Happy belated Thanksgiving. My grandfather showed up two hours early, without my grandmother, went into our living room and watched the football game. Didn't say a word for like an hour.
Old people are funny when they're not wrong about politics.
Anyways, please enjoy this chapter. Here's the Discord: /cgFmXz3qJ5
Unfortunately, the Outcasts were too slow. The Cat had already reached the Cygnet's village in Swan Lake and made quite a mess of the place. Roofs had collapsed, doors had been smashed in, entire buildings had been toppled. Several Cygnets cowered in their homes, petrified in fear from the chaos that now surrounded their little hamlet. And they were the lucky ones. The unlucky ones were not in an enviable situation. The Cat had dragged them out of their homes by force because they needed them for something a little different.
The Cygnets were all shaking in fear as the last one was placed atop a living pyramid by the larger and much more intimidating CatSwampfire. The body was still made of that same green plant material a normal Methanosian was created from, but with obvious patches of blue and purple diamonds, mainly around the forearms, shoulders, and now sharpened claws that jutted out. A long vine tail had sprouted from the alien's back, ending in an open flower-like bloom that produced cyan and violet fire. The Cat grinned, their glowing eyes a stark contrast of color and the now seemingly-withered Swampfire's face.
Among the unlucky Cygnets were Bryk, Morty, Chortle, Xy, Clyde, and a few others.
"Now, the name for this one was Swampfire I believe. And given the tail and the rather...floral texture, I'm going to assume powers tied to fire and plants. To be honest, it seems a little antithetical to each other really. But I'm not an expert on 'aliens.' No, today, I'm a sharpshooter! A rookie sharpshooter in need of practice!" the Cat stomped into position after patting the top Cygnet, Morty, on the head mockingly, "Now stay still...and I promise this won't hurt too much."
The Cygnets braced for impact, as the Cat held out his hand...and tried to make fire.
Tried to make fire.
Tried.
The Cat frowned, looking down at their hand and sniffing it. They picked up the scent of some sort of gas that was being released, but they didn't know if that was supposed to happen.
"How do I...shoot fire..." they muttered.
The Cat held out their hand in various different positions, including one belonging to a certain web-slinging hero even if the reference was lost on them, to no avail. He growled before thwipping his tail around in aggravation, inadvertently helping them. One of said tail swishes caused a shower of violet sparks to launch into the air. The feline ears of the newly mutated alien flicked as they heard the sparks, the mental gears turning.
"Ohhhh, I see!" the Cat grinned.
The Cygnets cringed. Here they thought he'd be stuck here all day.
"Now, if I just time it right-!" The Cat grinned, resuming their terror. They aimed their hand and tail at the poor innocents, ready to test the newfound pyrokinesis.
Only for their tail to then be suddenly sliced off.
The Cat yowled in pain, their large claws grasping at the severed tail as if they were trying to stop some invisible blood flow.
"ROOT-ROTTEN SPAWN OF A CHARLATAN!" the Cat cursed through gnashing fangs, "WHO DARES VIOLATE MY TAIL?!"
The sound of a blade being flicked rang out in response, catching the feline's attention. The Cat looked over to see Weiss, not even giving them a hint of respect. She gave not a single shred of respect to this opponent, piloting a body that didn't belong to them as they were.
Before the Cat could think of a plan to fight the heiress, bullets suddenly collided with their back, catching them off guard. Blake withdrew the empty clip and slid a fresh one into Gambol Shroud.
Fight me in the alps, that felt WEIRD! The feline thought, looking at their bullet filled backside. Ew. They're stuck...
But then, as if their own body responded, the bullets were then pushed out of the wounds before stitching themselves closed. The Cat blinked a few times as they watched their tail grow back from the wound, much to their surprise.
"I can regenerate?" the Cat muttered.
"So we were right." Weiss frowned.
"You don't know what you're doing." Blake grit her teeth.
"Too bad we know A LOT about Ben's aliens." Max said, walking up.
