Chapter 7 – The Trickster Princess of Chaos
Arle's POV
"Arle…Arrrle~…"
"*weaken moan*"
"Wakey wakey endless cakey~…"
"*weaken moan*"
"Come on…I don't have time for this. Wake up already!"
"H-Huh? Wh-What? Wh-Where…Wh-Where am I? Wh-What happened?" I slowly woke up to someone calling out to me. Still very weak from the life-threatening assault Wraith did to me.
I was also still trapped inside this dark empty depressing void…so, I was already expecting the worst: Wraith coming back to torture me once more.
But when I fully opened my eyes…the person in front of me wasn't Wraith. More like…a different girl? This one had poofy turquoise hair, soulless dark green eyes, and clothing similar to Jarne's…but it was mostly black with a little purple to it.
…
Not to mention the dark chilling aura around her.
Gives me the creeps just by LOOKING at her…
"Well, now…it's about time you woke up. I was getting bored staring at your unconscious face for so long. I totally wanted to play with you, Arle~! *giggle*"
"Pl-Play with me? Wh-What are...y-you talking about?" I asked the girl in a frail tone.
"You know…I wanna play. And I don't mean the regular kind. I mean the one where something truly weird happens and you gotta play in order to fix it all. And then once you do, everything magically goes back to normal as if nothing ever happened. You know…all of that cliché crap. You get what I'm saying, Arle~?"
…
…
…
"Wh-Wha…Wh-What the hell are you talking about?" I sat there with a confused look on my face.
"Wow~…you STILL don't get it? Seeing how it was you of all people and knowing where you came from and all, I figured you would get it. Guess you really are the stupid one~…*giggle*"
"M-Me of all people? Wh-Where I…c-came from?"
"Aw~…do you not remember?" The girl went silent for a bit. "*sigh* Well, damn…I guess you got too much head trauma. Tell me, tell me…ya remember anything before 1992?"
"1992?" I wasn't understanding a thing this girl was saying. And the dark purple-like aura from before was making me more wary of her presence. "L-Look…I-I don't know who you are…b-but if you're working with Wraith, I'll…I'll…I-I'll…" I then tried to attack the girl…but instantly fell onto the floor due to my extensive injuries making me so weak.
It's honestly a miracle that I'm still kicking it right now…
"*giggle* Wow…to see you actually struggling to even stand…it's oddly funny. Like I could watch you struggle all day and night and I wouldn't get bored. Watching utter pitifulness is so much fun! *giggle*"
I still don't know who she is and yet I'm honestly starting to hate her…
"BUT…now that you mentioned Wraith, I should probably confess to you already."
"C-Confess what to me?" I asked. Not prepared AT ALL for what I'm about to hear.
"Oh, how should put this~…basically, I'M the reason why Wraith is out to kill you. I revived her soul, separated it from her original body, and brought her to this world with the intention of her bringing you to me. But…I guess the sole memory of you killing her when you were in kindergarten made her seething with rage and now vengeance is the only thing on her mind. Big whoops on my part~. *giggle*"
…
…
…
"Hello? You still there?" The girl asked as she waved her hand in front of my frozen, shocked face. Even slapped me a few times…which obviously pissed me off.
But mentally…I was more than pissed. I wanted to yell…SCREAM, even…in pure uncontrolled rage. This bitch just said to me in the most casual way possible that Wraith is trying to kill me because of her! And she expects me to be 100% okie-dokie fine with it?! I WANT TO FUCKING KILL HER!
…
But with how I am now, that will be easier said than done…
"Wh-Why…Wh-Why would you do such a thing?" I asked. "Wh-What do you want with me?
"Geez…weren't you listening, Arle? I said that I wanted to play!"
"Pl-Play WHAT?! A game?!" I then thought for a moment. "D-Did you…Did you drag me here for a Puyo battle?!"
"Is that what it's called? Man~…I've been trying to figure that out forever~! Being trapped within the depths of Puyo Hell really makes you unaware with the trends nowadays…"
Sh-She's from Puyo Hell?! Does Satan know her?!
