GammaTron: *playing Knack II* I just love this series. An interesting background, good graphics, good humor when it needs it, good sense of adventure...I just wish that I didn't have to play multiple times just to get everything…
SZ: That's why there's replayability…*goes back to playing Dark Cloud 1*...keep forgetting how much better the second game is….god damn thirst meter...I know this was one of Level 5 first games, but still...why make a thirst meter?!
GT: Realism? I mean, they include a hunger meter in Minecraft and both hunger and thirst in The Forest and Raft evident by the playthroughs done by YouTubers like Ssundee and Markiplier.
SZ:...I suppose that's fair I guess...still it was an annoying mechanic to deal with since you go through items really fast in Dark Cloud 1…*notices the readers* Oh! Eh heh...hey there.
GT: Yo. Welcome to the second-to-last chapter of the Little Planet Arc.
SZ: Yup..second to last chapter...oh you know that's gonna foreshadow something big.
GT: Really now? I didn't notice.
SZ: What? Everyone knows when it comes to the second to last chapter of an arc in a manga or anime, you know it's gonna be big.
GT: Oh yeah...Ah well. You know we only own the OCs and dont own anything else. Do enjoy everyone. *puts up a sign reading 'Risky Boots can't beat Shantae'*
SZ:...*runs*why do you antagonize everyone, GT?!
GT: Gotta do something to transition. *leaves before the studios are blasted with canonfire and swarmed by Tinketbats*
"Okay...whoever's behind all this craziness with Little Planet, they have more Time Stones then we do," Manic listed off, "We were able to get two of them, but mystery evil dude has three, so...we got one last shot at getting those, and the last two Time Stones."
"And no doubt there's one in the next area up ahead," Ragna guessed.
"And then one more if there's another area after this," Makoto added.
"So we better put the pedal to the metal," Manic stated.
"It looks like a place you, Sonic, and Sonia would make," Ben noted, looking out at the series of highways seemingly made of instruments intermingled in a dazzling city with a domed cathedral in the center of it all.
"...wow...it kinda does," Sonia admitted.
"Looks kinda like...a stardust speedway," Mai noted.
"...Which could mean our next monolith opponents here could be either star themed, or music themed," Noel added.
"Probably," Ben agreed before frowning at his Omnitrix, "Though I may not be able to help fight. Still recharging."
"May need to make you something for when you're stuck waiting for the Omnitrix to finish recharging," Manic noted.
"Good idea," Ben nodded
"...How's Roll holding by the way?" Makoto asked.
"When I checked, she was resting and Sonic wasn't leaving her side," Tsubaki replied, "Just what happened with the Monolith they fought at? Manic..."
"Bro made me swear not to tell. It's personal to Sis-in-Law," Manic replied.
"Oh...Nevermind then," Tsubaki nodded.
"...Okay. Split up time?" Makoto asked as she shot up.
"Not this time," Ben replied as he looked out with his Binocucoms, "Looks to me like it's a straight path to both."
"You can see them both?" Mai asked.
"Yeah. Looks like it's just a straight path to both," Ben replied, "Then again...this is kind of just a highway, isn't it?"
"Regardless, we better make sure there's no traps or anything here," Ragna advised.
"...Are you still mad about the sp…"
"I've already added them to my list," Ragna replied, his eye twitching.
"...List?" Makoto whispered when Ragna walked off to sharpen his blade.
"Something Grandpa Max had Ragna start up to help him vent. He makes a list of things he's going to stab viciously and without any mercy if he gets a chance," Ben replied.
"Oh...that...makes some sense…" Makoto blinked.
"It's therapeutic!" Ragna snapped.
"It explains why you haven't gone on a destructive spree!"
"...damn it. Now I need something to vent!"
"...Okay, so we let Ragna activate the first Obelisk?" Makoto suggested.
"You had to say it!" Ben freaked, "You know what could come out this time?!"
"Whoever it is, I'm praying it's someone punchable!" Ragna argued.
"Feeling better?" Sonic asked, walking into his and Roll's bedroom with a plate of chili-dogs with slices of strawberry on the side in his hands, the Hedgefox sitting on their bed with her knees pulled up to her chest with her head resting on it.
"...A-A little…" Roll replied, "It...It's jus-just that seeing her again a-and what she said during all that…It...it just..." she sighed, "It makes me feel...conflicted."
"On…?"
"If I made the right choice or not to invoke one of our family's double edge rituals," Roll replied.
"...Double edge rituals?" Sonic repeated.
"Hai," Roll replied, grimacing, "In this case...the Vow of Vengeance."
"...I'm afraid to ask," Sonic whispered as he put the plate down, "Look...I get that was some heavy stuff, but..remember. That was technically not your mom…"
"...But...I...I almost felt it WAS her…" Roll spoke up, "The way she moved, how she acted, how she sounded...everything about her was...was just exactly like her when…when she lost Haseo-chan just after Tou-san was thought to be dead...a...and what she said before she faded away..." her eyes watered, "It...It was like she...she came back to before those times...wh-when she was my kaa-chan…"
"...Roll…" Sonic whispered, sitting right beside her as he pulled her into a comforting hug, "It's okay. Like I told you, just take your time and let it all out."
"H-Hai…" Roll sniffled, nuzzling into him to try to fight off the pain in her heart.
"...Maybe once we're done here, we'll head back to Ryugu and stay there for a few days. Would that be good?"
"Mm-hmm…" Roll replied.
"Atta girl…" Sonic smiled softly.
"Don't let it be Azrael. Don't let it be Azrael. Don't let it be Azrael," Makoto whispered, crossing her fingers as they searched for the first Obelisk.
"Who's Azrael?" Manic asked Tsubaki.
"...I think I've heard of him…" Tsubaki answered, "Mai?"
"...Azrael. He's...he's the most dangerous man from our world," Mai answered with a gulp, "He...he's too powerful...so much so, he had to have seals put on him just so he 'doesn't kill his food'."
"...He's not a cannibal, is he?" Sonia asked.
"No. That's what he refers his opponent's as...food… It doesn't help his title is The Mad Dog."
"Mad...Dog?" the two younger Hedgehog triplet siblings repeated.
"It refers to how he fights...and how he treats his 'food'."
"Hence why I'm PRAYING we don't fight him," Makoto added.
"Universe...don't listen to all these tempts of fate!" Ben called out.
"Why're you freakin' out, dude?" Manic raised a brow before it dawned on him, "Oh...right...Omnitrix."
"Exactly…"
"Let's just get to the damn Obelisk already!" Ragna snapped.
"It's right there," Makoto pointed out, pointing at an Obelisk with a crystal shaped like a snowflake at the top.
"...A snowflake?" Sonia pondered.
"Last time was a crystal 'M,'" Ben noted before the Ring pulsed and floated out of Ragna's hand, "It did that last time, too."
The two-colored Ring flew over to the Obelisk and the gem atop started resonating with the Ring. The two shined brightly before blinding them with a large flash of light.
"You are not welcome here. Leave at once or perish!" Aphrodite declared as a figure was surrounded by her and several Mobian foxes and fox-hybrids.
"Hmph. So you are the mutants."
"Mutants?" Rose Sakurai repeated, "How rude!"
"Let's get this over with," Aphrodite ordered, "He chooses to perish."
"The only ones who will perish...are you," the figure informed as icicles formed around the figure in midair.
"Ben, you lasted well over ten minutes as Howler. Yet you said you had a ten-minute time limit for your aliens," Sonia noted.
"That's during fights and overexerting myself," Ben explained, "I didn't really do that since we took a few breaks every now and then."
"At least you got us close enough to a cave," Makoto noted as she pointed at a cave ahead.
"Thank good…" Sonia began before the cave exploded, "And I think we just found the problem."
"There you guys are!" Sonic called as he skidded to a halt with Manic on his back, "Guys! The thing's ice is eating their souls!"
"Hishōken (Ice Flying Sword)!"
Makoto paled, "Oh no…It…It can't be…!"
"What's wrong, Mako-whoa!" Sonic yelped as he jumped over a buster-sword made of ice, "What the heck was that about?!"
"It's him…" Makoto slumped.
Out of the smoke, two figures jumped out in a stalemate of blades. One was a Mobian hedgehog-fox fusion. Her coat of fur was a moderate grayish-gold with a soft snow-white muzzle and moderate jade eyes. Her quills went down to her hips and held together just above the bottom by an oversized green bow. She wore a heavy pink and black snow-coat with red trimmings of a fur-like fabric and baggy black snow-pants. In her hands was a cyan rapier with lightning bolt designs on the guard and a tentacle-shaped handle/hilt.
Her opponent was a human, one that Makoto knew all too well. He was a good-looking and slender young man with short, stylish blond hair and green eyes. He wore the NOL major uniform Makoto had seen on him before with a black turtleneck and leggings under a white Japanese-style garment, white gloves, military boots, and a "jolting sapphire" colored jacket with a red lining and very long, detached sleeves. In his hands was a long katana with a silver attachment connecting the blade to the green and white hilt/handle, the silver attachment having two silver 'tube's on the sides and pointed upwards along the blade.
