[A/N: Spirits Tracks is the best Zelda game. Fight me.]
"...e can have transport set up in this section of the Tree, while our forces are set up a few light-years north of the branch," King Dedede told Cocolia. The two were looking at a false hologram of the weird space tree they discovered a couple weeks ago. Bandee stood a few feet away, swiveling on the balls of his feet with hands clasped behind his back.
The king was giving Cocolia false information, obviously. He wouldn't really give this much sensitive information to anyone that wasn't allied with their group. There was something about her that was fishy. He couldn't quite put his nose on it yet, as the saying goes… (wait, he does have a nose in this disguise) but he's pretty sure that the Supreme Guardian would slip up at some point.
"Um… Great King?" Bandee suddenly spoke up. The two rulers turned their attention to the smaller boy, who was fiddling with his spear. "I need to use the bathroom." Dedede gave him a subtle thumbs up that Cocolia didn't notice.
"It's down the hall, three doors to the right," Cocolia said. She and Bandee stared at each other for a moment. "If y–
"Okay, thank you!" Bandee said with a wave. He dashed out of the room before she could say anything else. Instead of turning to the right, he turned to the left, following the signs that led him to another part of Fort Qlipoth. The Architects' research facilities.
As Bandee paused as another hallway appeared. He skidded to a halt and tossed his spear. "What the heck was that?" Bandee could hear a Silvermane Guard say. He hid behind a large blue and white vase as the Guards came out to investigate. Once they left, Bandee quickly conjured another spear and ran through the door they were protecting.
Bandee made his way to a stark white room. It wasn't nearly as bright as the interior of the Starcutter, but it gave off the same technologically advanced vibe, despite the lack of floating screens and random pages scattered about. It was orderly and clean, with multiple desks aligned neatly in rows. Other than papers and binders, there was nothing on the desk that said anything about their owners.
Except for one. There was a single photo of two smiling blonde women; one of them was Cocolia, and the other had glowing light blue highlights at the end of her hair. Their arms were wrapped around each other as they looked at the camera
Bandee ignored the picture for now and started grabbing the folders on each desk. He opened them, sending the pages scattering all over the floor.
He wasn't a science wiz like Susie or Magolor, but he was a surface-level knowledge on what blueprint would end up becoming a massive death machine.
As he scrounged through the blueprints, Bandee's phone buzzed in his scarf. He reached inside to see who messaged him.
Bandana Dee received 1 new message from March 7th
March: Hey, Bandee!
March: me and Dan heng think we found out why there's a big portal on the other side of the planet.
March: We're thinking that there's an active volcano!
March: (this is Dan Heng) The doomers might be trying to access the geothermal energy that builds up underneath the planet's crust.
March: (Heng) According to a map we found, there should be a super volcano that's close to where we found the large portal during the initial scan.
Bandana Dee: I suppose that could be the cause. We've had similar situations before.
Bandana Dee: If that's the case, you should probably head over there before the Doomer eats the Jarilo from the inside out.
March: Can they eat magma?
March: (Heng) I don't want to find out.
Bandana Dee: first they'd absorb all the heat and and natural gasses that come up of the volcano
Bandana Dee: then they'd eat the planet inside out
March: o
March: (Heng) In that case, we should call Himeko on the express and have her pick us up.
Bandana Dee: Actually, I know something that can get you there faster.
Without waiting for a response, Bandee swiped through his home screen and tapped on an app with a bright yellow star in the center. He sent his new friends' coordinates to the app, and went back to his messages.
March: IVNWEINCQ-E
March: A giant star just came down from the roof.
March: Its flying.
Bandana Dee: That's the Warp Star!
Bandana Dee: It'll take you anywhere in the blink of an eye!... Once per world.
Bandana Dee: it's pretty busy, saving people from all sorts of damaged dimensions to safe ones, so we can call on it every so often.
Bandana Dee: It's also the only way we could figure out how to nerf the Warp Star and keep it from becoming a better Astral Express without any drawbacks.
March: what
March: (Heng) what
Bandana Dee: what
Bandana Dee: You might wanna head over there with some back up first. Who knows how powerful those Doomers will be with a portal that large.
Bandee put away his phone and began to look through the pages once more, adjusting the scarf around his face as he continued to rifle through the papers. On the third binder he started to rummage through, he found what he didn't want to find.
"Oh boy…" Bandee muttered as he ripped out blueprints from the binder's rings. It had a small H logo on the corner of the page. While the middle was filled with gibberish he didn't understand, he recognized the face staring back at him.
It was a Clockwork Star. Somehow, the Architects had gotten the blueprints for a Clockwork Star.