"Well, they do. From what I remember, dear Benjamin thought you were gone untilllll what? Yesterday?" the Cat chuckled.
Max smirked. "Cute. You think because I've been absent that I don't know every alien species out there. Did you forget that I've seen a lot at my age?"
"And probably forgotten twice as much," the Cat snickered, "The downside of you humans' flawed concept of...'aging.'"
"People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones." Max said, as the armor began to release some steam.
"I don't get it," the Cat shrugged, "So...who first?!"
The answer was Yang. While the Cat was hamming it up, the blonde brawler was making her entrance. She swung in out of nowhere, slamming her knee right into the Curious Cat's face.
The Cat groaned, feeling one of their fangs crack from the sudden impact. The surprise attack knocked them off balance, sending them staggering back.
With her opening secured, Yang got the battle started in earnest by absolutely decimating this deceitful little fiend with a storm of fists. She knew Swampfire could take it. especially when she literally began punching through him like he was made of wet paper.
Their body's a lot more wilted than Ben's usually is. Wonder if that's the Omnitrix self defense fighting back! Yang thought.
She reared back her fist, her hair igniting into a roaring inferno and her eyes turning to a bright crimson, before she landed a powerful uppercut. She knocked the Cat off their feet...while also knocking off their head, much to her own surprise. Of course, that injury didn't really matter much to an entity that could both segment their body at will and now regenerate. The wounds CatSwampfire had just sustained all quickly patched themselves up, including the wilted head being regrown in a matter of seconds.
"Well that was new," the Cat blinked, "My turn." The twisted alien grinned before retaliating. Violet flames engulfed their claws before they slashed away at Yang, but the blonde brawler was able to dodge the flurry of attacks. Right before they could land the next hit, Gambol Shroud suddenly wrapped around their ankle and pulled them to the ground.
He knows how to project flames, but not properly throw them! Blake thought, as she pulled the Cat to the ground. Weiss sandwiched the Methanosian in between two glyphs, and began to slowly crush him.
"Swampfire can't exactly act when his whole body is regenerating. Didn't think about that did you?" Weiss taunted
"This is your grand plan to defeat me? Please! These are contingencies at best!" The Cat mocked. "And my, doesn't that sound familiar! Like father, like daug-!"
Weiss slammed the Glyphs shut, eyes filled with hate. How did they even know about that!?
The crushed form of CatSwampfire just grinned before using a vine to turn the dial and slam down on it. The Glyphs suddenly shattered to reveal a hunched but quadrupedal figure made out of gemstones. Like a knight in armor, cyan crystals covered a main violet body, the checkerboard pattern present similar to the type seen on CatChamalien. The ears of the Cat had turned into large crystalline spikes at the top of their head, while several cyan spikes jutted out from their back. A large crystal-tipped tail emerged from the back of the alien as CatDiamondhead stared them all down.
"You seem to forget that I'm in his head, now! I can look at all the little nitty gritty details that you didn't want to share with me, including the general's little fallback plans. I must say, I understand why you kept details sparse about the Fall. It was quite the sound defeat for you all, wasn't it?!" the Cat smirked.
"There's a difference," Yang frowned. "Ironwood wanted to keep us in line if we ever went bad...and you're just some crazy diamondheaded freak who thinks they can twist the story to weaken us. Not gonna work HERE!"
Yang propelled herself forward and smashed into the Cat's body a few times with powerful and swift jabs. The Cat laughed, easily tanking the blows, their crystalline armor holding strong.
"Adorable!" the Cat flashed their trademark grin, crystal fangs and all, "Do you think you're doing something? Flailing against this mountain of a form?"
"Ben'd know how to beat me, even if I always somehow come out on top, he'd have a plan. You though? I'm not worried about you because you're just some inexperienced hack!" Yang yelled as she continued to pummel the Cat's diamond-like exterior.
"You people are just broken records aren't you? You keep playing the same song over and over, thinking the tune will change, but it won't!"
"God, you're so easy to distract." Yang smirked.
"What?" The Cat asked.
