Chapter/Tale 6: Race to the Finish: Act 3

Author's Note Intro:

Hey everyone! It's been a while, hasn't it? Don't worry, I'm back and ready than ever! I would love to talk more, but there's no time for that! Let's just enjoy the chapter here!

Resuming the game…

Kaila's POV: Restful Railroad Ride

(Beneath the Mask- Persona 5)

Glorious sights sped on by every waking second, the momentum of the monorail is set to a steady pace that I barely felt it. The atmosphere of the inside was now lively when everyone was ready for their meals. Calling Espera was all that was required to receive the meals, so we were ordering in the meantime. After that was dealt with, we had received an immediate call from the other dimension, just as we were told we'd receive- the Queen of Starlight.

"Everyone, can you hear me?" That was Espera's voice. "Thank god, I was starting to get worried there. Sorry we didn't call before, the servers were jammed the moment you arrived here. We've tried everything we could to get in, but it was no use. I was pretty confident you'd be able to handle things even without our help here."

"Don't worry, that can't be your fault," I replied in her defense. "Surely that was way beyond your control. What matters now is that we have some sort of advantage over the forced brutality of this game." Everyone agreed.

"I see. Then I'll get straight to it," She continues. "We saw what you have been through and it's a good thing you're all out in one piece; I was expecting someone like Aege to bite it first."

"What was that?!" Aege growled. Saito held himself from laughing.

"Still, none of us expected Niva to take the cake from the brawl with the terminator. And because it was a player under mind control, now you have to be very cautious as you move forward. We located a Zero Knight running around in the game as we speak; you may have to face him sooner than expected."

"Do you mean that he's somewhere in Level 3 or something?" asked Kazela. "Because I don't imagine him to be anywhere else at this point. And I'm not walking the rest of the way to every area there is."

"That's already taken care of," answered Espera. "Just as they said, the monorail is programmed to take you all the way until your final destination due to the main areas of each level are insanely huge, especially Mega-Drive Madness. Once you reach the end of it, the train will be waiting for you there to take you to the next level."

"Say, what is Mega-Drive Madness about exactly?" Karly questioned. "Sometimes titles are misleading and I'm not taking chances."

"Exactly as it sounds like- in other words, it's a drag race arena free-for-all. The rules are simple- there are no rules. Kill each other as you claim that glory with any method you want- stabbing, shooting, decapitation, hydraulic press, anything you want! Experience the thrills, chills, and the kills as you race to the finish with blood splattered all over you! HAHAHAHAHA!" Espera cackled mischievously, causing everyone to not respond and sweatdrop until she calms down. "-Is what we would encourage if our series wasn't rated "E for Everyone", you know. Complete bull there; there's a lot of "kid-friendly" games that doesn't even give a care about ratings, it reminds me of the time that a boss was considered graphic violence. Good times, good times. Same goes for anime; can you believe how much buffering one company did to dubbed animes to appeal to children?"

"Okay…" Adeline slowly drifted her word. "If that's the case, then we're in big trouble. Please tell me that it ain't so."

"Just kidding," She teased us. The train was still going. "But it doesn't change the fact that you'll have to ride through the entire road. As far as I'm concerned, lots of dangers await you and telling you every single obstacle in your way won't help at all. The only thing you can do is just ride until you reach the end… after beating the guardian of the area, of course. So we'll be watching from over here once you get there."

"Wait, all of us are going to ride in the race?" Jodie raised a good question. "For the record, I can't drive, I'm in elementary for god's sake! Can you imagine letting an 11-year-old kid ride a car in a bloodshed race? And not to make assumptions here, but I'm pretty sure half of the party here can't even drive; well… that depends... who can drive?"

"Me." Sirica, Meta, Dylan, Dash, Karly and even Kirby raised their hands in response. The others who can't are obviously Jodie, Kazela, Aege, Saito, Adeline, Niva, and… yeah, that's it.

"Whoa, wait a minute! I thought there were 12 of us here!" Niva pointed out in that realization. "There's 13! Did we miscount or what?" It was me, Kirby, Karly, Meta, Sirica, Dylan, Dash, Kazela, Adeline, Niva, Aege, Saito, and Jodie. Oh, there is 13 of us. I'm pretty sure the last chapter specifically requested 12 people in the game. Was there some sort of mistake made in that moment?

"Oh that?" Espera chimed in. "That was no mistake; I forgot to explain. Kirby and Karly here are technically the same character with slightly different attributes, so we counted them both as one character. Just think of it as having to choose between a male and female persona that you can switch out at any time. Identicals will be counted as a single character, so that's why. And I did say up to 12-14 can join."

The twin pink abominations looked at each other and shrugged. "Meh, seems legit."

"Wait, you can drive, you two?" I asked them. They nodded in sync. "Yes, we can. If you don't believe us, then look at these- no BS, completely legit."

Both of them whipped out two plastic cards and slid them across the table. I slowly picked one of them up for a better look. The one I received was Kirby's; it was an actual driver's license that he had when he was a premature age then for coming second place in a derby? Both ways, these licenses were legit and there's no denying that.

"Geez, I didn't know you could drive, not that I thought you couldn't or anything."

"What about you, Kaila?" Karly said to me. "You can drive, can't you?"

A dark thought grabbed hold of me, recalling an unpleasant experience from before. It was embarrassing to respond because of that, and my face turns cherry red when I finally had the guts to admit the fact that-

"- I can't drive," I admitted, making everyone gasp in surprise. "It's true. Well, to be honest, it's more like I was so good that I was banned. For life." Kazela burst into laughter, and I looked down, red as a cherry. "Just don't ask me why; I'd rather not talk about it. Even Blazel nearly had a heart attack when I wanted to drive the ship to Popstar. I don't see why everyone would think I'm a terrible driver. I thought playing Mario Kart would help me learn how to drive!"

"And that makes more sense why," Adeline replied. "It does sound like you can somewhat drive in a race if we assume you were a pro at racing."

"I don't even know anymore," I slumped in the seat. "I'm 16, for crying out loud."

"Er, if you're all done here, then I think that may be it for the time being unless anyone else had a question to ask me, no?" Espera demanded.

"Actually, yeah," Saito jumped in. "Why do they call you the queen of both dimensions anyway?"

"Because I'm the head of the game, you know," She answered. "And specifically, some of the characters are meant to represent someone in real life. Of course, I'm the Queen of Starlight that has been taken away by the Mother Computer through the dimension plane. The princess that sought to save her mother would represent Zeta, who also has went missing. You guys, however, are the heroes that can resist the mind control and the Queen offers her help through telepathy and any other assistance she can provide."

Sirica then said, "Seems reasonable; what I'm confused about is the fact that one of the CPU's we met in town resort told us that Starlight actually exists. I know it's a game and all, but she looked like she wasn't lying. Do you think that's because we entered the game through the dimension rift that it became reality?"

"That could be plausible. After all, the mind control isn't something we can just easily remove from here like a game of operation. But if that's supposedly the truth, then the device has to be a real object implanted in this digital world. We'll have to look into that; oh, we also had that magazine of Monokitsune being checked out at the moment."

"Eh, that's great and all," Aege yawned. "But how long until we reach the next level? And where's my free food and cheat codes? Where's my free cheat codes, damn it?" Everyone shot him disgusted looks, yet the noise of our own stomachs defended Aege's remarks, not to mention the stiff anticipation of arriving to our destination left us on edge.

"Eventually. Now to recap, in a few minutes you will arrive at Mega-Drive Madness. All of you must pair up with an experienced driver and decide on that before you roll out. The Orb Piece is homed in at least somewhere near the end of the track; honestly, just be careful- it's unpredictable at this point if the entire track is rigged on you," Espera restated. "I'm certain you may run into that Zero Knight here."

"Understood," Dylan answered. "Piece of cake. Speaking of which, can we eat now? My stomach growls too much!"

"Eheh, forgive me. Call us if you need anything!" Espera's call then ended with those words. After that, the cyborg attendants for the queen flooded out through the doors with covered trays in hand.

"Thank you for your cooperation. Your orders, as you requested." They swiftly set down our specific orders in a step flash before we could even react. I think I could barely describe how realistic the food looks for a game. Either way, I didn't care at all to question the physical impossibilities that goes on in our universe.

"Finally! Was about to gnaw on the closest person near me!" Niva drooled. "I'm starving- let's chow down!" She was the first to dig into her food; the way she ate was like a cat, her tail wagging excitedly with content. "What? You all aren't gonna eat? Expecting Kirby ending up being the first to jump in?"

"Uh, it's… not that at all," Kazela sweatdropped. "I can't even take you seriously like that if you're a clockwork star… or a cat of some sort."

