Let's rewind the clock all the way back a year ago, before Anne's birthday. Before Marcy came up with the idea to steal the music box.
It was another day at Saint James Middle School. A teacher made an announcement on the school's PA system, "Attention, students. This is yet another reminder that the pink powder inside the soap dispenser is not candy dust, so please..."
Suddenly, Sasha's voice replaced the teacher's. "What's up SJMS! Instead of that boring stuff, how about an awesome K-pop dance party?" Music began to play and all the kids danced and cheered.
In one of the school storage rooms, Marcy had managed to hack in the PA system. And now she, Anne, and Sasha were about to release a bunch of dogs in the halls. Don't ask how they got them.
"Hey, do you really think we should be doing this," Anne asked as she rubbed one of the dogs' bellies.
"Of course. Unleash the puppers!"
The storage room opened and the dogs ran out, causing all the students in the halls to go on a stampede. Sasha said, "Now's our chance! Through the window!" With everyone distracted, the three girls ran out the window and left the school.
Johan leaned against a wall of a nearby alley, his arms folded and tapping his finger on his arm. The sound of footsteps made him turn to look and he saw the girls heading for him. "You made it! I was getting...worried," his voice trailed off. "Uh, Marcy? Do you know there's a puppy on your head?"
"Yep!" said Marcy happily.
"Why do you have a...never mind, I don't want to know."
"So, where's this lead you were talking about," asked Sasha.
"Oh, right," said Johan. "Well, I learned from what I hope is a reliable source that an antique shop nearby recently acquired an arrow that matches the description of the one I'm looking for. Maybe the guy who took it got careless and sold it?"
"Are you sure," asked Marcy. "Because so far, we've been hitting nothing but dead ends."
"I wouldn't get my hopes up, but I'm willing to try anything. We can't let the arrow fall into the wrong hands. If they were to acquire a Stand..." Johan shuddered. "The last thing we want is another Cioccolata and Green Day."
"Who?"
"I'll explain later. Right now, we need to head to that antique shop."
The quartet arrived at the antique shop, and went inside. There were various artifacts from various countries inside including a smoking jacket from England, a vase from the Qing dynasty, a Japanese theater mask, a TV from the 1950s, and a radio from East Germany. Marcy immediately ran towards a section that sold vintage board games. "Ooh, I remember playing these with grandma!"
"Ahem," Sasha coughed loudly. "We're not here to browse, remember?"
Johan approached the front desk and rang the bell. "C-Coming!" The shopkeeper immediately ran in. She was a small woman with mousy features, messy hair, and unkempt clothes. On her shirt was a name tag that read, "April". "S-Sorry, I'm just really busy," she stammered.
"Really? You run this store all by yourself?"
"Yeah, it's...not exactly an easy job, but this place has been in my family for years, and I don't want to see it go to waste."
Johan put on the charm and said, "I know what you mean. I too am part of a family business." Although my family business involves weapons smuggling, money laundering, protection rackets, and gambling rings, he thought. "But, I'm not here to talk about that. Can you tell me if you have this?" He reached into his pocket and showed her a picture of the arrow with the gold frog's head.
April looked at the photo and scratched her head. "Sorry, we don't have that here." The kids groaned in disappointment. "But..." They perked up. "A guy came in here yesterday asking if I could authenticate an arrow. Kinda looked like the one you're looking for. Strange this, he wouldn't let me touch it. So, I had to use a magnifying glass to authenticate it. It was probably over a thousand years old, maybe even older than the pyramids."
"So, where is the arrow now," asked Sasha.
"Don't know. The guy took off with it before I could make the final details."
"And you didn't see what he looked like," asked Anne.
"Or where he went," asked Marcy.
"No," said April. "He wore that ugly fedora of his in such a way that I couldn't see his face. And I didn't see where he went. He just disappeared the moment I set out the door." The kids groaned again. "Sorry."
"It's okay." Johan reached into his pocket and placed a fat stack of money on the table. "Here, for your troubles. Maybe you can use it to hire more people to help."
"Oh, wow," exclaimed April. "I...I couldn't..."
"I insist. It's the least I can do for the help."
"You sure about that," asked Sasha.
"Don't worry. I get plenty more in Passione's accounts," Johan whispered.
The quartet walked down the street, when all of a sudden, DARE appeared and rapidly punched a man about to pickpocket them. "MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA, MUDA!" With one final "MUDA!" the man was flung into a garbage dumpster.
