Hearts of the Multiverse

by KarlachGale97

The Multiverse has bled together in a weird way, stranding many heroes across the Juban district. In these first few chapters we follow Miles Morales off of his journey through the Spiderverse. Will Miles be able to team up with people from other worlds in order to accomplish the impossible? And just who are these Death Busters, anyways? With new friends and possibly new connection

19. Chapter 18: Changes

Professor Tomoe glanced at Kaolinite's vitals. She was recovering well; she could be back on the field within a month's time, possibly. Meanwhile, the ex-ruler made up of sludge stood, juggling different vials of fluid that were helping him reform.

"How many daimon are you going to use again?" Tomoe questioned, somewhat irritably. He worked hard on those eggs. To have them be used for such purposes was counterproductive. Eudial would be needing a lot on the field today. She might be able to amass a large number of pure hearts, perhaps even some talismans.

"I can see you are upset," the man-thing, Belos observed. "I assure you, it will be worth it, in the end."

"Oh? How so?"

"These creatures have potential, like the souls of the palismans, but they do not object to my wishes—my goals."

"I hope you mean our goals," Tomoe said stiffly.

"Of course," Belos said in a way that sounded quite disingenuous. "I'm merely suggesting that there's more power behind these creatures should I be able to use them."

"And who's to say you won't waste them burning alive again? That's years worth of work you're consuming," Tomoe argued.

"I assure you, it will be worth it," Belos said, that trace of a smirk never leaving his face.

At that minute, Olivia Octavius strutted into the room. He hoped she had some good news for him. She was joined by Eudial and that vampire Tomoe knew he'd eventually need to gain control over or get rid of entirely. He'd make a good guard dog.

Tomoe stifled his laughter at his inner monologue and faced them with a smile. "Eudial, have you or your associates managed to capture any pure hearts or talismans?"

The question was more a formality; he'd know if she had.

"Not yet," Eudial admitted. Her grin grew. "Although, Liv had a great idea for capturing a couple of hearts. They show great promise of containing talismans!"

Although her excitement for her work was appreciated, Professor Tomoe was still unsure on how to feel about these interlopers 'helping' them with their work. He knew Olivia Octavius held some personal vendetta on a person of interest; in fact, that was the case with most of these people. But was revenge a strong enough motive for them to devote themselves to their cause? Tomoe wasn't sure.

"What's this plan?" Tomoe asked.

Olivia grinned. "I've developed more totems, but I was thinking of more specific targets, something to flush the others out of hiding. Also, I've been working on trapping someone within a dimensional space with Cyprine and Ptliol. They've been making updates to Kaolinite's office space. Anyone who walks in who isn't allowed will be stuck there."

"Quiet tactical," Tomoe agreed. "Just make sure it doesn't trap Kaolinite when she's healed up."

"Of course," Octavia said. "I've got everything planned out to the last molecule. It all starts at the festival today. The first step is to drive that annoying brat who ruined years' worth of work out of hiding. We get rid of him, and we'll get rid of 90% of hindrances to our plan."

He liked that she said 'our.' Belos could learn a thing or two.

"How do you plan to do that?"

"I've been observing the totems. He has roots here—roots that if manipulated and pulled away could give Morlun two meals and you two talismans."

"How sure are you that they're carrying a talisman?"

Olivia grinned. "It's a guarantee." She turned to the door. "I just need to pluck up those roots."

…

All around him were the bodies of the Joestars—not only them—but the bodies of people who helped them. They appeared gaunt as fresh blood dripped from his fingertips. Josuke, Jotaro, Okuyasu, Koichi, Rohan, Kakyoin, Avdol, Polnareff, and a few people he didn't recognize. They must have been related to the family, been their friends, or shown them some sort of kindness.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. A dark, bemused voice bellowed, "Congratulations! They've fallen by your hand, Giorno. You truly are worthy of my blood."

Trying to shake the hand off his shoulder, Giorno bolted upright. He was back in the shrine. Everything was fine. He got out of bed and set to the common room; right near the entrance, it looked like Mista was standing guard. He trailed him out of his room.

"I studied up," Mista said through coded language. He handed him a file on a certain individual he requested him to research. "Are you sure about this guy? He doesn't even have a stand."

Giorno's eyes fell on a certain section of the report. "But he does have hamon."

"Which is?" Mista asked.

"The original root of stands," Giorno explained. "Our stands are a physical manifestation of hamon. Hamon, when done correctly, can be used to utterly destroy vampires."

"Who are you planning on using that on?" Mista asked. "I mean, I'll help you, no matter who you end up choosing."

"Right now?" Giorno asked. "That's up in the air."

"I don't know," Mista said. "That Jotaro guy said the guy in your files died fighting your dad, and Kakyoin, Avdol, and some dog ended up dying trying to fight or get to him."

"Then what do you suggest?" Giorno asked a little irritably.

"How about you try getting the more immediate threat first? Besides, no need to start something right now. I mean, with everything going on…"

Giorno didn't say anything, but he nodded.

"You two sure snoozed in."

Giorno looked up to see Miles. A contradiction of ease and worry coursed through his body. "Morning, Miles."

"You alright?" Miles asked. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine," Giorno assured him quickly. "Are the others ready?"

"They're ready. I actually came to get you, but I guess Mista already did that for me."

Mista shrugged. "It's part of the job description, I guess."

"C'mon, let's get going. I'm pretty sure Luz and Nemona are going to freak out if we don't leave soon."

The three walked into the common room, where Sokka seemed to be complaining about something. It soon became clear as to who it was.

"And he's just such a big jerk! How do you deal with that guy, Yugi?"

"If you're complaining about Kaiba," Joey interjected. "I've got a couple years of pent-up anger stories. Trust me, the guy's full of himself. Don't listen to a word he says."

"Is that so, Wheeler?" Kaiba's voice hissed. He had walked in with a few of the kids, Karlach, Wyll, and Gale.

Joey jumped but soon steeled himself and smirked. "Well, act like a jerk, get treated like one."

"Whatever."

Today would be the day the professors and champions from around one of the other worlds would be throwing a festival to try and get people to adopt Pokémon—or catch them. Something about having 'friends you can always rely on and build a solid sense of trust with.' Miles already had his Joltik. Giorno wasn't sure if he was interested.

"Today is going to be so fun!" Luz exclaimed. "I'm thinking about adopting an Eevee and letting them decide who they want to be."

"What does an Eevee look like?" Usagi asked.

Luz pulled her phone out of her pocket and started showing her images of a fox-dog-looking creature and the two began to coo over how adorable it was. Sokka interrupted them.

"Hello? End of the world? I know you're excited, but we've gotta focus on that, too!"

"Technically it's not the end of the world but the creation of thousands more," Kakyoin said dryly. "And then their destruction."

"Not helping!"

"None of you are," Kaiba scoffed. Sokka glared at him, which Giorno couldn't blame him. Kaiba was an insufferable ass. At least Sokka was trying. Kaiba gestured toward the door. "Now, are we going to leave sometime today?"

"Yeah, Usagi," Chibiusa said. "We've gotta go before they can't let anymore people in! We were supposed to leave ten minutes ago!"

"That's not my fault!" Usagi argued.

"Oh yeah? Says the girl who had thirds on breakfast!"

"Sounds like a balanced breakfast," Toph said with a smirk.

"Seriously Usako, that's not very healthy," Mamoru remarked.

"And who are you to judge?" Karlach asked, raising an eyebrow. She gave Usagi a pat on the back and laughed. "When I was your age, I ate way more than that! And look at me, I'm definitely no demure elf, but I am far from unhealthy!"

"Can we just get going?" Bede asked. "You're all right. Now, let's move along. I promised to show some of the others how to properly treat Pokémon. Hop will just mess it up."

"Although patience is a virtue," Wyll said. "The kids are right. We're going to be late."

"Then let's get going."

…

Chibiusa kept Hamigakiko close to her chest as they walked through the entrance to the festival. There were several drawings of different Pokémon on hanging paper flags strewn about from lamp post to lamp post. Almost all the park was split into four different regions run by different champions and professors. Hop was running their section, alongside Professor Kukui, Professor Sycamore, and Champion Leon, Hop's brother. Ash seemed happy to see him again, as he gave him a huge hug the minute he saw him.

"Professor! How're you doing? How's Professor Burnet?"

"Rock solid," the professor said with a grin. He did a weird cheer and guided them toward the entrance. He waved to everyone in their group. "So, this is the section for the younger to-be or already trainers."

"Wait, where do we go, exactly?" Seto questioned.

"You'll more than likely be paired off into a group and region for older trainers," Professor Sycamore explained.

"And you expect me to allow my brother to go in there when there are those hags lurking about?"

