"Okay gang, I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, we're probably gonna die." Drakus said, hoping he ain't wrong as the ship flew across the sky toward the Wilikin factory.
"Ah, Kaos' old Wilikin factory. His mother said that he'd never make friends, so he actually made friends...out of wood!" Dr. Krankcase said before seeing the actual factory. "What? What happened here?"
"Beats me. I'm still creeped out by the fact the literal Undergu Emperor made friends out of wood." Roman said, crashing the ship into the ground as the Phantom Virus stumbled around, barfing up electrical energy. "Hey, how about we pick up some churros while we're in there."
The group advanced before seeing a new Skylander.
"Bout time! What took ya so long?" A...thing...in a zoot suit said.
"Ah, Zootuiter. Didn't expect you to be here." Jargeist said.
"Everyone, this is Zootuiter, another invader on our side." Spyro said.
"And looking swaggering while doing so! " Zootuiter said. "Ol' Venomquake is in that place, making more of his soldiers." Zootuiter said.
"Like Mr. Homerun over there?" Phantom Virus said as they got to the railroad tracks and saw a new Evilkin resembling a giant dragon.
"This must be the last Evilkin Venomquake made." Seryu said.
"YOU ARE GOING DOWN, AND YOUR DOWNFALL SHALL SHAME YOUR ANCESTORS AND DESCENDANTS!" Kamdor shouted at the dragon, willing to catch the smoke.
Deadbolt! (Abstract Trap)
"I'm gonna tear your lungs out to add to my collection!" Deadbolt said, shooting logs at the group, only to be slugged into the sky by... something.
The thing that saved them appeared to be a giant cicada, though he had only four legs, and those happened to be the shape and proportions of human limbs. He lowered himself down before the squad, folding his arms. Hovering just upward and out of reach.
"How utterly f-fascinating," he stated. "Humans n-never truly cease to amaze…who would attempt s-such a ritual of the damned, knowing the risk, the potential c-consequences?" He then gave a low chuckle. "What a wondrous d-development for my research."
Drakus elbowed Even, very lightly. "He sounds like you."
"What ARE you?" Even barked.
The insect tilted his head. "Who are you to s-seek Arius? He has been dragged to the d-deepest corners of Hell." His voice took on a tone of remorse. "He is…no longer retrievable. I am here in his s-stead, and I assure you, whatever f-fate he would have d-dealt you…I will do the same!"
"Who AM I?" Even snapped. "I am Even, one of the greatest scientists of Radiant Garden! The world from which Arius was banished and sent here!" His anger mounted. "I know Arius' motives better than you possibly could, and that is based on my secondhand knowledge alone! As for your precious RESEARCH, I am twice the scientist you'll ever be, and you will CEASE TREATING ME LIKE AN EXPERIMENT!"
"Even?" The insect actually recoiled in shock. "Truly…EVEN?" He gasped.
Then in a strange turn of events, he dropped down to the ground, on the same walkway where the squad stood. He rushed toward Even. Even put up his shield as a reflex, only to realize that the insect was transforming, retracting his carapace, leaving behind something far more human-looking. Obviously not truly human, but it was a sign of lowering arms.
The man was tall, broad-shouldered, and muscular, but he still moved with a hunch and hesitation aplenty. His long, dark, wavy hair was pulled back into a ponytail to keep it out of his face, and a pair of thin-rimmed glasses sparkled in the moonlight. He wore white – a cross between robes and a laboratory coat.
"It's y-you!" the man sputtered, beaming brightly. "Arius spoke of you! You are the inspiration for b-both his work and mine! You have n-no idea whatsoever of just how much I OWE you! No, how much we BOTH owe you!"
Even raised his shield again, now fearing that the man would actually hug him instead of attacking, and that was even worse. "Are you saying Arius spoke highly of me?" he reiterated. It seemed unbelievable. He'd been turned into a Nobody and forced out of his own home by Maleficent before Arius had ever put his name in history books.
"Yes!" The man beamed. "He idolized you! He wanted to be exactly l-like you! He perfected your r-replica formula, you know, and he n-named his first test subject 'Chi' in homage to your work with Xehanort! When he s-spoke of other worlds, m-most called him crazy, but I KNEW! I kn-KNEW there was truth to his words! It fueled my own r-research on the n-nature of what makes a human, a d-demon, or an angel. The research that culminated in the angelic form you s-saw before you just n-now!"
"That was supposed to be an angel?" Stocking blurted.
Even was struck silent. But only momentarily. Still, a sign of his world has changed immensely in the span of ten minutes. "You…are saying that without even having met me…Arius idolized me? He built upon my work? He inspired YOU to do the same?"
"Yes, yes!" The man nodded fervently. "You l-look exactly as I th-thought you would! If only I had my n-notes…this is worth d-documenting…"
"I…I cannot believe this," Even said in awe.
"Hey!" Mystle urged. "You have fans! That's good! Just – "
"I cannot believe," Even fumed, "that Arius saw fit to plagiarize THE REPLICA FORMULA! 'Perfected'? I NEVER!"
"Oh boy," Roman sighed.
"Academic!" skekSil barked. "You have just found an entirely kindred spirit, and your first instinct is to INSULT and protect your ego?"
"You say that like it doesn't absolutely track," Lune sighed, deadpan.
"Yes, it was predictable," skekSil growled, "but does not mean it was the WISE choice! Hm!"
"Just let it go," Hibiki advised. "Like Sil said, we found a friend. It sounds like this is an easy path to getting what we want anyhow."
"YOU CERTAINLY HAVE NERVE," Even yelled, "THINKING YOU CAN CLAIM TO LOOK UP TO ME AND MY WORK ONLY TO – "
"Okay, TIME OUT!" Taeko said, getting between Even and the man.
"YASUHIRO!" Even scolded. "WHY – "
"Sorry about him." Taeko shrugged. "Yes, he's always like that, but it's what we like about him. Endearing flaws and all that." She put out her right hand. "Name's Taeko Yasuhiro. Yours?"
