Taking Back the Crown

by JCMorrigan

Mozenrath. Archibald Snatcher. Roman Torchwick. Mad Madam Mim. Yzma. The Huntsman. Wuya. Ayam Aghoul. Their mission: take over the multiverse, or look fabulous trying. Rated M for swearing, steamy implications and VERY bloody battles. Contains slash and het shipping.

60. Getting Your Goat

60. Getting Your Goat

Snatcher and Garfield breezed out of the former's room, hastily making their way back to the central lift terminal within the castle so they could return to the scene of the gathering.

Once at said terminal, however, they were faced with countless pickups, drop-offs, crystals, and the lifts themselves.

"You…do remember which lift we took to get down there, right?" Garfield asked.

"Of course I do," Snatcher said haughtily. "Quite obvious to remember."

Neither made a move.

"So," Garfield went on, "you gonna…call it up?"

"I thought I'd let you do the honors," Snatcher told him. "Unless, of course, YOU'VE forgotten."

"No, no," Garfield replied hurriedly. "Just thought you'd wanna do it."

"I am feeling quite generous today, Mr. Lynns. After you."

"No, no, Archie, I insist. After you."

"Mr. Lynns…"

"What?"

Snatcher sighed. "At least pick out a different nickname."

They were both snapped back into character when a door on the same level opened up and Leon, Aerith, and Ienzo came striding through. "There they are now," Ienzo told his companions. "That's a happy coincidence." He waved to Snatcher and Garfield. "How is your stay so far?"

"Could not be asking for better," Snatcher replied, laying the Russian accent on thick.

Ienzo approached with Leon and Aerith in tow. "I'm glad to hear it," he said. "Merlin explained to me that it could be difficult for Abaratians to get used to the linear passage of time."

Neither Snatcher nor Garfield new how to respond to this.

"I'm glad to meet you," Aerith broke in, extending her right hand. "I'm Aerith."

"And I'm Leon," Leon huffed, arms folded as he cracked a small smile.

Snatcher took Aerith's hand and shook it heartily. "Am most charmed!" he insisted. "You are all permanent members of Committee if I remember, no?"

"That's right!" Aerith confirmed.

"Is new turn of events you will want to know about," Snatcher stated, seeing an easy way to get a guide back to the laboratory. "Miss Sadira and friends found new group of world-traveling…not sure if 'heroes' is correct word. One of them insists upon being villain. However, he does know how to fix Mr. Mouse's password problem."

"They're down in the computer lab right now," Garfield added. "Thought you might wanna check it out." He cleared his throat rather loudly; cold switches from voice to voice were still not his forte.

"Someone new working on that problem?" Ienzo repeated. "That definitely sounds like something we should check out."

Aerith nodded. "Let's go." She approached a nearby crystal, using it to summon a lift.

All five stepped onboard; then Aerith begged, "Please tell us more about who Sadira found."

"Apparently began on shopping trip," Snatcher began.

By the time the five reached the computer room – Leon, Aerith, and Ienzo leading the way – Snatcher and Garfield had painted somewhat of a picture of the current situation. Jaune, Kairi, Sadira, Nora, Moana, Yuffie, Donald, Goofy, Mickey, Lilo, Stitch, and Pleakley were scattered around the room, all watching Jumba hard at work before the screen.

"All right, attempt did not work," Jumba muttered. "Is time to break out workaround A113." A few keystrokes had him stating "Ah, yes, now we are making progress."

"Hello!" Aerith walked cheerily to his side, prompting him to turn and face her. "You must be Jumba. My name is Aerith."

"Ah, you must be one of other heroic characters who lives in castle!" Jumba realized. Despite the differing sizes of their hands, they managed a handshake. "You have been told all about us by axe man and daughter."

"We have," Aerith confirmed. "Thank you so much for helping us out."

"Will take time to remind you is not ordinary circumstance," Jumba stated decisively. "Am not in business of helping out. But am making special exception."

"Riiiiight," Pleakley said sarcastically. "Because you're sooooo evil."

"Our sources say your name is 'Pleakley,'" Ienzo stated as he approached whom he addressed. "You're assisting?"

"Is moral support," Jumba stated. "Is surprisingly good at it."

"Well, I, uh…" Pleakley hadn't been expecting the compliment, and, caught off guard, flushed. "I try…"

"And that makes you Lilo," Leon said, nodding downward at the girl.

"That's me!" Lilo said with a smile. "What're your names?"

"I am Ienzo," Ienzo stated.

"Ienzo," Lilo repeated. "I like that name. It's unique."

"Leon," Leon chipped in.

Lilo gave Leon a once-over visually, taking in his tough-looking exterior, before asking, "Have you ever killed anyone?"

"LILO!" Pleakley scolded. "You don't just ask people that! That's rude!"

"It's a question with a tough answer," Leon told her.

"So that's a yes," Lilo figured. "Cool!"

Leon wasn't sure how to respond. He turned away, fixing his attention on the computer screen.

"Please don't be offended," Aerith said softly, approaching Lilo and kneeling to her level. "Leon isn't very comfortable around children. I think it's because he had to spend a lot of his own childhood acting like a grown-up."

"I'd rather you didn't tell my life story to strangers," Leon grunted.

"It's okay," Lilo stated. "Being a hero is a tough job. I'm surprised more of the heroes I know from books and TV don't sustain psychological damage."

"I hear you're somewhat of a hero yourself," Aerith said with a smile. "I do hope you don't have to suffer any psychological damage."

"I'm sure it's coming," Lilo stated plainly. "But my ohana and I have already supported each other through a lot. We can get through worse."

"Please don't say that," Pleakley sighed. "I don't wanna actually tempt fate to make things WORSE on us."

"Ohana?" Aerith repeated with curiosity. "I'm sorry, I don't know what that word means."

"Actually, I do." Ienzo stepped forward. "It has a meaning all its own, but the closest approximation I know is to the term 'family.'"

"Now I understand!" Aerith said sweetly. "I'm glad you and your family are so close."

"That's why we looked so hard to find Stitch after he got lost," Lilo asserted. "Because he's part of our ohana, and ohana means nobody gets left behind."

"Or forgotten," Stitch chimed in.

"I'm very glad," Aerith said.

After that, the room was filled with a temporary silence broken up only by the tapping of keys beneath Jumba's fingers.

"Hey, so watching this guy try and break that password is really boring," Garfield brought up, hoping to initiate the first step of the Huntsman and Vexen's plan.

"Well, gosh, we don't expect you all to just sit around and watch," Mickey stated. "Why don't you all go out and have some fun?"

"I was hoping to get to know some of you a little better," Garfield went on, looking to Sadira. "What would you have to say if I invited myself to your girls' day? We could bring Lilo, too. Show her the town."

"Really?" Lilo said in excitement. "You'll give me and Stitch a tour of the town?"

"Of course!" Yuffie replied enthusiastically.

"Just tell me this doesn't involve any more shoppiiiiiiing," Nora groaned.

"Hey!" Sadira countered. "Shopping for clothes is fun!"

"It's really not," Nora sighed.

"I agree with Sadira!" Pleakley argued. "It's a cognitive exercise in color-coordination AND a quick self-esteem boost!"

"How about we compromise?" Moana suggested. "The tour of the town will be the first priority, but nobody says that Sadira and Pleakley can't look in a few windows and maybe pick up something they REALLY want. I'm sure the rest of us will have a lot to talk about in the meantime."

Nora gave Yuffie a quick look. "You're going?"

"Sure am!" Yuffie confirmed. "Who else could lead a good tour of Radiant Garden? None of the rest of you live here!"

"Then I could stand for another trip out," Nora decided.

"Anyone else in?" Sadira asked. "Aerith?"

"I should stay and supervise the codebreaking," Aerith stated. "You should have fun, though."

"Kairi?" Sadira offered.

"Go if you want," Jaune encouraged.

Kairi shook her head. "I want to spend more time with you. If you're okay with that."

"Of course I am," Jaune affirmed.

"The lovebirds are out," Sadira said with a roll of the eyes. "Guess that just leaves us."

"Tookie bah wah bah!" Stitch said excitedly.

"What does that mean?" Moana asked.

"It basically means 'Let's go' in Tantalog," Pleakley translated.

"Now hold on," Snatcher interrupted. "Still have several questions about world Stitch comes from and Heartless attack. Am confused on many points. Not to mention interlude about big battle Stitch took part in while stranded here. Am wanting to ask Stitch many, many more questions."

"Well, they'll just have to WAIT," Lilo growled. "Because Stitch and I just got reunited after MONTHS, and we wanna spend TIME TOGETHER!"

"Yeah!" Stitch punctuated.

"Lilo," Pleakley scolded lightly, "you'll have plenty of time to catch up with Stitch later. If Nikolai still has questions, then someone should answer them. Maybe I should stay back too. I am a veritable Earth expert, after all!"

"Your call," Garfield said. "All I'm saying is that with Stitch around, it wouldn't be a real girls' day anyway."

"You should go with little girl and shopping party," Jumba told Pleakley. "Nani would want little girl to have chaperone. You will watch her there; I will watch Stitch here. We make sure nothing bad happens to either again."

"You know what?" Pleakley replied. "You're right! I'm gonna go out on the town too! I can't WAIT to compare Radiant Garden fashions to traditional Earth dress!"

"Just so long as YOU don't mess with the computer and send us to a digital world again!" Donald quacked at Stitch.

Stitch gave a sheepish shrug and offered no rebuttal other than "Oopsie!".

Garfield immediately made for the door, and Sadira, Nora, Yuffie, Moana, and Pleakley followed. Lilo brought up the rear of the group, but didn't leave before turning to give a wave to Stitch, which he returned.