"Ah! Ghosts!" the pickpocket screamed and ran off.
"That felt good," said Johan. "It helped me blow off some steam."
"And we were so close," cursed Anne. "I thought for sure we would find that damn arrow."
"I liked those boardgames, though," said Marcy.
"Of course you would," said Sasha. "Well, we got nothing better to do, so...you wanna go to the arcade with us, JoJo? Come on, it'll cheer you up!"
"Well...alright."
"Yay!"
At the arcade, Johan and Sasha played House Of The Dead in co-op mode while Anne and Marcy played Dance-Dance-Revolution. Sasha was impressed with Johan's gun skills. "Dang, JoJo, where did you learn to shoot like that?"
"Zio Mista taught me," Johan said. "He and Dad trained me so I won't rely on my Stand all the time and use it like a crutch."
"Zio means uncle, right?"
"Right. Though, he's not my real uncle, but a very close friend of the familia."
Sasha hummed. "Mmm. I wish I had a familia like that." Then she thought, Perhaps I could be a member one day?
Anne and Marcy smiled at each other. "She likes him," Marcy whispered.
"How long do you think it'll last until she calls upon yours truly, the queen of breakups?"
"Eh, a week or two."
"THERE THEY ARE!" The kids jumped when they heard a woman's voice shout. They turned and saw the arcade manager accompanied by an African American woman with her hair tied in a bun and wearing a grey formal suit and a Saint James Middle School lapel pin.
"Principal Murphy," exclaimed Marcy.
"Boonchuy, Waybright, Wu," she said angrily. "You are in so much..." She paused when she saw Johan. "Who is this?"
"I don't know," said Anne. "We just met him." She gave Johan a wink. "Don't worry. You're off the hook. We'll meet each other after school."
Johan made an uncertain expression as he watched the girls leave the arcade with the principal.
Needless to say, Anne, Sasha, and Marcy were dragged all the way back to school. Sasha walked out of the principal's office and sat next to Anne as Marcy walked in. Anne saw the smile on Sasha's face and she asked, "Was it bad?"
"Nah. Ms. Murphy just said she wished my leadership skills went toward something positive."
Marcy came out and said, "She was impressed with how I hacked the PA system and told me not to do it again. You're up next, Anne. Oh, and she wants to have a word with all three of us when you're done."
Sasha raised an eyebrow. "All three of us?"
Anne exhaled and stood up. "Time to face the music." She walked in and sat in a chair in front of Principal Murphy's desk and tried to play it cool. "Sup dude?"
"'Sup' is that I'm worried about you, Boonchuy," Principal Murphy replied.
"Oh?" Anne asked nervously. "Like, me specifically? Or-"
"Yup. Sasha's goanna boss her way through life, and Marcy will probably solve world hunger or something, but you..." Principal Murphy pulled out a folder from her drawer and showed Anne a whole bunch of assignments and homework with nothing but doodles on them. "Incomplete after incomplete. Unfinished paper after unfinished paper. You're a smart girl, Anne. But you're just not applying yourself. In you I see someone who's just floating through life, taking the easy path."
"But I like the easy path, it's easy!"
"It may be easy, but that doesn't make it right. Now be straight with me, those two pushed you into this prank, didn't they?"
Anne waved her hands defensively. "What? No!" Principal Murphy raised an eyebrow skeptically at her. "Okay, yeah. Maybe," she said shamefully.
"Look, I want you to write an essay for me," said Principal Murphy.
"Say what now?"
"About what you want to do with your life, and what you're willing to do to make it happen."
"Wha-? But Sasha and Marcy didn't say anything about an essay."
Principal Murphy narrowed her eyes. "That's because they don't have to write one."
Anne winced. "Oh. Ouch."
"Anne, you get to choose the type of person you're going to be. Don't forget that." Principal Murphy handed Anne a piece of binder paper with the title "WHO AM I?" Then she said, "Now, send in Marcy and Sasha. I want to have a word with all three of you."
Sasha and Marcy came in and sat next to Anne. "So, what is it this time, Principal?" Sasha asked nonchalantly.
"Yes, I'd like to know more about this boy you're hanging out with," Principal Murphy said.
"I told you, we just met him in the arcade."
Principal Murphy made a skeptical face. "Really? According to Maggie, you've been seeing him for several days now. You call him JoJo?"
"Maggie," exclaimed Anne. "She's the one who squealed on us?! Oh, when I get my hands on her..."