"But~…since we got that figured out, now we can FINALLY play! I can't wait to mess you up, Arle~! *giggle*"
"O-Okay, one…phrasing…" I gained a sweatdrop. "…A-And two…I-I am NOT playing Puyo with you! N-Not after *cough* *cough*…n-not after what you've…d-done to me all night! Wh-Why the hell *cough* *cough*…would I do such a thing?!"
"Because…whoever wins gets to keep your power?"
"M-My…M-My power…?"
Is she similar to Schezo or something?
"You see…I've been stuck inside my hellish prison for a LOOOONNNNGGGG time. Back since Demon King Namanari was in charge. Something about sending an entire world into chaos or some stupid crap like that. Not really important, anyway…"
Sounds important to me… I gained a mental sweatdrop.
"But anyway…I was sitting in my prison, bored AF as usual…when all of a sudden…POOF! I was freed! Just like that! Ain't that something?!"
I didn't answer her. More like I refused to answer her. I was obviously still pissed about that "confession" she made and I wasn't about to humor her with this backstory.
"Oh? You're not answering me? Is someone having a little pouty-pout~?" The girl said as she grabbed my cheeks and started playing with them in a teasing manner.
"Kn-Kno…Knock it off!"
But it was really hard to keep my patience with this girl…
"Boo~…you're no fun~!" The girl pouted. "Whatever! After I was freed, I wanted to have some fun again! But with me being sealed up for thousands of years, my power was dead-ass gone. So, I had to get more. It was such a pain~…
But then, one day…I saw you. Emitting all of that power in that game you call Puyo Puyo…It tingled my spine, it gave chills to my soul…it was so much at once that I almost creamed myself~! *giggle*"
"Ew…" I whined in disgust.
"I wanted it so bad~! I DESIRED it so much~! So, that meant that I had to come into contact with YOU~!
But I could just walk up to you and steal it~. Where's the fun in that, you know~? Not enough chaos~!
So, I came up with a plan~…a plan to bring you to me in the most chaotic way possible~! I dug into the deepest parts of your memories and found the secret trauma that was supposedly hidden away forever~…probably because of Satan, right~?"
S-Satan? H-He manipulated my memories? WH-WHY?!
"In any case~…I freed that memory~…the day you killed Wraith back when she was known as Julia Rycroft~…and used it to my advantage~. Reviving her soul~…filling her memories with nothing but you killing her~…and it worked like a charm~! It brought you here to me~! Now, I can take your power and refill my Chaos Heart~! Isn't that GREAT~?! *giggle*"
"Ch-Chaos…H-Heart?"
"Oh, right~! I should probably show you that already~." The girl then formed from her hand a crystalized purple heart. With the same dark purple chilling aura from her body emitting from all sides. "THIS is the Chaos Heart~! Able to create any and all kinds of madness at MY will~! But only with enough Nova Power, that is~. *giggle*"
N-Nova Power? I-Is that…w-wait, what even is that?
"I already took about half of your power when you were conked out earlier~. Once I take the other half, it should be enough power to send this ENTIRE WORLD into chaos~! It'll be SO MUCH FUN~! THE MOST FUN I'VE HAD IN YEARS~! Wouldn't you agree…Arle~? *giggle*"
S-Send the world…i-into chaos?! THAT'S what she wants from all of this?! Using my darkest memory against me wasn't enough for her…she wants to destroy Primp, too?!
…
Th-This girl…she's definitely a dangerous threat. A-And a bit perverted…
"I…I won't…I won't let you…g-get away with this." I said as I used all of my limited strength to finally get up from the floor.
"Oh~? You're willing to play with me~? Despite the state you're in~? *giggle* REALLY love your dedication, Arle ~."
"I may be…cl-close to death right now. B-But *cough* *cough*…B-But I won't be finished here. N-Not by *cough*…a-an evil psycho bitch like you."
"Evil psycho bitch~? Now, come on~…that's not fair~! I just wanna have some fun, you know~?"
"NOTHING ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING IS FUN! *cough* *cough* *cough*" That last outburst took a lot of my remaining strength from me. So much so that I was coughing up blood.
"You just don't understand~. But don't you worry~…I'll MAKE you understand~! As well as take the last of your power~! I'm gonna go ALL night with you, Arle~! *giggle*"
"S-Seriously…ph-phrasing…" I gained one last sweatdrop before engaging in a Puyo battle that will stop this psycho girl for good.
