Chapter 24; P[L]raying FOREVER


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THE FOREVER, TRAM STATION

[Once Upon A Time...]

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The tram car arriving from NEON-MOONS eventually exited out of the long winding tunnel and came to a stop at it's destination a short while after. A small gazebo filled clearing in the middle of a bright meadow that had been repurposed to be a makeshift tram station for visitors. The transport's doors slowly opened up to let it's six passengers out of the cramped interior. Kel, Aubrey, Basil and the dream friends all stepped out into the open and were greeted with the bright radiant sun shining overhead as opposed to the seven neon colored moons from the city. The light blinded everyone for a brief moment. But when their eyes had acclimated to the natural light could they see the ominous sight of a pale ivory building set on the horizon that would easily have made SWEETHEART'S own fortress look like a kid's bouncy castle. It had a sleek surface that reflected the sun's beams that end up creating a prism of bright colors all around it. From in the sky to the majestic field of red and white flowers that covered the landscape.

"Wow...just...wow, so this is where MEDIKA MAGICAL lives..." Was all BASIL could manage say in his current awestruck wonder.

"Yeah, I don't blame her for being so happy and cheerful all the time, I kinda feel pretty chipper myself right now." KEL added.

The tram station itself wasn't completely uninhabited. Several familiar residents from the original HEADSPACE were present, including some SPROUT MOLES as they marched by in a single file line in the direction of the castle, GATOR GUYS stood in a tight knit group talking to one another. A few more peoples from the other SANCTUARY areas were there too, including some cowboys from BARBECUE VALLEY having a drink at a makeshift bar with a few knights from NEON MOONS. A sign next to a road read;

Welcome to THE FOREVER

HOPEFUL HOSPITAL, UP AHEAD

NEON MOONS, TRAM STATION

"HOPEFUL HOSPITAL...huh." Kel said, looking over at the castle in the far distance.

"Could that be where Sunny is? That could be why those SLIME GIRLS have been so eager to stop us from getting here." Basil wondered as he watched the troop of SPROUT MOLES march down the road.

"No where else but ahead, let's go, Sunny needs us." Aubrey took the lead without a moment's hesitation and walked down the path at a brisk pace.

But before the gang could follow her lead, FLOWER stopped and glanced back at the tram car. "Hey, hold on guys, aren't we forgetting about-?"

The tram car's interior suddenly projected a bright light from within and shook. Suddenly, HERO was violently ejected from the car's exit and tumbled into a small pond. KEL rushed over a little too fast trying to help his brother and ended up tripping into the pond himself, splashing next to HERO and further drenching him. KEL soon surfaced and spat, turning to a very disoriented HERO and grinned at him. He enveloping his brother into an affectionate and very wet hug.

"Welcome back to the world of the living HERO!" KEL chuckled happily and pat his brother on the back, helping him back on dry land.

"I think I liked it better inside the computer..." HERO sighed sullenly, his soggy hair drooped down over his face as he dried himself with a piece of cloth FLOWER had found for him.

The gang trekked down the winding brick road, passing by acres upon acres of bright red and white flowers that went on endlessly into the horizon. Out of all the places the gang had explored in this altered HEADSPACE, this was by far the most visually stunning, compared to the animated cartoon deserts and neo-pop cities the quest to rescue their lost friend had taken them to.

AUBREY approached a patch of flowers and bent over. "I've never seen these types of flowers before, I think MARI would love these." AUBREY said cheerfully and reached over to pick one of the red blooms on the side of the road when ROWAN abruptly stopped her before she could grab a hold of one.

"Careful! don't touch that plant, it's an oleander flower, it's sap is very poisonous if it gets on your skin, same thing with the hemlocks...no touching." The tall goth warned and carefully guided AUBREY away from the plants and back with the others. He paused and went back to take a closer look at the flower patch, noticing something was off.

"Weird, maybe these aren't what I think they were..." he trailed off for a moment and thought to himself. The group stopped to see what the hold up was. "Hey Basil, c'mere for a sec, you see this?" ROWAN made a waving gesture over to the flower boy who came over and knelt beside him. "What is it ROWAN? what's wrong with the flowers?" he asked curiously.

ROWAN took out his shovel and put on pair of gardening gloves from his back pocket. He cut a few hemlock stems at the base, carefully avoiding making skin contact with the juices that came out. "These flowers, they're all fake, even though they still have the poison inside, you see that?" ROWAN pointed at the stem he just cut. Basil leaned forward to examine the cut stems more closely, a tinge of bright copper sticking out of the plant's base caught his eye along with a strange foul smelling substance leaking out from the bottom that sizzled on the brick road. "They have some kind of tubing in them, but why?" he responded, confused by the fake flowers.

Why would anyone plant a field of fake flowers anyways? what was the purpose?

ROWAN dropped the fake plants on the side of the road and took off his gloves. A few new holes had been burned into the gloves where the sap had landed, leaving a slightly sulfuric smell on them. The two stared at the burnt gloves as they smoldered and exchanged unsettled expressions with one another.

ROWAN gagged and tossed the gloves into the flower patch, sucking in a breath through his teeth as he checked his hands for burns. "I've suddenly got a real bad feeling about sticking around here longer than we should, let's get going."


The party pressed onward through miles and miles of brick roads, a newfound wariness for the brightly colored and deceptively poisonous fake plants made them keep to the road's center and keep on going forward. The road itself however seemed to go on endlessly like the flowers like the castle in the distance was but an optical illusion. Many times the group had to take short breaks just to rest. On one such rest, AUBREY had quietly shuffled up to Basil's side and gently tugged on his arm.

"Excuse me, Basil? can I ask you something?" she asked timidly.

"Go ahead, speak your mind AUBREY." he answered kindly.

"Since we're almost there...can I ask what Sunny is like?"

Basil made a low hum and rubbed his chin. "You...don't know what Sunny's like? but he made all of you in his dreams, I don't understand."

AUBREY seemed guilty for a moment. "We only knew OMORI because he's our-" she sighed sadly and corrected herself. "Was...our friend, but we've never really gotten to know about Sunny at all, I'm just worried, what if he doesn't like us? what if we remind him of the bad things he's experienced?" AUBREY was starting to feel upset the more she went on.

[AUBREY became DEPRESSED]

Basil took a deep breath of brisk air and caressed her shoulder. "Sunny is our best friend who means the world to us, he's quiet, kind, he's good listener and has a very creative imagination as you know. He cares about us as much as we do for him." Basil smiled and continued. "We would all spend time together back then, him, me, Kel, Hero, Aubrey and Mari. We did everything with one another, it was like we were a family to each other. Sometimes Sunny would speak, but only if he felt needed to, he didn't really say much when I last saw him a year ago..."

Basil paused and frowned, it wouldn't be a good idea to mention 'those four long years' out loud. He cleared his throat and shoved his hands in his pockets, they brushed up against the GARDEN SHEARS inside, they were cold to the touch despite being in his pockets for so long. A slight pang of guilt washed over him for a moment. He glanced back over at a confused AUBREY and decided to keep on the subject.

"Well, Sunny never really smiling all that much, said he didn't really like the way he looked when he did..." The flower boy paused to glance up at the clouds drifting lazily across a magenta colored sky. His eyes sparkled brightly in the light at the mental image of Sunny's smile. "...but when he did...it was like the sun itself was in the room with you...warm...welcoming...someone who deserves the world."

"That's Sunny for you, our best friend...and I'm a hundred percent sure he'll like you guys too when you get to meet him." he finished on a positive note.

The sight of AUBREY'S eyes sparkling and a bright yellow aura appearing around her made him feel warm inside. He gasped a bit when the young girl ran up to him and enveloped herself in a hug. Basil couldn't help but place a hand on her head in response.

"He sounds so nice, I'm glad we're here to save him from those mean people." She spoke in an eager tone and skipped ahead and grabbing his wrist to pull him forward. "Let's go save Sunny!" she announced.

[AUBREY became ECSTATIC]

Basil staggered and almost fell on his face a few times while trying to keep his balance as Aubrey's dream self once again dragged him behind her like a ragdoll...


A half hour of walking later finally paid off when the tall ivory castle like building came into view from over a hilltop. Up close It's walls were far more elaborate, etched engravings of faded red and white hearts and crosses had been carved into them. Great spiraling towers pointed upwards into the pink and white sky while white flags bearing red hospital symbols flapped from flagpoles. The entire castle was picturesque of a fairy tale story come to life. The only thing blocking them from going further was a large raised drawbridge and a moat below them the size of a large river. A toll booth sat nearby with it's windows closed.

"This is where ALTIMA said MEDIKA lives? I kind of expected more bright colors for someone like her..." Kel said and casually marched up up to the closed toll booth, knocking a few times on the window. When no one answered, Kel decided to circle around until he found a door and started pounding on it.

"Hey open up! we're here to see Sunny!" he shouted impatiently and kept banging on the door until BASIL stopped him.

"Kel! pounding won't get them to open the gate for us." HERO chided.

"Okay what if...we swim across and climb up the wall so we can ask to be let inside?" KEL suggested.

FLOWER stood around staring at the river until he noticed a tall lanky figure in a nurse's outfit standing next to the flower field's edge shuffling through some papers in it's spindly hands. He went up to the figure and waited until it saw him. "Excuse me, sir? can we come into the castle? we need to see someone inside." he asked timidly.

The figure stopped looking over it's paperwork to slowly crane it's neck down in his direction, it had no visible face except for a crudely made smiley face painted on it. Underneath it's medical clothing, brass gears, mechanical copper joints and a large phonograph stuck out from it's slender frame while a faint ticking noise could be heard from within it's body. The figure stared down at FLOWER with it's cold and lifeless painted eyes. The silence was starting to make him nervous and a bit unsettled.

"U-um, I-I think I'll go ask someone else..." he whispered, turning to leave.

A sophisticated voice suddenly called out from the phonograph on the figure's chest. "Wait! don't go, I'm terribly sorry about not answering you right away young sir. I've got a great many things on my mind and I tend to let the thoughts wander when I'm not working..." it dropped it's shoulders and let out a heavy sigh. "It's all I can do since I'm stuck out here having to take care of all the refugees coming in from the other worlds..."

FLOWER nodded along sympathetically. "I'm sorry about your job Mr...er...I'm sorry, I never asked what your name was." he apologized.

"INFIRMIER..."

"Um, what? I'm sorry, what was that again?" FLOWER cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"I am one of mistress MEDIKA'S many automaton assistants built and given sentience to help her run HOPEFUL HOSPITAL, the establishment building across from the river that I assume you want entry into?" The clockwork man elaborated and drummed it's spindly fingers together. "We are called INFIRMIERS, we are doctors."

"Oh, I understand now..." FLOWER said.

The INFIRMIER bowed politely in response. "No offense was made young man, just a miscommunication. Now how can help you today? Are you injured at all? you do not seem to be hurt nor ill at the time..."

"No I'm alright thank you for asking Mr. Infirmary."

"INFIRMIER..." it corrected for him.

"Sorry...well, I was wondering. Can we come into the castle like you said?." FLOWER repeated his earlier question.

The INFIRMIER shook it's blank head and pointed towards a crowd further down the river. "Due to the large influx of people seeking medical attention. We regretfully cannot take you inside unless you have a serious injury that requires immediate attention." it spoke.

The INFIRMIER straightened back to full height and glanced back down at it's papers. "...But otherwise, if you would like to make a reservation to see your friend, please head to the back of the line and wait for your turn." It's gaze lingered back at the long line of people. "We hope we have not caused you too much trouble and we wish you a very nice day." it said and returned to it's filing job.

FLOWER let out a soft sigh and returned to the group who were still trying to figure out a way across the river. KEL had attempted to swim across but it was just too long and deep and he had to be pulled back to shore, while any attempts to call for the toll booth operator were still in vain. FLOWER went ahead and explained what the clockwork man had told him, that in order to get inside the castle, they needed to wait in a long line or if someone needed urgent care from an injury. Aubrey's eyes lit up when a sinister idea came to her mind.

"A serious injury huh? I think I can get us one of those." Aubrey said to herself and began sneaking up on an unaware Kel causally scratching his behind. Aubrey reared back her foot for a roundhouse kick aimed towards Kel's prone rear. She was about to give him a literal butt kicking he wouldn't forget... Kel suddenly turned around to face Aubrey mid-kick, and before she could stop, her foot had made contact with a particularly soft spot right between his legs...

Seven full seconds of silence passed until Kel's face scrunched up and he let out the most pain filled whine Aubrey had ever heard come from his mouth. He crumbled to the ground like his bones had turned to jelly, gingerly holding his groin. Aubrey held back a gasp in a poor attempt to stifle a laugh. It was wrong to but it was even funnier when he sounded like he'd sucked up some helium.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry Kel...I was aiming for your...uh...knees, not your, you know..." Aubrey's words died in her throat as she watched her friend roll on the ground in agony. The others looked at her with expressions of confusion, disapproval and shock.

"It was supposed to be a joke!" she attempted to reason to no avail.

"My poor walnuts...is this what getting crushed by nutcracker feels like?" Kel wheezed weakly in a higher pitched voice than usual, whimpering in pain while holding his smashed happy spot.

The INFIRMER from earlier cocked it's head towards the moans of pain and stopped it's work to attend to the injured boy. "Young man! you have sustained an injury! let me bring you into a emergency room posthaste!" it declared and with surprising strength and agility, it picked up Kel in one arm and rushed off towards the hospital which lowered it's drawbridge to let the INFIRMIER and Kel though... The remaining party members, especially Aubrey, watched in astonishment as the unsuccessful prank had somehow bore fruit for the next part of their quest.

KEL hummed to himself, an idea of his own taking shape. "Get really hurt to get inside huh? great plan big Aubs! hold still for a sec little AUBS..." Without warning, KEL roughly slapped AUBREY on the the head.

AUBREY yelped and rubbed the back of her noggin and furiously whirled around on KEL. "Ow! what is wrong with you!?" she cried out in anger and smacked him back.

"You heard FLOWER, you saw real you, We need to get hurt super bad super fast so we can get inside that castle super quick!" KEL responded with a indignant huff and winded up his fists. "Hold still and let me beat you up and you do the same so we can save Sunny!" he instructed and shoved AUBREY to the ground. She looked up at him and snarled, a red aura appearing around her body.

