-Chapter 306-

Fighters VS Fathoms Part 2


Party Barge - Storage Room

"Shroud…Hibiki…" Pearly whispered fearfully.

"It's the end of the line, Pearly," Shroud jeered. "You've been a very naughty girl."

"Shroud..." Hibiki let out, giving him a look.

"What? She has."

Kat got between the two Forty Fathoms and the others, heat radiating off of her.

"Hope, is my bat onboard?" she whispered.

"It should be in the cargo hold, but the door to it's further down the hall."

"Good." Kat popped her neck, rotating her shoulder. "I'll deal with the wannabe water ninja. You avenge Shadow."

She then charged right at Hibiki, plowing right into her and body slamming her down the hall, right through the cargo hold doors.

"Neptune's beard!" Shroud cried.

Pearly pointed at Shroud. "Crusher, sic 'im!"

"Bah!" Crusher lunged at Shroud, biting him in the face.

With a scream, the stingray stumbled around, struggling to pry the dark Chao off of him. As he did that, Hope drew her gun from her thigh holster, having grabbed it from her room during the escape.

"Now I've got you!"

She moved in for a shot, but was forced to dodge when Shroud finally freed himself of Crusher's grip. He lashed out with his tail, the girl narrowly avoiding getting stung.

"I've always hated you, you little gremlin." Shroud punted Crusher across the room, letting him crash into a large shelf full of canned goods.

"Crusher!" Pearly cried out.

"And now it's time to discipline the misbehaving children." The stingray flicked his tail menacingly, moving in on the three as Hope got between him and the younger two. "So, what's it going to be, little ones? Are you going to behave yourselves or am I going to have to get nasty?"

"Oh trust me," Hope spat, "Things got nasty the second you touched Shadow!"

"How could you do something like that!?" Cream cried out, Cheese doing the same in her arms.

In response, Shroud just shrugged. "He was an enemy and a criminal. As the Royal Assassin, it's my job to take down and punish criminals and enemies of the kingdom. And unfortunately, right now that includes you lot." He slid into a fighting stance, leering at the girls. "Now, last chance. Surrender or suffer."

"BAH!"

Hope glanced over, seeing Crusher holding up a large can of what looked like tomato soup. Smirking, Hope gave a nod.

"How about option 3?"

Shroud blinked in confusion. "Option-?"

"NOW!"

"BAH!"

Crusher threw the can as hard as he could into the air, aiming for Hibiki. Quickly, Hope shot it with her gun, causing it to explode and spill the thick sludge all over Shroud.

"You little... If that's how you want it, fine!" Shroud vanished, moving to attack… Only for Hope to easily dodge, sliding thanks to the spilled soup before firing at his leg.

"Gah!" Shroud screamed as he clutched his leg.

"Cheese!" Cream cried.

Cheese rushed at Shroud, spin attacking into him.

"This is for poisoning Hope's friend and breaking your promise!" Pearly pointed. "Crusher, bitey!"

"Bah!" Crusher bit into Shroud.

Hope moved in to take him down, bringing the butt of her gun down on the back of his head.

"Nobody fuggs with my family," she spat as she prepared another strike.

"ENOUGH!" Shroud grabbed Hope before wrapping his tail around her, his stinger aimed at her neck.

"Hope!" Cream yelled.

"I will not stand for this! I am Shroud the Stingray, Royal Assassin to King Puff, and I will not be humiliated by a bunch of little girls!"

"And I'm Hope Kintobor. Daughter of Charlie Kintobor, niece to Robotnik, and ward of the Ultimate Life Form!"

Hope kicked out, nailing Shroud in his bad leg. He let out a pained growl, releasing her and giving her an opening to grab his stinger, which she promptly stabbed into his own shoulder. Then, panting slightly, she shoved him off.

"And guess what… I just beat you."

She then sagged to the ground, chuckling to herself.

"Hope!" Cream shouted, running over. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," She gave the bunny a pat on the head. "You think you can heal him before he fully poisons himself?"

Cream nodded. "C'mon, Pearly."

"Right."

The two went over to heal Shroud, who suddenly sprang up, scowling.

"You… Yooooou...!" Shroud made to attack...

"Chaos Binding!"

Only for yellow light to shot out, binding Shroud's arms, legs, and tail. Everyone looked over, seeing the black hedgehog sitting up, still in pain, but smiling.