"Only Susie should have the schematics for this…" Bandee muttered to himself. He stuffed the designs into the pocket of his sweater and raised his hand, summoning his spear using it to block the downward swing of a Silvermane Guard's halberd. He pushed the weapon back and slammed the butt of his spear into the Guard's stomach, knocking him into his partner.
"Betraying us already? Doesn't this usually take a few chapters?" Bandee said as the Silverman Guards picked themselves back up. They lunged, and the smaller combatant easily jumped back. He twirled his weapon of choice and thrust it forwards. The Guards tried to dodge, but the tip of the spear extended. With a flick of his wrist, Bandee slammed it into both Guard's neck, knocking them out cold.
"I better get back to the Great King…" Bandee said. He propped the men against the wall and raced out the room.
By the time he reached Cocolia's office, the Supreme had already revealed her true colors. The King and the Guardian were already engaged in combat, their wooden mallet and frozen spear creating sparks as they pushed against each other. Behind Dedede, ports on the floor opened and allowed mechanical tendrils to slither out.
"Great King, watch out!" Bandee shouted. He raised his spear and threw three of them, each one piercing through and shattering their respective targets.
"What?" Cocolia shouted as the fourth sailed over them and bonked her on the head. She flinched slightly, and that gave Dedede the opportunity to pull back so that he could rear back his mallet. The back of the hammer opened up to reveal a jet engine; it ignited, and the hammer flowed forwards, slamming into Cocolia's gut. Had she not created a wall of ice to cushion her, she would've been sent flying out of the window.
"Hey, Little Dee!" King Dedede said as the engine retracted back into the mallet. "You find something these guys definitely shouldn't have?"
"Yep! Clockwork Star blueprints!" Bandee said, showing him the page he stole from the Architects.
"A Nova? Really?" Dedede whined before turning back to Cocolia. "Are you tryin' ta create another hole in th' multiverse?"
"I'm trying… to save my world!" Cocolia shouted. She slammed her hands into the floor, covering the floor in a thick sheen of frost. With a snap of her fingers, multiple frozen spears appeared in the air above her, and with a flick of her wrists, they flew forwards.
Dedede grabbed onto Bandee and pulled him close. He knelt down and launched himself into the air with a massive jump, smashing through the roof in the process.
He landed with a thud, groaning as the force of their descent was absorbed by his knees. "Well, that was certainly quick. We needa get outta here!"
"Seconded," Bandee said. "Should we head back to the Express?"
"Nah. Cocolia might not be able to track us, but whoevah she allied with definitely does. We betta stick to the surface for now," Dedede quickly reasoned.
"Okay. Let's find someplace to hide," Bandee said. Both the king and the retainer flinched when they heard a harsh crackling sound coming from the hole Dedede made when he jumped. A large pillar of ice erupted from it, with multiple red eyes twitching and shivering inside. "Preferably right now…" Bandee said as the red eyes all glared at Dedede.
"Fine by me!" Bandee leapt off the building first. He raised his spear and started to spin it around like helicopter blades, letting him fly away. Dedede quickly followed, using one hand to latch onto his feet and fly away.
The red eyes watched as they fled, watching until ice melted and retreated back into the fort.
"What do you think he's talking about?" March asked Dan Heng as they remained seated on their desk.
A second later, she shrieked and jumped back as something from crashed down on the desk, leaving a hole in the ceiling and crater on the floor. Dan Heng pulled out his spear and pointed it at the crater. Before the dust settled, a glowing bright light shot out of the cloud and flew in front of March, revealing a wide five-pointed star.
"...Huh?" Dan Heng muttered. The star bounced (can it bounce if it's still in the air?) and circled the duo, almost as it was looking at them.
The Warp Star made a twinkling sound as it hovered over their shattered desk. It did nothing else. Dan Heng poked the Warp Star with his spear, and all it did was spin more quickly for a brief second.
"What's all this noise!?" Both Express members flinched when they heard footsteps walking towards. A small girl appeared from the bookshelf only a few feet in front of her, her face covered by a stack of books she was carrying. She placed them on the table next to her and adjusted her glasses. "This is a library! You can't be making this much…"
Her voice slowly became quieter as she noticed the hole in the roof, the crater in the floor and the star floating above it. She took off her glasses and cleaned them with a white cloth before slipping them back on.
"Am I dreaming? I don't think I've had anything to drink yet…" She muttered to herself.
"W-wait! That uniform, you're part of the Silvermane Guards, right?" March asked just as the girl was about to pick up metal (and strangely ornate book). "That's perfect! We could really use your help right now! You see–"
March spent the next couple minutes explaining the situation to Pela.
"...and that's how we're going to stop this planet from being eaten!" March said excitedly. Pela blinked at her explanation. She raised a hand to say something, but hesitated for a moment.