"Agnus," the man replied, seizing the hand and pumping it. "Known occasionally as 'Angelo Agnus,' as of gaining the t-transformation you s-summoned."
"Yeesh!" Taeko remarked as her arm was just about yanked off. "For a scientist, you're strong. Kinda like someone else we know." She fired a glare over her shoulder at Even, who was just peeling himself off the ground. "Someone who should really let me handle this if he doesn't want US DEAD."
Even scowled and gave a wordless growl, but let Taeko keep talking anyway.
Drakus gave his attention to Agnus. "We're on a mission here," he stated. "We might have spots on our team for both this hopefully hot Arius dude AND you if you're willing to help us out. And beyond that, we've got at least two scientists here who I know would want to chat with a guy like you."
"I'm not an entomologist," Albert reminded Drakus.
"Oh, what, like you're sea creatures only?" Ridley rebutted. "You're a THERAPIST! You dabble in psychology AT LEAST!"
"You m-must understand," Agnus breathed. "I have had…nowhere to go. Even amongst d-demonkind…b-but a far worse fate has b-befallen Arius. S-Something has pulled him here to somewhere else in this land…" He hung his head. "He is m-my friend. I have hope, if n-nothing else, that being sent to Hell would give me a way to r-retrieve him."
"Okay." Drakus shrugged. "So we'll get him back. Problem solved."
"Problem most certainly NOT solved!" Even was on his feet. "How do you expect to even find your way there? It's all but impossible to reach intentionally!"
"Simple," Drakus boasted, taking out his phone. "I'll just ask if any of the chat know something we don't." As he said this, Deadbolt fell to the ground, dizzy.
Deadbolt Defeated!
"What in the name of SCRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAP?!" Deadbolt growled, being sucked into the portal.
Meanwhile, with Deadlight, preparing to head to Skylands to finally fight the squad, Megafin laughed.
"Eureka, Thanks to the knowledge behind the power and nature of Godzilla, I've found one that wanted to become him, right down to the cellular level!"
Cinder looked closely into the tank as the subject was sleeping inside the water of the tank. Despite being in the tank, she managed to point out several characteristics of this new being that had a charcoal black skin color that seemed rubbery, and silver dorsal fins. When the samples merged, a set of colors appeared with the body of the new being they made.
It was a lizard-like being resembling what this group called Godzilla. The main difference on the outside being his bloodshot eyes, as it rested in the tank. Cinder then chuckled at this, only to freak out as the monster suddenly burst out of the tank and ran towards Simon, grabbing the teen by the neck, growling. "You slaughtered my family. You Americans cheered when we lost. We lost our homes. We lost our families. You nuked us and took away my wife and my KIDS! Hiroshima was our home. I left for a business trip and you took everything from me! So I decided to bring peace...by getting rid of the people who wronged us!" The monster growled in a deep voice, almost demonic, as it tried to crush Simon's throat.
"Okay, first off, I may be... slightly psychotic...but I wasn't even alive when the US dropped the Little Boy! Hell, the US even regrets dropping it!" Simon choked out, as the monster flinched as Simon said that, dropping him on the floor.
"This place, the outside air, the windows, the possible castle. Did they just move on? Will we forget?" The monster murmured, as it got onto its knees and started screaming. "NO! THIS CAN'T HAPPEN! I WAS...I...!!!!" The beast then broke down, crying. "They truly didn't want revenge, now I have nothing left!"
"So…should we do something?" An uncertain Cinder asked. A part of her really, really wanted to fry someone, but something told her that might not be the prudent thing to do right now.
"…Does…anyone have a handkerchief?" Kronos asked.
"I do!" Megafin cried, whipping one out, only for Darla to immediately snatch it from his hands and rushed over to Goji, who gave a surprised look as she held it out to him.
"Here," the former actress said gently. "Someone like you shouldn't cry."
Startled, Goji took a handkerchief from her and wiped his face. "…Thank you. I would not have expected such empathy from an American, they're not known for it."
"My mommy raised me to be a good girl!" Darla said proudly. "Despite my...outbursts...shall we say."
"While I might tolerate the rest of this group, you need not fear my wrath. You set me free from Toho's grip, and I intend to work with you."
As the squad trekked through the lab, dodging death traps at every turn, Mine caught up to Seryu.
"I was hoping you'd come. I… wanted to apologize for murdering your friend. But it wasn't my fault. My father and Ogre were killed, and I needed to get justice for their demise." Seryu said.
"If only you'd seen what Ogre did. He executed people, and made some shady deals with an oil merchant." Mine pointed out.
"Ordinarily, I'd say those were lies, but now that I've seen you fight for this side, I kinda believe it." Seryu said.
They soon arrived at a large colosseum with green goo with Venomquake there fighting someone who was a resplendent sight. Dressed in a suit of white and a fur-trimmed cape of red that had probably cost half a million dollars, his receding hairline was masked by the way his black hair was spiked to the back of his head, like a bird's plumage. He was armed with a flintlock pistol, again one that looked incredibly expensive, but he'd run out of bullets a long time ago. That wasn't stopping him from using the pistol's short barrel to effortlessly block the mech's blows. He didn't even shake, his muscular body absorbing the shock of every move dealt against him.
He chanced a glance off to the side when his guests showed up. "Ah, an audience," he said in a deep, sultry tone capped off with a smirk. "This should become interesting rapidly."
"You need a hand there?" Victor asked.
"ARIUS!" Agnus cried.
"Agnus…?" Arius' eyes widened. All of a sudden, his demeanor shifted, and his deep, sultry voice was no more. In a high-pitched shriek, he exclaimed, "IT TOOK YOU LONG ENOUGH TO GET HERE! WHY DIDN'T YOU COME TO SAVE ME EARLIER?"
"DEFEAT SNAKE NOW!" Even yelled. "REUNIONS LATER!"