Yang jumped back, just in time, as the bombs detonated, shattering some of the Cat's body parts. Max decided it was time to join in the fun.
His collapsible wrench extended to its full length, even if that wouldn't be the first thing to make contact with the Cat. Gwendolyn's antlers slammed into the Cat's back, catching them under their cracked arm before throwing them into the air. Using the armor's boost, Max leapt into the air and brought an overhead strike down on the Cat, cracking the crystalline feline over the head and knocking them back down to earth. Blake and Weiss joined in on the assault, the latter forming a time dilation Glyph beneath Blake to boost her speed.
A bronze aura surrounded Blake's body before she jumped into the air and landed a series of several slashes against the Cat as they fell. They growled in annoyance, tired of this fight being so seemingly one-sided and decided to go on the offensive. They grabbed Blake's weapon and pulled her in, kicking off of her back so that she fell in their stead. Using the momentum, the Cat laughed maniacally as they morphed their hands into crystalline blades. Landing on two feet instead of all four, the Cat became a spinning storm of slashes all focused on Weiss.
Weiss' rage flared and, in an instant, she was covered in her knight's armor. The Cat just flared their cheshire grin, apparently unintimidated.
"Is this dinky armor your Berserker? Did I push more buttons than I previously thought?" The Cat laughed as they continued attacking. Weiss took a step back, allowing for her rapier to transform into a heavy broadsword. She swung the larger blade with all her might, smashing into her opponent's arm and cracking it.
The Cat yelled as Weiss focused on her armor, allowing it to shift a little. Two large wings, those of a Nevermore, unfurled from her back in a scene reminiscent of the Prince's game. Pulling her feline foe in close, she grabbed hold of their shoulder with her free hand and then began to ascend.
"What was that about 'dinky'?" Weiss taunted, as glyphs formed around her and the Cat.
"Oh, but therein lies the best part about contingencies!" the Cat smirked before transforming in a flash of blue and purple. In the quickest of changes, a small almost plush toy-like form took the place of the massive CatDiamondhead. While most of the body was white, the tip of a long tail, the feet, and the inner parts of a pair of little triangular ears were that bright violet color, while cyan diamonds decorated the back, forelimbs, and even the cheeks of this strange little alien form. The Cat looked up to Weiss with a wicked grin as the heiress put the pieces together.
"I remember what they ARE!" CatEcho Echo screamed to disrupt Weiss' focus.
Her armor shattered along with her wings, letting her plummet to the ground. Thankfully, Gwendolyn was there to break her fall. The Cat began dropping like a stone as well, letting out another powerful sonic scream to slow their descent like a parachute of sound.
"Thanks..." Weiss said, rubbing her head from the still painful impact. Blake and Max rushed past her, weapons at the ready.
The little sonic cat smirked and quickly transformed back into CatDiamondhead, blades at the ready. With some more practice under their belt, the Cat seemed to be a little bit faster. They lashed out and went to impale the twin assailants, only to watch them shatter into glass shards. Neo then appeared behind the Cat and kicked the lying bastard in the back of the head.
The Cat's tail suddenly shifted into a spearpoint and shot out towards the ambushing assailant. Hush unfurled and blocked the bladed-tail strike, but that provided enough time for the real Blake and Max to rush in. The Cat, for all of its multi-tasking talent, never had to use that in a fight, but that didn't necessarily mean they couldn't. Neo, Blake, and Max were all engaged in a no-holds-barred drag-on brawl.
Crystalline blades clashed with both types of Gambol Shroud's swords, katana and cleaver alike, while Max's wrench cracked against the feline's sturdy hide. While Neo's attacks weren't enough to break through the diamond skin, she was able to throw the alien off balance with disorienting and opportunistic strikes.
They didn't use Echo Echo's clones even when they could have ended the fight much faster with it, Blake smirked. Every unused power provided more info for a better gameplan.
Her eyes suddenly blurred, as her body produced several shadows. "Gotta time these right..."