"Why don't we go, too?" Jaune proposed to Kairi. "We could go do what we were talking about earlier. I'd just need to pick up a few things from town first."

"Please spare us details of love life behind closed doors," Snatcher grunted.

"No, not like that!" Jaune said, quite embarrassed. "I was actually going to do Kairi's nails. I'd just need a nail file, a cuticle stick, a hand lotion that smells nice, a base coat, and…what color were you thinking?"

"I hadn't even thought about that," Kairi admitted.

"I could save you a trip to town and spending that money," Aerith told Jaune. "I have spares of all of that in my room. I have pretty much every color of polish, too, so you could pick out a couple."

"I thought you needed to stay back here and supervise," Jaune reminded her.

"Well, I can take a short break for this," Aerith stated. "Let's go!"

She, Jaune, and Kairi hurried out of the room.

"Are…they together now?" Ienzo wondered out loud. "Jaune and Kairi, I mean."

"They were when we spoke to them," Snatcher confirmed. "Assuming you mean romantically involved."

"Good," Ienzo said with a smile. "I was hoping. I know he can make her happy."

"Ah, young love," Jumba remarked. "You know, I once thought love such frivolous thing. Now am understanding its TRUE value. Am happy for warrior girl and blond boy."

"That sounds like you got somebody you love!" Goofy remarked.

"He mentioned it on the lift, remember?" Donald said harshly.

"Oh, right!" Goofy recalled. "I forgot."

"He is insufferable person," Jumba described. "Exact opposite of me in nearly every way. Knows how to argue like professional. But would move every last planet to make sure he stays safe and sound."

"Gosh, love sure is a beautiful thing," Mickey remarked.

"Blaaaargh," Stitch commented. "Mushy-gushy."

Leon made no remark.

A pop-up window informed Jumba of an error in his current process. "Oh, is that so?" he challenged the computer out loud. "Well, let's see how you react to THIS." Another few keystrokes. "Ahaaaa, I thought so!"

Stitch tugged on the hem of Snatcher's pant leg. "Had questions?"

Now was the time to keep Stitch distracted and separated from Garfield's group, Snatcher knew, and that hinged on him coming up with as many questions as he could about Stitch's story. "Begin by telling me more about homeworld," he kicked off. "What is hometown like? How is different from Radiant Garden?"

"Um…Kokaua Town on island," Stitch began, realizing Snatcher hadn't been there when he and the others had related this part of the story to the girls' day contingent. "No major cities. Hard to cause mass panic."

"Interesting thing to note," Snatcher remarked, "but go on."

...

It took several moments for anyone to muster the strength to say anything. Then Mozenrath, looking Hans dead in the eye, stated, "I should probably fix that."

Hans' right hand gently hovered over his puncture wound. "This?" he teased, though weakly. "I could barely feel it anymore."

Mozenrath passed his hand across Hans' face; he, Roman, Demyx, and Yzma dissipated momentarily before reforming in the positions they'd been in. Hans pulled himself up to his feet, dusting himself off.

Before Hans could say anything, Demyx yelled, "I will NEVER be ready for that!"

"Errrrr…Mozenrath?" Yzma said worriedly, looking toward the stone statue of Zevon, which hadn't reacted at all to Mozenrath's release of the magic that kept them all corporeal. "We may have a problem." Inwardly, her panic bells were beginning to ring; if her son was trapped forever in a prison of stone, she was going to be out for blood.

"Hold your horses," Wuya said as she pushed Yzma aside to get access to Zevon.

"Demyx," Mozenrath commanded while this went on. "Go fix Irmaplotz."

"All right, all right, I'm going," Demyx huffed, making his way to the unconscious princess.

Wuya pressed the pads of her fingers to Zevon's forehead, willing a spell to flow through them. Instantly, she felt the substance beneath her fingertips soften into skin. Starting from where she touched, the stone reverted to Zevon's natural colors and textures. His head was the first part of him to be fully returned as the spell worked its way slowly down his neck.

"Wuya?" he addressed, sounding slightly panicked. "I think I may have errorred with that potion, and I've just been immobilizated!"

"Calm down," Wuya said softly. "It's going to be okay."

Almost immediately, she felt a revulsion at the words that had just left her mouth. Choking back disgust, she wished she could turn and storm away from Zevon at that very moment, but that would leave him still more than half stone and unable to move. So she gritted her teeth and decided to live with her mistake.

Zevon read the discomfort on her face. "What's the problem?"

"Oh, nothing," Wuya growled. "I'm just losing what's left of my sanity, that's all."

She would never have said "Calm down; it's going to be okay" to Jack Spicer. The sentiment would have been closer to hoping he wouldn't be okay. She never would have said it to Chase Young, nor to Hannibal Roy Bean, nor Katnappé, nor Tubbimura, nor even Raimundo when she had taken him under her wing. The words still left a bad taste on her tongue, like overcooked Brussels sprouts. What was it about Zevon that had urged her to delve into such sentimentality?

"You were trying to comfortablize me!" Zevon realized.

Only stone from the waist down, Wuya reminded herself. Not much longer to go and she could terminate the interaction. "You didn't hear what you thought you heard."

"No, that was comfortablization!" Zevon insisted. "And I know exactly why!"

"Because I'm losing it," Wuya grunted. "I already emphasized that."

"It's because you're attractivated by my mother!" Zevon accused. "That makes you care about me!"

Was that really it? Had Zevon hit upon a hidden truth? Wuya didn't have the time or energy to think about it – or, most importantly, the will. The stone was retreating down Zevon's legs now. "Just forget it happened already."

"I think we both know I won't be forgettabling it anytime soon," Zevon taunted. "I'm just going to wait until the opportunate time to bring it back up. Such as the moment when you and my mother finally decide to stop fighting your emoticotions."

"Five," Wuya counted down. "Four…"

"What are you counting?" Zevon asked.

"Three," Wuya went on as the stone vanished from Zevon's feet, "two, one." She removed her hand; Zevon was now once more flesh, blood, hair, and bone. "You're done." She turned away from him.

"YOU CAN'T RUN FROM YOUR FEELINGS!" Zevon screamed at her back. He then remembered Clayton had smashed his flask against his chest; a few large shards of glass remained embedded there. Zevon plucked them all out; it stung, but nothing had penetrated further than skin-deep, and more damage had been done to his shirt than anything else.

Wuya's about-face brought her to look directly at Yzma. "You know I saw the whole thing," Yzma said smugly.

"And you're going to shut it about this," Wuya commanded, holding up a finger in Yzma's face.

Yzma gave a playful shrug. Wuya just walked past her, deciding to supervise Demyx's restoration of Irmaplotz's health.

In the meantime, Mozenrath gave Hans a serious look. "You keep putting yourself in harm's way for me," he pointed out. On a whim, he hovered his bare left hand over the place where Hans had been stabbed, then lightly, softly lay his fingertips over it.

"I guess I picked up a bad habit," Hans replied.

"Why do you keep doing that?" Mozenrath asked.

"I'm surprised you have to ask," Hans responded. "If you go down, we all go down. Any of us can die except you. That girl with the eyeliner said so. You're the only person on this team that can't be replaced, and once you're taken out of play, the rest of us don't have infinite chances anymore. Meanwhile, you can bring me back as many times as you want. It's not that complicated of logic."

"And yet I can't help but feel there's some kind of ulterior motive at play," Mozenrath said coyly, having a feeling he was closing in on Hans' game. He withdrew his hand, not wanting it to overstay its welcome.

"That almost sounds like you WANT there to be an ulterior motive at play," Hans replied, just as coy. "All right. I'll let you in on a little secret. I might just be impressed with your style. You're a take-charge person, and I like that. You move with a sort of flair, and I like that too. Maybe I'm protecting more than just our well-being. On the other side of the coin, I want to point out that you cut off a man's arm because, and I quote, you 'kind of liked' me. What do you have to say about that?"

"It doesn't speak for itself?" Mozenrath said with a sly smirk.

"I guess I walked into that," Hans figured. "Anyway, don't think it's going unappreciated."

"If I didn't know better," Mozenrath stated, "I'd think you were trying to flirt with me."

"You were the one who started this conversation," Hans reminded him. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you were trying to get me to flirt with you."

"I've already learned my lesson about flirting on the battlefield," Mozenrath stated, though given the gravity of the subject, his smirk didn't fade. "Don't read more into it than there is."

"Maybe you just learned you were flirting with the wrong person," Hans urged.

"I'll take it under consideration," Mozenrath decided, "but I can't promise I'll come out of it with the answer you want to hear."

"And you think there's an answer I want to hear."

"I suspected. And now I have it confirmed."

Hans nodded. "Smart, too. I'll let you keep thinking on it, then. Just let me know if you change your mind. Until then, I'm just going to keep making sure our enemies don't cut off the head of the operation."

"Don't think it's going unappreciated," Mozenrath told him.

After taking a look around to ascertain that all, Irmaplotz finally included, were healed from the damage they had taken, he announced, "We've made it three-quarters of the way. The final stretch should be easy."

"EASY?" Demyx repeated. "We didn't just get our butts kicked! We got TRAMPLED!"

"And yet we are all alive and we have three parts of the Triforce of Power," Mozenrath stated. "I'd call that a victory. If we did it three times, we can pull off a fourth. This time, however, I'd like to actually enter the field with a definitive PLAN. Not just a decision of who our best play is. An actual PLAN."

"Why do I get the feeling you've actually been drafting one?" Wuya asked.

"Because you've been around me long enough to know I have," Mozenrath told her. "Or at least I figured out something from observing our last skirmish. Everything would have gone a lot more easily if you'd shackled that spirit first."

