It was a rainy day. Not a bit of sun was in the sky. That morning, Aang woke up to see King, Jotaro, Franziska, Yugi, and Koichi acting like zombies. They didn't talk to anyone, which was super unusual for King, and they ate breakfast in silence. If Aang looked closely enough, he thought he saw some sort of glint in their eyes, but he couldn't tell why.
"They've been acting like that all morning," Raven muttered.
"It's giving me the creeps," Marnie agreed. "And I've lived in Spikemuth my whole life."
"Yeah, it is kind of weird," Steven agreed.
"I used Heaven's Door, but I couldn't find anything physically wrong with them," Rohan said. "But something IS wrong. Koichi doesn't act like that."
"Maybe it's something spiritual," Aang suggested.
"Stands, in essence, are part of our spirits," Rohan explained. "I suppose that's why a monk with a spirit connection is able to see them without possessing one."
"That makes sense," Aang said with a nod.
"Then, if it's not spiritual," Syaoran said, "What is it?"
"Could be hypnosis," Sprig suggested. The others gave him a dubious look. "I've seen it before. It totally captivates opponents. Hop Pop, Polly, and I used the Plantar Family Ritual to keep from being eaten once."
"Your adventures never cease to amaze me, Sprig," Aang said.
"Thanks? Not sure if that's a compliment."
Aang grinned. "It was!"
"Cool!"
"Hypnosis is such a cliché ability."
"And cheap," Steven said. "It takes free will away, and that's just wrong on so many different levels."
"For once, I agree, pink boy."
"You literally wear a Christmas crown on your head."
"Fighting isn't going to help the situation," Syaoran argued. "We should go talk to Ms. Toriel or Professor Sycamore."
"That's true!" Barry interjected. "Professor Sycamore knows all about different Pokémon with hypnosis abilities. He might be able to help us!"
"And Ms. Toriel has some awesome magic," Monster Kid said. "We should talk to them about it!"
"Miss Franziska is trying to find Mr. Nick and Mr. Grumpy lawyer. I bet something happened," Pearl surmised.
"They're getting up," Frosta warned them.
True to her word, King, Jotaro, Franziska, Yugi, and Koichi had stood and wordlessly walked out the door of the temple.
Rohan pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, Marnie, Barry, MK, and Pearl, you stay here and try to warn Iris, Toriel, and Augustine of where we'll be going today. The rest of you with me."
"But I want to help!" Pearl insisted. "Mr. Nick and Miss Franziska could be in trouble!"
Before Rohan could say something sarcastic, Aang spoke up, "Pearl, you are helping. Miss Iris needs your help. If she knows that your friends are in trouble, she can help get people together to help us!"
"We're losing time," Rohan hissed.
"Trust us, Pearl," Steven said. "We wouldn't lie to you. We're going to help Miss Franziska and Mr. Nick."
Pearl was quiet for a moment before giving them a small smile. "When you see Mr. Nick, tell him he better be keeping Mystic Maya safe."
…
Dio looked at the crude drawing. Perhaps it had been sketched in wax? It had a picture of the Radio Demon with a big red x drawn over him. The entrance to this building was deceiving. On the surface, it looked like a room set up for a party, but below the surface was something different.
"White Snake has scoured all corners of this place," Pucci said. "It's certainly a trap. Given that no demon or undead can cross its threshold, I'm wondering who this trap is for."
They had found this place searching for new allies. It was owned by some corporate overlords that went by the V's. Pathetic. They needed booby traps to mimic half the power he had. But he had seen them speaking to Jotaro Kujo the other day, and if they did his dirty work for him and managed to get rid of the reprobate, far be it from him to stop them.
Yes, he had been watching the twitchy screen man hypnotize the youngest of the Joestar bloodline (besides his son, unfortunately). If this so-called, Vox was capable of getting rid of Jotaro and hated the Radio Demon, perhaps they could be allies.
"What should we do next?" Pucci asked.
"Observe," Dio said simply. "We observe their plan from afar and see what happens. If it helps us, we encourage it. If it impedes our plans, we crush them. All of them."
Pucci said nothing but gave him a simple nod.
…
"And you're sure our image won't be hurt?" Vox asked.
"If you pretend well enough, no," Kaolinite said. "You'll look like the perfect victims of our plan."
Vox, the annoying personality Kaolinite was being forced to work with, laughed. "O-oh good! Image is everything…why don't you wear something to disguise yourself? I'm sure Velvette could get you something."
She thought it over. If she were connected back to the Professor, it could prove disastrous. She sighed, "That may be in everyone's best interest."
The shorter woman grinned. "Lovely! You've got great complexion and no blemishes. Now, we can add a few, or perhaps a change in hair color! Oh, there's so many ways I can change that pretty face!"
"You really think that?" Kaolinite asked raising an eyebrow.
"Tsk, much better than the trash I want to burn," Velvette said, tugging on her arm. "Now, Lysandre and Rose are sure everything is set up correctly, right?"
"Y-yes," Kaolinite said, thrown off by the compliment. "They should have everything set up for the beginnings of our trap. We have the invitations prepped and ready. All you need to do is create an event that will gather everyone together, given we're not able to acquire all targets today."
"So, we're the backup plan," the freak moth said. "Lovely."
"If we don't have to be in the limelight," Vox explained. "Then we can do whatever we want and need, Val."
"Hmph. Fine."
Like handling a toddler with a tantrum. Kaolinite would know about that.
Little did any of them notice was the eerie smile that brightened the dark corner of the café the group thought they had to themselves.