"Oh, if only there was a canine form in here. Unlike you, I'm not scared of THOSE!" the Cat mocked, enraging both Blake and Yang. The blonde brawler looked to her girlfriend and nodded, a silent confirmation of "I'll give you the opening you need."
Blake's shadows rushed past the Cat, faking them out. They scoffed, knowing they were just for show, a pathetic little parlor trick that would only work on lesser minds.
Except there was one version of this trick the Cat hadn't seen yet. After all, Blake had been saving up Dust for a moment like this.
What they didn't realize was that, once the shadows had passed, their bodies turned to flames, their eyes glowing in increasing intensity, like a countdown, before detonating. The explosion knocked the Cat off their feet and towards the ready and waiting Bumblebee duo. The pair of them charged in to try and land a powerful combo, but their opponent just grinned. Their tail's tip morphed into a clawed hand before twisting the dial and slamming down on it. With a roar, CatRath returned to the field and grabbed the two girls by the heads, pulling them into the air before slamming them into the ground hard.
"NO!" Weiss yelled, forming up two more Glyphs. She was about to infuse ice Dust into them but then she noticed how low that chamber was. To her knowledge, she only had one, maybe two vials of the freezing Dust left on her person. She spun the chamber to use Hard Light instead since the chamber was fuller. She fired off a barrage of glowing energy darts at the Cat, tearing into their hide, only serving to annoy them more than anything. They spun around on their heels and threw Blake and Yang at their other foes, the former crashing into Neo while the latter accidentally slammed into Weiss, dispelling her Glyphs.
"Let me tell you something, Rusted Knight," the Cat taunted, shifting their focus to Max and sharpening their claws, "I have been waiting for a long time to be rid of you!"
"More of a dog person anyway," Max shot back, readying his wrench. Without any more banter, the Knight and the Cat raced towards each other for their duel. The Cat started things off with a right slash that collided with the wrench's shaft. The two exchanged a glance, sadistic glee meeting steeled resolved, before the Cat's second claw swung in from the side, forcing Max out of the stalemate and on the defensive.
The Cat's wrist blades lashed out with reckless abandon but they couldn't really find their mark, only the expert defense of Max's tool turned weapon. Metal and bone sparked as the Cat tried to find a chink in the technique, their anger just getting worse and worse the longer they couldn't land a hit. Rath's own incredibly hair-trigger temper was getting the better of them and Max could see that.
On one of the swings, the Rusted Knight ducked under the attack and caught the Cat's wrist between the jaws of his wrench. They suddenly clamped shut, trapping the Cat and removing the use of that arm for now. Max then used his considerably enhanced strength to lift CatRath off the ground and slam him back down behind him.
"How's THAT for an old fuddy duddy?" Max smirked.
The Cat growled, before they slapped down the Omnitrix. "You're strong, yes..." The Cat smirked, as eyes popped up around his head and their arms suddenly morphed into sharp, powerful fins. Their tail elongated, acting as an extra fin.
A Laceritter. Max frowned. Even with the armor, I'm not sure I can keep up! And he was quickly proven correct. The Cat rushed forward. unleashing a multitude of fast slashes.
"I may not know how to use the lights, but I can use the speed!" The Cat laughed.
CatUltaviolent's speed, as clumsy and unpracticed as it was in the paws of this unworthy owner, was still a challenge to counter. Many of the Cat's attacks were countered, but then the feline smacked aside Max's wrench. With a sadistic smile, the Cat thrust both of their sharpened arms forward and impaled Max, lifting him off the ground.
"Yes...YEEEEES HAHAHAHA! FINALLY! The sordid tale of the Rusted Knight comes to its tragic conclusion! Oh was it ever really in doubt?!" the Cat cackled.
They were so caught up in their success that they didn't realize everyone else was looking at them with a smug grin.
Including Max.
Out of the corner of their eye, the Cat could see a second Rusted Knight, blinking and double checking to make sure they were seeing things correctly.
"What?" The Cat blinked.