…
At least…that was my intention. But…
Ringo's POV
"And that's the short version of it…basically."
This was Amitie finishing a brief explanation of what we've learned about this situation. Telling it to the others who were still in the gym plus those who joined from outside.
"Woah…so, Arle killed this Julia girl while playing Puyo?" Peruvis asked.
"And through means of eternal resentment, her soul separated from her body and became this "Wraith" ghost, correct?" Maguro asked.
"And she plans to kill her for revenge…and the rest of us for the hell of it…while possessing Amitie's body." Rivitie said. Sounding more annoyed than anything. "Ugh! What is it with these psychos and wanting to kill people?! Like…what does it solve for them?!"
"Says the hypocrite who tried to kill us several times when we first met…" Raffina retorted while, alongside Witch and myself, gaining an exasperated look towards Rivitie.
"I-I was going through some things, okay?! That stuff's old news now…" Rivitie then looked away from us as she tried to hide the fact that she was blushing a little.
"Aw~! Rivitie, you're TOO cute when you blush like that~! You should do it more often~!" Amitie said as she began teasing her twin sister.
"Sh-Shut up!"
Not gonna lie…she does look kinda cute…
"Anyway…" Amitie continued. "…What I'm trying to say is that Arle suffered through this just as bad as us. Most likely even more."
"Definitely more." Witch said. "If she had no memory of it until now, she's definitely traumatized."
"Did you really had to alter her memories back then, though?" I asked Satan.
"I saw it as no other option. Otherwise…the Arle you all know now most likely wouldn't exist. In personality nor in physical form."
"W-Woah…" Some of us grew chills.
"I-I see…so, that's how it is, huh?"
"Uh~…your name was Ringo, correct~?" Julia asked. "If it helps in making you feel better~…I have since forgiven Arle for what has happened back then~. So, I no longer hold any grudges towards her~."
"That's, uh…nice to hear, Julia." I went silent for a bit. "But…y-you know…"
"What Ringo is trying to say is…" Lisette said. "…since your soul is the one causing all of this mess, it's hard to take your apology seriously. Even if it's now a separate entity."
"Oh~…I see~…I guess that makes sense~…" Julia looked like she was sad to hear that. But, oddly enough like Sig, Chu, and Dalia, you couldn't tell by looking at her face.
Strange how that's a common trait…
"Well…it'll matter the most with Arle." Amitie said. "We just need to rescue her fir-GAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"A-Amitie?! Wh-What's going on?!" I yelled in shock as we were witnessing Amitie being…electrocuted of some sort. Her see-through body morphing like static and her screams of pain getting louder and unbearable.
Until finally…she just shattered. Broke into tiny pieces as if she was made out of glass.
And it definitely scarred us all. Physically and mentally.
"A…Amitie…?" I said in disbelief.
"*giggle* Finally got rid of her~…"
And then walking up to us was…a-another Amitie?! B-But we just saw her break into pieces, right?!
…
Unless…
"She truly thought she was clever~…keeping that one ability hidden~…and then using it to escape from me~. I'll give her an A for effort, though~. *giggle*"
"Y-You're…"
"Hey! You're that ghost bitch that started this mess! WHAT HAVE YOU'VE DONE WITH AMI?!" Witch yelled in a mix of anger and sadness.
"You're wondering about Amitie~? Why~? She should be resting in "piece" by now~…"
"WH-WHY YOU LITTLE…!"
"W-Wicchi, calm down! Amitie's not dead!" Nina yelled as she held onto Witch's shirt collar.
"Nina's right." Satan added. "Rather, she's been absorbed back into her own body. Problem is…it's still controlled by Wraith."
"And with her own power mixed with Amitie's Light Soul powers…she's basically unbeatable at this point." Ecolo said. "What kind of cheat is that?"
"Can you really call it a "cheat" when you're absorbing someone's soul?" Klug asked as he gained a huge sweatdrop.
"My soul~…why have you caused all of this trouble~?" Julia asked her own living soul.
That is EXTREMELY unnerving to say!
"Hmph~…well, if it isn't my old body~. I'm surprised that you're actually alive despite no longer having a soul~."
Come to think of it…how IS Julia alive without her soul?