"...Huh. Well, if we assume that the more powerful the portals are the stronger the Doomer that resides, by defeating, we should be able to scare off the others…" Pela reasoned. "In that case, I'll gladly join you!"
"Well, I suppose that makes one partner," Dan Heng said, glancing at the Warp Star. "We should be able to bring one person, if we don't want to weigh down the Warp Star."
As they talked, the front entrance of the library opened. Gepard walked through, his dark purple gaze shifting from bookshelf to bookshelf before reaching Dan Heng and March. His dilated like cameras.
"Oh, Gepard!" Pela said as she noticed the captain walk through the entrance. "You've arrived just in time!"
"...I did?" Gepard blinked, his voice sounding more hoarse than normal.
"Do you have a sore throat?" Dan Heng asked, picking up on the voice change instantly. Gepard(?)'s gaze snapped towards him for a brief moment, glaring.
"No… I just got a sore throat a while back," He muttered.
Dan Heng raised an eyebrow.
"Don't worry! I have cough drops!" March chirped. She skipped over to Gepard(?) and took his hand, placing a cherry flavored candy on his palm. Gepard(?) looked at the candy blankly before pocketing it.
"Okay, now! We have a full party!" March said. She grabbed Gepard(?) by the hand as pulled him towards the Warp Star. Pela gave the captain an apologetic smile as she and Dan Heng walked towards the crater with the floating star.
"So… how does this thing work?" Pela asked, pointing a finger at the Warp Star.
"I'm not too sure, actually. Bandee just said it would take us where we need to go in the blink of an eye," Dan Heng said. "Maybe you should just… climb on it?"
With a shrug, March grabbed onto one of the star's arms and hoisted herself up. Her feet dangled as she clutched the left arm of the star. "It's warm!" She chirped, snuggling her cheek against the corner. Dan Heng leapt to the star next, latching onto the top arm, and was closely followed by Pela, who took the arm opposite of March.
Gepard(?) stayed on the floor for the moment, eyeing the star as it began to shake. "I think it's going to move soon. Hop on!" March said, extending her hand. Gepard(?) walked towards her and took it; March thought it felt a bit too cold–
Next thing she knew, the Warp Star flew into the sky, smashing another hole into the ceiling of the library and then disappeared on the horizon.
A few seconds later, the Warp Star crash landed in a field of snow. All four landed in heap on the packed powder, with Gepard being the only one to land on his feet. He looked up to see Warp Star flying out of the crater. It bounced, almost as if it was trying to wave goodbye, before flying off into space and disappearing with a twinkle in the night sky.
"It's gone…" Gepard commented. He turned around and helped Pela and March up. Dan Heng used his spear to push himself to his feet.
"I suppose that counts as 'one use per world…'" Dan Heng muttered. "And if that's the case, then that means we should be in front of…"
The group turned around. They were expecting to see a large caldera, maybe with some volcanic case rising out of the crater. But instead, there was a dormant mountain with multiple metal balconies and even rail tracks dipping in and out of the mountain. And in front of was a metal walkway that led to a pair of large doors decorated with gold. In the center was large H.
"Huh," March muttered. "It's definitely a volcano, but it's a lot less active than I thought it would. And what's with all the machinery?"
"Perhaps, before the Eternal Freeze, the people of Jarilo-I…VI had found a way to harness the power of the volcano?" Gepard suggested.
"I… suppose that could be possible?" Pela shrugged. She walked forward, making her way towards the entrance. The metal walkway shook as they stepped on it, leading them towards a control panel. Drone-like objects appeared from behind Pela and began to fly towards it, but when they did, the door opened automatically.
"Wait here," Dan Heng said, summoning his spear as he walked through the doorway.
Metal slowly transitioned to rock. The inside of the volcano was a cone shaped spiral, leading towards a basin of bubbling lava two Floors down. The only pathway down was the rocky path he was standing on, with the center hollowed out.
Large chunks of geomarrow were jutting out of the ground, some of it contained in minecarts. Beside a few minecarts were deactivated, spherical robot suits with a red eye in the center and large Hs emblazoned on each of the arms.
Dan Heng tilted his head down to see a single door. March walked over there and tried to open but it wouldn't budge. "It's locked," She said.
Looking up to the 3rd Floor, Dan Heng saw a bridge with a ladder on this floor leading up to it, but it was dangling over the empty space in the center of the Floor, and a few moments later, a train carrying carts filled geomarrow chugged by.
"Is this some sort of mining facility?" Dan Heng turned around to see the others walking inside the volcano with him. March's eyes swiveled around as she took in the sight of machinery. He watched as Pela walked towards one of the geomarrow veins.