"Stop you two! This is a terrible idea and someone's going to get hurt! we can find a better way like just waiting in the line!" HERO reasoned in a attempt to break up the fight but it had already escalated into an all out brawl beyond his control. AUBREY stumbled back a few feet after getting hit by a RICOCHET and fell face first into a mud puddle by the riverside. She roared and charged at KEL.

[AUBREY became FURIOUS]

"Well getting hurt's the whole point bro!" KEL resounded cheerfully to HERO. Moments later he was smashed into some crates by AUBREY'S MOOD WRECKER.

"Ack! why you! now I'm gonna go all out on you!" KEL sneered, getting himself out of the ruined containers and preparing for a RUN N' GUN.

"You're the one who wanted to do this! and besides I'm doing a better job at giving out bruises than you!" AUBREY barked back, cracking her neck and her knuckles with an audible pop.

Then both of them were upon one another, bats were swinging, balls were flying, hair was pulled, heads were noogied, wet willys were given and names were called...insults mostly. The rest of the gang watched from a safe distance unable to interfere with the melee without get caught up in the crossfire between the two twelve year old forces of nature duking it out on the side of the river.

Everyone stayed away. Except for one certain blonde boy who was unaware of the pastel whirlwind heading in his direction.

"Basil watch out behind you!" Aubrey yelled out in warning. the flower boy turned around just as AUBREY was about to swing her bat downwards on KEL'S head...

[Basil took 254 damage]

AUBREY and KEL stopped their tussle when a pained cry reached their ears. They both turned to Basil laying the ground clutching at his forearm. He looked at his forearm which was now bent in the wrong direction. He began to cry.

"Uh oh, I um..." KEL stammered, at a loss for words and unable to react to the sudden change in scenario.

"Oh no! Basil! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to..." AUBREY gasped, and she dropped her bat to the ground in shock. She began to sniffle and ran over into KEL's arms to weep softly. He returned the hug in response.

"I-It hurts so much..." Basil whimpered through short gasps of breath, large tears pricked the edges of his eyes and ran down his cheeks onto the grass. Again, the drawbridge lowered and two INFIRMIERS crossed over, swiftly making their way over to Basil's side in record speed and were already checking his broken arm before anyone could realize they had arrived.

"Oh my word, this young man's arm is completely fractured!" One mused and turned to it's other. "Get him to an emergency room as soon as possible!" it ordered.

The second being carefully scooped up Basil and carried him off to the castle while the first INFIRMIER simply stood around idly as if looking for someone else. It's sights soon settled on a worried Aubrey trying to get her nerves together and approached her swiftly. "Young lady, you are in deep distress, please come with me." it said in a calm voice, extending it's arm out to her.

"What? no I don't need-"

"You are in deep distress, please come with me." it repeated without missing a beat.

Aubrey stared down at the hand in bewilderment for a brief moment then it clicked in her mind of the opportunity being presented to her. She took hold of it's hand without hesitation.

"I'm ready...p-please take me inside." she said quietly.

The INFIRMIER carefully scooped the pink haired girl up in it's spindly arms as the others had been before and turned around towards the castle. Aubrey looked back at the others and fought the urge to fight her way out of the clockwork man's hold. Instead, she sat there and let it carry her away to wherever it was going.

KEL ran ahead of the clockwork man and stood in it's way. The INFIRMIER holding Aubrey stopped in it's tracks, it's painted-on eyes trained at the young boy obstructing it's path.

"Wait a minute, what about us? we're beat up too, see?" he showed it his injuries he had gotten from his fight beforehand. The INFIRMIER paused and tilted it's head to the side. It seemed momentarily confused for a moment before readjusting it's passenger's position. "...I see no injuries on you child, you are in perfect health, have a nice day." It spoke and went around the bewildered and frustrated KEL across the drawbridge which closed before he could follow...

Then there was only the dream friends standing by themselves on the side of the river. KEL kicked a small pebble into the water and made a low hum in his throat. "Fooey! this stinks! I don't wanna wait!" he whined and crossed his arms, muttering angrily to himself.

AUBREY sat down next to KEL. "So...now what?" she reached for her weapon. "Maybe if we keep going..."

HERO went over and snatched the bat from off the grass. "Did you two not listen to what I said about this being a terrible idea?!" he snapped angrily, but then he saw the hurt and scared looks on KEL and AUBREY'S faces. He sighed handed the bat back to AUBREY.

"I'm sorry for that outburst, I'm just a little stressed out and a bit tired of the mayhem." he said tiredly and took a second to continue.

"There should be no fighting, no getting hurt on purpose, no smashing each other's...private...areas." HERO stopped himself before he could get too upset, taking a deep calming breath and exhaling. He took a seat next to the two by the river and stared out towards the castle beyond thier reach. "None of the insanity...please for...five...minutes just...wait. And give me a moment to think of some ideas to get us inside..."

"We could just...disguise ourselves as doctors?" FLOWER suggested quietly from behind the group.

HERO lifted his head up and glanced back at FLOWER. "That's a pretty good plan actually, but what are the chances that we're going to find the right clothes to blend in?"

The friends all simultaneously turned to look at a stack of crates nearby, the fight had knocked one of them over revealing a pile of neatly folded hospital clothes sitting inside. HERO rubbed his chin, the pieces of a plan forming. It seemed that random convenience had once again favored them.

HERO picked up a coat and tried it on. A perfect fit. "I never thought that we would be doing this again but if it worked a couple months ago...what's one more time huh?"

ROWAN stopped in the middle of putting on his disguise to raise an eyebrow at HERO. "Again? what do you mean again?"

...

{L}{O}{O}{K}{I}{N}{G}

A set of eyes glance out over a valley of red and white...intent seethes to the surface.

We wander through the flowers...They look pretty, we should pick some.

No, we cannot stop, Mother would be upset if we were late to this playdate.

The hospital she told us about is over there, Father is there and so is brother...

Happy day! we can't wait to see him!

Spectating eyes bulge outwards when they spot a black and white speck in the distance below it...a fragment of joy is sparked.

Look! down by the rail track, there is Brother frolicking through the flowers too.

We wave over at him but he did not notice, we are too far away to been seen...

Is he heading to the building too? that's where we're going.

The eyes spot a different group on the other side of the field...curiosity takes claim within.

And are they? are those other people his...friends?

Maybe they would want to play with us if we asked?

But...

The eyes glance downward at familiar limbs...a frown is formed.

The strange man Mother doesn't like says we are ugly looking...

But that's not true...Mother says We are perfect how we are.

But what if brother or father are scared of us?

Wait...

It studies the group and their shapes and an idea is formed...inspiration flashes in grey.

If we change, be like brother's friends...maybe they can be our friends too?

We are FACECLUSTER...

We are one and many...

We can do anything if we try hard enough...

{W}{H}{E}{R}{E}{I}{S}{H}{E}{?}

...


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SANCTUARY, THE FOREVER, HOPEFUL HOSPITAL

[Puella Magi]

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MEDIKA MAGICA, the keeper of THE FOREVER and lead nurse at the HOPEFUL HOSPITAL, hummed a happy tune. She strolled down the halls until she reached her room so she could begin getting ready to wind down after a long day's work, and first she had to clean up. MEDIKA carefully straightened every knot and curl until her long white hair was looking nice and clean. Next, she visited her closet, taking a fresh nurse's outfit before sifting through a box of dozens of identical ruby red cross hairpins until she found one she liked, a ruby red cross hairpin. MEDIKA admired herself in the mirror and got ready for the day ahead with a bright bubbly smile on her face... MEDIKA pushed open the windows of her room to the outside.

"It's such a beautiful day outside, birds are chirping their hearts out, the flowers are gorgeous-" she reeled her head back and let out a loud sneeze that messed up her hair again, MEDIKA pulled out a handkerchief and rubbed her nose. "...And my allergies are still acting up..."

Once she was sure that she properly set for the rest of the day, the magic girl left her room and went about around the hospital as usual, passing out a few medical reports to some INFIRMIERS, the lanky humanoid automatons with formal and polite personalities that put on nurse outfits and painted smiley faces on their own blank ones to roam the hospital grounds and outside in the FOREVER looking for wayward patients and the injured to help wherever they could find them. MEDIKA was currently checking in on the condition of her newest patient, Sunny. It still made her sad that the boy had to endure so much suffering through what she had learned about him through reading Dr. Ray's reports, but she was determined to at least try and help him in any way she could, like being there for him and talking about his new memories.

"Hello Sunny, how are you today?" MEDIKA asked and sat down on the bed next to the raven haired boy.

"I'm fine MEDIKA, thank you for checking on me." Sunny answered quietly.

"So, Sunny, about your mental state. I'm required to give you a questionnaire every two hours so I hope you don't mind." MEDIKA paused and brought out a pink notepad from her pocket before continuing. "Are you feeling different or at least better since you woke up today?"

Sunny pondered the question for a bit before answering. "I remember...a few places in Germany like Berlin." he waited for MEDIKA to finish writing her notes.

"Anything specific?"

"A lot of flashes about World War 2 war, and a few other faces...but I've never been to those places or seen these people before."

The magic nurse set her notepad aside for a moment. "I see...do these memories bring distress or make you feel 'bad' in any way?"

"No...maybe...they aren't as vivid as before so I guess I'm fine..." Sunny looked off to the side of his bed where a faded photo of a family belonging to the late doctor. "But...did he have to do it?" he asked quietly, looking sadly at the forgotten memorabilia of a time long gone.

"Dr. Shwartz...Wilhelm, did some very very awful things in the name of some bad ideas. But he gave his entire remaining existence as a human being just to do one good thing. He risked everything he had left with his last chance so you would have that extra strength to keep going for the people you have in your life." she rested her hand in his own and gave the boy a kind smile. "I also wished he could have picked a different choice but..." The magic nurse trailed off and bit her bottom lip before she continued.

She gave the raven haired boy a hopeful smile. "Just stay strong Sunny. Your friends will hopefully be here for you soon."

...

As soon as MEDIKA had closed the door behind her and took a seat on a bench, the bright smile faded and turned into a frown...she buried her face into her hands to stifle a sob.

The recent sacrifice of Dr. Shwartz had put her in a less than bright mood, she understood that between fellow doctors and good friends that he did it because it was necessary to save the life of another, but if only there had been a way that didn't have him...giving up his own life and memories so suddenly. Though that had saved Sunny, who had miraculously gained a second wind and recovered to near perfect health shortly after, even if it was just a metaphorical temporary bandage over a wound. MEDIKA wanted to be proud of Sunny, she wanted to be happy for him getting better, but all she could think of in the moment was how someone had died on her watch and she couldn't do anything about it. It ate away at her like a leech, sucking away all the vital joy and enthusiasm she had in life, leaving her feeling a nasty case of the deep blues. The magic nurse looked around at various positive thinking posters placed around the hallway and mustered up a simple smile, feeling satisfied with herself afterwards.

But she must not fall to despair...she mustn't...

"Feeling a bit blue, doll?" a sultry voice asked from her left.

MEDIKA looked up in alarm at a light green colored woman sitting on the opposite seat from her. "Trust me, he's in good hands." she added

the medic girl sighed, putting a hand to her chest. "MEDUSA...I'm just worried...what if Sunny's friends don't make it?"

"They will...give those kids some time."

"You're working for D.R.E.A.M. though, Aren't you going to stop them? I heard both your sisters tried to."

"Unlike my siblings...I don't entirely follow along with Margrove's whole 'world order' nonsense. That woman went crazy a long while ago and we just didn't see it until she kicked us all in here to keep us out of her way." MEDUSA rubbed her shoulder and let out a indignant huff. "But II made the best out of it, which is I chose your sector to set up my lab. With this is the last place to keep Sunny safe I couldn't trust any of my sisters to not mess up something important like this, plus I have PERFECTHEART to protect me and you if things go wrong."

The youngest of the SLIME GIRLS rest her head on her hand and smiled at the magic nurse.

"Trust me, following Yen's orders is the last thing I'd do, just enjoy the rest of your day sweetie, I'll handle everything around here from now on."


It hurt to see the world he once knew twisted into an unrecognizable mess like this...

OMORI stood on a cliff side overlooking a massive field filled with lush white and red flowers as far as the eye could see, he gazed upon a massive ivory building sitting in the center of the field, a bleak reminder of the final destination of his lone crusade, he gripped the knife a little tighter in his hand. Before long, the sounds of a tram from NEON-MOONS emerging from a tunnel caught his attention. Several familiar figures sat inside the transport heading towards a rest station in the distance. The monochrome boy studied each of his friends from the precipice unnoticed, he took into account his observations on how each of his friends had become different in the whole year they had been with their real world counterparts.

KEL was the same as he remembered, being prone to frequent arguments with AUBREY over mostly petty things and still being the plucky young kid. But now they seemed to get along better than ever before, KEL especially seemed the most affected by his time in reality, being surprisingly more considerate of the people around him and less obnoxious than usual. It wasn't bad per say, just different. AUBREY on the other hand, no longer had that whimsy longing affection in her eyes he see every time he looked at her. In the time before if he were there with them no doubt she would be immediately swooning over him, getting up close and personal to yearn the attention he refused to give her. Now she only looked forward away from OMORI, her attention focused on the ones around her instead.

However, KEL nor AUBREY could not be convinced to join him...he did not deserve their forgiveness...

HERO too had also changed as inevitable as it was, though it was more subdued than his brother or his friend, the sudden death of his real world counterpart had made him less of the HERO he knew and more like his late real world counterpart, mellow and reserved. Admittedly, when the news of Hero's death reached OMORI, he was already searching in the Canal District as per his request, he had returned just in time to see the crowds exiting the church after the funeral. That day, he decided to return to the house and sulk, without Hero's help and the scattering of the friend group there would be little to no chance of ever seeing Sunny again, his mission, uncompleted. It was by chance that the HELLMARI he killed that one night would have the key he needed to seek out Sunny on his own, but still, the monochrome boy felt that Dr. Margrove needed to pay for what she did...