"Don't worry," Champion Leon said with a grin. "None of those monsters have ever tried to challenge me. They're perfectly safe."

When Seto still didn't seem convinced, Leon added, "I get it. I'm in this group to make sure nothing bad happens to my little brother. Trust me, I understand. And I would never let anything bad happen to anyone else's family."

"Plus, we're pretty much at capacity in our section," Hop added with a nervous laugh.

"You should've organized better," Bede criticized. Hop stuck his tongue out at Bede, who returned the gesture. Bede froze and recomposed himself when Seto raised an eyebrow.

"Excuse me," Wyll spoke up. "I think one of us should really stay with the children. Three people alone cannot keep them all safe. As Blade of the Frontiers, I offer my services."

"And as our board is contingent on our protection of Mr. Kaiba's charges, I will help accompany Wyll in his mission," Gale said. He turned to Karlach and Shadowheart. "Given everything with the spider-bite and some lingering effects, it would be best for you two to remain with Mr. Kaiba."

"I suppose a couple of people won't hurt," Hop said. "Alright Mr. Ravengard, Mr. Gale, you can join us."

"I thank you for your hospitality," Wyll said with a slight bow.

"And please, it's just Gale, unless we're in front of a crowd. Then it's Gale of Waterdeep."

"Hey Chibiusa," Mokuba began. "Would you like to team up with me?"

Chibiusa gave him a small smile. "Sure! Sounds like fun!"

"Cool," Mokuba commented quickly. He rubbed the back of his head. "Um, I just figured it's better to stick together with someone you know…while there's all those witches and monsters out."

"Don't worry!" Chibiusa said. "I'll protect you!"

She turned away in time to avoid seeing him blush.

…

Welcoming his guest, Astarion wasn't sure the man who sat opposite of him was feeling quite at ease. Truthfully, if he knew they both had a reason to be weary of vampires, it might make him feel more at ease. They were sitting in the basement of Kaiba Corp. Astarion was enjoying perusing through all the tomes Kaiba had snatched from some 'secret library' in some dusty place. Astarion was sure he could have snagged more; he'd need to offer to teach him how to do so. Thieving could be a beautiful and useful art, after all.

"Not to be rude, but why did you ask me here?" Jonathan Joestar asked.

"I've taken a certain interest—rather a concern over your brother. You know, the egomaniacal, power-obsessed vampiric master who wants nothing more than to destroy your entire bloodline?"

"What do you know about Dio? What kind of trouble has he been causing?"

"Planning is more like it. In any choice he makes, your son is in grave danger."

"George? What on earth does he want with George?"

"Ah—I should have been more specific," Astarion mused. He leaned into the conversation. "My fault entirely. No, not that son. The son he made with your body."

"Dear God, he actually—?" Jonathan began. He shook his head. "…What's his name? What is he like?"

"Powerful," Astarion said. "He's got quite the target on his back, and a lot of people are trying to control or hurt him. I helped him, not too long ago. He reminded me of a young me—albeit—naïve and not as stealthy. His name is Giorno. I helped your brother save him from a demon."

"What does Dio want with him? Is he…like Dio?"

"I've heard tell from a soothsayer who seems to be a family friend that he has his mind," Astarion said. "But your heart. Ambition and folly all in one. It makes for a terrible combination, really. There are so many outcomes for him, and I don't want to see him end up becoming a monster."

"What do you mean?" Jonathan asked. "Please, you have to tell me, what does Dio want with him?"

Astarion smirked. "Oh, believe me, it's got nothing to do with a father's intuition. He wants to use him to destroy the Joestar bloodline once and for all. And I've seen it happen."

He tossed one of the tomes in the middle of the floor, it began to play a translucent scene: the boy surrounded by the corpses of former Joestar family members leading to him to go on killing more and more. Eventually, he saw him and his father walking in the sunlight—which only meant one thing: quite a number of people died in this timeline. It would have happened to Astarion if Tav hadn't been there to save him from himself. 7,000 souls. All gone in the blink of an eye.

Jonathan visibly flinched and backed away. "Why are you showing me this? Is this the only path for him?"

Astarion shook his head. "No, and I think he's on the 'better' path. His friend, Miles, seems to be a good influence on him. Not to mention he's surrounded by Joestars, and he's said he doesn't want to hurt any of them. Still, it's what the soothsayer told me that has me worried. Apparently, there's a way your brother can control people's minds, actions, and abilities. I'm seeing Cazador Szarr all over again. I need your help. You're partly Giorno's father, even if by accident. If this future comes to pass, there's no hope. I read a tome in the library that has me worried; this is the last chance we must make sure things go correctly. I'm sure of it."

"What do you mean?" Jonathan asked. "What are you talking about?"

"It's complicated," Astarion explained. "But reading these tomes has given me an extreme sense of familiarity. It's the faintest memory, but I remember some of these events happening before: Kaolinite, your brother, it's all happened. The librarians confirmed it, too. These events have been repeating themselves. According to these tomes, there's only so much stress the universe can take before it cracks."

"Which means if there's more stress put onto it, or if someone attempts to restart it…it could lead to an utter implosion," Jonathan surmised. When Astarion raised an eyebrow, Jonathan smiled. "I studied to be an archeologist. I was distracted in my second year by cosmology."

"So…can you help me?" Astarion asked. "The world doesn't need another Cazador running around, and I think your brother may lead to worse. Don't allow him to sink his fangs into Giorno. He's so young, and I remember what it was like to be so young, careless, and in need of a solution. If he goes with Dio's offer, he'll regret it for the rest of his immortal life."

"I swear to you, I won't allow that to happen," Jonathan said, placing his hand over his heart. "I'll make sure that never happens…I would like to meet him—Giorno—I mean."

"At night, I may be able to arrange for a visit," Astarion said. "Being a spawn doesn't allow for much of a free schedule during the day."

"Then I shall accompany you during the night," Jonathan said. He hesitated. "You don't just want my blood, do you?"

Astarion chucked. "Not unless you're offering."

Jonathan shook his head. "I don't make it a habit of feeding vampires."

"No one ever does," Astarion joked. "Don't worry, Tav and I have an arrangement."

"Are they alright with it?"

"They seem to enjoy it," Astarion said with a small smirk.

"Alright. I don't need to know any more than that, please."

"Oh, you're no fun!"

…

REGION ONE:

Hunter had been assigned to this region of the park. It was split into different parts: a mini forest, grasslands, a beach, a dessert, a small cave, and somehow a small arctic area. Apparently, the Pokémon around here had helped create these small encampments.

He was in a group with Willow, Sokka, Zuko, Suki, Rei, Ami, Arven, Jotaro, Kakyoin, and Okuyasu. They were in the forest section of the area right now. Zuko, Sokka, Jotaro, and Kakyoin were covering one part of the forest area while they covered the other. There were a bunch of 'grass and bug-type' Pokémon here, according to the little watch app Arven had helped them set up. Willow cooed over and talked to the grass-types; at least she seemed to be having fun. This place just reminded him of Flapjack.

Sitting on a stump, watching everyone else interact with possible friendly companions wasn't doing much for his mood. He missed Flapjack so much; there were also the matters of the weird vampire guy after Luz and the witches who would be after him *again* if they knew he possessed a talisman. That night the incident happened was not pleasant. He didn't plan on encountering his uncle again, and Hunter was almost one hundred percent sure he wasn't dead…again. And there was still no way to get back home.

"Hunter, is everything okay?"

He looked up to see Willow, concern evident on her face.

"I'm fine," he answered, a little tersely. He didn't mean to, but thinking about all of this was just weighing on him so much. Willow just gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "Sorry. There's just a lot going on."

"I know," Willow said. "I want to help you! And I won't let anything bad happen to you, I promise!"

Hunter gave her a small smile. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"What are you two talking about?"

They looked up to see Rei, Arven, and Ami surrounded by a few Pokémon of their own. Ami smiled and held up a small, red bird Pokémon. "Look! It looks just like the one in Luz's photo albums! It was your bird, right?"

"We thought since your bird was probably back home, you might be able to take care of this little one while you're here. He might be able to cheer you up," Arven suggested. "I would've never gotten as far as I did in saving Mabosstiff without my team."

Hunter took in a sharp breath and hoped no one noticed. It was a nice gesture, and he'd probably be a jerk or embarrass them by revealing the truth. But…it didn't feel right to keep the truth. Flapjack had meant a lot to him; Flap had saved his life!

"Flapjack is…gone," Hunter said carefully. "He died saving me."

All three of them went pale.

"Urk. Um…sorry, Hunter," Arven stumbled. "You just looked so down, and I thought…"

Hunter shook his head. "It's fine. You didn't know."

"Why didn't Luz tell us?" Rei asked, almost irritably.

"It's a sore subject," Willow countered, almost pointedly.