"As for that stupid question of yours~…you of all people should know DAMN well why I did all of this~! Arle Nadja ended our lives~! And with this new power now in my possession~…I shall finally return the favor~! And take the lives of every mortal here as a consolation prize~! THIS WORLD WILL SURCOME~…TO THE WRATH OF WRAITH~! *demented giggle*"
"*sigh* And here I thought there was a chance to retribute you…" Satan said with an exasperated look. "…But now it's clear…you're nothing more than a petty ghost who can't let go. Resting in peace is no longer an option…so then, it's off to Puyo Hell with you!"
"*giggle* I'd like to see you TRY~…Demon King~…"
And with that, Wraith made Amitie's wings appear and wrapped them around her possessed body. The glowing body getting brighter and the intense aura getting stronger.
And with all of that…plus the silver crown with the orange glowing energy sphere…a lot of us knew what that meant.
"Cr-Crap! She's using the Crash Ability!" Yu shouted in a huge panic.
"A-At this rate, we only have a few minutes to stop her!" Marle yelled.
"Hey! Everyone! Attack with all of your power!" Satan yelled out. "It may be Amitie's body…but until we get Wraith out of there, show no mercy!"
"R-Right!" The rest of us shouted with determined (and also freaked out) looks of our own.
…
But before we could even start attacking…
"Wraith~…don't you DARE take all the fun from me~…*giggle*"
"H-Huh? Wh-Who just…"
*BOOM*
"W-Woah! Wh-What just happened?!" I yelled in shock as we all witnessed the ability just…disappear. Along with the wings surrounding Wraith. Which made the body fall to the ground in an instant.
"Wh…Why~…H-How~…?" Wraith wailed as she struggled to get up.
"Having this much fun without me…I won't allow it, you know~…"
And then all of a sudden, a dark portal opened up in the middle of the gym. Coming out of it in a slow manner was a girl with poofy turquoise hair, dark green eyes that looked completely lifeless, and clothing that totally reminded me of Jarne.
…
Oh, and the dark-purple unnerving aura swirling around her. That's definitely hard to ignore.
"Heeey, bitches~! Bet you weren't expecting to see me, huh?!"
"N-No…impossible! How did you managed to break free?!" Satan yelled with an angered look on his face.
"Oh, wow…if it isn't Dark Prince Satan. You sure haven't changed at all, haven't you? Still scream "douchebag" just by your face alone~. *giggle*"
"Grr…still such disrespect! Even after all these years!"
"Uh…Satan? Who is this girl?" I asked. Not understand what was going on.
"This girl…her name is Sultana. She's known as the Princess of Chaos. And she was sealed away thousands of years ago because she almost destroyed the world with her Chaos Heart."
"D-Destroyed the WORLD?!"
"Ugh! All I wanted was to add some fun to this boring little world." The girl, now known as Sultana, said. "A sprinkle of chaos here and a drop of madness over there…but your father and his army just HAD to ruin it all! And then they sealed me up for a crap-ton of years! There was no chaos to spread or boobs to grope and I was going INSANE!"
B-Boobs to grope?
And before I was able to ask what she meant by that…
"KYAAAAAA~!"
"But now that I'm free~…I can have all the fun I want~!" …Sultana teleported out of nowhere and reappeared behind Marvett. F-Feeling up her chest in a perverted manner. "Wow~…your tits are DEFINITELY NOT one polygon~! *giggle*"
"G-Get…G-Get your hands…o-off of me! Y-You PERV!" Marvett was trying to fight her off…but was REALLY struggling.
"Hey! Let go of Marvie, you big pervy meanie!" Raina yelled. "Kickity-Kick Kick!"
"Raina! Wait! Don't!" Satan yelled as he tried to stop her.
But before we knew it…
"Lilacrald!"
…
…
…
*POW*
"OW! RAINA!"
"Huh? Klug? Why were you touching Marvie?"
"I WASN'T!" Klug then went silent for a bit. "In fact…I don't even remember moving from my spot! How did I get here?!"
"It's because Sultana temporarily froze time." Satan said. "A power she uses a lot to cause all sorts of chaos."
"FR-FROZE TIME?!" We all yelled in shock.