"Stay down, Shroud," he spat. "You lost."

"Uuugh...damn...you...' Shroud passed out

"Shadow!" Hope cried. "You're awake!"

"Have been since the idiots busted in. Nice work, Hope." He ruffled her hair. "You did great. Sorry for not stepping in sooner, but it looks like I didn't need to. And you..."

Shadow turned to Pearly and Cream. "Thanks for what you did. If you hadn't, this could've gotten ugly."

Both girls smiled.

"Bah!" Crusher chirped.

"Ah yes, you two did well too. Now then, surely Kathryn doesn't require our assistance."

Hope chuckled. "No, this is Kat we're talking about. She's probably already beaten Hibiki by now..."

-X-

Meanwhile...

" Gāisǐ de! (1)" Kat dodged several water shuriken. "I should've beaten this bitch by now!"

"Just give up, Winters! You may have power over fire..." Hibiki performed a hand sign, summoning several large water orbs. "But I have the power of the ocean! Now, go! Water Prison Jutsu!"

The orbs launched themselves at Kat, who braced herself as one swallowed her. Seeing her caught, Hibiki approached, ready to taunt her enemy into surrender. However, Kat didn't seem to be too phased by her capture. Instead, she was testing the confines of her watery cage.

"Why aren't you drowning?" Hibiki questioned.

In response, Kat pointed to her neck, revealing the Air Charm Aegis had given her and that she hadn't removed. Immediately, Hibiki felt dread slip down her spine as the young human brought her fists together. The water around her began bubbling like crazy as steam began to emit from the prison.

"Carp!" Hibiki dove for cover as the water exploded in a burst of steam. It filled the room, covering everything in a hot white mist.

"Woo!" Kat pumped her fist. "Okay, so I can boil water with my powers. Good to know. Now..."

She suddenly felt something zip past her, slashing at her and leaving a nasty gash across her side. Grunting in pain, she stumbled back, grimacing as she covered the wound. Her hand began to glow as she cauterized the wound

"Dammit..." she facepalmed with her free hand. "I just gave a ninja a freakin' smokescreen! Think, Kaitian, think!"

As she said this, she heard a whistling approaching her. On instinct, she summoned up a wall of flames to shield herself, which intercepted the smaller water shuriken. When they hit her fiery shield, they exploded into mist on impact. In doing so, the air in the room grew thicker and hotter. It practically felt like a…

A sauna…

Kat grinned, getting an idea as Hibiki moved to attack her from behind. Quickly, Kat twisted on her heels, summoning a shield of fire so Hibiki's waterblade just added to the steamy atmosphere of the room.

"Not bad..." Kat complimented as the water ninja slipped back into the mist. "You really know your stuff. Using the environment to your advantage, turning my powers against me… striking from my blind spots. Guess you're not one of those wannabe posers after all."

From somewhere in the mist, Hibiki's voice could be heard. "When I began training, I did so for one sole, singular purpose: to protect Princess Undina."

"Yeah. That's what I thought... Echo."

Hibiki's footsteps paused, though she didn't say a word. Hearing her opponent falter, Kat couldn't help but grin. Her hunch had been right.

"I have to admit, I didn't see this coming. But then I remembered how excited you were after the Akhlut incident, when I told you about my homeland. Plus, earlier when you were hunting for us, your movements were jerky and you were silent. Like a soulless puppet or... a water ninpo clone."

Another attack came at her, which Kat easily exploded into mist. She then made a show of wiping her brow, letting out a huff.

"It's getting pretty hot in here, don't you think? Then again, a water clone wouldn't feel pain." She smirked. "Even if it was boiling."

This time, Hibiki herself charged at Kat. The girl turned to her opponent, which ended with her getting tackled right into a large rack of equipment. They fell to the ground, Hibiki on top of Kat. She manifested a watery kunai knife, pointing it at the girl's throat.

"It's over, Kathryn. You're beaten."

Kat, who had been fumbling to the side for a moment, stopped for a second and grinned.

"No, it's not."

She then swung, revealing that she had managed to grab her bat as it smashed right through Hibiki's head. Thankfully, rather than blood or brain matter, all that was splattered was a large amount of water, proving Kat's water clone theory correct. Now with definitive proof, she ditched her bat and punched straight through Hibiki's chest. This created a large hole, leaving her hand stuck right in the middle of the clone's body. Hibiki laughed at that, her head reforming into a perfect rendition of Echo's face.