"Hey, might as well take the little guy with you," Okuyasu cut in. "I mean, I'm gonna catch as many as I can and train 'em to be super strong. That's what Josuke and I are doing, anyways. It'd be cool if we could become champions, or something like in the games." He leaned towards them and held out a guidebook. "I may have 'borrowed' this from Nemona. It shows all the super strong ones. Oh! And the best part is if you challenge other people and win, you get money!"

"You better put that back when you're done," Arven warned. "Nemona is scary when she's mad. If she realizes you took that, she'll be super angry. Also, it's more than just winning battles. Pokémon are friends, and they're more than just tools to use in a fight. They require kindness, care, and consideration. And generally, they work with people they see potential in."

"I still don't know," Hunter said. "I don't want to see anyone get hurt, especially someone I'm supposed to protect."

As if to prove a point, the bird hopped out of Ami's hands and onto Hunter's shoulder, making itself comfortable. Arven slumped over. "Sorry, Hunter."

"It's foolish to deny the extra help," a cold voice cut in. There was Kaiba, propped against a tree. He turned to face them. "Although, I've had help in catching one of the, apparently, best dragon types."

He was joined by another boy with combed black hair with one strand that stuck upwards at the front, glasses, a button up shirt with a red tie, black slacks, aquamarine jacket, and running shoes.

"Who are you?" Hunter asked.

"My name is Cheren," the boy said. "I was helping your friend find adequately strong Pokémon. He said it was pertinent."

"And here you are turning down help, Hunter," Kaiba said with a smirk. "The idiot is right. You should take any help offered to you."

Okuyasu glared at the eldest Kaiba brother.

Kaiba turned to the others, "Have you found any that are willing to help you?"

"Well, I found her," Willow said, holding up a small, green flower creature. It looked like a budding plant. It kept hopping up and down in Willow's palm. "She's super friendly, and she seems to like me!"

"I suppose that's helpful," Kaiba muttered. Was he trying to be nice? He was much meaner to Sokka, so, maybe? Either way, Hunter appreciated it. "By the way, Karlach and Wyll said I should thank you for the attempted rescue back during the incident."

"You're welcome," Hunter said. "Really, I'm just glad we all got out of there, even Giorno."

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'm just so very happy we saved him."

"What's your issue with Giorno?" Hunter asked.

"I don't trust him," Kaiba said.

"You don't trust a lot of people," Rei commented. "And really, you didn't need to start problems with Sokka."

"Did I hurt his feelings?" Kaiba asked in mock concern.

"This really seems counterproductive," the guy with him, Cheren said, while cleaning his glasses. "If I were your enemy, I wouldn't be worried. Seems like they'd have an easy enough time of dividing and conquering here."

"Are you the enemy?" Okuyasu challenged.

Cheren stared at him. "No. It was simply a rhetorical situation."

"Is Karlach with you?" Willow asked. "I mean, she's kind of cool."

Kaiba chuckled. "Agreed. But, she wanted to check on something. She thought she had sensed something a little further back. She should be catching back up soon."

Like clockwork, Karlach did stumble through the bushes in front of them. She laughed. "Turns out that possible devil was just a cutie in need of a friend!"

She gestured to a small black and orange dog-like creature with white stripes running along its head, back, and paws. She picked him up and held him. He snuggled closer to her. "And look, he likes the heat! Isn't he just adorable?"

"That's a Houndour," Cheren explained.

"They're usually not well-behaved," Arven said, raising an eyebrow. "They attacked Juliana the first day she got to Paldea. They usually travel in hordes and follow a Houndoom."

"Nah," Karlach said, shaking her head. "This one was all by himself. I'll take care of him from now on. Seems my lot in life. And you know what? It's not so bad. I mean, I don't mind being a bit 'motherly.'"

Kaiba coughed, seeming to want to change the subject. "Yes, well, I suppose having a mutt around couldn't be too terrible. An actual mutt would be better than dealing with Yugi's metaphorical one."

"Why do you call Joey that?" Ami asked.

"It's a funny and long story," Kaiba said with a smirk.

"Oh great, it's this guy," Hunter heard Sokka say with a groan. He, Suki, Zuko, Jotaro, and Kakyoin walked back over to their group. "Why are you here?"

"How unnecessarily antagonistic," Kaiba remarked. "After all, I'm just minding my own business."

"I'm sure," Sokka said. He shook his head and then smiled. "Guess what I found?"

"Something good, hopefully," Ami said with a small smile.

"Actually yes," Sokka said with a grin. A floating sword levitated beside him. "This little guy led me to something." He pulled a sheath off his back and showed it off. "It's my space sword! The one I spent hours forging with Master Piadao! It came back to me, and this little guy showed me the way."

The sword with the golden hilt did a flourish—did this mean it was happy?

"Did you guys get a cute companion?" Suki asked. She glanced over Kaiba's shoulder. "Also, who are you?"

"My name is Cheren. I'm training to become Unova's normal-type gym leader. As such, I already have a team of Pokémon."

"Nice to meet you. My name is Suki. What can you tell me about her?" the Kyoshi warrior asked, pointing to a small blue creature whose face looked like a mask.

"That's a Riolu," Cheren said. "She's a fighting type Pokémon that evolves with friendship."

"She just sort of found me and kept with me," Suki said with a smile. "I've gotta admire anyone who can keep up with me."

"Then why's he your boyfriend?" Kaiba asked.

"Why are you here?"

"Yare yare, can you two shut up?" Jotaro asked.

"He started it!" Sokka objected.

"Truly the argument of a wise man."

"Hey, Firelord," Arven interjected. "What Pokémon did you get?"

"Well, it was kind of like with Suki," Zuko explained. Another dog-like creature with a yellow mane and orange and black striped body strutted beside him. "It's like she just wanted to come with me."

"Ah, a Growlithe," Arven said with a smile. "They're pretty high-class Pokémon. Mostly upper-class individuals own them."

"How about you mention who picked you out, Jotaro," Kakyoin commented with a slight smirk.

Jotaro scowled and tipped his hat. "No."

Suddenly, giant thuds could be heard in the distance. Each one like a step jolting the ground. As it turns out, they were steps. A giant robot appeared in front of the group. The golden design was…familiar to Hunter.

Willow stepped in front of him. Her voice was like venom. "It's you. What do you want?"

A small opening at the top of the robot unlocked, revealing the tiny gremlin that was Kikimora. This was great. Absolutely great. It's not like he needed a break from problems or anything. He did his best to avoid her glare.

"Karlach," Kaiba began. "If this thing wants to cause problems, how fast do you think you can destroy the metal on that robot?"

"Oh, relax," Kikimora began in a bored tone. "I'm only here for one of you. One who one of our own confirmed to have a talisman."

"That could be any of us," Kaiba challenged. "How can you be so sure?"

Strangely helpful of him. Not that Hunter didn't appreciate it.

"Is that so?" Kikimora countered. "Well, then I suppose your friends can thank you for what's going to happen next."

Just as he was about to ask, the ground began to shift and shake beneath his feet, splitting the area apart as goopy, pink women burst out from the ground. Willow tried to grab at him, but she was knocked aside by one of Kikimora's robotic arms.

"Willow!" Hunter cried out, trying to reach out to her.

Complete havoc erupted as Hunter was pulled away from an incoming claw. The land was shifting apart so much, separating them all. Someone pulled him to his feet.

"Come on, get up!" Kaiba growled. "We need to go!"

The little bird on his shoulder spat and ember of flame at one of the monsters who tried to grab him; it shrank back and recoiled into the ground.

"Thanks," Hunter mumbled quickly.

Most of the pathway ahead had been cut off. It was only Hunter, Kaiba, Sokka, Suki, Cheren, Arven, and Ami. Kaiba glanced back at Karlach, who was fighting off a horde of the monsters. Zuko and Rei were trying to be careful about using fire to attack the monsters. As it was, Zuko was using his twin blades to cut them down. Rei kept close combat with the monster to avoid starting a forest fire. Okuyasu, unlike Rei, seemed to be doing well with the close combat. Monsters were vanishing around him at a rapid rate, despite them multiplying tenfold. Kakyoin would point to enemies and seconds later they'd be riddled with gaping holes. Jotaro would either physically punch them farther away, or some invisibly into the sky. Or, at least, that's how Hunter was seeing it. Willow was holding back a majority of the horde with vines and thorny plants that kept slicing the creatures up. Her eyes met Hunter's for a second, sadness lingering in the tears that threatened to escape her eyes. She never deserved to look so sad.

"Keep going!" Karlach said. "We've got this! Really!"

The giant robot turned in their direction; Sokka pulled the sword from his sheath and started hacking at the smaller trees that could be cut. There were too many! They'd never cut them down in time! The sword Pokémon seemingly tired of this, glowed, and with a flash, even some of the thickest trees went tumbling to the ground.