…
The rain poured down from the sky. Luz and Sokka had managed to stay awake most of the night—Giorno had not. It worried Luz. He'd been asleep a majority of the day. What were they going to do if he didn't get any better? Sokka had told her about Avdol's advice, but it worried her even more. If they couldn't bargain with this Radio Demon, what would happen to Giorno? And what about Hunter? He was still very much in danger! She needed to help them both, but with her limited magic, what could she do? Sure, she could do some magic via Stringbean's help, but it wasn't the same as when she had access to all her glyphs.
At least Belos was gone…for good, hopefully.
"Hey Luz, you okay?" Sokka asked.
The two had stayed up all night talking about their girlfriends, their homes, who they fought in the past. Neither could decide who was worse: the mass genocidal witch hunter who almost wiped out the entirety of the demon realm or the mass genocidal imperialist who wanted to wipe out all the other nations. Tough call. This morning they'd spent eating a large bag of chocolate Luz had snagged while she was out. The sugar provided just enough energy to keep their eyes open for another twenty minutes before they passed out for two hours. And then they woke up, super guilty.
"Yeah, I'm good. Just worried is all."
"I get it," Sokka said. "The closest thing we had to this Radio Demon guy was Koh the Face Stealer."
"What's he like?"
"It's sort of implied in the name."
"Right."
It was quiet for a minute before Sokka spoke up again, "Souls are supposed to be spiritual, right?"
"So I've heard," Luz said with a shrug.
"It might be possible that Aang is able to help us. Maybe his connection with the spiritual world can make this deal null and void."
"How?"
"I don't know, but there's gotta be some sort of solution we're not seeing. Every problem has a solution!"
"Unless you divide by zero."
They both jumped when Giorno made a noise and sat upright. Luz breathed a sigh of relief; at least he wasn't unconscious for as long as he was last time. His eyes drifted to the bag of chocolate sitting between the three of them.
"Can I have one?"
"Sure. You okay? You've been out a while."
He unwrapped the candy and paused. "…fine."
"You're not 'fine.' You can be honest," Sokka said.
"I can't. There's enough at stake right now. I can't stop to overthink things. I just need to find the Radio Demon and make sure he's not hurting anyone."
"Well, you can stop your looking, my friend!"
The staticky, old-timey voice sent a chill down Luz's spine. In front of the shrine stood a man in a red suit and coat. He had a microphone for a cane, and his ears and hair resembled a deer. He must be the Radio Demon.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't a holy place keep you out?" Giorno asked, hatred evident in his voice.
"My! What a temper! And I've come to help you all!"
Sokka grabbed his boomerang. "Whatever you're selling, we don't want it. Now, let Giorno go."
"I will say it takes guts or foolishness to threaten me," the Radio Demon said with that smile, ever-present on his face. "Still, you've made some interesting friends, Gio."
"Don't call me that."
"Ugh. You're all so very boring, though. No fun? Just fight?"
"They're not the only ones willing to fight you."
Luz hadn't even noticed Zuko, Miles, Hunter, Josuke, Nemona, Arven, Rei, and Katara walking toward their group.
"Quite the little band of misfits you've gathered! And you've even got some family here, how cute!"
"Family?" Giorno questioned.
"Why of course! I mean you and Mr. Higashikata. Neither of you knew that, did you? Giorno, you're the product of that…despotic vampire who took over Mr. Higashikata's great, great grandfather Jonathan Joestar's body. You have his good heart, but the psychopath's mind. And yet your friends are still willing to help you." the Radio Demon droned on. His face darkened but the smile remained and grew twice as mischievous as his tone. "Your friend Avdol knew. He didn't tell you?"
"You keep Mr. Avdol out of this," Josuke said.
"Like father like son," the demon shrugged.
Josuke lunged toward the demon, but Miles pulled him back, shaking his head. "What do you want?"
"I just came to say, that some of your friends might be getting themselves into some trouble at the diner today. That's all."
"What are you planning?" Giorno asked.
"It's not me you should worry about," the Radio Demon warned. "Rather someone I know. And before you ask: no, we're not friends. We're actually enemies. And since I technically own your power and your power is related to your soul, meaning, in all truth, I own your soul, I want you to investigate their plot. I don't want to have to deal with it."
"And if I don't?" Giorno scoffed.
The grin on the monster's face widened as a chain appeared around Giorno's neck, yanking him forward out of the temple. Miles made a grab for him, but it was too late as the demon pulled him closer. Giorno winced. And all heck broke loose.
Hunter teleported behind the demon, trying to hit him with his staff, but the demon flung him into a tree with the tendrils that surrounded him. Zuko went next, engulfing his fists in flame, but the Radio Demon shook his head, "I'll just use him as a shield, you know?"
Luz held her breath and turned invisible, hoping to throw him off and used Stringbean to create a snare. The snare was easily broken, and she was flung away right next to Hunter. Josuke hopped down and shouted, "CRAZY DIAMOND!" There were a bunch of "DORAS'" after that, but the demon remained unphased. He was still blocking whatever Josuke was throwing with the tendrils. The same happened when Miles and Katara tried to use their webbing and waterbending to fling him backwards. No effect.
"Your friends are useless against me. You've got no other options. Not if you want to keep your miserable existence." The demon droned on.
"No. No we're not. You forget where you are!" Rei shouted. "Akuryo Taisan!"
She threw an ofuda at the demon's face; this seemed to stun him, and the chains disappeared. The Radio Demon twitched. "F-fuck."
He clawed at his face for a couple of seconds, finally ripping the ofuda away. He grew massive, his limbs long and sharp. "I'll tear you all limb from limb!"