"Water clone, remember?"

"Yeah… I know." Kat quirked a smile. "Remember what I said about boiling?"

Before Hibiki could question anything, she felt a strange bubbling deep inside of her. Slowly, her gaze went downward, seeing Kat's fist glowing and boiling the water around it. She gasped in horror as Kat focused, the image of the Phoenix painted on her arm glowing as if it were truly aflame.

"Fènghuáng bàofā! (2) "

Her entire arm was engulfed in flames, forming a massive, flaming wing. All of the water in Hibiki's body hit its boiling point almost instantly, and kept getting hotter. Hibiki barely had time to scream as the flames course through her body, which began to bloat like a pressure valve about to pop.

"When you wake up, tell Deena I said hi!"

Hibiki then exploded into steam, blanketing the room in enough thick mist to obscure everything from view. Kat killed the flames, waving a hand in front of her face to try and clear it. As she did, she found only the remnants of Hibiki's ninja garb left behind.

"Not bad," she admitted, then huffed before wiping her brow. "Though I better crack a window before I end up a steamed bao."

-X-

Spagonia - Sky Road Hotel

Echo suddenly wakes up with a gasp, rolling off the bed and panting.

"Holy carp...Holy fugging carp..." She felt her skin, recoiling in pain. "I feel like I just got scalded. Dammit..."

"Echo..."

Echo froze, looking up to see Undina looking down at her, arms crossed with a stern expression on her face.

"P-Princess… I-I just had a bad dream. I..."

"'It's over, Kathryn. You're beaten.'" Echo choked as Undina narrowed her eyes. "Echo, is there something you'd like to tell me?"

"Uhhhh…" Echo grinned sheepishly. "Kat says hi?"

Deena's eyes narrowed further. Echo slumped, realizing she had been found out.

"...Barnacles."

-X-

Party Barge - East Wing

Since meeting Kat, Knuckles' world had opened up to a wide variety of new philosophies and ideas; usually in the form of fables and idioms from her homeland. One that stood out to him was The Tale of the Spear and Shield , which told how a peddler attempted to con an emperor into buying what he claimed to be a spear that could pierce any armor and a shield that could block any weapon, only to be found out when the emperor asked him what would happen if the spear struck the shield. When they told the tale to his parents, it ended up starting a surprisingly heated debate between him and his father. Locke claimed that if the two indestructible weapons clashed, they would destroy each other, while Knuckles argued that it wouldn't have any effect at all, as they'd cancel eachother out. Ultimately, it was Lara-Le of all people who put the debate to rest…

"I'm sorry!"

Snapping back to reality, Knuckles raised his hands, just in time to block a jab from Aegis. Aegis followed up with a few more jabs, all of which Knuckles blocked, but when she attempted another, he knocked her arm aside and countered with a devastating hook. Aegis let out a shriek as the spiked fist flew her way. She held up her hands, summoning an orange clamshell shield in front of her, blocking Knuckles' attack and causing him to recoil in pain.

Knuckles grunted in pain as he stumbled back, clutching his fist. Hearing this, Aegis peeked over her shell shield and gasped.

"Oh my goodness!" she cried out. "I'm so sorry! I–!"

"Aegis, don't apologize!" Raz called out. "He's one of the bad guys, finish him off!"

"R-Right! Sorry, Raz!"

Aegis took a breath. "Just stay calm, this is for Princess Undina."

With that, Aegis rushed at Knuckles, summoning her shell cestii before unleashing a swarm of blows. It was then that he remembered what had him thinking back to that moment in the first place.

As a fighter, Aegis wasn't anything special. She had some training, so she wasn't helpless, but her attacks were easily telegraphed, both by her lack of experience and her habit of apologizing before every strike. Rather, her true strength was her Mo-Bility, which let her summon clamshells from her body. These shells were virtually indestructible and she could make them appear anywhere. By the same token, they hurt like hell when she used them to attack, something made worse by their rough texture. As a result, despite being weaker and much less skilled, Knuckles hadn't even landed a single hit on her, while she was steadily wearing him down. In fact, her blows seemed to have grown stronger!

"Dammit!" he thought to himself. "I need to take this girl out, and fast!"

He paused as backstepped just in time to avoid a hammer punch aimed for his head.