"Nice job, Slashy!" Sokka said with a grin.

"Slashy?"

"Not the time," Sokka said. "Come on, let's go! Slashy, cut some more of the trees ahead for terrain advantage. Suki, parallel me. The rest of you, keep running straight ahead."

He handed Suki something before both took off in a parallel, tumultuous, tree-covered route on either side of the group. He did wonder what Sokka was planning, but he didn't have time to stop and wonder. They ran ahead to a dead end. Now, he really wondered what Sokka had been planning. Kikimora soon caught up to them.

"I did wonder how you managed to escape Belos," Kikimora said with a bit of a laugh. "But then I really thought about it; the man is an idiot. It's no surprise. But not to worry, I'll be the one bringing you in!"

"With that faulty tech?" Kaiba mused.

Kikimora glanced at him with disdain. "I suppose you're the one who's supposed to fix the dimensional door."

"I don't remember signing that contract," Kaiba said. "You freaks should crawl back in the hole you decided to surface from. I don't have time for petty vengeance plots."

"Well, don't worry, I'm only after one thing here."

She looked to Hunter, reeling back a robotic arm.

"NOW!"

Two bent back, heavy tree branches struck Kikimora knocking her and her giant robot off balance. Sokka and Suki descended from the trees along the sides of the forest and slammed some sort of paper parchment onto the robot, causing it to crackle with a red energy and then disappear.

"What was that?" Ami asked.

"Um, well," Sokka said, scratching the back of his head. "Gale told me about these scrolls inside the library. He…had some spares. One of them banishes someone back to where they came from, and the other slows them down. So, if she tries to reappear, it'll take her a while."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "And Gale just happened to give these scrolls to you? He doesn't seem like the type to share any magical item he has in his possession."

"Who cares," Arven said defensively. "They got rid of the robot! Now, we can go back for the others and get out of here!"

The ground burst open once again, two vines knocked Sokka and Suki into Hunter and Kaiba, respectively. Suki was the first up and started helping Hunter up while Kaiba pushed Sokka off him.

"Don't you know?" an older woman sprouting up from the ground on a giant Venus-flytrap spoke calmly. "Don't use your best material on a lackey."

It was Terra Snapdragon, and the wall of goopy, daimon women behind her did not bode well for them. She smiled at them, but Hunter knew that smile meant trouble.

"You'll have to forgive Kikimora," Terra said. "Her brain isn't large enough to aspire to the bigger picture. See, she would've just been happy taking the Golden Guard, but I can see that a lot of you have potential."

Vines sprung from the ground ensnaring everyone in an instant. Everyone had been trying to help him escape from the witches. He couldn't let them die to Terra! Sensing the magic Flapjack had given him, he focused on it, and sprung from the vines in a flash, teleporting from individual to individual, releasing them from their temporary imprisonment. More and more vines tried to ensnare him, but he kept evading them. He had to push on; he needed to make sure everyone would be safe from the Deathbusters.

Sokka joined him, trying to cut down the roots. Suki followed suit, slicing at the vines with her fan blades. Ami transformed and used her bubble spray to make the area misty and foggy. He could hear Arven's and more than likely Cheren's Pokémon trying to fight off the vines meant to catch them. Kaiba had drawn some sort of card that attacked the vines, cutting through them with a ray of blue energy. Even the bird on Hunter's shoulder kept the vines at bay by shooting hot embers at the roots.

However, a wave of vines washed over them, causing them to sink under the weight. Hunter began to sink further and further down, as if the ground below didn't exist. He tried to call out to the others, but a vine wrapped itself around his mouth and all his other useful limbs. He thought he'd saved them. He thought…

Three sharp CHUUNKS could be heard from outside the vine mesh. Then a rapid fire of…something. Another, familiar voice called out, "Tiro Finale!"

Two slashes cut through the vines as a man with wild red hair, blue and orange suit, with a long cape started digging through the mesh and wrenching people out. He grabbed Hunter and pulled him up, while another person with long white hair and long tail-coat white suit and wings pulled others out.

"Are you all alright?" the man with the cape asked.

"Who are you?" Hunter asked.

"My name is Lance. I'm the champion of the Kanto region. We tried to get here as quickly as we could."

"We?"

Three people hidden in the trees jumped down: one a very graceful Mami Tomoe. Another was a boy with jet black hair covered by a strange orange hat. He wore a black tube top, leggings, and orange kilt. The other was a boy in white armor with a heart in the middle of the chest piece, jeans, and bow and arrows strapped on his back.

"My name is Bow," the boy in the armor stated. "I was here for the festival when I met Mami. She joined my group, but then the ground started splitting open. We found Narancia on our way."

The other boy gave them a curt nod.

"And you?" Kaiba asked the feathery guy.

"Yue," the boy said simply.

"Are you at all related to the moon?" Suki asked.

"I am the moon," Yue said, crossing his arms.

"No, you're not," Sokka muttered.

Yue scowled but said nothing to his argument.

The wall of daimon began to waver, as if it was going to crash down upon them like Terra's vines. Lance looked to Yue. "Can you help me with this?"

Yue nodded. Lance threw a Pokémon ball outwards and out popped a giant orange dragon with blue wings. "Dragonite! Hyper Beam!"

The dragon threw back its head and shot a beam of pure light and energy at one of the walls, making it shriek as it disappeared into dust. Yue did a slashing motion with his arm and the other wall disintegrated into nothingness—as though it had no time to react. Terra was nowhere to be seen.

"Don't worry about the witch," Mami explained. "She fled when I used my tiro finale."

A blur of blue leapt from the trees. Hunter vaguely identified the figure as Sailor Neptune. Which could only mean she had been watching them. But now, she was heading in the opposite direction.

"The others," Hunter muttered. "The others! Sailor Neptune just went that way! The others could be in trouble!"

"Then we should go help them," Suki said. "C'mon, we need to hurry!"

…

Giorno walked alongside Miles and Mista. In his mind he made an internal joke about M 's. Usagi clung to Mamoru as though her life depended upon it. She kept pointing to the cute Pokémon all throughout the wooded area they were investigating. Luz and Amity seemed to be enjoying mucking about with some Pokémon called Muk—at least—that's what Nemona called them. Aang and Katara were looking at some flying and water-type Pokémon. The one Katara picked looked like it was ready to burst into tears at any moment. Aang decided he would be more careful with his selection as to not make his flying-lemur bat uncomfortable. Virgil was looking for an electric type, and Danny already had his Rotom—Jolt—he called it. Adora wanted to find a horse-type Pokémon. Apparently, they were her favorite animal. Yugi was still unsure if he even needed a Pokémon. Steven liked this ghoulish purple Pokémon covered in gemstones. Connie agreed on how cute it was. This couple stuff was mildly annoying and slightly depressing.

The sun was starting to go down. Only a trace was left in the sky. For this time of day, it was a little odd. Giorno only hoped it didn't prove to be an omen.

"Hey Gio, I found one for you."

Miles held up a turtle with a leaf stem on the top of its head. "I remember how you said you had this turtle back home. I thought Turtwig might be a good 'mon to start with. He's pretty cool in the games."

Giorno, not wanting to be rude, took the turtle in his arms. "Turtwig?"

"Thank you, Miles. He's adorable."

Both Miles and the turtle in his arms seemed to approve with smiles.

Josuke shuddered. "Are you really going to hold that thing?"

"What's wrong with Turtwig?" Nemona asked, her face souring a bit.

Josuke held out his hands defensively. "It's nothing! It's just all the germs and…"

"Josuke's scared of turtles," Usagi teased.

"You're scared of literally everything!" Josuke argued.

"The girls are fighting," Minako whispered to Makoto.

"What was that, Minako?" Josuke asked.

"Oh, nothing," Minako answered with a smirk.

"So, Giorno," Miles spoke up, nonchalantly. "I just wanted to say 'thanks,' you know?"

Giorno raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"For talking to my parents," Miles explained. "I never thanked you properly for that."

"You don't have to thank me for something so trivial," Giorno said. "It's the least I could do."

Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw Mista roll his eyes. Had he figured it out?

"I was thinking," Miles continued. "Maybe after the festival today, before we go to the library, maybe you'd want to get some food or something?"

Giorno blinked. "Sure."

Was this what he thought it was? Was it casual? How was he supposed to react to such a question? Why was talking to Miles becoming so difficult?

Suddenly, the ground beneath them began to shake. It caused him to stumble away from the others as he tripped onto a separated part of the ground. A wall of pink, goopy women rose up from the cracks as he stumbled to get up.

"Giorno!" Miles and Mista called out from the now raised part of the forest.