But HERO would not be convinced to join his side no matter how much he seemed sympathetic towards him...he did not deserve his forgiveness

BASIL...oh poor flower boy...he felt much regret for putting his best friend through a hell he didn't deserve, not because of what he had done to him, that was necessary. The Truth could not be known to the Dreamer, if it did, the world he would no longer be exist...that was OMORI'S purpose, his efforts and The Dreamer's unwillingness to accept the Truth was the reason HEADSPACE had existed for so long. Four years the monochrome boy had played savior and devil in order to preserve the world he knew and yet, every time, again and again...the flower boy would discover that dark secret and again and again, OMORI would be forced to send him to the void underneath to silence him before he could tell. But deep down, BASIL was still his best friend.

He may have had a chance to sway him back to reason before, but those chances now were quite small as is...BASIL may have already forgiven him, but OMORI would not deserve it.

MARI was the one that surprised him the most, his perfect sister...no longer perfect in her ways like she was supposed to be, despite this, he didn't seem too particularly bothered by the change as he thought he would be. MARI no longer was content to just sitting on her picnic blanket, now she was out and about, talking with other people, using a set of SKILLS in combat he had never seen her use before...making mistakes...That, was what concerned him, the purpose of the blanket was to keep his sister safe from harm, and now that the handicap was no longer holding her back, she was intentionally putting herself in danger. He had to get through to her that he had only the best intentions for his actions here, prove that he not a threat to her or his friends, no matter what it took do so.

Sadly, MARI could not be persuaded to rejoin him, regardless of how badly he wished she would...she too refused him...he knew she would forgive him, but he won't let her...he won't...

He had a new respect for the STRANGER. He initially hated that anomaly from BLACK SPACE that time and time again had meddled in his efforts to keep HEADSPACE intact. His initial hostility towards the shadow he felt was completely justified at first, but after the trek into the ABYSS, he felt differently about him, deciding that even someone like STRANGER deserved a second chance, besides that ABBI had given STRANGER her power and title as well as giving away her life and chance freedom to stop the black tide of SOMETHING from consuming the world. Even now as STRANGER stayed behind to fight off endless waves of HEADSPACE and BLACK SPACE denizens alike, OMORI held no more animosity towards him as he did before, for the first time he considered the shadowy doppelganger an ally of sorts.

But that would not mean that he would willing join his side if he asked...forgiveness was out of the question.

His eyes turned to watch two other figures that walked with his friends, a tall muscular figure whom he held disgust for and another smaller figure huddled next to him. He knew very little about the one called FLOWER, other than the one less than happy brief interaction they had with each in the past, FLOWER was a mystery to him. He had no recollection of making him in HEADSPACE, nor did he recall why he was in BLACK SPACE to begin with.

Just another wayward BLACK SPACE resident that would fade eventually...OMORI could easily ignore this one...

OMORI watched the last figure with great contempt. ROWAN...truly in a literal and metaphorical sense...was a utter pain in the side. Not only did he refuse to stay gone like he was supposed to but was now come back from the dead to oppose him and ruin everything, yes, he accepted that the consequences of admitting his behind the scenes work in BLACK SPACE had shaken their trust in him, and he was to blame, it was ROWAN that pushed them in while they were in a vulnerable state to abandon him completely. Not only had that lunatic stolen his friends from him, but the way he causally interacted with them like they were his own felt like a deep cut insult to OMORI...salt upon a wound, like ROWAN was secretly mocking the monochrome boy for his loss.

He hated him... oh how he truly regretted creating him in the first place...OMORI planned complete and utter oblivion for the traitorous ROWAN...he will never see the light of day ever again...

...never...

The Monochrome boy spotted a small figure in the distance near the large building, she was holding a basket of flowers and appeared to be tending to the many plants around her. His primary target. OMORI considered eliminating her on the spot, she seemed harmless enough, but he needed to hold back for now, destroying this last guardian would fully destabilize the world and collapse it, and he needed Sunny's mind intact for when he saved him. The others? well...the real world counterparts were easily expendable and the two rejects were obvious obstacles, but his friends? MARI back in the real world would never forgive him in he let them die down here...

A low ticking sound pulled him from his thoughts and he glanced down at the source, the red and white flowers all around him had begun making a strange ticking noise ever since he got here. He leaned down and examined one of the flowers...the noise suddenly stopped and was replaced a low gurgling from below. OMORI smelled the acrid scent rising from the plants all around him and quickly used his RED HANDS on his back to lift him to safety before a second later every flower in the meadow started spraying sulfuric acid into the air like lawn sprinklers, soon the entire valley was engulfed in a deadly toxic cloud that ate away at anything it touched.

OMORI stared down at the mist below with careful consideration on his face. Thankfully the acid had no effect on his RED HANDS but his black socks had not been spared such a fate, half melted socks gave way leaving his pale feet exposed, a minor inconvenience but a fixable one. Slowly he used one of his extended appendages like stilts to navigate above through the lethal mists towards his destination.

...

MEDIKA'S last stop in here daily routine was to visit the gardens in the back of the clinic building to check on the plants growing outside, those would be used later for medicines and herbal remedies the patients needed to recover. The magical nurse stood at the top of the steps admiring as the sun shown over the vast fields of hemlocks and oleander plants until the view was obscured by a thick green cloud, fortunately the magic barrier around the hospital grounds prevented the acid from breaching beyond. "Oh shoot, looks like MEDUSA'S defenses went off on their own again, looks like I'll have to get them checked after the sulfur mists clear up..." MEDIKA sighed and let her shoulders slump.

"Just another thing to fix, events are way behind schedule, painkiller supplies are running low again, there is a little white and black boy standing in the fountain..."

Her voice trailed off as she did a double take towards the lone colorless figure standing in the water fountain silently staring up at her despite being soaked. "Wait a minute! little boy? what are you doing in the fountain?" she called out in a concerned tone and quickly made her way down the stairs towards him.

OMORI nonchalantly stepped out of the fountain and started walking towards her, staying silent as he kept a steady gaze on MEDIKA. "Are you lost? you look like the boy Shwartz brought with him..." she asks and reaches a hand out towards him only for a RED HAND to swat it away.

"Where is He?" OMORI said in a neutral yet threatening tone.

"Where is...who?" The magical nurse spoke with equal uncertainty and unease and rubbed her hand. She took a step back as OMORI took one step towards her, his knife in full view for her to see. whoever this strange boy with the was was starting to scare her with how he looked at her.

"Sunny...where is the Dreamer?" he emphasized each word slowly, a slightly irritated look slowly making it onto his face.

Confusion gave way to terrified realization when the reality of the situation set in for MEDIKA. She shakily placed her arms out to her sides to block the monochrome boy's progress from the room her patient was sleeping in. "I-I know who you are...you're-"

OMORI finished the thought for her and leveled his dark eyes to hers. "Yes...I am OMORI, I have come to save Sunny." he spoke steadily.

MEDIKA was about the same height as OMORI yet the presence of the monochrome boy contemptuously staring her down made the magic nurse feel much much smaller...her bright vibrant pinks, reds and white dress contrasting with the jet black and pale white of the boy in front of her. Despite her fear she stood her ground between OMORI and the hospital doors.

"I-I...you can't! I won't let you! Sunny's not feeling well! he needs to heal after his long journey, but...nothing I do seems to help him get better." she admitted and sighed.

OMORI stopped a few feet away from her and tilted his head to the side. "If you can take me to him, then I can heal him...he needs me to live..." he spoke.

"Wait...you...you can help him?" MEDIKA stuttered, completely taken off guard by the sudden offer from the boy who was threatening her a second ago.

The monochrome boy nodded to confirm his request. "Yes, and I will not ask again, bring me to Sunny and I won't have to erase you...it's the only way to save him." he retracted his RED HANDS and lowered the knife. Letting his hands rest at his sides.

But the magic nurse still seemed apprehensive about OMORI'S offer. "But...Shwartz told me not to let you near him...he says that you want to hurt Sunny."

OMORI placed his hands behind his back and continued. "Sunny will not be harmed, rest assured, but there is someone who does...he and a group of others will be showing up here very soon wanting to completely erase The Dreamer's memory of something important to him. I'm here to stop that from happening."

"...Oh dear, that does sound pretty bad..."She hesitantly stepped aside for him to come through. "Very well, you may see him...just please do what you must, he's been through so much and I don't know how much longer he can last."

OMORI glanced over at MEDIKA, his eyes glittered faintly in the sunlight on his otherwise cliff-faced expression. "Thank you, now as for-"

A laser tore through a hedge and missed OMORI'S head by a few inches while MEDIKA squeaked in surprise and cowered against a wall, OMORI slowly turned around as a tall figure stepped out from behind the ruined shrub, she wore an immaculate pink dress while her whole body glowed in a radiant aura that gave her the look of a divine being, her bright kind smile betrayed her intent for the monochrome boy, which was anything but kind.

"If you value your own right to existence, then you will leave here and never return." PERFECTHEART said in her usual calm tone and readied another deadly laser at the boy.

OMORI squinted at the glowing woman and scoffed under his breath, this situation was no longer beneficial to him. He'd have to find another way inside. "Traitors..." OMORI muttered under his breath and ran off into some bushes out of sight.

The radiant woman lowered her palm and strode over to the terrified nurse with that same smile, behind her several other figures stepped out from the bushes, a pink and red squid woman and blue and purple octopus girl along with a odd looking pink girl holding some sort of metal object in her partially melted hands. "Who are you people?" MEDIKA said and stood upright, keeping her eye on these newcomers, she wasn't about to immediately trust someone who had blasted a hole in her rose bushes with lasers from their hands.

MEDUSA stepped out from the building and stood next to her, waving a hand over at the glowing divine. "This is PERFECTHEART. the one I told you about earlier." She introduced and pointed to the three other people next to her. "And these are my sisters and their own creations whom I had PERFECTHEART retrieve before they could be lost." she turned her attention to her sisters and smiled. "Hello MOLLY...MARINA...I trust PERFECTHEART has treated you fairly on the way here?"

MARINA crossed her tentacles and huffed. "Yeah yeah we're fine lil sis! we're just a little bruised up, you don't need to dote on us...jeez."

MOLLY stepped forward and politely bowed. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance, nurse MEDIKA, I look forward to our future projects together with my sisters."

"Nice place you got here, kind of wished I got this place instead of that dumb wasteland." MARINA commented rudely and strode past the group into the building.

The lopsided pink girl hobbled up the stairs and stared at the vista with awe. "pretty...flowers...very pretty..." MUTANTHEART marveled at the garden around her. "fren...look at pretty flowers!" She lifted ROBOHEART'S head up so she could see too.

MEDIKA took a moment to assess the situation. "Um...okay then...what's going on? why are you here?"

MOLLY took ROBOHEART'S head from MUTANTHEART and opened a back panel in her head before answering the question. "MARINA and I were staying in the other regions of this world you live in, then those kids came along and ruined everything."

"Wait hold on...other kids? those ones that OMORI spoke about? then that means they're already here." MEDIKA says in a surprised tone.

It was the SLIME GIRLS turn to be surprised, MEDUSA hastily turned to whispered something into PERFECTHEART'S ear. She nodded and escorted everyone else outside into the building, locking the door behind them. MEDUSA turned back to the magical nurse when they were alone, the next words she spoke were very serious. "I didn't want my sisters around to hear me say this out loud, but I'm going to help Sunny's friends find him but I don't want my sisters to realize I'm working against D.R.E.A.M. so let me share a secret."

MEDUSA took a sharp breath and leaned in close for to whisper. "There's a place underneath this hospital, I'm telling you this because I'll be going there after our talk here doll. It is the most important part of the world of SANCTUARY and after Shwartz passed we closed it off. We need to use everything we've got to stop OMORI from going any further." Her voice lowered. "You can let those other kids into the area below the basement...

...But do not let OMORI in at any cost we can't let him free her from her prison."

...

{B}{U}{R}{N}{I}{N}{G}

A new body walks on unfamiliar legs, satisfaction is secreted...

This form pleases, Brother will be pleased...

It is perfect...

A sound emanates from below to the body's ears, curiosity entices

A noise? flowers do not-

A body is suddenly ravaged by liquid pain, Anguish flares and ruptures!

It burns us!

It burns us! we are melting!

The pain...we do not understand!

We travel through the valley...

And the flowers attacked us!

Spraying water that eats!

They kill us!

A pained shriek and a body falls to the ground, desperation claws to surface!

The water...it hurts...

Need escape, this form is too weak...

We can not survive...

Mother...help us...

A body lays still, melted partially by sulfur, sorrow subsides...

A voice...

Not Mother...

It does not have to be. Keep together. we see it...

A man, but too tall...

He has a smile yet no face...

Not flesh...but metal and wood...

He speaks of great concern directed at us.

Our new form, however ruined it may be now...it has saved us.

It is only a matter of time before we get better...

A body is picked up and slowly delivered to the building, thoughts of rejoice.

We...are FACECLUSTER...

We are...one...

We are...many...

We will become Father's salvation...

{S}{A}{F{E}{T}{Y}


{}{}{}{{}{}{}{}{}{}{{}{}{}{}{{}

THE FOREVER, HALL OF TRUTH

[Mirror Mirror on the wall...]

{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{}{{}{}{}{}{}{}{{{}{}

Aubrey's eyes fluttered open and she looked around her, she must have fallen asleep while she was still being cradled in the arms of the INFIMRMIER and it was not alone. Standing beside it were dozens of others all crammed in some . She spotted two of them carrying her friends Kel, who lay in his INFIRMIER'S arms and had a bag of ice on his crotch, and Basil, who had a cast wrapped around his arm, he whimpered quietly to himself and shook softly.

"Hey...weird robot thing?" Aubrey spoke up, getting the robot's attention.

"INFIRMIER..." it corrected.

The pink haired girl rolled her eyes. "Yeah, can I be let down? I can walk you know." she spoke and shuffled a bit.

The INFIRMIER complied, lowering itself to the ground allowing the pink haired girl slide to her feet. As soon as her feet were on solid ground again, Aubrey pushed past a few clockwork men until she found the one holding her friend. She poked him lightly to get his attention. "Hey Kel, hey!" she whisper shouted. Kel turned over and gave Aubrey a dirty look.