"Should I use my Chaos Energy?" He shook his head. "No, if I did that, she'd be ripped to shreds. But what else can I…?"

Knuckles' train of thought was derailed when things suddenly began to grow dark. He looked at Aegis and saw that she had manifested a large pair of clamshells from the wing-like flaps on her back.

"Please, forgive me!" she shouted as she flexed her shoulders, clamping the shells down over Knuckles, trapping him inside.

With her opponent subdued, Aegis breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank Neptune…it's over."

"Hey!"

Aegis let out a startled shriek as Knuckles banged against the inside of the clamshell, causing it to shake.

"What the hell is this!? Let me outta here!" he shouted.

"I-I'm sorry, but I can't!" Aegis apologized (yet again). "Captain Striker ordered me to subdue you. Please, just surrender! I don't wanna hurt you!"

"Lady, if you didn't wanna hurt anyone, you should've stayed back in Meropis!" Knuckles banged against the shell. "Ow! Dammit, what's this thing made of!?"

"Calcium, mostly," Aegis replied. "My shells are one of the toughest substances in the ocean. You can strike them all you want, but it won't do you any good. So please, just give up and surrender peacefully, I…"

Just then, there was a loud, smashing noise. Aegis froze as she realized it was coming from the shell she'd trapped Knuckles in. Sure enough, the shell now sported a large spider web of cracks, green light and mist pouring through them.

"No…" she let out. "That can't be…"

There was another smash, followed by more cracks forming in the shell. Then, another. And another. And another. The shell shook about the deck violently, then burst open, knocking Aegis to the ground.

"Ow…" the clam let out as she rubbed her head.

"Hey, clambake."

Aegis froze, slowly looking up to see Knuckles standing before her, his body glowing with a green, misty aura.

"You…you broke my shell," Aegis let out, stepping back as she looked on in horror. "How…?"

Before Aegis could finish, Knuckles ran up to her, arm pulled back. Seeing he was attacking, she raised her arms, summoning another clam shield. The shield blocked the attack, pushing Aegis back, but Knuckles continued his assault.

"Punch all you want!" Aegis cried out. "You're only wasting your energy! Nothing can break my…!"

Just then, Aegis heard another cracking noise, this one closer to her. She looked at her shield and discovered that the shell now supported a large crack.

"My….my shell…" she let out. "How… how did he…?"

"Your shells are made by your Mo-Bility, right?" Knuckles asked. "Earlier, I noticed your punches were getting stronger than before, right after your buddy told you to focus. That means your powers are tied to your emotions. When you're calm - or less nervous - your shells are tough and hard to break. But when you're freaking out, like you are right now, they get brittle." He grinned as he remembered when his mother won the argument. "After all, it doesn't matter how powerful your weapons or armor are, if you can't use them right or keep a clear head…they're useless!"

"I…I…!"

That was all Aegis could get out before the shell on her arms shattered and Knuckles' glove struck her square in the jaw, causing her world to go green, then white, then black.

Knuckles watched as the clam flew backward, bouncing off the deck as she collapsed in a heap.

"Whew!" he said as his Chaos aura vanished. "All that training with Dad's been paying off."

He looked down at his beaten opponent with pity. Despite what she and her friends were doing, she was a soldier doing her job…and a rookie at that.

"Sorry," he said. "When this is over, maybe we can start over."

-X-

Raz could only look on in shock as Knuckles stood over Aegis' prone form.

"No…No way…" he let out. "He actually managed to break Aegis' shells!?"

"Woo! Way to go, Knuckles!" Tangle cheered.

"Shut up!" Raz shouted, pointing at them. "You bastards may have beaten Aegis, but that's the only win you're gonna get! After all, bad guys like you always get what's coming to you in the end!"

Tails pinched his forehead. "Raspberyl…"

"It's Raz!"

"Raz, listen, we're not the bad guys. Undina's our friend. None of us would ever hurt her, especially not Sonic."

"Lies!" the jellyfish shouted. "You can't fool me with your Drylander tricks!"

"It's not a trick!" Chris shouted.

"Yes it is! Sonic may have the rest of Mobius fooled, but we know what he's really like! He's a liar and a creep! Captain Striker said so!"

"And you just believe them?" Tails demanded.