"Oh, sure," Wuya groaned. "Just let me keep bearing the load of holding back the spirit AND cornering the general. Because so far, I'm the only one who's been able to do both, every single time."

"I'm aware of that," Mozenrath said flippantly. "That's why you're going to teach Irmaplotz how to make the chains: so you can focus on the general and ONLY the general."

"Now that could have merit," Wuya remarked.

"You really think I can do it?" Irmaplotz asked excitedly.

"You're almost there," Wuya informed her. "You just need a little more guidance."

"Can you pack that guidance into the duration of our trip to wherever-it-is?" Mozenrath tried to remember if Wuya had said the name of the last province at any point on their journey. He was fairly certain she had, and he felt he remembered it. "Ardane?"

"Ordon," Wuya corrected.

"Or both!" Irmaplotz broke in.

"You're a fast learner?" Wuya asked of Irmaplotz.

"After crash courses with my mother," Irmaplotz sighed, "I had to become one or get left behind for the vultures."

"Good," Wuya stated. "We'll begin on the road."

"Then let's go," Mozenrath said as he turned, cape sweeping, to walk down the path.

Wuya cleared her throat loudly.

"WHAT?" Mozenrath snapped, barely turning to address her.

Wuya pointed down the opposite direction of Mozenrath's walk. "It's that way."

After a moment of silence, Mozenrath turned and stalked down the proper path as though nothing had happened.

...

Jaune had set up a work area on a table in an interior lounge of the castle. Aerith had not only supplied the necessary tools and a rainbow of bottles of polish, but upon learning that this was a segment of a date, she had also taken it upon herself to dim the lights of the room and place lit candles, smelling faintly of the sea, on the various counters. Seawater was also the scent of lotion Aerith had handed over – a fresh bottle, untouched. It sat next to a bowl of warm, soapy water, a cuticle stick, and a file.

"I think that's everything we need," Jaune said after taking inventory of the items that lay out on the table.

Kairi was seated across from him, giving a nod of approval.

"Okay," Jaune decided. "So…can I see your hands?"

Kairi placed both hands, palms down, on the table.

"So first, we're going to make your nails even," Jaune announced. He gently took Kairi's right hand into his left, trying not to become nervous about the physical contact despite his heart deciding it belonged in his throat. "You actually have pretty good nails," he said after a visual survey. "Not that I didn't think you would. I just thought all the swordfighting would have chipped them more."

"I try to keep them cut down for that exact reason, actually," Kairi informed him. "I don't want one to break when I need to keep my grip."

"I've made that mistake," Jaune admitted. "Man, did that hurt. So now I keep mine down too. Anyway, there's maybe one rough patch, but…" He took up the file in his right hand. "That's easily taken care of."

With the utmost care, he gently rubbed the file over the uneven fingernail on Kairi's hand. "Did you think about colors?" he asked.

"Well, I got it down to two," she admitted. "Pink would go with everything I wear right now. But Madison, Genie, and I are still blue buddies, and I kind of wanted to show that off, too. The blue would also look good with the pink, just in more of a contrasting way. I just have to decide between pink and blue now. I'll have it figured out by the time we're ready."

"Hey, take all the time you need," Jaune told her. "Hang on – "

He dragged the bowl of warm, soapy water to the table's center, laying Kairi's right hand down in its comfort while he picked up her left to look for rough patches. "Just let that soak for a while," he said with a smile as he scanned the left nails.

"This is all a lot of work," Kairi said, looking at the array of equipment. "Are you sure this isn't too much work for you?"

"No; I like doing this, actually," Jaune said sincerely. "Especially on…well…on your hands…" His voice cracked.

"Thank you," Kairi replied.

Having filed two of Kairi's left-hand nails down to perfection, Jaune lay that hand down in the bowl. "So about the pink and blue," he suggested. "This is gonna sound a little crazy, but what if we alternated them? Every other one would be blue, and the rest would be pink. That way, you wouldn't have to pick. The only downside is it wouldn't look very professional."

"I don't really care about looking professional," Kairi admitted. "I think in times like this, it's important to remember to just have fun with the little things. And I think your idea is perfect. I'll take exactly that."

"Somehow, I thought you'd say that," Jaune replied with a nod. "Pink and blue it is. Okay, I think it's time."

He lifted both of her hands out of the bowl, laying them on the table before setting the bowl aside. "Now, this might hurt just a little bit," he warned, "especially if you don't do this a lot." He took up the cuticle stick.

"Okay," Kairi replied. "I don't think it'll be that bad. I trust you."

Slowly, carefully, Jaune maneuvered the stick to push back each of Kairi's cuticles, one by one. He looked to her eyes to make sure she wasn't in discomfort; she met his gaze with a sparkle. Onward they proceeded.

...

Xayide made her way through the warship with little sense of direction, knowing she was headed somewhere but not entirely sure where, or what she hoped to accomplish once she got there. She opened the door to the room with the dancefloor and stage, sweeping grandly inside. She willed the door shut behind her with magic, not paying too much attention to her familiar surroundings until –

"Xayide?"

She needed a moment to fully realize who stood in the center of the room. The name left her lips in a rush of air, as though she'd had it knocked out of her by a solid punch: "Bastian?"

Bastian Balthazar Bux replied enthusiastically, "It's me! I'm so glad I found you! I was looking everywhere!"

"You were?" She knew she had to test the waters carefully. "For what purpose?"

"I've decided to return to Fantastica and become its savior again," Bastian announced. "I need you to be my advisor again. You're the only one who can help me."

Wickedly, she smiled. "I would be honored to join you once more," she stated. Of course, she would have to inform the rest of the WHAM ARMY of this new mission, but perhaps she could get one of them to tag along. This time, they would do it right.

"I've already thought of some changes I can make to improve the stories that come from Fantastica," Bastian announced. "I'm excited to make them. I can make everyone's lives so much better!"

Xayide well knew that anything Bastian decreed as a story told in Fantastica would come true there. She briefly wondered if that applied to other Realms of Storytelling or the space between them; most of all, she wondered if his decrees would apply to her if she was away from the world she called home. Something in her heart told her she was not exempt, no matter where she was. And this came along with a sense of creeping dread, though her logical mind didn't see why this should matter.

"Tell me," Xayide bade him, "what will be your first order?"

"I know now that I have to be careful," Bastian told her. "I'm playing with an entire world, and I have to do what's best for it. Then I realized what could make everyone's lives easier, and it would make things better for anyone who read their stories, too. They would be less afraid. They would be able to read about happier worlds."

Xayide should have known then that something was amiss. Bastian Balthazar Bux relished tales of adventure and horror; he would never be concerned that such stories would be too scary for everyone (though he would acknowledge that not every story was suitable for every reader, and discretion should be used in selection). But Xayide did not realize this. She simply reveled in the fact that Bastian was still fooled by her after all this time; he was a fly in her web. "Tell me," she demanded once more.

Then he said the words that changed everything: "I've decided to get rid of villains."

Horror overtook Xayide; chills ran through every inch of her skin. "Why?" she asked, voice quavering. "Why would you do that?"

"I already told you," Bastian explained. "Without villains, everyone's lives would be happier, and people would be happier hearing about stories where nothing goes – "

She didn't let him finish, interrupting with a shriek of "WHAT HAVE YOU DOOOOOOOONE?"

The sensations were already coursing through her body as she bent, clutching her head, tearing at her scarlet hair. For a moment, she did not even feel as though she had a human body, and was something else entirely – threads were coming unbound at her spine, allowing loose-leaf paper, the stuff of her anatomy, to pour out through her open chest and blow away on the winds.

She was falling, then, through an abyss of white and cream, skin brushing up against the texture of paper, thousands and thousands of pages, where it was exposed by her gown. Still screaming, she reached upward, thinking she could see something at the very edge of the blank-page miasma. But it was in vain, for as she looked at her hand, she could see the edges of her fingers, then her hand, then her whole arm dissolve into glimmering golden ribbons that scattered and were lost. It would not be long before the rest of her body shared the same fate.

...

But as all the others had done before her, despite her having no knowledge of such events transpiring, Xayide awoke in her own bed.

She stretched out her hands above her, turning them over and flexing the fingers. Clapping them together proved they were solid. Obviously, villains still existed.

She truly thought about it from Bastian's perspective, then, and realized what a fool she'd been. Bastian saw villains as obstacles to overcome and make heroes stronger. The fouler the villain, the sweeter the victory. They were spices to flavor tales. Perhaps other visitors to Fantastica would think differently, but not Bastian. She had only gotten so close to him in the first place by letting him think he had bested her, the infamous witch of Horok.

She had best lay down and go back to sleep, she thought. But as she lay still upon her mattress, the images she'd seen and the sensations she'd felt in her dream unnerved her. Dreams were their own sort of stories, and that gave them a meaning.

So she slid out of bed, dressing herself for daily tasks. Perhaps she should inquire around the ship and see if any missions were being planned. With that goal in mind, Xayide exited her apartment.

...

When Jasmine entered Faron's view, Faron was in the midst of breaking the last chain Wuya had left upon him. Once it snapped, he turned his attention on the intruder, watching her every move.

Jasmine launched into the charade right away, making a big show of fainting as though she had been affected by heat or dehydration. If Faron wasn't going to give her a reason, he could draw his own conclusion about why she was unmoving on the ground. She waited there, eyes closed, hand gripping the sword hilt at her waist.

Faron took one look at her and decided he didn't need to get any closer. His tail whipped outward, lifting Jasmine into the air and launching her across the clearing.