"Jin Kisaragi," Makoto gulped.
"That's Jin Kisaragi?! The one you called the 'Hero of Ikaruga?!'" Sonia gawked.
"How'd he end up here?" Ben pondered.
"Murderer!" the Hedgefox screamed as the two jumped back from each other before she lunged, releasing a cyan laser from the tip of her blade, "Cyan Shooter!"
"Summon Yukianesa!" Jin roared as he sheathed and drew his blade, creating a wall of ice that reflected the laser back at the Hedgefox.
"Yikes!" the Hedgefox barely dodged.
"Again with you mutant Beastkin? Honestly!" Jin growled.
"Shut it! You killed my clan!" the Hedgefox growled, "I will never forgive you for that! Not now! Not ever! Laser Lance!"
With that, she swung her rapier in a vertical arc. A lance-shaped laser shot out at Jin. The former Major of the NOL jumped over the attack and sent another blade of ice at the Hedgefox. She barely jumped back.
"Fenrir!" Jin roared as he stabbed his blade into the ground.
An ice wolf head twice the Hedgefox's size erupted behind her. It nearly impaled her if Sonic hadn't zipped by, grabbing her.
"Come here often?" Sonic joked as he stopped by the others.
"What are you doing?!" the Hedgefox frowned before hissing in pain.
"He broke the skin," Manic informed, seeing a bit of blood on the frozen wolf head, "But you'll be okay."
"That…That would have impaled me!" the Hedgefox gasped, "Oh, dear...Yacker, please tell me you see this."
Her rapier glowed before turning into a short-sword. Floating above it was a squid-like creature, the size of her head. It had three tentacles with a curly 'point' on the top of its head, and one large red eye. It blabbered a bit at the sight of the blood.
"Major!" Makoto called as she ran up, stopping a few meters away from him, "What are you doing?!"
"What's it look like? Taking care of these mutated Beastkin," Jin replied.
"Mutated B…?!" Makoto frowned, "They're Mobians, idiot!"
"Idiot?! You little bitch!" Jin growled.
The gem shined brightly before cracking open, releasing an ice-colored smoke that engulfed the Obelisk, the Ring bouncing off the ground and rolled over to the other. Footsteps echoed from the smoke before Jin emerged, his eyes sharp and cold. Manic glanced at Tsubaki, seeing her tense.
'He...he really did kill their family…' Tsubaki thought.
"...Hmph. More of your freaks…" Jin frowned, looking at the group before stopping right at Ragna, "?!"
"Oh god, it's Jin…" Ragna groaned, actually facepalming.
"...Brother…" Jin whispered, a sorta crazed looking smile growing on his face as he summoned his weapon.
"B-Brother?" Haseo repeated, snapping out of his shocked state from the vision of the past.
"Brother?" Sonia repeated.
"B-BROTHER?!" the three human girls and one Beastkin shouted in shock.
"It's…a long st-" Ragna began before quickly blocking a slash from Jin, "Goddammit, Jin! I'm talking here!"
"Ignore them for now, nii-san!" Jin exclaimed, his crazed grin growing as a wild gleam appeared in his eyes, "I...I want to freeze you dead….I want you to myself, nii-san~~~!"
'WHAT IS WRONG WITH HIM!?' nearly everyone thought.
'Wh...What is this? I...Is this really Jin?' Tsubaki thought before Jin stabbed the ground, making a barrier of ice that blocked everyone but Ragna, Manic, and Tsubaki out before the invisible barrier appeared with a faint glow.
"Now it's just us, nii-san! You, me...one of those mutant Beastkin, and…!" Jin began before he spotted Tsubaki, "...Ts...Tsubaki…" his cold gaze returned as he stared at her, "Why are you here…?"
"..."
"...Answer me."
"I…" Tsubaki began, not sure how to say it...in fact, she wasn't sure what to say.
"...Did you go rogue?" Jin asked, "...Did you side with these mutant Beastkin?"
"...I...Jin-nii-sama...I…"
"...So…you side with Nii-san then?" Jin asked, "...Fine...then I'll kill you both…"
"?!"
"Die!" Jin roared, swinging his blade and sending a wave of ice at her before a wall of stone blocked it, "What?"
"You're not going to lay a single hand on her, you murderous ass!" Manic growled, armor out and Carn in Knife Mode in hand, "Especially when you got no idea about what's happened with her!"
"What? You filthy beast…" Jin frowned before unleashing a cutting wave of ice at him.
Manic stabbed the ground and a wolf made of the highway emerged from it, taking the hit before several more charged out of the ground at Jin. Jin scoffed as sheathed his sword, getting into a drawing stance before quickly unsheathing it, causing the wolves to shatter in bits of stone and ice.
"Hell's Fang!" Ragna roared, erupting from the smoke caused by the shattered wolves with a fist engulfed in his black and red flames.
"Fenrir!" Jin declared, the crazed look coming back as he stabbed his sword into the ground.
"?!" Ragna tensed, jumping away as the giant wolf head made of ice burst out of the ground.
"...I think he copied your Dead Spike move, dude," Manic noted as Ragna landed beside him.
"Oh shut it," Ragna grumbled.
"You look surprised Nii-san…" Jin spoke, sheathing his blade once more as he walked closer, "You shouldn't...after all I know all about you…" he went on, his face curling into an unsettling smile, "Hehehehe…"
"Jin!" Ragna growled as he rushed at them and swung his sword. Ragna was able to block in time, but the force of the swing still sent out a gust of air that took the others by surprise.
The two pushed the other back before clashing swords again. The clashing went on for a few moments as both swung at one another and blocked each time. The sharp blades clashed, sending sparks flying with every impact. Ragna jumped back from the next swing before Jin jumped after him. Jin swung downward, Ragna raised his sword to block only for his eyes to widen as a giant icicle came down as well. Everyone cringed as the mass of ice hit the ground causing everything to shake.
"Okay, I think we're all agreeing that Ragna's got some 'splaining to do when we get back on the bus, right?" Makoto asked as they stood on the other side of the ice barrier.
"I...ho...how are they brothers?! They don't even...I don't...HOW?!" Sonia exclaimed, throwing her hands up.
"To be fair…" Ben spoke up, "I don't think we can use the hair and eye color argument much thanks to you and your siblings…"
"Fair point," Sonia replied before the ground shook as they barely caught sight of an ice wolf and an asphalt wolf tackled one another in the air, exploding into shards of ice and bits of asphalt on collision.
"Tsuki, did you have him study the same book I had to?" Manic asked, getting no response, "...Tsuki?" he looked over his shoulder to see Tsubaki biting her thumb, shivering, "Oh man...She doesn't do that unless she's really thinking hard and is feeling conflicted."
"Tsuki?" Jin repeated, "You let it give you a pet name?" he asked with a sneer, "How...detestable…" he swung his sword, forming several ice spears above him, "But worst of all...both of you are further getting in my way!" he shouted as the ice spears fired at them.
"Whoa!" Manic yelped, dragging his knife along the floor and then pointed it at the ice spears before a barrage of asphalt spears shot out and collided with the ice spears, shattering them all, "I am not an 'it!' I am a dude, ya frozen nutjob!"
"I could care less what you are," Jin replied simply, "All I see is an obstacle between me and my brother...so...either leave...or die." he pointed his sword at Ragna, "Nii-san...it's time you and I settled this! After so long, my chance has finally arrived! To meet you once again, and finish what I started when I took your original arm!"
"WHAT?!" Manic exclaimed, "Ragna, dude! He took your arm?!"
"It's complicated, okay?!" Ragna snapped before ducking a barrage of ice shards, "Dammit, Jin! Ugh! That's it! You're getting stabbed repeatedly!"
"Yes! Let us take one another's life!" he cheered, "It'd be poetic almost!" he lowered his sword, "Let us see if you have the power to give such an ending?!" he shouted, charging forward and slashing at him, causing another gust of wind from the force behind his swing.
"Okay...Guy is completely off his rocker," Manic noted, keeping behind a wall of ground while holding Tsubaki in his free arm, "Tsuki, snap outta it! We need your help! He is nuts and you are the only one of us three who has fire!"
"Ha!" Jin shouted as he and Ragna clashed blades. Ragna then blinked as he looked up to see multiple ice spears aimed down at him. Jin smirked as the spears came down, causing an explosion of regular dust and ice dust.
Ragna roared, bursting from the dust cloud as he brought his sword down as Jin blocked with his sword. The two glared past their weapons before pushing the other away. Both charged and rushed past one another while swinging their swords, only the clang of metal and spark from their impact could be seen as both skidded to a halt. Jin spun around and swung his sword, sending a wave of ice that traveled across the ground before rising up as a barrage of spikes.
"Dead Spike!" Ragna roared, swinging his blade and summoning the monstrous head to block the spikes. Ragna grunted as he stopped the advance of the attack, but the impact kicked up another harsh gust. He then looked up as he saw Jin run over his own ice as a platform for a downward swing.