"Yeah!" Raz nodded. "Captain Striker's head of the Royal Guard! He's Meropis' biggest hero, and heroes never lie. Duh!"

"That doesn't mean what he's doing is right!" Chris said, earning him a confused look from Raz.

"What are you talking about?"

"Even if we did what Puff claims we did, you guys are still assaulting Acorn and United Federation citizens, including high-ranking GUN agents and a princess!" Chris explained. "Does that sound like something a hero would do?"

That last statement gave Raz pause. "I…I…" He clutched his bell as his face scrunched up in thought, shaking his head back and forth as he processed what he'd just heard.

"N-No!" he shouted. "You're wrong! You're just using big words and stuff to confuse me! Well, it's not gonna work! Now…"

Raz ran his dagger through his tentacles, coating it in jelly.

"Eat jelly, Drylander fiends!"

Raz began swinging his dagger about, sending globules of jelly all over the place.

"Look out!" Chris shouted, prompting him and the others to dodge.

As they ran about the deck, Raz continued unleashing wave after wave of jelly. Whenever he ran out, he'd just squeeze out more.

"Okay, this guy's nuts!" Tangle shouted, barely managing to duck under a globe of red jelly that would've struck her in the face. "At this rate, he's gonna…!"

A loud, glorping sound greeted Tangle's ears, prompting to look down.

"Oh ew!" she cried out, discovering she'd stepped into a glob of brown jelly. She tried to lift her foot up, but found she was stuck to the floor. "What the…I'm stuck!"

"Hang on, Tangle!" Chris said, readying his Nitro Glove. "I'll…!"

Before Chris could get close, Raz flung a glob of red jelly right under his foot. As soon as he stepped in it, the jelly flashed, sending several volts of electricity through his body.

"Chris!" Tangle cried out as her friend was electrocuted.

"You like that!?" Raz shouted. "That's the power of the Jellyfish Mo-Bility! My brown jelly stops bad guys in their tracks, while my red jelly gives them a shocking sting!"

"Brown jelly?" Tangle asked. "You mean the peanut butter?"

Raz twitched at the mention of those words. "It's not peanut butter!"

"Dude, it's brown, sticky, and thick," the lemur pointed out. "It's totally peanut butter."

"No, it's not! It's jelly! Jelly!"

Tails watched as Raz began stomping his feet angrily, ranting and raving the whole time. He turned to Tangle and Chris, giving them a knowing grin as he waggled his eyebrows. It took a few seconds, but they seemed to get the idea, as they returned his grin.

"You sure it's not peanut butter?" the fox asked.

"Yes, I'm sure!" Raz snapped.

"I dunno, it smells kinda nutty to me." Tails scooped up a tiny amount with his finger, giving it a quick sniff…followed by a gag. "Bad nutty, but nutty."

Raz growled. "You…"

"Hey Chris, is jellyfish jelly edible?"

"I don't think so," Chris replied. "A shame, Ella would probably love to try some of it. And since he can make two kinds, she could save on ingredients."

"Cut it out…" Raz grit out.

"Hey, I just realized," Tangle pointed to Raz. "Doesn't it look like Mr. Jellyfish smeared PB all over himself?" Just then, Tangle's eyes widened.

"Oh my gosh!" She snapped her fingers. "PB! PB Jellyfish! Get it?"

Raz froze in place, his expression unreadable.

"What?" he let out, as Tangle began to sing and dance.

"It's peanut butter jellyfish! / Peanut butter jellyfish / Peanut butter jellyfish / Peanut butter jellyfish!"

"Stop that!" Raz snapped.

"Where he at / Where he at / Where he at / Where he at / There he go / There he go / There he go / There he go! / Peanut butter jelly / Peanut butter jelly / Peanut butter jelly / Peanut butter jelly!"

"Cut that out!" Raz demanded, his face getting even redder.

"Uhhh…Tangle, I think you can stop now," Chris said.

"Do the peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat! / Do the peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly, peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat!"

"THAT DOES IT!" Raz shouted, causing Tangle to stop her dance. "You're dead!"

Raz threw his dagger down and grabbed his tentacles.

"Uhoh…" Tangle let out.

Raz let out a primal scream as he began spinning around, sending red and brown jelly everywhere.

"Oh man!" Tangle let out. "Guys, shield!"

"On it!" Chris reached into the pocket of his shirt and pulled out a Shield Module, which he quickly activated, surrounding the trio in a protective, green bubble.