"Even though Ultraviolent's new, we figured it out. See, his eyes give him a full 360 view. They see EVERYTHING." Yang explained.
"But can they see through a clever illusion?" Max added.
"An...illus-?" the Cat repeated before Emerald phased through the projection of Max and slammed both of her feet into the Cat's face. She bounced off the surprised and pained Cat's face before launching her chains around both of the Cat's arms, tying them together.
"TAKE 'EM!" Emerald called out.
With that, the other Outcasts rushed the now behemoth of a cat. Yang and Blake started things off with their tried and true combo move. The shadowy feline tossed Gambol Shroud over to the blonde brawler, who easily caught it. Blake stopped short and wrapped the ribbon around her hand for extra support. Yang fired off a few shotgun shells to boost her momentum, spinning round and round to set up the hit.
While the two were setting up, Max, Weiss, and Gwendolyn rushed in to keep the Cat stunned. Max reared back his arm and cracked the giant wrench into the back of the warped Appoplexian's leg with an audible crack! echoing out from the impact. Weiss leapt over the manipulative feline, landing a series of quick thrusts as she moved in an arc above the beast. As for Gwendolyn, she rushed up behind the lumbering tomcat and landed a powerful dropkick that the Cat wasn't ready for. With all the moves done to disorient them, it was not surprising that the kick actually made the Cat topple over.
Seeing the twisted feline form begin to fall, Emerald released her hold on CatRath and rolled out of the way, letting the behemoth slam into the ground with a thunderous crash. That was when Yang had finally built up enough momentum. She fired off a round to launch her into the air and, with some extra effort on Blake's part, was brought down like a golden hammer on the downed Cat. They didn't even have time to really react before Yang's fist connected with their gut and an explosion rang out. Smoke, dust, and rubble were all thrown into the air from the attack, obscuring both of them from view. Blake could still feel the tautness of the ribbon, cluing her in that someone was still holding it. She just hoped it wasn't the Cat messing with her.
A tense silence filled the air as the dust and rubble began to settle and clear. The Cygnet pyramid that the Cat had set up mere moments ago had disbanded and ran for cover. Bryk mustered up enough courage to peek out from his hiding spot, much to the shock of his friends. They could only see the figures of the other Outcasts clearly. Whatever happened to Yang was just as uncertain to them as it was to the others. Neo shared a look with Emerald, both equally unsure as to who had won this little contest of endurance. Much to everyone's horror, they were soon answered. Yang was flung back out of the crater she had just left in the middle of the village. Blake managed to catch her before she hit the ground, but the ninja of the Outcasts could see her girlfriend's Aura flicker, seemingly on the verge of shattering.
A bright cyan light suddenly flashed from inside the thicker cloud of dust at the center of the crater, putting everyone on edge again. They could hear the Cat walking out of the crater, but the footsteps were lighter than Rath's and yet not quite as light as Echo Echo's. The best way to describe them would be almost average. A thin yet still well built humanoid shape soon became clear in the dust as the Cat walked out in their new form. Three sharp, violet claws dug into the edge of the crater. Standing on two legs again, each one sporting a smattering of cyan diamonds, the Cat's arms had elongated to the point where their claws reached their ankles. That same violet color as the claws snaked up the body and seemed to highlight the creature's chest, almost taking the shape of a breastplate. The Cat's trademark Cheshire grin was on full display for the Outcasts, but there was one part that made it all the more disturbing here.
This new form had no eyes.
Where there should be feline eyes was just a patch of disgustingly smooth violet skin, and yet, the Cat could see so clearly, even more so than usual. How, you may ask? On their arms, their shoulders, even along the length of their tail, were the same cyan diamonds that all the other forms of the Cat sported, with one notable addition. These ones actually opened, revealing the diamond-shaped patterns themselves to be a collection of eyes.
"Ohhhhohohohohoho," Cat-EyeGuy chuckled, "Outside of the crystal one and the fire one, I think this is my favorite. So many...so many eyes, so much to see at once! I don't even need to turn my head to see everything! The crumbling buildings, the hope dimming on your faces, the Great Tree in the distance, even that little baby swan peeking out of the rubble to watch us! It's intoxicating!"