"YOU!" Arius' shriek pierced the arena. "HOW DID IT TAKE YOU THIS LONG TO FIND ME? DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG I'VE BEEN BATTLING THIS SNAKE?"
"Yes, I d-do!" Agnus said. "You weren't f-f-fighting it at all; you were p-parrying its blows and p-putting in no effort!"
"My kinda guy!" Ace chuckled.
"YOU CALL YOURSELF MY FRIEND, AND YOU LEAVE ME TO THIS TORMENT!" Arius screeched.
"Am I n-not here NOW?" Agnus gestured to himself. "You owe your r-rescue to ME!"
"The two of you can fight about it once we get out of here!" Even yelled. "Arius. You owe your rescue to all of us, and with that in mind, you can repay your debt by putting your abilities to use here."
Arius' eyes widened. His voice deepened once more; "Radiant Garden…? You are – "
"Yes, yes, he is!" Agnus cried, suddenly off the defensive. "D-don't you recognize him? It's HIM!"
"EVEN," Arius realized, saying the name with an obscene amount of gravitas.
"Vexen works as well, actually," Even explained, "but yes, I AM Even. And to my understanding, you managed to COPY MY EVERY ACHIEVEMENT, RIGHT DOWN TO MINTING ONE OF MY ONE-WINGED ANGELS ON THE ARCANA?!"
Arius sank to one knee, dodging a slash. "It was out of respect," he urged. "You were an inspiration to me. It was my intent to give you the completed replica formula should we cross paths again, but I began to think my exile was truly permanent."
"I didn't need you to finish the replica formula!" Even snapped. "I perfected it MYSELF! What is seen before you is some of my finest work!"
Arius' eyes widened. "You have made new creations…"
"And we need your help fighting that snake right there." Drakus said, pointing at Venomquake.
"Oh, hello there! My name is Professor Cornelius Fangsworth, and you, you must be the X-Squad and Night Raid I've heard so much about, yes?" The snake said, using his mech's spider-like legs to climb up a wall out of the arena as he pulled a lever, as the doors behind them slammed shut.
"Wait, do we just call you Venomquake for short or...?" Taylor asked, as Venomquake fumed as he glared at them, his mech's head popping off his body as it flew down specifically to glare at Taylor.
"I did not spend five years in med school, four years in college majoring in science and engineering, and ten in the military, to just be called that name!" Venomquake snapped, flying back to his body. "But really, I'm asking. Just wanna make sure I'm talking to the right guys here." He said. "Besides, I hope you guys enjoyed my little super-weapon welcome gift back there."
"Okay, then we are them." Akamei said.
"And besides that, Deadbolt literally tried to shoot us with logs." Roman said. "And I'm scared to know where those logs came from."
"Oh great! He fought well, alright. Well, let's do this then." Venomquake said, his mech turning into its battle mode, resembling a giant spider. "Get over here, my best creations!"
Venomquake! (Tech Trap)
Suddenly, a giant pink flower burst out of the ground; only it was at least twenty feet tall, with dark eyes, sharp, prickly vines, teeth… and it roared like the monster it was. A rock began to glow magically as it grew in size and sprouted legs and arms, and an ugly face. A puddle of water began to bubble and stir and it began to rise up and take the shape of a monster with many watery tentacles-- A monster that was actually made of water. And a monster with mirrors for arms, mirrors for legs, even two large mirrors for its body and its head hobbled out of another cage.
Floralbite! Quickshot Class!
Strong Stone! Smasher Class!
Vapourizer! Sorcerer Class!
Re-Reflector! Bowslinger Class!
"Shit," Victor hissed.
"Maybe we don't get killed by mech and beasts?" skekSil laughed nervously.
BGM: I Get Off (Halestorm)
The snake soon jumped towards their level as he twirled his mech's spider-like legs as Varian fired his automaton's lasers at the snake, causing some damage while the Night Hooligan began spinning his legs in a hovering formation as he moved towards him. Ridley spat a plasma ray at Venomquake, catching him by surprise. As Venomquake stopped, he laughed as he leapt up. "Round we go, baby!"
Sabrina withdrew a pair of grappling hooks. "Oh, they're onto us." She braced them as though they were swords. "Let's give this bothrops asper a fight to remember!"
"Do we have to?" Drakus groaned. "Do we REALLY HAVE TO?"
Floralbite's vines swarmed like wasps, and the squad began to hack away at them. Sabrina hooked herself to Strong Stone, rappelled up to it, took a place on its scalp, and started slamming with her scythe, as the rock monster tried to get her off. skekSil had his pair of curved ceremonial swords out, and he waved them wildly, not really looking like he knew what he was doing with them. Still and all, they bit into several vines and forced them back. Taisho sent flames to counter the swarm, then joined Victor in looking at the duel that had already been going on.
"Why do I feel like we can't get out of here unless we do something about this?" Taisho groaned.
"Well, that depends on which one of them is the enemy," Victor said casually.
"We are both the enemy." Arius was still just blocking the damage, not even making a move to fight back but instead demonstrating how useless the other's efforts were. "This snake, however, is of some Night Hooligans crew. I am an unfortunate victim like yourselves. Had I the Arcana, then Venomquake would know the true power of Arius."
Venomquake started to hover towards the squad again until Hajime flung a vine whip at Venomquake as the snake realized he got caught.
"Uh oh!" Venomquake said, as the kid pulled the mech towards him and swung him around and flung Venomquake towards Roman as the crime lord shot at the snake, as he was flung towards a wall as the grenade exploded. Venomquake's mech was covered in black soot as he shook it off. Knowing that it wasn't working, the snake decided to jump back to his platform and pull a lever as he laughed.
"Well, I just realized what this party needs!!" A conveyor belt emerged on the upper area as several gladiators walked out. "Gladiators, get them!" When the gladiators fell into the goo, Uber Gladiators appeared from the goo, as everyone freaked out.