"Tangle…" Tails began, flinching as a glob of jelly hit the shield. "I think you might have overdone it."

"Yeah…" the lemur said with a wince. "That's my bad."

-X-

The Party Barge was alight with sparks and the clang of metal as Razor and Striker clashed. The self-proclaimed guardian wielding his trusty saber. The Guard Captain, his pincer claw gauntlet.

"You're slowing down, Razor," Striker said as he parried another of the shark's blows. "Getting tired?"

"Heh…you wish!" the shark replied as he continued his assault. "I'm just getting warmed up!"

"Your breathing says otherwise." Striker blocked another of Razor's attacks.

"Just shut up and fight, old man!"

Razor dashed forward, going into a spinning slash, putting all the force he could muster into his swing. But right before the blade could connect, Striker leapt into the air and over his attack. The shark could only watch in shock as Striker performed an aerial somersault, the world around them seeming to slow to a crawl, only to snap back to normal with a loud clang as Striker's gauntlet pinched down on his blade. Razor could barely even let out a gasp before the shrimp yanked the blade - and himself - forward, sending him sliding along the ground.

"Hmph, sloppy," Striker said dismissively. "But, why should I have expected anything less from an undisciplined child?"

Razor grit his teeth as he got up. "I'll show you undisci…" He reached for his sword, only to find it gone.

"Looking for something?" Razor turned to Striker to find the shrimp holding up his weapon.

"Give me back my sword, Striker," the shark demanded.

"No," Striker replied. "Meropian law forbids civilians from owning weapons, especially ones who can't wield them effectively."

"I said give it back!"

Razor lunged at Striker, arms outstretched as he attempted to retrieve his sword. Striker responded by leaping back, causing the shark to land on his stomach. Striker immediately took this opportunity to bring his claw down on Razor, only for the shark to roll out of the way and leap at him again, this time, with his mouth wide open. Thinking quickly, Striker raised his gauntlet, causing Razor to let out a muffled scream as he bit into the golden metal.

"Wild, reckless, savage, and stupid." Striker forcibly pulled his gauntlet out of Razor's mouth, taking a few teeth with him, then punched him in the stomach. The shark gasped in pain as all the air left his lungs and he collapsed to the floor, clutching his abdomen.

"It's sad, really," Striker continued. "Despite your attitude, you actually showed promise as a fighter. The Royal Guard could've used someone like you. Instead, you abandon your duty and throw everything away. And for what? A group of Drylander criminals you only knew for a day?"

"At least…I'm not Puff and Angelica's lapdog." Razor let out a weak cough as he reached for Striker's ankles, only for the shrimp to put his foot down his hand.

"Silence!" Striker snapped. "I humored your disregard for authority for Priestess Coral's sake, but she isn't here to protect you this time. Now…"

Before Striker could finish, he felt something land on his shoulder; something smelly and wet. His first instinct was to grimace in disgust, thinking a seagull had relieved itself on him, only to find the slime on his shoulder wasn't white, but light brown.

"Brown jelly?"

He felt another wet sensation hit him, this time, on the head.

"What in Neptune…?" That was all the time he had to say before he felt a sudden, electric shock run through his body. Through the pain, he reached up to feel what it was and found his hand covered in red.

"Red jelly…"

A primal scream echoed through across the ship.

"Raspberyl!"

Striker turned to the origin of the scream and found his subordinate spinning around, slinging brown and red jelly all over the place.

"Dammit, he's gone berserk!" Striker ducked to avoid another glob of jelly. "Raspberyl, stop! You're…Aaagh!"

Striker screamed in pain as Razor grabbed his leg and bit into it, hard enough to draw blood and leave deep marks. The sudden pain caused him to crumble to the ground, where he was promptly bitten again. This time, the bite was on his sword arm, tearing several tendons and causing him to lose strength in his arm.

"GAH!" Striker gritted his teeth as Razor exposed his own, the shrimp's blood coating them.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who can't hold a sword properly anymore," Razor said.

"You…" Striker grit out.

"What was it you called me? A wild, reckless savage?"

He moved in, making like he might bite off Striker's head. However, at the last second, Razor pulled back.

"Luckily for you… I'm better than that."

And then he punched Striker in the face, hard enough to knock him out. He wiped his mouth, spitting out some of the blood.