"Come on, guys. Can't we just eat and get the plot to kick off afterwards?" Adeline said impatiently. Of course, no one wanted to go out on an empty stomach killing them at a cliché moment. Just like that, everyone got down to eating through the time we have left on the train ride. For some reason, I didn't feel that stuffed as I used to. Still not questioning it. Before time knew it, the entire party was finished with satisfied bellies.

"Oh man, that hit the spot," burped Aege. "That professor thought of everything and I'm really feeling it. Hope the next level is just as exciting as it sounds, if we ever get there."

A cyborg attendant stepped out through the door and stood once she approached us. "Attention, please. Thank you for waiting patiently; we will arrive at your destination in a few minutes. Take a look outside through the window."

As instructed, a starlight spectacle gazed into the scene. A massive stadium was in wait as tons of rails spiral about, transport vehicles were in and out of there nonstop, the sound of fanfare perked up our ears in alert. Glancing further, I saw the train's tracks were leading straight inside the terminal tunnel. I was in awe to even mutter another word while the light was covered by the terminal's shadow filled with neon lights. The destination was on the other side.

Level Three: Mega-Drive Madness- Stadium (Route 99 World Hub- Sonic Advance 3)

The train came to a steady brake in momentum and a decrease in speed gradually by the second. "So this entire level is connected to the train system around here? Geez, a hassle that could be if the entire train has to go back in reverse again." Dash pointed out.

"Does it really pose a concern for us?" Countered Meta; he stood up from his seat. "If Espera said she has it covered, then there's no need for doubt. We just have to do our job at hand, that's all she's ever asked of us."

"Ah, the train's about to stop," Kazela spoke up; she was right, it had come to a complete stop without our consent. The slide doors had opened itself without any delay automatically. Hissing clicked itself at the right time and steam poured out from outside.

"Oh, we're here."

"Welcome to Mega-Drive Madness- Level Three. Here, your mission will be to race in today's course and claim the next orb piece as your prize by placing in first. Multiple CPUs are gathered around here, some may be your opponents, so be careful. However, due to HWC's takeover, expect there to be a formidable enemy in your midst that you may have to defeat. With that, clear this level successfully and we'll be waiting for you at the end of here. Have a nice day," The robot maid stated her final words.

Stepping off the monorail, we watched the train continue on the path set out for it and disappear into the shadows of the terminal like a theme park ride. Everything around us looked like the inside of an airport; surely that is the case. Saito was approaching the nearby elevator and we had to follow him and ascend to wherever the place could be at.

In just a few moments, from the bottom to the top level is where we ended up- the main racing arena. Booming noises of crowds blasted our ears, the beat of the heavy metal music shook my heart, and sparks flew everywhere at that point. Ahead of us was an entire race track and a stadium full of spectators.

"I was definitely not expecting this," Aege winced. "Heck, maybe the entire crowd could be the rest of the other players. So how is this gonna work with all of us here? Who's going with who if there's not enough cars?"

"I guess it doesn't matter as long as someone has driving experience picks the vehicle they're driving in; anyone can just hop on along for the ride, so who cares?" Dash suggested. "At least one of us has to place first in the race and it doesn't matter who, but we all need to help each other during the race."

"But isn't that cheating to help other racers?" Karly asked, and everyone gave her weird looks.

"You got that wrong," laughed Kirby. "The way things are, we just call that teamwork; it ain't cheating at all, it's pretty much accurate to say that. Plus Espera specifically said there are no rules to begin with; how can anyone cheat in a race with no rules? Teamwork is not cheating, that I can assure you."

"That's what I'm worried about somehow. Still, anything could change from then to now, so we should be careful about it. Besides that, the race won't start unless we take our positions at the starting line. Those who can drive will go first, then the rest will choose whoever they want to go with. Sounds good?"

"Yeah, good enough," Sirica shrugged. "After all, having a partner to back up the driver basically gives us a cutting edge around things. In that case, everyone needs to pair up with the person they seem the best fit for them."

Racing Battle Mode

It's almost time for the race to begin! As someone who can't drive for multiple reasons, you need to pair up with someone who can drive and be their backup. If you remember from the Air Ride arc of Skylight Star, the controls remain the same- if you're playing as the driver. You're the backup buddy; you must defend your partner from other opponents in battle mode. The driver can also go offensive as well- still, it ain't gonna be easy as it seems. If at least one of your party members reaches first place, you win the race, so cover your teammates whenever you can and race to the finish! Beware- near the end lies an intimidating challenge. Have fun!

In front of us were a couple of empty vehicles that were not occupied by anyone else. They looked like dirt bikes and motorcycles for the most part. The people who can drive called first dibs on whatever kart they laid eyes on. Kirby hogged the motorcycle, Karly hounded an ATV, Meta Knight haggled a kart, Sirica hassled a hover bike, Dylan hopped into a kart, and Dash harbored a dune buggy. Everyone else just had to get on. I don't know why, but I found myself pairing up with Kirby all of a sudden.

"No fair, Kaila!" shouted Niva as she joined Karly along with Adeline. "Who said you get to ride with Kirby?! Stop trying to hog him all to yourself! Don't get so greedy!" I sweatdropped and sighed; Kazela jumped with Sirica who was next to Kirby and shrugged. Meta was with Jodie, Aege was with Dylan and Saito was with Dash. Everything's all set.

"You're going down, princess!"

"Seriously?" I sighed, latching close onto Kirby. "We're here to get that orb piece, not to murder each other over someone."

Kirby didn't mind the fuss, just as long as he was able to ride a motorcycle, so all I have to do is play defensive and offensive. The opponents were enemy robots, perhaps possessed players- not a big surprise there. I'm hoping to take them all out as soon as possible if possible. For now, it was going to start any moment and I could feel the imploding pressure piling on me personally.

A voice echoed abruptly to excite the fans in the bleachers, in which they roared with a competitive spirit. "Ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the main event! Today's race is a team battle as both teams duke it out to reach the finish line and win a special prize in today's special course- the infamous highway known as Mega-Drive Madness! This track is deemed our toughest and gruesome arena yet with deadly traps, sharp turns, ironic twists, and the marking place of the legendary cyberbeast rider, Volt Cerberus Theta! The question is, which team will make it to the end of this brutal course?! Will it be Team Haltmann or will Team Neonagenesis take the cake of this race?! We're about to find out now!"

"Haltmann Works Company robots are our opponents?" I slightly gazed at them and gasped. "We better slow them down if they get in our way."

Kirby nodded as he slowly moves forward to the starting line as instructed with the others. We nod to each other as an agreement to carry out the plan, even though we didn't actually have one, but it was straightforward and simple as it can only get. The starting gate was flashing with colors and everyone was on the edge of their seats to blast off into the race.

"It's now or never," I boldly declared. "Let's win this race."

"With pleasure," Kirby answered.

Let The Races Begin! Get Ready! 3! 2! 1! GO! (Park Avenue- Sonic Forces)

Instantly, the sound of burning rubber filled everyone's ears; both teams have sprinted with an extra starting boost at the same time. Ahead of us was nothing but the road, setting the tone for a free-for-all brawl. As of now, we were neck and neck with the other team as we sped through the highway stage at high speed. Dashing as it was, the bet were our own lives- this race will end depending on how we act as a team, so we can win as long as nobody-

"I call first shot!" Aege declared abruptly; as long as nobody does that recklessly. Oh well, it was unavoidable anyway from the start. As declared, since Aege and Dylan were close to the enemy team, Aege struck first cockily by shooting sticking time bombs on one of the drivers. The white light bombs flickered repeatedly until it imploded with blinding light and a massive boom that might as well wipe out the entire team in one fell swoop.

But it didn't.

"What?! That didn't work?!"

"Dude," Dylan shouted. "You should've waited until they swung first! There's no telling what tricks they could pull on us! Whoa!" He swerved away from the enemy, who retaliated back at them in the nick of time. It won't be long before the entire team follows in too. "Close one! And we had just started the race; them and the traps ahead! Where's Espera when you need her?!"

"Okay, new plan," Kirby pointed forward at the glowing prism stars floating just ahead. "We'll just use the old bait and punish technique on them!"

The moment we got close to the prism stars, it shattered upon contact; rather, it was an item star that randomly flashes an item like a spinning roulette wheel. The first item I had received was a giant rocket fist launcher, which morphed my arm in the process. Everyone received different items: Neon Machine Blasters, Hyper Beam Blades, Laser Mirrors and more.

"Ooh!" Niva squealed with her hands on a Death Laser Arm. "Now we're talking! Get a load of this!"

"Hold your fire, Niva!" Kirby shouted. "Not yet, we still have to get through halfway on the track first! Don't use them until we see what makes this track impossible!"