"Oh...hey Aubrey..." Kel said coldly.

"Hey so...no hard feelings about earlier?" Aubrey gave him a empathetic shrug.

But Kel just gave her a hurt look and turned away. "Yeah about that, what the heck man? that's not cool."

Aubrey slumped her shoulders and looked at the ground."I'm sorry, I thought it would be funny." she apologized meekly and tried to get his attention again.

"Yeah ha ha, kicking me in the nades is SO hilarious." Kel said sarcastically, and pushed her hand away.

Aubrey sighed. "Come on, Kel...really I'm sorry that was an accident I swear...please."

Kel furrowed his brow and sighed. He turned back around and pointed a finger at her chest."...Okay, I'll forgive you...on one condition."

"O-kay...what's it gonna be?" she asks, wary of his cryptic implications.

"You gotta..." Kel rubbed his chin and smiled, he sifted through his bag and produced a large bottle bigger than his own head filled with bright orange fluid and shoved it into her hands. "Drink some of this..."

Aubrey seemed indifferent about the orange soda in her hands and crossed her arms. "What? drink some of your gross soda that's it? I would have thought you'd just want me to kiss you."

The athletic boy feigned a disgusted expression. "No...why would I make you do that? and here I thought I was the gross one." he commented with slight amusement in his tone.

Aubrey scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh, screw off with that, fine I'll have a sip."

"Nope, you gotta have at least most of it." he added with a finger wag.

...Oh, she'll show him...

Aubrey scoffed at him before she cracked open the soda with a loud hiss, the acrid smell of citrus flavored hell sludge assailed her nostrils. She look back at the expectant face of Kel and without another second of hesitation she started chugging. Her eyes went wide, but not from the taste, in fact it was...pretty good, much better than she had expected from her first time trying Orange Joe. The pink haired girl felt the fizzy drink sting her throat and give her the urge to gag, but she stayed strong and pressed through each gulp until the entire bottle was entirely drained. The pink haired girl wiped her mouth and tossed the empty bottle back to a very impressed Kel.

"W-what the hell do they put in that s-stuff?! it feels like my throat is on fire!" Aubrey coughed and held her throat and her aching stomach. She glared daggers at her friend "Y-you happy now? I tried yo-houurp..."

A loud belch suddenly escaped from her throat mid sentence that lasted several seconds. Several INFIRMIERS turned their heads in the direction of the sound. The pink haired blushed furiously and she gasped and covered her mouth in embarrassment before she could let any more unwanted outbursts. But the damage had already been done, Kel's face contorted and twisted as he did his damnedest to hold back the floodgates of laughter in his throat.

"Oh my gosh...I had no idea you were gonna go and down the WHOLE thing, I expected you to have half, even I can't do that." he waved a hand in front of his face and chuckled. "By the way, nice one Aubs."

The flustered pink haired girl felt her face go red again as a tiny burp slipped past her lips making her cringe a bit. "I am never drinking that shit ever again no matter what you pay me."

Kel gave her a smug look. "Aw don't give me that, I saw that look in your eyes when you were chugging that whole bottle...You like Orange Joe don't you Aubrey?" he teased while wiggling himself free from his INFIRMIER'S grip. "And for your information, yeah...we're even now."

"S-shut up. We gotta help Basil now and get to the others." Aubrey growled and pulled him along by the arm.

The two walked around in the cramped elevator space until they found the INFIRMIER holding the blonde boy in it's arms. From his soft whimpering and cries he seemed to be in a lot of pain.

"Oh crap, how did this happen?" Kel whispered worriedly once he saw Basil's broken arm.

"Big fight with dream you and dream me, he got caught in the middle trying to stop it." Aubrey explained as simply as she could. "I tried to tell him to move but..." she gestured back to the whimpering boy.

"Hold on I have just the thing right here." Kel said and reached into his bag again and produced a single slice of PIZZA. Aubrey blinked in surprise and leaned in closer.

"When did you get that?" she asked, staring dumbfounded at the strangely pristine looking slice in Kel's hand.

"MARI and HERO had a picnic and made some PIZZA before we left so I nabbed a slice or two before the trip."

Aubrey made a grossed out face. "Dude, that thing's like...several days old, and it's been sitting in your bag this whole time. Throw it out." she said. "We aren't feeding that to him."

Kel looked over at her and shrugged at the pizza slice in his hand. "Well, it's the only thing in my bag I got for healing so what other choice do we got?"

Kel reached over to Basil and placed the tip of the pizza to his mouth, poking his lips a bit before the flower boy took a small bite...his arm made a loud popping and crackling sound as it moved back into place on it's own. Basil's stressed face relaxed and he let out a sigh of relief.

[Basil healed 243 HEART]

Basil sat up from his laying position and let out a sigh of relief. "Th-thank you..." he said in relief, testing his arm further.

The INFIRMIER suddenly looked down at it's patient in it's arms and recoiled a bit. It suddenly twitched and started acting strange. "Error, patient injury not found, logic inconclusive, error, error, erro-" The clockwork gears and springs inside the INFIRMIER jammed up and exploded outwards, leading to the mechanical man dropping Basil on the ground and crumpling into a pile of limbs and mechanical parts. Basil quickly scrambled behind Aubrey as the other INFIRMIERS started taking notice.

"Uh, whoops...I think we broke it, I hope we're not in too much trouble." Kel stepped away from the body and slowly got his ball ready for whatever fight they may have just gotten into.

Instead, the clockwork men surrounded the pile of limbs and began picking up parts of it, storing smaller parts them inside the phonographs one their chests and holding onto bigger parts. The group stood back to watch the odd spectacle unfold.

"What are you doing?" Aubrey asked one of the scavenging INFIRMIERS nearest to her.

It turned around while holding it's fallen comrade's head. "Gathering what we can of our broken ally, it said plainly like nothing was wrong.

"...The lower wing of HOPEFUL HOSPITAL has a station for repairs, it is of no consequence due to our mechanical bodies, we can fix ourselves as easily as we can fix you." It explained and stuffed a phonograph under it's arm. The elevator door made a dinging sound and opened up just in time for all the INFIRMIERS to pile out with their fallen comrade in arms. Leaving the gang in the now less crowded elevator, completely free to choose where they got to go next. After a few seconds of processing what just happened Basil walked up to the buttons on the wall.

"Okay now that we've got the whole elevator to ourselves, which one of those buttons goes to the reception floor?" Kel asked.

Basil studied over the elevator controls and frowned. All the buttons had strange symbols he didn't understand on them. "Uh... I can't tell, they're written in some sort of strange runes." his finger hovered uncertainly over the wall panel until Aubrey strolled over next to him and pressed the first button at the bottom. Cheery elevator music began playing while the gang waited to reach the floor below. The lights in the elevator started to shift from the normal florescent lights to a more moody darkish blue color, the white on everyone's clothes looked like they were glowing. Kel looked down at his socks and smirked.

"Hey Aubrey, check out my cool glowing socks." he said and flashed his socks at her.

Aubrey snorted and flaunted her glowing jacket. "Your dirty sweaty socks have nothing on my sick neon jacket." she playfully bragged back at him and did twirl to show off her jacket.

Basil watched his friends show off at one another and stepped forward into the light. "What are you guys talking about? clearly you both don't have anything on these." he spoke confidently and pointed to his eyes as they gave off a bright blue glow in the dark light of the elevator.

The duo took one good look at the flower boy and went back to waiting, the fun having clearly been taken out it by their friend's unusual and clearly superior vision. "Damn, wish my eyes glowed in the dark...stupid Basil and his stupid special eyes..." Aubrey grumbled to herself and grumpily shoved her hands into her jacket pockets while the elevator ride continued in silence.

...

Some time later, the elevator eventually opened up and let the group out, but they stopped at the foot of the doors when they saw the other side...a sprawling iridescent purple void stretched into infinity awaited where the only thing around were giant glass shards that floated on the outer edges. Kel slowly took a single step forward and was surprised to find solid ground beneath his feet. the rest of the gang stepped out into the void and began to investigate

"Guys? I don't think this is the first floor..." Basil whispered with nervous awe.

The pink haired girl checked the elevator again and pressed the first floor button. "It says this IS the first floor...then what are we looking at?" Aubrey spoke and gazed intently into one of the reflective glass shards.

"Hey, A-Aubs, look at this..." Kel suddenly called out excitedly and waved over to them.

The group all gathered around where Kel was pointing to, inside the glass shard was a scene in a hospital with a familiar looking pregnant woman laying in a hospital bed with a doctor at the foot of her bed, there was no sound but the people in the reflection were speaking. After a bit of labor, the doctor finally brought out a newborn infant and after swaddling it in some orange cloth carefully handed it over to the woman. Standing in a room on the other side of a window was the father and his older son, a handsome young man in a blue shirt and spiked hair staring intently at the bundle in his mother's arms. The both of them were soon let into the room by the doctor and by request, the mother gave the child to her older son for him to hold. His expression awestruck as he looked into his little brother's eyes for the first time...

Everyone was was at a loss for words until the flower boy spoke up.

"Is that...? you when you were born Kel?" Basil muttered in disbelief and wonder.

"I think so...and that's Hero when he was a kid, so how is it showing these?" Aubrey looked over at the image of the younger Hero held the infant Kel in a gentle embrace. A pang of sadness washed over her and Basil when they remembered what had happened to the eldest brother of the group. Meanwhile Kel was running around checking out more mirrors.

"No way...these are some kind of magical mirrors that shows us our whole lives!" Kel exclaimed excitedly, going over to over to a different mirrors to glimpse his past. "Oh! look! this is the time I first played basket ball! and this one's my seventh birthday..." his eyes went wide as lollipops and gasped at the next. "Yo! Aubrey! check it, this is the time when we first met you on the side of the road!"

Aubrey turned and saw the image of a familiar young girl's face and remembered. She had been crying because one of her shoes had been lost on the way home and she couldn't find it anywhere. She knew her father would be disappointed and her abusive mother would be very angry if she found out. So she had sat on the side of the road and cried her eyes out until Mari and the others crossed paths and decided to help her look for the missing was the fateful afternoon that she would become best of friends with some of the best people to come into her life and changed it forever...for better or worse.

Intrigued by the aspect of the magic mirror's capabilities she turned around and went by herself to check out one of the other mirrors floating around.

[...there in the mirror was a woman she clearly recognized...and hated... A younger Dr. Yen, sitting at a desk doing research on some kind of experimental drugs while a the same black haired girl from before sat on the floor played with dolls by herself. It was her supposedly, and the woman at the desk was her-[][][][][][].

Aubrey hastily turned away from the mirror shaking her head and passed by another, a reflection played back another glimpse of the past.

[This one showed Yen in a heated arguing with a man she didn't know while the little girl stood by and watched in confusion as her-[][][][][][].

As she picked up the pace, various past images began showing on the mirrors around her.

[Yen doing various dangerous experiments labeled 'amnesiacs' on the young girl...she looked feverish and severely ill in this one...she is throwing up into a toilet while a man in a lab coat is seen handing Yen a suitcase full of cash in exchange for a single vial of the strange liquid...she doesn't remember much afterwards.]

[Police coming in and arresting Yen, more officers are seen holding the little girl close while her m[][][][][][] is seen reaching out towards her as she is taken away...she remembers being the one who called the police.]

Aubrey did her best to not look at it...but everywhere she looked she could see the images playing her whole life out like a storybook.

[The young girl sitting alone on a bunk bed at an orphanage...some children could be seen in the background talking about her behind her back about how her mo[][][][] is a witch.]

[A woman signing some adoption papers...she seems unhappy but the little girl seems happy to have a new home.]

Aubrey's brisk jog became a slow walk...she grits her teeth and shuts her eyes tightly.

[The girl is sitting up in an attic...looking sad and alone...her new abusive mot[][][][] locked her up there as a punishment for breaking a plate.]

[She is sitting on the sidewalk, her eyes red and puffy from crying...Some people passing by come sit by her and ask what is wrong.]

Why? why did it have to be like this?

[The young girl sitting on a picnic blanket with her new friends...for the first time in a long while she is happy.]

[The girl at a Christmas party watching a raven haired boy play a violin...his older sister is like a moth[][] to her and takes care of the girl when she asks.]

Stop it...please just stop...

[The girl at the beach eating a watermelon...she has seeds on her face, meanwhile her friend is seen playing on the beach with his older brother.]

[The girl getting a haircut...her father has offered to take her since her mothe[] refused to. it's going to be a great night for the recital!]

Not this...not again...anything but this...

The girl watches heartbroken as a body hang from a tree...she is sobbing uncontrollably into her friend's arms as he holds her close...]

The young girl is seen fleeing from a former friend's house holding a book in her arms...she didn't want to go back to her house but where else could she keep him from ruining the photos?.]

She held back a sob...she was at her limit.

[...A pink haired young woman with a nail bat...standing at the head of a group of delinquents...her expression fierce and cool.]

It's just her...Aubrey Margrove Su, Daughter of Margrove Yen Su...her mother.

Aubrey stopped dead in her tracks at the final reflection staring down at her, larger than life and standing like an effigy of her entire life up until now. Her breathing became sharp and her fists clenched so tightly that they turned white.

"Aubs? are you okay?" Kel came over and looked at the image on crystal, he frowned deeply when he saw what was on it and turns back to her.

"No...no I'm not...nothing about this is okay..." she whispers hoarsely and shakily gets to her feet.

"Aubrey? what are you talking about? what's wrong?" Basil says and tries to get her attention, she whirls on him with a livid expression that sends him reeling back onto the ground.

"I'm not okay with my whole life being a big lie!" She pointed furiously towards the image of Yen.

Kel recoiled in surprise, he had never seen her so distraught before. but as much as he wanted to give her some space, he needed to intervene before things got ugly. "Aubrey...you need to calm down...it's just a reflection-" But she wasn't listening.

"Don't tell me to calm down! I REFUSE to believe that...witch, is my real mother!" she snarled and stormed towards one of the mirrors.

"You don't have to...please just let's get out of-" Basil let out a shriek when a nail bat suddenly shattered one of the mirrors into bits.

"What are you doing?! Aubs put the bat down!" Kel shouted and took cover as more glass shards went flying everywhere.