"Well… I'll be. This is pure geomarrow. Not even the veins that come from the Underworld are this pure," Pela said, adjusting her glasses as they scanned the ore. "Depending on how much we find, we might be able to keep Belobog warm for nearly one more century." Gepard remained silent.
Dan Heng walked towards the right, following the path until he reached another door. He pushed it open to see a Deppa and a pair of Darpas feasting on the geomarrow inside. Bits of chewed off machinery littered the floor.
He was about to enter and engage the monsters, but Pela placed a hand on his shoulder. "Please, allow me," she said with a smirk. The drones from earlier appeared, and shot blasts of frozen energy, piercing through the monsters and destroying them instantly. With the room cleared, the group walked inside.
There was a console near the center, and a set of rail tracks. The path was blocked off, by a large door so they wouldn't be able to progress through there. In addition, there was also a large padlock next to the keyboard in the shape of a horned eye.
Pela tapped a key on the console. It turned, with the start-up screen displaying the same H that the robots had. March walked to the side of the console. She hummed as she found a copyright label: "Haltmann Works Enterprises."
"It looks like I can control the lava flow from here," Pela told Dan Heng as she went through the files on the computer. The Express pair looked over her shoulder, while Gepard stood at the back of the room.
"Really? What happens if we push this button, then?" March asked.
"Wha–! Don't!" Pela said, she tried to grab March's hand, but she already pushed the key by the time Pela yanked it away. The ground shook.
Dan Heng ran outside the room to see the lava slowly rise, engulfing the first floor and the 1st floor, but not the second floor. In addition to the lava, two rock slabs rose alongside it, floating on the surface.
"I didn't kill us did we?" March said, anxiously popping her head out of the room.
"No… I think you allowed us to progress." Dan Heng took a few steps back and jumped on top of the first slab. He jumped again and managed to grab onto the ladder. He hoisted himself up, placing himself on the catwalk that was next to the rails.
Dan Heng climbed the ladder, reaching a metal catwalk next to the bridge. Like in the room to the console, there was a wall on the left that prevented him from moving forward. The right didn't have such barriers though.
Walking forwards, he reached one of the balconies built on the side of the volcano. There was a minecart filled with geomarrow on the far side of the room, right next to some chutes. Nothing was deposited into the minecarts; soon, the minecart began to roll forwards on its own.
Also, those robots from earlier were in this room as well. And they were manned.
The mining(?) robots were piloted by spherical androids with black glass heads. The red eyes on the robots glowed before they slowly started to lumber their way towards Dan Heng.
Just as Dan Heng was about to retaliate, he felt Gepard's gauntlet on his shoulder. He pulled him back and slammed his guitar case into the ground, which created veins of frost that stuck the robots to the floor. With them immobilized, Dan Heng was able to drive his spear into the pilots without issue.
A small key was dropped from one of the robots upon its destruction. Dan Heng pocketed it for the time being.
"...Thanks," Dan Heng said.
"You're welcome," Gepard responded just as flatly.
Dan Heng said nothing and continued to investigate. The room shook lightly, and another set of geomarrow-filled karts rolled into the room, next to the shutes. The shutes deposited nothing, but the minecarts rolled out of the room regardless.
The two rummaged through the room for a moment but found nothing.
"Now what?" Gepard asked. "Did you find anything useful?"
"I might have," Dan Heng said. He took out the key he retrieved from the robot and inspected it. "I think I know where it goes, too."
Dan Heng returned to the ladder. Gepard placed his hand on it and used his ice to create an easier path towards the walkway. They quickly slid across it just as it melted from the lava.
"Pela, can you make the lava recede?" Dan Heng asked as the two entered the room.
"Yep!" With a tap of the button, the volcano shook. Dan Heng walked outside and looked down at the 1st floor. The room that was locked was uncovered. He placed his foot on the rock that had been buried in lava and felt that it was cool to the touch. So, he walked down to the first floor and inserted the key in the hole The door unlocked instantly.
Dan Heng entered the door, with March following behind him. There were no enemies inside, and at the very back of the room was an empty minecart.
"Help me push that up to the control room," Dan Heng said.
"Hm? What for?" March asked, walking alongside him. Dan Heng didn't answer immediately, and reached out to grab the side of the kart–
Only for a surge of electricity to shoot him back.
"Dan Heng!" March cried, grabbing his arm before he could be blown out of the room. "What the heck was that?"
"It's protected," Dan Heng muttered, his hand twitching from the shock. He looked around the room for anything to shut off the power but found nothing.