Oh yeah, this track is deemed impossible to begin with, so what makes it really impossible in the first place? It's not like it can attack us whenever it feels like it… can it? A straight line continued while the sights around us moved on its own. Naivety would make one think that the foretold dangers were nothing more than a bluff; that's why they get done in quickly.

That moment was when the road ahead of us immediately glitched as soon as we crossed the first checkpoint at once; what changed was that there were multiple forks in the road, revealing the "twists" of the track's reputation. No pun intended.

"No way! T-the road-! It just glitched into multiple paths!" Karly gasped. "Which way do we go?! What if it's a dead end?!"

"Perfect; that gives us the edge," smirked Kirby. "Everyone, pick a path and stick to it; we'll take them out separately and regroup at the end of this! Anyone up to the challenge?"

The party agreed immediately to his proposal and began to set this plan into motion as they each took a different path at random while luring one member from the other team to chase after them. We were the last one to take a path and had the enemy rider tail us from behind. The chase was on, or rather, the race was just getting started.

Tailed for sure, I glanced a shot up ahead to see the road glitching continually, soon to spawn the unpredictable but the foretold- the traps. A warning icon flashed on my headset instantly.

"Kirby! To the right, to the right!" I warned him.

He twisted the handle, squeezed the brake and swerved hard to the right as soon as I told him. A brilliant shockwave emitted in the middle lane, one seemingly powerful enough to make the road collapse. The Haltmann rider did the same and dodged the blast as well while gaining on us.

"A close shave!" Kirby exhaled. "Thanks for that, Kaila-!"

"To the left, to the left!" I warned him again, and he immediately swerved to the left, avoiding another incoming shockwave quaking by.

The rider still kept up with us even after the relentless waves of stage hazards dropped by. "And that's how this level got its name- it's trying to kill us!" I gasped for a break. "And that guy's still after us! Now he's really gonna get it!" I open fire with Platinum Laser, darting shots insanely fast as I could.

However, he activated a Mirror Shield and some lasers were repelled right back at us. One diced a small part of my cheek, but I barely take any damage against reflected attacks of my own, only small damage.

"Tch!"

"Just hang on for a little while," Kirby stated, steadily controlling his handle with ease. "No, actually, can you propel yourself with Platinum Laser for speed?!"

"Actually, yeah, I can do that," I answered while trying to fend off the robot. "What for?"

"Up ahead! We're approaching the "ironic twists" of this level- literally, starting with that tall ramp!" Just as he said, ahead was really a tall halfpipe with a gap at the jump and it was closing in fast. "Can you do it once we take off into the air?"

"Eh?! But that's… alright, I'll give it a shot!" I replied.

We zoomed by the second checkpoint leading to the halfpipe jump, the ground felt like it was preparing to liftoff like a plane with excessive turbulence as the aftershock. I concentrate energy to both my hands as we ascend the vertical plane like a fighter jet, and I was ready the moment we left the ground at the edge. The enemy followed that point too, and he was about to strike to seize the kill. But just when he was about to…

"NOW! FIRE!" That was my cue- I unleashed full fire at the climax, an enraged explosive aroma filled the air, lasers posing as fireworks immersed into display. In reality, it was a trick to propel the both of us from the enemy with air speed, flying faster and descending at the same time. Before I knew it, we smoothly landed on the other side unscathed. There was no sign of the opponent chasing after us.

"Whew, can't believe that actually worked," I whistled. "Now we can clear the rest of the race without worries… right?"

"Kaila," Kirby suddenly asked. "Do you like roller coasters? Or rather high-speed thrills?"

"Well, I've never been to a theme park before, but I do suppose thrills are my favorite kind of feeling. Why are you asking me a question like- KEYAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!?"

I found myself screaming right on a hard drop without warning, hugging Kirby even tighter with my heart pumped with adrenaline, my head rolling in circles while the harsh winds blew in my face like a giant fan at max. Before I knew it, the rush came to a steady pace into a spiraling tunnel ahead that was a freelance.

"That was… AWESOME! Round 2, Kaila?!" He whooped.

"Kirby, what the heck was that?!" I gasped, nearly losing my soul.

He giggled at the sight of my flustered face. "You're so mean…"

The scenery changed by every second going by, going through the motions and it made me dizzy. Soon, we ran into an item star; expecting another one, but it didn't take a genius to realize it was definitely different from the other ones. Instead, would you believe me if I said that it was actually another copy ability hiding in the star? The design seemed like a spinning top to me. Maybe it could be useful.

You got a new ability, Top-Blader, an Enhanced version of Top from the anime movie! 4/12 abilities collected!

While I stashed it away for Kirby, I noticed several other paths next to ours on both sides. Surprisingly, out came our other teammates unscathed and standing with no sign of the other enemy in pursuit. Maybe this might be easier than I thought. All the spiraling paths ejects every occupant out on the same wide ranged track together, and we land right smack in the middle.

"Hey guys! You made it!" I waved. "Did you take them down already?!"

"Of course, big sis," Kazela smirked. "Well, to be honest, it won't be long before they catch up, but we're way ahead of them all anyway in the lead. Still, they were right to call this track by its name; it really lives up to it."

"Agreed," Karly shook her head. "We barely escaped the traps and the sudden glitches that pop out of nowhere, nearly unpredictable!"

"That was the most fun I ever had in ages, beats being stuck in that prison ship!" Niva smiled.

"… I'm not gonna even ask what it was like in there," Sirica turns away.

And so we managed to see the end of the tunnel by a thrilling cannon shot that launched us all outside and onto the main track. We also crossed a checkpoint as well.

Final Checkpoint Reached! Progress Automatically Saved!

"Would you look at that?" Adeline cheered. "There's the finish line! We can make it if we hurry!"

It was lying in wait for us, just about lots of miles from our point of view. It was just right there that it was way too easy. Hard, but not impossible for us. In fact, it's almost like it was way too easy despite what we went through. And yet when I say that, I had a feeling it wasn't as easy as it looks at the present moment. Many heard the announcer speak his words.

"There's no sign of Team Haltmann at all! Seems like Team Neonagenesis managed to keep the lead throughout the entire ride, and they've reached the final checkpoint to reach the finish line! Can you believe it, folks?! This is the first time anyone as a team outlived the impossible course unscathed with all their allies! All that's left is for them to cross the finish line without- huh? Hang on, folks! There's actually someone cruising Team Neonagenesis from behind, and it's not any member of the other team at all!" The announcer shouts.

Looking behind us, it turned out to be really accurate to see a vehicle coming our way at high speed. Strange enough, no one could make out the vehicle nor who it was even though anyone can just zoom in on the person. Somehow, I could. A familiar aura surfaced and alerted my cognitive senses, immediately recalling back a list of auras I've sensed before. One second was all it took for me to recognize that aura; how would I know it? Because I was around it when I was captured the whole time.

"I'd recognize that aura anywhere… guys, you can tell who it is, right?" I asked.

Everyone nodded. "Without a doubt, it's one of THEM," Kirby answered. "And a new one we've never met before." My instincts were right on the money; rather, Espera was right.

"How sharp of you to notice I was even there," A male voice rung to match the aura. "And would you look at that? The whole gang's here, even the three little escapists themselves." A boy appeared, enveloped with electricity, standing on top of the machine. He looked like a punk thief to anyone else, to us we knew not his name but where he came from we knew. Frankly, he seemed pissed off about something.

"Just our luck; I guess Espera was right about you being here at the last minute or something," Kirby responded. "Let me guess: you got in trouble with Zero, did you? Pissed off that you didn't do anything about it?" Kirby was trolling him in a mocking tone.

He was not amused. "Very funny. I'll have you know that our butts were somehow saved by our little trap we dare call our brother. I would thank him if it weren't for the fact that our youngest sister was almost done in by the likes of you three, especially since he didn't even care! I'm starting to think he hated her from the beginning!"

"Gee, I can't imagine why," I thought. Everyone who ended up encountering her probably thought the same too, especially Meta. He had no idea the amount of crap that little brat put us through. The little trap, specifically Eclipse, caught my attention. I can tell things went smoothly with how Zero reacted and he saw it coming, so we best keep our mouths shut till we see him again.

"And you're telling us this… why?" Kazela asked. "It's not like anybody cares or anything, but what does that have to do with why you're here? Obviously you possessed the secretary to mechanize every player and take over the game. What good will wasting your time here will do for you?"

"You ask way too many questions for someone your age," He growled. "Well then, it's about time to shut you up along with the rest of your allies. You won't cross that finish line if you don't clear the main event- going against the boss of this level." The finish line glitched and vanished away with no trace but an infinite road that lies ahead of us.