"I'm alright," Giorno assured them. "Mista, get yourself and Miles out of here. I'll meet you back at the entrance!"

Four people had ended up on the patch of land that Giorno was on, when everything was settled: Yugi, Usagi, Nemona, and Amity. The paths were closing off; they needed to get on one that wouldn't lead to anyone dying. Giorno spotted one. "Follow me!"

The group gave him a nod before sprinting further into the forest. His stomach was tied up in knots. The others would be alright. They'd have to be. After all, Usagi and Mamoru had a kid in the future. That meant they had to live through this, right? That still didn't guarantee the others were safe.

He just needed to reach the entrance. Mista was more than capable. He needed to keep his cool.

Soon, they got to a clearing. Usagi seemed breathless while everyone else seemed to just need a quick break. Usagi shook her head. "It's like you guys didn't even break a sweat."

"You should probably transform now," Giorno suggested.

"Oh, right! Moon prism power make up!"

Now with Sailor Moon with them, they could try and think of a plan.

"I can't believe how brave they're getting," Amity said. "They're attacking a pretty open event."

"Then it's up to us to make sure it stops here," Yugi said. "We need to figure out a way to get back to the entrance and meet up with the others."

"Maybe I can help?"

A woman with long blonde hair, huge black coat, shirt, and slacks walked over to them.

"Who are you?" Giorno demanded.

"Who is she?" Nemona asked rhetorically. "That's only one of the strongest trainers in the world, Champion Cynthia from the Sinnoh region!"

Cynthia giggled. "You must be Nemona, one of the strongest champions from the Paldea region."

Nemona's mouth hung open. "You know who I am?"

"Of course," Cynthia said. "I keep up with all the up-and-coming talent—worldwide."

She spotted the Turtwig in Giorno's arm. "What an adorable Pokémon. You know, the world champion has a Turtwig of his own. It's a good choice for a starter."

"My friend found him for me," Giorno said. "Now, we have to get going."

Before he could do anything else, a few pink hands latched onto his jacket and flung him backwards into the horde. Their claws dug deeper and deeper, threatening to puncture. He summoned GE and started punching back as he was sent further into the mass. He kept the Turtwig as close to him as possible. He needed to keep it safe. But soon, even GE wouldn't obey his commands; it was like every bit of his body was becoming numb. He had to…He needed to…

Suddenly, a hand thrust its way into the horde and dragged him out of the mass. There was a sharp pain around his wrist as the grip intensified. He couldn't get his mind to focus too much on the pain. After a fit of coughing and trying to gather his breath, he focused his eyes on his possible savior. She was an older woman with frizzy, brunette hair. She had a lab coat and funky clothing, like a scientist in an eighties movie: possibly Real Genius.

"Giorno!" a litany of voices called out. It must be the others.

"I think I've got him," the woman said. She looked at him, seeming to examine him. "How do you feel?"

Giorno, struggling to come back to his senses, checked on the Turtwig in his arms, first. It was huddled close to his chest, but it appeared to be okay. He hoped.

"Sweetie, I'm gonna need an answer."

"I'm…fine," Giorno answered carefully.

A huge dragon-like creature that stood on its hind legs cut through the mass of daimon in one swoop. Through it stepped the champion he'd just met. "I found them!"

"Who are you?" Giorno asked the woman who had wrenched him from his potential doom.

"My friends call me Liv," the woman said with a smile. "What about you?"

"Sono Giorno," he answered quietly. For some reason, that small minute, had shaken him.

It reminded him of the incident:

Miles was trying to shake him awake. But his soul was split from his body. Still, Miles was trying his best to bring him back. "H-hey! Come on, man! Come on! You can't do this! Wake up! WAKE UP!"

There were tears in his eyes as he continued to sob. "C'mon, you're my best friend here! I need you! Come on!"

Alastor had grinned at him; his soul, more like. This would probably be the last thing he saw. God only knew what would happen after this. And the strangest part was that he'd choose to save Miles again. It was probably what cost him his life, but Miles's had done the same. And he…was special to him. It was in this moment, he realized exactly what he was losing.

"GIORNO!"

Miles, drying up his tears, sat up and glared at Alastor.

"I'm going to kill you," Miles muttered.

"What was that?"

"I'm going to kill you," Miles yelled. He gently moved his body from his lap and got up to face the Radio Demon. For a second, Giorno believed he might have a chance at beating him. But the horror of him trying sank in pretty quickly. He'd be killed—stabbed again.

"You're not actually sad about that gutter trash, are you? You're better than him, Mr. Morales."

And that's when his dad had appeared. Everything past that was extremely fuzzy. Still, he couldn't admit to Miles what he'd seen—or what he felt.

"Giorno!"

He was surprised by the hug. Usagi held him in a tight grip. "We thought you were gone!"

Giorno hesitantly hugged her back. "I'm sure you would have found me. You are Sailor Moon."

He shakily got up and shook his head. He needed to think clearly. They had to get out of here. His head was swimming; whether that was from the memories or from the daimon, he couldn't exactly tell.

"C'mon, we need to go," Giorno said.

"You need to rest," Usagi chastised.

"I can't," Giorno said, shaking his head again. "I need to make sure Miles is…"

His voice drifted off as Usagi's eyes softened. "I know you care a lot about Miles. I do, too. Don't worry. We'll get out of here—all of us."

She sounded so assured, like she knew everyone was going to be safe. It was almost enough to make him believe her.

Giorno stood up and tried to shake it off, still there was this lingering feeling…perhaps it was doubt? In any case, something didn't feel right.

The group kept ahead. Occasionally Giorno would stop; there would be a flash of pain that coursed through his body. Eventually it got to the point where he needed to break, like Usagi. Why was this happening? Had Alastor found a way to reinstate their deal? Or even worse—was his dream becoming a reality? A wave of nausea overcame him, making him empty the contents of his stomach into some shrubbery near where he was resting. He didn't even have the strength to get up. Why was this happening to him? He was the strongest! He was supposed to fight!

"Giorno…" Usagi's voice trailed off. She shook her head and ducked under his arm. "No, come on. We're getting out of here. Someone help me! Those daimon must've done something."

Nemona nodded as she ducked under his other arm. "No probelmo!"

Amity paused. "Giorno…how exactly are you feeling?"

Giorno stared at her. "Unwell? Sick? God-awful?"

"Noted," Amity said. "But…it reminds me of when Luz was bitten by that spider. Did you get bit by anything here?"

Giorno shook his head. There was no way. He tried to focus on a place where he could've possibly been bitten. But there was no creature he had to throw off his body. And Miles wouldn't have given him something that could hurt him.

Then he remembered. There was a sharp pain in his wrist when he was pulled out. His eyes drifted to Liv. Her mouth curled up into a smirk. She knew he knew. Before he could warn the others, she pressed a button on her watch. Huge mechanical appendages extended from her back and took a swing at the others, knocking them out of the way.

"It's always a pain to wait for that moment of complete vulnerability. Try summoning your stand. You won't be able to. By now the venom's worked its way far enough into your system to where you'll be incapacitated for the rest of the day," she mocked. She held up her actual hand. A small, needle that glinted in the sunlight could be seen from a small pocket in the band of her watch. "I'll admit, it was easier to trick you than I thought it was going to be; they said you're the son of a would-be god. I guess your mind was preoccupied by that 'best friend' of yours, wasn't it?"

Giorno did try to summon GE, but the only thing that came to him were flashes of pain in his head. It made him wretch.

"You really do care about that troublemaker, don't you?" the woman asked. She lowered herself down to his slumped-over level. "Do you know how much of my work he ruined? Do you know how much of my research I'll never get back?"

Giorno stayed quiet. She took this as her cue to keep monologuing. "You know, it was a real question of how I was going to get my revenge. Then I came into contact with people—people who would allow me to freely use their advanced technology—to experiment with any wild element I wanted. And that's how I ended up developing alternate universe's spider totems. I made yours special, since Spiderman seems to care so much about you."

She paused and laughed. "You'll be dead before all of this is over. Don't worry, it'll be sort of quick. Eudial and Morlun are coming. She'll collect your heart and talisman, and he'll drain the rest of your soul."

"Is that so?" A gravelly voice above them asked.

Giorno's vision blurred as he saw someone jump down from the trees above. He had purple hair, a jean jacket inscribed 'Briefs' on the shoulder of the sleeve. He had a sword in his hand.

"I'd like to see them try."

"Who are you?"

The boy only grinned. There was a flash of steel and bright blast of energy as the woman was hurled away faster than he could blink. The boy turned to Giorno. "Hang in there. I'll get you out of here."

Giorno shook his head, causing a new wave of nausea to envelop him. "I need to save Miles. He's in trouble."

"Giorno!" he heard Usagi call out.