"Wait!" Arven said. "You still need them, right? You don't want to have to deal with…whatever it is by yourself, right?"
The demon looked from Rei to Arven to Giorno. Then he glanced around at the scattered heroes. "As much as I hate to admit it, yes. I've got other duties to attend to. However…"
His eyes glowed. "If you should fail me Giorno Giovanna, I'll make sure to tear your soul bit by bit once you're truly dead. Do you understand?"
"We'll be here to make sure that doesn't happen," Zuko said, glaring at him.
"We'll see."
With that, the demon disappeared. Giorno stumbled, staring at the empty space the demon had left. Miles helped him up. "Hey man, c'mon. Get up. We're gonna get you out of this."
Giorno shook his head. "Miles…it's fine. Let's just do this. I'll handle my own problems from now on."
"You can't!" Arven said. "There's no way!"
"There's no other way," Giorno said calmly. "No one else should be involved."
"We won't let you do this alone," Zuko said. "Look, I know you're afraid to bring people into this, but do you really think that demon is just going to stop at you? The more power he gets, the more he'll be able to control people. So, we'll help you to make sure that doesn't happen, and you'll be free from his control."
"I'm going to call Usagi and the others, we're going to that café today," Rei said. "Take some time. Heal up. We've got a long day ahead of us."
"I'm going to go wake up Darius and the others," Hunter said.
There was a moment of silence until Josuke broke it. "Man…we both must be the weird ones of the Joestar family, huh? I mean, you've got two dads that somehow made you, and my dad had an affair with my mom. What are the odds?"
"Reeeaaaallly not the time, bud," Luz said.
"In any case, I'm glad to have more family I've gotten to hang out with," Josuke said with a grin.
Giorno gave him a small smile. "Yeah. I guess it's good to have family that doesn't hate your guts."
…
"And you're sure you can watch the kids?" Phoenix asked.
"Stop being a Worry Watchog," Leon said with a smile. "Besides, Mr. Kaiba took his kids back! It'll be easy! You lot go! N, Sasha, and I have got this!"
"This isn't fair," BB objected. "I can turn into dinosaurs and Toph can bend the earth and metal!"
"That still doesn't change the fact that you're all kids," Eda said. "Look, we all know you wanna help, but sometimes the best way to help is to stay back so that others can assess the situation."
Hobie snorted. "Sure. Misinformation for real, though."
"Hobie, please," Raine pleaded. "They're too young to be joining us."
"I say if the young want to help improve the now, it's their right," Hobie said.
Toph scoffed. "He gets it."
"We'd best get going," Edgeworth said. "The interview starts soon."
"Sasha, can you keep an eye on things here? Kick any daimon butt that comes through?" Raine asked.
"Oh sure. You can trust me," the blonde said with a thumbs up. "This apartment will be the same as you left it."
"How come Jet gets to go? What if you run into Zuko?" Toph asked. "You better not hurt him!"
Jet flinched. "I promise not to hurt your friend *even if I totally could*."
Toph muttered something under her breath. Hobie put on his mask, "Don't worry. I'll keep an eye out on everyone. There's some well-earned anarchy and then just pointlessness. I'll make sure the other doesn't happen, Blind Bandit."
Toph chuckled, "Heh. You'd better, Spider-Guy."
"I'll take that over Punk any day."
"Ugh! This is taking too long! Let's go!" Guzma argued, swinging the front door open.
Before Phoenix could walk out, Edgeworth stopped him. "Are you sure you should go today?"
"I'll be fine!" Phoenix assured him. "All we're going to do is ask the man some questions."
"I have a feeling it's not going to be that easy," Miles said. "Besides, you've still got that target on your back."
"Yeah, well, weirder has happened to me, you gotta admit," Phoenix joked. When he didn't get a laugh, he continued. "Besides, we can get to the bottom of this case!"
"Possibly," Miles reminded him. "We're not even sure Rose is involved!"
"But we have no other leads," Phoenix countered. "Look, I know it's a long shot, but we need to investigate it."
"Why?"
Hard question. He needed to prove to Graves that he could find the boogeyman framing him. Then Graves wouldn't sink their reputations, they'd get more cases, he'd be able to keep himself afloat (Maya and Pearls, too, if need be. The others could handle their own expenses fairly well), and finally, they'd get the truth. No matter what, the truth and justice mattered, even when it came to people like Seto Kaiba and Gideon Graves.
And sure, there were those monsters, but they were just after him. This was par for the course in any case he was involved. Maybe not monsters, but definitely someone who didn't want him to have answers. At least they didn't bludgeon him with a fire extinguisher.
"Because…we can get the case over faster?" Phoenix attempted.
"Ah. I see. I suppose we have been spending quite the allotment of time together on this. It's not a wonder why you'd…want a break."
That's not what he had meant at all. Nevertheless, Edgeworth walked through the doorway. Phoenix heard Toph boo. "You're really bad at flirting."
"Totally," Shauna agreed.
"Abysmally so," Gus and one of his clones said in unison.
"Oi, you three calm down, will you?" Leon asked.
"Human emotions are hard to express," N agreed. He gave Phoenix a small smile. "Go help your friends. We've got it from here."
…
It's funny to see a weird amalgamation form together for the singular purpose of defeating the enemy. However, it's even funnier when all that work will eventually be for nothing.
Reviving so many people just for it to end in tragedy might seem repetitive, but it was fun watching all of them tear each other apart. Perhaps, they'd do his dirty work for him. The Radio Demon and Vampire's fight might get so destructive it might even destroy…the world.