"Is this boy influencing you to cause even more trouble at school," Principal Murphy asked.
Sasha slammed her fists on the desk. "Lay off him," she shouted. "He's a good kid! He helped me out with a personal problem and we've been friends ever since!"
"It's true," said Marcy. "They got real close if you know what I mean."
"Shut up," hissed Sasha.
Principal Murphy raised an eyebrow. "What problem?"
"It's fine. It's already been dealt with." How could Sasha tell the principal about her Stand? No one could understand it. Not even her parents, who dismissed it as imaginary friend nonsense. And she kept it a secret about it from Anne and Marcy, that is until Johan came into the picture.
And then Principal Murphy said, "Could it have something to do with him being a Stand user like you?"
The girls' eyes widened. "H-How do you...?"
"I'm not a Stand user, Anne, but I'm not as ignorant as you think I am, plus I have a friend who's a Stand user himself. When I told him the stories about bullies getting sent to the hospital with numerous cuts on their bodies, as if by an invisible sword, he knew right away that it's the work of a Stand user. I take it that was your doing, Sasha?" Sasha didn't respond. "It's no wonder the kids and even some of the staff think the school is haunted. You know, even with a Stand, this is grounds for assault charges. But then again, who would believe me if I told them that a girl with a literal fighting spirit is attacking people who made fun of her and her friends?"
Sasha and Marcy were speechless. Anne said, "Wait, if you knew Sasha is a Stand user this whole time, why didn't you say anything?"
Principal Murphy sighed and said, "I know this is one of those 'hard to understand' topics, so I didn't know how to approach it. And, while I am glad you found someone like you, you should be careful of the company you keep."
Sasha got angry and said, "I don't need a lecture from you about this. JoJo helped me when no one else could. So unless you have a Stand, butt out of it."
Principal Murphy didn't say anything at first. Then she said, "Very well. I won't press it further. But, if you ever need a talk regarding your Stand, call this number." She handed Sasha a card with a phone number and the letters SPDWGN on it. "You're all dismissed. Oh, hey! Isn't it your birthday tomorrow, Anne? Happy early birthday. And don't forget what we talked about."
After school, Sasha tossed the card in the garbage. "Should we inform JoJo about this," Anne asked.
"Nah. He's already got a lot on his plate regarding the arrow. The last thing he needs to know is the principal getting up in our grill."
"Getting up in your grill about what," Johan asked. He was leaning next to the flag pole. "Did something happen?"
"Oh, just the usual 'no ditching class schtick'," Sasha dismissed casually. "It's nothing new. Don't worry about it." Johan wasn't so convinced. "Oh, and by the way, you have to get Anne a present. It's her birthday tomorrow."
"Her birthday? How come I wasn't told of this?"
"You didn't ask," Sasha said. "Now come on, I want to read the latest Bersek issue."
"Oh, goody," Marcy said with a cringe.
Anne smiled. That's Sasha for you. Then she frowned as she took out the "Who Am I?" paper and looked at it.
And now, let's go back to the present...
...where Giorgio, the Plantars, Grime, Yunan, Olivia, Joan Jett, Frobo, and even Domino 2 and Joe Sparrow were locked in Castle Newtopia's dungeon. In Giorgio's case, he was trapped in a special cell that had a solar-powered forcefield, while everyone else was chained to a wall.
"If it weren't for this damn forcefield, I could bust everyone out of here and save Anne, Sasha, and Marcy," Giorgio shouted.
"These shackles are too damn strong!"
"Language, Polly," said Hop Pop.
"Perhaps we need to use a little more force," said Grime. He tugged and tugged on the restraints, but he couldn't get out. "I'm out of ideas."
"Have you tried using your Stand," asked Joan Jett.
"You think I haven't? But every time I summon Toxic Avenger..." Grime's Stand appeared, only for Grime to get shocked by the shackles, forcing him to dismiss it. "...that happens."
"All is lost!" exclaimed Yunan in despair.
"Don't panic. I'm sure we can figure this out before the invasion starts," said Sprig.
Andrias' voice, amplified by the castle's PA system, echoed throughout. "Primates of Earth! We have arrived!"
"Never mind."
A hologram of Andrias' face appeared above the castle's rooftop. "Hello, Earth! Congratulations on being conquered. I have good news and bad news. The good news? Your planet is rich in the resources we'll need to conquer more impressive worlds. The bad news? We'll need to destroy your civilization to get those resources." Everyone gasped. "Omelets, broken eggs, you get it. Oh, but I have more good news! Thanks to Koolasuchus, you won't be around to see it," he said more sinisterly.