Ragna raised his blade in time, but Jin's swing held more power as he knocked Ragna off balance. Ragna grunted before he cried in pain as Jin's sword scratched his chest. A thin cut in his clothing formed as small trails of blood followed. Jin grinned excitedly as Ragna stumbled back from the sting of the shallow cut.
"The first of many cuts," Jin smirked, sheathing his sword while getting into a drawing stance.
"Oh great, it better not be…"
"Musō Senshōzan!"
"The goddamn ice car!" Ragna finished in anger as he jumped out of the way.
"Did he say 'ice car'?" Manic repeated with a set of blinks before looking to see Jin riding on a flying ice spear, well flying is one way to say shooting...it was shooting...right at his cover, "Oh shit! Forgot about that!"
"?!" Tsubaki tensed up in surprise before she and Manic barely rolled out of the way of the attack.
"Tsuki...we really need you right now!" Manic exclaimed.
"I...but...how can…" Tsubaki whispered, biting her thumb in frustration as she watched Jin and Ragna battle, "How...I can't…"
"Hoo boy. Shock. Okay, okay...What did Uncle Ferrel say to do…?" Manic muttered, "Oh yeah." he dismissed his arm's armor and slapped the back of her head.
"Ah! Wh-What was that for?!" Tsubaki exclaimed.
"You were panicking and overthinking," Manic replied, "That isn't the real Jin, remember?"
"Ahahaha!" Jin laughed, clashing swords with Ragna and pushing him back with each swing.
"He sure acts like it!" Ragna shouted, blocking a swing aimed at his shoulder.
"Come on, brother! Fight back so I may see you bleed!"
Both brothers swung at one another as they rushed at each other. Jin swung from the right in a large swing; Ragna swung from the left in a downward slash to counter Jin's strike. Just as the blades where about to clash, Jin tilted his wrist back, causing Ragna's blade to miss and slide right past Jin's. Ragna's eyes widened as Jin laughed and swung his arm forward with the blade aimed at his neck. Everyone gasped as both brothers passed one another and Ragna was sent tumbling over across the ground. Jin swung his sword down, flicking a small speck of blood to the ground.
"Ah!" Ragna gasped spooking the others as he grabbed a small cut on the side of his neck, "Ah...that scared me!"
"Good~! Another memento to remember me by, brother!" Jin exclaimed in pure glee.
"Seriously Tsubaki, we can really use your help!" Manic hissed, getting really unnerved by Jin's 'brother complex'...if he can really call it that.
"...I...I want to, but...I….Jin...we...grew up together and...and…"
"...Oh god you loved him, didn't you?"
"Eh?! N...no!" Tsubaki denied with a blush, "A...and even if I did, it..it was more of a siblings-like love!"
"Oh. O-Okay…" Manic replied, mentally sighing in relief, before shaking his head, "And what's keeping you from fighting now?"
"I...I'm unsure….I...think...I think some part of me thinks the Jin I knew...is still in there somewhere."
"...Yeah, and the one that's out right now is wanting to kill everyone, especially Ragna!" Manic argued.
"HELP!" Ragna snapped as he slashed Jin, only for him to 'shatter,' "Seriously?! He can make ice clones now?!"
"Ha!" Jin roared, appearing behind him with his sword held up.
"CRAP!" Ragna rolled out of the way before the blade could hit him, "Geeze…" he growled as he held up his Azure Grimoire, "Do I really have to use this...?"
"Finally taking this serious, Nii-san?!" Jin exclaimed, "Once I'm done with you...I'll kill that beast...I'll deal with Tsubaki...I'll kill everyone that goes against me...my justice...EVERYTHING!"
"...Justice…?" Tsubaki whispered.
"He's been blinded by his own abilities," Manic sighed with a pity-giving frown, "I've seen this happen to thieves that got too cocky about what they could do along with some Freedom Fighters when they think they've managed to get something that they thought would turn the tide of the war."
"..." Tsubaki said nothing as she stepped forward.
"...Tsuki?"
"Now brother..prepare…" Jin began before he quickly turned, blocking a slash from Tsubaki's sword, "...Tsubaki, fina…" his eyes widened when he noticed her weapon, "...The Izayoi…..why...why do you have that forbidden weapon!?"
"..." Tsubaki swung her sun-themed shield and Jin jumped back to avoided the bladed pieces on it.
"Tsubaki, answer me! Why are you using the Izayoi?!"
"...Why did you kill Haseo and Roll's family?" Tsubaki asked back, a frown on her face.
"...Do I need a reason to protect myself? Do I need a reason to fight back against those mutant Beastkin?" Jin countered, "Do I need a reason when they went against an NOL soldier?"
"They warned you to leave their territory."
"Not my fault. I had recently fought robotic versions of those freaks."
"?!"
"This world...it lacks order...justice...it lets its criminals roam around freely…" Jin continued, "This world...needs the NOL…"
"..."
"Now...stand down, Tsubaki...and discard that forbidden weapon," Jin ordered.
"...no."
"...what did you say?"
"I said 'no,'" Tsubaki replied, "I...I don't know what happened to you in the Ikaruga Civil War...but...what you just said...what you did...what you're doing now...you…" she gripped her weapon as she got into a fighting stance, "You are no longer the Jin-niisa...the Jin I once knew…" she looked back at Ragna and Manic, "You two stay back...this fight is mine…"
"Oi. I…" Ragna began before Manic grabbed his arm and shook his head at the white-haired man, "Tch...Fine. But if you start losing, we're getting back in."
Tsubaki Yayoi VS Jin Kisaragi
Stardust Speeday - As I gaze upon the night sky, I see not darkness...but a path made of stars.
(Cue: Cross Line(Jin Vs Tsubaki theme))
"...If this is what it's come to...fine…" Jin frowned as he got ready to fight, "Then you'll have to die, Tsubaki…"
"Jin…." Tsubaki whispered as she prepared herself.
=THE WHEEL OF FATE IS TURNING! REBEL 14 - ACTION!=
As if on cue, both charged at one another, their blades clashing in a mix of fire and ice. Manic summoned Carn and stabbed the floor, making a wall to shield him and Ragna before opening a small vent to let them look through.
Jin jumped away from Tsubaki as he slashed forward, sending for a wave of ice spears at her. Tsubaki quickly transformed her sword into a bladed whip as she slashed the spears, causing them to shatter and melt. Tsubaki proceeded to swing her whip-blade at Jin, forcing him to jump and move about to dodge the fire-engulfed weapon. He swiped his blade and sent a crescent wave of icy air at Tsubaki, who blocked with her shield before barely using the shield to block the 'ice car' he sent at her. Jin swung off his attack and attempted to slash at Tsubaki, but she spun around and parried Yukianesa with her own blade, entering a deadlock once more.
"...So you've mastered the Izayoi…" Jin noted, glaring at Tsubaki a bit, "...That doesn't change the fact that it's a cursed weapon."
"Formerly cursed," Tsubaki replied, "These 'beasts' that you keep calling them...These wonderful Mobians were the ones who broke its curse when I was on the verge of dying of it. They did it not because of justice or anything like that but because it was out of the kindness in their hearts, something I now see that you lack!"
"Urusei!" Jin snapped as he broke the deadlock, jumping away as he sent another icy wave at her.
"No!" Tsubaki snapped as she used her shield to block it, "Jin, your heart...it lacks any kind of sympathy I thought you had! In fact…" her eyes widened a bit before frowning, "The Ikaruga Civil War…"
"...Mai…" Makoto began.
"She asked…I let it slip one time and she asked me about the war...I kept as much info as I could out!" Mai yelped a bit.
"Why w-"
"She gave me the look...the one she had back when she was on the Student Council."
"?!"
"What l-" Sonia began.
"You don't wanna know," Makoto, Mai, and Noel said in unison.
"...It was a set up...wasn't it?" Tsubaki frowned as she pressed forward, pushing the wave back, "The NOL wanted to show the world their 'justice'...by making the people of Ikaruga and their leader an example of what happens to those who defy them!"
"...They were defying the Imperator and the NOL itself," Jin argued.
"No...they wanted to instill fear…" Tsubaki argued back, "What you and the NOL did...no..what the Imperator did was not justice...It was oppression and fear...fear of the people meant to protect the world!"
"YUKIKAZE!" Jin snapped as he sent a large wave of ice at her.
"VENT DE FEU!" Tsubaki countered, slashing with her blade and sending out a large wave of fire that clashed with the ice wave, evaporating and extinguishing one another before Tsubaki erupted out of the steam, her blade reshaped into a drill engulfed in flames, "SPIRALE DE FEU!"
"Fenrir!" Jin declared as the giant ice wolf head burst forth and lunged right at Tsubaki, the two attacks clashing as the entire arena was engulfed in steam.
"Man...they're really going at it…" Ben whispered, faintly seeing Jin and Tsubaki's image within the steam as they clashed blades.