She regained her bearings in the nick of time, twisting about in the air and landing so that her feet skidded on the ground; she toppled forth and caught herself with both arms planted firmly on the grass. "Well," she muttered, "time for plan B."

The word "HELP!" was spelled out in the sky with bones; then Stork and Papyrus dropped from the tree where they'd been hiding, landing to either side of Jasmine. Faron was winding up the pitch of the first orb.

Papyrus threw his hands outward; a solid wall of bones sprang up around Jasmine and Stork, glowing a faint blue. The orb ricocheted off the wall and smacked right back into Faron. The wall, built to be all-protective, obstructed the trio's view of Faron; they didn't see him reel when the orb bounced right back and collided with him. Instead, they waited behind the wall for the others to arrive.

"Is there something we can do now?" Jasmine wondered out loud.

"I'M NOT SURE," Papyrus replied. "THIS KIND OF SEEMS LIKE A SITUATION WHERE TEN PEOPLE ARE REQUIRED."

"WHAT did I say?" Stork growled. "I said don't say it's going to be easy from here on! But you all did it anyway! And guess what! NOW IT'S NOT EASY!"

"I don't think us calling it easy had anything to do with it," Jasmine pointed out.

The walls were vibrating hard as Faron whipped his tail against them over and over again, but they did not yield. Finally, from close by, the voices of Sora, Ruby, and Link rang out in unison, calling out, "WE'RE HERE!"

"WALLS GOING DOWN!" Papyrus announced.

The barrier of bones dropped; Sora, Riku, Ruby, Link, Midna, Zelda, Aladdin, and Katara caught up to the advance party. "JASMINE!" Sora yelled, putting out his empty hands to either side – he held no Keyblade. "STORK! LET'S DRIVE!"

Sora ran right between the pair he addressed. As he did so, Jasmine grasped his left hand and Stork his right. The three were engulfed in light, and when it cleared, Sora's clothes had taken on more of a blue-green pattern. The Kingdom Key floated to his side as his left hand grasped Three Wishes and his right hand clutched Divewing. The Master Sword was sheathed at his belt. Putting both Keyblades in his hands together – the third followed – Sora generated a cannon of Light between them, blasting Faron directly.

Faron reeled back, now quite angered. He spun around, his tail making a full sweep over the clearing.

"WIND!" Sora cried; his increased power allowed him to cast Aero beneath himself and the rest of his companions, lifting them all up high over the flinging tail. When Faron settled back still, he stumbled, seeming tipsy.

"I think that Light threw him off!" Ruby declared.

"That's a powerful spirit to be dizzied up by a little Light," Midna pointed out. "Did you do anything else?"

"NO," Papyrus told her. "I JUST MADE A DEFENSIVE WALL AROUND US TO PROTECT US ALL UNTIL THE REST OF YOU ARRIVED. THEN AGAIN, FARON DID THROW SOMETHING AT US."

Another orb sailed through the air; Ruby cut it neatly to pieces with Crescent Rose.

"Something like that?" Midna pointed out.

"YES!" Papyrus responded. "EXACTLY LIKE THAT!"

Midna turned to address Link; "I think he got hit with a taste of his own medicine! I can use the Fused Shadow to make it happen again, but – "

Sora used another round of Aero, fueled by Stork and Jasmine, to lift the group over another attack from the tail.

"But you're going to have to do something about that tail!" Midna concluded.

"I got it!" Link said with a nod. He rushed to Sora, calling out his name.

Sora knew what he wanted. He gave Three Wishes a toss into the air; as it flipped round and round above his head, he drew the Master Sword and passed it to Link with a "Here!". No sooner had the sword traded hands than Three Wishes came back down to rest in Sora's hand.

"Everyone!" Link yelled. "STOP THAT TAIL!"

"ON IT!" Ruby screamed, dropping Crescent Rose to the ground to barrel at Faron. All but Midna followed suit.

Midna, in the meantime, let the Fused Shadow take over; she rippled and expanded, sprouting extra limbs and turning translucent until she was once more the vaguely spider-shaped beast with a helmete head.

Ruby leapt into the air; she landed less than gracefully on Faron's tail. Sora, still bearing Stork and Jasmine within him, followed. Then Aladdin. Then Riku. Then Papyrus, Katara, and Zelda. Then, finally, Link. They clutched onto Faron's tail like a line of bracelets.

They hadn't counted on Faron being stronger than all of them. He whipped his tail up and about, trying to shake them off by flinging it rapidly. The heroes clinging on yelped from the sudden motion.

Except for Riku, who yelled, "Well, THIS was a good idea!"

Midna let out a very small sigh. She had come to love and respect all of her friends and traveling companions, and would consider none of them stupid, but this moment was admittedly very deserving of a small sigh.

Faron proved to be good at multi-tasking. He bowled an orb of Darkness toward Midna to try and strike her down. She caught it in one hand, weighing it up and down to show how meaningless it was to her. Faron, not having learned his lesson, pitched a second; Midna caught it in another hand. Now Faron thought to try something different, flinging his tail – still laden with people who could now not let go without risking being launched into the air – at Midna. She backpedaled, nearly stumbling and dropping the two orbs she held.

Ruby kept her eye all the while on the spot where she'd dropped Crescent Rose. That attack brought her close, and she swept the scythe up into her hand. Using only her legs to hold onto Faron's tail, she plunged the blade into the ground, digging it deep into the dirt to try and slow Faron.

Knowing a good idea when they saw one, Riku and Link plunged their own blades into the earth. Sora dug both Three Wishes and Divewing in; the Kingdom Key followed suit based on his will.

Now Faron's tail was truly pinned in place. He struggled for a moment to pry it up before aiming his next orb of Darkness at those who held onto it. Midna's reach was quick to intercept the orb; now three of her six limbs were occupied. Faron, in a determined rage, chucked another sphere at Midna's helmet; Midna's hand flew fast. Now she held four of the spheres.

"GET DOWN!" Link yelled, realizing what Midna was about to do. Faron's tail was close enough to the ground that everyone was able to exit it without hurting themselves; they bolted away at top speed, Jasmine and Stork separating from Sora in the process.

Midna plunged all four orbs at Faron in concert. Once struck with that much Dark energy, Faron collapsed, still healthy but very woozy.

Link stepped in, placing the Master Sword's blade flat on Faron's face. Once he had done so, the light broke through the Twilight above, illuminating Faron just as the light began to seep over the monkey's body.

It happened as it had done twice before. Faron transformed from Darkness into Light, and the Twilight gave way to bright blue skies that highlighted every color of the wood – the greens of the leaves, the dirt of the disturbed earth. Once the very tip of Faron's tail had returned to Light, Link lowered the blade. Midna, in the meantime, folded back down into her natural form.

"Young hero," Faron said in the same deliberate tone his kin had used, "this is not the first time you have had such a difficult task as returning one like me to a natural state. I can already tell what has happened to Lanayru and Eldin. For what you have done, I thank you. The rest, you already know. You are by now no doubt certain of what you must do to save Ordona."

Link simply nodded emphatically.

"Ordon is your home," Faron pointed out. "This battle will be the most personal for you."

"I know we can do it," Link asserted. "We've already come this far."

"Take that strength of heart and use it in the battles to come," Faron advised. "Ordon may not give you so much trouble now that you have been through three of us. But you have yet to deal with the one who altered our state."

"We'll be ready!" Link declared.

Zelda stepped forth. "Pardon my intrusion," she began.

"It was no intrusion," Faron responded.

"We found you unguarded," Zelda recalled. "Has Prince Hans passed by? Is he the reason?"

"He was, in fact," Faron informed her, "but he was grievously wounded in the battle. Yet onward he pressed."

Zelda gasped, pressing both hands to her mouth.

"We really owe that guy," Sora remarked. "We gotta be sure to thank him when we find him."

"THANK him?" Stork repeated. "It sounds like we need to SAVE him! What if he doesn't survive the next battle, hmm?"

"Well, he still got up and went there," Ruby pointed out. "I don't think he'd do that without a plan."

"I'm still concerned," Katara broke in. "We might have to find him before the next one of Maleficent's people does. What if we're already too late?"

"We have to go," Stork insisted. "Now."

"Then go," Faron said stoically before retreating into the waves of the spring.

The contingent assembled, then picked up into a proper jog, hoping to get to Ordona's spring in enough time to catch Hans. Still, it occurred to them that if they hadn't caught up with him thus far, he would be out of their reach once more.

"I know what you're thinking," Midna stated. "And what we're doing is better than nothing, so stop thinking too hard about it."

"At least now we have a better strategy for defeating the spirits," Katara pointed out.

"THAT'S RIGHT!" Papyrus declared. "THAT SHOULD MAKE FACING ORDONA – "

Stork interrupted him by loudly clearing his throat with an "EH-AHEM."

"VERY, VERY DIFFICULT," Papyrus concluded. "NOT EASY AT ALL. NO."

...

Xerxes was the product of layer upon layer of enchantment. There was no one single spell holding him together. Different enchantments had enabled him to speak, to fly, to survive out of water.

It seemed impossible that all of them should fail at once. But that was what had happened.

Xerxes plummeted, midflight, to the floor, no longer able to keep aloft. He flopped uselessly, hoping for some miracle to put him back right. Then he realized the bigger problem.

He couldn't breathe.

No longer was air palatable. He needed water, but was distant from any source of it. He attempted to burble a cry for help; perhaps someone would hear him and carry him out of this plight. But his capability for speech was utterly gone, just like the rest of the magic that had allowed him to carry on.

He could feel the pressure building in his gills. If he didn't get to water soon, he would die. He made a flop two inches down the hallway. Then another. It was slow going, but he had to try something. If only someone would come along!

