she could see any of it happen. She did however see the Blue Lions student lying face down on the floor.
"Ashe, wake up! Where did Masaomi go?!"
After shaking him awake, the two of them searched high and low for their companion.
"He couldn't have gone far, we should contact the others and… Michiru?" Ashe sees her picking something up from the ground.
The tanuki girl presented it to him with a defeated expression on her face and he gasped. It was Masaomi's yellow bandana.
We're ramping it up as we are finally at the finale. Big way to end it, huh? Well… I'm gonna try my best to not screw up these last two parts. Let's do this right. Can I also point out that I have a few ideas for two extra spinoffs to this fic? Like one with Ruby, Sapphire, Junko, and Linhardt (as well as Lily Hoshikawa also from Zombie Land Saga) going on a journey in the Kalos Region and Yamcha, Ponzu, and Bucky searching for the Dragon Balls… it's weird, but I eventually want to try it once I'm done with the entire Fictional Saga. Thank you and as always, I look forward to seeing your comments and reviews (don't be afraid to say anything if you have something to say!), and I'll see you next time for Chapter 6: Surging Shadows and Smashing Saviors SAGA Part 1. Farewell, peeps! - Renegade Braveheart