"Of all of us, Tsubaki was closest to Jin," Noel noted.
"I guess deep down, she was still struggling to accept that Jin killed all those Sakurai," Makoto added.
Ben said nothing as they all turned back to the shadows fighting within the steam. Jin slashed only for Tsubaki to parry and duck under and then around him. The two clashed several times, neither truly able to find an opening in the others attack patterns. Tsubaki avoided another slash before Jin swung back around with a swing that blew away the steam, only to reveal he had missed. The two returned to their ready stances as they began a battle of the mind now. Both stared intently at one another. Within their minds, they began making moves, anticipating the others counter and how to turn it around. While not moving, it was if they had already clashed a hundred times over.
"...tch...that damn katana…" Ragna muttered, eyeing the Yukianesa as Jin and Tsubaki clashed blades.
"...You know something about it?" Manic asked.
"Aside the fact that it was the same blade used to cut my arm off...it has a will of its own," Ragna explained, "It's manipulating him into these fits of murderous rage...especially around me."
"Wait...the sword...is...alive?" he asked slowly to make sure he understood all that.
"Yup…" Ragna nodded simply.
"...So in short...the sword...is controlling Jin via manipulation?"
"Pretty much anyone that has a weak will, mind, and/or doesn't have this 'Power of Order' my master once mentioned." Ragna shrugged.
"So recap, evil sentient sword...makes your brother...into well...that?" he pointed at Jin as he missed another swing at Tsubaki, who took advantage and slashed him across the abdomen, making him back away.
"Well...I'm not sure how much is the sword and how much is his own weirdness…" Ragna grumbled, "I mean as a kid, he thought the moon was trying to kill him." those able to hear this backstory stifled a laugh at that silliness.
"So...it's 70% the swords fault then?"
"Works for me." Ragna shrugged.
"Fenrir/Bête de Gévaudan!" the two cried out as they swung their blades and released a wolf of ice and a massive wolf/dog-like beast made of flames that crashed into one another, causing another explosion of steam.
"...Least he's not spamming that damn ice car…" Ragna muttered.
"Seriously, why do you call it 'ice car'?" Manic asked.
"With how he uses it as a ride to get up close and personal from a distance? What else would you call the damn thing?"
"...Fair point."
"Enough!" Jin snapped, his emblem appearing behind him, "Eien ni itetsuke!"
"He's going for an Astral Heat," Ragna growled.
"...How bad is it?" Manic asked, "Because when Ben fought him, Makoto smacked him with a snowball before he could…"
"He stabs his sword into the ground and it freezes everything in the area with ice so cold, not even the sun could melt it until he sheaths his sword, causing the ice you're trapped in to explode."
"...and how big is the AoE?"
"The what?"
"Area of Effect."
"Big," Makoto replied, "From battle reports, he used it to kill twenty percent of the forces of Ikaruga in one blow."
"..."
"We're gonna die…" Ragna simplified.
"White feathers are proof of innocence. Black feathers are condemnation of original sins," Tsubaki recited, her emblem appearing briefly before white and black flames erupted from her weapons and engulfed her before dispersing, revealing her transformed attire.
"?!" Jin's eyes widened, "You...what is that form?!"
"We are agents of the God, coming to bring criminals to justice…!" Tsubaki continued, pulling back the string of her phoenix-themed bow and forming an arrow of gold flames in it, the heat radiating from the arrow melting the ice barrier around them.
"...Nevermind...shinei!" Jin snapped as he stabbed his sword into the ground, causing it to flash freeze as it rapidly approached Tsubaki.
"Conclude this, in the blink of an eye! All sins, be judged!" Tsubaki snapped her eyes open as she released the arrow, "Astral Heat: Requiem Aeternam - Judgement Phoenix!"
The arrow spun around once before transforming into its fiery phoenix form. The 'phoenix' screeched as it flew at Jin. The rapidly approaching frost reached the charging 'phoenix' and it was instantly evaporated, leaving behind a trail of plasma and bubbling asphalt.
"B-Bakana!" Jin gasped out before the Phoenix reached him, transforming into a massive head of itself before 'eating' him, "Gah!"
*BOOOM!*
=ASTRAL FINISH!=
"...Sayonara, Kisaragi Jin," Tsubaki whispered before her clothes changed back to normal.
=TSUBAKI - WIN!=
(End theme)
"Okay...we're gonna need another way around," Makoto noted, cringing as she looked at the massive gap between the parts of the highway they were on where Jin had been standing.
"SON OF A...!-!" Ragna shouted upon seeing that, "Woman, you almost killed us!"
"Oi," Manic smacked Ragna's arm.
"Y…"
"She's got enough on her noggin," Manic interrupted as he moved over to her.
"I don't get it. She won…" Ragna muttered with a shrug as he followed.
"...Tsuki, you okay?" Manic was the first to ask.
"...Yeah. I...I am…" Tsubaki replied with a nod, looking at where Jin once stood, "...Even if it wasn't the real Jin, I...it was hard, but...minna, next time we fight Jin...the real Jin...I'll be ready."
"..." Manic spoke nothing, he just merely looked up at her and gave a smile and a nod.
"That's nice and all...but...first things first...We need to hike our way back to the others," Ragna interrupted as he pointed at the hole.
"D'oh," Manic grunted.
An ice-blue smoke flew around. It paused before going towards a building nearby. Soundwave stood at the top beside the container. The smoke entered the device and the liquid within pulsed with an ice-blue energy before returning to normal. Soundwave picked up the device before transforming and flying off. Upon reaching another building, he changed back and placed the device down. He knelt down and looked out at small suburb-like area...with an Obelisk with a gold gem shaped like a Cube on the top. An hour passed before he saw the bus used by Team Underground arrive. The door to the driver's seat opened and Sonic yelped as he was dragged by the ring towards the Obelisk.
"This thing's got a mind of its own since that last area!" Sonic exclaimed.
"I didn't do it!" Ben, Makoto, and Noel quickly called as the others were getting out.
"Watch Haseo," Roll said, looking back at the bus as she ran after Sonic, "S-Sonikku, matte!"
"Try telling the ring that!" Sonic argued.
"Dude, just let it go!" Manic called as he and Sonia followed after her.
"But what if we lose it?!"
"It's going to the Obelisk! How can we lose it?" Sonia pointed out.
"...Fairpoint," Sonic admitted before letting go on the Ring, letting to shoot over to the Obelisk the four had reached before both it and the cube gem lit up brightly.
A grunt was heard as Banglay kicked Yamato knocking him over. The tall cybernetic alien laughed happily as he scratched his beard made of wires and cables with his hook hand.
"I've been waiting forever for this! The moment I break you!" he spoke lifting the young man up.
"Gh…" he coughed out.
"Now what, Kazakiri Yamato! You have nothing left! Your friends are gone...I've finally broken the unbreakable!" the mad space pirate cackled as he lifted his hook hand up and readied to finish off the human. He moved to swing before a blue blur tackled him from behind making him drop Yamato, "Ah my back!" he cried in shock.
"Last i check i'm his friend and i'm still here, I'm late but I'm here."
"Sonic…" Yamato gasped looking up at him.
"Oh joy…" Banglay groaned pushing himself up, "It's like the people he cares about are buzzing pests who keep popping up!"
"No complaints." Sonic spoke in english, "We are Doubutsu Sentai Zyuohgers. Before that we are brothers, amu, leo, sela, Tusk and Misao are my brothers and sisters, Bud the uncle I never wanted, Yamato is my best friend and my brother he given us a home here and shown my people humans are not all like Eggman and i'll give my life for him and his world."
"Sonic…" Yamato began as he began crying in joy from his honest words.
"Come on." he said in english again, "stand up leader we got a cyborg to kick the sockets out of."
"..." Yamato wiped his tears away with his sleeve before standing up alongside Sonic, "Ikuze Sonic...lets show him...Not to underestimate our planet!"
"Don't!" Sonic pointed his finger at Banglay, "underestimate my speed!"
"I'm sick and tired of your nonsense!" Banglay roared as his stomach mounted plasma cannon lit up and fired a large beam of blue flaming energy at them.
"Honoo Kakusei!" both of them shouted just as the blast struck them. Banglay laughed only for the flames and smoke to be blown away by surges of red and blue energy. Walking out of the smoke where two figures clad in Bright Red and Navy Blue.
"Ouja naka no Ouja...ZyuohWhale!" Yamato called out lifting up his arm mounted changer gun as his waist coat flapped around in the wind.
"Kaze no Ouja! Zyuoh Sonic!" Sonic called out, wearing an all blue uniform with white gloves and boots, a symbol in the shape of his head in the center of his chest.
"RAH!" Banglay roared, "ZYUOHGERS!-!-!-!"
"Banglay, welcome to your last race!" Sonic declared.
The cube cracked in two before releasing a gold smoke. It spun around before crashing down on the Obelisk, engulfing it in smoke.
"Okay...so we're probably going to be dealing with guys in spandex or the alien-looking guy," Sonic noted, unaware that-just as the others were going to enter the suburb-a barrier formed sealing it all off.