Andrias turned off the hologram and turned to the Core, who said, "Speaking of eggs, how about a little show of force? Koolasuchus! Eat and devour these savory dishes!" They pushed a button.
A pair of egg-shaped pods were launched out of the castle and onto the giant salamander's back. They opened up, revealing a pair of giant herons with scarred bodies, and glowing red eyes, a clear sign of Infection. They let out a shriek. Koolasuchus let out a roar and began eat the buildings in its way. Knowing right away it won't be long before it would start eating people, the US Army was called in.
"Ready, fire!" commanded the general.
Tanks fired rockets at Koolasuchus, but the two herons on its back flapped their wings, creating a gust of wind that blew the missiles back.
"Forget the monsters, fire at the castle!" shouted the general.
But the walking castle had already set up a forcefield, so the missiles were useless. In retaliation, the castle let lose an army of frobots that began a ground assault, allowing Koolasuchus all the time it needed to resume eating.
The general turned to one of his soldiers and demanded, "Give me the phone!"
"We're on it," said Mr. X before hanging up the phone. "Alright everyone, this is what we've been waiting for," he said to armored figures.
"We're out of time!" shouted Yunan.
"Damn it all, we've got to get out of here!" shouted Giorgio.
"JoJo...it's over," said Hop Pop, overcome with despair. "The resistance is gone, we're captured, and all your planet is doomed! And so is the entire multiverse!"
"Seriously? After all this, you're giving up," said Funny Valentine as he stepped out of the shadows. "How disappointing."
"What do you want," snapped Hop Pop. "It's over! All our plans just blew out the window!"
"I admit, I did not see this coming," admitted Valentine. "I had no idea about the Core's existence, nor did I know about Kars. They went to many great lengths to cover this up. Not even my father knew anything about this. However, there is still hope. The Hive Mind is the one controlling Koolasuchus. Destroy it, and the monsters will stop."
"Yeah, well, we can't really do anything while we're stuck here," said Yunan.
"And the entire resistance has been obliterated," Hop Pop shouted. "Sylvia, Felicia, Wally...all of them, gone!" Tears started to run down his cheeks.
"Mrs. Croaker," cried Polly.
"Ivy," wept Sprig.
"Even Beatrix," said Grime sadly.
Valentine sighed. "Would it make you feel any better if I said I saved them?" That got everyone's attention. "I used Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap to move most of them to another spot in Amphibia."
"'Most of them'," asked Yunan.
"The ones I didn't save were people in the background. Not really important."
"Well, we can't really do much with JoJo stuck in the cell," said Joan Jett. D4C appeared and pulled Giorgio through the floor. Then he found himself outside the cell. "Oh. Right. Dimensional travel," said Joan Jett.
"Now, come with me," said Valentine as he freed the amphibians, Frobo, and the flying animals. "There's some people who want to meet you all."
"Hold it," said Polly. "I already came up with a rescue plan with Frobo! You're not gonna upstage us!"
"Y-You have," asked Hop Pop.
"Sure! I made some improvements on him back on Earth. Show 'em, Frobo!"
Frobo's eyes scanned the floor. "Structural weakness identified." He fired a laser that cut a perfect circle in the floor.
Giorgio's eyes widened. "Uh, Polly? I think we should have let Valentine save us."
"Why?"
The floor gave way and everyone fell out of the castle. "Okay, now how do we escape our escape?" Yunan asked.
Valentine called out, "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap!" And the next thing the group knew, they landed in the swimming pool of a penthouse.
As everyone shook themselves dry, Joan Jett said, "I have to admit, that was actually pretty exhilarating. Valentine extended a hand to help, but she swatted it away. "This doesn't make up for what you've done."
"Fair enough."
The sounds of destruction made everyone rush to the edge of the building.
"I don't believe it," said Grime.
"So this is Earth," said Yunan.
"It's very... geometric," said Olivia, though it was the best thing she could come up with.
"It's probably not the best first impression when seeing a new planet," said Joan Jett. "Especially the giant monster salamander with herons riding on its back."
Hop Pop gasped upon seeing the birds. "Those aren't just any giant herons. Those are THE giant herons!"
Sprig and Polly turned to look at him with worry. "You mean... those two..."
"Attacked our parents?"