Sh-She can freeze time whenever she wants?! Just how powerful is this girl?!
"HAHAHAHAHAHAAA~! Man, that was so much fun!" Sultana cheered as she reappeared in front of us. "I've been wanting to cause chaos like that for THOUSANDS of years! And now I finally can once more! *giggle*"
"Sultana…what are you doing here?" Satan asked. "How did you break free from your prison?"
"What's so fun about telling you? I'd rather let you guess how I managed to escape. In the meantime…I've got a little ghosty to punish~! Yay~!"
"Y-Yay?" We were confused as to why she was so excited about that. But then we all watched Sultana walk over to the still struggling ghost girl still possessing our friend.
"Heeey, Wraith~! You've been having fun out here~…causing all of this chaos without me~…"
"Wh-What~? Wh-Who…a-are you~?" Wraith barely spoke due to how weak she was right now.
"What~? You don't remember me? I'm the one who revived you and brought you to this world."
W-Wait, WHAT?! Y-You mean to tell that THIS GIRL revived Wraith?!
"Oh, well~…I guess it doesn't matter now. I already got Arle's power so I don't really need you anymore. Which means~…INTO THE CHAOS HEART YOU GO! *giggle*"
"Wh-What~?! N-No~! I-I won't…l-let you~! N-Not when I'm…s-so close~!" Wraith was prepared to fight for her life(?) to be spared. Standing on both legs as she was about to fight against her so-called "creator".
"Ugh! Another fight?! And after I just got done with the other one…SCREW IT! I'm gonna cheat! Chaotic Karat!"
With a snap of her fingers, Sultana made Amitie's body glow a bright green light. And soon after that, a see-through girl with silky blue hair and wearing a lime-green dress slowly came out of it. Wailing in pain as whatever this power was…it was still slowly killing her.
"Wow~…so, that is what my soul looks like~…quite an amazing sight~…" Julia said in amazement.
"You're…oddly into this, Julia…" Marle said with a sweatdrop.
"R-Re~…v-venge~…r-revenge~…I~ d-don't know when~…o-or how~…b-but I will~…have~…r-revenge~…
…
…ON ALL OF YOUUUUUUUUUUU~!"
And just like that…Wraith was absorbed into this dark purple heart that Sultana spawned out of nowhere. Her existence no longer a threat to this world. Nor is it a threat to Arle's life.
A-At least I hope…
"Oh~…"
*THUD*
"J-Julia?! H-Hey, Julia! WAKE UP, DAMNIT! This is no time to be knocked out like this!" Peruvis yelled as she began shaking Julia's lifeless head after she suddenly fell over.
"She's not knocked out. She's dead." Rivitie said.
"D-Dead?!"
"Her soul is gone. So, naturally…she would stop living."
"Well, damn…" Raffina said with a sad look.
"*whine* Raffina~! Do something to make Julia feel better~!" Raina cried as she clung to Raffina's body.
"D-Dummy! I can't do anything about it!"
"Especially not with your magical pixie dust…"
"D-DAMN YOU BOTH!" Raffina then shouted at Klug and Lisette in total anger.
"*moan* My head…what the heck happened…"
"AMI! YOU'RE BACK TO NORMAL!" Witch cheered as she hugged her best friend.
"Misuki…?" Amitie then patted her body. Her OWN body, to be more precise. "Get really real…I have my body back! YES! FINALLY!"
"Glad to have you fully back, Amitie." I said. "But now we have a bigger problem to deal with…"
It was then that we all turned to Sultana…who was surprisingly still here after killing off her supposed "servant".
"Wow…who would've thought that tiny little ghosty would have THAT much power? Sadly…even with this and Arle's power combined, it's still not enough Nova Power to unleash endless chaos. Looks like I gotta go find more~…"
"Hey, Sultana! Where is Arle and what have you done to her?!" Satan yelled.
"Arle?" Sultana went silent for a bit. "Oh, yeah~! Forgot about her. You can totally have her now. *SNAP*"
suddenly, another dark portal opened up. This time, right above us. And what came out of it was something NONE of us were prepared to see.
*THUD*
"*moan* H-Help…m-me…"
"ARLE!" We all shouted in shock as we rushed to her aid.