"Okay, we got to stop those barrels or else we'll really have our hands full!" Drakus said, as another conveyor belt appeared as the squad went to work. Once all the gladiators were killed, Venomquake jumped back into the fight and when he was on the ground, he was vulnerable. The squad went to town on Venomquake as Bonehead hurled a C4 bomb which hit Re-Reflector and exploded on contact.
The snake soon hopped back up onto the platform as several more gladiators came down to form more Uber Gladiators. But the squad were so fast, the gladiators were killed before they even reached the goo. Venomquake flinched.
"Hey, I really hate doing this to ya, but I'm a pretty bad guy." He said
Mystle chuckled. "And we like to at least kick your ass because we're not exactly good people."
Venomquake soon realized something. "And that reminds me! Speaking of bad guys, Check this out!" He pointed towards a barrel that hopped onto the platform as it opened up revealing a massive, light blue elephant with big floppy ears, big eyes, and an unnerving smile.
"What the? Someone help me!!!" The elephant yelled, but the barrel closed itself up with the elephant inside as it sat there. Venomquake laughed. "That Coach Pickles lug's great at gatherings as a plus one and hostage!" He powered up another conveyor belt as Gladiators came rolling down as he chuckled.
"Hey, I just hope we can be friends when this is all over." Venomquake said, as Zinner slashed at the gladiators, killing them while Zap electrocuted several others. But Venomquake decided to shoot globs of poison down on top of them as Coach Pickles poked his head out of the barrel.
"Evade the poison attacks, it hurts to touch and stinks like high heaven!" He yelled.
Julie soon slashed another barrel to pieces while Drakus bombed the other conveyor belt of barrels to pieces. Once all of the gladiators were killed, a crate dropped down as Venomquake jumped in and began working as he laughed.
"Well, what do we have here?" As soon as he was done, a giant Evilkin appeared as it jumped to the squad's level and started to attack.
"Now good luck getting past this guy. I know all about your Teigu and their Trump Cards. This Evilkin's made to be super resilient to them!" Venomquake said.
"But they ain't immune to us." Drakus said, as he and the squad stood forward.
"Oh. Right. That." Venomquake said.
The X-Squad smashed the mutant Evilkin, knocking the barrel holding Coach Pickles over to them, freeing the elephant, as the rest of his body was revealed, as instead of walking on all fours, he stood upright on his big feet, making himself look like an arch.
"You saved me, that's the heart of what an athlete should be! I like you, let me help!" Coach Pickles said, getting into a fighting stance.
"Good. Now to…"
"Hahahahaha!" Laughed a familiar hyena, as he spun down a pole. "Sorry I'm a bit late to the party." Edvard said.
"The important thing is that you showed up to help beat these guys." Venomquake said.
"All I ask." Edvard said, leaping down into the colosseum, twirling his saxophone like a scythe.
Edvard! (Undead Trap)
"Well, at least he's got the guts to help me out." Venomquake chuckled. "Well, time to bust out this little dicer!"
The front of the colosseum converted into a giant spiked roller and the conveyor belts as it spun toward the roller.
Edvard leapt into the air, slamming down on the ground and scattering every one.
They all rolled to the side as Snap Shot, Wolfgang and Edvard went at it. They clashed with harp and crystal arrow against saxophone, Edvard knocking the two back with another soundwave, Snap Shot and Wolfgang landed in a fighting pose.
"Eat… my… VEGGIES!" Food Fight called out, hitting Edvard with a tomato.
"Now be a good hyena and lie down!" Zap said, hitting Edvard with lightning, making him slide back.
"This concert's just getting started, X-Squad. All of you are here at once, so I'll just play and wipe you all out!" Edvard said, jumping up to the wall.
"After him, don't let him play his one hit wonder!" Drakus said, as the squad rushed him.
"Whoa. Didn't realize I'd be dealing with groupies." Edvard said. "But no matter where you go… I'll just go higher!"
He jumped into the air and readied his saxophone.
"Okay, someone, get me up there!"
"G-going u-up!" Agnus said, tossing Phantom Virus into the air.
"STRIKE OUT!" Phantom Virus cried out, as he pulled out a baseball bat made of electricity and shattered Edvard's saxophone with a swing.
"What?!" Edvard said.
"Let's play ball!" Phantom Virus said, slamming his bat into Edvard's face and smashing him into the ground.
Edvard defeated!
The vortex then appeared in the air, as Edvard was sucked right back up again.
"The show must go onnnnnnn!" Edvard called out disappearing through the portal. "Ugh! Hey, this stage is tiny! What happened?! How could I have lost to them? Oh well."
Edvard trapped!
"I suppose I can learn a couple of tunes." Edvard said.
"I'll admit, your tactical genius does equal Dr. Stylish. You know how to keep us on our own two feet." Akamei said.
"Yeah, I'm like that. Now, you got nowhere to run, so I'll just have to…" Venomquake said, before hearing a cutting noise. The floor beneath him then collapsed as a shape with a pair of giant scissors cut Venomquake away from his mech and collapsed on the floor, the mech squishing all four of the monsters. Standing above him was a girl in glasses and patchworked with purple clothing, brandishing the Shears of Creation: Extase, and she had this to say.
"I'm sorry. I was a little late." she said.
"But...that's impossible. You couldn't have come back. The record said only five were brought back from the dead." Venomquake said.
"Oh my god…" Chelsea said.
"Words cannot express how glad I am to see you back...Sheele." Mine said.
END BGM
Venomquake defeated!
"Now you might wanna hold on to something." Roman said, as a flash appeared and so did the vortex.
"What is that?" Arius asked.
"A vortex! Wish I invented that!" Venomquake said holding onto something. As he held on with his teeth, the entire facility was shattering from the strength of the suck.
"We gotta get outta here!" Mine said.
They all ran as Venomquake still was holding on.
"Hey, come back! Don't leave me!" he called out as he let go with his mech falling in. "Oh, son of aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa...!" Venomquake said, going into the vortex with his entire facility.
"Holy mother of god." Cell said, as nothing was left of the workshop. The screen then opened.