"Got a problem with my spandex?" Sonic's voice spoke from the smoke.
"Dude, I think it doesn't breathe," Manic's voice came from it surprisingly.
The smoke soon settled, revealing the human adult male-sized Sonic wearing pants standing with a Sonia, Manic, and Roll all the same size as adult humans.
"Says you!" the Adult sized Sonic laughed, "Besides I'll have you know I tanked a missile with that suit...I didn't feel a thing."
'It's like seeing a taller version of Sonic/Bro when we first met…' Sonia and Manic thought with sweatdrops.
"Sonic…I think we ended up in evil us universe again," Sonia's doppleganger freaked.
'What? ...No...well...maybe...but they look like Chibis," adult sized Sonic laughed.
"Or midgets," other Manic added.
"Oi!" Manic barked.
"The proper term is little people," both Sonia corrected.
"Yeah. I'm not thinking they're...evil," Other Sonic shook his head, "But!" he spoke up, spooking his siblings, "I think we still have to fight."
"Huh? Why?" other Manic asked.
"I think we're on Little Planet," the other Roll noted, "Maybe a defense measure that brought us?"
"Either way, come on, smaller less sexy me, let's do this." Other Sonic spoke taking out his sword, "I hope your Caliburn can stop an anti world level attack."
"...Caliwhat?" Sonic asked, making the four pause.
"...Uh...Caliburn?" other Sonic tried to clarify, pointing at his sword, "Oh, you don't have it or never became Arthur or not yet...either or. Caliburn, I'm gonna kick my own butt. You cool with that?"
"If you are taking down your ego, then I am quite fine that you admit you have issues with it," spoke...the sword in the taller blue hedgehog's hand.
"We all know that's not what he meant," Other Sonic's siblings sighed.
"Hey...I can do that…..I just never wanted to." Other Sonic laughed.
"Gomen nassai for having to fight," other Roll apologized before seeing the four look at other Sonic's sword in shock.
"It talks!" the four exclaimed.
"Guards down!" other Sonic shouted, spin dashing into his smaller counterpart.
"Dude!?" Other Manic shouted.
"What? We were brought here to fight out chibi selves…" Other Sonic shrugged only to get hit this time, "Oho nice smaller me!" he then took out a gun like weapon, "Wispon! Load Burst!"
"Wait, what?" Manic blinked at that before the two blue hedgehogs ran off to a building, "Did he just say...Wispon?"
"Haseo-chan's new weapon?" Roll whispered before seeing her other self subtly motioning to a building, "I'll fight the other me." she held up five fingers while glancing at Sonic, earning a subtle nod from the other Roll before they ran off to the roof of the building.
"...If that's how it's gonna go down…" Manic began as he summoned Carn in Knife Mode, "I'll take on other me."
"You really wanna take me on? The king of Thieves? The Mobian Robin Hood? The …"
"Manic, shut up," other Sonia spoke, "So can I be the reasonable one here and ask if this is to save mom or just shenanigans?"
"Someone messing with the planet and we have to get the Time Stones before the timeline goes kaput," Sonia explained.
"...Encounter Metal Sonic yet?"
"Metal what?"
"Time Stones. Haven't seen those since we met Den-O and your boyfriend Silver~" other Manic mocked his Sonia.
"Manic, I will hurt you, and I will make it look like an accident," Other Sonia threatened.
"I'll tell Yamato!" he countered.
"You can't hurt me with that!"
"You handle him about as well you handle Mom and Aunt Aphrodite wanting to get married!" he snapped at his Sonia.
"...I need popcorn," Manic whispered to Sonia, earning a slap to the back of his head by her.
"Wow...no matter the world...they are the same…" both Sonic's spoke mid-headbutt as they pushed against one another at max speed while glancing out one of the windows of the building they were in.
"...How long?" Roll asked on the roof of a building nearby.
"Hm?" Other Roll pondered as the two just stood there, not drawing their blades on their hips.
"Your Vow," Roll pointed out.
"It...It ended a few weeks back," other Roll replied, "H-How…?"
"Aunt Sophia, bless her soul, did it as well. The way you hold yourself is one of the subtle side-effects," Roll noted.
"Aunt Sophia?"
"I had a big family...at...at least until last year. All that's left are myself, Haseo-chan, and Tou-san in direct blood relations," Roll replied.
"I have Sonia-nee, Manic-nii, Haseo, kaa san and soon to be kaa-san nigo with Aleena-ojou sama...oh and Cyber Tousan."
"...He actually made the AI copy of his brain?" Roll asked, "Kaa-chan beat him with a feather duster until he agreed to not do that when I was four."
"Kaa-san had Nicole do it to cyber Tousan," she giggled before the two fell into silence.
"So...Sonia-neesan and Manic-nii are blood related to you?"
"Iie. God-siblings while Sonikku is...well...we're Bonded, but...but we're better then we were when Eggman was alive."
"Eh?"
"He...well...he nearly caused the Shattered Heart."
Roll gasped, stepping back in shock with a hand over her hand.
"So...What is it you can do? I mean, we're both each other," Other Manic noted as he and Manic circled one another, "Though, I gotta admit you pull off neat suit nice."
"Thanks. Mom made these herself for me," Manic smirked, noticing a subtle flash of jealousy in the other Manic's eyes, "Ahh bigger me don't have Mommy washing his behind?"
"This is getting confusing," Sonia sighed, "Considering you were brought here, would you find it rude if I ask you to make up a nickname?"
"Perhaps Monarchs for us," the summoned Sonia suggested.
"Agreed, Monarch Me," Sonia replied.
"So...You with Roll in this Zone?" Zyuoh Sonic asked, having transformed, as he fired blasts of fire from his Wispon at Sonic, who ran around the floor they were on to dodge them.
"Yeah. We met last year, really. Saved her from being impaled by the bastard who killed her family," Sonic explained.
"Alright...pretty different worlds," Zyuoh Sonic spoke up, " So...how's that going for you?" he asked.
"This is weird, right?" Sonic pointed out.
"Oh totally...I mean...are you naturally short...or young...or...I mean, what is up with the height difference here?!"
"I'm actually the average height for Mobians," Sonic replied with a shrug.
"Okay then," he shrugged, "Hmm, when I was your age, I never talked. But from looking at you, you remind me of my days looking for mom."
"...How old do you think I am?!"
"Ten?"
"...I'm seventeen, you jerk!"
"Really...Honestly, I thought he was a squire..." Caliburn muttered.
"And that...that's still kinda surprising me," Sonic added, "You have a talking sword?"
"Yeah. Someday I'll find his mute button!" Zyuoh Sonic laughed, "Ah…but he's pretty cool when he turns Excalibur Mode and turns me into Super Zyuoh Sonic!"
"...And I thought Super Sonic was a mouthful," Sonic muttered, "But I wouldn't change it since Roll named that form."
"Roll names your forms? You know how many super Zyuoh forms i have?" he asked, "Sadly, I still need certain items. Once the round table blades are gathered, I get Excalibur…Chaos Emeralds, Scared Rings….Thank god I can share with the others...or I'd be overwhelmed with all that power...Thankfully Yamato and Misao can suck up that energy easily..."
"Don't know them, but I know a guy who might be able to suck it up if that happens," Sonic noted, thinking of Ben when he turns into Feedback and Ultimate Feedback, "...Wait. Roll never named your Super Form when you get all seven Chaos Emeralds?"
"Nope. Named it myself," he chuckled, "Amazing, ain't I?"
"Reminding me when I was thirteen, actually," Sonic replied, "And boy...did I have the biggest ego."
"Hey...I have to deal with aliens who treat murder like a video game...This is my escape."
"Uh-huh. And before that?"
"Well, Eggman and then Roll trying to kill him."
"Huh? Any reason why?"
"He killed her pops," he sighed, "That triggered a whole can of worms I'd rather not go back into since we only recently moved past it…"
"...Vow of Vengeance?" Zyuoh Sonic looked at Sonic, "Roll told me about it. It would never activate unless the vow-maker personally witnessed the murder. ...You didn't try to help her, did you? Y..."
"Like I said...rather not dive back into it," Zyuoh Sonic sighed, cutting him off, "That was a lot of events of immaturity, misunderstanding...and some equal parts stupidity, especially on my end…" he explained, "No one is ever really ready for how to handle these things…"
"I see," Sonic noted, "I don't know what you did or didn't do, but I do want to believe that you helped her with it and didn't do something stupid like stop her every single...time…" Sonic trailed off as Zyuoh Sonic chose to look away.
"Why should she kill someone or be killed instead? Killing people isn't easy or right. It hurts you and you carry that scar with you...forever," he said, "Eggman was a bad person, I won't deny that, but Vengeance is not the answer. All it starts is a cycle of pain and loss. Anyone who doesn't understand that is a stupid kid."
"!?" Sonic's eyes widened before narrowing them, "Take that back."