But there was no help to be had. Xerxes forced himself to keep flopping, keep bouncing, all as his skin parched and his vision blurred until all he saw was black.

...

Then he realized all he had to do was open his eyes.

Xerxes had been curled up, asleep, on a couch in one of the lounges. He cried out in panic, shooting up into the air and zooming in circles before it occurred to him that all of the spells that gave him his abilities were in perfect working order and what he'd experienced was merely a bad dream.

But he was in quite a panic, and he needed company in order to shake the fear he'd just experienced. Mozenrath was out of the base, so that was no good. Who else could he go to? And, more pertinently, where would they be?

The laboratory wing seemed to be a gathering place, Xerxes figured, whether it was for people seeking answers, trying to sabotage Vexen, or watching Yzma work. True, Vexen and Yzma were both absent, but perhaps it was still fair game to look there and see if someone was about.

Without wasting another second, Xerxes sped forth from the lounge on a mission to find someone, anyone else.

...

"Okay," Sadira proclaimed, holding up a necklace with a dark blue stone inset. "What do you think of this one?"

"I think that highlights what you're wearing and your natural complexion perfectly!" Pleakley responded.

"Not for me," Sadira said with a shake of her head. "For you, silly!"

The group Garfield had pulled together was, as planned, making a stop for Sadira and Pleakley to get shopping out of their system in the midst of the tour of the city.

"Me?" Pleakley repeated, somewhat surprised. "Well, it does have an appealing sparkle to it. I'd say it's up to standard."

"Up to standard?" Sadira repeated. "Does that mean you LIKE it, or does that mean you LOVE it?"

"Well, it's hard to form an attachment to a piece I've only just seen for the first time right now," Pleakley mused, "but the more I look at it, the more I think I really, REALLY like it!"

"But now versus this one," Sadira proposed, holding up a necklace with an orange stone.

Pleakley shook his head. "I've worn out the orange look. It wouldn't look bad on you, but take it from me, the blue would be a lot better."

"Sold." Sadira turned to the vendor from which she'd picked up the items for display. "I'll take two of these," she told him, handing over the necklace of blue.

"Two?" Pleakley was confused.

"Two," Sadira confirmed. "One for me, one for you."

Pleakley found himself blushing. "We've just met. You really don't have to get me any sort of gift."

"It's my money," Sadira asserted, "and I want to. Now, how about the matching bracelet?"

"I'm not going to approve of you getting me any more unwarranted gifts!" Pleakley folded his arms.

"That means you like it," Sadira deduced. She added a pair of the bracelets to the pile. "Two of these. And let's add…I don't know how to ask this without being rude, but do you even have ears, Pleakley?"

"No," Pleakley replied. "Not the kind with lobes, anyway."

"Is that true, or are you just saying that so I won't spring for your earrings?"

"I swear it's true!"

Sadira dropped a pair of blue earrings onto the pile. "Just one set of these."

The vendor withdrew a box in which to pack the accessories, but Sadira told him, "I'll actually just wear mine right away." Turning to her companion, she asked, "What about you?"
"That does sound appealing right now," Pleakley admitted. "No box will be necessary."

Together, Pleakley and Sadira donned necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. As the vendor observed them, he pointed out, "You know, those do all have high Blizzard resistance."

"More importantly, they look good," Sadira stated.

"Blizzard resistance?" Pleakley asked. "What does that mean, anyway?"

"It means they help protect you from getting frozen with ice magic," Sadira answered.

"Ice magic!" Pleakley repeated. "Fascinating! I'd like to know more about the types of magic you encounter on this world." He and Sadira moved away from the vendor's counter to rejoin their group. "But first, you do realize that I owe you for those gifts."

"You owe me nothing," Sadira insisted. "You've seriously been the only person who I could actually have fun with about this. And you don't even know how happy it makes me to be able to buy my friends gifts instead of having to just steal things for myself."

"STEAL things?" Pleakley was taken aback.

Sadira gave a short, nervous laugh. "I did mention I had a bit of a past, didn't I?"

"You mentioned that," Pleakley told her, "but I didn't think it involved stealing." He quickly held up both hands. "I'm not going to judge! I used to be on the run from the law myself, you know."

"Can I ask what for?" Sadira inquired.

"Failing to comply with Galactic Council procedures and complete an assignment regarding a security threat," Pleakley answered. "Which turned into aiding and abetting a known criminal."

"Whoa," Sadira reacted.

"It gets better," Pleakley went on. "I proceeded to move in with the known criminal. Which wasn't technically illegal, but just goes to prove my point that I'm not going to judge."

"Thanks," Sadira replied. "You won't be getting any judgment from me either. On anything."

"Good to know," Pleakley told her.

While the two of them were deep in conversation, Lilo had found a kindred spirit of her own. It had begun when Nora, thinking of her team, asked about Lilo's friends from school.

"I don't actually have that many," Lilo admitted. "Just Victoria. And Keoni, but he's not really from school. But most of the others in my class make fun of me."

"Why would anybody make fun of you?" Nora asked, bewildered. "You're really neat!"

"They think I'm weird," Lilo sighed. "It's because I like scary movies, I dress up as monsters on Halloween instead of princesses, I read books about obscure nonfictional topics like plastic surgery procedures, and just a lot of things that aren't normal."

"Well, I'm here to tell you that being normal is no fun at all!" Nora proclaimed. "Being weird is the BEST! Especially being loud, being strong, singing at random times, booping people's noses…it's just all a lot of fun! And all your REAL friends will like you BECAUSE you're weird. I bet when you grow up, you're gonna get lots of friends who think you're awesome!"

"I'm not in a hurry," Lilo reassured her. "I have Stitch, and I have the rest of my family. So long as we're together, it doesn't really matter that I don't have a lot of friends outside of them. Hey, wait a minute. All that stuff you said just now. Was that because people think YOU'RE weird?"

"You got it!" Nora flashed Lilo a smile and a wink. "People used to make fun of me a lot too. Though when I was your age, it was more about me being homeless and an orphan and not able to take regular showers…eh, that's all in the past. But once I learned how to be myself, oh, boy, that's when people started saying I was too loud and crazy. All except for Ren. Ren was kinda like my Stitch. We didn't need anybody else so long as we had each other. But then we got to Beacon Academy, where all sorts of people came and had their own weirdness, and things just got a lot better. And that's why I think things are gonna get better for you!"

"For the record, I like that you're loud," Yuffie broke in. "And I don't think you're crazy. If anybody says that, though, let me know so I can break their nose."

"Like I won't have already broken their nose myself," Nora teased. Then, seriously, to Lilo, "Don't break people's noses."

"My sister's had to tell me that more than once," Lilo sighed. "What about you, Yuffie? Do people think you're weird?"

"Nope!" Yuffie said proudly. "Everyone's dying to talk to me!"

"I believe that!" Nora replied.

Meanwhile, Garfield had managed to get Moana in a position where he could extract information from her. "It sounds like you have to deal with a lot of problems here," he brought up.

"It's not a LOT of problems," Moana told him. "All we really have to deal with are Maleficent's schemes and whatever Mozenrath is doing. Well, and that time Dilan betrayed us. And that 'Xehanort' person that's somewhere out there. And that 'Cinder' person Ruby is trying to follow. Okay, so that sounds like a lot of problems."

"No kidding," Garfield replied, trying to figure out how he could isolate the part of the statement that really mattered. "How do you stay on top of it all?"

"By working together," Moana answered. "That's why Dilan tried to hard to split us apart. Because we've been able to overcome all kinds of things together. It's the biggest reason Maleficent hasn't won yet."

"What about those other guys?" Garfield asked.

"Well, there's Mozenrath," Moana brought up, "but it sounds like he's kind of a joke. We have a squad dedicated to going after him, and they basically take care of that."

"So he's somewhere on this world too," Garfield said, deliberately getting it wrong in order to draw out an answer he sought.

"Actually, he and his goons travel around to all different worlds," Moana explained. "We're not exactly sure what he wants, but we're doing our best to keep up with him."

There it was: the opening. "How do even know where to find him if he keeps picking different worlds?"

"Well, Sadira helped build a magic hourglass that answers questions," Moana explained. "It's one of those symbolic answer things, but it's been right every time so far."

"So you can basically spy on him wherever he goes," Garfield realized.

"Basically, yeah!" Moana asserted.

The rest of the WHAM ARMY wasn't going to like that, Garfield thought in dismay. "So, uh…tell me more about the other guy. Xenahort."

"Xehanort," Moana corrected. "I made that mistake too when I first got here. I think everyone does."

It was then that Pleakley and Sadira caught up with the group, and Yuffie resumed walking to the next sight to see as conversations about all manner of things continued. All the while, Garfield kept a hand on his pocket. At any moment, his scroll was about to vibrate, alerting him to the time that events should be set in motion.

...

A chain burst from the ground, snaking toward a tree, where a solid metal cuff erupted from it and encircled the tree's trunk. It locked with a distinct click.

"How was that?" Irmaplotz asked.

Wuya approached the chain, tapping it. "Solid construction," she observed. "But let's see how much magic it can stand up to this time." She seized it in both hands, feeding burning energy into her grip. Sparks flew from the place where her skin touched the metal, and it took a full minute for her to be able to break the chain. "Now that's improvement," she remarked. "That should hold Ordona for a while."

"What kind of spirit is this Ordona, anyway?" Demyx asked. "We had a snake, a giant bird, and a monkey. What's next?"

"Ordona is a variety of goat often herded in the villages," Wuya explained.

This brought out a loud groan from Mozenrath. "NOT A GOAT," he exclaimed.

"You have some kind of problem with goats?" Wuya prodded.