"GUU GU GU! GUU GU! GUU GU!" Especially Carbuncle…who was worried sick about his best companion.
"Damn…those injuries…it's amazing that she's still kicking it right now."
"Phoenix!" Peruvis yelled at him.
"What? You know it's true."
"Wraith really did a number on her…" Sultana said. "…But even still…she fought me a REAL GOOD fight even though she could barely stand. Still lost, though. After all…with her power now mine, she was no match for the Princess of Chaos~! *giggle*"
Sh-She really STOLE Arle's power?! A-Along with being the sole reason Arle looks like this?!
Seeing Arle like this…covered in cuts, bruises, and blood…her costume nearly destroyed and all life from her body at the brink of being gone…it brought me so much rage. So much anger. Remaining calm was no longer an option.
And there was only one person I wanted to take it all out on.
"Y-You…You damn psychotic bitch! I'll make you PAY for what you did to Arle! I'LL FUCKING KILL YOU!"
"Ringo! Wait!" Satan tried to stop me. But before he had the chance to…
"Lilacrald!"
…
…
…
"KYAAAAAA~!"
"Oh~…so, you're this Ringo girl Arle kept talking about~. Gotta say~…based on these two alone, I'd say she has good tastes~. *giggle*"
…Sultana had frozen time again. And used to opportunity to sneak behind me and start groping my chest.
"L-Let go of me! D-Damn perv!"
"Hey! You can't do that to Ringo!" Ecolo yelled. "Only I get to screw with her and piss her off!"
"N-NOT HELPING, ECOLO!"
"Oh, whatever~!" Sultana said before letting go of me and teleporting back in front of us. "As much I would LOVE to have more fun around here, I need more Nova Power. So, I'm gonna go now. Peace out, beta males~! *giggle*"
That was (oddly enough) the last thing Sultana said before teleporting out of the school.
"Hey! Sultana! Get back here!" With Satan warping shortly after trying to catch up to her. Leaving the rest of us still mostly baffled about what we just experienced.
What kind of mess are we about to deal with now?
…
…
…
"Wait…Raffina…what's a beta male?" Raina asked.
"I-I don't know…someone who doesn't even qualify as a male?" Raffina went silent for a bit. "Ask Klug. He's an example of one."
"Hmph! Then that would make YOU less of a female." Klug said. "A perfect description for someone like you."
"Wh-What the hell does THAT mean, you little…"
"Guys…please…can we just not?" I said with a huge sweatdrop running down my face.
Author's Note: Just when it was all coming down to the wire, the true mastermind reveals herself. Known as a trickster demon titled "The Princess of Chaos", Sultana has made her presence in Primp Town.
This is something different this time around. Instead of the usual final fight via a Puyo battle in which the villain is defeated and everything's back to normal…here, a bigger threat appears at the last minute. The reason for this is because…I'm thinking about making a new series of stories (that are canon to each other) that includes this story, Puyo Puyo Nep!, and other stories in the future. One of the elements these stories will share is that Sultana is a dangerous threat.
So, yeah…if you're reading this chapter again, I replaced Lilith with Sultana, a Puyo Quest character (specifically, her Outlander alt). I changed it because I'm currently writing the final chapter and it's WAY too long, WAY too complicated, and I was starting to lose interest in completing it. So, I rewrote most of this chapter and I'm going to have to rewrite the final chapter, too. Hopefully, I'll get it done soon…
In any case…here's the full list of characters in costume. Again, all are character alts in Puyo Puyo Quest.
Amitie – Wishing Star Amitie
Arle & Carbuncle – Valkyries Arle & Carbuncle
Ringo – Ringo ver. Ulala
Maguro – Traveling Warlock Maguro
Witch – Steam City Witch
Sig – Blu Sky Sig
Raffina – Make Up Raffina
Klug – Sparking Klug
Ciel – Ciel ver. Holy Night
Lidelle – Uncanny Lidelle
Peruvis – Spirited Peruvis
Ally – Ally ver. Sakura Amamiya
Feli – Traveling Diviner Feli
Marvett - Carpet Marvett
Satan - Satan ver. PuyoAngel
Lisette - Angelic Healer Lisette
Nina - Angelic Healer Nina
Ecolo - Unusual Ecolo
Thanks for reading. Later.