"Huh?" Zyuoh Sonic pondered before parrying Sonic's blade, "?! That's…"
"She is not a stupid kid! Take it back!" Sonic growled before transforming his blade into his guitar and blasted at Zyuoh Sonic, making him stumble back before parrying Sonic's sword.
"It seems that he's come to the conclusion that you insulted Lady Roll and finds it a grave offense, Knave," Caliburn noted.
"You seriously didn't hear all of what I said?!"
"Oh, I heard all that and can respect it. But what I don't respect is how you call her a stupid kid! If anything, she's a genius! Heck, if it wasn't for her at times, I'd be six feet under by now!" Sonic replied, firing his guitar's laser once more at the speeding Zyuohger, "Don't call Roll a 'stupid kid' around me! Not with all she's done for me!"
"Heh...Okay…" Zyuoh Sonic spoke, understanding better now, "Protecting your woman's honor...chivalrous! I can respect that other Me...But this will make things easier if you're angry with me." he admitted as he avoided another shot. "I hope you and her are happy. Also, Volt and Jazz. Remember those names and use them."
"We talked about kid names already in Prison Island," Sonic replied, "Sucked to be stuck in there, but it was a good relationship building time."
"I had all my childhood with her. Sure we fight, but a couple that doesn't fight and argue are never happy."
"True. Had a few of those at times," Sonic smirked before parrying Caliburn with his sword.
"Why do you not speak to him? Do you find him unworthy?" Caliburn questioned Sonic's blade, earning no response, "...Are you not sentient?"
"Okay...This is getting stupid," Manic grumbled, nothing but his gloves and wristbands on while he was beside a pile of items and clothes across from Monarch Manic in the same state.
"Yeah, we both just swipe from the other too good," he agreed, "I don't even remember what's mine and what's yours aside from our clothes anymore." he thought for a moment, "...Better earth control?"
"Bring it," Manic replied.
"Bring out yer drums!" Monarch Manic declared, summoning his kit.
"Mmm...Nah. No movement at all," Manic replied.
"Huh? Then how are you gonna…" M-Manic asked before Manic's Medallion flashed and he yelped as one of his messy forward facing quills was sliced off, "Whoa! What was that?!"
"Meet my little buddy that helped me save my Sis-in-Law," Manic introduced as Carn landed on his shoulder, snarling at M-Manic, "Carnwennan. Unless it's for concerts, I don't use my kit anymore for fights."
"...Dude, your Medallion has two forms?" M-Manic gawked.
"More than that," Manic replied as Carn assumed Knife Mode as he donned his armor upon contact before flicking his wrist and making his cape form.
"Oh...I'm in trouble, aren't I?" M-Manic asked.
"Yes…" Manic replied before stomping his foot and a pack of ground-made wolves appeared, snarling at M-Manic, "Yes you are."
"...Aw shit," M-Manic groaned.
"Wah!" Sonia yelped as she slammed into a mud puddle.
"Sorry. Did I miss up your clothes?" M-Sonia asked, 'Okay, get myself mad and I'll-why is it getting hotter?'
"This outfit...was made by my mother…!" Sonia growled, Rhongomyniad flying around her, giving an angry shriek at M-Sonia.
"A phoenix?" M-Sonia pondered before Rhongo transformed into its Spear Mode that Sonia caught before vanishing in a burst of flames, "What?! Wh-Where did she g…"
*SHINK*
"So what do we do now?" Roll asked.
"I guess...we fight?" M-Roll replied.
"Oh, finally! Seriously, I love girl talk as much as anyone else here does, but honey there's a time for talking and a time for battle!" M-Roll's katana noted.
"Eh?! Another talking blade?!" Roll gasped.
"This is Caliwave," M-Roll introduced.
"Charmed, but still...CAN WE PLEASE START FIGHTING ALREADY?!" Caliwave screamed before the glass window high up on a building they were passing shattered, sending Zyuoh Sonic and Sonic out, the latter above the former as they were parrying their blades.
"Come on! This the best you got?" Zyuoh Sonic asked.
"Nope," Sonic replied, dismissing his weapon back into Medallion Form before slipping the purple Gem into his left sneaker and shrunk...before he started hopping in mid-air as Zyuoh Sonic fell, "Bye~"
"He can shrink and fly?!" Zyuoh Sonic asked, "Oh, that's both cool and I'm kinda jealous here!"
"You can fly as well!" Caliburn reminded.
"Not on command!" he panicked before crashing into the ground between the two hedgefoxes, making them jump to the sides and yelped.
"Sonikku!" Roll shouted up at her tiny mate.
"Sorry! Didn't see you!" Sonic apologized.
"...Why do you have to have a squeaky voice with your tiny body? It's hard to stay mad at you when you look that tiny and speak that squeaky!" Roll pouted as Sonic landed on her shoulder before jumping off and removing the Gem from his sneaker and grew back to normal size.
"Sorry for that, too," Sonic assured.
"Mom...is that you?" Zyuoh Sonic asked, looking at the roof, "You're a lot more...cement-like...ugh…"
"Sonikku, snap out of it!" M-Roll called, shaking him.
"Knave, cease this randomness! We are still in battle!" Caliburn added.
"Shut up, Cogman...oh wait...that was a movie…" he grumbled sitting up, "And you're not even half as cool…"
"I beg your pardon?!"
"Roll...danger report?" Zyuoh Sonic asked with a sigh.
"I might be out-weaponed even with Caliwave's form changing," M-Roll admitted.
"Yeah. She's got a Wisp that can become all the Wisp and fuses with her blade to become new forms with all kinds of trouble for us," Caliwave noted.
"Ooh...that's neat." Zyuoh Sonic mused before he looked at their expressions, "What? I'm trying to make the best of this...I'm lost, kinda confused, and hungry...also hungry…" he repeated, "Did I mention hungry?"
"..." M-Roll sighed, "Don't ever change, Sonikku."
"LIGHTNING!"
"Is that...Music?" Zyuoh Sonic asked before M-Roll yelped and ran off, "Huh? Wha…?" he yelped as ivory blasts of lightning began to assault him, forcing him to start dodging, "Ah! Ooh! Whoa! Yikes! Ah! Oi! That one nearly hit me between the legs!"
"Sorry, not sorry!" Roll replied, Lightning Gatling on her shoulder before it changed back into her family's katana and Yacker, "Longer than last time, Yacker-chan." Yacker babbled happily, "Aw, I'm so glad you're improving, too." she spun around a parried Caliwave, "Oh! Nice!"
"Finally, we're fighting! YES!" Caliwave whooped.
"Is now really the time to rejoice?!" Caliburn snapped, "How long did you spend not fighting?!"
"We've been talking the entire time until you two showed up! Oh, and they traded recipes that it turns out neither family had," Caliwave noted.
"Really?!" Both Sonic's asked, their minds drifting to the thought of new dishes to try.
"..." both girls gave their mates a look.
"What?! It's food from another dimension! It sounds good!" they both spoke before punching each other, "Ow! That smarts!"
"..." The two girls shared looks, "Boys and their stomachs…"
"Now, Roll and smaller Roll, I know this is all distracting and everything but...CAN WE PLEASE GET BACK TO FIGHTING ALREADY?!"
"Gomen nassai/Sorry, sorry!" the four replied before going back to trading blows with their blades.
"This feels like such a volatile situation."
"SHUT UP AND CUT YOUR OTHER SELF IN TWO!"
"Right, right! Apologies!" Caliburn replied quickly.
"Whoa?!" Zyuoh Sonic shouted, "We're not here to kill them!" he panicked, "They are the good guys of this world remember?!"
"...You do remember that I was stuck in a rock for two centuries without any chance for battle which I was made for, right dearie?"
"You can have a crack at Naria back home! Would that make you happy? But do not kill the chibis!"
"...Roll, what does that mean?"
"Tiny."
"...I think I'm developing a Neighpoleon Complex."
"Oh come on. He wasn't that short!" Zyuoh Sonic laughed, "Well, in this world maybe…"
"BURST AND BURST!" Yacker shouted before combining with Roll's katana and split into two Burst Busterswords.
"Duplication?!" M-Roll gasped before Caliwave shifted into a broadsword with a serrated edge to block the two blades, cringing under the heat of the two weapons.
"That is one versatile weapon!" Zyuoh Sonic spoke as he rushed over to his Roll and knocked both blades away before kicking his counterpart into his Roll, sending them tumbling away, "I got to say...for chibis they are pushing us back pretty well."
"Yes, I have to a-Look out!" M-Roll yelped before Caliwave shifted into a sledgehammer as she swung the transforming blade to smash the stone wolf that tried to hit them before the blade shifted into a shield to avoid the thrown fire-engulfed spear that shifted back into a phoenix and flew back to Sonia.
"We beat up our other selves. Gotta say, other me was someone I'm having mixed feelings of knowing," Manic noted as he helped Roll and Sonic up.
"I suggest we finish this sooner than later before this mud sets," Sonia noted in annoyance.