That same ringtone buzzed just in time- Espera. "Guys! Thank god I got you in time! Listen, that Zero Knight has taken control of this level and got ahold of this stadium's most sacred vehicle! I scanned him a while ago and his offensive capabilities are insanely powerful as he controls electricity. So is that legendary vehicle he stole. His defense somewhat sucks though; I trust you can handle the rest with that info. Good luck, guys!"

"Understood," I answered. "Come at us, Zero Knight!" Our team got ready to fight against him.

"With pleasure," He cackled. "By the way, the name's Volt. Remember that because your brains are gonna be fried when I'm done with you! Taking you three back alive was one thing, but it seems more fun to beat the heck out of you!"

"Looks like things have taken a sharp turn, folks! With that, we'll throw in this brawl as the last trial! If Team Neonagenesis can defeat this mysterious individual, they win the race! Can they withstand the sheer power of their surprise opponent?! Let's watch and see how this turns out folks!" The announcer shouted. "Get ready! 3-2-1-GO!"

Battle Racing to the Finish- 30th Boss Battle

Team Neonagenesis VS Volt, Zero Knight of Screeching Sparks (Boss Phase/Dr. Eggman- Sonic VS Darkness: True Nightmare Revived)

Boss Description: With the shocking rage of all thunder, here stands Volt, the sixth member of the Zero Seven. The culprit that caused the takeover of Starlight Vacation by Haltmann Works Company, he is really a formidable opponent. But his anger gets the best of him easily and he rushes into things without ever thinking. And it seems that he aims to take you down because of what happened to Coral regardless of his master's orders. His shocks are insanely powerful; find a skill or an ability to shield you from his attacks!

Volt unleashes his short fuse fury! Let's ride!

The Zero Knight stood on top of his vehicle and it tailed right behind us. "Ok, here's the plan," Kirby instructed. "Try to maximize the gap between us so that we can counter his electric attacks in time. Anyone that gets a shield, use it! Keep your distance for attacking and don't-"

"You're going down, you discount Edward ripoff!" Aege bounced from Dylan and went straight for Volt head on like an idiot.

"…why bother?" He sweatdropped; yeah, why bother telling that to someone who doesn't think before they act? That was more than two to three times he's done this.

Aege repeated his cliché mistakes, blindly rushing Volt with a fury of attacks. What's really ironic is that he has the power to control time yet he barely uses it whenever he's like this. I don't think he has complete control over it because that would be an easy win, but heck if I know. I could tell he was using some amount of his aura as he made strikes undetected by the human eye.

Volt took the weight of damage and withstood it, preparing to counter the blows manipulated by the chrono trigger; for the moment, he had a hard time dodging every blow. With his hand enveloped with sparks, Volt swung upwards to counter the time-infested attacks.

Aege backdashed earlier than expected, yet a gleam flashed on Volt's eye. Surely he didn't expect a pillar of thunder burst out of nowhere and zap him directly but not entirely as Aege conjured a ripple to slow down the attack and to launch himself away from Volt and back with his partner. "No kidding, that hurts like hell! At least we got a headstart in the brawl!" At least something good came out of it. "His attacks can spread out quickly at will before anyone can react depending on the amount he produces."

"You could tell just from fighting him?" Adeline was surprised. "A-amazing…"

"Well, forget about trying to keep our distance if he can bend it to his extent," Aege continued. "We'll just strike whenever we can! Make yourselves useful and go for it!"

No time for thinking, only action was needed. And Volt took evasive action- his vehicle unlatched missiles from the side port one by one. They curved with confusion, making it harder to determine where it's gonna strike exactly. Meta slowed down for Jodie to dice every missile that comes our way.

Volt fired more missiles, one directly aiming for Sirica and Kazela at a fast speed. If I know one thing about Kazela, it's that she's full of surprises; you won't believe how accurate that was when she hopped off the motorcycle and managed to tame a missile by landing on top of it, seizing full control! She's already becoming a badass like our mother and father and me already, but this was on a whole other level! Everyone's mouths dropped, even Volt was shocked as well!

"H-how?! Damn brat! Dodge this!" A single missile sufficed to strike at my little sister, yet ironically it wasn't enough for her to show off when instantly she grabbed the missile without even trying! Kazela bore a grim, murderous look on her face when she dropped the caught missile and punted it back at Volt, this time it exploded within contact.

"Nah, YOU should've dodged!"

"Urk! That's impossible!"

"Pathetic," She scoffed. "I was expecting that hothead Molotov to be in rage, but it looks like your fuse is just too short. Like, really short."

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING SHORT?! I'LL SHOW YOU SHORT FUSE! TRANSMUTE DISCHARGE!" He clapped his hands together and transmuted the cycle with electricity as it flowed to the rolling wheels charges of spark saws arched in the air to defy the laws of physics. It was like he had mastered alchemy or something… I don't know he did what he just did, to be honest.

Kazela was unmoved even though she had cruised the missile to either dodge or defend those electric saw blades from hitting any of us. "Guys, did Espera ever mentioned short fuse here can use some sort of clappy magic? I thought those were reserved for people who have automail body parts and he doesn't have one!"

"It's not magic," growled Volt. "IT'S MY POWER, YOU DINGBAT! AND DON'T CALL IT CLAPPY MAGIC!"

Somehow Kazela is really good at triggering other people. In his fury, he had his vehicle increase its speed and leap over the entire team to land in front of us. I must've been hallucinating if I saw the body somehow arched itself a bit; it was black and golden with emerald green eyes and silver engine parts as if it was somehow alive. Anyway, he flashed more missiles from the hindquarters and some lasers as well.

Saito shot light beams to counter the missiles and lasers. Niva did the same thing too. Sirica open fire while controlling her handle at the same time. The rear end extended itself to concentrate on the tip a deadly energy beam and shot at us, but it was held in a parry by Kazela, rolled into a sphere and launched a hard spike at Volt, who inherited heavy damage. Adding disrespect, she swerved the missile vertically and kicked it straight at him before landing safely on Sirica. "…You really are something special, are you?" Sirica sweatdropped.

"Tch! You brainless freaks are really pissing me off!" Volt coughed. "I expected that kind of performance, but not like this! I've through playing around!"

Phase Two Activated!

"How about this? Cerberus Theta, Beast Mode Engage!" He used his clappy magic again and transmuted his motorcycle again before he jumped into the air, this time doing the unexpected- it unraveled itself when it flipped to reveal itself as a living mechanical cyberbeast dog!

"No way! That's Cerberus Theta, the legendary cyberbeast! How did he manage to get ahold of that?!" The announcer cried out. "Team Neonagenesis may have a hard time trying to take it down in that state! It's not a legendary cyberbeast for nothing!"

Volt jumped off Cerberus Theta as it stayed on the sidelines, and he skated with electricity under his soles to keep up with us. He started to pull some stunts to throw us off guard, and when he did a double kick, a shockwave emitted from the soles, zapping everybody in the process and suffering maximum damage.

Volt used his clappy magic again and from his palms shot a small orb of spark that flew up and multiplied, bearing down hails of thunderbolts in a frenzy. Even with a mirror shield, it pierced through the reflective defense, forcing the hiding to suffer. My vision flashes with the danger warning.

"Not even the mirror shields could handle the impact!" Niva casted a healing spell on everyone, raising it to half health. "At this rate, we're dead meat waiting to be fried! We need a better shield that can withstand this voltage of that capability! Otherwise, one more strike and we're finished! Unless anyone has a better idea, someone has to stop him from using his clappy hands!"

"How about that for short fuse, fools?!" Volt cackled. "You really thought that you could just insult me and get away with- ow! What the-?!" A rocket fist struck Volt without warning and returned back to the owner- me.

"Of course," I smirked. "Your ego made you oblivious to dodge that. Or this." I fired again directly; this time, he dodged it, just as planned. The second he got cocky, he was punished for it as the arm retracted and laid a clean hit on the back of his head.

"Didn't see that one coming, did you? Or that." Wondering what I meant, blasted suddenly he was by Adeline's paint rocket, smearing him in goop.

He angrily brushed the paint off and instantly vanished into lines of sparks. Flashing on top of a rail, he snap his fingers, signaling an assault from the cyberbeast who exhaled balls of electricity for Volt to spike; he went to the ground, a Gaia of thunder erupted into a zapping pillar like a volcano exploding lava. We barely managed to avoid it.

"Jesus, how much or what will it take just to drop you deadbeat roaches into a coffin?!" He snarled.

Aege quickly answered, "I don't know, how about some free hacks, cheat codes, and uncensored content access for a change? Maybe… release our friends and free "anime" if you know what I mean."

"What makes you think I have any of those?" Volt sweatdropped.