He internally laughed at his own little pun.
For now, he'd sit back and watch what would happen at the diner.
While his greatest rival had yet to make an appearance.
…
This wasn't Unazuki's diner. True, it was set up like a cliché 1950's, American diner with a wider and broader space, but it wasn't as welcoming. There was a stage ahead of all the tables. Apparently, there were live performances from time to time, and Luz and the others were there to watch this 'Vox' guy interview some dangerous man named Rose.
Not the most threatening name, Rose. But, hey, neither was Phillip.
She sat in between Hunter and Frisk. Of course, Luz knew who Frisk was. She loved Undertale. It was just so weird seeing people like Zuko, Frisk, Miles Morales, and Leon S Kennedy (on TV). She knew, due to being an avid nerd and Doctor Who fan, there were some possibilities of disturbing the space-time continuum if she ever said anything about watching or reading about them. Titan knows what it would do their psyches or mental states. So…she decided she was going to keep quiet on this matter and not think about the possibility of being a fictional character in someone else's world.
"We're here," Connie said as Kaiba, Robin, Gale, Ty Lee, Marcy, and a person with blue and red hair, glasses, and Eevee backpack sauntered in.
"Same!" Pav said, rushing in and taking a seat at their big table. The tables had been arranged into long rows. So, luckily there was enough room for everyone. Which totally wasn't suspicious at all.
"Penny!" Nemona called out. She gestured to a seat close to her and Arven. "Come sit with us!"
Penny blushed and nodded. "U-uh, okay."
"Glad you guys made it," Luz said.
"No thanks to your directions," Kaiba shot back.
Jokes on him. He didn't even know how to synchro-summon.
"This is taking too long," Joey complained.
Kaiba's attention turned to him. "Be patient, mutt. You'll need to keep a better attention span than when you do when you lose during duels."
"And you've beaten Yug how many times, Rich boy?"
Luz was sure she saw Kaiba's eye twitch.
More people filtered into the diner. Some were young, others were older. Some were couples. She missed Amity so much! And looking at all the families here made her miss her Mama, King, and Eda.
"Luz?"
Speak of the witch.
Eda rushed towards Luz and scooped her up into a hug, laughing as she did so. "Hey kid! How've you been? Been looking for you everywhere!"
"You too, you crazy, awesome witch!" Luz said grinning ear-to-ear.
"Oh good," Darius said with a sigh. "Edaylyn."
"Darius," Eda regarded with a nod. She snorted. "It's actually good to see you and the no longer bad or sad boy."
"Is she talking about you?" Nemona asked Hunter.
"Guys," Luz said. "This is Eda! She's the one who taught me everything on being a witch!"
"It feels like we almost know you; we've heard so much about you," Miles said.
"The infamous Owl Lady of the Boiling Isles," Anne said. "What's shaking?"
"Eda!" another familiar voice called out. It was Raine! They ended up here, too. Behind her were some other folks Luz recognized. Three of them being from Ace Attorney: Phoenix Wright, Maya Fey, and Miles Edgeworth. Raine seemed surprised but happy to see Luz, Hunter, and Darius. "Fellow C.A.T.S!"
Luz hissed and laughed while Darius groaned, and Hunter buried his face in his hands.
"You called your group the C.A.T.S?" the guy in the jean jacket and Spider-manish clothing asked. This must be Hobie Brown.
"You have a whole 'Spider-Society.' I don't wanna hear it," Raine scoffed.
"Hobie!" Miles and Pav cheered.
"Ah, so this is Hobie," Giorno commented. "It's good to meet you. Any friend of Miles is not an enemy of mine."
Hobie chuckled. "I'll take it."
"Giorno?"
Giorno's eyes widened for a split second. It was as though he'd seen a ghost when two more people entered the diner. One was a person with short, black bob, white suit with black polka dots, and stylish accessories. He seemed happy to see Giorno. The same could not be said for the man beside him. He had purple hair, purple clothes, and a scowl as long as Eda's permanent record.
"Bucciarati? Abbachio? It's…I'm surprised to see you," Giorno managed.
"Did…did you do it?" the man, Bucciarati, apparently, asked.
Giorno nodded. "I did."
"Giorno never talked much about his friends," Katara said. She smiled at them. "It's good to meet you."
"Friends is a stretch," Abbachio said with a yawn. "This little shi—."
"Language," Edgeworth reprimanded. He straightened his coat. "Good to see we've managed to reunite some familiar faces. My name is Miles Edgeworth."
"Oh, right, introductions are probably a good thing. My name is Phoenix Wright."
"And I'm Maya Fey, but you can just call me Maya!"
One last person walked in, joining their group. It was a boy with shaggy brown hair, some sort of weapon on his back in a sheath, homemade armor, and a strand of wheat hanging from the corner of his mouth. He was originally smiling, but when he saw Zuko, he frowned. "Hello 'Lee.'"
"I gave up that name a long time ago," Zuko said coldly. "I am Firelord Zuko of the Fire Nation."
"So what?" the boy asked. He paused and sighed. "I guess you're the one who taught Aang how to firebend, given what Toph has told me."
"Toph's with you?" Sokka asked.
"No, everyone felt it best for the kids to stay home," Jet explained.
"Not me," Hobie argued.
"That reminds me," Eda said. "I found Goops! He's with us!"
"It's Gus, Eda," Luz said.
"Eh, Ghoulaid-Koolaid. It's all the same in the end."
"Toph can handle herself," Zuko argued. "Whose decision was this?"