"Don't worry," the boy said. "I'll help them, too. My name is Trunks. I've come to help."

That's when he finally gave up the ghost and passed out.

…

Chibiusa, Mokuba, and Ash walked over to Professor Kukui and Sycamore along with two other magical girls around her age—Sakura Kinomoto and Madoka Kaname. They all loved the color pink, believed in the power of friendship, and wanted to save the world. Although, there was a lot more wrong than Mama first let her know. She was wondering if all this tempering with the timeline meant…

She pushed it out of her mind. She couldn't think like that.

"So, you help run a school?" Chibiusa asked Professor Kukui.

Kukui nodded. "Yep! I've got some pretty great students!"

Ash grinned and chuckled. "Well, you were a pretty great teacher."

Hop's older brother, Leon, clapped his hands together. "Alright everybody, thanks to Kalos's and Alola's Professor Sycamore and Professor Kukui, the Pokémon within these regions are completely docile. Remember, if you want a Pokémon to choose you, you have to match their energy. Being a Pokémon trainer is all about having that solid bond between you and your Pokémon. Although, if I were you, I'd ask your friend, Ash. He could tell you pretty much all there is to know. He beat me, the undefeated champion!"

"Excuse me," a boy with wild black hair spoke up. It kind of looked like he was wearing several layers of clothing. It looked heavy. Gi. It was Gi! That's what Mako had called it! Around his neck was a white layer that resembled a scarf—more than like it was more gi. "I'm kind of new here, and my friend I were wondering, since we signed up for this festival, if these Pokémon could help us get home."

Professor Sycamore decided to answer this question. "We've been working on that. It's just a theory for now, but there could be a possible way, given we find the legendaries from Sinnoh and Alola."

Hop turned to everyone. "Dialga is the lord of time, while Palkia controls space."

"Lunala, Solgaleo, and Necrozma can distort space-time, but there's a price," Hau explained. "It could lead to them feeling used, and that's when they start to protest. Things wouldn't end so well, if that were to happen."

"Then we'll be sure to treat them with respect," Madoka said with a calm smile.

"Of course," Silver began. "You'd need to find the legendaries first."

"Where would we even start looking?" Sakura asked.

"We're handling that," Leon said. "No need to involve yourselves."

"Kind of does sound like there's a need," Toph said. "You old folks are really bad at getting your junk together."

"Old?" Professor Sycamore reiterated, gently touching his face. "I…would hope not. I'm not…"

"I also protest to being called 'old,'" Gale interjected. "If you are in want to see an elderly human, look no further than Elminster."

"I'm sure it was a jest," Wyll said. He grinned. "Besides, I'm not old, so I take no offense."

"All well and good for you, Wyll," Gale said. Meanwhile, Toph just grinned, knowing she'd caused some havoc.

Chibiusa shook her head and decided to talk to the new boy. "Hi! My name's Chibiusa. What's your name?"

The kid smiled back at her. "It's nice to meet you Chibiusa. My name is Gohan."

"Nice to meet you!" Chibiusa said with a smile.

"Alright, everyone get into two groups! Professor Sycamore, Mr. Gale, and I will lead one, and the other will be lead by Wyll and Professor Kukui. You can also pick a team lead for your group."

"Mr. Gale?" the wizard questioned.

"Do you want to join our group?" Chibiusa asked Gohan.

"You can also feel free to join the other group," Mokuba said with a shrug. Chibiusa gave him a look. "What?"

"Well, I don't want to intrude," Gohan said.

"You won't," Chibiusa insisted. "Come on!"

Everyone shifted into two different groups. Chibiusa went with Ash and Hop; it seemed like they really knew what they were talking about. That's how Ash ended up becoming the leader of their troop. It was kind of like being in a club! Because they had so many people, they ended up in Leon's, Professor Sycamore's, and Gale's group. There were some people she knew here—others she didn't. One was a mysterious girl who sort of just appeared next to Madoka. She had long, braided, black hair, and wore a standard school uniform. Her violet eyes were hidden behind a pair of glasses.

Madoka looked stunned to see her, but quickly hugged her. "Homura? How'd you get here?"

The girl looked nervous. Maybe she was shy? "M-Madoka? It's so good to see you! I-I fell through some sort of portal, a-and then I've just been going from place to place trying to survive!"

"That's awful!" Madoka said. "Did no one help you?"

"W-Well, eventually, someone did. So, I've been staying with his group ever since."

"That's good to hear," Madoka said, tears in her eyes. "I would hate to think one of my best friends was alone for so long."

"It felt like that," Homura said quietly.

Things progressed as everyone started hunting for a Pokémon. The Collector already had two: Solrock and Lunatone. Chibiusa already had her Togepi, but Hop said having a full team would make Hamigakiko less lonely. So, that's what she chose to do.

As she was searching, she found a pretty, pink Pokémon that resembled a cat. "How adorable! Would you like to come with us?"

The cat turned to look at her and jerked its head, running in the opposite direction.

"I guess that's a no?" Gus asked.

Chibiusa frowned and shuffled her feet. She'd never recover from a rejection so cute.

"Hey kid," a voice that sounded like it was straight out of a movie spoke up. "If you're looking for a cat-type Pokémon, I'm your guy!"

Ash was the first to be surprised. To their left was a cat-like Pokémon yellowish-tan in color with a coin on its forehead.

"Meowth?"

"So, you ended up here, too, eh, twerp?" the cat asked.

"…How can you talk?" Hop asked.

"Bet you'd like to know," Meowth said. He looked back to Chibiusa. "Anyways, if you'd like someone to help you out, our little team recently disbanded. And, honestly, I'm looking for a place to stay. Staying with the professors is way too restrictive. I wanna go explorin'!"

"Is it really so bad here?" Professor Sycamore asked with a casual smile.

"Yes, and there's not enough food," Meowth added.

"Wait," Ash interjected. "Team Rocket broke up?"

"Yep. After our last failed attempt to catch your Pikachu, those two nitwits started a fight. And we ended things. Then I got pulled into this place."

"I would've figured you, Jessie, and James would've ended up helping those witches," Ash said.

"Times ain't that desperate," Meowth said sarcastically. He shrugged. "Although, I have no idea what the other two are up to, so maybe you're right."

Meowth glanced beyond their shoulders. "Looks like your friends are pretty good at this."

Chibiusa turned to see that the others were talking to and catching Pokémon of their own. Gohan had this goopy-looking slug that Hop insisted was a dragon. Mokuba was talking to a dinosaur-like creature that had black fur covering its face. Sakura was cooing over a pink Pokémon whose shape resembled a star with two brown, pointy, ears (?). Madoka had come into contact with a small, pink floating creature that stared at her with wide, curious eyes.

"Is…is that girl talkin' to Mew?" Meowth asked, his mouth gaping open.

"That is impressive…" Ash's voice trailed off.

At that moment, the ground began to shake. Meowth, who had been standing on a rock to meet them at eye-level, began to tumble down. Chibiusa, not wanting anyone to get hurt, dove and caught him. As the ground began to split, Leon jumped to one side while Gale and Professor Sycamore were stranded with some of the others on the other side. Walls of the daimon surrounded them, and things started to split even further. Leon, Chibiusa, Ash, Madoka, Homura, Hop, Mokuba, Sakura, Frisk, Gus, and Toph landed on the same side.

"Are you all alright?" Professor Sycamore asked.

"Everyone is going to be fine, Professor," Leon assured him.

"Soyez prudent, tout le monde!"

"Well, well, well, I haven't heard that voice in ages."

Professor Sycamore paled. "Ce n'est pas possible, Lysandre?"

Ash clenched his fists as a man with a lion's mane for hair walked towards him. He looked like a businessman—wearing such a dark suit with red lining. He pretty much screamed 'bad guy' energy.

"Ah, the chosen one is here, too," the man said. He paused to think. "Both could possess a talisman, really."

"You won't be able to check either one," Chibiusa argued.

"Oh?" the man raised an eyebrow. "And what are a bunch of children going to—?"

He was interrupted as three huge chunks of earth hit him directly in the chest, knocking him backwards, off the log he was standing upon.

"And that's why I should be allowed to handle things," Toph said.

More daimon began to sprout from the ground. It was almost overwhelming.

"Charizard go!" Leon called out, as he threw a pokéball into the air.

A large orange dragon with blue wings and blazing tail leapt into the air, firing a wall of flame at the daimon. However, it started reforming as soon as it disintegrated. Leon flinched. He quickly shook his head. "Everyone go to the entrance! Sycamore, enact the emergency evacuation for all Pokémon!"

Chibiusa ducked behind a tree and transformed quickly. When she came back around, Mokuba seemed surprised. "Chibiusa? Is that you? I mean, you look different when you're transformed."