"Imagine being a child in the Agrabanian marketplace," he sighed, "not yet having acquired any magical power whatsoever, and being directly in the line of attack for a herd of goats that have just escaped the pen of their traveling merchant. If there is one creature I cannot stand, it's a goat."

"I would've thought you'd harbor a greater contempt for Thirdacs," Yzma brought up.

Mozenrath thought it over. "I'll amend that. There are two types of creature I cannot stand, and it's goats and Thirdacs."

"Well, you can rest your pretty little worrying head about it," Roman broke in, "because this time, I'm going to make sure things do NOT go as badly as the last three times. You could say I have this in the bag." He held up a sack he had collected from the bomb shop and had been wearing around his waist. "Literally. Check this out." He withdrew a bomb that seemed bigger than the bag it had been carried in. "What's this? It appears to be a bomb! But wait!" He dipped into the bag again, pulling out… "Another bomb! And there's more!" He scooped three more bombs out of the bag. "How do these bombs all FIT in this bag? It's practically infinite bombs!"

"We've all seen an enchanted purse before," Wuya sighed. "Put them back."

"So that's your big plan, huh?" Hans asked as Roman replaced all of the explosives in their container. "Bombs. I can't believe we didn't think of that earlier. You did have those last time, after all. You'd think that would have been the time to actually use them."

"Your mockery ends after this battle," Roman vowed. "I just got unlucky the last three times. But this time, I'm feeling pretty good."

"Ten munny says the goat runs him over right away," Demyx chuckled.

"I'll take that bet," Mozenrath replied, "and I'll raise it to twenty. Twenty munny says he doesn't get trampled by the goat at all."

"I don't think he'll be trampled by the goat," Hans asserted.

Roman began, "So you DON'T think I'm a complete and total – "

"I think Maleficent's henchperson is going to shoot him in the head before the goat even gets a good look at him," Hans finished. "And I'll raise it to twenty-five."

"Twenty-five says neither of those things happens," Mozenrath countered.

"Make it thirty!" Yzma announced. "Thirty munny on Roman Torchwick escaping the battle unharmed!"

"You two are good friends," Roman stated. "This is what good friendship is supposed to look like right here. This is why the core members of the WHAM ARMY are so – "

"I'll put forty on the goat," Wuya interrupted.

"WUYA!" Roman barked.

"I'm going with Maleficent's henchperson getting him," Irmaplotz volunteered, "but I'm not raising it any higher."

"I'm making my own bet!" Zevon announced. "Roman Torchwick gets shot in the head by Maleficent's generalizater, then gets trampollinated by the goat immediatively after!"

"You're all on," Mozenrath said with a smirk.

"Hey, you know what?" Roman threw in. "I'm putting FIFTY on me making it out unscathed. Because, contrary to what some of you think, I'm NOT a complete ass."

"In the competency sense, anyway," Yzma brought up.

"That is a fair point," Roman conceded.

Ordona's spring was a wide pool of shallow water surrounded by a low rock wall that kept it fenced in; the eight paused before entry. "We have no idea what we're about to face in there," Mozenrath announced, "but this time, we have a semblance of a plan. Irmaplotz, you're in charge of stopping the goat from Tartarus from stomping us into paste. Especially Torchwick, because I don't feel like coughing up fifty munny."

"How about because you love me?" Roman teased.

Mozenrath gave him a sarcastic glare. "Anyway," he went on, "while that's going on, the demon beast is probably going to be firing Dark attacks at us left and right. So far, the only thing we've seen actually work on stopping those attacks besides Wuya is Demyx's power over water. So, Demyx, I am foolishly putting my trust in you being able to shield us with that water whenever an attack gets loosed. Can you do this one very simple job?"

"As offended as I feel that you're talking down to me," Demyx admitted, "I'm just kinda happy you gave me a job that's technically easy."

"That brings us to Zevon," Mozenrath went on. "If I remember correctly, you have one potion left. What is it?"

"It's the one that packs the most powerful punch," Zevon announced, "which is why I was saving it for last!" He held up a flask in which an iridescent liquid shimmered. "Fireworks in a bottle! Once I break the flask, it will unleashen a conflaguration of kaleidoscope-ical explosionations!"

"So we have that card to play – " Mozenrath began.

"You weren't listening," Zevon interrupted. "I said I was saving it for LAST."

"And this isn't the last battle?" Mozenrath sighed. "There are four spirits. This is the fourth. I didn't realize you were as bad with numbers as you were with words."

"But we're going to combattle Ganondorf and Cinder once Wuya has the Triforce of Power," Zevon recalled. "THAT is a situating that requirementals fireworks in a bottle."

Mozenrath was in no mood to admit he'd forgotten about that. "I was leaving that one to Wuya."

"Ganondorf is mine," Wuya asserted. "Cinder is a problem for the rest of you. And that's assuming they don't have any more backing them up."

"We don't need to be strategizing for THAT fight!" Yzma hissed. "We just need to be strategizing for THIS one!"

"So, to go over it again," Mozenrath recapitulated, "Irmaplotz, you chain up the demon beast. Demyx, you stop it from blasting any of us. Torchwick, put those bombs to good use, and don't put me out fifty munny."

"Can I change my bet?" Demyx asked. "I actually think he's going to blow himself up."

"Now you're giving me NO credit," Roman growled.

"Bet accepted," Wuya stated. "My munny is still on the goat."

"Wuya, whatever Maleficent sent, it's now yours," Mozenrath concluded. "The rest of us will provide backup as necessary in either area. There's also the possibility that more insects will be involved, so prepare for that, and for the love of Ahriman, Demyx, have your sitar in your hand when you walk onto the field!"

The musical instrument bubbled into solid form. "Got it," Demyx said with a grin.

"If we're all clear," Mozenrath proclaimed, "then let's go take the last piece of the Triforce."

The group needed no further cue to break up and proceed walking through the entryway to the Ordon Province spring.

Each had a different feeling of who would be awaiting them once they walked into the confines of the spring. Mozenrath was not looking forward to seeing Qilby again, and had thereby figured that the multiverse hated him enough to put Qilby there. Wuya didn't let it show, but the thought of running into Dr. Facilier put her on edge. If Roman saw the Joker, he was simultaneously prepared to punch him in the face and to run like his life depended on it, which it probably would. Yzma hoped she wouldn't find herself on the business end of the Dark Ace's inferno blade. What actually waited them, however, was a surprise none of them had expected.

The reason being that only one of the eight actually knew who it was.

The silver-haired youth burst out into laughter as the group walked closer to where he stood in the center of the spring. "How did I get this lucky?" he chortled. "She TOLD me about you. I KNEW you were running around out there trying not to trip over your own feet while you made a name for yourself. I didn't think you'd actually waltz right up to me so I could shoot you in the face!"

"Have…we met?" Mozenrath asked, perplexed.

"No," the young man said with a wicked smirk. "Not you." He pointed directly at Roman Torchwick. "Him."

"Pleasure to see you as always, Black," Roman spat sarcastically.

"I love you too, Roman," Mercury Black responded. "Also, why am I back to 'Black'? What happened to 'Merc'? I liked it when you called me 'Merc.' You remember the one night you did."

"Only because I haven't been able to bleach it out of my subconscious yet," Roman growled.

"Am I picking up bitter ex vibes?" Hans muttered quietly.

"I'm not entirely sure," Mozenrath responded in a low tone, "but I think this is the associate Roman had a one-night stand with. And also hates."

"So you're running with Maleficent now?" Roman spat. "That's surprising. I thought she actually had a quality standard."

"I work for Salem," Mercury responded, "who made a partnership with Maleficent. They're pretty good company over there. It beats having to put up with just Tyrian, Watts, Hazel, and Cinder all day. Some of those guys actually know how to party."

"What, no Green?" Roman observed.

"Emerald…is none of your business," Mercury spat. "So what's your excuse? Because while I'm playing with the big boys, you, for some reason, are splashing around in the kiddie pool."

"Yeah, you wouldn't be wearing that stupid smirk if you saw what we did to the last three guys," Roman replied.

"One of them was a girl," Irmaplotz broke in.

"Be quiet, sweetie," Roman told her. "The grown-ups are talking. No, wait, one grown-up is talking to a man-child."

"And that man-child never stopped wearing that stupid hat," Mercury taunted.

Demyx leaned in to Hans' other side to whisper, "I almost feel bad for roasting him so bad earlier."

"Are you serious?" Hans whispered back.

"Emphasis on the 'almost,'" Demyx clarified.

"Listen, Black," Roman growled, feeling a spark ignite within him. "Even though you're younger, less experienced, and way, WAY dumber than me, the fact is, plain and simple, that in the past, whenever we crossed paths, you were always the one talking down to me. You were Cinder's golden child, and, by that logic, you were Salem's golden child. To them, I was a piece of trash they picked up before they realized they had an actual useful tool on their hands. But even then, I was just a tool."

"You were a tool, all right," Mercury laughed.

"Every time," Roman growled, a force within him picking up ever more momentum, "you lorded your power over me. Every time I wanted to punch your fucking face in, you blew the whistle and Mommy flew in to save you, and I knew damn well I couldn't do SHIT. Every time I put so much as a toe out of line, you tightened the collar!"

"Every time except one," Mercury reminded him. "That was all your idea. I even let you take the lead."

"And now I'm starting to think you only said yes because you knew you could hold it over my head later!" Roman retorted.

"I said yes because you're hot," Mercury clarified. "That's actually about all you have going for you."

"Yeah, well, looking back, I had no taste in men," Roman huffed. "I've traded up since you."

"This is definitely the one-night stand," Mozenrath confirmed to Hans.