"Let me out! Doctor's orders! I can't exactly do anything here! Although the vortex does explain the factory being destroyed." Venomquake said.
Venomquake trapped!
"Okay then. I hate to say this, but I guess I can try going clean." Venomquake said. "And I know you wanna ask about the weapon. Well, I won't tell you what it does, but I can tell you where Malice is heading, Time Town."
"W-What would s-she wa-want there?" Agnus asked, as the squad watched as the Eternal Tech Source switched on the gear structures placed through the Green Goo circuits on the roots, allowing the gears to move and turn on the higher structure's moving platform.
"She wants to go into the future to get the stinkosity source. As a Portal Master, she knows how to use Undergu Energy to hop to the future." Venomquake said.
"I can totally see where that amiga's coming from. She knows the rest of us are trapped, and now she's so giddy about winning that she might have to do a plan of her own." Mignon said.
"So Sheep Puppet, wanna go to the future and keep Malice from doing something drastic?" Sheep Mage asked his puppet.
"Yeah! Let's stop this!" his puppet said.
"I'm gonna help too! Malice needs to calm down!" Soda Sucker said.
"Wait, so you're all on board with this?" Tatsumi asked.
"But of course, a Xenomorph never lets go of prey." Vitalus said.
"I quite agree. Never trusted her mental state for a minute." Cluck said.
"Trust me, as her source of gossip, she's quite screwy." Aeron said.
"And now, we'll have to handle this before Malice does something she'll regret." Edvard said.
"Well, it's settled then. We go to Time Town and get the boss." Chelsea said.
A few hours later, at Time Town….
"Crap, the Skylanders are coming, better try bringing down their ship." Malice said, turning the wheel and causing a time shockwave, damaging the ship.
"Get ready for an emergency landing!" Roman said, crashing near a cave, but what the squad saw was terrifying. A dead woman in chainmail. Only the best mercenaries could afford chainmail of extremely good quality. That alone might be something the assassin's corpse that they could use. The woman had been burned rather severely, and she smelled slightly of cinnamon. It made Drakus think of Devil's Fire, which used a cinnamon-scented incendiary. Had an assassin used the flaming liquid on these mercenaries? An assassin might have been wandering out on these goat paths. Mystle tried to keep the hope down in her heart. If there had been some sort of battle between these mercenaries and an assassin, then there must be something in this cave worth of hope.
"A pack of misfits," someone said. "Come for the pecking, did you? These idiots came for their pecking, and got what they came for."
They couldn't see the man. He had to be huge.
"I hear the quiet ones taste better." That made the squad shiver. The sound of that rock, of something shifting. They'd heard that sign before, recognized by the people. by his voice. A small man could have big voices. If he killed these mercenaries, he had to be powerful too. Yes, why was he still...
Was he moving toward them? The X-Squad stepped back, nearly tripping over the body of the female mercenary. "Why so scared?" The man with the big voice was coming closer. Perhaps he still had the Devil's Fire in his hands. Ridley reached into a pocket in Mine's jacket, found a handful of dust, and tossed it in front of them. It was an old mixture, and they prayed it would work. The moment the sun-like substance hit the air, it bloomed brightly. And leering at them, not blinded by the sudden light in the slightest, was a dragon.
And it was not just any dragon, though of course a dragon of any sort was frightening enough. It was a Scythian dragon. They were rumoured to be the most intelligent, the strongest, and they could regenerate. If you cut off a leg or a wing, it would grow back in time. It was not a huge dragon, perhaps not much longer than 25 feet. It was lithe and had black scales and long leathery wings. And with him was a girl dressed as an assassin with red hair, with the telltale cloak of a Red Assassin.
A scar ran between his eyes and along his throat. "You were not expecting me?"
"Nope, we ain't. What are you doing here?" Roman said.
"Biding my time for freedom. To be out of this stinking hole and soaring through the skies again."
As long as he was talking, he wouldn't be able to turn the squad to ashes. "What's your name?" Ridley asked.
"Braxorius Andoreum." He said. "Well, you can call me Brax.The human is Carmin. Now, how about coming a little closer and seeing what you can do about this manacled chain?"
"Hold on, you haven't had anything to eat for at least two weeks." Nefarious asked. "How can we trust you?"
Brax began counting on his talons. "It's been..more than 10 weeks."
Drakus then used Masamune like a jackhammer to break the chains a la demolition, as Brax flinched as to what Drakus did.
"To think I was planning to eat you." Brax said. "I kid. You just don't understand my sense of humor yet. I'm not that hungry." Then he ground his teeth together. It was a horrible sight. "Actually, I'm very hungry. Maybe I should just eat you now." He said again.
"That's horrendous!" Himeno shrieked, revolted.
"What?" Drakus asked. "Because I'll have you know we taste pretty good." Everyone looked at Drakus, concerned as to how he knew that.
"Oh, don't be so jumpy. I'm being humorous." The dragon said, smirking.
The girl put a hand on her chest. "I swear on the graves of my parents," she said. "I, Carmin Dory of the Red Assassins, and Braxorius Andoreum of the Scythian, will work with you." She grabbed the sign for several seconds, staring at the squad. The eyes of Brax glowed gray with fury, as if he expected it.
"Well then, better start praying to whatever God you believe in, cause you're stuck in hell with us now, Red Blade and Scorchy." Jax said.
"Also Brax is a horrifying dragon and I feel like throwing up whenever I look at him."
Drakus facepalmed.
"Queen Himeno, Jax, that is most rude!" Kaguragi chided. "For all we know, we might be kidnapping them and Brax is the epitome of attractiveness to his kin!"
"We're not, actually," Drakus said. "Drakonian oaths say all members of a group with a Drakonian leading are basically forced to become mercenaries."
"And I'll have you know my brother was much more attractive than me." Brax admitted, shameless.
The squad then headed the base of the tower, guarded by a shark monster dressed like a gangster.
"Don't dare to cross Donnie Fin!"