"Mama says it's a glamor spell. It's for our own safety," Chibiusa explained. She aimed her heart wand at the wall of daimon. "Pink sugar heart attack!"

A small trail of hearts landed sadly against the wall. There was a cackle of giggles from the wall as it started to descend. Leon stepped in front of everyone. "Get back!"

Before the wall could crash down, Gohan stepped up. He held his hands crossed with the palms facing forward above his head, creating a yellow-colored energy sphere. He threw his hands forward and fires the yellow beam straight at the wall of monsters, totally eliminating them.

"Whoa!" Sakura gaped. "How strong are you, Gohan?"

"Well, Mr. Piccolo taught me that," Gohan said. "I can't take all the credit."

"And just how strong is this Mr. Piccolo?" a voice belonging to the faster of the outer senshi asked.

The group looked up to see Sailor Uranus casually leaning against the trunk. She jumped down, landing flawlessly. She walked over to the group.

"Thanks for the help back there, lady," Toph said.

"Lady?" Sailor Uranus asked with a snort. "That's some talk for a tiny vagabond."

"She's pretty good at insults," Mokuba noted. He glared ahead at Uranus. "Where's your friend? I guess you two are here for pure hearts, right?"

Sailor Uranus's eyes softened. "We're here to try and help with all the collateral damage. There are a lot of innocent people we've already gotten out of the park. Neptune is trying to scope out escape routes for others."

"Then we'll go help them, too!" Hop said.

"You should get out of here," Uranus said. "We'll help your friends get out."

"Yeah," Toph said with a snort. "We'll really trust that."

Leon looked from Uranus to everyone else. He shook his head. "Let me get the kids out of here, and I'll come and help you."

"Lee, it's too dangerous!" Hop argued.

Leon put a hand on his shoulder. "It's my job as Galar's champion to help those who need it most. You kids shouldn't keep having to put up with problems. I swore after the Darkest Day, I'd never let anything get out of my control ever again."

He turned, without hearing Hop out any further, "Come on you lot, let's get you out of here. Charizard! Clear the way!"

…

Lots of people in suits started gathering the Pokémon in the forest. The growlithe stayed by his side, and she was taking out a few of the daimon. However, the daimon kept stacking up; no matter how many he cut down, twice as many appeared. Not to mention that Okuyasu and Jotaro were also pretty close combat. He was afraid to use firebending here; the entire forest could be set ablaze. Then they'd all probably suffocate.

Hundreds of vines sprung up to try and keep the daimon at bay, but Willow gasped and had to regain her balance just to keep the wall functional.

"Hierophant Green!"

Invisible attacks hit the wall and knocked it back a few feet, but it was reamplified in a matter of seconds. Finally, the vines broke. He had no choice. If he wanted to protect everyone and take this thing down, he'd have to use firebending. Zuko, reluctantly, shot a few firebolts to beat it back, but the amalgamation just…doused the flames and kept advancing towards them.

"What are these things made of? Fucking diamond?" Jotaro questioned.

Zuko shook it off and tried again. He had to succeed; so many lives were depending upon his success! He channeled that inner fire the true firebending masters had taught him so long ago. Summoning all his strength, he raised a wall of fire that matched the size of the wall of daimon. They hissed and screamed, but they had nowhere to run as flames washed over them. It was almost tragic; had they not been trying to steal people's souls.

"That…was a lot of fire," Rei managed after some time.

"Impressive, really," Kakyoin agreed.

"It took care of those monsters," Jotaro said. "At least now we've got time to find the…"

Zuko barely had time to register Jotaro pulling him out of the way of an oncoming energy blast. Ahead of them stood Eudial with that gun of hers, the vampire, Morlun, the robotic woman from earlier, a new woman who had robotic arm-appendages, and a new older woman who seemed to have as much control, if not more, over plants than Willow.

"Two totems stand before us," Morlun said with a smirk. Right. He'd forgotten about that. He and Kakyoin were both infected. "And now one more of your friends is in the process of becoming another totem. In any case, my appetite will be sated."

"You're not 'sating' anything, bitch!" Okuyasu called out. "ZA HANDO!"

He ran up to the vampire, trying to knock him out, but Morlun simply thwacked him aside, like a mosquitefly. The woman in the robotic suit made up of what Amity called 'abomination magic' threw a fist at Zuko, while the vine-woman ensnared Kakyoin in a bundle of vines. Zuko caught the fist, but the goop quickly ensnared his arm. He tried to firebend his way out of the grip, but it held tight. Jotaro was the next to do something.

"STAR PLATINUM-ZA WARUDO!"

Surprisingly, this did knock the vampire back a bit. Although, it was weird. One minute Jotaro had been standing near them, the next he was right where the vampire had been standing. Yet, the vampire got back up and grabbed Jotaro by the neck. Rei and Willow were fighting the robotically armed woman, as she tried to stab at them with the mechanical arms.

"Jotaro!"

Jotaro looked back at Kakyoin for a split second; it was long enough for Morlun to jab something into his gut. Jotaro's eyes widened as he stumbled backwards. He didn't fall. No, Morlun still had to push him aside; he collapsed against a tree.

"JOTARO!"

It was enough to cause the vines around Kakyoin rupture. He swung his hand outwards, and Morlun stumbled slightly, losing his footing. Kakyoin took a few steps forward; Zuko tried to break free from the robot's grip. Did he want to get himself killed?

The smirk on Morlun's face said it all as he, at the speed of light, rushed over to Kakyoin and knocked him to the ground, keeping his foot on his chest. He got eerily close to Kakyoin and flexed his fingertips and placed his palm on Kakyoin's shoulder. In that single gesture, Kakyoin gasped and convulsed. It looked like a light, green energy was being pulled from his body.

Zuko wrenched his hands away from the goopy machine, burning it with everything he had. The woman inside screamed about how hot it was getting, but he didn't have time to care. He jumped up and rushed over to Morlun, reeling back a fist. However, on either side of the monster, there was some sort of punch coming, as Zuko noticed, Jotaro had managed to get back on his feet. One swung this way, the other swung another. Morlun crumpled into a heap of fire and brokenness on the forest floor.

"You think you've done something?" the vine woman snapped. A group of vines started encasing the villains around them. "We'll be back. More importantly, so will Morlun and Eudial. You could barely beat us this time. We'll be sure to bring more allies next time."

With that, the vines evaporated, leaving no one behind. Jotaro looked at where they once had been, swore under his breath, and collapsed back underneath the tree. He gazed up at Zuko. "You know, you would've made a good stand user, or a Joestar, at least."

Zuko ignored him for now. He needed to treat that wound. He examined it. No. Cauterizing wouldn't work in this case. They needed someone like Steven, Katara, or…

"Hey! We found you guys!" Josuke's voice rang out. Josuke along with Mamoru, Mako, Katara, Luz, Miles, Mista, Aang, Peter, Danny, Steven, and Virgil fumbled towards their group, past the decaying vines that blocked the pathways. "We got separated from the others, and…Jotaro?"

He rushed over. "What happened?"

"No time," Zuko said. "Heal him."

"Right."

In an instant, it was like the hole in Jotaro's gut had never existed. He'd heard Katara say that Master Jeong Jeong envied healers; Zuko was starting to see why. If people like Katara and Josuke didn't exist, people like him and Jotaro would be dead several times over.

"Who did this?" Josuke asked again, a little more ardently now.

"Morlun," Zuko answered honestly.

"What happened?" Miles asked. "Did you…beat him?"

Zuko shook his head. "We beat him for now but not for good."

"Then we find him and kick his ass," Jotaro muttered.

"You're not in any state to do that," Katara chastised.

"That bastard almost…" His eyes widened. "Where's Kakyoin?"

"I'll go help him," Katara said, running back to help him.

Jotaro sat up; he didn't even flinch. He was tough. Zuko gave him that. He staggered over to Katara and Kakyoin. They must've been through a lot before they'd met them. What? He didn't really know. They weren't open people, and a good dose of suspicion of others wasn't anything he didn't know. They seemed to be pretty good friends, even if they were against each other in the beginning.

"We are now closing due to unforeseen circumstances," a PA rang out. "Please make your way back to the entrance."

"Everyone!" Usagi's voice rang out. "We need help!"

To their left, Usagi and some of the others ran to catch up with them. There was this new guy: purple hair, muscles, strange jacket, and clothes that looked like he was a fighter. He was holding someone totally incapacitated.

"Giorno?" he heard Miles ask, dread obvious in his voice.

"There was this lady," Usagi explained. "Her name was Liv."

"Doc Ock?!"

"I don't know," Usagi said. "But she gave Giorno one of those serums for spider totems, at least, that's how Trunks explained it."

"You're Trunks," Jotaro assumed.