"To be fair," added Karly. "You did cause the game to be hacked; it's only natural to assume you got something valuable out of it. And speaking of which, that makes me more curious to know what it is you got! I'd be willing to pry it out of you by force!"

"Pff, as if! Even if I did, you still haven't beaten me yet, and you'll be fried before you could even get to land a finishing blow! I bet you don't know why!" Volt cockily laughed.

"Why bother? We can just make you kick the bucket if we felt like it," I shrugged. "Besides, you have yet to actually beat us. The race isn't over yet! Now do everyone a favor and drop down as the loser, okay?" I reappear right in front of him and deliver a hard blow to the stomach, throwing him off his senses before being hurled directly at the cyberbeast.

"Why you-! That does it! You're all going straight to hell!" Volt roared. "Cerberus Theta! Death Mode right now!" Cerberus Theta's eyes turned blood red, leaping all the way from the background to the foreground in front of us. It curled into a ball and cruised forward only for us to move out of the way before it swerved and went in reverse, flipping back into its normal state.

Technically, I was still on the rails when I came into contact with another Item Star, but I noticed it was different just like the last one. It was green this time and it had a shield symbol on it- that's all there was to it. Say, we did need a shield that can handle even the strongest of attacks thrown at us, right? I hoping this could work!

You got a new ability, Shield! Your defense will automatically increase and you will take less damage from high tier attacks nearly to the point of invulnerability/invincibility. Perfect for no damage runs. Not only that, your skills gain significant power in both offensive and defensive forms; shield your allies, absorb/reflect/erect spells, and much more! Don't mess with the Shield Hero! 5/12 abilities collected!

"Kirby! Catch this!" I dropped the ability direct over Kirby as I shouted. He grabbed it without the need to look and transformed. A long pink cape flew through the wind, and a silver shield with a pink gem on it occupied his right arm. Anyone would think a shield's only good for defending, and that's a stereotype in my opinion. It can do so much more than anyone thinks, and Kirby is about to demonstrate its capabilities.

Cerberus Theta started doing somersaults backwards while kicking sparks on its hind legs and went straight at the others.

"Bounce Shield!" He stretched his hand forward, erecting a huge shield in a flash at the moment it struck, repelling the attack even if it kicked the shield multiple times. The amount of damage done to the shield equals the counter-damage to the attacker, and Volt suffered the penalty instead.

The cyberbeast launched Volt straight at the others, specifically Karly was the target. She didn't falter by that attack because she hoist herself and high kicked him without letting go of the handles; Niva and Adeline jumped him while they were at it before Karly dropkicked Volt and swept him aside to Meta, who simply landed one punch and Jodie knocked him forward.

Teching the ground impact and jumping backwards, he was left open and struck by both Aege and Saito by surprise, shot directly by Sirica, rammed by Dash and Dylan, and went flying backwards. He skid on the ground and leapt onto the cyberbeast, clapping his hands together for his final attack.

Unexpectedly, he was frozen in place before he could even make his move; surely no one ever thought this was Kazela's doing. Her eyes were scarlet red, so she must've froze him with her blood stare.

She landed right in front of Volt and shouted, "Okay, no more clappy magic!"

Her jaw revealed her sharp teeth and she just straight up sunk her fangs into his neck, neutralizing his ability. She lustily licks her mouth after enjoying her meal and jumps back to Sirica's side.

"Agh! That little brat is an S-rank vampire?! Damn it, no wonder I couldn't match up to her!" Volt groaned. "Still, this ain't over yet! You haven't won in the slightest!"

"I don't know about that one, chief," Kirby smirked. "We've won already. Haven't you forgotten someone, Zero Knight? Also, look down."

The moment he finished saying that, I dropped down and bounced from his head to land behind Kirby. He was confused at first, but when he actually looked down, a look of surprise and dread personalized his face, but it was too late.

"Checkmate," I snapped my fingers.

A burst of shining crystals exploded effective immediately, followed by a trail of gem explosions enveloping both Volt and Cerberus Theta at once. Everything started glitching, and the finish line appeared ahead of us, with everyone crossing the checkered plates at the same time. By that moment, a huge explosion launched both Volt and Cerberus Theta into the air and onto the ground as we came straight to a halt.

"This… can't be… happening… ugh," Volt collapsed on the ground and the cyberbeast crashed too.

"GAME, SET AND MATCH, FOLKS! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! THIS SPECIAL EVENT'S WINNER IS TEAM NEONAGENESIS!" The announcer cheered in surprise. "HOLY STARLIGHT! WHAT A RACE TO REMEMBER!"

"WE WON!" Everyone cheered.

Volt has been defeated! Your team won the race! Victory!

You gained 2050 experience points! You are now Level 33!

Health has extended to 1120! All stats rose by 125!

Perk Discovered: Element Absorb! Received 30 Code Crystals each!

All items collected in the race are now usable in battle!

You got a new ability, Magnet, a Fusion of Metal and Plasma! 6/12 abilities collected!

Next Level in 2100 experience points.

A boom of cheers erupted around the stadium, congratulating the winning team for actually beating the impossible track in racing history of Starlight. Hopping off the bike, the others gathered around in this stylish victory.

"Not gonna lie, but that was freaking awesome!" Aege cackled. "Especially the part where Kaila snapped her fingers and made Volt explode! I gotta hand it to ya, it was genius to plant that crystal bomb at the moment you dealt that hard blow before the final phase!"

"Heh, I guess the cat's out of the bag, huh?" I giggled.

Oh, in case you were wondering about how the bomb got onto Volt at all, it's exactly as Aege said. I can plant Crystal Bombs on anyone without their consent and can set it off anytime at moments they'd least expect it. I can stick it to opponents even without touching them. Neat concept, right? Still, I can't plant a lot rapidly or else I exhaust my energy.

Besides that, the important thing is that we won the race and beat a Zero Knight. And so the attendants came up to us to give us our prize, our reason for being here in the first place. A digital trophy that marks us as the first players to ever beat the track and our real prize handed over to us.

You got another piece of the Thunder Orb! One more left!

"We're getting close, guys! We'll grab that last piece and spirit and go rescue Zeta and Knuckle Joe!" Kirby declared. "The train should be on the other side by now."

"Yeah, but first," Karly turned to the fallen knight. "Answers comes first." Volt staggered to get up, clutching his arm to tear off a crystal impaled in there.

"Feh, not bad. Damn, you surpassed my expectations in more ways than one," Volt dropped the crystal coated with blood, and it shattered. "Seems like we never stood a chance even in that cursed state from the start, and you managed to pull through. Pretty strong you are, but not strong enough; you still have a long way to go if you even wish to stand a chance against Master, not that you could with his current power."

"Oh please, they always say that," Kazela refuted. "Even if that's the case, we can still stand a chance even if it seems slim. I believe beating you and the rest of your forces proved that enough, right? And don't even think about trying to use your clappy magic right now."

"Ugh, what's the point in arguing?" Volt shook his head. "We'll just settle this another time. And since I did lose, I suppose it's fair to at least tell you something worthwhile in exchange. The impossible level is more than it appears to be, even without the other world's interference. There's another reason behind its impossibility, not only for the current reason as of now."

"What are you talking about?" Meta asked.

"You'll understand once you get there yourself," The knight dusts himself off. "Better hurry if you want to save your friends. And I'll be back to crush you all for good the next time. Just remember this: Nobody messes with the Zero Knights! And no more clappy magic nonsense!" He flashed and dispersed quickly in the blink of an eye; he was gone.

"How is that going to be any use to us anyway?" Saito replied. "We already know they're up there and the tower does lead to the inside of the company, so what more do we have to keep expecting?"

"Anything as soon as we get there," Niva answered, pointing to the exit. "Right now, our chariot awaits our departure, and by that, I mean the train's already here."

"Ok, thanks Mr. Save Point Guy," Kirby thanked the announcer.

"Actually, my name is-"

"-MR. SAVEPOINT GUY." He repeated again.

There was a lift that led to the terminal departure point to leave the stadium by train. After getting a group photo to commemorate the win, we took the lift and was transported to the train, where the cyborg maids greeted us with splendor and joy.

"Congratulations on beating the third level," They replied. "You must be exhausted, please rest inside." Standing aside, the doors were open for us as we went inside with the maids behind us, thus the doors closing itself upon the last entry. We went away with a trophy, an orb piece, and our newfound dignity and pride.

Level Three Complete!

Once again sitting in the dining car, we sat in exhaustion and relief and with our stomachs growling. The maids prepared the meals ahead of time, and pretty much most of us ate like animals. Kirby cruised through his in a few minutes flat, assassinating his own food to wipe the stuck grains off his cheek with a napkin, not leaving one drop of food to its life spare.

"Targets eliminated," He burped. "Excuse me."