Donnie Fin! (Dark Trap)
Donnie fired blasts of shadow at them from his pistol as they dodged, as Carmen blocked them with her daggers. Sheele then whacked Donnie with Extase.
Donnie Fin defeated!
"Impossible! You can't handle the FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNN!" the shark gangster called out from the vortex, as the squad barged into the room.
"Well, it looks like you all made it." Malice said as a portal opened. "But now, you're too late. I'm going somewhere that has no Skylanders, or Portal Masters, to stop me. So I'll see you from my empire….200,000,000 years from now." Malice said, leaping through a portal as the X-Squad followed her, as they then appeared in the future to see a ghost with a skull mask.
"The Spirit is Willing!" She announced.
"Bad Juju? When did you get here?" Chopper asked.
"Nothing is impossible with voodoo!" Bad Juju said, as a smaller ghost appeared beside her.
"So this is the future of this place, huh?" Phantom Virus said, as the squad started looking around, seeing they were in a void of purple space with floating platforms and distant planets. "Huh? A lot more different than I was expecting."
There was also a floating black dragon mech in the center of the lands…
"Wait, what?" Tatsumi said.
"We're too late, it seems. Malice has already completely taken over and constructed that monstrosity, the Undergu Breaker." Bad Juju said. "She's going to bring Skylands to heel if she isn't stopped immediately."
"Why? That thing looks stupid." Mine said.
"That's the issue. Malice can warp Undergu Energy to her will, and the Undergu Breaker was designed to amplify that energy ten fold. If she blasts the energy straight through the Breaker, nothing will survive that magnitude." Bad Juju said.
"Holy cow!" Taisho said.
"Now, how long do we have?" Sabrina asked.
"She'll begin in thirty minutes. We have time to get over there to stop him, barring any unforeseen…" Bad Juju began before a giant robot dragon jumped down. "...circumstances."
Drakoris! (Dark Trap)
"Oh yeah, dragon beatdown time." Chelsea said.
"Enemy of Malice identified. Activating frontal deflector shield." Drakoris said, activating a shield in front of him. He then charged his wings and blasted forward, lasers pulsing from his mouth.
The group ran across the landscape as Drakoris gave chase, making it to the front of the Woofer as the robot dragon charged past them.
"Go for his wings! He's not protected there!" Tatsumi said, as Coach Pickles stomped on them, which made him crash.
Drakoris Defeated!
"You know, no one ever said we could capture villains from the future." Tanya said. "Whoever's out there, get this guy locked up!"
"Suffering critical EEEEEERRRRRRRROOOOOOORRRRRRRRRRR!" Drakoris said, going into the vortex.
The group then went inside the Breaker, with Malice waiting on a throne.
"There you are!" Spyro said.
"Well well well, look who managed to attend the big coronation of me, MALICE, some 200,000,000 years into the future!" Malice said. "You know, we don't have to fight. Together, we could rule Skylands. There's no Kraven, no more fighting, no more war, no more pain, no more sorrow, and I spotted a pizza parlor that delivers in 30 seconds or less! A perfect Skylands, led by me!" Malice said.
"Is persuading us with that stuff really gonna make us stop hunting you?" Seryu asked.
"You think I'm an idiot, Malice? I won't abandon my friends for personal glory. I help them for the good of all Skylands." Spyro said.
"Well, when you think about it….Nope, let's fight instead!" Malice said, revealing tendrils of Undergu Energy growing out of her back.
Malice! (Dark Trap)
"Don't think beating me will be so easy, Sky Losers." Malice said,
"We're the Skylanders, mate. And we're about to teach you some manners." Spyro said, ready to charge.
"Well, bring it then!" Malice demanded, as she leaped into the air, slamming down on the ground and scattering everyone.
BGM: Hate Me (Escape the Fate)
They all rolled to the side as Sabrina and Malice went at it. They clashed, tendrils on scythe, Malice knocking the young Portal Master back with a shockwave, Sabrina landing in a fighting pose.
"Hit the deck!" Taisho called out, hitting Malice with a wave of fire.
"Now lie down!" Megumin said, hitting Malice with her staff, making the empress slide back.
"This is just getting started, Poser Masters. All of you are here at once, so I'll just wipe you all out!" Malice said, as she soon sent deadly blasts of Undergu Energy that the squad evaded. Malice soon got behind Snap Shot as she started to rain down arrows of Undergu Energy on the Trap Master. Unfortunately, the empress was soon hit, which caused Malice to back away from Snap Shot as the X-Squad soon pursued her through a labyrinth of Undergu Energy.
"Really, Malice?" asked Spyro, taking out some trolls with his fire breath, "Full frontal attack while you hide? I thought you'd be smarter."
"She's the daughter of Kaos, no one in their family really is smart," said Zap, as he zapped the Cyclopes.
"We need to focus," said Dr. Cortex. "We'll need to take her down, now!"
"Right," said Roman, "BOMBS AWAY!"
Roman then shot at a cannon, and blew it up.
"Let's Croc and Roll!" said Snap Shot, as Malice fumed and snapped.
"THOSE PITIFUL...STUPID...UTTERLY RIDICULOUS...SKY-LOSERS BEAT ALL MY MINIONS! No matter, I still have an ace up my sleeve!" Malice growled, trying to regain control of her magic when she heard a ferocious howl approaching. This howl was more ferocious than Edvard's as she looked to where it originated and spotted the squad tearing through Undergu Energy. Malice was surprised by this as the group leapt in front of her. The shocked empress didn't answer until she was lifted up by Melissa, as she started freaking out.
"Wait, why don't we...you know...call it a draw?" Malice chuckled as the squad glared at Malice, as the empress slipped out of their grasp and accidentally slipped, falling out into the core. Drakus tried to grab at her but missed. Before Malice fell into the core, an arm grabbed her. The squad looked down in surprise to see a tendril popping out of Malice's hand.