The purple-haired guy nodded. "I've come here to help. There's a lot of work we've gotta do."

"We need to get everyone to safety first," Miles said. "Let's find the others and get the hell out of here!"

…

Professor Sycamore made sure the kids were safe first. He couldn't fail like he did back at Geosenge. He wouldn't allow any of them to be hurt for the sake of Lysandre's vision of a perfect world.

Although, since Ash was safe with Leon, he didn't need to worry so much about Ash.

"Come along, Augustine," Lysandre chided. "Are you waiting for some sort of legendary intervention?"

As he fired another shot of…whatever that energy was comprised of and hit a tree, Sycamore could tell Lysandre was getting aggravated. All that huffing and puffing and his normal theatrics did not surprise him. He just needed to get the kids out of the line of fire.

"Done!"

Sycamore turned to Gale who had created a portal back to the entrance. "Everyone in!"

"I think we can take him," the Collector said with a grin.

He fired some sort of blue spell at Lysandre, but it was blocked completely by a red, glowing shield that appeared before him at the press of a button.

"That's no fair!" the Collector protested.

"Hey, let's just get out of here," King said.

The Collector rolled his eyes. "Fine. But we need to find something fun to do when we get home."

Lysandre was dangerous, especially like this. He needed to distract him.

"Lysandre, when we worked together, I thought we could find a way to improve the world—not destroy it! All you've been doing is utter destruction! How is this supposed to improve anything?"

"Still naïve as always," Lysandre said, shaking his head. He got closer and closer until Sycamore was backed into a corner. Gale was busy helping the children. Good. "You know, I still consider you to be one of the most beautiful things in this rotten world. Your image, your knowledge, your kindness, your soul."

He held out his hand toward Augustine's chest. The professor could feel his heart breaking all over again. "You don't have to do this, amour. We can fix this together."

Lysandre hesitated for a moment. "I'm sorry. This is the only way, mon cher."

Sycamore shut his eyes as the energy crackling in Lysandre's hand got brighter. However, a bright green beam of light countered the attempt as it fired off.

"Iacto Te!"

One minute Lysandre had been standing there, the next he was somewhere else entirely. All the children had been evacuated. Only Gale stood there with a look of understanding on his face.

"You know, my last lover wanted me to blow myself up to destroy a netherbrain," he said. "Should you ever want to converse over the topic of jilted lovers, or, well, share a conversation about anything, I am readily available."

"Merci," Sycamore said quietly. "Lysandre wasn't always like that…or maybe he was…maybe I just didn't see it. But he was sweet to me, at one point."

"It always starts that way, doesn't it?" Gale asked.

"Are you two alright?"

A girl with cascading blue hair similar to waves in the ocean approached them. She seemed to be one of the senshi, only, he'd never seen her before.

"Ah," Gale said with a small smirk. "Excellent timing, but I'm afraid there's no pure hearts or talismans to be had here."

The bluenette shook her head. "We're forming an evacuation of this area. Civilian safety is our first priority."

"I'm sure it is," Gale mused.

"Don't trust her," another voice shouted. It was that boy with the boomerang, only now he had a sword.

"I was wondering when you'd catch up," the girl said with a coy smile.

"Don't let her fool you," the boy said. "She's just as bad as the witches!"

The girl frowned. "You mistake us for villains. We're just doing what we have to do."

The younger boy, the CEO, Kaiba (who everyone knew at this point) chimed in. "You would've killed Hunter just to get the talisman he harbors. You can take your greater good and jump off a cliff—a burning bridge if you're a defense attorney."

"Did…did Mr. Wright actually do that?" the girl with the fan blades asked.

"Enough," the blue senshi said. "You're all wasting precious time. You need to get out of here!"

"Oh, I'm sure you wouldn't want any of the talismans to get hurt," Kaiba threw back at her.

"In any case," Gale began. "The portal spell is waning. We may want to take advantage of it while we still have it open."

The children looked at each other, an open hostility in the air.

"Fine."

…

Back at the shrine, Jotaro was waiting on Kakyoin to get better while Katara fluctuated between helping him and Giorno. She looked so tired, but Miles couldn't exactly object to her help. She didn't say anything, if she was tired.

Two hours into her treatment, she stopped. "I've helped supply healing to the pressure points and internal energies that were affected. In Kakyoin's case, he needed an influx, whereas Giorno just needed someone to help him balance the invasiveness of the pathogen introduced to his system. It was pretty much an overdose. They'll be asleep for a while."

"But they're going to be okay, right?" Miles asked.

Katara nodded. "As long as we keep them away from Morlun, they'll be fine."

"Thank you, Katara," Jotaro muttered.

"You're welcome," Katara said with a small smile. "Trust me, I've treated worse."

"So Aang told us," Jotaro said. He smirked slightly. "It was pretty annoying. He wouldn't stop talking about you."

"Aw, that's so sweet of him!" She paused and lingered as she stood up and went to the doorway. "By the way…if it were me, I would've done the same thing. Just be more careful next time."

Jotaro looked at her for a second and then nodded.

Miles sat next to Giorno, waiting. He wasn't sure why he was waiting. Katara did say it would be a while before he woke up. But to think that he'd wake up not sure where he was, or if Morlun, Doc Ock, Eudial, Alastor, or even his father had gotten to him, well, he didn't want him to wake up thinking he was in danger again. No. His body, his heart, and his soul would stay his own.

He held his head in his hands. He hated how he wasn't there to stop her. True, he hadn't known Olivia Octavius would be there, but what shouldn't he expect at this point? The Turtwig stayed by Giorno. Kind of impressive it already cared about him. Though, Miles wasn't really surprised. He was easy to care about.

Today was supposed to have been fun. They were going to look for more information on Dame Aylin and get some food afterwards. He'd saved up some money from a job he'd done for Mr. Hino. It would've been nice to just take a break for a minute. Just two friends chilling out and vibing.

Two friends…

"Miles? Baby?" he heard his mom ask.

Katara dipped out and allowed his mom to get by her and into the room. She knelt next to him and Giorno, placing the back of her palm against his forehead. "It's not as bad as when you first got him here. Katara would make a great doctor."

"Something tells me she has," Miles said. He sighed. "Mama, this is what I was talking about. I could've saved him from this. This is my fault."

"Miles…this isn't your fault," his mom said. She was quiet for a moment—looking from him to Giorno. "Miles, is there anything you want to tell me?"

Miles froze. Hopefully, she wasn't asking what he thought she was asking. He decided to just go on the basis that she wasn't. He shook his head. "You know everything there is to know, now. I just want to help keep him safe."

"I know," his mom said. "It's just…well…I want to make sure you're safe and happy, too. Whatever you do in life, just promise me that you know I'll be on your side cien percento. And Giorno seems like a nice kid. So, I'll be happy if you're both safe and happy, ¿lo entiendes?"

Oh god, she was.

"I get it, Mom. I get it. And…I appreciate it."

"Okay. I just want you to know," his mom said, standing up. "I'm gonna go check on the others. Apparently, some of them got dinged up out there today."

She walked out, leaving Jotaro and Miles keeping an eye on Giorno and Kakyoin.

"So…you've got a thing for DIO's kid, huh?"

Miles reburied his face in his hands. "Please stop talking."

"Hey, I'm not judging or anything. Well, maybe a little. I mean, he still is DIO's kid."

"He's also your family," Miles argued.

"True," Jotaro said, playing with a lighter in his hand. He plucked a cigarette from his pocket and balanced it between his fingers.

"Those things will kill you," Miles said.

"You know, Kakyoin said the same thing to me," Jotaro said.

Miles smirked. "So, you're just really good friends, right?"

"Sure."

"So good that you'd jump in front of a literal vampire for him," Miles said.

Jotaro's eyes darkened as though there were a storm behind them. "I didn't the first time." He broke the cigarette in half and tucked his lighter back into his pocket. "DIO killed him. He's the person we have to thank on even knowing DIO's abilities. He was a bastard, and if he's still out there, I will kill him again."

"I-I'm sorry," Miles said. "I didn't know. Kakyoin never told us. But…Giorno isn't like his dad, I hope you know."

"Well, I hope he is like one of them," Jotaro said. "Supposedly great-great grandfather Jonathan was a good guy, you know, honorable gentleman type."

"You make it sound as though you want to get to know him," a snarky and pompous voice spoke up from the doorway. Luckily, it was just Astarion. "I can help with that!"

"What are you talking about, not DIO?"

"Ugh, some decorum would be good for you," Astarion said. "I actually have someone who wants to meet his son."

"No way."

Through the doorway a man with shaggy black hair, adventurer's clothing, and large stature stepped into the room. "Hello. My name is Jonathan Joestar. I've come to meet Giorno Giovanna."