You want a buzz? Fine then. Neo signed, conjuring up a handful of replicas of the smaller moths that surround Albedo's Ultimate Big Chill form, Have one!
"Oh! Ohahahahaha! The puppet has a sense of humor!" Cat-EyeGuy sneered, but those were the wrong words to say Neo. Her anger flared and with a flourish of Hush, she sent the moths ahead to attack the Cat. Emerald and Weiss ran in too, hoping to use the swarm as cover for their own attacks.
Many of the Cat's eyes began to blink out of sync with each other, making it an even more unsettling sight to see. But then, much to the Cat's own surprise, those eyes began glowing. With a look of glee, the Cat slammed their forearms together and opened all of those eyes as wide as possible. Energy gathered in their pupils before an array of beams fired out. Weiss, Emerald, and even the moths scattered from lightning bolt-shaped beams, but the effects carved into the ground with ease. The energies fired from the right arm left frozen crystals in their wake, while those fired from the left cut lines of flame into the soil itself.
"Ooooh, well isn't THAT an interesting trick!" Cat-EyeGuy grinned.
Neo didn't move from where she was, even if the beams would hit her. She narrowed her eyes in anger before both fire and ice zapped "her," in reality nothing more than a projection. "Neo" shattered to pieces, while the real one suddenly appeared behind the multi-eyed alien, but a trick like that wouldn't work on EyeGuy of all aliens. A second giant eye, the same size as the one on Cat-EyeGuy's chest, opened to look at the multi-colored mute. The Cat grinned and fired off a beam of ice that somehow managed to find its mark. Frost quickly covered the rear assailant's body, encasing her in a frigid prison. But Neo's sacrifice let Weiss, Emerald, and the moths close the distance.
The moths went in first, phasing through some of Cat-EyeGuy's eyes, forcing them to blink as if something had just gotten stuck in them. That gave Emerald and Weiss the perfect chance to strike. Rapier and sickle slashed into the warped Opticoid's hide, but any wounds the duo inflicted were rendered harmless. Whenever one of their blades landed, part of the Cat just segmented off before reconnecting.
Stupid segmenting... Weiss mentally cursed.
The Cat then caught the blades that were being brought down on them, a mad grin coming to their lips again. Two eyes extended out of the Cat's shoulders and leered down at the two Huntresses before firing off violet lightning bolts. The two Huntresses screamed in pain as the voltage surged through their bodies, wreaking havoc on their Auras. A quick smack to the side of the Cat's head, courtesy of Max's wrench, was enough to stop the lightning bolts. Weiss's snow white and Emerald's jade green Aura flickered, also on the verge of breaking just like Yang's. Several of the Cat's tail-eyes extended off of the tail and looked at Max before charging up. The veteran Plumber quickly collapsed his wrench and used the tech in the Forever Knight's armor to bring up a shield just in time to block a barrage of various energies.
Streams of flame, surges of electricity, cones of ice all crashed against his shield like waves crashing against a rocky coastline. The Cat just smirked and took advantage of a small opening, something they knew Max would have to drop the shield for. They stopped their barrage before throwing Weiss at the Rusted Knight. In a split second, Max dropped the shield and managed to catch the heiress in his armored arm, before two more bolts of lightning struck the two of them, much to the Cat's delight.
"Oh this is something isn't it? All this power...and yet you all say this is a fraction of what he can do? Why hasn't he done more in your world? I already thought you humans were wrong, but this just proves my point! All this power and he doesn't go off on his own to protect the world?! He doesn't need you, ANY of you! Why he thinks so is BEYOND ME!" the Cat cackled.
"Shut. Up," Blake hissed, getting the Cat's attention.
"Aww and are you going to make me? You're not strong as the punny one, not as versatile as the wise one, and you're not exactly the trickster type, not like the Jaded Thief or the Cherry on Top over there."