"Well, we all sort of talked it over," Phoenix said defensively.
"Well then for a lawyer, you're not great with details. If you've been spending any time with Toph, you'd know she can fight better than most other benders in the four nations," Sokka said.
"I'd agree," Kaiba said, narrowing his eyes at the two lawyers. Right…they were handling his case.
"Mr. Kaiba, what are you doing here today?" Edgeworth asked.
"Picking up on any details you may miss," Kaiba said flippantly. "Apparently it's necessary to do so."
"Now, now," Gale spoke up. "We mustn't start a fight. I'm sure our enemies are plenty eager enough to do so without in-fighting amongst ourselves. Wouldn't want to make their jobs any easier."
"That's exactly what I'd do," Guzma, the leader of Team Skull, said, making his existence known to everyone else. "I mean, as ex-leader of Team Skull, I'd use any sort of weakness in the armor to cut down the kahunas in Alola. Same-dif here."
The bells on the door chimed again; Eda barely turned her head but her eyes widened. "King!"
"Franziska!" Miles seemed surprised, but his sister passed him and sat down, as if she didn't even see him.
"Jotaro! Koichi!" Josuke called out. The tall teen with the strange hat carrying King didn't even acknowledge him. Neither did the much shorter teen with silver hair.
"Oh, not you," Christmas Crown man said with a groan. "At least you're not with the moron."
"Don't talk about Okuyasu like that!"
"And yet you already knew who I was talking about. I think that says more about how you feel about your friends than I do."
"Yug!" The champion duelist did not respond; he merely did the same as his friends.
Luz got closer and waved a hand in front of their faces. No effect. Their eyes all glowed a bright, purple hue.
"Hypnosis," Eda surmised. "Pretty cheap and illegal stuff."
"Not to mention unethical," Katara added. "But who did this?"
Suddenly the door swung open as another group of people rushed in. The leader seemed to be a man with dark green hair, green Christmas crown, purple shirt, green vest, and white slacks. Another was a boy with a blue arrow tattooed across his head. He wore yellow and orange robes/clothes. One was a girl with pale lavender skin. Her cloak covered much of her face, and all Luz could see were her bright eyes. There were two kids. One was a boy with chestnut hair that drooped in front of his face. He wore a blue school uniform, and the girl wore a crown that looked like it was made from ice, blue dress, and had dark blue hair. The next was a humanoid, strawberry, poison-dart frog with a brown cap, goggles, and clothes. And lastly was a boy with curly brunette hair, black t-shirt with a yellow star, pink jacket, jeans, and sandals. His eyes shone like diamonds.
"Aang!" Katara called out. He leapt many feet in the air, landing right in front of her. He swung her around in a tight hug. Both Zuko and Sokka looked up at this.
"It's really him."
"We've been looking everywhere for you!"
"It's finally good to see a familiar face," Adora said with a small smile. "Princess Frosta."
"Adora," the small girl, Frosta regarded with a cold stare. It soon changed to a grin. "It's good to see you, too!"
"Friend Raven!" Starfire called out. She flew over to the girl in the cloak. "I am very much delighted by your appearance!"
The girl mumbled something like, "Hello Star."
Robin walked over to them and grinned. "At least we have half the team back together again."
"There are bigger issues at hand," Christmas crown man complained. "Jotaro and the others are hypnotized! And we have no idea why, just that they walked here."
"Then that's why…" Edgeworth murmured.
"Why your sister didn't lash out at you the minute she saw you?" Maya asked.
"Well, I actually took her whip," Diamond boy said.
"Steven?" Connie asked, her mouth agape.
"Connie? Connie!" the boy scooped her up into a hug. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this, too."
"It's okay! I've made some new friends. Looks like you did, too."
"Your sister had a what now?" Eda asked Edgeworth.
"Unimportant," Rohan said. "We all need to get out of here. Grab Jotaro and the others, and let's—!"
He was cut off as the lights dimmed. The Television man from the V channel came onto stage with a man in a gray suit and tie. His dark hair was swept back, and he smiled calmly at the crowd.
"That's Rose," Phoenix murmured.
"Hello everyone!" the TV man, Vox announced. "It is lovely to see all of you today. And I'm just so happy to be joined by the elusive Chairman Rose. Pay close attention everyone and keep your eyes up here. We wouldn't want to miss anything."
Luz was forced to look upwards as the men began to talk to each other. It's not that she wanted to look up there, but there was something pulling her gaze toward them. There was a loud thud outside the building. It didn't matter. All that mattered was this interview.
…
Everyone was entranced by the two men on stage. Well, that was everyone except Giorno Giovanna.
He heard Alastor mentally say, "I'll help you tune Vox out. You're welcome!"
For now, with the low amount of strength he had left, he'd wait for the perfect time to strike. Maybe he could catch them off guard before they could do any damage.
"Today we're unveiling a prototype that will allow interdimensional travel. We don't have any of the finishing touches of the plans," Rose droned on. He smiled calmly and looked at Kaiba who scowled in response. "Although, I think we're going to acquire what we need today. Along with some fuel.
From the tables metal bird-shaped robots appeared; they had those black stars on their wings. No doubt they were infected by daimon. There were loud noises outside, as though a fight were going on.
"And my new miniature Robo-Corviknights can help me accomplish that goal."
"What are you talking about?" the television man asked in faux surprise. He was a terrible actor.
"Starting now, I'm helping a new organization improve the world. We will start a new legacy and recreate things in my—our image."
Now seemed just as good a time as any to intervene.
"Hold it!" Giorno called out.