I let out a slight giggle. "How cute." Kazela and I said together in unison.

The train was already in motion to leave the humongous third level and onto the next. Looking outside the windows filled me with excitement on moving vehicles; isn't it just exciting to admire and appreciate the scenery and themes of a new place you go to? I felt like I could watch that for a long time. This was a virtual reality game; it still nails that nostalgic concept even in the world of make-believe.

Such a thought could easily get one killed. At some point in our lives, we had our own fantasies, it's what drives us to do extraordinary things in life no matter the difficulty made for it. In the end, you get what you want… at a cost in exchange. What matters the most is that everyone gives up the same thing- their perception of reality. And reality dominates fantasy in many ways. Even if you have it easy, reality won't allow you to ignore it; it wants to show you what the real world really is- a den of sin and broken dreams, and it's getting worse every day.

The very thought of my experience gets me every time. I was just a kid when I had to go through that, could you even expect a kid to accept a situation like that casually? Only a realist can do that. For me, I was in the middle of things after I became human. I had to accept the fact that I'll never see them again, yet I felt I could see them. Still, I was being delusional in the past 8 years until we went to Popstar, only to be thrown into the same situation as before.

Because I heard about visiting Popstar, I came with the conclusion that Kazela could be somewhere on their home planet, thinking she may be alive or somewhere else. And my fantasy became reality when I found out Kirby found her. It was like God answered my prayers in an unexpected way. Who knows? Maybe the damage done by Zero will be undone by the end of this.

As I play on these facts, Kazela tugs on my shoulder. "Big sis, you were amazing back there! Teach me how to do that bomb surprise thing sometime!"

"Er, I suppose so…" I blushed; little did she know, I'm actually amazed at her performance recently. The amount of time she spent with Kirby and the others must've gave her a good view in combat enough to pull off those deadly stunts. She may be better than me.

"Still, I should be saying that to you. Maybe everyone can agree that you were the real MVP of that fight. You rode missiles and caught one like it was nothing special to you, not to mention the amount of disses and that vicious bite of yours! The real question I'm trying to figure out is how the heck did you become a vampire in the first place?"

Everyone agreed with my statement at once. In reply to my question, she simply shrugged and said, "That's something I can't explain right now. I may have an idea what caused my powers in the first place, but I'm not confident it's a valid trigger. Sorry."

"Well, I suppose it's nothing that urgent, so I'll leave it for the time being," I answered. "Anyway, it seems there's only one orb piece left, so let's focus on that for now." As I said that, a familiar tone echoed; it was Espera.

"Hey everyone! You all did great at the last level! Way better than I had anticipated," She responds. "And you got another orb piece as well! You're doing great so far!"

"Thanks for that," Aege answers. "Didn't even break a sweat; that was awesome! You should do that more often." Saito sweatdropped.

"So how's everything on your end there?" Karly asked.

"Everything's fine at the moment, nothing dangerous occurring or anything yet. Turns out some of the players around were somehow freed and returned to normal again, so that's good news."

"Glad to hear that," I smiled. "Say, how long till we reach Level 4?"

"Ah, you mean the Retro Chamber? That's where you'll find the key to reaching the last level," Espera confirms.

"Not so fast, we don't exactly have all the orb pieces, do we?" Adeline reminded us. "If the chamber is the fourth level, then where are we supposed to get it?"

"Actually, that is now act two of Level 4; you need to get through act one of Level 4- Retro Rock Rhythm," Espera answers. "It was once a city before it became one big rock park. Simply put, it'll take you to where the orb piece is and the chamber will appear once you retrieve it. After that, we can only take you as far near the entrance to the last level, so you're on your own there." Espera explained.

"It shouldn't be that difficult of a level, right?" Dylan asked. "Nothing too hard… that depends on the mechanics for that level; do we have to do something to get it?"

"That, I have no idea at this point. Still, you should be able to breeze by through it in a flash once you arrive there in about 10-20 minutes or so. Besides that, we did manage to get something out of the magazine from Monokitsune. It appears to be some sort of hidden code for something, I don't know what it's for exactly. We'll see if we can get any more info about it. In the meantime, just take your time until then. If anyone is exhausted, feel free to switch out with someone for the moment. I'll call if something does happen."

"Alright, thanks you, Espera," Kirby answered. The call ended there. Just a little while longer and we'll arrive at Level 4 soon. We were getting closer to the last level, where our friends are trapped in along with that demi-virus. Time is put on haste as not any of us knows their fate.

If anything, maybe Zeta was captured, that's a more reasonable possibility. But Knuckle Joe… he could be fighting for his life right now… I just wish that wasn't the scenario taking place as we speak. That means we have to hurry before it becomes game over for him… With no clear sense of our time limit, the train cruises to Level 4 as quickly as it could.

Sirica sighed and looks outside directly at Paradis Tower, an expression of impatience and worry mixed together with a pinch of a firm resolution. "Oh, Knuckle Joe... he should've at least told me he was doing something reckless beforehand. Then again I didn't do the same either. I guess we're both idiots… oh well, nothing I can do about him now." A face that clearly implies she doesn't care took control of her and with a shrug.

"You say that like it's a normal thing," I sweatdropped. "He could potentially die, you know. We don't even know what kind of threat he's up against; could you be even sure about that?"

"A bit overdramatic, princess," She replied, fidgeting with her weapon's blade. "Don't worry, KJ tends to survive situations he got himself into, even if the odds are against him; well, to be fair, he lost to Kirby that way before after thinking his father was killed by him."

"Really?!"

"No, not at all, if it was the part about Kirby killing his father."

"Oh, thank goodness."

"Meta Knight done his father in," Sirica answered, pointing at Meta- I sweatdropped. "But that was because he was forced to fight him after he was under Nightmare's control. Yeah, he doesn't like to talk about it, even Meta."

Glancing at Meta without his consent, I find it hard to believe that he had killed someone. And no, I'm not talking about when they fight monsters or anything like that.

"Besides," Sirica continues. "We'll be there to help him as long as he doesn't croak yet. For the moment, he'll be okay… at least I think he should be."

Well, that wasn't reassuring at all. But then, she knows him better it seems, so I'll trust her judgement for the time being. I can't help but think that warrior could be in danger... only when we get there will we know for sure… I could tell that for sure when I stared at Paradis Tower, a commotion was brewing at the same time…

Meanwhile…

"AGH!"

A blast of a neon laser fired through the ground to eliminate its opponent, the odds are stacked against that rebel as he was blown back into a wall, suffering major damage. A spiky, yellow haired boy with a headband that separated his hair on the sides and a red jewel in the middle while red and white ribbons flow from behind, wearing a blue battle suit originally without sleeves, wide blue shoes and white gloves, light emerald eyes inferior to simple black, and dressed in scars laid nearly conscious under a blanket of rubble. Quickly recovering from that last blow, he glanced at the enemy who lowered her weapon.

"Her" as in the opponent was a girl; a demi-cyborg, to be exact. She was already a cyborg before she arrived here. She's suffered a considerable amount of damage, but her scars were less than her opponent. The warrior knew that damn well as he was on top of the final level, one of the first to do so. When he came to the beta test after discovering a Demon Beast was inside, he immediately went into action. He was not expecting to fight her at all, and by "her" I mean-

"Zeta." He growled under his breath. The girl, confirmed to be Zeta, glared at him, insistent of disposing him at once.

"You're still alive, Knuckle Joe? I was certain that last attack should've finished you off," She responds robotically yet humanly as possible as it seems to have sounded like. "And I was hoping to do that before those interferences arrive here. Not a problem, I'll make this quick and painless."

Knuckle Joe rubbed under his nose as per usual. "It's gonna take you a couple more years before you even have a chance of beating me, even if you are possessed. Normally I don't like taking down puppets, but in your case, I guess that demon beast is too much of a coward to fight me face-to-face. We'll just be here all day."

Zeta smirked. "Then, I'll just take my time and make your defeat slow and painful instead." She instantly took the first swing in that continuous round and rushed at Knuckle Joe in direct melee range.

Knuckle Joe blocked her first punch, causing a boom and debris to fly. The rebound pushed back Zeta, and she rushed again and struck with balance. Knuckle Joe parried her legs made of iron as she went at him, then the next attack was an axe kick in which he blocked, followed by a flying pinpoint kick from above, making him dodge the fury of blows and countered with a single punch that came into contact with the heel of Zeta's shoes. He exerted a fair amount of force to push her back and his fist was surrounded with a blue aura.

"Smash Punch!" He shot a blue energy ball while Zeta was airborne, which was a direct hit. Zeta took damage and didn't flinch, only to skid back on the ground. Knuckle Joe clapped his palms together, concentrating aura in the space between, turning kafrizz red.

