Interlude: Existential Considerations
Hey, hey, hey~! Was wondering when you'd show up. It's been a little bit since we last convened with one another, and I'm sure you're itching to find out how we'd follow up on the action-packed escapades of Shantae the Legendary Super Genie, her friends, and even her enemies after they collided like atomic bombs over that highly coveted, apparently miracle-inducing Spirit Fuser that suddenly became the driving force behind everything happening up to this point. Now, I'm about 67.3% (margin of error: .3%) sure you don't need a recap, buuut… this is for those who like to skim as opposed to getting the full experience. So if you already know, you can go on ahead. If not, then buckle up. You're in for one quick, but VERY eventful ride. Deep breath… and…
Allllright, so last we left off, we were hit with a huge double-whammy of a saga in which the search for the Relic in question had seen a hasty start. Shantae and her plucky young sidekick Bolo set out to locate the first Spirit Fuser fragment, only to be beaten to the punch by the renegade former guardian genie Hashanah and her girlfriend, the presumably disgraced Ammonian Admiral Nila as the teams faced off in a truly chaotic 2-on-2 deathmatch in the now-defunct Tangled Thread Temple. Meanwhile, the illustrious and esteemed War Bird Trainer Sky had joined forces with the fabled Darkness-Swathed Hero Tayshan to conduct an impromptu investigation in the Phantasmagoric Forest… only to come face-to-face with the nefarious Queen of the Seven Seas, Risky Boots after she and her devious Tinkerbats laid waste to the landscape in their hunt for what could be Sequin Land's most powerful treasure yet. The titanic battles that took place wound up causing the total destruction of both of the new locations, the claiming of the first fragment by Hashanah and Nila, and the recovery of the second piece by Sky and Tayshan. Three pieces remained, their locations weren't readily knowns, and by all accounts, the race was on… Whew… Did it in one breath. Go, me!
Er, sorry. Anyway, that's about as much as I can give you before I start REALLY getting carried away. If you still haven't picked up on it, then I suggest you go back and brush up before you come back. Otherwise, you're just gonna wind up more confused than a fish in a barrel of monkeys. Got it? Of course, you do. So, without further ado, let's go ahead and see how some of our Sequinean friends were doing in the aftermath of their most chaotic recent journeys…
"HYAH!" Shouted none other than everyone's favorite ponytailed half-genie as she appeared to be training quite vigorously outside her lighthouse. Garbed in a most eye-catching workout ensemble of a form-fitting, sporty red tank top that bared her midsection, a tight, stretchy pair of black spandex shorts, a white sweatband around her forehead, matching white sweatbands around her wrists, and a stylish pair of red sneakers that matched her top, Shantae worked up a notable sweat as she threw punch after kick after Hair Whip attack at the air. Mind you, the young woman was also wearing ankle and wrist weights that didn't look light by ANY means of the word as she exercised. The springtime heat seeming not to bother her at all, Shantae poured all of her determination into her physical fitness routine. "HARRAAH!" she yelled once again, leaping into the air and performing a spinning kick. "TORYAAH!" she let out an additional holler as she launched three lightning-quick punches that I swore could've ignited the air, she punched so fast…! My goodness, did she look like she was ready to CLEAN someone's clock… speaking of which…
"W-whoa! Hey, take it easy, would ya!?" complained her training partner, a certain curvaceous zombie maiden who was ALSO dressed up in an alluring athletic outfit as she dodged a handful of the half-genie's strikes while blocking others. This other young woman nearly matched Shantae as far as the design of her outfit, though she instead wore an oversized orange tank top tied into a knot at the bottom to bare her midriff, a longer pair of black yoga pants that were doing EVERYTHING to show off her bodacious curves, and orange sneakers with frilly yellow socks inside. It was worth note, however, that the undead young lady was NOT wearing any wrist or ankle weights. Nevertheless, the young zombie dodged a startling *ZWOOF* of a punch aimed at her face, after which she blocked an incoming roundhouse kick by lifting her knee up and meeting Shantae's shin with her own. With an emphatic *THWACK*, the girls collided full force. "Ouch! I get it that you're motivated, snack cakes, but let's not forget that I'm not as good a fighter as you are just yet!"
"That should be a reason to keep improving then, Rottytops!" Shantae shot back as she kept up the pressure. "I want to see everything you've learned since you started training!"
"Sure, but at least give me enough breathing room to-!" Rotty was about to most humbly request before being pelted in the face with a well-timed *THWAP* of a Hair Whip that sent her stumbling back. "OW! Gaaah, that STINGS…!" she complained, rubbing her face as her opponent finally halted her onslaught.
"Sorry about that, but you let your guard down," the half-genie apologized and explained, bouncing up and down on her toes as she remained prepared in a boxing-styled fighting pose. "I know we've been at this for a while, but should I keep going as I am? I've already got these super heavy weights on, which I thought would even us out. Is this still too much for you to handle?" she further casually asked, though… judging by the disgruntled expression on Rotty's face in response to the question, it didn't seem she took it lightly.
"…Y'know what? No! I don't need your pity OR your mercy!" the zombie girl fervently rejected, readying herself up as well as she entered a stance where she looked like she was about to run track race. "I don't care IF you've got 200 extra pounds of weight on you with those 50-pound wrist and ankle braces! I was told you'd start getting cocky when you think you've got an advantage, so now I'm gonna show you why you shouldn't treat me like some weak little charity case! Bring it on, Shantae! I can take anything you can dish out!"
"What? Who told you I get cocky when I…?" she was about to ask, though it seemed not to take her more than a second or two before she realized. And at that realization, she comically scowled in stark agitation. "…Oh, I am gonna HURT him when he wakes up!" she declared, making evident that a certain someone was in BIG trouble. It looked like it was on now…
SHANTAE VS. ROTTYTOPS: FEMININE FISTS OF FURY!
"SPARRING MATCH! ZING THE ZOMBIE!" Shantae announced in a mixture of excitement and determination as she struck a battle pose.
"HERE I COME! ZOMBIE ZOOM!" Rottytops announced as she, with a sudden *FWOOOSH*, flared with a spectacular white aura. Within the next instant, and with an incredibly windy *FWEEEEESH*, she raced at Shantae at full speed.
"Wh-whoa! So fa-!" the heroine was about to acknowledge before being cut off with a sudden *THRACK* of zombie knuckles right to her face. "OWAH!" she hollered out in a sudden burst of jarring agony. Of course, Rottytops wasn't done there…
"Gotcha! Now, eat THIS! TWISTER OF TORMENT!" the undead femme fatale announced as she grabbed Shantae by the wrist while she was stunned. Reeling the half-genie in by her arm, Rottytops followed up with a *THWOCK* of a roundhouse kick aimed at her opponent's stomach, followed by a second roundhouse kick that belted the other woman's face with a frightening *KATHWOCK*. At that point, she let go of Shantae's wrist to perform a most dazzling jumping spin technique while she was still enshrouded in this magnificent aura. And by the time Shantae recovered enough to begin realizing what was happening, she was hit with one more emphatic *KATHRAASH* of a whirlwind kick that BLASTED her across the face.
"GAAHAH!" Shantae bellowed out as she was sent hurtling backward in a mixture of surprise and unfathomable pain. Keeping herself oriented no less, she quickly braced herself as she planted her hands on the ground and performed a most elegant backward somersault to bounce herself back to her feet. "Ow! Not bad, Rotty! THAT'S what I like to see!"
"Glad you approve, babe! But that's only the beginning! SHYAAAAAH!" Rottytops practically roared in determination, using her speed to her advantage as she rushed Shantae down once again. And just like that, the girls were slugging away at each other, *PLOCK* after *TWACK* after energetic *THROCK* of their fists and feet clashing and smashing into one another at speeds I didn't think were humanly possible. The young ladies whirled all over the grassy, palm tree-laden peninsula like a tornado of red, purple, green, and orange. Each of them fighting as though they had a point to prove, both Shantae and Rottytops took this supposedly 'friendly' sparring match to a whole other level of competitive! Given that the half-genie had the handicap of wearing weights that added an additional 50 pounds FOR EACH LIMB, the undead martial arts expert that was Rottytops gained an early advantage as she landed a few sporadic strikes.