"You keep deconstructing us to just one trait. To you, we're nothing more than one thing. A knight, a thief, a villain, a princess, and someone who makes puns all the time. That's all we are, aren't we?"
"You forgot the gloomy one, the Watchbearer, and the Gemstone, but yes," the Cat snarked.
"You're wrong," Blake countered.
"Oh I'd love to hear how," the feline rolled their eyes.
"She's...she's right," Yang huffed, still supported on Blake's shoulder, "I'm not just the one who makes puns. I'm a fighter, I've been reckless, I can be snarky, I can be supportive."
"And I'm more than just 'the gloomy one.' I'm thoughtful, I've been secretive, I can be empathetic, I can be understanding," Blake listed off.
"Can be's and have been's are worth about as much as pinecones, nothing at all. You humans like to pretend you can change on your own, say that you're more than one thing, but it's never true. It's nothing but lies and falsehoods that come out of your ugly mouths! And yes, I am speaking from experience..." the Cat hissed.
"I get it. Alyx lied to you. What, did you like Lewis more?" Yang huffed.
"...oh. Oooooh. So that's how it ends." The Cat bemused. "Interesting."
"How what ends?" Blake asked, her finger on Gambol Shroud's trigger just in case they were about to try something.
"The story." The Cat smiled. "Did you know that little story might've had a ghost writer?"
"A...ghost writer?" Blake asked.
"You've only ever had Maxwell there to ask and all offense to him, he's always been a few sand berries short of a picnic."
"...oh my god." Blake muttered, eyes widening.
"What?" Yang asked.
"She's dead, isn't she?"
"And which 'she' do you mean?" the Cat smirked.
"You know who I mean! Alyx," Blake shouted.
"Oh herrrrrr! That...cowardly wretched little girl!" Cat-EyeGuy balled their claws into fists as a snarl worked its way onto their face, "The same little...little horrid manipulator who's story you've all been so foolishly following! The same girl I followed because of what she promised me! I was promised that I could go to Remnant with Alyx and her timid little brother. But in truth, she NEVER intended to TAKE ME! Nooooo, no, no, no! You see, us three made it to the Tree, the way to your world so clearly seen! It was beautiful! Lewis made his way to it, stepping up to it...but Alyx? Ohhhhohohohoho! Not dear ALYX! She spoke to the Tree and had a crisis of conscience!"
The Cat-EyeGuy put a hand to their forehead, leaning back dramatically as if to sell the performance even more.
"She decided she wanted to FIX eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeverything she BROKE in the Ever After! Including the poor old Rusted KNIGHT! So Lewis went through and at the very last moment..." the warped Opticoid hissed, "Alyx didn't."
"You...you monster!" Max growled.
"Oh don't call me a monster! I just did the logical thing," Cat-EyeGuy picked up a piece of broken wood, a splinter from one of the partially destroyed buildings, "The same thing anyone would do with a broken...useless...thing."
SNAP! The Cat's claws crunched around the splinter and broke it into pieces.
Max grit his teeth as he stepped forward. Max activated his Knight's armor, the bright lights on the suit intensifying. With a determined expression, he channeled the suit's energy into a dazzling array of blinding flashes. These intense bursts of light emanated from his suit and enveloped the multi-eyed alien, creating a disorienting and blinding effect.
"Ah, spawn of a-!" The Cat yelled, as Max rushed forward.
The wrench extended to its full length again and Max just began beating the Cat with it. A strike to their gut made them double over in pain; a crack to the jaw made them stagger to the side and a sweeping strike to their legs knocked them off their feet. With all the anger he could muster, Max brought the wrench up and, in an overhead swing, brought the Cat back down to meet earth.
The Cat slowly got back up, as Max prepared to hammer him into the ground again. "Maxwell. I'm going to need you to chill out," The Cat quipped.
Max's eyes widened as the Cat slapped down the Omnitrix.