"One of these machines has to be generating the electricity, right?" March asked. Slowly Dan Heng nodded, and his eyes widened when he saw March summon her bow. Her frozen arrows flew, piercing through the machines and shattering them. The power in the room flickered off. Curious, Dan Heng grabbed the minecart again. No shocks.
The two pushed the kart into the control room and laid it on the tracks. Pela turned around to see a new command pop up on the screen. She tapped it, and the minecart moved along the tracks. The wall opened, but the rails on the other side were too thin for them to walk on.
Pela then increased the lava again. She used one drone to man the controls while the group climbed back up to the 3rd floor and waited. The empty minecart rolled inside.
"Alright, hop in," Dan Heng told them. They did, albeit uncomfortably.
"Gepard, c-could you move a bit to the left?" Pela asked, her face squished between Dan Heng's back and Gepard's guitar.
"I…can try," The captain muttered. His back was already digging into the back of the cart. Because of the tight space, his armored leg was poking into Dan Heng's shin, making him hiss as the sharp icy bits dug in even further.
"Is there really only one minecart?" March asked. Her legs were spread out so Pela could fit between them. She kept her hands on Dan Heng's shoulder to keep herself steady, as she was only standing on the tips of her toes. Her chest was pressed against Dan Heng's back.
"...when is this thing supposed to move?" He practically growled. In his words, the minecart shifted and began to move. They went over the bridge and through the wall, leading them outside.
March and Dan shivered as they were exposed to the freezing blizzard outside, a star contrast from the inside of the sweltering volcano. The tracks curved along the side of the volcano, leading them back inside.
The minecart stopped in front of a massive pile of geomarrow. The ore glowed brightly, reflecting off the metallic surfaces of the minecart and the group's respective outfits. Their ride shuddered as it stopped, and suddenly tipped over to the side, spilling them onto the pile of ore.
"Ow…" March groaned as she landed with a thud onto blunt ore. "Well, at least we're out of that stuffy cart."
"I hope that's not our only way to get back downstairs," Pela grumbled next to her, sliding her glasses off her face to check for any cracks. "At the very least, it'd be much more comfortable if we went two at a time."
Dan Heng glanced at Gepard. "We'll discuss that when the time comes."
Taking the lead once more, Dan Heng walked out of the ore deposit and towards a mechanical section of the Lava Dome. A conveyor belt pulled geomarrow from the deposit onto large shipping containers until they were filled. They littered the floor beneath the railsThe containers were loaded onto a train, which floated above the tracks before moving out. Like with the minecarts before, walls prevented them from going any further.
"Where do you think all this geomarrow is being taken?" Pela asked, mostly to herself. "It can't be Belobog; we would've known about this. That, and the city is much too far away for this operation to be managed efficiently."
"For all we know, that geomarrow is headed to a location that's been frozen over for centuries," Gepard said.
"Right, but doesn't the machinery feel… sorta new, recently installed?" March added. "If it's as old as you say it is, the amount of rust certainly doesn't show it."
"We should find out more the deeper we go," Dan Heng said. He reached the edge of the deposit and jumped down to the lower part of the 4th Floor. He rolled as he landed and looked around. Some monsters were crawling around, trying to eat away at the metal containers to reach the ore inside.
He quickly dispatched them just as the others dropped to the ground. The containers formed makeshift hallways leading them towards the center of the room.
"Hey, look!" March said. There is an armored figure standing in the center with a control panel in front of them. It was covered in black with gold trimmings. On its back was a circular shield with an H in the center and a large two-handed sword. The armored figure heard them approaching, and slowly turned around. The only thing they could beneath its visor were two glowing eyes.
Immediately, the Darknut drew its sword and shield and lunged with deceptive speed. March yelped as she jumped away from the attack, the sword shattering the ground in the process.
"What the heck!" She drew her bow and fired arrows, each one bouncing off the hulking swordsman back. As it pulled its sword out of the ground, two of Pela's drones fired lasers at its exposed back, causing the Darknut to lurch forward in pain and a piece of its armor to fall off.
The Darknut turned around and swiped its sword at Pela, shattering her drone. March fired another of arrows, but the Darknut raised its armor to block. Dan Heng lunged and tried to stab his spear through the front of the monster, but the spear only bounced back. The Darknut slammed its shield into him and brought its sword down.
Dan Heng stabbed his spear into the Darknut's chestplate again, using the force to bounce away. The blade of the sword barely managed to graze him, but even that was still enough to send him flying into the containers. The Darknut jumped after him for the kill, but Pela's drone fired at its feet, encasing its grieves in a thick mound of ice.
With its momentum and weight, the Darknut fell to the floor as a result. Gepard jumped and slammed his guitar case into the back of the Darknut. A sickening crack came from the blow, and the Darknut twitched erratically as the floor cracked around it.