"Ghah…! Wow, you're a lot more coordinated than I gave you credit for…!" Shantae acknowledged as she took another solid *THWACK* of a punch to her face, though she managed to block an incoming knee with a *WHOCK* of Rotty's appendage against her hands. The audacious zombie wasn't keen on letting up, however.
"Feeling the pressure, I see!" Rotty taunted, growing more excited as she threw another flurry of punches that Shantae barely had the time to dodge. "Better not crack, snack cakes, because I'm turning it up!" she further vowed as she increased the frequency and variety of her assault. Flinging a wild combination of punches, kicks, knees, and elbows, Rotty found herself fully enjoying the experience of pressing Shantae against the proverbial ropes as the astonished genie did her best to block and dodge as many of the incoming strikes as she could. There was even a point where Shantae wound up backing into a palm tree located right next to her house, only to BARELY duck out of the way in time for Rotty to strike the tree with a walloping *KATHRACK* of her foot against its trunk. The kick, I kid you not, wound up LEAVING A SNEAKER-SIZED DENT just a few inches lower than another mark shaped like a man's fist… huh… "You can't run from me forever! I'm gonna get you, Shantae!" Rotty teased some more as she continued to hound Shantae with her seemingly endless barrage of fists and feet that the half-genie continued to dodge at a speed nearly rivaling LIGHT itself. Meanwhile…
"Heh, that's right… Get nice and comfortable trying to hit me… I've got something just for you, Rotty…" Shantae murmured to herself, seeming to count on Rottytops losing herself in her perceived advantage as she dodged a few more strikes with *WHOOF* after *FWISH* after *WOFF* of the zombie's limbs against the temperate afternoon air.
"Hey! Stay still and let me land at least one attack! There's no way you should still be THIS fast with all those weights on you!" Rotty complained as she refused to relent in her onslaught. She would try a few more strikes that missed their mark before she identified a potential opportunity to catch her opponent by surprise. As soon as Shantae hopped over a low sweep, Rotty pounced on the opportunity. "Gotcha! HRRYAAAH!" she shouted as she launched a particularly powerful wheel kick. However, Shantae ducked under it at the last second, at which point Rotty's leg went brushing past the genie's hair with a definitive *WHIFF*. "Whoawhoahahaaah!" the zombie maiden bellowed, nearly falling over as Shantae somersaulted backward three times… mind you, with TWO HUNDRED POUNDS of extra weight on her, to create some distance. Rottytops recovered her balance in the nick of time, though one could tell she was winded due to her heavy panting and profuse sweating as her damp, frizzy hair sticking to her forehead. "Hah… What in the WORLD, man…!?"
"Am I too fast for ya, girlfriend? It's okay to admit that you can't keep up," Shantae taunted with a cheeky grin as she raised a hand to give Rottytops a most disrespectful 'come here' taunt with her index finger. As one might imagine, Rotty did NOT take very kindly to it.
"Ooh, you REALLY know how to grind my gears…!" Rotty practically growled, straightening herself up as she readied herself for her next attack. "When I get over there, I'm gonna make you beg for mercy!" she bravely challenged, throwing caution to the wind as she charged ahead with a fist cocked back. Far more prepared this time, Shantae took a deep breath as she watched Rotty's every move. With a soft, yet astonishing *Whooosh*, she found herself coated in a glittering light blue magic aura. Within the following instant, Rotty attempted to land another bombshell of a haymaker… only for Shantae to stop it in its tracks by grounding her stance and catching Rotty's fist in her hand with a power-packed *THROCK*. "WHAT!? How in the heck did you-!?"
"I'm gonna DISARM you!" Shantae declared… perhaps a bit literally as she, with a swift tug and *POP*, PULLED ROTTYTOPS'S ARM OFF, disconnecting it at the stitches surrounding it near her shoulder.
"HEY! I need that! Give it back!" Rotty demanded as she pounced and tried to snatch her disembodied member from her opponent.
"Sure! Since you asked so nicely, I'll HAND it back to you!" the genie girl punned once again as she tossed the arm up, grabbing it at the stitched end of it and swung it at her sparring partner while her guard was down. And sure enough, with a hotly stinging *WHAP*, Shantae slapped Rottytops with her own disembodied hand and followed up with a monstrous *KATHRAAASH* of a spinning kick into the zombie maiden's exposed stomach, sending her flying backward with the force of a rocket. Rotty managed to regain enough of her senses, however, to keep from plastering herself on the grassy terrain as she caught herself on her remaining arm and flipped back to her feet. Soon after, Shantae wordlessly threw Rotty's missing arm back to her, grinning all the while. Though disgruntled and slightly disoriented in the moment, Rotty picked her arm up off the ground and reattached it without any issue… Huh. I guess she was used to coming apart and putting herself back together. Nevertheless, the undead fighter took a deep breath, brushed the back of her hand against her stinging cheek, and shot her best friend/enemy a most intimidating glare. "Uh-oh… You look mad now, Rotty… Are you okay?" the worried half-genie asked, evidently not meaning to agitate the other young lady.
"It's ON now…! Tricking me like that was one thing, but you crossed the line with those puns…! I'm gonna pay you back in SPADES for that, Shantae!" Rottytops warned in a most… unexpected fashion, her agitated sneer turning into a most… mischievous grin that put her opponent back on her guard. "If that's how you wanna play, then I'd better give this next technique a HEAD start!" she… further punned as she pulled her own head off her shoulders with a *POP* and flung it high toward the half-genie.
"Hm? Using your head for this one, huh?" Shantae observed as she watched her opponent's disembodied head soaring through the air, anticipating Rottytops's next move. She wouldn't have to wait for very long, however, as Rotty's headless body Zombie Zoomed straight at Shantae with a startling *FWEEEESH*. "WHAT!? You can sti-!?" she was about to yell before being SPEARED with a most impactful *KAPWOWGH* of the zombie girl's body against hers. "OHH-HAGH!" Shantae hollered as she hit the ground with a dense *PLOP* of her back against the grass beneath her. Meanwhile, Rotty's body scrambled to get on top of her, straddling the half-genie just in time for her head to come descending from the air to reattach itself to her body with a most… bizarre *KATRIK* like a cartridge being loaded into an old-school gaming console. As soon as Rottytops was whole again, she wasted no time sitting down on Shantae while pinning the genie girl's hands above her head.
"Gotcha right where I want ya, sweetheart~!" Rotty taunted with a devious smiling wink, turning up the flirty dial immediately as she relished her situational advantage.
"Gah…! Hrrgh…! What a dirty trick that was…!" Shantae complained as she tried to wrest herself free from the zombie girl's clutches with no initial success. "Hagh…! Impressive and super creative, but dirty nonetheless…!"
"What can I say, snack cakes? This head of mine isn't just full of air," Rotty teased some more, throwing in another pun that… while it SHOULDN'T have made me laugh… it… kinda made me laugh. "You, on the other hand, have no BODY to blame but yourself… and now, I'm gonna take full advantage of this delicious opportunity…~" she added salt to the wound as she inched her face closer to the other young lady's, sultrily licking her lips as she closed the distance between them… ooh, boy… getting just a LITTLE hot out here, huh?
"Oh, and here you go… You're being trifling!" Shantae complained as she put more effort into trying to pull herself out of Rotty's grasp.
"Way to point out the obvious, sugar brains~!" Rottytops gleefully acknowledged as she let out a most devious giggle. "Nice new word, by the way. Of course, now's a golden opportunity for me to show you how 'trifling' I can be!" she further 'threatened' as she leaned closer… to the point where she was literally nose-to-nose with her opponent in this most… provocative of advantaged positions. "Looks like this is the point these fancy weights of yours turn out to be your downfall…"
"Hardly, Rotty…! HYAH!" the half-genie hollered as she, with a MIGHTY twist, rolled herself over with the other girl tumbling along with her.
"WHOA! Wow, you're WAY stronger than I gave you credit for…" Rotty observed in complete surprise, though she did her best to keep her fleeting advantage by latching her legs around Shantae's waist. Nevertheless, Rotty wound up flat on her back while Shantae found herself on her knees, her torso pressed firmly against Rotty's as they locked their hands together in the midst of their struggle. Within a second, however, Shantae managed to pin Rottytops's hands to the grass above her head as Rotty strengthened the grip of her legs around Shantae's waist.