"Traded up to what?" Mercury asked. "It doesn't get much better than me, lover boy."

"You KNOW what – " Roman gritted his teeth, forcing himself to stop right there. "We're getting off topic. The point is, in the past, every time you said jump, I had to ask how high. But things are different now, Black. Because I'm not in Salem's pocket anymore. Now, I'm the one talking down to YOU. I don't ANSWER to you or any of your bosses anymore. You don't get to be my White Hats. I'm free now. Free to work with people I actually like. Free to chase after the dream I want to chase after. So blow the whistle all you want; I'm not gonna roll over, play dead, or shake hands this time. YOU DON'T HAVE ANY POWER OVER ME ANYMORE." He raised the Cudgel, pointing it at Mercury's head. "So FUCK OFF!"

"Wow," Mercury said in mock awe, shaking his head. "That was some speech, Roman. It almost moved me to tears. You just forgot about one part."

"Oh yeah?" Roman egged on. "What the FUCK did I forget here?"

Mercury stomped on the ground once, his foot sending up a splash. Behind him, an enormous goat composed completely of Darkness emerged from the spring, horns first; those horns connected in a circle at the top of their arc, and within the circle, an orb of Darkness swirled and spun. Ordona pawed the ground in anticipation.

"You think I don't have any power over you because you don't work for me?" Mercury threw back to Roman. "What about the power I have over you because I can kick your ass? I have a spirit of Darkness on my side, and also some pretty sweet skills you can't even hope to match. Put that together with the track record my team has over your cheerleaders and see what you come up with." He scratched his head in a gesture of mockery. "I feel like I'm forgetting something…oh, yeah." He lowered his hand, fixing his gaze dead on Roman's eye. "You can't even win a fight against a KID."

"Black, so help me, shut the fuck up – "

"Look at me!" Mercury taunted in a high-pitched voice. "I'm Roman Torchwick! I wear a fancy hat and I get beaten up by little girls!"

"WELL, FUCK YOU TOO!"

Roman and Mercury had the same idea at the same time. Roman pulled the trigger on the Cudgel at the same time that Mercury dropped to the ground, spinning in what looked to the untrained eye like a breakdance move. Roman's ammunition sailed right over Mercury, exploding against Ordona's chest and agitating him into stomping his front hooves. When Mercury's leg swung to point at Roman, there was the sound of a gunshot. Unlike Roman's, Mercury's shot had hit its mark.

Roman, realizing where he'd been hit, let out a cry of anguish.

Wuya, Mozenrath, and Yzma immediately hustled forward, ready to make Mercury pay for the injury he'd dealt their friend. As they glanced over at Roman to see exactly what that injury was, however, they found him unharmed. Roman reached shakingly up to the top of his head, where he peeled off the remains of what had been his hat – now a charred piece of fabric blown open to let his orange hair spill out.

"You…" Roman squeaked, holding what had once been a quite fine hat in his hands. "You knew…there were two things you don't EVER do to me if you don't want to die." His voice took on a sudden sharp edge. "AND YOU JUST FUCKING DID ONE OF THEM!"

"Two?" Mercury said with sudden interest as he rose to full height. "I thought the hat was the only one. Is there a new way to get your goat?" After a pause, he chuckled. "Haha. Goat. I didn't do that on purpose, but I'm glad I did it anyway."

Roman realized Mercury didn't know the full distance he was willing to go if anyone threatened Archibald Snatcher. And it was best to keep it that way. "Like hell I'm telling you."

"Roman," Wuya said softly, "I know we agreed he was my order of business, but it looks like this is personal. If you let me have my piece, I'll let you have yours."

"Deal," Roman muttered. He let the hat's remains drop. Slowly, they fluttered downward as Roman and Mercury kept eye contact. Roman tightened his grip on the Cudgel. Mercury edged one foot out in front of the other.

The hat's remains touched the surface of the water.

Roman and Mercury had meant to fly toward each other and engage in combat, but Mozenrath, who had been growing ever frustrated the more Mercury talked down to Roman, decided he'd had enough and leapt in between them, sword drawn and pointed toward Mercury. And once Mozenrath had done so, Hans was compelled to chase after him, his own sword at the ready.

"SERIOUSLY?" Roman yelled. "That's MY enemy!"

Mercury ducked down to let Ordona leap over his back; the massive goat landed behind Mozenrath and Hans and proceeded to speed toward the remainder of the party. Wuya and Roman dove to either side of him while Irmaplotz, Zevon, Demyx, and Yzma turned to run straight away before all veering into different directions.

Hans and Mozenrath reached Mercury at the same time, each swinging his blade at the silver-haired man. Mercury hit the water, spinning his legs upward as the blades passed harmlessly over him. He dealt Mozenrath a swift kick to the gut and Hans one to the chin that nearly dislocated his jaw. It should have occurred to both of them then what they were dealing with, but the force of the kicks didn't register. It was only when they attempted to bring the swords down on Mercury and he parried both of them with his calves, resulting in a ringing clang, that Mozenrath and Hans realized Mercury's legs were made of metal.

Simultaneously, they remembered the gunshot from earlier. They both leaned back just in time to avoid taking a double-barrel to the face.

Mercury twisted, wrapping both legs around Hans' sword and spinning hard. Hans' blade separated from the sword's hilt and broke into fragments in Mercury's grip.

"Okay, that stopped being funny after the wedding," Hans growled.

Mercury's foot caught Mozenrath's right fist at just the right angle; Mozenrath's sword was sent spinning up into the air. Before Mozenrath could even think about catching it, Mercury was back on his feet, behind Mozenrath and kicking him squarely in the small of the back. Mozenrath toppled forward; Hans caught him in both arms. The pair of allies spent a good second looking into each other's eyes, wondering what to make of this rather awkward situation, before Mercury swept a leg under their ankles, spilling them both to the water. As they splashed down, still in an awkward position but now wet, Mercury kicked several shots of bright white ammunition into the air. Mozenrath rolled off of Hans; Hans rolled in the other direction, and the shots plunged down into empty water. Hans and Mozenrath staggered upward only for Mercury to grab a hand of each, pull them both across him as though enacting a ballroom dance maneuver, and use his right leg to deal kicks to their alternating solar plexuses repeatedly. Once he had them both battered, he leapt into the air, twisting and curling, ready to come down hard with a kick to Mozenrath's head.

A blur of black and red raced beneath him. The business leg was clenched in a hand; the rest of Mercury's body fell limply. He could see from his upside-down position that he was clutched by someone with bare feet and a black skirt; meanwhile, someone in a very familiar pair of trousers and shoes was ushering Hans and Mozenrath to get somewhere safer.

Wuya let go of Mercury; he dropped with a splash. "I hope you don't mind if we cut in," she told him.

"You have NO idea how long I've wanted to do this," Roman added as he loomed over Mercury.

Gritting his teeth, Mercury leapt back up into action.

In the meantime, Irmaplotz's new skill was failing her. She was able to create strong chains, but each time she called one up from the ground, Ordona outran its targeted space, and the shackle closed over empty air before splashing into the water. Yzma cartwheeled out of the way of Ordona's rampage, yelling over to Irmaplotz, "I JUST SAW YOU DO THIS TO SEVERAL TREES!"

"TREES DON'T MOVE!" Irmaplotz reminded her.

Ordona ground to a halt, spraying water up over Zevon, as he spied Mozenrath and Hans retreating from Mercury. They were disarmed and therefore easy targets. He charged up an orb of Darkness, letting it fly.

Demyx, in a panic, struck the chord that called up a dome of water to cover Mozenrath and Hans. The sphere of Darkness broke against it, dissolving the dome into a rain.

"I am NOT going to be HELPLESS!" Mozenrath raged.

Hans' eyes skimmed the surface of the spring until he spotted where Mozenrath's sword had landed point-down some feet away from where Roman and Wuya challenged Mercury. "Well, good thing you don't have to be," he said, pointing out the fallen weapon.

Mozenrath turned and made a run for it. He failed to notice another orb of Darkness gaining on his back; Demyx blocked it with a wall of water before it could even get close.

Mozenrath's hand clasped around the sword hilt; he drew up the blade. No sooner had he done so than the surface of the water bubbled as though boiling. Then a cloud of Shadow Insects burst forth, all fixing their eyes upon Mozenrath.

Mercury was locked into a fierce close-range battle with his two opponents. His legs flew in every direction, aiming for a face, a groin, a stomach; he leapt, he ducked and spun. But whatever wasn't parried by Wuya's bare hand or foot on one side was blocked by the Melodic Cudgel on the other. Wuya and Roman were just as alert as Mercury was; all three knew that if any one of them faltered for just a moment, that one would become the loser of the battle.

"You know, it's about time someone put out this torch," Mercury said through gritted teeth.

"How long were you sitting on that one?" Roman asked.

Mercury didn't want to dignify that with the answer, which amounted to two weeks before the fall of Beacon Academy, during which time he had suspected Roman might turn traitor with the exact same attitude he was displaying now.

"Also, you realize if you kill me, Righty will just bring me back," Roman pointed out. "They HAD to have briefed you on that."

"I know," Mercury replied as he attempted to swipe a leg into Roman's side and was parried at the next turn. "It would still be really satisfying."

"You're holding your own better than usual," Wuya complimented Roman as she ducked another swing from Mercury and responded with her own kick to his gut.

"He's close," Roman told her. "Sniping people is my first choice, but if I can get them close, I can parry them into submission." The Cudgel's shaft knocked into both the soles of Mercury's boots. "It's when they try to snipe ME that we have problems."

"You know, you really picked a good time to get chatty," Mercury commented.

Roman realized what he'd just let on. "…Shit."