"Mega Force Blast!" He fired a deadly burst ball at an incredible speed straight towards Zeta.

Zeta, without morphing a weapon with her body, did the same, using aura made with electricity of blue and fired. "Thunder Spear." A bolt of that energy ignited, and the two attacks clashed and cancelled each other. Knuckle Joe fired more Vulcan Jabs as Zeta dashed in to close the gap between them. After a Smash Punch was thrown, she slides under the shot and techs her footing to propel herself towards him with a kick.

With fast reflexes, Joe limbo ducks under the dash kick and once she missed, Joe spun himself to counterattack. "Roundhouse!" His leg was surrounded by blue aura, unleashing a horizontal beam wave from his leg. Zeta was struck from behind but she didn't hesitate to rebound from the wall and backflip in the air to strike with a high speed sky kick. Knuckle Joe evaded it quickly, running for a leg sweep. Zeta instantly jumps and double kicks Knuckle Joe from behind.

He managed to recover by the time Zeta was about to strike and he countered; a fist-to-fist clash echoed across the top floor tower. A fury of exchanging fists of fury at each other like it was a fight between Stand Users shouting their battle cry that became memes. Finally, the clash ended with the two of them surprisingly but in a cliché way managing to strike both faces before retreating away from each other. Both were half out of breath and still standing.

"Feh, I might've underestimated you after all," exhaled Zeta. "You may be harder to drop dead like the other party of lab rats around here. Even one of the Zero Knights fell to their strength."

"Huh? Other players? Oh, so that's what it's all about. No wonder this game was targeted, it was meant to stop those players from reaching here. She could be talking about anyone else, but I know that among them must be the others after all. If that's the case, then all I need to do is buy some time for them for as long as I can." Knuckle Joe thought. Zeta smiled arrogantly as he thought of this. Another thought came to mind.

"But how long can I do that? I still have to break the mind control on her before anything else somehow or fight the coward of a demon beast at the risk of guaranteed defeat. There's no way you can escape a boss fight in games, and it took me two years in the game to reach the top- nothing but fighting almost every step of the way. Luckily, I'd figured this could happen, otherwise I wouldn't have made those shortcuts for nothing. But besides that, I've heard this was the only entrance inside the company, and beating that virus breaks the seal to the real world. Whatever I missed on the way here, the others will take care of that." Joe mentally sighed without physically showing it.

"What's the matter, cat got your tongue?" She teased him humanly. "And after all that talk about giving me a "Knuckle Sandwich" didn't cut it, huh? I'm surprised you managed to reach the top of this impossible level without a single sweat broken. Many others would've gotten the death penalty the moment they step foot inside; I was certain of that, but I suppose I was once again proven wrong by people like you, especially those two warriors of your league. This time, I'll ensure that claim permanently."

"That change in her voice… that wasn't Zeta at all! So I've been fighting the real mastermind through Zeta?! And that last sentence of hers, no doubt it was them she was referring to. That does it! I have to break the mind control first!" He kept this thought dominant as his resolve.

"By doing everything you did so far? You must be out of your mind to even use someone else's body just so you can speak to people to save face. If you think you can take me down and attempt to take over the world, my answer is-" He readied himself to show he wasn't going to hold back. "BRING IT ON!"

"Eager to die, I see. Then, I won't hold back either," Zeta morphed her hand into a blaster. "YOU SHALL BE ELIMINATED!"

"All right! No turning back now! Those guys better hurry!" He didn't hesitate to think. "It's definitely on!"

The brawl was about to continue like this in the time unknown as limited. Knuckle Joe was staking his life to free the Thunder Princess Zeta from the mind control caused by the demi-virus demon beast while the Mother Computer remains still in the background, unbeknownst to others it was more than what it seems. While this forced battle continues, every battle has a crowd of spectators, and there's one who is right now watching the brawl unfold behind the scenes as the puppeteer.

"My, what a bold native warrior he is; seriously, I didn't calculate him coming into the picture after the princess did. But a little more from her and he'll crack like a hardboiled egg. How's the Mother Computer?" The secretary loomed and sneered.

"It'll be done soon to take in effect," The robots replied. "What about the other robots?"

"As soon as the revived Mother Computer is complete without any accidents, unleash them too," She answers. "But maybe send at least one out for the time being. I'll deal with the other pests myself."

"Yes, ma'am," They complied, and soon they acted on her orders.

After they left the room, the secretary cackled to herself. "Espera's such a damn persistent video game/anime obsessed geek, yet she's able to get right through everything I set up with her army of lab rats, including Pinky. How does she do it? I have no idea. Even so, she's dead meat along with the rest of her little friends by the time they try to stop me; I'll crush them all in one shot! They'll pay for the humiliation and the pain I suffered! Ah, but I'll take my time to enjoy it all, and so will you, inferior me."

The light through the darkness that laid dormant the entire time didn't respond. Normally the real persona would've been likely unconscious by then- not this girl. True, she did lose almost everything to them, but what do you expect when you try to take over a planet? Nonetheless, she didn't blame them entirely, they actually did her a favor instead in more ways than one. To just stab them in the back by turning evil would mean betraying everything they've done for her, and she didn't want that.

"What? Nothing to say this time? Good for you, it's about time you've learned your place here because I'm in control. Rebel again, and you'll regret the day you were born. Enjoy the domination," The secretary said with a normal smile masking her true persona. The screens displayed the current standing of the others who weren't inside the game, tracking their every move. As she sipped on her drink, an immediate reaction was spitting out the coffee. "Ugh, gross! Someone get me another cup immediately!"

One robot did so. She drank it. She spat it out. And it repeated. "Ugh, too black! Too strong! This one's wrapped in black! And this one's dyed in white! Too much sugar! Too little sugar! I said it's too black, strong, and white! Put some creamer in it, god! What's wrong with you?! You know I hate creamers, make it black, strong and white again. Perfect, just the way I like it. Thank you for your services."

"How did things end up this way?" The calm light sweatdropped. "I don't even hate creamers, I don't like mine black. That parallel persona is killing me right now."

Back at the Laboratory…

"Looks like everything is going smoothly, guys," Espera exhaled, her boobs hopped a little as she did so. "They're almost at the final level, so just wait a little longer, okay?"

"How can I after seeing that race?!" Dedede exclaimed. "Especially Kazela and Kailaine's performance! I didn't see that coming! It's the truth!"

"Calm down, Dedede," Bandana Dee said. "You know that they're staking their lives, right?"

"Well, it is a game, you're supposed to have fun with it," Maddie defended. "Otherwise, nobody would've bought that game if it wasn't any fun."

"So, what now?" Merina asked. "I'm kinda bored here, and I'm still wondering how did that magazine ended up getting out to the public?"

"Who knows? Luckily I don't see any of that on front pages of social media right now, so I guess we're safe for now," Dinah confirmed. "If by anything, it could be just another troll by that cub again."

"Meaning that we were getting worked up over for nothing if we assume that was the case?" Callie sweatdropped. "Geez, I think I'd rather take on a bunch of robots than to deal with that embarrassment."

"Hmm?" said Fololo as he glanced outside the windows. "That's weird…"

"Something the matter?" Mackenzie asked him.

"I suddenly have a bad feeling about this and I don't know why," He answered, darting his eyes around the window cautiously.

"So am I," added Falala. "It felt like we're being stared down right now by someone we can't see, and it isn't human for sure."

"You mean like a robot or something?" Aqua asked.

"I can't tell for sure, but I don't think anything's going to happen yet at least," He replied. "Still, that feeling won't go away for some reason."

"Espera," Yae turned to her in that regard. "What should we do about that?"

Espera walked over to the window; she could somehow feel that same dread too, but the aura wasn't hostile as she anticipated. "Huh, I see what you mean. It must be her; don't worry, she wouldn't dare try anything until our backs are turned, so we should be fine."

"Um, do you mean that in a literal sense or-?" Adena was shushed by Callie.

"In the other sense, if you catch her drift. Best not to say anything cliché right now."

"Anyway, just in case something extraordinary does take place, we'll be ready to counter that soon today, and I'll make sure of that personally." Espera concluded, turning back to her task at hand after advising everyone to stay away from the windows for safety reasons to avoid worst case scenarios. However, she was in deep thought.

"I didn't get anything else out of that code from that magazine, only the letters "M-O-R-P-R-A-G/E-X-E." and the other set being "M-E-D-R-A-T-A-R-S-L-O-U-S-E-M-L-R-E-T-Z-O-E-R-R-E." Even if we knew what it was, the real question is what are we supposed to use that for? Trying to decipher that code right now without knowing the purpose of it is pointless at this time. Maybe until the others reach the top, I'll be certain to figure it out." Espera thought.