"Hrrgh…! It comes with the training. But now, I'M the one on top! Let's see you try and wiggle your way out of this!" the half-genie challenged as she wriggled and squirmed in an attempt to free herself from Rotty's leg grab.
"Hah… At this rate, I may not want to, with how close and snuggled up we are… and it's so exciting when you take the lead and dominate me. What are we gonna do on the grass together, Shae-Shae~? Come on, don't keep a girl waiting…"
"Hmph. Those sorts of dirty jokes might work on other people, but I'm used to your head games by now, Rotty," the ponytailed maiden deflected, though one could clearly see by the furious redness of her cheeks that she… wasn't entirely able to pull off a convincing facial expression to match her statement.
"Then explain that curious blush on your face, Shantae," Rotty wasted no time pointing out. "Seems to me you're a lot less put off by the idea than you're implying… Naughty, naughty…~" At that, the half-genie rolled her eyes and sighed in disbelief before offering her rebuttal.
"…Oh, it's DEFINITELY because I always imagined myself in this position with you… All hot, sweaty, tangled up in your 'loving' embrace, and ready to go completely wild without anyone in the world to stop us. Is THAT what you want to hear me say?" Shantae flatly remarked, her tone full to the brim with scathing sarcasm. At that, however… Rotty's eyes nearly EXPLODED out of her blushing face, making evident that she wasn't expecting such a racy reply from such an 'innocent' friend of hers.
"…Talk about a dream come true… Also, YES! That's further proof that you're fully corrupted now, snack cakes! I'm so proud of you!" the zombie bizarrely cheered, squeezing her legs tighter around her best friend's waist as they continued to wrestle for control.
"Eugh… I knew you'd say something like that… Ah, what am I gonna do with you, Rotty?"
"Anything you want at this point, Kitten… And I've gotta say, that suggestion of yours sounds SUPER hot~! Why not let out all our pent-up frustrations and go wild? You and me, right here, right now~! Let's make the whole WORLD jealous with our unshakeable love!"
"First of all, DON'T call me 'Kitten'! Only Tayshan gets to call me that! And second, he would hate that perverted idea even more than I would," Shantae sternly remarked, her blush deepening in tandem with her agitation at Rottytops's teasing.
"Yeah, right. You can't tell me you aren't at least a LITTLE curious… And knowing Tay-Tay, he'd be glad to see us bonding so closely in his absence! If anything, maybe he'd be willing to join in on the next pulse-pounding round… Sharing is caring, after all~!" the undead maiden suggestively… suggested with a most flirtatious smiling wink. That, as you might imagine, was MORE than enough to set Shantae off as the half-genie glared at her. Seeing this frustration, of course, made Rotty laugh in mischievous triumph.
"Oooh, that's IT! I'm gonna squeeze every last awful thought out of that TRIFLING brain of yours!" the flustered and HIGHLY agitated genie declared as she gathered up the strength to pull herself out from Rotty's grip. Try as the zombie maiden might to slither away when her advantage was lost, she would find no success in making her escape. Instead, she wound up being flipped around and ensnared in a most uncomfortable headlock while she was on all fours with Shantae on top of her.
"Ghaaah…! Hahah…! Squeeze away, then, sweetheart…! You might just discover something that tickles our fancies~!" Rotty taunted yet again as she lowered herself to where she was on her elbows, using her hands to try and break her opponent's grip around her neck.
"That, or your head will pop like a balloon. We'll see what happens first!" Shantae challenged, batting away the flirty comment as she tried to reposition herself to try and pull Rotty backward to lock in a submission hold of her own. Only, at just the SLIGHTEST instance of the genie loosening her grip…
"YAH!" Rotty grunted as she managed to, with considerable effort, pry Shantae's arms apart. Immediately after, she tried to crawl away to gain some footing, only for her sparring partner to pounce on her before she could get the chance.
"Oh, no you don't! Get over here!" the half-genie challenged, managing to propel herself forth on her knees with just enough time to grab Rottytops by her hips and drag her backward toward herself while the zombie girl remained on all fours.
"Ooh! H-hey now, if you're gonna take me from behind, you could AT LEAST have the courtesy of letting me know what you're gonna do back there!" Rotty… er, 'complained' as she tried to force Shantae off of her by jutting her hips backward into the half-genie's midsection as hard as she could. Despite the impactful *PLOCK* of the zombie's hindquarters against her opponent's pelvic region, Shantae held on strong.
"Grrgh…! You're mine now, Rotty…! I've got you right where I want you!" the determined heroine remarked, pressing herself onto the other young woman as she tightened her grip on her hips.
"Think that all you'd like, but you're in for a wild ride if you think I'm gonna let you choke me out…! Hrrgh…! Hah…! Ah…!" Rottytops shot back, actually sounding serious this time as she thrusted herself backward a few more times to try and shake Shantae off. Even with *PLOP* after *PLACK* after *PLOUGH* of her body against the half-genie's, however, Rotty found it especially difficult to escape when she had little to no leverage to work with.
"Hmmph! Gah…! Ah…! Gosh, it's like riding a mechanical bull…! Hold still, would you…!? Mmph…!" Shantae complained through effortful grunts as she kept her hands glued to Rotty's hips as Rotty continued trying to er… butt-bounce her off, I guess… Jeez, this is one ODD sparring match, let me tell ya. If this seems odd to witness, then imagine how awkward it is trying to explain it… And speaking of witnesses…
"…What in the world are you two doing?" a certain blue-haired adventurer asked with a cocked eyebrow and a rather… suspicious blush as he carefully approached. His sudden appearance wound up snapping both girls to attention as they ceased their brawl to look at him.
"Bolo?" both Shantae and Rottytops called, both frozen in surprise as they each locked eyes with him.
"Y-yeah, it's me. I was just checking in, but uh… Am… I interrupting something? Because I can leave you two alone if—!" he was about to suggest, pointing a thumb behind himself
"NO! We were just sparring," Shantae HASTILY denied, getting an uncomfortable hint as she let go of Rottytops and hurriedly scrambled to her feet, dusting herself off along the way. "I know that look on your face, Bolo! You'd better not get any funny ideas about what you just saw!"
"Of course not," he assured with a nonchalant shrug as he breathed a sigh of relief and chuckled. "Just making sure. I know you well enough by now to know I can trust your word, sis. The training clothes and the weights kinda tell the rest of the story, anyway."
"Good…" Shantae acknowledged, breathing her own relieved sigh as she began to unfasten said weights, starting with her wrists.
"Just when we were about to really get busy with our workout… Way to drop in at the perfectly wrong time, dude. You totally killed the mood," Rotty complained, sulking a bit as she remained planted on her knees and elbows, resting her head on one hand as she arched her back to stretch out some kinks.
"Is that so? Well, that definitely means you were most likely up to no good, Rottytops. As usual… I can never put anything past you…" he… rather crossly addressed the zombie maiden as he scowled at her.
"And what's THAT supposed to mean!?" Rotty asked in offense as she raced to climb back to her feet.
"Nothing, unless you find yourself that offended by a simple observation," Bolo challenged as he crossed his arms and eyed Rotty up and down. "If you've got nothing to be upset about, then you'd do best not to be so jumpy about it. Otherwise, you'll make people suspicious that you're not respecting certain boundaries like you SAID you would…!"
"Hmph. I'd watch my mouth if I were you, or else you'll find it stuffed full of my fist again," the zombie maiden threatened.
"Whoa there, what's with all the animosity?" Shantae asked as she removed her other training weights from her ankles, though she would get no direct response.
"…Right. We'll have to see about that," Bolo flatly remarked before closing his eyes for a moment and sighing away his apparent frustration. Afterward, he straightened his expression and dropped as much of his agitation as he could in the moment.
"Hmm… I would hope you two are still getting along well enough after all this time," Shantae made it a point to remind her friends.
"Don't worry, don't worry," Rotty assured with a casual flick of her hand. "Bolo and I are still pals at the end of the day."
"Glad to know that. You did an awesome job in this sparring match, by the way!" Shantae changed the subject as she smilingly addressed Rottytops. "I'm super impressed with how far you've come! In just a few months, you learned how to fight like a world champion!"
"D'aww, Shantae~! You're gonna make me blush…" Rotty teased as she pressed her hands to her cheeks, though one could tell by the cheesy grin on her face that she was beyond happy to receive such praise for her fighting prowess. "Thanks! Believe me, I poured my all into every training session I had since I got started last fall! I've still got a few kinks to iron out to get my fighting style up to speed, but I know I'm on the right track if you say I am!"