"Wow it's like exactly the same but smaller!" Zyuoh Sonic laughed as he watched.
"Uh, Sonikku. You are aware that their Manic-nii has full body armor and a knife while their Sonia-nee has a phoenix that turns into a spear, hai?" M-Roll reminded.
"...Huh...cool," he chuckled as he stood up, "Still...the point of it is we need to let them win, right?" he reminded, "We can't get in the way of ourselves."
"I know," M-Roll replied.
"WHAT?!" Caliwave screeched, "WE'RE HOLDING BACK?!"
"?! Saw what? Dude, you two have been holding out on us? Not cool," Manic noted.
"Stop!" Zyuoh Sonic sighed, making them look at him, "To go full out would need me to have my friends and family here to fight with me! Secondly if I were to go all out for a simple reason of because this is fun, would be selfish and self destructive to my other me's goal." he went on, "In short, if I were to go full out, which I can't at the moment, I'd just be causing more trouble for you and the people of this world….right?"
"..." Manic and Sonia glanced at Sonic, one visible and the other behind their visor.
"...You're right on that. Still, kinda feels like we wouldn't earn the victory especially since everyone else attacked us with all they got, but I can understand the reasoning," Sonic admitted.
"If it weren't for the fact that this world is in danger I'd go full out!" he cheered, strumming his sword like a guitar, "But...that's not viable at the moment. You guys need your energy for other fights. I can feel a real nasty presence in this place." he went on, "My tail has been shivering the whole time. Might be better if you save your tricks and energy to face them...I mean...what numbskull goes their strongest before facing the real big bad of a enemy location?"
"...Ragna," all four replied after a moment.
"Why did you punch that lamppost?" Makoto asked as everyone backed away from Ragna who was beside a wrecked lamppost with the outline of a fist made in the pole.
"I feel like someone just called me an idiot," Ragna replied.
"...Probably Rachel," Ben noted after a moment.
"Why does that name sound familiar…" Zyuoh Sonic muttered, "Oh well, let us continue then, while I can't give you guys my Maximum...I can give you the best I can at the moment. Will that make you kids happy?" he taunted.
"...Question before we resume then…" Sonic stated, "Metal Sonic...what is that?"
"...Wait...you mean you really haven't encountered him yet?"
"Nope."
"...Is your Eggman obsessed with trying to get you mainly and brush the others off with no hesitation?"
"No. He's actually kinda...well...not sure," Sonic admitted, "I mean, the guy did take over the kingdom, but well…"
"There's been some recent things and learned there was kinda something else to it all and we've agreed to a cold war of sorts," Manic admitted.
"...And he never saw the others as cannon fodder rather than threats?"
"...I got a dude who can turn into different aliens, a guy who's on the top most wanted of an organization with a twisted sense of 'justice', four girls that were former members of said organization, one of which with punches strong enough to break a moon sized meteor, one that shoots energy bullets that can get past any barrier...heh. Need I go on?"
"Sounds like our Earth…" Zyuoh Sonic chuckled to his Roll, "Only difference ours is protected by a crap ton of Kamen Riders and Super Sentai...remember the Ghost guy and those Yokai of his?"
"Th...this is happening..this is happening right now…" Caliwave muttered, "FOR THE LOVE OF ARIES, WOULD SOMEONE PLEASE THROW A FOLDING CHAIR?!"
"We need to get her a Mute button…" Zyuoh Sonic spoke.
"That would be a god send…" Caliburn admitted.
"We all really have our own tempos, don't we…" Sonic spoke to his siblings.
"Seems like it, Bro," Manic noted, twirling Carn, "...Though it makes me think if your sword can talk...or if my and sis' weapons can talk, too."
"As long as they aren't like Tall Roll's sword…" the others all muttered.
"I HEARD THAT!" the four cringed at Caliwave's shout, "Rol...know what? Gonna call you Cyber since that's your middle name. Cyber, end them!"
"Gomen nassai," M-Roll apologized to the four as she assumed a fighting stance...while Caliwave shifted into a massive club littered in spikes.
"This is not the time to give into the demands of your weapon!" Zyuoh Sonic spoke up shocked.
"Ah! Gomen nassai! Got caught up again!" M-Roll apologized.
"Good...remember, they are the good guys here."
"So, considering we are the bad guys at this moment in time, I say we SMASH THEM!"
"...Time out for you," M-Roll scolded, sheathing her.
"AW COME ON!"
"So this will make it ea…" Manic began.
"Iie. She knows several martial arts and mastered them all in six months," Roll noted.
"...Why do you…?"
"We talked instead of fighting," Roll replied, "Oh, I now have a recipe for stuffed waffles and woud gladly make them once we're do…"
"MAUL 'EM!" Manic roared as an army of asphalt wolves charged, roaring.
"WHOA!" Zyuoh Sonic and M-Roll yelped as they began to dodge the asphalt wolves.
"When could Manic-nii do this?!" M-Roll exclaimed.
"Since his girlfriend made him study wolves," Sonic joked.
"Sh-Shut it!" Manic barked.
"Wait...your Manic's got a girl?" Zyuoh Sonic asked.
"Can you not get sidetracked again?!"
"Hey! What's that above you?" Sonia called.
"Huh?" Zyuoh Sonic looked up to see a burst of flames and Sonia erupting from them, spear in hand as she spun like a drill.
"ME!" Sonia answered.
"In retrospect, should have seen that coming." Zyuoh Sonic chuckled as he blocked with his sword before she vanished in a burst of flames before she could make contact, "Whoa!" he jumped over Sonia's drill of flames before she vanished once more, "Okay...so she can teleport and make fire with her spear…"
"A spear...a kn-no, a dagger…" Caliburn whispered, "They feel familiar, yet I am not sure if I can recall. Perhaps in the times of yore. Ah, such simpler times. War abundant."
"You know never ending war isn't exactly a likeable concept." Both Sonics sighed shaking their head in disappointment.
"We are swords. We're not meant to be fru-fru decorations," Caliwave deadpanned, "What's your excuses, Mr. Needlemouse and Mr. Needlemouse Jr.?"
"..."
"I thought so," Caliwave huffed, "Oh, and JUMP!" M-Roll backflipped over a wolf made from asphalt before kicking another.
"We're still fighting here, dudes and dudettes!" Manic called, knife stabbed in the ground.
"Whoa! He doesn't even have to drum to make the Earth move!" Zyuoh Sonic exclaimed, "...Why can't we have neat Medallions like you three do?"
"Focus!" Caliburn called out before he was used to block Roll's Laser Rapier and Sonic's blade.
"I'm trying but it's hard when you're jealous…" he joked blocking, both the attacks of Roll and Sonic before he flipped over them and picked them up, "Height advantage!" he cheered, throwing them like basketballs into their siblings/friends.
"...You think we could ask Ben to go that Alien X dude to make us taller or invent something for making us taller?" Manic whispered as the four got off one another.
"Later," Sonia scolded, "We need some sort of advantage aside from numbers and our weapons…"
"And them holding back," Manic added, earning a look from her.
"...Yacker, think you can do what you did before on the ARK?" Sonic asked.
"? o4!" Yacker recalled, "LASER!"
"Looks like she's gonna go for that rapier form again," Zyuoh Sonic noted before Yacker spun around Sonic and gave him a high five before going into him, "...Or not."
Sonic smirked as cyan energy began to come off him. He jumped up before shooting off at them as a cyan laser, the tip of it shaped like his head. The two began to move about, dodging the laser that bounced about everywhere to try to hit them. M-Roll yelped as she was grazed on the back of her right leg as Zyuoh Sonic grunted as Cyan Laser hit him in the chest.
"SPIKES!"
He cried out as sparks came off him as the Cyan Laser turned into a pink ball of spikes resembling Sonic's head before it rolled all over Zyuoh Sonic's form to damage him. He fell over as Pink Spikes moved to be on his back.
"ROCKET!"
"WHOA!" Zyuoh Sonic cried out as Pink Spikes became an orange rocket shaped like Sonic's head that sent them crashing into the ceiling of the barrier, "...Okay...that is a VERY versatile weapon."
"Not done yet," Sonic chuckled as he grabbed him as they started falling, Yacker as a Cube Wisp on his head.
"CUBE!" Yacker declared.
"Book it!" Manic yelped before Zyuoh Sonic crashed down with a large blue cube with one side having yellow eyes and Sonic's muzzle on top of him, making a large crater and eruption of the ground.
"...ow," everyone heard Zyuoh Sonic groan within the smoke as it settled, revealing a hole shaped like the taller blue hedgehog.
"How has he not gone down?" they all asked.
"You would not believe the kinds of monsters I've faced...and one very angry whale…" Zyuoh Sonic groaned fro the hole, "But even I can figure I will go down with a few more hits like that."
"Ano...Where's the smaller Sonikku?" M-Roll pondered.
"BURST!"
"Aw n-ARGH!" Zyuoh Sonic screamed as an explosion of flames erupted from the hole that reached to the tip of the barrier's top.