Aubrey was delirious, everywhere she looked the images of herself seemed to be mocking her, they laughed every time she broke one another would cackle with glee, reminding her that she had been living in her whole life a lie. So she raged and attacked, her eyes were bloodshot and frantic all the while her friends were helpless to watch her rampage.

"Come on what's the matter? can't handle being a monster?" they seemed to say in her voice and contorting their mouths into unnaturally wide grins.

Her worst fear of bring related to the monster who took her friends lives apart laid was coming to life. And all she could do was smash the twisted reflections as they appeared. Aubrey stopped at the final mirror, a simple picture of an apathetic looking Yen holding her daughter's hand...the image of Yen shifted turned into a reflection of her modern self bearing most evil grin she had ever seen. The mirror Aubrey laughed and bore her sharp teeth, taunting its real counterpart with it's nail bat. It spoke.

"They say you're a horrible person, a delinquent...prove them right."

Aubrey finally snapped...

"Get out of my HEAD!" she screamed and swung her bat at the last mirror, smashing it over and over again until it fractured into pieces on the ground. As soon as the pink haired girl shattered that last mirror she suddenly passed out on the ground from exhaustion.

"Aubrey!" Kel and Basil screamed simultaneously and rushed over to her side. The entire room had began to shudder as an unnatural darkness pervaded the room from the shards of the last mirror. Kel hoisted Aubrey to her feet and he and Basil both moved toward the room's center to stand back to back. A wicked laugh heralded the arrival of an intimidating presence that filled the air making it hard to breath. The remaining two soon passed out alongside Aubrey and lay in unconscious heap. a smoky purple hand reached out from the darkness above and touched the forehead of Aubrey before the smoke coalesced and entered through her mouth and nose and vanished.

"FORLORN CHILD. BY DENYING YOUR OWN TRUTH YOU HAVE FREED ME FROM MY ETERNAL PRISON. AND AS A REWARD YOU SHALL BECOME MY NEW VESSEL YOU. ARE. MINE." An ominous voice proclaimed from all around them. The being laughed wickedly as the world around the friends closed in on them...


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THE FOREVER, Bitter Memory of the Accused

[If you came to hear me beg...]

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"Hopeless sinner!"

A accusing voice barked at her as she ran towards the church doors, she tightly gripped at the doorknob and pushed it open she squinted her eyes shut fighting back the torrent of tears from her eyes that threatened to break through at any moment. She glanced back at the staring crowd of churchgoers and the two lone figures of Sunny and Kel standing there watching her leave, the athletic boy's hurt expression hurt her inside more than But rather than linger any longer she twisted her head back out towards the exit. Aubrey stepped out but rather than pavement like she had expected, she was now standing at the front of the church's inside again with the judging faces of her former friends and the strangers once again glaring right at her.

"W-What the?" Aubrey murmured.

"Delinquent child, what do you think you're doing in here again? leave this holy place at once!"

Without another word Aubrey walked out of the church, passing by Kel and Sunny once again before finally reaching the door and swinging it open.

"There's no hope for a sinner like you!"

An accusing voice once again shouted at the pink haired girl, Aubrey found herself once again gazing down the aisle of judgemental stares.

"Uncivilized thug!"

Aubrey ran over to Kel and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Kel what's going on? is this some kind of sick joke?" she snapped with slight irritation in her voice.

Kel said nothing but shook his head in disappointment as Sunny stood by staring up at her with his impassive expression. Aubrey scoffed and shouldered on by the two, reaching the door and ended up stepping back into the church again. Aubrey rushed forward, ignoring the onlookers and her unresponsive friends as she kicked the door open into the same looping room, the pink haired girl broke into a sprint speeding down the aisles over and over again through the endless hallways each time she would pass through the voices became louder and louder and the passing remarks became more hurtful.

"Come on! why does it keep going?! stop!" Aubrey panted and wiped some sweat from her brow.

"Trespasser!"

"Delinquent!"

"Hopeless child..."

"Lost cause..."

Irredeemable Sinner!"

Aubrey looked back for a moment and ended up running into Kel's arms, she felt him gripping her arms a bit too tightly, making the pink haired girl grunt in pain as she struggled in his iron grip. "Kel let me go!" Aubrey shrieked and used her foot to try and shove him away. She succeeded but the athletic boy began to block her path when she tried to run by.

"Get out of the way Kel!" Aubrey shouted, this time more angrily as continued to block her path. Aubrey was torn between her desperation to leave, her overwhelming sadness and the rising anger and frustration threatening to break free from within, she pointed her nail bat at Kel in the hopes he would back off. But he still stood in her way, unusually silent for someone she knew as a friend once.

Aubrey growled and readied her weapon to swing.

Everything was red...

She couldn't think straight, all she could focus on was the blurred form of Kel continuing to stubbornly block her way out. She readied her bat for a warning swing.

"I said...out. of. my. WAY!"

*Crack!*

Aubrey panted heavily as her nail bat dropped to the floor with a loud wet thud, she happened to spare a look over at Sunny who now no longer looked at her but downward towards the ground. She slowly followed his gaze until she saw what he was looking at and gasped in horror. The sight of Kel's broken body bleeding from the gaping fissure in the back of his skull left an utterly sick feeling in Aubrey's stomach knowing that she had just killed her best friend in a fit of temporary madness. She keeled over on her knees, retching her stomach's contents on the floor at Sunny's feet, another glance at her former best friend's fresh corpse made her throw up again. Now the remarks of the surrounding crowd had turned into a furious uproar that all converged upon the pink haired girl, surrounding her like predators on a wounded animal.

"Murderer!"

"That girl is a lowlife thug and she should be punished like one!"

"You killed that boy in cold blood you deranged monster!"

"I heard she's the daughter of of psychopath, A shame that's all she inherited from her."

"...A no good sinner like her should be burning in hell."

Then the mob was upon her, all rushing out in a swarm of anger to attack the girl with what they had at hand, from books to fists and kicks all the while Aubrey could do little to defend herself from the merciless wave of punishment from the furious churchgoers lynching her. They tore at her clothes, kicked her in the face and stomach, stomped on her and pulled out her hair. Aubrey suddenly felt herself being picked up by the arms and being dragged backwards towards the stage towards a pile of books carelessly piled around a large stake with a beam across the top.

She glanced over at the monolith behind her. The sudden horror dawned on her even before someone in the crowd could say...

"Punish the witch spawn! bring her to the stage to be shown God's mercy!"

They were going to crucify her...

The pink haired girl now invigorated by the realization of fear suddenly found the strength to struggle away from her captors and shamble over to the lone bystander still standing outside the crowd, she grabbed his shoulders in a pitiful display of begging, bitter tears stinging her bruised and cut face.

"Sunny...help me...please...tell them to stop, please!" Aubrey pleaded desperately. But Sunny only continued to stand there and stared at her with an uncaring spaced out look, indifferent to his friend's agony, deaf to her begging.

"Sunny! don't let them do this to me! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!

The crowd roughly tore her away from the raven haired boy and she once more found herself being brought onto the church stage, this time she found no strength to fight back or even cry out for mercy from an apathetic crowd seeking their twisted justice. They forcefully pinned her to the sides of the cross while the pastor brought out a hammer and two long thick stakes. He leveled the sharp tip of the first nail to her palm and with a forceful swing drove it deep into her hand and into the cross behind it. Aubrey screamed as pain shot through her arm, she struggled weakly in an attempt to break free but the merciless churchgoers held her firm, another swing from the hammer drove another giant nail through her other hand which made her scream louder.

Even when she would cry out in agony and beg for mercy, it really didn't matter, the pain was nothing compared to what she felt in her heart.

Even when the crowd continued to point at her and continue to say those horrid things about her, it didn't matter, she deserved all of what they said about her.

Even when she noticed that all the green colored books below her were, in a sick twist of irony, all copies of Basil's photo album that she had stolen from him, she didn't even she a tear, because it meant nothing after all...

After what seemed like an eternity of agonizing torture, the crowd had finally seemed satisfied and withdrew towards the pews to watch. Aubrey hung there in full display, completely and utterly broken, covered in bruises and cuts all over, her left eye was swollen shut from a blow to the face and was leaking a mixture of blood and tears that stung her raw cheeks, her hair was ruined, bits of her scalp showed through where the crowd had torn from it and what was left of her jacket barely covered up the sticky wet blood soaking into her shirt that came from the fluids leaking profusely from her impaled hands and trickled down her arms.

"S-u-nny...I'm...s-s-so-rry...don't...leave me...p-please." she whimpered through ebbing breaths. She glimpsed the departing figure of Sunny as he pushed through the doors to the outside that she couldn't reach. With her final semblance of hope gone, Aubrey let her self stare vacantly up at the beautiful stain glass windows that once brought her slight comfort and hope for peace in the past. Here she was, beaten within an inch of her life, she had murdered her best friend, he lay unmoving in a pool of his own blood... Aubrey gazed at her bloodstained hands nailed to the cross...and laughed to herself, a raw unfamiliar sound from her own throat as more blood began to spill out from her dry chapped lips. A flame was lit underneath the cross and the books were set ablaze. Aubrey felt the flames lick her feet as a warm feeling at first then became a painful burn, rising up to her waist and scorching her hair, burning away at any remaining clothes on her body. Though decency didn't matter anymore, not when her flesh would soon follow.

The people here were right to do this to her she thought...this is what she deserved in the end. She thought her efforts to find peace would allow her a chance to try and move on. That's why she went to church every week. It meant everything to her to just try...it just needed some time.

Now...it meant nothing...

...it never did...

...and it never will...

Aubrey closed her one good eye and consigned herself to her fiery fate, until a different voice called over to her, not once laced with hate and malice but genuine concern and worry.

"Wake up! it's not your time to go yet!"

Aubrey wearily opened her eye and spotted a blurry shape of white and red speeding towards her, suddenly a white gloved hand shot out through the wall of flames to grab what was left of her shirt and pulled her forward...


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THE FOREVER, FLOOR 1, RECOVERY CENTER

[I am thou...thou art I]

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Aubrey bolted upright and frantically looked around, breathing heavily and grasping at her own hands, thankfully there were no angry churchgoers, Kel was still alive and she wasn't being crucified and burned alive, it was just a bad dream...It took her a second of looking around to notice the small white haired girl sitting in a chair in the far right corner.

"I'm so so so...sorry about what happened, you're lucky that you survived that fall...no one usually survives from something like that." she said in a deeply regretful tone.

"Who the heck are you?" Aubrey questioned. and what fall? there wasn't- ah ow!" she winced a bit and rubbed her neck.

The girl stood up and walked over to the edge of Aubrey's bed. She introduced herself with a curtsy and a short spin. "My name is MEDIKA MAGICAL! I live in and keep the HOPEFUL HOSPITAL here in the THE FOREVER running as the place of healing for the weary. It's a pleasure to meet you Aubergine..." her warm and bubbly personality was sweet enough to to give Aubrey a cavity if it was possible. But the mention of her full name put her on edge.

MEDIKA MAGICAL...that was a NOT name she had never heard of before, but one she had recalled only recently. This friendly medic girl wasn't like the ancient cartoon characters that Kel used to watch on TV nor was she anything like the 'way ahead of their time' comic book hero she had heard Basil used to geek out on. The only reason she could recognize this nurse girl was not because of any knowledge beforehand...no, her looks matched up exactly with a doll she used to have as a child when she lived her...' real mother'. And here she was, Medika Magical in the flesh, a relic from her lost past standing before her.

...her best friend from a life long forgotten.

Aubrey didn't have time to speak again before the magic nurse spoke up. "Me and some INFIRMIERS found you and your friends down in the basement out cold. So we brought you upstairs to rest and recover." She glanced at the wall where a familiar well worn nail bat sat next to a white and yellow stripped varsity jacket and short jeans. she continued. "And just in time too, you were having such terrible hallucination induced seizures that we had to sedate you so we could operate on you safely."

"Thanks for the help but really I need to find my friends now, so..." Aubrey kicked her feet over the side of the bed and went to get up

"Oh no! don't get up yet! your stitches are still healing from that nasty fall you had!" MEDIKA warned too late.

Aubrey stopped halfway up when a sharp splitting pain hit her in the middle, she pulled up her hospital gown to check underneath, a large ugly gash ran across her exposed abdomen from her lower left stomach up to her left upper chest. Thankfully the nurse had covered the wound in plenty of ointment and held the wound together with plenty of stitches. But something didn't add up. Why did she keep saying she fell down? they were in the freaking basement looking for the reception room...

"You need to rest." MEDIKA said in a assuring voice and gently guided the pink haired girl's legs back into a resting position and tucked them back under the blankets. "I know you have important things on your mind and many questions. But please for your health's sake, don't move or the quick heal ointment won't be able to do it's job."

Reluctantly, a disgruntled Aubrey resigned to simply lay there and staring at the nurse with a pouty face. "Well then what am I supposed to do then? I can't just lay in bed all day."

"Oh! I know! we could play a game to pass the time!"

MEDIKA turned away for a second and suddenly pulled out a deck of cards from inside her dress, she shuffled them in her hands like a pro before placing them face down on the bed before Aubrey. "Take one, any one and see what you get, it's funner than it sounds trust me." she spoke.

Aubrey's eyes scanned over the twelve cards available and hovered her hand over the eighth one to the right, she looked up at the magic nurse she only stared back with an impassive look. She took her chances with her chosen card and turned it around quickly, below it's strikingly dated design was a single word printed at the bottom in large text;

TEMPERANCE

"What kind of weird playing card is this supposed to be?" Aubrey wondered aloud holding it up to the light.

MEDIKA gathered up the rest of her deck and examined the card Aubrey had picked. "You've never heard of tarot cards before? It's okay no one here really has except me." she chuckled to herself and continued. "They're used to describe people's personalities and tell the future But unlike normal cards..."

She winked and looked down at the card in Aubrey's hand. "...These ones are special magic cards." MEDIKA pointed at the image depicting an angel holding two goblets pouring into one another. "You have TEMPERANCE, this card indicates a need for straight roads and calm in your life."