Hop Pop nodded his head. "I'd recognize them anywhere. With their blood-red eyes and razor-sharp teeth, those two have been terrorizing the valley for years! I arrived too late to save your parents, but not too late to fight back." He pointed to the scars on the birds' bodies. "Never thought I'd see them again, much less here."
Giorgio looked back at the castle. "We've gotta get back up there and save Anne, Sasha, and Marcy!"
"But what about them," Sprig asked, pointing to the people fleeing from the robots on the ground.
Giorgio made a frustrated sound. "I really don't want to be a superhero right now!"
Suddenly, a black van pulled up and armored figures popped out and fired lasers at the robots, destroying them. The van pulled over and one of the armored figures pointed up at the heroes and gestured for them to come down.
"Are those the people you were talking about," Giorgio asked Valentine.
After arriving on the ground, the group met the armored figures. Two of them took off their helmets, revealing themselves to be Mrs. And Mr. Boonchuy. Sprig gasped and ran up to them, giving them a hug. "Mr. and Mrs. B! You're okay!"
"Hiya, Boonchuys. Bet you weren't excepting to see us again soon," said Hop Pop.
"Actually, we kind of were," said Mr. Boonchuy.
Mrs. Boonchuy looked around. "Wait. Where's Anne?"
Giorgio and the Plantars made disheartening looks. "I'm sorry," said the former. "Andrias got her, along with Sasha and Marcy."
"WHAT?!"
Mr. X poked his head out the van's passenger window and shouted with a snap of his fingers, "Ok. Ok. Let's take this party on the road!" Jenny, who was in the driver's seat, nodded.
"Mr. X?! What are you doing here?!"
"It's alright, Giorgio," said the third armored figure. He took off his helmet, revealing himself to be Giorno Giovanna. "He's with us."
"D-Dad?"
"Would you people hurry up?!" shouted Mr. X.
Everyone ran in the back of the van and it took off. The amphibians on the other hand, rode on the backs of Domino 2 and Joe Sparrow and followed it.
"Would someone explain what's going on?!" Giorgio demanded.
"Let's just say we had a few weeks head start thanks to these two," Mr. X gestured to Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy.
"Training," said Mrs. Boonchuy. "Gearing up."
"And thanks to Mr. Valentine's incentive," said Mr. Boonchuy. "The Speedwagon Foundation was able to convince the military that we're not crazy."
"And thanks to my connections with Passione," said Giorno. "We were able to get the funds needed to get this." He patted the laser cannons.
"Hey, he had help, you know!" Giorgio's eyes widened. That voice. It couldn't be. A fourth figure took off his helmet, revealing himself to be a man wearing a beanie with a diagonal grid pattern and the front shaped like an arrow pointing downward. He smirked at Giorgio and said, "Hey, Giorgio. Did you miss me?"
Giorgio's eyes watered and he smiled and hugged him. "Of course I did, Zio Mista!"
Suddenly, six small creatures appeared above Mista. They were gold in color, heads shaped like teardrops with the numbers one, two, three, five, six, and seven on them.
"Giorgio," snapped Number Seven. "What the hell were you thinking?! Running away and disappearing like that, you almost gave us a heart attack! If you ever do that again, I'll kill you!"
"Waaah," cried Number Five with tears running down his face. "We missed you, Giorgio!" He got kicked in the face by Number Three, who viciously snarled, "Stai zitto, infantile!" Number Six socked Number Three in the face and the two of them started bickering.
"You're not hurt, are you, kid," Number One asked.
"Of course he's not," Number Two replied. "Look at him! He's tough!"
Giorgio smiled, laughed and pulled the small creatures in a hug. "Sex Pistols! I missed you guys!"
"Get off me," shouted Number Three.
Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy made confused looks. "Who is he talking to," asked the latter. "There's no one there."
"Stands, remember," said Hop Pop.
"Oh. Right. Invisible to normal people."
"Ahem. What about me," asked a female voice. The fifth armored person took off her helmet, revealing a woman with light hair in a loose whirl atop her head. "Don't I deserve some attention after being away for so long?"
"Z-Zia Trish!" Giorgio was so happy to see her...and then she slapped him in the face. "Ow!"
"That's for running away and disappearing!" Trish hugged him. "And this is for coming back." She planted a kiss on his forehead.
"What are they doing here," he asked after recovering from the shock from both the slap and the kiss.
"Well, we are dealing with an evil Stand user king, right," asked Mista. "So, Giorno called us in."