While Pela helped Dan Heng up, the Darknut's armor slowly broke off from the main body. His eyes widened as the figure inside the armor lumbered to their feet, acting as though they didn't take any damage.
Speaking of the person inside the armor, she was a dark-skinned girl with long black hair and a similarly colored halo in the shape of a crosshair. She wore a black and blue maid outfit of all things, with white leggings that had the numbers 02 emblazoned on the thighs. Her gold, hollow, shattered eyes glared at Dan Heng.
A rifle matching her outfit's color scheme materialized in her hands. Gepard grabbed her hands and pushed them up, just a massive laser blew out of the barrel.
He jumped back and aimed a punch at her gut, but Karin quickly twirled out of the way. She slammed the stock of her weapon into Gepard's face and kicked him out of the way.
March's arrow crashed next to Karin's feet, encasing them in ice. She brought her rifle down to smash the ice, but March placed her hands on a container. Thin trails of ice condensed on the surface, leading up before reaching Karin's hands and freezing them over.
As the maid flexed her fingers to break free, Pela's drones slammed into her gut and fired, launching Karin into the air. Dan Heng jumped after her, thrusting his spear forward. She parried with her rifle, causing the barrel to crack as the blade slammed into it.
Dan Heng swings his spear downwards, knocking Karin to the ground. Just as she was about to pick herself up, March fired an arrow that went through her arm, severing it at the elbow. The arm flopped onto the floor, but no blood came out of the wound. Karin only blinked, as if barely registering the fact that she couldn't feel her arm anymore.
Dan Heng came crashing down, his spear cleaving through Karin's body. Her eyes widened marginally as she was split down the middle. Her body darkened, hardening into black glass before shattering.
From the glass, a rainbow-colored orb flew and managed to push itself free. It hovered in the air for a moment before flying up towards the roof. Gepard narrowed his eyes and jumped up to try to grab, but it managed to slip through his fingers. The rainbow-colored orb phased through the walls of the Lava Dome.
"What was that?" Pela asked after a few moments.
"She's… free," March whispered, too quietly for anyone to hear. She turned her attention back to the shattered glass and brought herself to her knees to dig through them. She pulled out a large key, one that had the same eye-shape as the padlock in the control room.
Pela moved to the control panel and frowned. "A block sliding puzzle? Really?"
"Can you beat it?" March asked, blinking when she got a scoff in response.
"Of course I can! This will be a breeze!" Pela said hotly, her glasses shining as she took hold of the controls. As she pulled and pushed, mechanical tendrils came out of the ceiling; they grabbed shipping containers, pushing them aside to make a path for them. A minute passed until Pela completed the puzzle.
"C'mon, follow me." Pela led through winding corridors of shipping containers. On the other side was an elevator, which opened as they approached. Thankfully, it wasn't as tightly cramped as the minecarts.
The elevator went down as soon as they entered. When it opened, they were back at the control room. March walked to the panel and inserted the Boss Key into the eye shaped panel. With a satisfying click the padlock fell off the controls, and the key dissolved into nothingness.
The volcano shook once more. Dan Heng ran out of the room and watched as the lava receded even deeper than before, until passed through the metal grate at the very bottom of the Lava Dome. Once it disappeared the air above the grate crackled with electricity, forming into a star shaped portal to Another Dimension.
"That's our target…" Pela said, adjusting her glasses. Dan Heng and walked down. Pela and March moved behind him, with Gepard guarding the rear.
Even as they moved towards the portal, reality began to unfold around them. Gravity remained consistent, but the walls and floor shattered, crumbling away to reveal the distorted void of Another Dimension. Dan Heng's not even sure if they walked through the portal as the sky turned red, and small embers started to rise.
He paused and found himself staring at a large pool of lava. In the center was a large boulder, and behind was a massive vein of geomarrow, surrounded by minecart tracks. There was a loud shriek as Greater Doomer glided down to glare at the dungeon crawlers. It snarled at the sudden appearance, jaws snapping together in anger. It spun in a circle, dissolving into gas and seeping into the massive boulder.
The boulder shuddered, lava bubbling around as it rose from the pool. Two rocky arms groped at the edge of the pool to lift itself up, lava lapping at the edge as it did so. It was a massive, cyclopian golem made of magma and igneous, with a single black and blue-red eye in the center of its eye. The monster loomed over the group and howled with a gravelly voice.
Melting Flame Giant
Cragma
Both Gepard and Dan Heng moved back, leaving March and Pela in front, as they were the ones with ranged weaponry. They fired lasers and arrows, but each shot only bounced off Cragma's sturdy body. As golem raised its fist, another portion of its body rose from the lava revealing a bright yellow growth on its lower abdomen. March fired an arrow, and it popped, spilling lava and causing the monster to shriek.