"Okay, maybe I'm a little savage." He let out a sigh. "Coral's really gonna let me have it tonight."

-X-

Meanwhile, Raz keeps spinning and screaming, spreading his jellies all over the boat. He kept this up for almost a full minute, after which, he finally stopped, panting heavily.

"Haaa...haaa...haaa...haaa...Whew!" He wiped the sweat from his brow. "Yeah…that'll learn ya."

His rage finally subsiding, Raz finally noticed the aftermath of his attack.

"Whoa… I really made a mess this time." He winced slightly before dismissing it. "Ahh well, it's not my problem."

It was then that he noticed his opponents were absent. "Hey, where'd the Drylanders go?" He looked around, trying to find them. "Ha! My righteous fury must've scared them off. As expected of a bunch of air-breathing cowards!"

He laughed loudly, relishing in his victory. "Man, I can't wait to tell the Captain! He'll be so impressed, he'll…"

"Yeah, about that…"

It was then that he saw Razor standing over Captain Striker's body, mouth stained red.

"Hey Raz, check this out," the shark greeted.

"Captain Striker!" the jellyfish cried out. "B-But…how did you…?"

He then heard the sound of footsteps. Looking to the side, he saw Knuckles walking toward him, dragging the unconscious Aegis behind him.

"Oh, you're still kicking?" the echidna questioned, dropping the clam on the deck. "Come on, Tails. I expected better from you."

"Don't worry about it, Knuckles," Tails' voice came from right above Raz. "Tangle's got it covered."

Very slowly, Raz turned his gaze upward. There, hanging from the upper railings and surrounded by a jelly-covered energy shield, was Tangle, Tails, and Chris. The latter disabled the shield, letting the loose jelly drop before all three landed safely below.

"I'll admit, that was…messier than I anticipated," Tangle spoke up, glancing about the deck. "But, I think I managed to do what I wanted to do."

"Wha… what did you…" Raz stumbled back, shocked.

"Oh, nothing much." Tangle examined her nails while smirking. "Just made you blow all your jelly reserves on your little temper tantrum. You really should think things through and not just lose yourself."

"She can be taught," Tails quipped, giving Tangle a high five.

Raz gaped at the Freedom Fighters in disbelief, but a quick tug at his tentacles proved them right. He was completely out. He let out a nervous chuckle as Chris powered up his nitro glove, smiling as he flexed his fingers.

"Um… uh…" Raz swallowed hard. "You're not still upset about your boat… are you?"

In response, Chris just punched Raz right in the gut as hard as he could, dropping him to his knees as he wheezed in pain. Then, he brought a harsh chop on the back of his neck, knocking him out.

"Not anymore."

"Ahhhhhh!" Razor let out as he stretched his arms. "Damn, that felt good! I've been wanting to kick Striker's smug, shelled ass for years!"

"Yeah…we can tell…" Knuckles said with a grimace, pointing to his mouth.

"Ahh…sorry…" Razor winced as he wiped his mouth off.

"Is…he gonna be okay?" Tails asked worriedly as he looked over the shrimp.

"Striker? Yeah, he'll be sore for a while, but Coral and Pearly will patch him up just fine. For now, let's get these guys somewhere they can't cause trouble and meet up with the others."

"Right!"

As they headed off, Razor stopped for a moment to pick up his sword.

"Dammit…" he said, looking over it sadly. "All that work and I'm not even close to his level."

-X-

Party Barge - West Wing

"Move!" Sally shouted, prompting her and Amy to flee for their lives. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, as Fluke's gargantuan mitt easily overshadowed the entire bow.

"Crap, we're not gonna make it!"

"Hang on, Sally! I have an idea!"

Sally watched as Amy suddenly stopped and turned to face Fluke. She held up her hammer in both hands, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath before holding it up high above her head.

"Piko Piko Hammer, activate!"

Amy watched in anticipation, expecting her hammer to transform into the stronger, more elaborate form it took during the battle with Glacia…but nothing happened.

"Uhhh…Piko Piko Hammer, awaken!" she tried again, and was met with similar results. "Piko Piko Hammer, power up!"

Still nothing.

"Rise? Engage? Reborn!?"

"Amy!" Sally cried out, snapping the pink hedgehog out of her stupor in time to remember the giant hand rapidly advancing toward them.

"Excuse me."