"No doubt about it, Rotty. Keep up the good work, and you'll improve a ton more before you even know it. Heck, maybe we can do this again sometime, but in a sense where I can teach you a few moves!"
"I'd love that! Yet another of at least a thousand reasons for us to bond!" Rotty cheered, beyond ecstatic to have earned herself a teacher in her best friend. "Heh, I gotta admit, I feel special having you AND Tayshan take me under your wings as my martial arts mentors." Huh. I stand corrected. I meant that she earned herself ANOTHER teacher in her OTHER best friend.
"Hey, that's true, isn't it? I suppose that goes to show how much potential you have as a fighter. Granted, I'm sure there are STILL techniques he taught you that you haven't shown me just yet," the heroine half-jokingly prodded. Rotty read between the lines immediately as the girls locked eyes for a silent moment. After said moment…
"…Maybe, but you'll only find out next time we spar, snack cakes~!" the zombie maiden teased with a smiling wink. At that, Shantae chuckled and nodded in acknowledgement that she was in for a host of pleasant surprises in the near future.
"Hm. And here, I thought I was supposed to be the mentor around here," Bolo jokingly complained. "I'm starting to really wonder how I stack up against all of you…"
"I'm sure you'll find out when you have your sparring match with Tayshan…" Shantae joked back.
"…Y-yeah, that… should go relatively well, provided I learn how to shoot gigantic towers of fire and lightning out of my hands or somehow get strong enough to give even Risky Boots a run for her money," the young man theorized, though the flatness of his tone made it apparent that he felt he had some trepidations.
"Is that a twinge of FEAR I hear in your voice there, Bolo?" Rottytops teasingly asked, nudging him out of his train of thought with an elbow to his side. "Didn't take you to be one to chicken out at the first sign of a slight disadvantage between you and a sparring partner~!"
"W-what!? No, of course not! I'm not scared of anything!" he boisterously denied, growing hot under the collar as he shot the zombie maiden a perturbed, flustered glare.
"Except beautiful women, beautiful women who are stronger than you…" Rotty continued to egg on as she grinned and flirtatiously flexed a muscle. "…And evidently, men who are stronger than you. I can practically HEAR the sweat trickling down your cheek there, bud. It's okay to admit you may not be as tough as you thought you were and that you'd likely get pounded into turkey stuffing if you tried to fight me, Shantae, or Tayshan. At this point, you might want to start with someone more your speed like Techno Baron or a pack of sick toddlers…" she continued to goad, much to her friend's endless chagrin.
"Gaah, why you-!" Bolo was about to snap before Shantae cut in.
"Alright, alright, leave him be, Rotty," the heroine requested as she stepped between them. Soon after, she turned toward Bolo. "Not that you need me to tell you this, but you'll be able to get to a much higher level yourself if you train more, bro. It stands to reason that you and Tay were roughly even when he first showed up here in Sequin Land," the half-genie assured him with a nod. At that, however, Bolo offered her a look of uncertainty.
"True enough, but I never got to fight him before all the 'Dual Magic' business took effect. I… also have to wonder about his experience before he came here. I'm not all that sure," he shared his concern. "Plus, I've definitely fallen behind if I can't harness magic to enhance my strength or pull off the incredible feats that you can."
"Well, when there's a will, there's a way," the half-genie assured once more, remaining supportive. "I won't go on and say you'll need to go down the same path Tay did to get stronger, but you'll eventually realize your potential in your own way."
"This, coming from one of maybe TWO people stronger than he is. How many centuries do you think it would take me before I'm strong enough to at least give you a fair fight?" he sarcastically rebutted and asked, eliciting a light chuckle out of his best friend.
"I see your point, but that kind of thinking will only hold you back. Like you taught me when I lost my genie powers, you've just gotta believe. The rest will naturally take care of itself."
"…Ohh yeah, I did say that…" Bolo realized, breaking eye contact for a moment as he cast his gaze into the open air.
"And I haven't forgotten it! I won't let you forget it, either! Maybe I can give you a pointer or two on how to use any magic you might have for special attacks to get you started. That is, if you don't mind me becoming your mentor for a change," she further encouraged and offered.
"Hm. I'm nothing if not humble, so sure," Bolo casually accepted, though Rotty stifled a laugh at the comment. Hearing her, Bolo glared at Rotty again, causing the undead young lady to clear her throat and straighten her face the best she could. With a shake of his head, Bolo turned back to Shantae. "I'm interested to know. If you can teach one of us, then I suppose you can teach us all, huh?"
"And if you really CAN teach us all, then you'll teach me first, right? I was here before anybody else!" Rotty joked, getting both Shantae and Bolo to laugh with her.
"Aw, jeez. Looks like I might have started a new business by accident! I'll let you guys know when my next appointment is, in this case," Shantae quipped one more time, though she found herself reminded about something as her smile faded. "…Er… Hey, Bolo. About Tayshan… Have you seen him or Sky today?" she suddenly asked, changing the subject once again.
"I did, actually. I just came from Mimic's Workshop, figuring I'd give you an update. I'm surprised you haven't been there yourself to visit them since we came back from our last adventure. What gives?" he asked, causing the half-genie to flinch in surprise before she partially retreated into herself with a knuckle curiously pressed into her lower lip.
"…U-um… I… was a bit tied up, is all," she offered her reason, though very uncertainly. "Y'know… random things that popped up here and there that kept me more occupied than I thought…"
"Tied up with what, exactly? Surely, nothing so big that it took up any time you had to swing by Professor Mimic's over the last few days, right?"
"Er… w-well… it's… a bit hard to explain," Shantae offered another uncharacteristically feeble answer as she grew uncomfortable to the point of lowering her head and nibbling in her knuckle. Bolo raised an eyebrow at his best friend's sudden shift in mood as he received her reply. Rottytops needed only to glance at Shantae to recognize that the half-genie was bothered.
"Okay…? I mean… I hope I'm not coming across like I'm interrogating you, sis, but I do have to ask. Why exactly have you been avoidi-?" Bolo tried to press further before being interrupted.
"She said she was busy, alright? Leave her alone, dude," Rotty irritably cut in on Shantae's behalf, much to Bolo's surprise. "She doesn't have to explain every detail to you about what she does every waking moment of her day, so back off."
"What? No, I wasn't… I didn't mean to come off like that. I was just worried, is all…" the young man did his best to explain himself, though his sinking shoulders and frown made it apparent he felt guilty.
"S-sorry, Bolo," Shantae spoke up once more as she shook herself out of her stupor and took a deep, albeit tense breath. "I uh… I just haven't been able to make it over there. How are they? Any news?"
"Right… So, there's been a couple of developments. Granted, it's a little bittersweet at this point…" Bolo confirmed, doing his best to shake off his nervousness to explain.
"Uh-oh…" the disquieted half-genie remarked in deep concern. "So, what developments have come up?"
"You'll be relieved to know that Sky's totally fine. She took a couple dips in the Bathhouse and healed from her injury pretty handily. She's back in action without even so much as a crick in her shoulder, as far as I can see. She was a little shaken up from what happened to her, but she insisted to me that she'll be fine," Bolo explained, much to the relief of the girls. "And it goes without saying that I'm also healed up and ready to roll," he further stated, making note of the fact that he had none of the previous injuries he sustained during his last journey.
"I'm happy you guys pulled through okay. I… I was gonna go check up on y'all today," Shantae shared as she performed some post-workout stretches and took another deep breath. "Where is Sky now?"
"She's at Mimic's Workshop, assisting him with watching over Tayshan. Speaking of whom… Eh…"
"Oh, no… Is… is he alright?" Rotty asked, her expression shifting to one of worry. Shantae had also anticipated Bolo's reply as she suddenly stopped doing her stretches and focused her undivided attention on her sworn younger brother.
"Well… He's healing up alright. His arm is mostly back to normal, at least. But… he's still out cold… and we still haven't been able to wake him up," the spiky-haired sidekick shared with notably less enthusiasm in his time.
"…No…!" Shantae grumbled in a mixture of frustration and concern as she anxiously clenched her fists.