There had to be at least thirty Robo-whatevers. But everyone here had shown him genuine kindness, just as Bucciarati had. And now Bucciarati was alive again, too. AND he had family. Family he never knew! He wasn't just going to let them all die. Not to some janky, metal junk.
"How are you—," the television man asked.
"If it's all the same," Gale said, standing up calmly. "You really need to expect people who can counterspell hypnotism. When I heard that a few of the others had, I set up a basic spell. Your…abilities are rather weak."
His face darkened. "Allow me to demonstrate real magic from the weave."
Vox's face fell. "We did not bank on a wizard."
"Clearly," Gale said. He turned to Giorno. "Although, I'm unfamiliar with 'stands,' still. If you can help me, it would be most appreciated."
Giorno nodded.
"Oh, it's not the damn stand," Vox complained. "It's the damn radio fucker, isn't it, kid?"
"It's," Giorno clarified. "None of your business."
"It doesn't matter," Rose said with a shrug. A huge Robo-Corviknight flew down from the rafters of the place. "Retrieve Mr. Kaiba, Mr. Kujo, and the Titan, please."
The big bird cawed in response.
"Golden Experience!"
"IGNIS!"
…
Kakyoin dodged the many throwing knives the merc threw his way while the others fought off daimon that had spawned in near the entrance of the diner. Metal grates slammed down over the windows and doors just as they got there. They were severely outnumbered. And although his stand, Amity's abominations, Lillith's talons, and Polnareff could take out several daimon at a time, Suki's combat, Okuyasu's The Hand, and Atticus's Pokémon were more of an individual to individual case.
Polnareff pulled Kakyoin away as the man brought down a scimitar with a quickness almost inhuman. This man could possibly be alien. Pol blocked his scimitar with a parry, and to both of their surprise, the scimitar was able to hold up against Silver Chariot.
"Haven't you figured it out by now?" the merc named Slade asked. "We know everything we need to know on those 'stands.' Even those of you who died, who should pose no threat to us."
Kakyoin directed Hierophant at the man.
He wagged his finger. "Careful, you could hit your friends. After all, you've just been revived. How good is a zombie's control?"
"I'm not a zombie," Kakyoin said. "Keep it up and you'll be a corpse."
"I'm terribly frightened," the man said in monotone.
He pressed a button on his belt, and the number of daimon surrounding them doubled. "Didn't you ever think to get rid of the source? For all those academic acclaims I've read in your file, I thought you'd be smarter. At least on Dick Grayson's level. But you're not."
Amity shakily drew another summoning circle, adding another abomination to their team. Unfortunately, a crowd of robotic, humanoid daimon destroyed two of the five she had remaining. A group of them grabbed Lillith by her foot and dragged her down to the ground. Three of them knocked away Atticus's Grimer, Stunky, and Varoom in that order. He summoned his Pokémon back to him before being nabbed. Suki threw her fan-blade at the arm of a monster who tried to knock Amity down, barely dodging the oncoming lunge of another daimon. Okuyasu was using his stand to eliminate as many daimon as possible, but given its short range, it was quickly overpowered.
"Any ideas?" Polnareff whispered.
"Not at the moment," Kakyoin grumbled back.
"You're not getting inside that building," Slade said. "In fact, I think your reanimation ends here."
More daimon spawned in, quickly subduing all of them. Kakyoin struggled against the grip, but the daimon held him tight. He needed to get inside. He had to help Jotaro!
"I will make sure you suffer if you even so much as glare at my nephew," Lillith yelled.
"I suppose that goes double for your sister and her apprentice," Slade said.
Amity's eyes widened. "Luz is in there?"
"Or her heart crystal. Rose needs the fuel for his tech. If there's a talisman or two in there, well, we hand those over to the company." He looked pointedly to Kakyoin. "And we've strict orders to hand in your friend, the titan, and the CEO brat."
Kakyoin glared at him. "Jotaro will beat you. Just like he beat DIO."
"I wouldn't be so sure," Slade said, stooping down and meeting him at eye-level. "The company is much more powerful than you think."
He turned to his daimons and waved his hand flippantly. "Go ahead and gather their heart crystals. I'm bored now."
The daimon pointed their hands towards the group. Kakyoin stared back at them, refusing to shut his eyes out of some sort of defiance. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction.
"Magician's Red!"
Suddenly, the group of daimon in front of them burst into flame. And an animal with front webbed legs, back paws, a feathery mane, fierce face, and fish's tale bit into the metal grating over the building and tossed it aside, as though it were nothing. It then turned and bucked Slade into the concrete wall of the building.
Gladion and Avdol ran over to their group. Polnareff's eyes widened. "It's really you."
"Yes, I—," Avdol as cut off as more daimon sprouted up.
As Slade shakily stood and summoned more daimon. Polnareff summoned Silver Chariot but was knocked backwards by one of the lunging robots.
"THE HAND!"
A simple wave and the device and two fingers vanished into thin air. This led them to discover Slade's hand was entirely robotic and filled with partially broken wire.
"You—!" Slade began.
Lillith clawed through the daimon, and grabbed Slade, lifting him high into the air. She glanced down at the others. "Get inside and save everyone! Leave this one to me!"
…
Giorno did his best to block the giant, robotic bird from scooping up the small animal Luz seemed to care about so much, his apparent relation, Jotaro Kujo, and Seto Kaiba (even if he was an ass). Golden Experience managed to stay by his side and lay into a few daimon birds; it even stopped the big robotic bird for a while. However, more seemed to spawn and appear in the diner.
"Gale, how long until you can unhypnotize everyone?" Giorno asked.