In a flash of cyan, the still-somewhat built form of Eye Guy shrank and turned into a lanky and lithe form, a majority of which was covered in shadows. A large, dark blue cloak settled over this new alien's body, the Cat's feline ears pushing up as small triangles at the top of the cloak's hood. Their claws were long and spindly, their legs ending in three claws. A majority of their body, the parts that were actually in the light, had a mostly black color scheme with spots of purple and cyan, mainly around the chest area again. The cyan and violet diamonds formed a pattern up the length of their arms and legs. Their grin, their most prominent feature, no longer seemed to be individual fangs, instead being something like a vent grate that allowed cold mist to escape with each exhale.
Cat-Big Chill narrowed their eyes at Max before exhaling a cloud of freezing mist, coating the armor in frost. Slowly but surely, the ice was making its way into any chinks in the knight's armor, weakening it. But Max was undeterred. In an act of desperation, he swung his wrench to crack the side of the Cat's head once again and unexpectedly landed the hit.
"OW!" the Cat hissed, much to everyone's surprise. They...they got hurt? From a wrench? As Big Chill?
Max blinked, but remained firm. He's been blessed with such an overpowered set, but he doesn't know the full potential of his forms! Given how he's still cloaked, I don't even think he knows he can fly!
"Oh, what are you looking at, old man?!" the Cat hissed, before ice coated their claws. They leapt back, putting some distance between themselves and their opponents. They raised their hands over their head before stabbing them into the soil. From there, waves of ice spikes jutted out of the ground to try and impale anyone caught in them. Wait...no. Not ice spikes. They were ice sculptures of the trumpet halberds used by the Red Kingdom's guards!
Just because they don't have the same mastery over these forms, doesn't mean they can't tap into some of their potential! Max frowned. Dust reserves are running low for everyone, that was becoming clear. A prolonged fight, while definitely in their favor, wasn't something that the Cat actually wanted. Were they using this alien to escape?
Everyone managed to get out of the way in time, avoiding being impaled by the various icy halberds. Yang looked to Emerald, a plan formulating in her head.
"Emerald...your Aura. Do you have enough-?" Yang asked.
"For one more if I had to guess," Emerald huffed, "Why?"
"Keep a projection of me up. I can tell they're gonna make a break for it...and I'm gonna follow them." Yang resolved.
"You're...you're going to what?"
"Just do it!" Yang ordered.
Emerald frowned. "Alright. Just stay safe. I don't know much, but I can tell your girlfriend would have a fit if something happened to you."
"Like I'm gonna let them be what ends my story," Yang smirked, "Ok...now!"
Emerald created a projection of Yang, right in the same spot the original was. The Cat didn't notice the real one dashing off to hide behind some of the Cygnets' houses.
"I'm very sorry to say this, buuuuuuut I have to run." The Cat sighed. "This has been a fun little 'tutorial', though. I believe that's the right word. Yes."
"You're not...going to get...f-far," Weiss huffed, her Aura flickering with each breath.
"Oh, I think I will. As fun as it's been to test my new abilities, it's time to move along. I know you'd love nothing more than to do dog me at every step, but I've certainly bought myself plenty of time. Eventually though, I'll go somewhere that you are just oh so incapable of following me to. I'd say I'll see you at the Tree buuuut...well, you're invited, are you? Remember, it's not a place you go, it's a place you know. Unless, of course, you're me, you see."
"God I hate when they speak in riddles." Blake muttered.
"It's what I do best!" the Cat laughed as they started to turn into pixels, almost like how Ruby turned into petals. The collection of pixels then suddenly jolted into the air and raced off. If Yang was going to make her move, she needed to do it now. And she did, bolting after the feline.
Yang followed close behind as stealthily as she could, doing her best to keep up. Wherever this Cat was going, she'd ambush them there.
She didn't know if the Cat could even see her in that form, but she didn't care. She'd follow this bastard across the Ever After if she needed to. Even if this was just some elaborate trap on the Cat's part, she'd turn it on them. Her eyes flashed a burning crimson as she ran after them.
Her resolve had never been stronger.