"Jeez… Poor stud muffin…" Rotty remarked in increased worry. "He's been unconscious for the last three days… How vicious was that fight he got into with Risky Boots that it took THIS much of a toll on him?"
"VERY vicious… That battle DESTROYED the forest they were fighting in. Like I was saying before we started training, Tayshan and Risky fought tooth and nail to such a point that BOTH of them looked exhausted by the time Bolo and I showed up, and that forest took the brunt of the collateral damage…" Shantae informed, her brow furrowed with reflective sadness. "But then, even with that, it's that last attack Tay used that put him out of commission. That gigantic magic blast that turned half of the forest into a burning crater before it went under…"
"I still can't wrap my head around it with how you described it, but if you could compare it to a blast from that massive laser cannon we found back in the Thimble Canyon last October, then it must've been intense…!" Rotty theorized, rubbing her chin with a hand as she continued to wonder about what she missed.
"Yeah, it was… Risky must've pushed him to his absolute limits by the time we got there, and considering the utterly disastrous scene Bolo and I walked into…" Shantae further confirmed, though she trailed off as she lost herself in thought for a moment.
"I only wonder how much farther things would've gone had we not shown up," Bolo added as he also reflected on the end of their last adventure.
"Hmph… Well, no matter what way we look at it, it seems all but certain that Risky's still a pain in everybody's butts," Rotty concluded with a sigh and shake of her head. "But for her to be back to her usual dirty dealings THIS soon? And for her to already be targeting Tay when she thinks you're not around? I thought you cleaned her clock last time you fought her, snack cakes!"
"I thought I did, too, but she bounced right back…! I can't for the life of me understand why she STILL hasn't learned her lesson. It's honestly infuriating…!" Shantae openly admitted with a glower, scratching her head in vexation.
"Worse yet, it doesn't seem like she's been slowed down at all from the fiasco on Paradise Island…" Bolo further observed. "There are so many questions I have, even WITH what Sky told us about how Risky followed them over to that jungle… Like, how the heck Risky would even know in the first place that they would be there or what they were there for? And for that matter, what she might know about the Spirit Fuser to be after it?"
"Good questions for sure," Shantae acknowledged as she ceased scratching her head and let out a frustrated sigh. "This is JUST the thing we DIDN'T need to happen…! First, Hashanah and Nila take the first piece right from under our noses, and now Risky's apparently setting her sights on Tayshan to try and brainwash him to the Dark side again AND get her hands on the Spirit Fuser…! Shoot…!"
"Wait, what!?" Rotty remarked in surprise. "That evil half-genie and her psycho goose-stepping girlfriend have a piece of that fancy Spirit Mixer thing!? How would they even manage to slip by you two to get it!? And where's the second piece!? Does Risky Boots have THAT one!?"
"Spirit FUSER, and the first one was taken in the midst of the chaos surrounding the battle Shantae and I fought against Hashanah and Nila," Bolo explained, though it seemed to pain him to do so. "We don't know just yet what their next move is, but we've gotta be prepared. Thankfully, Sky and Tay were able to secure the second piece while Risky was distracted. Professor Mimic has it right now and he's studying it to figure out its secrets."
"I see…" Rotty acknowledged with a pensive nod of her head. "So, what's this thing supposed to do that it's got everybody coming out of the woodwork to get their hands on it?"
"It's some sort of soul-harvesting Relic that allows its wielder to steal the life force of other living beings to make them more powerful," Shantae explained in a nutshell, though it was abundantly clear by her immensely worried facial expression that just thinking about the Relic in question unsettled her to the core. "But according to Uncle, we could potentially use it to instead bring Tayshan back to life before he winds up disappearing…"
"…O-oh…" Rottytops remarked with a rather… deflated tone, though no one picked up on it right away. "A-as in, like he'll be fully alive again? Or, like, he'll stay a wraith, but without the extremely unfair time limit?"
"I'm… honestly not sure," Shantae did her best to answer. "But we'll only find out once we gather the pieces within the next few months, even with Risky Boots and Hashanah getting in the way. That is, if we even HAVE a few months of time to work with…" she morosely added, piquing the zombie girl's curiosity once again.
"What? What do you mean by THAT?" Rotty questioned, causing Shantae to freeze up with apparent apprehension once again.
"…I… er… I-I mean… uh…" the half-genie stammered before going silent as she looked back at her best friend with an incredibly somber expression on her face. It was all Rottytops and Bolo needed to see, however, to get the message. After a tense moment of silence, Bolo spoke up.
"We'll get this figured out, sis. And we'll most definitely get the pieces of the Spirit Fuser sooner than later. Believe me," the young man assured as he approached Shantae and rested a hand on her shoulder to snap her out of her mortified daze. "We've just gotta keep ourselves sharp, and we'll do what we always do to keep Risky and any other sticky-fingered, scheming criminals at bay."
"…But… what if what we always do… isn't good enough…?" Shantae asked after a moment of contemplative hesitation, shocking both of her friends in the process with her self-doubt.
"Whoa, what? Shantae, what the heck kind of question is that?" Rotty asked as she planted her hand on Shantae's other shoulder.
"Yeah, what's running through your head?" Bolo asked in agreement with Rottytops.
"W-well… we know the dangers Hashanah, Nila, and Risky pose to just about everyone around them… and what should've been an easy set of quests is already turning out to be a worst-case scenario… and for this all to start out so poorly, so quickly… It makes me wonder if I'm starting to slip…"
"Slip? It's a little early to think something like that," Rotty countered. "Sure, things apparently didn't go completely our way, but we're still in this. This is only the beginning."
"Right, but with us ALREADY being a teammate down, and with us already having lost one of the Spirit Fuser pieces… and for things to spin out of control the way they are because of the huge mistakes I made in underestimating our enemies… and for them to use that to their advantage in the some of the worst ways I could imagine…" the half-genie lamented, evidently quite distraught…
"It's gonna be fine, sis. Really," Bolo also chimed in. "This is clearly a trial by fire situation, as it always is, so we can only take on the challenges as they come. And Tayshan's gonna make a full recovery. He's only down temporarily."
"Yeah, but I should've been there to protect him from Risky Boots," Shantae somberly rebutted as she continued to rant. "And this whole situation in general wouldn't have unfolded like it has if I was better prepared. I got overconfident, and I let my guard down until someone caught us all by surprise. AGAIN. And now, I'm wondering if everything Hashanah and Risky said… about me just 'getting lucky' all the time and not following through when I've got the upper hand… and… and needing to be bailed out when I'm in a tight spot… I wonder if it's really true… I just… It just feels like they're not entirely off the mark when I think about it…"
"Aw, come on, Shantae! Don't listen to THEM of all people!" Bolo fervently rejected the notion of his best friend only succeeding through luck. "They're BAD GUYS—er, GIRLS! Of course, they'd have all the excuses in the book to try and trivialize your accomplishments. We know, and you ESPECIALLY know how capable you are as a hero! You're the strongest there is!"
"Am I, though?" the half-genie asked, growing more concerned as she opened up to her allies. "I mean, when was the last time I ever won a major battle without someone rescuing me, or giving me some major tip or vote of encouragement, or… or…! Or flat-out SACRIFICING themselves to make sure I came out on top?" she further questioned as she began to break down. "And even though it took him everything he had to the point of him passing out, Tayshan defeated Risky the other day without needing someone to rescue him… It makes me wonder if Risky wasn't just bluffing when she said he's possibly becoming stronger than me… and if I've gotten so complacent in following the routine that it's made me weak…"
"Shantae…" Rotty quietly called as her heart grew heavy for her friend, though she didn't know what to say.
"And even after I thought I taught Risky the lesson of a lifetime in stopping her on Paradise Island, she comes right back even stronger, kills ANOTHER innocent person, HURTS one of our best friends, and continues to TORMENT the man I love with constant reminders of all the horrible things she did to him like it wasn't enough that she MURDERED him in cold blood right in front of me!" she continued her anxious tirade as she lost her composure. "She won't leave him alone…! I swore to myself that I could keep her away from him at all costs… and yet, they wind up meeting again the INSTANT she found out he was still around…! The same INSTANT I was distracted with something else… And then she winds up driving him into another Dark Magic outburst that caused him to burn up almost all the energy he had to defend himself AND Sky from her!"
"Sis, pull yourself together. It's gonna be al-!"