Cragma roared in anger, and meteors started to rain down from the sky. Gepard, with a wave of his hands, created a wall of ice to protect them, the falling rocks easily smashed through and exploded, sending shrapnel and fire everywhere. Gepard gasped as he knocked back, slamming into Pela and sending the both to the floor.
Cragma raised both fists and brought them down with incredible speed. Gepard barely had enough time to raise his case to block the blow. Both he and Pela yelled as the force and weight of Cragma's hands caused their bones to creak and bend. Gepard tucked in his legs and kicked the fist away, but only because Cragma reared it back for another devastating punch.
Just before the blow landed, Dan Heng threw his spear with enough force to pierce through the laval golem's wrist and pin it to the ground. He jumped on the arm and started to run up it. March fired an arrow at him, which Dan Heng managed to catch; it extended to a long spear in his hands, which he was going to use to pierce through Cragma's single eye.
Cragma growled and knocked Dan Heng away with a headbutt. He flew into the wall, gasping as it cracked from the impact. The massive golem raised one hand, revealing another blister-like growth on its palm, ready to slap Dan Heng further into the wall. A laser from one of Pela's drone's popped the blister, causing magma to spill from the wound and the monster to groan in pain.
As lurched back to grip its wounded hand, Dan Heng fell out of the wall with a groan. March managed to catch him and gently place him on his feet, applying a shield of ice as she did so.
Cragma glared back at the group and howled, summoning a storm of meteors to rain down on them, but by that point, they already knew what to look for. Pela's drones circled Cragma, shooting at any blisters, bubbles of magma or welts growing on the back of the golem's back. It howled in pain as its own magma slowly trailed down its back, joining with the pool it was floating on.
Cragma howled and slammed both fists into the ground. The pool shook and bubbled as it moved, slowly rising onto the platform everyone was standing on.
"Crap! Now what!" Pela shouted as the lava slowly began to spill over the edge, creeping towards the walls with slow, thick waves.
"Over there!" Gepard pointed to the minecarts at the edge of the wall, four of them.
"What? How are they even supposed to work! There's nothing next to them!" Dan Heng said, despite the fact that he started jogging towards them with everyone else.
"We'll figure it out!" March said.
They didn't need to, as just when Dan Heng made it onto the last minecart, it started to move automatically, just as the lava started to melt through the rails on the ground. As they rose, Cragma glared at them. It howled, and the popped blisters were filled with lava once more. March raised her bow and fired, trying to strike at them but Cragma moved its body in subtle ways, causing the arrows to shatter against its tough and rocky exterior.
As the golem prepared to swipe at the group, Pela's drone appeared behind the side of its head, far enough away to prevent Cragman from seeing it. The laser it shot slashed through Cragma's eyes, and the monster stopped its counter attack. It clutched its eye in pain, revealing more blisters on its chest and stomach that were quickly shot by March.
The minecarts rose, while the golem sunk into the lava. Once they reached the second floor of the arena (which looked exactly the same as the previous one) Cragma's hand pulled at the rails; the group landed on the rocky floor while their ride was brought down into the molten rocks. Cragma popped out of the lava shortly after, groaning in pain until its face landed on the floor. The top of its head chipped off, revealing its soft and mushy insides.
Dan Heng stomped his feet into the ground as his body crackled with energy, rainbow flames shooting out as he gripped his spear tightly.
"The truth of life and death, revealed in an instant…"
Dan Heng relaxed and held out his spear in front of him, breathing deeply as he felt the tension in his muscles leave.
[ETHEREAL DREAM]
"This sanctuary is but a vision…"
He opened his eyes, the roar of a dragon echoing in his mind. He spun around, his spear twirling in his hands, leaving behind black brushstrokes as moved alongside him. Dan Heng lunged forwards, embedding more than half of his spear into Cragma's head.
"BREAK!"
As the energy died down, Dan Heng yanked his spear out of Cragma's head, causing it to convulse in pain. It howled and swung its arms rapidly, slamming them into the ground as meteors upon meteors fell down from the sky.
As Pela shot them out of the sky and Dan Heng parried them away, Gepard created a wall of ice in front of him. March jumped on it as Gepard swung his case, shattering the wall and sending March into the other. Instead of drawing her bow, March condensed the moisture into a thin line and froze it, creating a thin icicle in her hands. She threw the weapon downwards. Cragma blinked as the ice pierced its head, and shrieked as multiple spikes of ice burst from its head.