"Still working on it!" Gale commented, one hand glowing with a witch's bolt and the other with a larger counterspell.
At that moment, there was another twinge in his heart. He felt it creep up his spine and spread like a chill. If the damned demon wanted him to fight his enemy, he could have given him a bit of his power back.
A bolt of black energy struck Ami; she collapsed with a shriek as her heart crystal appeared right in front of her. Giorno stumbled toward her, doing his best to try and make sure he could get it back to her, but someone pushed him aside.
The two rogue senshi Katara and Zuko had talked about stood in front of her, examining the crystal. As to what purpose, he couldn't be sure. Nothing good.
"Give it back," Giorno spat out.
"Don't worry," the blonde said. "It's not a talisman. She can have it back."
There was another cry as Darius was struck down, then Lillie, then Anne. The senshi jumped from individual to individual, inspecting their heart crystals. None of them were deemed to be the talismans they sought.
"Can you help us?" Gale asked, raising an eyebrow. "We're a bit in over our numbers, here."
The blue-haired senshi nodded, taking aim at something in Rose's hands.
"Deep submerge!"
The controller in his hands flung backwards and shattered into pieces—decommissioning all the robo-birds. Rose hung his head, "This is why Mr. Kaiba's assistance would be vastly appreciated. Please, just let us continue our business in piece."
"Like hell," Giorno scoffed. "Gale, are you ready yet?"
Gale gave him one single nod and muttered a loud incantation that seemed to snap everyone out of their trance.
At that moment, Kakyoin and some people with him broke into the building. He spotted Giorno doubled over and asked, "What happened?"
"They're trying to kidnap Luz's brother, Kaiba, and someone who is apparently family to me," Giorno explained.
"Who?" Kakyoin pressed.
"Jotaro Kujo."
"You…you're…that's what Avdol…" Kakyoin said, fumbling for words. He helped Giorno stand tall. "Stay here. I'll help you take care of this."
"Oi, Josuke!"
"Okuyasu? What happened? Everything got really fuzzy for a minute…" Josuke's eyes widened. "Okuyasu! I'm so glad you're here!"
"Where have you been hiding?" Okuyasu asked. "Been looking everywhere for you, bro!"
He glanced over Josuke's shoulder, "Hey Koichi and Rohan are here, too!"
Rohan groaned. "Greaaat. Now they're all together again."
"Sweet potato! King!" Luz called out.
The furry animal jumped off of Jotaro's shoulder and into Luz's arms. "LUZ! Man am I happy to see you!"
The purple-haired girl near Kakyoin rushed over to Luz and hugged both her and King. After settling down, the two kissed and smiled awkwardly at each other. He still didn't get the appeal of relationships.
"Jotaro," Kakyoin called out.
Jotaro turned, looking as though he'd seen a ghost. He paused. "It's…really good to see you again, Kakyoin."
The red-haired boy smiled, but before anyone could say anything else, Vox slammed his foot on the ground like a petulant child.
"Plan B, then," the television man said.
…
The building filled with pink smoke, leaving everyone hacking and coughing. Miles could hear some of their friends struggling. He thought he heard several people call out, but he was so disoriented, it was hard to even tell which way he was going.
And then with the swish of a pair of harpy wings, specifically, the Owl Lady's wings, the smoke cleared. But…something…everything was wrong.
"Oh no," Usagi said, raising her hand to her trembling mouth.
People were missing. Lots of people. Miles panicked as he didn't see Giorno anywhere. He thought about calling out, but there was no need.
"Do you like surprises?" a sinister voice called out.
It was that damnable red witch. She now stood on stage, a smirk on her translucent lips, as though she weren't really there. Neither Rose nor the TV man were anywhere to be seen.
"What have you done with Luz?" Amity called out.
She was right. Luz had gone missing, too!
"If I say now, the surprise will be ruined," the red witch said. "Don't worry, you'll all be getting an invitation soon. Or, at least, select people will. If anyone else comes, we'll destroy your friends."
"Give them back now!" Nemona shouted, balling her fist up at the witch.
The Red Witch simply smirked. "We'll see some of you soon. Just let us finish our preparations."
As soon as she disappeared, most of them stood stunned. Some began to cry. And the tall, sullen guy even punched the wall so hard it chipped off into tiny pieces. Someone he cared about must've vanished.
Miles slumped down into one of the chairs. Horrified that he'd failed to protect his new friend. Giorno had trusted him, and he'd failed.
"Mate," Hobie whispered. "They've got Pav. We gotta get him back."
"I-I know," Miles said, still in shock.
Even Hobie paused at this. "'s alright, Miles. We'll get 'em back. We can handle it."
"Y-Yeah. We can."
The truth was, Miles was shaken. Now there were two of his friends missing. He didn't have any friends back home. The only thing back home was his family, who were all still in danger. There were so many people he needed to save. So many people. So little time. So many uncertainties. What was he supposed to do? He was one person. A kid by Miguel's own words.
"Miles!"
Miles looked to Hobie who put a hand on his shoulder. "We've got this big man. I'm right here with you, alright?"
Miles felt tears pool down his eyes. "I'm sorry. I don't know why…why…"
"It's a lot of pressure, but you and me can handle it."
"And Gwen."
Miles's head jerked up. Kaiba was next to them. "Listen, I'm not sure what transpired between you two, but she's been looking for you every day. She's talked about it to Karlach. She's…very remorseful over what she did to you. I'm not one to give second chances, but I think Gwen deserves one. She wants to save your parents, Miles."