"How long can we let this go on?" Shantae cut Bolo off to ask as she sniffled. "How many more times do we have to repeat this cycle before something drastic happens? Should we be tougher on our enemies? Should we be doing more than just sitting around and assuming things are okay the minute we pull off a huge victory? Where do we draw the line? Will I wind up needing to KILL Risky Boots or any of the bad guys we face to get them to stop terrorizing Sequin Land? Will any one of them, Risky especially, eventually wind up killing or enslaving and taking advantage of ME if I let my guard down again? Will someone else actually manage to SURPASS me in ability and do the job better than I can? All of this makes me seriously believe I'm still not strong enough!"
"Hey, don't say that!" Rotty urged, lightly shaking the other young woman's shoulder.
"I don't even want to THINK it, Rotty, but I can't stop!" the half-genie replied through her woeful tears. "These constant thoughts and worries… these nightmares… these nonstop reminders of why I'm still not good enough…! They just won't stop…!" she further admitted as she began to shake in a mixture of anxiety and unaddressed grief… Yikes… Poor Shantae…
"Whoa, what? Nightmares?" Rotty asked in moderate shock. "But… you seemed fine when we… uh…" she was about to mention before glancing over at Bolo while he wasn't paying attention to her. Realizing that she didn't want to make mention of certain events that would make her friends uncomfortable, she went silent for a moment before turning back to Shantae. Seeming to understand what the zombie girl was about to mention, Shantae nodded in wordless acknowledgement before she made her next statement.
"…I slept well that night because I was happy to see you and Tay again after a week of anxiously worrying about how things were going here," she explained, choosing her words carefully while Bolo remained none the wiser. "It was honestly the best sleep I'd gotten in that whole week. I barely slept a wink during the vacation, even AFTER Bolo, Sky, and I went on to stop another one of Risky's obnoxious evil plots."
"Ah, I had a feeling you were a bit off your game back then," Bolo finally chimed in. "I'm surprised you didn't say anything sooner. But hey, we all have our rough patches. It's how we push through them that really counts, Shantae. And I get it that you've had a lot of pressure on you lately, but that's why it's important to recognize when you're starting to feel overwhelmed by it. Even heroes like us have our limits. We've gotta be sure we're giving ourselves enough room to breathe."
"I know, and I hear you completely, Bolo. It's just… I need to be sure that I can protect myself… and protect Tayshan… I need to be sure that I can protect you and all of our friends… and especially protect Sequin Land to the best of my ability… What good am I if I can't go at least a WEEK without someone getting hurt because I wasn't around or because I wasn't fast or strong enough…? The same thing happened to Hashanah, and she lost everything for it… and I've had at least two big scares about losing it all because I wasn't ready when I thought I was… only to be bailed out at the last second… Am… Am I really strong enough to be a Guardian Genie…?"
"Shantae, listen to us," Rottytops commanded as she moved to clasp her hands to Shantae's damp cheeks and turn the girl's attention to her. "Whatever's going on in your mind, you've got to remember that you're WAY stronger than you give yourself credit for. You have saved the world FAR too many times for it to just be considered dumb luck like certain people keep trying to tell you is the case. I mean, let's see any of THEM walk a mile in your shoes and act like they know how to do your job better than you can."
"Yeah! And like we always say, we're here to support you. Friends to the End, and even beyond that," Bolo made additionally clear as he moved to sling his arms around the half-genie's shoulders, at which point Rotty let go of Shantae's face. "No hero in existence has ever been great without the support of a reliable team. And those that have tried, have only truly succeeded in isolating themselves from the world and either putting themselves on an unrealistic pedestal, or they've forever lost themselves in their roles to the point where they can't be bothered to try to live for anything else. We've been in scenarios that required teamwork way too many times for you to not remember how important it is for you to be able to put your faith in us to assist you. Sure, you're the Legendary Super Genie that everyone knows and loves like no tomorrow, but everyone would be CRAZY to think you were 'weak' for being able to rely on a strong support system as you save the world time and time again!"
"…" Shantae went silent, shifting her gaze between her friends as she listened to their words of encouragement.
"Gumdrop's got a point, snack cakes," Rotty continued as she also shifted to where she was wrapping an arm around Shantae's shoulders. Her comment came much to Bolo's embarrassment at the name she used for him, however.
"I TOLD you a hundred times to never call me that, Rottytops…!" Bolo grumbled, shooting the undead young lady a comical scowl.
"And I told you that you'll have to kill me… which, you can't, because I'm a zombie," Rotty teased as she stuck her tongue out at Bolo. The interaction, silly as it was, actually brought a disarming smile to the half-genie's face as she began to lighten up. "Anyway, snack cakes, GUMDROP'S got a point."
"Ooh, when I get my hands on you…!" Bolo grumbled, only growing more irritated with his unwanted nickname.
"There's nothing wrong with having friends who love and support you, and who would do literally ANYTHING to make sure you were Ret-2-Go at all times," Rotty further joked, making Shantae giggle. "See, there's that adorable smile that melted a million hearts and made our boyfriend fall in love with you…" she teased, though Shantae didn't seem bothered by the suggestion. Surprisingly enough, it was Bolo who took issue with the statement as he reeled back in mild confusion and shot Rottytops a quick glance of apparent disapproval. The glance, however, went completely unnoticed.
"…I'll let that slide THIS time, Rotty…" Shantae finally spoke, chuckling a bit more as she breathed a sigh that relieved some of the pressure on her heart.
"You get what I mean, either way," the zombie candidly countered, though one would be blind not to see the suspiciously toothy grin on her face. "Seriously, though, between all your closest friends, look at what we've done for you without a single word of complaint or idea that you owe us anything. We've helped you protect Sequin Land, even when things got tough. We've battled all sorts of kooky, crazy, chaotic critters and creatures that would make the average grown man soil his pants and run away screaming in terror. Bolo, Sky, and I went into your subconscious and rescued you from your evil self after Risky tried to reverse your magic! Tayshan fought through and conquered his own corruption at Risky's hands to be at your side, orchestrated a coordinated battle plan that helped ALL of us save Scuttle Town from certain destruction, and LITERALLY CAME BACK FROM THE DEAD just to support you and make sure you were getting stronger and more confident in yourself every single day! Heck, he and I even became SUBSTITUTE GUARDIAN GENIES for you, just so you could enjoy the experience of going on a much-deserved vacation without worrying whether Scuttle Town would be safe or not while you were gone!"
"Exactly! And going off of Rotty's previous point, there's no one who could do this job better than you could, no matter WHAT they say!" Bolo added in continued encouragement. "If it was easy work, Shantae, then ANYONE could step up to the plate and do it well. Even a knucklehead like me!" he further assured, deprecating himself in the process.
"Bolo! Come on, you are NOT a knucklehead," Shantae laughingly remarked.
"Yeah, he's more of a BLOCKHEAD," Rotty interjected, again agitating Bolo as Shantae resisted the urge to laugh harder.
"You make one more crack at me, Rotty, and we're gonna be doing our own sparring here and now!" he challenged, making the zombie scoff.
"Hah! You wish… You really don't wanna bark up that tree with me again," Rotty unabashedly shot him down. "Your pride is wounded enough as it is, with how often you get beat up… ESPECIALLY by me…"
"Ugh… ANYWAY, Shantae, our point is that you're strong. VERY strong. And through your inspiration, so are the rest of us in the Sequin Land Anti-Pirate Squad," he declared as they all separated, though he caused the girls to glance at him with raised eyebrows.
"…Sequin Land Anti-Pirate Squad?" Shantae asked for clarification, though she didn't seem to hate the name.
"Or, the S.L.A.P.S. for short," Bolo pitched once again, shrugging and grinning ear to ear as he hoped the name would stick. And… after a moment of contemplation…
"I LOVE it!" Shantae cheered with a smiling wink and thumbs-up, back in a more chipper disposition. "It's perfect!"
"Gotta say, I like the sound of it myself," Rotty more modestly agreed with a smiling nod and shrug. "It's catchy, it gives off a cool kick-butt-first-and-ask-questions-second vibe, and it describes exactly what we do to bad guys who dare to act up in our presence. Good job, gumdrop! Even YOU can come up with a bright idea once in a while." At that, Bolo deadpanned at Rottytops before rolling his eyes and sighing in mild agitation.