It took a while for Mercury to figure a way out of the dual onslaught. It was sheer luck that saved him; as Wuya ducked a triple bullet fire, Mercury got enough room to swing in a complete arc, hands planted on the ground and one leg hooking around the back of Roman's shoulders before he used it as leverage to launch himself into the air, propelling himself even higher with more gunfire. He then put as much distance as he could between himself, Roman, and Wuya, knowing he only had seconds to give them the ultimate before he was put back between a rock and a hard place.

"Okay, this isn't working!" Demyx yelled at Irmaplotz. "We need to slow it down!"

"I AM DOING MY BEST HERE!" Irmaplotz screamed, throwing another chain that missed its mark as Ordona galloped round and round.

Zevon watched the sight unfold as he pressed against the rock wall, knowing and fearing what had to be done. He reached for his belt, removing the final bottle. "It's now or nevermore," he muttered, determination lighting up his eyes.

The bottle flew from his hand, soaring over the spring until it plopped into the spring just before Ordona. When the bottle sank without so much as cracking, Zevon cringed, thinking his plan had failed.

The agitated Ordona's left front hoof ended up completing the job, smashing down hard onto the bottle.

All at once, there was a rush of rainbow-colored sparks accompanied by booming and whistling as they spiraled and burst out from beneath Ordona. The goat halted in his tracks before tentatively backing up slowly, step by step. The sparks still managed to hit his chest, where they sizzled.

Seizing the opportunity, Irmaplotz conjured a web of chains from the ground, clamping them onto Ordona's neck, limbs, midsection, and horns. Ordona was now pinned in place, struggling but unable to escape as the fireworks kept unfolding in front of him.

"You know," Irmaplotz realized, "these chains are almost like macramé. I bet I could make a cute pattern out of – "

"LIKE WE HAVE THE TIME!" Demyx screamed.

Mozenrath, remembering how he had taken down the Shadow Insects in Lanayru's cavern, immediately stood with his back to Hans, blade swinging and slicing to cut down the bugs that got in his way. Hans, however, was none too happy about this; "Excuse me? I'm kind of UNARMED here!"

One of Yzma's darts whistled through the air and planted itself at Hans' feet. Plucking it from the water and jabbing it at the insects like a spear, Hans yelled, "THANK YOU!" He was quite pleased to see each insect he poked transform into a worm before falling into the water to struggle on the surface.

Yzma's attention turned toward Roman, Wuya, and Mercury. She could see Mercury getting away from them, and she watched as he put his plan into motion. She didn't know exactly what she could do just yet, but she was sure there was some way she could help the situation. So she charged.

By that time, Mercury had gone into another dance, arcing his legs through the air as he balanced on his hands, leaping from rotation to rotation. He let out a round of gunfire as rapidly and unendingly as he could; the white ammunition floated up into the air around him, whirling like a cyclone. It would go exactly where he needed it to, he knew. After all, Roman and Wuya were still chasing him directly into the center of the vortex.

His deed done, he backflipped three times until he was out of range. The ammunition swirled around Roman and Wuya, who had arrived where Mercury had been sowing his seeds, and it all began to descend. A smirk crossed Mercury's face; all he had to do was stand back and watch the destruction.

What happened next took place over the course of mere seconds.

First, Roman and Wuya realized they were in trouble. Then Wuya grabbed onto Roman's forearm. Roman sensed what she was about to do and reached for the bag beneath his jacket. Wuya teleported herself and Roman out of the reach of the vortex just before it would have collided with them. At the same time, Roman found a bomb inside the bag and pitched it; when he and Wuya arrived to safety, he was at the optimal distance to launch it directly at the vortex. He hoped at least some of the shrapnel would travel far enough to do some damage.

To his absolute glee, that was when Yzma surged up behind Mercury and dealt him a roundhouse kick, her high-heeled shoe stabbing into his lower back as he stumbled forward into the very vortex of doom he had created.

And as Mercury arrived in the midst of the whirling ammunition, the first of what he'd fired touched the fuse of the bomb.

The resulting explosion sent Mercury flying across the spring, slamming up against a rock wall and plopping facedown into the water with a massive splash. He quickly scrambled to turn over and get back to his feet, which he suddenly realized would be impossible if one of his prosthetic legs had been blown off by the bomb, which it turned out it had.

Wuya and Roman came barreling at Mercury together. Mercury, now in a panic, cracked off as many shots as he could with his remaining leg, aiming alternately for Roman and Wuya. Wuya batted each aside with a simple swat of her hand. Horrified, Mercury was on the brink of screaming at her how she was able to do such a thing, but then she was upon him, grabbing him by the one ankle he had left, using it to hoist him high above her head, and spinning his entire body using the ankle as a leverage point.

There was a loud crack. Mercury's body went sailing across the spring in a different direction, splashing down ungracefully in the water. Wuya still gripped his other leg; he was now left without means of fighting or even walking. She held back as Roman took his turn, rushing to stand over Mercury's body. Mercury braced himself as Roman raised the Cudgel high.

Trying one last tactic, Mercury gave Roman a weak smile. "Did I mention you really ARE hot?"

It had no effect.

Roman slammed the Cudgel down on Mercury again and again. "THIS is for treating me like your lapdog!" he screamed. "THIS is for every time you thought about bumping me off because I mouthed off to you! THIS is for every time you mouthed off to ME! And THIS is because you're an annoying idiot! I hope you're enjoying this, because this is just the appetizer! What's the main course, you ask? Well, you're going to be lucky enough not to know, because I'M SAVING IT FOR CINDER! You can go crawling back to her to give her THAT message!"

Wuya tapped Roman on the shoulder. "Ahem."

Panting heavily, Roman stepped aside. He gestured dramatically down to the bruised and beaten Mercury. "All yours," he stated.

Mercury whimpered, fearing whatever Wuya had in mind for him. He was surprised when she merely reached down and grasped his hand. Within moments, the Triforce power he possessed transferred over to her.

When Wuya had what she wanted, she stepped back, gesturing to Mercury in the same way Roman had done for her. "Continue."

"I'm just about done," Roman stated as he cocked the Cudgel to aim directly at Mercury's head. "All I want now is to deliver the coup de grace."

Mercury covered his eyes with one arm, dreading the worst.

No one, least of all Mercury, expected the Corridor to open up beneath him and pull him through. Once it did, it disappeared as soon as it had arrived.

Roman held the Cudgel aimed at the place where Mercury had been for a solid thirty seconds before lowering it. "You know, I'm not even mad," he sighed. "I fucking knew SOMETHING like that would happen."

Wuya patted him on the shoulder. "You'll get him next time."

Roman held out his hand, fingers outstretched and palm facing Wuya. Wuya immediately got the gist and slapped him a high-five.

Mozenrath cut down the final Shadow Insect. "If you're done," he called out over the field, "the rest of us could use transportation out of here ANY TIME NOW."

"Hold your horses!" Wuya yelled back over her shoulder at him.

"It's a GOAT," Irmaplotz corrected, "and I AM holding it!"

Wuya cast the next Corridor, waving her hand for first Roman, then Hans and Mozenrath, then Yzma, then Zevon, then Demyx, then Irmaplotz to run through. She followed up, meeting them on the other side in the midst of Faron Woods.

"This is brighter than I remember," Mozenrath said as he looked up at the sun in the blue sky.

"Some do-gooder has probably been going around fixing the spirits," Yzma sighed.

Mozenrath shrugged. "Not our problem."

"That was AWESTROME!" Zevon cheered. "We finally made it out of a battle without getting MANGLATED!"

"This is the best we've ever made it out of any of the encounters," Hans pointed out.

"Speak for yourself," Roman sighed.

"What's wrong?" Mozenrath groaned. "You got to beat your one-night stand half to death. Yes, he may have escaped, but he'll come back around for another chance to die. They always do."

"Well, yeah," Roman agreed, "but he ruined my hat."

"Is that seriously what's going to ruin this experience for you?" Hans sighed.

"It was a nice hat!" Roman snapped.

Mozenrath realized that without the impending Twilight, he no longer had to hold everyone else's bodies in place. He relinquished that magical hold, feeling the pain in his hand lessen. Then, with a flick of the wrist, he produced a new hat for Roman. "Before you complain," he said as he handed it over, "the one he ruined wasn't the original one in the first place."

Roman gently settled the hat over his head. "I'll get used to it," he resolved. "Oh, and by the way, Righty, next time Black shows up, I want the exclusive rights to offing him. No jumping in the way again."

"That's understandable," Mozenrath said, realizing where he'd made his faux pas. "I have certain nemeses I feel the same way about." His mind traveled to Wuya and her relationship with Ganondorf. That was the exact sentiment she harbored, he realized. Who was he, after all, to try and stop her from chasing the kill she so desperately wanted to carry out personally? He would want her to hold back if Aladdin showed back up for him to get a chance at murdering.

He had merely thought, in Mercury's case, that he'd heard enough bad-mouthing of his friend and ally. For a moment, the attack on someone so close to Mozenrath had made it seem as though Mercury was taunting Mozenrath by association – had made it seem as though Mercury was Mozenrath's enemy and therefore target. But Mozenrath saw now that this was incorrect. It had always been about Mercury and Roman. Next time, he would hold back. Though it did occur to him that Roman only got as far as he did by working in tandem with Wuya.

Wuya, who, at that moment, was fascinated by the back of her own hand. "Care to share what's so interesting with the class?" Mozenrath asked.

Wuya held her hand up and turned it around so the back was visible to all. The mark of the Triforce of Power beamed with full strength there. "Ready to tear a hole in the world?" she asked with a glimmer in her eye.