"Ah! Soni…!" M-Roll began before a shadow came over her, "Eh?" she looked up at the large rock shaped like a wolf's paw above her, "..." she looked around to see multiple buildings were now gone, "...You are really good with controlling the land."
"I know," Manic replied before snapping his fingers despite them being in armor and the paw slammed down...hard.
"...Is it done?" Sonia asked.
A gold smoke came out of the Zyuoh Sonic-shaped hole before a yellow drill resembling Sonic's head erupted out of the ground before the trio before splitting into Sonic and Yacker as a Drill Wisp.
"Whew. That was nuts! And that was him holding back? ...Yeah, gonna need to do some more training," Sonic admitted.
"Ya think?" Manic deadpanned as the barrier shattered, "...but nevermind. Let's just find that Time Stone."
"Hold on. Why's that smoke floating there?" Sonia pondered, seeing the gold smoke spinning in the air.
A jet engine made the four look to see a stealth jet fly over them before transforming midair. Soundwave landed with the device on his back. He put it down on the ground and the gold smoke shot into it.
"So that's where they're been going," Sonic realized, "Oi, what do you think you're going to do with that stuff?"
Soundwave said nothing as his torso armor removed itself before transforming into a bird-like form that flew off. His torso opened and a tentacle moved out of it that attached to the top of the device. The glowing liquid within turned black as red electricity began to erupt off the device. Soundwave moved away and the device exploded into a sphere of black and red energy, red electricity still crackling off of it. The four grunted as their tails shot up straight.
"Owowowowowowowowowowowowowow~!" Makoto cried out as her tail stuck straight up, "Why is my tail sticking up like this?!"
"Mmmm~" Haseo whimpered, shivering like a leaf as he hid behind Noel while his two tails were stuck straight up as well.
"...Something's not right…" Ragna whispered, "...That killing intent…what's causing it?"
=Warning. Warning. Warning= the Omnitrix called out =Level 15 Tech detected=
"Level Fifteen?" Mai repeated.
"It's a scale of how advance something is," Ben explained, "Level 1 tech would be pretty much basic stuff like cars, boats, and even rocket ships while Level 20 is the Omnitrix and this one children's toy from a higher dimension of existence."
"Well that doesn't explain why my and Haseo's tails are shooting up!" Makoto snapped.
"...We may need to get to Sonic and the others," Tsubaki noted.
Slowly, the sphere began to fade away, exposing something within. It was a robotic hedgehog. Its body and head were a metallic cobalt whiles it arms and legs were a deep dark silver. The back of its hands were covered in yellow plating while it sported four claws at the end of each hand. Its feet were a metallic red and metallic pearl in color and seemed to resemble sneakers while an engine was in its torso. The only thing not metal about it was a long blood red scarf on its neck made of a glowing red energy that seemed to burn away at the ends of the 'scarf.' It tilted its head up, revealing the needle spike for a nose, a metal muzzle, and a pitch black visor shaped like Sonic's eyes with glowing red optics lighting up within.
"...It's as tall as the other me," Sonic noted, eye twitching in annoyance.
"Uh...bro? Doesn't it...oh, I don't know, look familiar?" Manic pointed out.
"...Wait...is that...a metal….me?!" Sonic exclaimed, "...Eggman made you and discarded you, didn't he?"
=...=
"...It doesn't talk," Sonia noted, "He must have forgot that."
"Or did it on purpose," Manic chuckled.
=...Thundaga=
"?!" Manic tensed before he and the others barely rolled out of the way of the large blast of lightning, "Whoa! That was…" he ducked under the claw shot out on a cable of plasma, "Ah!"
=Adapting...Fenrir=
"That's…!" Roll gasped before jumping back from the wolf head made of ice.
The robotic Sonic's returned arm turned into a silvery liquid before reforming into Diamondhead's arm before it began to fire a barrage of crystal spikes at the quartet. The four began to dodge as best they could.
"...It's using the moves of everyone we fought…" Sonia's eyes widened in realization.
"So...we beat everyone that came out. We can beat him." Sonic argued.
=...f Inverse=
"..or it can do that!" Sonic yelped as they dodged the massive venom purple laser, "What next, it can use some of our moves too?!" the others just gave him a look, "...Oh yeah...We fought ourselves just now…"
=Irrelevant...fake=
"FAKE?! Oi, oi, oi! This is Shadow all over again!"
=Inaccurate. You are imperfect, flawed...a Faker= Metal pointed at Sonic =I am...Perfection. You...are Imperfection...you are not Sonic...=
"What...no...No! I'm the real Sonic...you're just a metal copy! A Metal Sonic!"
=I am improvement. All your benefits, all of your strengths...none of your weaknesses or flaws. I am improved upon, therefore...I am the real Sonic...the perfect Sonic. You are just a flawed failure= Metal Sonic went on simply as he walked forward =Where you fail, I succeed=
"...Yeesh. What is with us and meeting guys looking like you with that ego from when we were younger?" Manic asked.
"How was I supposed to know Eggman possibly made a metal me?!" Sonic argued.
=Do not mention that fat fool...that imperfection…= Metal Sonic ordered, flicking his wrist as he summoned a copy of Yukianesa =All beings of this world...all worlds...are imperfections...I am perfect…=
"...Bigger ego than you back then," Manic compared, earning an elbow to his sides by his two siblings.
=Best way to deal with imperfections...is to delete…= Metal Sonic stated as he held his free arm out before it began to shift, forming a large demonic fox tail as it shot out at Roll.
"HOVER and BURST!"
Roll grunted as the fox tail skid against her Hover Board before she aimed the tip of her Burst Bustersword at Metal Sonic and fired a blast of flames at the metal duplicate. Metal Sonic held up a hand and let it shift into the Diamondhead hand that quickly grew into a shield of spiky crystals to block the flames.
"...What we wouldn't give for the others right now," Manic muttered as he stabbed Carn into the ground, summoning asphalt wolves, "Get 'e-"
=Attack= Metal ordered, making the wolves tensed before they turned at Manic and snarled.
"...that's just unf-" Manic began before he began to dodge the wolves, "Ack! No! Bad boys and girl! Bad!"
=Anything you can do...I can do better…= Metal stated before he split into blocks for a moment, causing Roll and Sonic's blades to miss before he reformed and delivered an overhead kick to their faces.
"Gah/Ah!" the two cried out as they crashed into the ground.
=Give up...you cannot…=
"Hell's Fang!" Ragna's voice roared as he crashed in through a wall, his fist reeled back as he punched at Metal, only for a wall of ice and crystal to block his attack, "?!"
=...Azure Grimoire detected…= Metal stated before he stabbed at Ragna with his 'Yukianesa'.
"?!" Ragna tensed as he blocked the strike only instead of ice, crystals bursted forth as they sent him skidding back, his outfit covered in tears, "Damn it!"
"He's copied the powers of everyone we've beaten," Sonia explained before Ragna could ask.
"Seriously?" Ragna asked, "Wait...who fought the last…?"
"It was duplicates of us that were as tall as him," Manic replied, pointing at Metal Sonic, "Though I think the other Sis-in-Law was a head taller than the other Bro."
"Seriously?"
"Yup...so where are the others?"
"Ha!" Makoto shouted as she bursted through the wall Ragna came in from, decked out in Omniketsu, "Okay, where's the b….a Metal Sonic?!"
"Wait, what?" Mai's voice asked as she, Tsubaki, Noel, and Haseo poked their heads in through the hole, "...eh?!"
=More inferior life forms…= Metal Sonic sighed =This is becoming repetitive, but if you all wish a demonstration so be it= he looked over at where Soundwave was =Galvan, allow me to unleash my full power=
"Galvan?" Ragna repeated.
"..." Soundwave spoke nothing.
=Tch. Fine= Metal Sonic replied to something the others didn't hear.
"...Guys, mind explaining wh…" Makoto began before she quickly blocked an energy blast made of fire and ice, "?!"
=Returning to Metallic Madness…=Metal Sonic stated before a flapping noise made everyone look to see the predator moth-like alien phase through the floor, a Time Stone in its mouth.
"Ack! They found another thing to use it!" Mai exclaimed as Noel and Haseo fainted at the sight of the giant alien bug.
"Great...We're dealing with a Hypnotik again," Manic muttered.
"Aw no fair. I wanted to name this one," Makoto pouted.
"What were you gonna name it?" Ragna raised a brow at that.
"Flyspy."
"..."
"...What? It's a good name."
"Hypnotik it is!"
=This battle...will be postponed…= Metal stated =If you dare...come to Metallic Madness with the remaining Time Stones. Only there will the victor be chosen...and who is the superior Sonic…= he added as he began to fly off, Hypnotik and Soundwave following behind.
"...well...crap."
"I have many...MANY questions!" Ragna shouted.
GT: Sadly, those questions won't be answered until either next chapter or the chapter after that.
SZ: Mm hmm, so stay tuned..we are reaching the climax people!
GT: So until then, please send us questions for Professor Kokonoe to answer and read and review!