She's technically right. Even if you did figure it out, you still wouldn't know the purpose of that code anyway, so it's useless to crack it until the use of it can be found. So what was a curvy professor of gaming and anime to do?

"Perhaps Kirby and Meta could guess the meaning of those words, but I'll wait until after they reach the last level. There's some sort of link between Skylight Star and the Planet Robobot incident mixed together in Starlight, so by figuring out details of those facts and their relationship together, that could hint what this code is really meant for! Monokitsune wouldn't just give up his favorite magazines or anything just like that without a reason behind it, and ain't no way he'll just straight up tell us. He wants us to figure it out for ourselves! After all, can you really benefit if you were just told what to do without knowing why? In order for people to obey the rules, they must reach that same conclusion for themselves and take it to heart. Figuring out why the things before us exist ourselves makes people more inclined to it as if they were led by God's hand, well, at least that's what he said."

The professor realized the meaning of those words by Monokitsune, "Upupu, so you wish to become a professor, right? Well, for starters, you can't be one without knowledge, and knowledge is useless without logic and vice versa. The world is full of mysteries not even the smartest could solve, but being a professor is not about having all knowledge regardless of what they teach people, that's not how I see it. If you wish to be one, it's to know how to use it to your benefit and to others as well, or simply take action using what you've learned, because what good is knowledge if you can't use it?"

"But not everyone wants to be a genius or anything like that."

"Of course, we all have free will; we're not born robots, thank God for that. To be fair, almost everyone will want freedom from rules to do whatever they want without someone telling them what's right and wrong. Think like that and you're as good as the dust you came from! You can see why there are rules for everything yourself, right? Like the rules of the road when driving, there's a set limit as to what you can do with the vehicle and the rules to clarify those reasons, and you know what happens if you don't abide by them?"

"An accident occurs at the risk of being hospitalized or most commonly, death."

"Exactly! People with no regard to the rules always hurt others more than they hurt themselves, and the innocent falls victim in the end! It's a shame some people can't follow a simple rule and wants to have their own rules to do whatever they want. They failed to realize the point of rules, to make perfect balance in all things as it should be for everyone's safety, and the world as we know it promotes no rules daily. We know right from wrong, many just chose to ignore that. No wonder they suffer the most!"

"Um, where are you getting at?"

"My point is, you need to stop and think over things before you act! You're more prone to suffer if you think the rules are restrictive, that's why consequences are made, to discipline people who breaks the boundaries so no one follows that example! God gave you a conscience for your brain, so you use it to save yourself from the consequences and the pain that comes with it! In terms of knowledge, don't bark more than you can bite!"

"And how do I do that?"

"Everything you have requires knowledge and it varies. Being a professor in the field of gaming and animation and plus more requires extensive knowledge from basic in school, but you have that capability for sure. Nonetheless, take it one step at a time and soon you'll be making games in no time! You can't make games if you don't know how to do it!"

"But what if I don't know what to do in a situation I never been in before without any help?"

"Logic. Not everything will be explained to you because sometimes people can't take it in at once. So what should you do? Use logic, knowledge, reasoning and any other method to come up with ways to escape a dead end or to solve a complex mystery waiting for you to find a solution. Most importantly, believe you can do it, no room for doubts. Apply those principles in your life, and you will be a wise person… probably."

"Oh, I think I understand now."

"I see, in this case, why do I have to wait when I can just ask someone about it instead? I haven't gotten much info about HWC during their pillaging through planets or anything about the Angeloids and Beast Knights then or about the rifts to other dimension planes, so this is my only chance to crack this code! I may have only one shot at this, so it's worth a try!" Espera made her resolve.

She stopped her footsteps in a calm manner, turning around to the others to fulfill what she intends to do. "Actually, there is one more thing I need to ask of you all. Can you all tell me what you know about that program on Skylight Star and more about the Robobot incident? Trust me, I can't explain it right now, but there's something I wish to confirm before we move on." She asked.

They looked at each other and nodded. "If it's gonna help you, then why the heck not? Definitely, Espera."

She smiled contently. "Thank you, guys. I promise I'll explain my reason for asking you all this!"

"No problem," replied Dedede. "Glad to help."

"Hopefully," thought Espera one more time. "This could answer the secret behind that code in that magazine and maybe what we could use it for. Only one way to find out!"

In the meantime as she asked them everything they could recall, the players are soon arriving at the next level, where both the last orb piece and the Gem Soul Spirit Teravolt lies in wait, whereas Knuckle Joe attempts to free Zeta from mind control and buy enough time for the allies to arrive in time. Three conflicts happening at once? What will be the outcome?

And that strange feeling looms in ever closer as these events take place… soon, it will bloom…

Now Saving… Save Complete!

To be continued…

End of Chapter 6 Act 3!

Author's Note Summary:

And that wraps it up for today! This one was a challenge to write for me, but I still enjoyed it anyway and I hope you did as well! I would've posted this a little earlier, but due to complications during the first week of school and the fact that the website wasn't working for me at school and only at home but it works for PC in one class, tons of work, and today's crisis Hurricane DORIYAH, there were tons of delays. Hopefully you understand that.

Now for a recap. First, I had a bit of trouble trying to direct the flow of events, but eventually I got through and started off with a bit of info and group bonding. And as you can see, surprisingly Kaila was banned from driving because of a little something called Mario Kart; I mean she was so good that she was banned like Meta being banned in Brawl tourneys for being so good. Of course, Kirby can drive as proven in Robobot and the Kirby Derby episode in the anime and whatever else. I guess he forgot he swallowed his license after that.

The stadium is in fact a massive hub area and it was supposed to be similar to Route 99 from Sonic Advance 3. Moving on, I guess it was like Double Dash with a teammate with you and you had to work together to come out on top. Mainly, the race was inspired by the Mega Race scene of Spy Kids 3: Game Over, which is my favorite part of the movie. But in the end, you'd still compare this to Mario Kart… probably. Top-Blader is from the anime movie, so just clarifying that part.

And here comes my favorite part: the boss battle. I wanted to write this part out for a while and now I get to show it off! Volt appears as the challenger of the track, pissed off that Coral almost bit it, but you wouldn't give a Nova's butt about it, right? Probably not. The fight begins and it was an awesome performance from everyone, but I think you can all agree that the real MVP of this fight was once again Kazela! Her performance, now that's something you don't see every day. Actually, this fight was inspired by the Lunar and Cerberus Alpha boss battle from Mischief Makers on the N64 (which I do not own). It was my favorite and you should try it.

Also, the track used for this fight was from the Sonic fangame which the demo is out while the full version is in development. It's really awesome, so check that out. Hope you also get the references in that fight as well. Oh yeah, that new ability Shield, it was straight up inspired by The Rising of the Shield Hero, my favorite anime of this year and it'll be yours too! If you haven't watched it yet, just know you will enjoy episode 21 as you watch through it all. I know I did, and so did everyone else watching the anime. Let me know how much you enjoyed it. Don't mess with Naofumi, ya hear us?!

So, after Volt got clapped with his own clappy magic, they are marked as the first to ever actually beat the hardest track in Starlight history, and after thanking Mr. Save Point Guy, they board the train to the next level and rest themselves up. While they do that, another event is taking place, one you didn't expect to show up in the chapter- Knuckle Joe vs Zeta, adding in the dark side from the secretary's point of view along with her former persona. And some coffee humor, if you don't mind.

Finally, Espera is lost in thought about what to do next after discovering the hidden code found in the magazine. By the way, as mentioned before, even if you figure out the code, it's apparently useless because you don't know what good is that for, but I'd like to see what you think the code is in your opinion, so take a guess as you review. See if you can guess what the code is and the purpose of it; take your best guess! (If you did crack the code, try to keep it discreet as to not spoil the other readers until further chapters.) Recalling the words of Monokitsune, she attempts to discover the meaning behind that code herself by asking the others more about the incident. And so it ends there.

Sorry you had to read all of that. I didn't cover everything to be exact, so you're gonna have to ask me in your reviews or through PMs. Originally I was gonna hold this one off and post this along with the next one, but again, complications occur, so my options are very limited for the time being, especially with Hurricane Doriyah (Dorian) on its way here. So for now, you get this and more unanswered questions to go along with your previous unanswered questions. Sorry, I was in a rush, so maybe to some of you parts felt rushed. It's crazy in my area, trust me.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As usual, let me know what you thought in your reviews and anything I need to improve on or fix. With that, I'd better get going, so everyone be safe from Hurricane Doriyah if you're in the area, and take care! See ya next time!

Get it? Hurricane DORIYAH? Can anyone stop the Doriyah from hitting us? Good one, right?

…

I'll just use my secret technique of running away now.