Giorgio realized something. "Wait, if you guys are here, who's running things back in Italy?"
"Don't worry about that. Mr. Polnareff is substituting for Giorno," said Trish.
"How can a talking turtle substitute for him," Giorgio asked.
Almost everyone who wasn't in Passione gave him a confused look. Mrs. Boonchuy asked, "A talking turtle? Wha-"
"All right, gang. Enough chatter," said Mr. X. "We need a base of operations so we can plan a counter attack. Something close by but inconspicuous. Anyone know a heavily fortified prison-like structure?"
Giorgio exhaled. "I may know one place."
Turns out, the hiding spot was Saint James Middle School. "Why am I not surprised," said Mrs. Boonchuy. "Anne did consider this a prison." She began to tremble and said shakily, "Anne...why didn't you and the Plantars save her, JoJo?"
"We didn't have a choice," said Sprig. "Anne, Sasha, and Marcy gave themselves up to stop Andrias and the Core from killing us."
"The Core," asked Mr. Boonchuy.
"We'll talk strategy later," said Mr. X as the group set themselves up in the school's science lab. "I need time to set up some equipment. Mr. Mista, Miss Una, can you do recon? Make sure we weren't followed." Mista and Trish nodded and went out the door.
Hop Pop turned on the TV and the news report came on. "In a shocking turn of events, the city has found itself invaded by a talking lizard, his robot army and a couple of angry water fowl. But in other news, crypto is up big! Let's do the numbers."
Hop Pop rolled his eyes. "Typical L.A."
Polly let her eyes wander until she gasped when she spotted a robotics room. "WHOOOA! What is that?!"
"Looks like this school has a metal shop. Private schools, I tell ya," Mr. X said with a scoff as he opened a box labeled "FBI & SPDWGN stuff".
Polly grinned and asked Frobo, "Well Frobo, think it's time for an upgrade?" Frobo smiled back and they headed into the metal shop.
Mr. and Mrs. Boonchuy entered the classroom, carrying trays of food. "We got some takeout from the restaurant," said the missus. "Can't save the world without an empty stomach."
"Wow Mrs. B. You guys thought of everything," said Sprig.
A loud growl made the room shake, and they looked at Grime. "Was that your stomach," Joan Jett laughed.
"Yes it was me, OK?!" Sprig offered him some food. He took a bite out of it...and his face immediately turned red as his mouth burned. He ate the spicy stuff without realizing it. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH! I'm dying!"
"Here, Grime. Have some water," said Hop Pop.
Joan Jett took a bite out of her meal. "Gimme!" She scoffed down the rest of it and cried, "So delicious!"
Giorno noticed Giorgio sitting on a stool in the corner, looking sad. He walked over and Giorgio said, "I didn't think I would screw this up, Dad. Of course Andrias saw through our attack, being with Marcy. Anne, Sasha, and Marcy have been kidnapped, and now it's like The War Of The Worlds out there. I let everyone down." Giorno slapped him in the face. "Ow! Would you people stop slapping me?!"
"Would you stop that mopey teenager crap? It's not like you," said Giorno. He exhaled and shook his head. "Did you forget what I told you before already? Yes, you made mistakes, but there's a benefit to them. You get to learn from them. So what are you going to learn from this? Are you going to sit in a corner feeling sorry for yourself, or are you going to do something about it?"
Giorgio looked up at him and said, "I did make a lot of mistakes. I ran away from home, got three kids involved with something they shouldn't, started an unauthorized version of my father's gang, let the magic music box get stolen, and led my friends into a trap TWICE!" A small smile formed on his face. "But you know what else I did? Together with Anne and Sprig, we made Wartwood more open-minded and trusting, started a better economy for Wartwood, helped Anne reunite with her friends, we kicked some ass along the way, and started a rebellion consisting of frogs, toads, and newts after centuries of fighting amongst themselves." He poked his fangs with a finger. "And I became a vampire, so that's a bonus."
"I wouldn't call it that," said Giorno seriously. "You can never go out in the sun again."
"Eh, it's worth it." And then Giorgio thought, "I wonder if that's how DIO thought when he became a vampire."
"Let's not think about that."
Giorgio said, "You're right. I haven't been taking your advice...or mine. I'm not going to let the past define me."
"So what are you going to do about it," Giorno asked again.
Giorgio got off the stool. "I'll do what I always do. Wing it. But...I'd like to take a walk, clear my head and maybe find the bathroom, if you don't mind."