"The heck?" Mystle said, as the Undergu Breaker blew up. But luckily, the squad jumped off before it hit the ground, as Malice was sealed in a dome of energy, dazed and confused.
Malice Defeated!
"You've done it!" Eon siad. "Now to trap Malice, the portal master needs to place a special dark trap in the portal."
"Does he or she even have it?" Mine said as a vortex opened. "Nevermind."
"Uh oh! A Trap! Now that's a royal pain in the- wah, let me GO! I'LL GET YOU, PORTAL MASTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERSSSS...!" Malice yelled, vanishing through the portal.
"We did it!" MIne said as the screen appeared.
"Wait, there's no throne in here! Memo to me: if you get stuck with a swirling vortex of infinite power, GET OUT OF THERE!" Malice said.
Malice Trapped!
"So, you want me to play goody goody now, is that it? Do you have any sorta idea what that would do to my rep as the daughter of Kaos?!" Malice said.
Back in the present….
"Portal Master, you have retrieved the final element, the very essence of Skylands: the Eternal Magic Source!" Eon said, as the Eternal Magic Source reboots the entire Core of Light, making it run much faster. With all of its components empowered by the magic, the main crystal shot a much stronger beam through the lenses, making its Quicksilver-bound runes shine brightly and changing the structure of the Crystal Eye's focused beam into an endless pillar of light.
"Plus, we have everyone except Kraven." Roman said. "Wonder where he's at."
"Another problem, where was the cheese in the Breaker?" Mine said as a flash of light was shown in the distance.
"That was Time Town! What happened?" Tatsumi said.
"Here's the answer..." growled a voice as a pair of blue eyes appeared in the sky as a projection, revealing a giant man bedecked in armor befitting a Death Knight, with blue eyes that showed true evil. "Heed this well, Skylands. You must wonder what happened to Time Town. Well, here's your answer..." The man said holding a snow globe with Time Town trapped inside, as a projection of Kraven flickered out, revealing it to be an illusion. "Now then, if you don't wish to suffer the same fate, I demand you follow these rules. First, release the Night Hooligans from captivity. Second, all in Skylands will join my army. Third, know that I am the Lich King, ruler of the Scourge. This world will fall as so many others have. None can stand against the icy grip of death. Tread carefully, for I offer no mercy." His stare sent a shiver through the squad's spine.
"Quickly, Portal Masters, the Lich King has revealed himself! You must find a way to stop him and end his reign, before the Scourge rises to threaten every world in the omniverse! Everything that you've learned on your journey has prepared you for this moment! The malevolent reign of the Lich King must come to an end, or we are all lost! Your greatest battle awaits you, Portal Masters!" Eon said.
"What?! So that Kraven's an illusion, and Arthas Menethil was playing the Night Hooligans like a fiddle?!" Sabrina said. "That's nonsense!"
"I know, but somehow I think some of the chat's freaking out at this twist." Drakus said.
[YOOOOOOOOOOOOO]
[That's the OG Menethil!]
[Mama Mia!]
[Where's Sauron when you need him?!]
[Warcraft vs Skylands, who wins?]
"Well, I would say we're doomed, but…. I think, and I know my compadres are thinking the same thing, we get a free pass out of trapville!" Mignon said.
All of the Night Hooligans laughed, but then…
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! We don't even know if they're going to let us go." Aeron said.
"Of course not. We ain't listening to a word ice boy is saying." Gecko said.
"That's what I thought." Aeron replied. "Now, I dunno about you guys, but I think his 'majesty' doesn't care for us! Wherever you're going next, X-Squad, count me in to help, as little as possible."
"Impossible! This 'Lich King' is in a super secret temple hidden in a super secret location." Malice said.
"But there is a prism that could theoretically track him." Venomquake said. "Yes, I'm helping too. You think I didn't know about the prism and kept it a secret until a situation like this?"
"You're seriously gonna help us? After all the trouble you gave us?" Mine asked.
"Of course we are. Let's face it. We're at your mercy till we get out of these traps." Venomquake said.
"And I never liked how 'Kraven' was acting anyway. It's about time someone taught this Lich King a lesson." Edvard said.
"And I said it when I was trapped. You guys are the chefs now." Mignon said.
"Yes! Let's go at it!" Sheep Mage said.
"I'm in too!" Soda Sucker said.
"My services are yours, Skylanders." Cluck said.
"Yes! This so-called King is not like the Xenomorph Queen!" Vitalus said.
"Guess you can add us to your friend pages now, everyone." Aeron said.
"Yeah… y'know what? You're right." Harrow grinned. "We're not alone in this." He turned to the squad. "If this Lich King wants to pick a fight, then he's not getting one Night Terror. If he wants Skylands, he's gonna have to get through ALL of us." He threw his hand out, opening a portal to another, more jagged world, as a draconic being resembling Zap but with dark blue skin and silver eyes stepped out, with his horns in jagged curls, akin to someone taking the bar exam or a classical music composer of olden times. He was wearing a black suit with a white glove on his right hand, with the left hand being a cybernetic claw, and was carrying a piano with spikes running across it, as another stepped out next, this one a black pony with flowing blue hair resembling the night sky covered by a helmet. She had slitted teal eyes and was wearing a small maid outfit resembling battle armor, along with purple socks sticking out of purple slippers. The pony was nibbling her hair as she carried a teddy bear on her back. But this bear was made with yellow, red, and black eyes, with razor-sharp teeth that looked real, claws like arrowheads sticking out of both paws, and a ragged, battered body of fur. Then another stepped out, a skinny girl dressed in a silver long-sleeve gown that got more translucent as it went up. There were black roses pinned to the gown and there was one in the giant, wide-brimmed hat that she was wearing. On one hand, she held a small paintbrush. She had black and white hair as sharp as thorns that rolled down her back, right between a pair of black bat wings, and finally, a robotic dinosaur with three grooved wheels arranged in a pyramid formation on each foot and a small claw for a tail rolled out. The dino wore a hat that draped a veil over his large crest-shaped head that seemed built like a hammer, failing to hide the nose, at the top of its small-handed torsos.