As MEDIKA continued explaining the meaning of the card, Aubrey suddenly felt a hand harshly press down on her shoulder, she whipped on insytinct around to meet her own face glaring back at her, the other wicked looking Aubrey from the mirror she broke. The other her didn't speak but it's body language spoke hatred and anger. The real Aubrey recoiled in shock and swatted away at mirror Aubrey. Though the attack phased through it's body and it laughed mockingly at her efforts, it bore a sharp teeth filled grin and sneered.

"The fuck is that?!" Aubrey raised her voice in alarm.

MEDIKA gasped placed her arms on her hips. "There's no need for that kind of vulgarity around here!"

Aubrey furiously pointed at the shadow over her. "Is this some kind of sick joke?!" she demanded angrily.

MEDIKA stopped mid explanation and looked over Aubrey's shoulder at the evil clone hovering behind her teasing and taunting the pink haired girl behind her back and grimaced to herself.

"Oh dear, it's not supposed to do that..." MEDIKA murmured and let her arms drop to her side.

The pink haired girl was taken aback and she tightened her grip on her sheets in anger. "What...like that!? why would anyone willingly play a card game that curses you!?" she yelled again.

The magic nurse nervously pulled at the hems of her dress. "You see, speaking of that...The tarot cards are supposed protect you from-"

The pink haired delinquent interrupted the magic girl mid sentence by harshly tossing the card into the air.

"Well I don't want it then if it's not working properly! If all it's gonna do is make an evil ghost of myself follow me around then I think I'll be fine without your 'help'." She glared back at the mirror and flipped the bird at it, Mirror Aubrey made no attempt to retaliate but instead shuddered angrily and made sharp breaths out of it's face.

MEDIKA swiped at the air in an attempt to catch the card before she finally caught it. She puffed her cheeks out in irritation "You didn't let get to that part yet. You see, that card is the only thing keeping MORG-..." MEDIKA stopped herself and went silent all of a sudden. She seemed to be considering her next words carefully.

Aubrey raised an eyebrow, and leaned in closer. "Who? You're making it real hard for me to trust you right now." she remarked tersely.

MEDIKA shrunk away defensively and shook her head. "I-I can't tell you that...it's...a secret." Her poor attempts at lying were too obvious to hide from Aubrey. She squinted at the magical nurse, giving her a dirty look.

"Bullshit, first you give me a haunted playing card..."

"It's not haunted, it's magic!" MEDIKA cried out. "And watch your dirty language!"

"...Then you say there's something dangerous lurking about and you won't even tell me what it is!" Aubrey leaned forward with a distrustful look on her face. "You keep expecting me to hear you out...but how am I supposed to trust you and your voodoo magic cards if your just gonna keep secrets?"

"N-No! you don't understand! There really is something dangerous out there!" She exclaimed. "If you don't take this card, the witch will eventually possess your body as her own! she's already cursed you and it will just get worse otherwise!"

Aubrey glared at the magic nurse. "What do you mean I'm cursed? why didn't you just say that in the first place? Was saying, 'Hey Aubrey, we saved your life, oh by the way you're freaking cursed cause you broke a bunch of mirrors and you have to take a magic card that protects you from all the bad luck you've picked up from it for the rest of your life.' Is that so hard to say?!"

MEDIKA just stood there and stared at Aubrey with a frustrated look on her face. "Okay...if I tell you what's happening, will you finally trust me and at least take the card before you go find your friends?" she spoke in a quiet voice and held the card back to her..

"...Fine, I'll take the stupid card...and I'll trust you." Aubrey sighed and begrudgingly snatched the playing card back.

"Thank you...I was only concerned for your well being and I knew you'd be the witch's first target." she said in a relieved tone and pulled up a seat at the foot of the bed. Once she was comfortable she began to elaborate.

"Okay the reason I tried to keep this name a secret was because couldn't risk the witch...MORGANA THE FEY...being summoned here, even saying her name out loud is risky enough to trigger it." The medic girl went on to explain further.

"She's a malevolent and dangerous witch that brings nightmares to life and twists people's worst memories for it's amusement." MEDIKA "She was trapped in that mirror room for ages until she used images of your past to trick you into freeing her. She cast a spell on you and your friends and put you into a waking nightmare would have killed you in your sleep if I hadn't gotten to you before she did."

Aubrey felt a chill run down her spine at the name MORGANA. for a moment she heard a vile whisper in her head and tensed up. She was cursed by this witch who wanted to take her body as her own and even if she did get herself uncursed, no doubt MORGANA wouldn't try to take control of her other friends? would Basil, Kel or even Sunny be in danger? No...She won't let her problems become someone else's. She'd have to take matters into her own hands if or when it came to it...

Aubrey found the tarot card placed back into her hand and she pocketed it. "With this Tarot card, TEMPERANCE, it should ward your mind from most of the witch's incantations and grant you protection in the form of your worst trauma. She glanced up at the mirror delinquent. "Your trauma looks very recent fro,...bad blood with some family?"

"Sort of, I don't want to talk about it. But how did you know" The pink haired girl inquired and sat up from her bed, this time the magic nurse didn't stop her and instead helped her on to her feet.

"I have my ways..." the nurse gave her a sly grin.

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Kel sat by himself in the hospital reception room humming a tune to himself while he waited for his friends to arrive and find out where Sunny was staying at. He fiddled with something in his hand and held his bandaged head in the other, The nurse woman who had come in to check on him said he had a mild concussion and needed to take it easy and rest until he could recover properly. But here he was sitting here...just him all by himself...

"Do you think they'll...um, react well to me being here?" a voice next to him said with uncertainty.

Kel chuckled and gave a reassuring look. "Oh you'll be fine! I'll just explain what that doctor girl told me, I made a wish on that magic card she gave me and now you're here with me."

"She's a nurse not a doctor..." The voice corrected. "And you should have listened to her Kel, that injury isn't going to get better if you don't get proper rest."

Kel made a nonchalant gesture turned his attention to the card he was holding, he flipped it over and looked at it's text on the bottom;

THE CHARIOT.

He had found himself in a hospital bed on the upper floors after he had passed out in the strange mirror room. A bandage had been carefully wrapped around the back of his head to cover a injury he had received. The girl who gave him the card had then introduced herself as MEDIKA MAGICAL, she explained to him that she had come across him and the others while she was getting some supplies from the basement they happened to be in. After that, she and the INFIRMIERS had rushed the three of them to emergency care. Sometime afterwards, MEDIKA had paid him a visit and handed him a choice of one of thirteen from a deck of strange looking cards. She mentioned that they were magic and told him that he and his friends could keep them as an apology for them getting injured on hospital grounds.

The nurse told him about his particular card, THE CHARIOT means overcoming all obstacles with positivity. This card specifically could grant him one wish that he could take back at any time he wanted to. So he immediately used it on the first thing that came to mind he wished to be with the one person he could look up to.

"Hey Kel, you okay?" The familiar voice asked and waved a hand in front of him to pull him back to reality.

He turned towards the voice and gave the person next to him a reassuring smile.

"I'm more than okay I'm... I'm just glad you're back with us again...Hero."

At the same moment, Aubrey had come out her room wearing a hospital gown while the white haired girl from earlier had went past to check on some other patients. Aubrey spotted Kel straight away and took a seat next to him. The two friends sat for a few minutes, before Aubrey engaged first with an observation.

"You got banged up pretty bad too huh?" Aubrey said casually, pointing to his bandage around his head.

The athletic boy shrugged sheepishly and chuckled. "Yeah, But I've bruised up worse before, this is nothing compared too-" He winced a little and rubbed his neck.

"You really ought to be more careful bro." Hero chided.

Kel stretched his arms and reclined back, he turned to Hero. "Relax, I'll be good as new in no time. We'll find out where Sunny is and get him home, then everything will be-"

"Kel, Who or are you talking to?" Aubrey interrupted him.

Kel paused, he saw his friend with an odd look on her face. What was she talking about how could she not hear him? "What do you mean?" he answered back.

Aubrey leaned out of her seat to point at the empty chair next to him. "You were just talking to that empty chair."

"Oh you mean Hero? he's right here see?" Kel says, casually gesturing to his older brother next to him.

"Hey Aubrey! how's it going?" Hero greeted cheerfully and waved over to her.

Aubrey gave her friend a discomforted stare. "Kel...Hero's been...gone for a while now, there's no one there in that seat." she says with a somber expression.

The athletic boy felt his grin slowly turn into a frown, he was deeply hurt that his best friend would just pretend that his brother wasn't here. Hero was with him, he could hear him he could see him, it was a miracle! So why was Aubrey just ignoring his brother? He wished for Hero to come back with the magic card and it worked! He had his big bro back and they could rescue Sunny with the whole gang back together. Then the both of them could go home and have everything back to normal like nothing bad had ever happened...

The thought gave him comfort as his smile returned and he laughed it off.

"Ha, very funny Aubs. That's a good joke, you really almost got me there, pretending that Hero's invisible." Kel chuckled and pat Aubrey on the back. "You're just surprised to see him back."

"No...he's not...you're..." Aubrey dropped the subject and decided to shift gears. "Okay, I give, Hero's back and that's great, we're gonna go see

"That's cool, I hope Basil's gonna pull through, he's been through a lot." Kel said to Hero.

Aubrey looked back at Kel as they walked to Basil's hospital room, she saw him having a conversation with empty air and she looked ahead before he could notice.

She was more concerned with how he was faring lately...She'd see this kind behavior from him from time to time. Every time they'd have a moment to talk about the subject of his older brother, he would say he was fine and change the subject to something else. Witnessing firsthand what Hero's death drove Kel to his breaking point was harrowing for the both of them. Fortunately she'd been able to dissuade him from violence and soon he was back to his old self again, but this comeback had seemed a little too easy, she knew him well...In the wake of Mari's death Kel's way of coping had been to find new things to keep his mind occupied. That was nothing new...but then she looked at the bandages on the back of his head...and then back to her awful dream...

The dark implications that came to her head regarding her brief state of lunacy down in the basement room...

...she hoped it she hadn't had anything to do with his current state of mind...

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"It's not real...it's not real...it's not real...it's not real..."

Basil sat there in the dark covered in fresh cuts and bruises, he cowered in a corner of his hospital room which had looked like a tornado had blown through, sheets lay strewn on the ground, some lights had been shattered leaving the ones still active to flicker and cast shadows on the walls. His bed had been overturned on it's side and shoved against the far opposite wall. Basil frantically surveyed his surroundings and flashed his GARDEN SHEARS at the first sign of movement in the shadows. In his right hand he held a card tightly in his shaky grip. In his left, the GARDEN SHEARS himself now slightly stained with his own blood, his hands constantly squeezing down on the shears over and over again.

Snip...

SOMETHING wrapped itself around the flower boy. A circle of teeth closed in around his waist like a steel bear trap. Fangs

Snip...

"This is what you deserve Basil...you know that?" A malice filled voice whispered in his ear, curling up a little closer to his head.

"I-I don't-"

Snip...

"Basil? w-what are you doing?"

"You thought you could get away from your own crimes? It's sickening that you made them believe in your lie and for what? to save one person who abandoned you anyways?" It sneered.

"They care about me...th-they wouldn't- Sunny didn't-"

Snip...

"Basil! stop!"

"Your best friend may have killed her but you...oh you doomed him and yourself in the very end to."

Snip...

"No truth will save you this time, murderer. This time you will get what you deserve..A PLACE IN HELL WHERE YOU BELONG!" SOMETHING IN THE TREE'S roared.

"Basil! snap out of it!"

Aubrey's violent shaking of his body snapped him back to the present, he noticed the shears were inches away from his plunging into his stomach and dropped them to the ground with a clattering sound. He placed his now free hand to his chest and slowly took a breath in and out over and over until he was calm enough to focus on Aubrey and Kel kneeling in front of him with mortified looks on their faces.

The SOMETHING yet lingered around his body but seemed less intense than before, it rested opened up rather than closing around him, giving the appearance of twisted flower in full bloom. Basil looked up at his worried friends and stood up on shaky legs. The black wreath of teeth and eyes followed his movements when he walked towards a intact chair to sit down and rub his temples with blood stained hands.

"Oh my god...Basil, what happened?" Aubrey spoke.

The flower boy took in the surroundings of his ruined hospital room and recalled what had transpired before. He had woken up with a splitting headache and found a note on the side of his bed. It said something along the lines of an apology for not being able to personally show up due to pressing matters and instead left him a special card for him to take. The card in question sat on the face up on the corner of the nightstand was a depiction of a regal looking man sitting on a throne of gold.

THE EMPEROR.

As soon as his hands touched the card he felt a wave of fear wash over him and a sharp pain in his stomach area, he looked and saw a black writhing mass of teeth and eyes watching him, his SOMETHING that had tormented him for four years. When he attempted to remove the SOMETHING it acted out aggressively and went into a frenzy, knocking things over and flinging the poor boy around the room until it eventually subsided back down. Leaving him bruised and battered by the time they had found him, with shears only a few seconds away from ending his own life. His mind was fogged from the scarring moment...

Fear and obscurity overtook him and made him forget bravery and lucidity.

"Dude, what is that thing?..." Kel pointed at the SOMETHING hugging around his body. It let out a low growl and hissed at Kel when he tried to touch it.

"SOMETHING...S-SOMETHING around me..." Basil uttered the creature's name with a voice heavy with dread.

"It's a SOMETHING then? you have those shears that kill them right?" Aubrey said, picking up the tool off the ground and gingerly handing it back to the flower boy while keeping a safe distance from his SOMETHING'S gnashing teeth.

Basil pushed the weapon away and looked upwards to show a bright red gash on his neck from where he had been nicked by. "I-I can't, I just can't...I want to go home..." he muttered in a defeated tone, his voice barely above a whisper. He curled into his seat and covered his face with his knees, sobbing softly.

Aubrey stared at the flower boy with an unreadable expression on her face before she placed her hands on his shoulders. The room went silent as the two looked each other in the eyes, natural blue meeting teal contacts. Neither she nor him or the two onlookers made any move in the moment of quiet that passed.

"Basil...do you think Sunny would want to see you like this?" she spoke in a serious but sympathetic voice.