Fluke paused, then looked down to see Tanaka standing on the side of the deck, hands behind his back as he regarded the whale with his usual butler stoicism.

"Good afternoon, kujira-san," the butler greeted with a bow. "My name is Tanaka, butler of the Thorndyke Family and present captain of the family cruise ship, the Party Barge."

Fluke paused, eyeing the tiny human with disbelief.

"Good afternoon to you too," the whale greeted back.

"I apologize for the interruption," Tanaka continued, bowing. "But I'm afraid I must ask you to vacate the premises immediately and leave those young women alone. If you do not…" He adjusted his glasses. "I fear we must remove you by force."

Fluke blinked at the tiny human for a few seconds, before bursting out in loud, raucous laughter.

"Is something amusing?" Tanaka asked.

"I…I'm sorry…" Fluke took a moment to catch his breath as he wiped a tear from his eye. "Sorry, I'm not laughing at you. It's just… you want to remove me by force ?"

Tanaka nodded. "I believe the phrase 'go you pick on someone your own size' would be warranted."

Fluke laughed again. "Sir, with all due respect, I'm a blue whale . There is nobody in the world my own size. Why, I could tug your little boat through the water like a toy."

"So, you will not leave peacefully?" Tanaka asked.

Fluke's expression became solemn once more. "No," he replied. "I am sorry."

Tanaka took a slow, deep breath as he adjusted his glasses. "Very well…"

He stepped aside, revealing one of the Party Barge's many button consoles.

"I too am sorry." And with that, Tanaka slammed his fist down on the biggest button on the console: Mystery Button X.

"Warning. Mystery Button X, activated," a computerized voice announced. "Initiating Battle Mode."

"Battle Mode?" everyone asked.

Just then, the top of the ship began to rotate and shift, revealing numerous cannons and gun emplacements scattered about, including one large one in the center; all aimed directly at Fluke.

"What the…!?" Amy shouted.

"My word…" Sally let out.

"Master Keith…" Tanaka began with a grin. "You are clear to begin."

"Thanks, Mr. Tanaka," Keith's voice replied over the console.

-X-

Up in the cockpit, Keith was seated at a command console, surrounded by buttons, switches, levers, and screens.

"Alright, Moby Dick… eat this!" Keith said as he pressed several buttons on the console next to him.

"Weapons systems online," the computer announced. "Preparing Thorndyke Nitro Cannon."

Keith flicked a switch next to his seat, causing a small pedestal to rise up from the floor in front of him. He placed his Nitro Glove-covered hand on top of the pedestal and activated it, causing the energy to flood into the pedestal.

"Nitro energy source detected. Beginning charge and amplification process. Cannon firing in 3…2…1…"

-X-

"Fire!" Tanaka and Keith shouted simultaneously.

A stream of rainbow light suddenly erupted from the central cannon, striking Fluke square in the chest. The whale let out a thunderous roar of pain as the energy burned his skin, pushing him backwards into the ocean, despite his desperate struggling. The struggle continued for about ten seconds, with the cannon ultimately coming out on top, knocking Fluke once more into the water, where he remained, floating on his back, his massive body shrinking down.

"And that takes care of that," Tanaka said with a smile.

With Fluke taken care of, the butler went to check on Amy and Sally, who were staring out at the ocean, jaws slack.

"Are you two alright?" he asked.

"Tanaka…" Sally began. "What was that?"

"That would be the Party Barge's primary means of defense," the butler began. "The Thorndyke Nitro Cannon."

"You gave the ship a giant laser cannon!?" Amy exclaimed.

"Of course," Keith replied. "You really think Uncle Nelson would let us go out on the ocean alone without a way to defend ourselves?"

"Still…" Sally shook her head. "Anyway, we've taken care of Fluke and the soldiers here. Let's regroup with the others."

"Understood," Tanaka replied.

"Right, seeya there!" Keith chimed in.

As Sally and Tanaka went to meet up with Keith, Amy looked down at her hammer.

"Why?" she asked despondently. "Why didn't it work?"

"Amy!" Sally called out, bringing her back to reality.

"Coming!" she replied. "That clinches it, I'm definitely talking to Rob about this."


Author's Note:

(1): Damn it!

(2): Phoenix Outbreak

The Fathoms have fallen. Striker has struck out. All that's left is the king.

Don't forget to R&R. Until next time!