"Anyway, that's our official team name, as long as the team LEADER approves…?" Bolo suggested with overflowing hope in his tone.
"And approve, I most DEFINITELY do," Shantae permitted with a grinning nod, giving the group of super friends an official name. Proud of himself, Bolo cheered with a grinning fist pump. "And… Thank you both so much for shaking me out of that funk… I-I… I really should keep myself grounded enough to not let my confidence get shaken up like that…"
"That's what we're here for, snack cakes," Rottytops assured with a firm pat on Shantae's back.
"Yeah, you can always count on us to remind you of that, too," Bolo agreed. "And while we won't always know what exactly will happen between us and the villains we deal with, we've gotta at least trust that we're doing the right thing. I… acknowledge that it's kind of tough to make that point, considering what happened in the Phantasmagoric Forest…" he further hinted, alluding to a certain instance that Shantae received loud and clear.
"Right… I… hope we get a chance to ask Tayshan exactly what he was thinking when he tried to…" Shantae acknowledged, though she trailed off… like she was afraid to recall the event in question.
"What, when he apparently tried to off that sadistic pirate witch like she deserved?" Rotty rather informally blurted out. "If the case is that he tried to kill her, then I think he was perfectly justified. He was trying to protect Sky and the Boss Monster who wound up dying because of Risky anyway. There's NO WAY Risky should've gotten away without some form of punishment or consequence, and she should count herself lucky she's still alive to talk about it." That remark shocked both Shantae and Bolo.
"Jeez, Rotty! A little sensitivity never hurt!" Bolo admonished in disapproval.
"Ironic coming from the king of being insensitive, but my point still stands," Rotty stood her ground with a furrowed brow, making Bolo scowl at her again. "I'm not saying we should resort to killing bad guys EVERY TIME we fight them, but if that cackling old bat wants to play a lethal game, then she should be prepared to win a lethal prize. Stud muffin being provoked into trying to kill her should've sent her a message that we're NOT messing around with her."
"Yikes… Rotty, that's… a tad extreme, don'tcha think?" Shantae found it in herself to question, taken aback by her best friend's stance.
"I don't think it's 'extreme' at all," the zombie maiden firmly disagreed, a touch of fire in her tone. "She hurt us in too many ways, and far too many times for me to think she deserves mercy if she won't show any to us or anyone she thinks is standing in her way. I'm sorry if I sound harsh, but I can't condone what she's done to the people of Sequin Land for her own gain. And personally, I could never look past her tricking me into betraying you and almost causing you to lose everything back in the earlier days of our time as friends. What's more, though… is that I WILL NOT forgive her for what she did to Sky. I WILL NEVER forgive her for what she did to Tayshan…! And I WON'T forgive her for what she's done to you, Shantae…"
"I see what you mean, but… are you seriously saying you'd condone killing Risky Boots? I-I want to be sure I'm hearing you right…"
"Well… I'm not saying I'm wishing she would die or that WE should be the ones to put her out of her misery, but I AM saying she'll get what she deserves at the end of it all if she keeps going the way she is… And to be completely honest, I'd have done the exact same thing in ROASTING HER ON THE SPOT if I was in Tayshan's place." Hearing that poignant statement from Rottytops sent a tingling chill up the half-genie's spine as her heart beat heavier in her chest… Yet, before Shantae could reply…
"Alright, dial it back a notch, would ya?" Bolo dared to challenge Rotty's viewpoint. "We're a band of HEROES, not MERCENARIES, Rottytops."
"No one said we're collecting bounties or hunting down criminals for personal reasons, Bolo. Don't jump down my throat before you understand my point," the undead young lady shot back, none too find of her male friend's tone.
"Yeah, well your 'point' sounds a little darker than it needs to be," he countered.
"Darker HOW!?"
"We all have our reservations against the villains we face, but that doesn't mean we should be thinking like them. We're better than that. Even Tayshan once said he didn't want to go down that path after the whole Baron Desert thing because he didn't feel like that was the heroic thing to do. Remember? Until he came to his senses, he felt 'justified' at the time because he was blinded by Dark Magic and a desire for revenge. Chances are, he was probably overwhelmed this time around because Risky hurt Sky. I'm not saying I don't understand what he was feeling in that fight with Risky, because we ALL would've wanted to stop her from hurting our friends. Even with that, though, his move to try and kill Risky was most likely a lapse in judgment fueled by frustration and Dark Magic in a situation where he'd otherwise not push it that far." Oddly enough, Shantae widened her eyes in shock at the last part of Bolo's statement. It seemed to resonate with her.
"…Frustration and Dark Magic…?" Shantae murmured low enough to where her friends couldn't hear her. She seemed to reflect on it as she lifted a hand up and glanced at it like it would detach itself from her arm and attack her.
"Dark Magic or no Dark Magic, there comes a point where someone's causing too much pain and destruction to reasonably be allowed to get away," Rotty shot back. "Unless you can put yourself in Tayshan's position, or even in Shantae's position when she apparently had to save you from being GUTTED by that deranged psycho Nila after she already attacked Scuttle Town without remorse, then you have NO place to talk about who's in the right or the wrong for making a decision that would save many lives at the cost of one! I CAN put myself in their shoes, and I can confidently say I'd KILL to protect the people I care about if absolutely necessary! I know that because they've both done the same for me! Who's to say Tay wasn't acting on a true sense of understanding that Risky hadn't changed and that he had a rare chance to stop her before she hurt anyone else? You don't need to be controlled by Dark Magic to realize when a threat is too big to let run free in a scenario where you have the means to put a permanent end to it."
"Yeah, well if we could justify every kill with that 'taking one life to save millions' excuse, then where do we draw the line? What would stop us from becoming the very thing we stand up against on a routine basis, with killing anything and everything we think is unfit to live? We're not gods, and people would think we're CRAZY for pretending we were! Also, what would stop someone else from wanting to kill US in the case we messed up and hurt someone THEY cared about, huh? Matter of fact, that's the biggest reason Nila hates Tayshan as much as she does. It's a permanent consequence brought on by a momentary lapse in judgment that he told us himself he regrets to this day, Rotty! It DISGUSTS me to sound like I'm defending someone like Nila, but you get what I mean."
"Fine, except that those Ammonian goons had it coming for destroying the Inseam Municipality at RISKY'S request! On top of all the other messes they've made over time that they've never truly been held accountable for," Rotty argued back, growing angrier as she and Bolo went full-blown political in their debate. "Between the Baron Desert Disaster and Giga Mermaid's watch over them since then, the Ammonian Army's barely made a peep! It's a classic example of the idea that actions have consequences! Simple as that! And Risky Boots is WAY overdue to have some long-term consequences come HER way!"
"…Hmm…" Shantae hummed, listening intently to the argument unfolding between her friends.
"Y'know, that rhetoric can go both ways," Bolo pointed out. "It's true the Ammonian Army's been off the grid for the better part of the past year, but you have to understand that it doesn't give us the right to be the ones to play judge, jury, and executioner whenever we feel it appropriate to deliver justice on our own terms. In the same vein of actions having consequences, it stands to reason that someone's actions caused someone else to retaliate, no matter what way we slice it. Everyone outside of law enforcement or a team of dedicated heroes just going off and taking justice and retribution into their own hands is pointless! All it does is turn into a vicious cycle of an eye for an eye that will eventually make the whole WORLD blind! And as heroes, we need to set a better example!"
"And while I get what you're trying to say, you'll have to answer this to make your point make sense: What gives Nila the right to team up with an evil, vengeful, disgraced half-genie and attack a city full of innocent people, as opposed to Tayshan attacking an ILLEGAL paramilitary base full of crazed cultist gunmen who were responsible for destroying thousands of lives with hardly any rhyme or reason, and with no plans to stop before he stepped in?" Rotty pressed on, not budging from her point. "When Nila and Hashanah barged into Scuttle Town, bombing and blasting away at everything in sight, they didn't stop until AFTER Tayshan and I stepped in and put them in their place. Meanwhile, when Tay attacked Ammo Baron's base, it was primarily because he knew Ammo Baron and his followers had to be taught a lesson about how they would NEVER be able to get away with another barbaric citywide siege OR their underhanded betrayal of us as a group as long as he had something to say or do about it. Hard as he might be on himself for it, he still acknowledges that it produced positive results. He said THAT himself, too! You CANNOT compare those two scenarios and act like you know him better than I do!"