Basil somberly shook his head at her and looked away in shame. Suddenly he felt himself being lifted off his seat and pulled into a tight embrace. What surprised Basil the most was when he heard Aubrey barely holding her own sobs, and the feeling of wet tears staining his gown. The hug lasted a full ten seconds she let go and wiped her tear filled eyes.

"Then don't...don't leave us like that when we're so close to seeing him again...y-you're stronger than this demon monster thing and you know it."

she said and pulled away, Basil didn't have to look at her eyes to know that underneath that stern look she wore was a deeply distraught and caring Aubrey who was very anxious about her friend's well being. It would be deeply selfish of him to take the easy way out and leave his friends to suffer losing a friend again.

"I'm sorry Aubrey...I-I promise I won't hurt myself anymore." he told her.

"Y-you better not..." she steadied her breathing and gave him a distraught look. "...You scared me half to death doing that y-you idiot..."

The flower boy stood up and gave the pink haired girl a hug on his own, he stared at the card in his hand as he held her close like she would fall if he let go...he'd already lost so much over the course of the four years after Mari's death... But he endured it all, but only because he had held onto hope that someday things would go back to the way they were before and with the love and support of the people who cared about him. Polly's kindness, Kel's boundless optimism, Hero's support, Aubrey's determination, and Sunny...he gave him his hope back.

After the hospital confession, he was afraid that the group would disband and abandon him anyways. But no such thing happened, The first person from the group to talk to him after that day was actually Hero calling him on the phone asking a single question; why didn't you call for help? The flower boy worried that Hero might be angry at him for hanging Mari on the tree and was going to say they were done. Instead, Hero explained that he just wanted an honest answer from his side of the story. Basil went into detail on his perspective, his fear of losing Sunny...the troubles he was having in his life and his own abandonment issues. Hero listened and by the time Basil had poured out his heart the older brother had finished the call by, telling him that he understood a little better now and that he was looking forward to seeing him soon. Basil had never felt more relieved than he'd felt in a long time...

...Then Polly arrived and he woke up to a dream version of a younger AUBREY sitting on his chest and smiling at him. The rest afterwards was history.

Basil let Aubrey go and put on a determined face.

"I'll stay strong for all of you."

...

THE EMPEROR card is said to represent stability in life and a good control over what happens in it...


The reunited friend group would head back to their rooms to change out of the patient gowns into their old clothes and gathered in the reception room where MEDIKA MAGICAL was waiting for them. Everyone was ready to finish their long and arduous journey through this imaginary world.

"So where's Sunny staying?" Kel began with the question on everyone's mind; the whereabouts of their long lost sunshine.

"He should be in resting in his room where we left him, room 143 down the hall to on the far end of the third hallway." MEDIKA answered, giving directions to the raven haired boy's room.

The crew of three was soon following closely behind the nurse as they went past various rooms for about a full minute until they stopped at the room where Sunny was being treated in. Basil eagerly opened the door expecting to see the raven haired boy laying in bed waiting to be reunited with his loving friends and be taken back home safe and sound...instead, all they found was an empty bed and a stark absence of Sunny...along with any hopes of bringing him back home safely.

...Basil wanted to cry...so close and yet taken again...

Kel soon followed behind and looked around in confusion. "Wait a minute." he started. "...You said he was in here. This is the right room, 143?"

Hero looked at the room number. "Yeah this it, Sunny's not out and about is he?" he said to Kel.

While Kel desperately looked everywhere in the room, from under the bed to inside the drawers, MEDIKA approached the empty bed, the covers had been recently displaced and the impression of a body was still fresh on the mattress. She deducted that Sunny had been recently moved.

Her face fell her body shook with barely veiled distress and bafflement. "He...he was here a hour an ago when I checked on him last. And I know he's not wandering around in his current state..."

An INFIRMIER came up from behind and make a throat clearing noise. "Pardon me for intruding ma'am, but I believe the patient has been relocated." it answered with a unsteadiness in it's voice.

"Relocated..." the medic repeated and sharply turned on her heel. "You know...It's against the rules for a patient to be moved from his room unless permission was given or it's an emergency." she wagged her finger like a mother scolding a child and pointed it at the INFIRMIER'S chest

"So who took him and where?" she demanded harshly. The three friends were unsettled by the magic nurse's sudden aggravated response to Sunny's disappearance. They put some distance between while The Magic nurse was drilling her fellow worker.

The INFIRMIER adjusted a knob on it's phonograph and twiddled it's spindly fingers together nervously. "Two unidentified persons not on our staff or patient registration list came into room 143 approximately several minutes ago after we discovered the basement commotion and committed a fourth of the staff to cleanup duty. Afterwards, patient 143 was nowhere to be located on hospital grounds or beyond in the sulfur flower fields."

"They didn't even say please..." MEDIKA uttered under her breath. "Did you get any names on who?" she spoke in a much calmer tonality. the machine man seemed to relax when she did and regained it's natural composure.

"Yes, we only realized later that those two, Dr. Ray and Dr. Yen were not registered names in our staff records." The clockwork man handed Aubrey a thin sheet of paper. "Though we recovered a message that was written with specific signature from one Dr. Margrove Yen Su sender to a 'daughter' receiver, it is likely addressed to you."

Aubrey unfolded the neatly wrapped paper and read the clean handwritten message;

[][][][][][]

My Dear Daughter, Aubergine

If you received this note, you are probably aware of our kindred relationship as per the notes address. I admit myself I was surprised when you first showed during my business trip into your home town, I at first didn't recognize my daughter from first glance, with your crude personality and questionable choice in appearance, I initially took you as some dirty lowlife street thug, but we fought I could see traces of my daughter in you, but I didn't say anything because it would compromise. but when I left I could only think about you. How my beloved daughter who was taken from me so young a age had been tossed with the scum, diluted and tainted beyond recognition into a rebellious street punk. I could not hold you accountable for something you had no control over. How could I? The fact that you didn't remember me either was also a sign that my experimental amnesic formula I created long ago was a success! My magnum opus that got me a position into the military's lead scientist was possible because of you. So me having to sacrifice you was a boon in of itself. And so the only way I can thank you is to tell you where to find me now,

Down in the basement level of the HOPEFUL HOSPITAL is a secret entrance behind a mirror. Enter downwards and bring your friends if you wish. Come to find me, and when everything is said and done and order is realized...I can undo all the damage the previous world did to you and we can be family again. You just have to accept my help.

I care about you Aubergine, I really do from the bottom of my heart and it brings me joy that I haven't felt in years, let's rule the new world together as mother and daughter.

Remember...Mommy loves you...

Your Caring Mother, Yen

[][][][][][][]

Aubrey lowered the note with trembling hands and grit her teeth. She was absolutely livid. "Yen...that heartless bitch..." Aubrey murmured furiously and crumpled the note in her hand. "So she knew, she knew this whole. fucking. time...Yen made a profit off of using me as a lab rat, she ruined my entire life, and she has the GALL to pretend to still care and want me to come crawling back with her after all that!?"

"...After she murdered Hero?"

An uncomfortable silence filled the air. Kel looked over at Hero with a sympathetic expression and pat his shoulder. "No...it's okay bro, you're safe now. It's okay."

Basil wondered why Kel was comforting the air next to him.

Aubrey stepped back her intensity and let her arms drop to her sides. "Fine, that's what I gonna do then...If she wants to invite me to find her in this...place she wants to meet me at. I'll smash all her teeth in, then we'll see how much she 'cares' after that."

The pink haired delinquent girl held her nail bat a little tighter in her grip and exhaled. She stormed off while the others followed behind to the elevator and went to the basement area.

MEDIKA went up to the messenger and handed it a key. "INFIRMIER, I'm leaving the hospital to accompany our new friends to the basement. Let Unit 0000001 know she's in charge now."

The INFIRMIER formally bowed. "Yes Ma'am, I shall, should I inform the rest of the staff?" it inquired.

"No, this a private matter, I'll handle the situation."

...

For a second time, the group had entered the mirror room from before. It had been significantly cleaned up by the staff from last time they were here, all the shattered mirror frames had been piled neatly in one corner save for the one massive frame that Aubrey had broken. A single pale door stood, it had hidden behind the giant mirror the whole time. Kel walked over and grabbed the knob and it opened easily. The dark stairway was a bit discomforting but if that's where Sunny had been down taken to by Dr. Yen and Dr. Ray then they would have to dive into this sunless cell to find him.

This would be it...no going back, they would save Sunny or they wouldn't leave at all...

On the way down Basil felt something wet splatter on his shoe, he leaned down and picked up a piece of wet cloth from his foot, a warm fluid ran down his right arm making him drop the cloth in surprise and picked up the pace. He nor the others took note of more pieces of 'cloth' that had begun appearing more frequently on the stairs or the trail of sticky unknown liquids that went deeper and deeper into the pitch black tunnel...

Once upon a time...

There was a girl who worked at a great hospital

She healed people with the wonders of modern medicine and curing the ill of their ails

She loved her wonderful job and wore a smile every day

Her name was Medika, and she was a very good doctor

One particular summer afternoon... she was assigned to treat an unusual old man

Laying in bed with a unusual sickness that none of the other doctors could seem to fix

As per her duty, she nursed him back to health as best she could

After he had been healed. The old man told her that he was a wizard.

A powerful sorcerer who had come here in search of rest from his journey to the east when he had fallen sick with the flu

He was grateful that this girl had been so kind to him and offered to grant Medika a single wish...

"What wish do you desire my dear?" he spoke.

Medika thought long and hard but the answer came to her...a wonderful idea.

"I wish to have the power help everyone! no matter how unwell they are."

And so the wizard granted her magical powers so that she may cure the sick and bring joy to the unwell.

Medika Magical! savior to the ailed!

Medika Magical! the nurse turned magical girl!

-Excerpt 1 from Medika Magical's lost pilot episode


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THE FOREVER HOPEFUL HOSPITAL, MAIN LOBBY

[Eye to Eyes]

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The automatic doors of the hospital opened and let four figures in doctors coats and a baby stroller into the main lobby. The tallest figure pushed the stroller along while the three others surrounded them. A the INFIRMIERS present gave them passing stares but did not seem to suspect anything off. The four kept moving until they reached the front desk.

"Excuse me sir, do you have an appointment?" the receptionist asked.

The tallest stepped up front revealing it to be KEL wearing a fedora and a fake mustache on his face. "The name's Dr. KELSEY, and yes I have an appointment."

The receptionist INFIRMIER checked it's papers again. "...We do not see any appointments for a Dr. KELSEY, nor did we expect such a sudden visit."

KEL straightened himself out and wobbled a bit in place, a muffled complaint coming from below his oversized lab coat. "Of course, I'm here from NEON-MOONS, for an emergency!" he said coolly.

"What kind of-

"My wife...um, is...was pregnant, and we came here to...get my newborn son checked...for...for rabies." KEL made up, underneath the coat the one below rolled their eyes.

"I see...that is unusual, I did not believe that human children were capable of contracting rabies lyssavirus..." The INFIRMIER leaned closer to the carriage. "May I see the baby?" it asked curiously.

KEL stepped back and pulled up the front cover on the stroller. "S-sure go ahead, he might bite though be careful." he warned.

Laying inside the stroller was BASIL dressed up in a infant's clothes and sucking on a pacifier. He looked up at the onlookers with the most innocent looking eyes he could muster, getting A collective 'awwww' in response.

"You have a very cute son Dr. KELSEY, I hope his rabies can be treated soon. The infection hall is just behind me on the right." The receptionist said and pointed behind him

"Thank you good sir, we will be on our way." HERO announced and quickly strolled off with the others down the right hall.

The dream friends rounded the corner and stopped to rest once no one was around.

"I am seriously trying to understand how that just worked." FLOWER uttered in astonishment.

"Second times the charm?" HERO answered.

"KEL stop moving, you're ruining my hair. Why do I have to be on the bottom?" AUBREY complained and shuffled a bit, her voice coming from inside the oversized coat that she and KEL were wearing. KEL glanced down and placed his oversized sleeved arms on his hips.

"Keep it down will you? you''ll blow our cover." he chided irately. AUBREY harrumphed and crossed her arms.

BASIL poked his head out of the stroller and spat out the binky onto the floor and kept spitting to get the awful rubber taste out of his mouth. "How long do I have to be in this thing? it's too small and getting kind of itchy..." he complained and itched his legs.

"Not until we can find our way back to the others, now sit tight in your itchy cramped baby jail until we do." ROWAN teasingly said and softly booped BASIL on the nose.

"Why do I have to be the baby?" the flower boy pouted in indignation.

"Cause you're small enough and AUBS was the only one strong enough to carry me in this lab coat." KEL pointed down below him. AUBREY poked her head out of the costume to furl her lower lip out at him.

"And you couldn't have been the in the stroller instead you big heavy baby?" she remarked crossly at the boy standing on her shoulders.

"Guys, if I had a dime for every time I heard you two arguing, I'd be able to afford a nice quiet house...no, three houses." ROWAN commented sarcastically.

"Maybe you should have been in the baby stroller instead ROWAN." KEL retorted.

"Fuck off." the goth boy snapped back.

"Language." HERO sternly reprimanded.

"Sorry HERO..."

...

{L}{O}{O{}K{}I{{N}{G}

A head looks upward from a resting position, awakening...

We are...alive, but suffering still...

We do not recognize this place, it is unknown to us...

We could look for Brother and Father here.

A head looks downwards and see's a vessel ruined by severe acid burns, discouragement spreads...

But our new form is...broken...Mother, will NOT be pleased...

No...not broken, we can put it back the way we remembered it to be.

A head glances at a mirror next to it, the damage is too severe, Doubt drips outward...

Not same, messy...ugly...more than before.

We do not want Brother to be afraid of us...

We can fix us before he sees, we need...

A head turns and see's a group of pastel and purple haired people a short distance away from it's room, excitement combusts!

...Friends...brother's friends! they are here! they can help fix this form!

We will play with them, and they can show us how to look like them!

Then Brother will see us as a friend too and let us play with him!

We are...FACECLUSTER...

We are one, we are many...

...and soon they will be too...

{F}{R}{I}{E}{N}{D}{S}{H}{I}{P}{?}

...