The giant roared, clutching its head as water and lava dripped from its wounds. Its body soon began to lose its color, red and glowing turning into dull shades of gray. Cragme reached its hand into the sky as its body stiffened and began to crack. It then crumbled apart, its body collapsing under its own weight as chunks of rock and ash fell into the pool of lava it made its home in.
Another Dimension shook without Cragma to support it. The geomarrow in the center of the arena began to crack, losing its yellow glow as it began to sink into the lava. A few feet in front of it, the exit portal appeared.
"...What should we do with the geomarrow?" Pela asked as Another Dimension began to dissolve and shatter.
"...We should leave it here. I doubt only the four of us have the strength to move it," Gepard said, crossing his arms and sighing solemnly. "And besides, if we tried to take all the geomarrow in here, I doubt we would be able to make it out with our lives."
"Fair enough…" Pela muttered.
"C'mon, let's get out of here!" March said. She jumped through the portal, humming to herself as she did so. Dan Heng jumped in afterwards. Gepard smirked. He jumped in after them.
Pela frowned upon seeing his expression. So, she jumped through the portal, feeling the world unravel around her as she moved from the gap between dimensions back to her own dimensions.
The first thing she saw when she landed were the spherical robots from earlier, now activated and pinning March and Dan Heng to ground.
"H-hey! What the heck is this!?" March shouted as a foot from the Invader Armor pressed her face further against the ground. Next to her, Dan Heng tried to summon his spear, but the other Invader Armor quickly grabbed his arm. Dan Heng shouted in pain as a snap met Pela's ears.
"Gepard, what the hell!?" Pela shouted.
"Trust me, I know what I'm doing," Gepard said, grabbing Pela's shoulder and pushing her away. "I've seen them before. You can't be fooled by their appearance. If you can't see through their disguise, then you've fallen for their trap."
"Gepard, what are you talking about!? You're not making any sense, what do you mean they're…?" Pela went silent as Gepard's armor shimmered. Brilliant whites turned to faded black, chipped and rusted. The ice crystals turned purple and covered even more of his outfit, almost as though it was infecting it.
Pela took a step back, her gaze flitting back from this… Parallel Gepard and Express duo on the floor. "I have no idea what he's talking about! He's talking crazy!" March said, her iridescent eyes shaking with panic.
"I…" Pela stuttered, looking back and forth between March and Parallel Gepard. She grit her teeth, and raised her hand to commander her drones to–
Parallel Gepard had already slammed his fist into her face, shattering her glasses and knocking her out cold.
VS Cragma
While planning the return of the Demon King Malladus, Chancellor Cole created four great monsters that hold the temples hostage, and prevent their holy energy from being transferred to the Tower of Spirits. The most powerful of the demons, Cragma, lies in the Fire Temple waiting for the day the Hero would emerge so that it can boil and consume him.
SKILLS
Boiling Life Blood [Enhance] - At the beginning of the battle, creates 3-4 Weak Spots on Cragma. At the start of the Cragma's turn, creates 1-2 Weak Spots. If all Weak Spots are destroyed, immediately inflicts Weakness Break on Cragma's, regardless of its current Toughness, and reduces Cragma's DEF by 15% while Weakness Broken. Weak Spots can only be destroyed by using an Ice AoE attack.
Igneous Armor [Enhance] - Reduces the amount of Toughness Cragma loses from enemy attacks by 5 plus 5 for each Weak Spot Cragma has.
Burning Knuckle [Single Target] - Deals Fire DMG equal to 170% of Cragma's ATK to a single enemy.
Planet Waves [Bounce] - Deals Fire DMG equal to 65% of Cragma ATK to random enemies 4 times.
Suppression of Spirits [Impair] - Has a 45% chance of inflicting an enemy with Flammable. While an enemy is Flammable, they have 25% chance of becoming Burned by Cragma's attacks. If a Flammable enemy is burned, immediately inflicts them with 6 more stacks of Burn.
Volcanic Tension [Enhance] - Cragma enters a charged state. On the next available action, Cragma uses 'Rising Tides of Eruptions.'
Rising Tides of Eruption [Quick-Time Event (QTE)] - A minecart appears, and the party climbs on top of it. Cragma gains or loses Weak Spots until it has four, and a reticle appears over the screen as the minecart circles Cragma. Aim the reticle and press the shoot button to destroy the Weak Spots (this does not deal damage). The Weak Spots have been destroyed, to appear more on the palms of Cargma's hands. Destroy those, and then shoot at Cragma's eye.
You have 6 seconds to complete the QTE. By completing it, Cragma's is immediately weakness broken, and its attack is negated. Otherwise, inflict Fire DMG equal to 500% of Cragma's ATK to all enemies.
[A/N: Cragma's title is taken from the Japanese version of the game. Sounds a lot cooler than 'lava lord.']