"Just be back before the meeting."
Meanwhile, back in the castle basement, Diego looked out the window, witnessing the destruction going on outside. "Enjoying the fireworks, girls?" He turned to look at Anne, Sasha, and Marcy. They were bound in chairs, staring blankly, and not speaking. The reason why was apparent when Diego saw the Hive Mind's tentacles in their ears. "Oh. Right. You're left completely docile, so you cannot even think of escaping if you tried." He glanced up at the ceiling and said, "I wonder how long it will take for the fat king and the Core to realize your friends have escaped."
Diego smirked. "And with the two of them distracted, they won't see what I have in store coming."
Back in the classroom, Mr. X gave Yunan a laser gun. "Here you go, Ms. Newt. Be careful with that safety."
"The what now?" Yunan accidentally fired it. "Woah. I like this." Jaws appeared and made a sad groan. "Oh, don't feel sad. I could never replace you," she said, giving Jaws a pat.
Suddenly, Polly came in and said, "Introducing... Frobo 2.0.!" She introduced Frobo. Now he had a new, purple and and white body with rainbow and shooting star decals. Everyone was impressed.
"Fabulous color scheme," complimented Mr. X.
"Complete with drink dispenser," said Polly. Frobo's shoulder popped out a soda can for her.
Meanwhile, Hop Pop noticed Sprig holding the red letter from the tunnels. "What you got there, boy?" he asked.
"It's the blank sheet of paper we found in that secret room," said Sprig. "I feel like it's important, but I just can't figure out how."
The TV news reporter suddenly shouted, "It's madness out here, folks. I tell you, madness!" A news truck got blown up in the background.
Sprig groaned in annoyance. "The quicker we fix this mess, the quicker thing can go back to normal."
"Normal," asked Hop Pop.
"Yeah! You know, Anne, JoJo and us just hanging out! Monster of the week stuff, yada yada..."
Ooh, boy. Hop Pop had a feeling this conversation would eventually come up. "Sprig, don't you think Anne and JoJo need to go back to their lives after all this? Some things are bound to change. They always do."
"Oh ho, Hop Pop. Nothing will change! Anne and JoJo will always be a big part of my life. Especially Anne."
Hop Pop smiled. "Of course she will."
Giorgio coughed loudly, gathering everyone's attention. "Alright, everyone. Here's the plan." He drew his plan on the blackboard...badly. Art wasn't one of his strong suits. "Zio Mista, Zia Trish, the Boonchuys, and Mr. X will help with the evacuation and take care of the ground force robots. The Plantars will use Joe Sparrow and Domino 2 to fly up to Koolasuchus and the herons and stop them with their hypnotic dance."
"You mean the Plantar family hunter dance," asked Hop Pop. "I don't think it's ever worked on something THAT big before!"
"We'll do it," said Polly. "We're not going let those herons scare us anymore!"
"Darn straight," said Sprig as he punched into his palm.
Hop Pop looked at his kids and nodded.
"Meanwhile, Valentine will use D4C to transport Joan Jett, Yunan, Grime, and Olivia directly into the chamber where the Hive Mind is being kept, then free Anne, Sasha, and Marcy," Giorgio continued.
"What's to stop Andrias from seeing through our ruse again," asked Grime.
"It's not just Andrias we have to worry about," said Giorgio. "It's that literal ghost in the machine, the driving force behind Andrias. It's in possession of a Stand that can literally change anything into anything it wants. That's where I come in. I'm going to challenge Andrias to a battle. That way, he'll be too distracted to focus on anything else. And as for the Core..." He grinned in a way that people once again saw his familial resemblance with DIO. "...I'm gonna give it what it wants, but I need something for it to work." He turned to Funny Valentine. "Live bait."
"I see. By revealing that we have a Stand that has the power to travel to other dimensions, it won't resist trying to capture me," said Valentine.
"Right. With Andrias and the Core distracted, Joan Jett's team will rescue the girls and destroy the castle from the inside."
"And give you Earthlings a fighting chance!" cheered Grime.
"Wait. One more thing." The smirk on Giorgio's face became a serious expression as he said to Giorno, "In case things go south, you and Gold Experience Requiem know what to do."
Giorno stared with raised eyebrows before he nodded. "I do."
"Well, I got nothing else to say but... It's our time now! Let's get this shit started!"
Everyone cheered.
⬅ To be continued...