"My king…" Harrow knelt before a large black crystal throne, where a foreboding figure sat motionless with their eyes closed. The claws of the slumbering creature hung over the edges of the rounded armrests, sharp as tiny daggers. His feet were concealed by pointed greaves that poked out of a long and regal robe made of jet black and dark purple. The imagery of painted eyes could be seen on the robe. The being wore a gnarled crown that looked like it was made of purple oak. It was bent and twisted, with gemstones embedded into it at the end of each tip, accompanied by the black plumage of raven feathers. The last noticeable detail was a pair of long, pointy stag horns that stretched up beyond the crown and made the shape of a pair of claws. Harrow looked up at the king and unfurled his jacket, revealing a small ball of energy. "I bring you an offering. Akumu-Energy to aid in your rest."
The blood red, murky brown and green, and dark purple energy flowed from Harrow's body and collided with the king, sinking into his body. A gentle tremor rocked the land as an echo bounced around it.
"Harrow...child...…" Though the king did not move, a voice replied to him. One with a deep, booming voice. "You are noticeably more agitated than usual. Did this last dream hurt you so?"
"Yes, dad." Harrow nodded his head. "But it was not because it was a dream. It was because of something else." He grunted as he stared at the king's imposing form, before fidgeting with his fingers. "I...kinda...sorta...got lost and joined this group."
"Oh, so that's why there's a Glitter Force warrior with you." The king replied, his eyes staring at Glitter Fortune, who was slightly intimidated. "I will not lie, this concerns me…"
"And that's not all." Harrow said, before dragging Drakus close. "This guy can use Neru-Energy and can make it Akumu-Energy and switch it back, like it's nothing! And also, I need help, cause someone named the Lich King wants to take over this place I'm in, Skylands."
"Neru-Energy? That formless magic that keeps a dream happy?"
"Neru-Energy's so dreary… I wanna play with Akumu-Energy more!"
"There is nothing in a dream to beautify. It's just begging to be painted over."
"The people in the Sleeping World would never understand how much potential dreams have to build over…"
"Do not forget, Harrow. If this Lich King does try to conquer this land, you are not alone in this fight…" The king spoke. "You are but one Night Terror in a court of many… Now, Shade. Your powers of cognitive restructuring fuelled by piano are unparalleled." The voice of the king could be heard as Shade continued to play his song on the piano slowly in a minor key, making a dour, dissonant tune that filled the silence. "Let your music ring through every dream as you serenade this Lich King's army. With your composition, let them lose their sleep as madness overwrites their emotions…"
"As you command, father," Shade replied as he played the last chord of his song.
"Shade, my man, try some rock, it'll go great!" Drakus said, as Shade looked at Drakus and was concerned.
"Harrow, brother, your new friend seems like he only dreams nightmares and never seems scared." Shade said, looking at Harrow with some form of confusion in his eyes.
"Lucille… Such a boundless and vivid imagination you hold. You and your teddy bear, Kuro." The king's voice turned its attention to the pony as she stopped nibbling her hair. "As a Night Terror, your potential can be realized even further. Use your imagination; make the most surreal images you can imagine, and juxtapose the imagination of dreams with the unpredictability of nightmares!"
"Okie-dokie, papa!" Lucille nodded her head. "I'd love to help!"
"We'll pop every bubble those ghouls make, one by one!" Kuro spoke as well, even though he was just a stuffed toy, as everyone looked at Kuro like they saw something. "What? Don't tell me you don't have talking teddy bears where you're from!"
"Zyka. Your ideal that nightmares hold beauty is indeed a splendid one…" The king's voice now rang out for the girl. "And no more is it proven correct than in your artworks. With your paintbrush and easel, splatter your chromatic hues of horror over the eyesores of dreams! Let the Scourge become your exhibition and invite every dreamer to bear witness to your art!"
"Of course, daddy." Zyka nodded as she added the last stroke to her painting. She turned it to face the king's body, revealing a beautiful face akin to a vampire, as Akira blushed deeply, as everyone facepalmed, with Drakus patting Zyka's back with a amused grin. "Why is she looking at me like this?" Zyka asked, confused.
"It means you're now part of Akira's harem! Congratulations!" Mozu cheered, hugging the even more bewildered spirit of the nightmare world, as everyone chuckled at Zyka blushing and making a series of screeches that could only be described as 'gay nightmare spirit noises'.
"And finally, Hazera…" As the king spoke, Hazera pulled the veil away, revealing his eyes had inverted stars shining on it. "The day you rejected the Dreamkeeper and his people was your defining moment. You knew the truth. Sleep and dreams are instruments he made and that these dreamers abuse and cling to. Now, take full grip over the powers of the night, and let all those who dream drown in the lightless ocean of stars!"
"Without hesitation, pappa." Hazera nodded and bowed.
"Now, for the king." Harrow put his hand out.
"For the king." Shade left his piano and put his hand on Harrow's.
"For the king!" Lucille put her hoof and Kuro's paw on top of Shade and Harrow's.
"For the king." Zyka laid her hand on top of the stack next.
"For the king…" Hazera was the last to place his hand on top.
"For the king." Drakus said, wanting to get involved with this, as the squad stacked their hands on top, as the others looked at Harrow confused, but Harrow shrugged, as if to signal that this is life now.
"Glory to Somnambulus!/X-Squad, let's wing it!" The squad all threw their hands into the air as a sign of unity; a rallying cry against the Scourge.
"Great! Everyone's on board! Now, the first step to getting that prism is to capture a Troll rocket from a base nearby." Jet-Vac said.
"Why would we need that?" Sabrina asked.
"Because the prism is hidden….in the Black Gold Casino, which is in the Sky High Lands." Jet-Vac said.
"Harrow, what did you sign us up for?" Shade said, as Harrow chuckled.
"Oh nothing, just know this, where we're going, you might wanna get some barf bags." Harrow said.