"Putting it that way COMPLETELY oversimplifies the issue, and you know that. Mind you, this is all beside the point…" he momentarily trailed off, shaking his head and sighing before he continued. "As far as Sky said, Tayshan's original plan was to arrest Risky and bring her to justice LIKE A HERO SHOULD before his hand was forced. Likewise, Shantae wasn't planning to kill anyone in the Tangled Thread Temple until her hand was forced. And even then, she wouldn't go that far if she didn't have to, even with how grateful I am that she saved me. And like I said earlier, Tayshan wouldn't normally go that far, either. So, maybe you shouldn't use them as your talking point for endorsing cold-blooded murder as a reasonable method of fighting crime."
"Ugh, Bolo… I REALLY don't want to get into it with you again, and you really shouldn't be so sure you know everything about our friends. You cannot, nor will you EVER be able to speak for them when you've never been in a situation like theirs. So, do us all a favor and STOP talking down to me like you can reprogram me to think like you BARELY do."
"What was that!?" Bolo shouted, having reached his limit for Rotty's disrespect of him. "You've got a LOT of nerve to talk all this trash to me like I'm still a kid, and then dare accuse ME of doing the same to you! I've shown you nothing but respect and consideration, and I've treated you like ROYALTY after our camping trip! After we-!"
"Shut UP, BOLO!" Rotty hastily cut him off, glaring at him like she was going to maul him on the spot for blurting out something she didn't want him to blurt out. What was suspicious, however… was the MASSIVE blush on Rotty's face as she stared nails into the spiky-haired gentleman glaring right back at her. Regardless, he piped up almost immediately.
"Hey, hey, you two! Why are y'all so angry at each other out of nowhere?" Shantae interjected in a heartbeat. "I'm glad to see you're able to have a discussion about such a complicated issue, but I'm getting a feel that it was gonna get a lot more personal than it needed to in a moment. What gives?"
"…It's… nothing," Bolo dismissed with a vexed sigh, much to Shantae's surprise.
"Y-yeah, it's no big deal," Rotty agreed as she crossed her arms and looked away, throwing the half-genie for an additional loop. "Just two friends having a minor disagreement, is all. Just two FRIENDS…" she reiterated with an odd emphasis…
"Hm. Yeah, 'friends.' That's all we are…" Bolo muttered, seeming quite angry as he crossed his arms and looked in the opposite direction of Rottytops. It was then that Shantae… began to suspect something as she silently shifted her gaze between her quarreling companions. And as the gentle breeze blew in a MUDSLIDE of awkwardness through the peninsula, everyone went silent for… a few seconds… that turned into a solid two MINUTES… that felt like HOURS… Yet, within those two minutes, Shantae heard something rustling in the nearby palm trees.
"Hm?" she hummed quietly as she turned her attention to the source of the noise. And what she saw almost IMMEDIATELY filled her with rage, though she tightly contained it through her curiosity. What did she see, you might ask? Why, a most familiar, yet most UNWELCOME bat-like creature with yellow eyes wearing red pants and a red bandana, of course! Seeming not to have noticed that it was spotted, the Tinkerbat climbed down from the palm tree dashed away a considerable distance where it seemed to find itself safe. Shantae, rightfully suspicious, kept her eyes locked on the creature as it snuck a considerable distance behind the heroine's home, activated its propeller pack, and took flight to parts unknown. "Hmm…" Shantae hummed again, narrowing her eyes toward the eavesdropping minion of her worst enemy as it hovered away. Taking this as a means to begin some form of investigation, she made her next move as she turned back toward her friends, straightening her face in the process. "So, hey, I know you two may need some time to cool off. Uh… Why don't you go ahead and do that while you head to Uncle's Workshop? I just remembered I've got an errand to run, so I'll catch up with you later."
"Huh? Whoa, snack cakes, why the sudden change of plans? I thought we were gonna go get frozen yogurt and mani-pedis later on," Rotty asked in mild disappointment.
"We'll need to take a small raincheck on that for now, Rotty. I'm sorry, but I promise I'll make it up to you," Shantae assured as she hurriedly stepped away from Rotty and Bolo while they both gave her looks of perplexity.
"Well, what errand do you need to run that it's so urgent, Shantae?" Bolo queried in wonder.
"I'll… tell you about it once I'm finished with it. But please, you two go on ahead. I'll be back, alright?"
"…Sure. See ya later…" both Bolo and Rottytops bade as they curiously watched Shantae rush behind her lighthouse, raise her arms above her head as she swiveled her hips in a belly dance maneuver, and transform with a smoky *POOF* into Harpy-Shantae. With hardly another gesture of acknowledgement, the harpy-formed half-genie took off flying like she was late for an important business meeting. What a twist THIS turned out to be… Meanwhile, Bolo and Rottytops did as they were requested, and turned to make their way into the port town.
"…What was that all about? Why do you think she cut out so suddenly?" Bolo dared to ask after another awkward minute of them strolling through the grassy plains together. Rather than get a response regarding his question that would soothe his curiosity, however…
"She's got her reasons, so she'll tell us when she's ready," Rotty rather coolly dismissed. "What's more important right now, though, is that you should learn to keep your yap SHUT…! Got it…!? No one, and I mean NO ONE is allowed to know…!" she further scolded through a harsh whisper as she glared at him.
"Know about what? The fact that we-?" Bolo was about to ask out loud.
"SHUT IT…!" Rotty demanded of him, delivering said demand VERY intently as she pressed a finger to her lips.
"…Y'know, I don't really understand why you want to keep it a secret so bad…" Bolo whispered back with a mildly perturbed shrug. "It isn't that big a deal, and you're overreacting. If you're that ashamed about it, then why even bother starting this up with me in the first place…?"
"I'm not 'ashamed' of anything…!" she countered. "But there is NO way anyone's gonna know…! Not if I have anything to say about it…"
"How incredibly confusing… But that still doesn't answer the question of why we're even-!"
"Forget it…!" Rotty dismissed once again as she started walking faster. "I'd rather we hurry up and go check on stud muffin… Hopefully, he's awake by now…" she added, speaking at a louder volume as she powerwalked away from Bolo.
"Seriously, could you PLEASE stop calling him that? We talked about this before, and you said you'd try to give the nicknames a rest. And while we're on the topic, can we at least talk about why you're still so attached to Shantae that you're still playing all these flirty pranks like you've been doing lately? I get it that you're closer to both of them now, but you're NOT their relationship partner," he admonished, none too pleased with what he perceived to be Rotty's preferential treatment of their mutual friends.
"I'm not YOURS, either! Now, come on already!" Rotty shouted in a burst of unforeseen anger, stunning Bolo stiff as she continued to march away in a sudden huff. Meanwhile, the flabbergasted young man stood, watching in disbelief as his not-girlfriend sauntered off.
"…Man…" he mumbled with another exasperated sigh, shaking his head as he tried to ponder on what happened. When no reasonable thought came up as Rotty marched on, he reluctantly trudged ahead at less than half the speed at which she was walking. "…I just don't understand that girl at all… I guess I was wrong to think we were getting closer…? I… I don't know…" he further murmured as he pensively traversed the path to Scuttle Town…
Aaaaand there we have it, folks! Another wonderful excerpt in the life of Shantae and the newly named Sequin Land Anti-Pirate Squad. I can't say I was expecting it to be filled with so much suspense, action, and teenage angst, but here we are… And when we return, I'd imagine we'll start seeing things really starting to pick up… as if they didn't ramp it up to ten thousand already. Regardless, I hope you're enjoying the ride! I know I am… This may make me sound bad, but I'm a total SUCKER for juicy, compelling drama. It's my guilty pleasure… as long as there's a possibility of a reasonably good ending to it all, of course. I don't take pleasure in other people's misfortune, I promise. E-er, anyway it seems we've got quite a bit to look forward to. What would Shantae find in trailing the Tinkerbat she spotted near her home? When would Tayshan wake back up? What's the deal with this 'secret' between Bolo and Rottytops? And why in the world am I still rambling on when we could be potentially enjoying the next big installment in this exceedingly eccentric tale!? At least some of these intrusive questions will be answered with the less time we spend dilly-dallying and the more time we spend following our heroes… AND villains in their crusades for possession of the fabled Spirit Fuser! Catch ya later!