The sounds of footsteps approaching from behind was cause for FLOWER to stop in his tracks and turn around, he spotted a small figure peeking it's head from the door of a very dark room. He slowly walked over to the figure and held his hand out in a kind gesture. "Hey there, are you lost?" he asked gently.

The child pushed past the door and inched it's way towards FLOWER but did not fully come into the light. It seemed hesitant to cross beyond the shadow it stood in, the juvenile stared down at the illuminated part of the floor and stayed firmly planted in the dark. FLOWER may have not been the most observant, but he thought he saw something move behind the strange child for a split second...It was just his eyes playing tricks on him maybe.

The others had stopped to see what the hold up with FLOWER was, and when they saw him trying to coax a harmless looking child out they all joined in with him.

"P-P...Pl...ay...pl...ay...me?" it managed to say in a strained voice.

"You want to play with us?" HERO guessed.

The child nodded eagerly and stepped out of the dark, the Dream Friends let out a collective gasp while ROWAN eyed the child with wary suspicion. The person looked partially deformed, it's skin was patchy and rough looking, and it's matted dull purple hair had odd patches of green around precariously sticking out. the clothes it wore appeared to be patched together from various different outfits...very familiar outfits. The friends all wondered why this person was had similar clothes and traits as them. But the intrigue had outweighed the question's worth for the moment's time.

"Pla...y." the eerie youth groaned in strangled breaths.

"That poor thing. Look at those burns..." BASIL spoke, his heart went out to the unfortunate victim of whatever tragedy had befallen this soul.

KEL got out of his doctor disguise and approached calmly, he bent over towards it and smiled. "Okay then little buddy, what do you wanna play? you do catch?" he spoke and held out his ball to it.

The strange child tilted it's head to the left and stared at the ball curiously with it's beady eyes. KEL tried not to show how feel creeped out he felt by this weird kid. He readied the ball in front of him.

"Okay I'm gonna toss it to you and you just toss it back okay?" he explained.

The discolored juvenile slowly lifted it's arms in front of it.

"Okie dokey, here goes, catch it!"

KEL tossed the ball forward. But the child made no attempt to move to grab the incoming ball and it ended up hitting it in the face. It's head jerked back at an unnatural angle when it hit and hung there limply at the side. The young had little to no reaction at all to the sudden impact, save for it's breathing becoming more strained and a black fluid had begun leaking from the corner of it's eye where the ball had hit.

"KEL! why would you do that to a child?!" HERO exclaimed in shock.

"What? I thought they would catch it! I didn't even throw that hard..."

AUBREY hastily walked over to the stationary youngster and placed a hand on it's shoulder

"Hey there, we're very sorry about that, are you going to be okay little guy?"

The child's head slowly bent back into place with a audible pop and the bleeding in it's eye stopped. The juvenile looked up at her expectantly. AUBREY shuddered and quickly took her hand off of it. The juvenile continued to look at her with it's strange dilated eyes and now that she had a closer look at it she suddenly felt very disturbed and a bit nauseous. Something was very

"Oh...you're okay, t-that's good..." she nervously looked over her shoulder at the others. "Do you still want to come play with us?"

"P-p...lay?" it grunted, leaning in a bit closer, it's breathing quickened.

"Yes s-sure, we can do what you want this time." AUBREY suggested, moving away from the juvenile's encroaching facial features.

The company watched the strange child turn and toddle over to a hatch on the wall and opened it up.

"P-play...m-e..." It breathed heavily, and pointed to the open chute.

"We don't understand? the garbage chute? what's in there?" FLOWER said confused.

Instead of an answer, the small child shoved it's body into the chute, BASIL rushed out from the carriage and caught the child by it's legs, a loud ripping sound was heard as his baby disguise caught on the edge of the stroller and tore off his body leaving him in his flower themed underwear. The flower boy blushed but held onto the other as it looked at him indifferently.

"That's dangerous! what do you think you're doing?" BASIL exclaimed.

"Pl...ay...la-ter...mother...ca-ll-ing...us" It wheezed and wriggled itself free, allowing itself to slide down the tight passage accompanied by echos of crunches and crackling.

The group had no time to ponder what that meant or the horrifying implications of what they just witnessed when a tiny gasp and a crash from behind them made the group turn and see a INFIRMIER standing there, with a tray of medicine now on the floor at it's feet. "What did you do to that poor child!?" it spoke, appalled by what it just witnessed.

Before the group could explain another INFIRMIER pointed a finger at the gang.

"They're not part of the staff! They shoved that handicapped kid into the garbage chute! I saw it with my own receptors!" it accused. Soon others had joined behind it all murmuring to amongst themselves.

"Uh, um uh I...w-we can explain...it's not what i-it looks like." BASIL said frantically walked out in front when he remembered he was practically naked and squeaked in embarrassment, attempting to cover his body as best he could with the closest thing he could grab...KEL and AUBREY suddenly felt exposed when a tiny hand grabbed their disguise out from under them revealing the two stacked on top of one another. BASIL wrapped the coat around himself muttering apologies to the both of them. "Sorry guys I need this right now." he said sheepishly.

"That's no baby! babies don't talk!" a voice at the back of the crowd exclaimed.

"Careful! it could still have rabies!"

"We're going to have to ask you to leave now."

As the crowd of disgruntled clockwork men closed in around the group, they prepared for a fight, ROWAN swatted the head off of one of the INFIRMIERS when it got to close, causing the others to turn to their ally and begin scavenging. This bought them some time, however the numbers of the remaining INFIRMIERS made the odds of winning against them very slim... AUBREY looked around until her eyes went back to the vent an idea brimmed in her mind, one that might be crazy enough to work...she immediately grabbed KEL and shoved him towards the vent. He instinctively placed his arms and legs out to stop himself from being pushed inside.

"Are you nuts!? we're not gonna fit in there!" he screamed and held on for dear life.

"I know you won't, but I know how to." she snarkily remarked and reared her head back...

[KEL took 261 damage!]

[KEL became TOAST]

AUBREY picked up the piece of TOAST and tossed it into the vent. HERO gawked when he noticed her 'TOASTING' her own friends with a HEADBUTT and getting rid of the remains into the garbage chute. Before HERO could act she did the same to BASIL from behind and doing the same to with his TOAST. Only when she turned to him did he object.

"AUBREY what is wrong with you?!" he shouted at her.

"I'm getting us to safety! just let me try this!" AUBREY retorted and climbed into the vent.

"You just have to trust me on this, do you remember that movie we saw at Kim's house? the one where it had that space station and the good guys jumping into a garbage chute?"

"We are being surrounded and we have no idea how long they'll be distracted for and-" The same idea suddenly dawned him. He relented and took out a some JAM PACKETS to show her.

"You're a smart cookie you know that?" HERO complimented AUBREY making her blush and giggle a bit.

"ROWAN?" HERO turned and poked the the goth boy's shoulder.

ROWAN turned around and hummed in response. "Hmmm?"

"We're gonna become TOAST to go into that garbage chute, do you want FLOWER or me to go first?" HERO asked and pointed to the vent.

"You know me and FLOWER can't become TOAST right? and you're not gonna do it cause we need you alive." he said bluntly.

HERO wasn't expecting a astute observation but before he could respond to it he was lifted over ROWAN'S head in one hand.

"Well, I have a better idea, I saw this in a movie once."

ROWAN took a deep breath in, he felt his arm and back muscles bunch back, winding up for a throw as he finally released all that bunched up energy to throw HERO like a football. He lifted up two fingers and aimed for a spot just beyond the crowd. The tall goth boy gave a panicking HERO a toothy grin.

"Please and keep your arms and legs inside at all times during the flight and thank you for choosing ROWAN airlines." he said and threw HERO like a spear over his head.

HERO suddenly felt himself soaring above the crowd of machine people as they reached up for him, the sounds of his own screaming was muffled by the wind howling all around him as he landed headfirst in a clothes bin full of used patient gowns. The cart began wheeling off with it's passenger down the hallway until it went into the lift on the far end of the hall bumping into the wall panel and descended into the basement level. HERO'S legs stuck out of the top as he uselessly flailed about half buried in the dirty clothes.

Meanwhile the remaining three friends watched the INFIRMIERS finish gathering the remains of their ally and turn back to glare at the group. The dozens of smiley faces made them seem more intimidating somewhat.

"TOUCHDOWN! WOOOOO!" ROWAN exclaimed in an elated tone and threw his hands in the air. "Yeah baby! that's what I'm talking about! that's what I'm looking for!"

AUBREY and FLOWER frowned at each other and gave the goth boy perturbed faces. "Was that really a movie reference?" FLOWER asked him.

ROWAN shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno, I'll ask him next time if he knew what it was supposed to be from..."

AUBREY climbed into the garbage chute and shifted her body to fit better. "Well, I guess I gotta go now, good luck guys." she said and prepared use her LAST RESORT SKILL. "You may want to stand back a bit when I do this. Just warning you."

[AUBREY used LAST RESORT]

[AUBREY BECAME TOAST]

AUBREY'S body vanished in a poof and a single piece of burnt bread with a tiny bow plummeted into the chute below along with the rest of the others. ROWAN stood defiantly between FLOWER and the encroaching mob of angry robot men closing in.

...

The four TOASTS bumped and crashed into one another inside the shaft and tumbled down the vertical passage way until they found exit onto the floor of the basement level. A moment later, the nearby elevator opened and a laundry bin moved out of it on it's own, picking up speed until it crashed into a wall, ejecting it's passenger in a dazed heap. HERO gasped for breath and crawled over and gathered up pieces of TOAST on the ground into a pile. He ripped open the top of the JAM PACKETS and poured the contents all over the four.

[HERO used JAM PACKETS]

[KEL returned to life]

[AUBREY returned to life]

[BASIL returned to life]

KEL gasped for air and sat up off of the pile of friends. He was laying on

"AUBREY?" KEL spoke in a quiet voice and looked down behind him.

"Yeah KEL?" she responded from under him.

"I'm sorry I beat you up earlier."

"You're fine KEL, I should apologize for getting carried away, Basil wouldn't have been really hurt if I'd been more careful." she sighed and waved her legs around.

"Now can you get off me?

"hmmph mphhh mmmhpp..." A muffled voice protested softly from underneath the friend pile. The two promptly got up and helped a very squashed and disheveled BASIL onto his feet.

"T-thanks l-let's never do that again...ever." he groaned and readjusted his daisy crown on his head.

Now that the group had gotten readjusted, They all looked down at the place they had landed. There was a trail of sickly looking fluids that when followed lead to a single adjacent white door leading down to a dark downward passage. KEL pushed a ball down the steps and it rolled and bounced into the darkness, it echoed until they could no longer hear it at all. The silence was unnerving.

"Y-you think that kid went down there? looks like this way was uncovered recently." HERO said quietly.

"It looks kind of scary...I don't know about this..." AUBREY said in an unsure tone.

"Well where else do we go? The others might be down there, Sunny might be there needing our help so that's where we're going!" KEL exclaimed and started rummaging through his pockets. he tossed a few items on the ground. including a BODY PILLOW, a POOL NOODLE, and some left over patient gowns from the bin to create a sled. Once KEL had finished he stepped back to admire his creation.

"Ta da! another genius invention from yours truly! I present...the KEL-MOBILE!" he announced proudly and glowed a bright yellow. "like I always say, 'all it takes is a bit of elbow grease!"

the others had baffled looks directed at the unconventional transport and at it's creator. "Is that even safe? it looks like it it's gonna fall apart at any moment." AUBREY said in a incredulous voice. "And you never always say that." she added.

"Oh course it is! bigger me showed me how to make it. I'm a hundred and twenty percent sure this won't fall apart half way down!" he pat the side of his creation and the POOL NOODLE bumper fell off the front.

"We can push this baby on that slimy stuff and make it down there in no time! it's just like that raft ride in HUMPHREY!" he said excitedly and pushed his contraption towards the edge of the stairs. More parts falling off along the way.

But the others walked past him towards the passage and he frowned. "Where are you all going? it's right here!"

"Sorry KEL, but it's safer to just walk down..." AUBREY spoke apologetically. However the group was stopped when KEL rushed in front of them and dropped to his knees.

[KEL became SAD]

"C'mon guys...please? pretty please? I worked really really really hard on it." KEL sniffled sadly.

"...Well...but..."

KEL gave his best puppy dog eyes at his older brother until the latter sighed and relented, taking a seat on the back of the 'KEL-MOBILE' "Okay...we'll do it for bro."

KEL instantly bounced back and pumped his fists in the air. "Yes! this is gonna be sweet!"

[KEL became ECSTATIC]

Once everyone had been seated on the back of the makeshift toboggan as it teetered over the stairs into the pit. HERO was in the back AUBREY and KEL were in the middle and BASIL was at the front. The flower boy gazed down the dark tunnel and gulped.

"Alright everyone put your arms in the air when your ready cause we're going in three...two..."

BASIL frantically waved his arms out in the air. "Wait KEL! I changed my mind I don't want to be on the front-"

"ONE!"

The KEL-MOBILE launched off the top and sped down the stairs at alarming speeds being propelled by the fluids underneath it. It was surprisingly holding up well enough as the sled picked up to mach speeds, the wind blowing everyone's hair back.

KEL; "LET'S A FREAKING GOOOOOOO!"

HERO; "I think I'm gonna be sick! don't throw up...don't throw up...don't thr- urrk!"

AUBREY; "KEL you idiot! why did you convince us this was a good idea!"

BASIL; "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! (More high pitched screaming)

The first flight of the KEL-MOBILE would soon be reaching it's end as the Dream friends entered the darkness below...sliding down the stairs on a BODY PILLOW...

And so Medika cured a great many people, many lives she would save

Cured coughs and vanquishing stomach aches with a twirl of her stave

But deep in the swamps, far from the rapport

Though there was one who saw the splendor

A lowly scornful witch, a vile future telling sorceress

Looked into her magic and witnessed to her distress

Lives destined for departure, fate averted

Her prophecies her and her power...nigh perverted

Morgana the Witch, wrought fury and fire!

A wrathful vow to for all responsible to feel her ire...

Lost Excerpt of Medika Magica episode 3


Tomorrow is a new day...

Good Night!