"You knew where Gwen was this whole time?" Miles asked.
"It didn't seem like you wanted to know. Nor did you want her to know where you were," Kaiba explained. "I kept your location secret from her. But I think you two should work together."
Miles paused again. Hobie shook him lightly. "It's true, mate. She formed her own society just to help you. Gwendy was in the wrong for not telling you, but she's making up for it ten-fold."
Miles took a deep breath in. "I'll talk to her."
…
"Jotaro, we'll get him back, mon ami," Polnareff tried to assure him.
Jotaro was silent. He'd seen Kakyoin again just for him to get taken by those Death Buster goons. How in the world was that fair? His death had been his fault. He knew DIO was dangerous, but Kakyoin had insisted on facing him, on going with his grandfather that day. It had cost him his life. His parents were so distraught; they forbade Jotaro from going to the funeral.
He hadn't even seen him buried.
The old man had assured him that might've been for the best. No one wanted to see their best friend like that.
Avdol's death had been his fault, too. At least he hadn't been abducted. He kept trying to reassure Jotaro that Kakyoin would not die again.
That Jotaro was sure. No. Kakyoin would not be dying again.
And he'd punch through any asshole who tried to make that happen.
…
Hunter tried to take in deep breaths like Gus had taught him. The trick wasn't working. Luz and Darius were gone. He didn't know what to do. He knew he was one of the Red Witch's targets, but he never thought it would go this far!
"We just found her…" King's voice trailed off.
"They took Raine, too," Eda growled.
"And we'll get them back just as quickly," Amity said. She held her hand out to Hunter. "Are you okay, Hunter?"
Hunter shook his head. "That witch is after me. She's sent so many of those daimon after me. Luz and Darius got hurt, and it's my fault!"
"Slow down, kid," Eda said. Although, her voice was tinted with anger. Not at him, but it still set him on edge. "We'll get Luz, Raine, and Darius back without anyone getting hurt."
Somehow, he didn't believe her. Not even the Owl Lady could make that kind of promise.
…
Phoenix fell to his knees. They'd taken both of them. They'd taken Maya and Miles.
The last time someone had taken Maya she nearly…
No. No, they couldn't. They wouldn't.
Right?
Abbachio tried pulling him up, "Come on. We've got to find them. Bucciarati is missing, too. WRIGHT! We've got to go!"
"I…I don't know what to do."
"Obviously they're looking for you," Abbachio said. He was silent for a moment, seeming to weigh his options. "I'm going to use Moody Blues to try and trace where they might've gone. You stay here with everyone else. Don't move!"
Phoenix numbly nodded. He hadn't apologized to Edgeworth for that misunderstanding earlier. He was going to tonight when tensions were less high. He hadn't meant for Edgeworth to think he was some sort of nuisance, or worse, merely a work friend.
He meant so much more than that.
…
Everyone was hurting. Usagi was sobbing over the fact that they had stolen away her boyfriend, Josuke was missing all of his friends, even Rohan, who hadn't seemed to like him very much. Jotaro, Avdol, and Polnareff were missing their friend, Kakyoin. Arven, Nemona, and Atticus were missing their friend, Penny. Hunter, Eda, Amity, Lillith, and King were missing Raine, Darius, and Luz. Yugi was telling Kaiba that they had stolen their (well, more so Yugi's) friend, Joey. Connie was missing which made Kaiba and the Diamond-Eyed boy, Steven upset. Marcy and Sprig were already working on a plan to save Anne. Raven and Starfire were missing their friend Robin (which also upset Kaiba). The wizard, Gale, had disappeared in the commotion. Phoenix Wright had his entire family taken from him. Abbachio swore he'd find Bruno and the little…well…Katara was sure he meant Giorno. Speaking of which, Miles seemed devastated by Giorno's disappearance. With his health being the way it was, Katara was also worried. However, she, Zuko, Suki, Ty Lee, and Aang were trying to think of where the Red Witch could have taken her brother.
"I didn't even get to see him," Suki said, tears in her eyes. She slammed her fist on the table. "They'll pay for taking him."
Katara took a deep breath and nodded, shutting her hand so tightly, she was sure she drew blood.
"I'll fly over the city with Appa," Aang suggested. "There's only so many places they can hide a secret base, right?"
"Unless it's hidden somewhere we can't see," Zuko pointed out.
"Why don't we find one of those monsters and interrogate it?" Ty Lee suggested. Everyone paused, taking the suggestion seriously.
"That's not a bad idea," Zuko admitted.
"I'm chop full of them," Ty Lee said with a small smile.
"Then we get them to talk at any cost," Katara said. "Let's go get Toph, I'm sure she can help us."
"Wait," Aang said. "I know we're all hurting, but Mr. Wright is hurting, too. If we go over there, acting rashly—,"
Katara cut him off, "Then it's his fault for not letting Toph join him in the first place!"
Everyone was taken aback. She sighed and sat back down. "I'm sorry. But Sokka, even when he acted silly, has always been there for me. He's been the only one who's always been there."
She slammed her hands down on the table. "So, I'm not going to let these evil people hurt him."
…
Usagi sat next to Rei, trying her best not to cry. They took Mamo, her Mamo. Why had they taken him? It was just so unfair! She had to save him! But…she didn't even know where they had taken him!
What had they meant by invitations? Why had they taken so many people?
Why were they creating all this misery?
Despite her own heartbreak, Usagi knew she'd do everything in her power to make sure Mamoru came back to her safe and sound. And she'd make sure everyone else's loved ones returned just the same.
In the name of the moon, she'd make sure to punish those witches.