Legend of the Seven Lights, Chapter 42

Hokay, guys, here begins the first chapter of the second half of Seven Lights, opening with the Art Saga! We’re gonna cool down from all the crazy action that happened last time; there’s plenty of time for crazier action later. A1Z26 Cipher. (Yes, Bill’s still trolling us. ;3)

Chapter 42: That Dream Again

Dark hallway

“Hello?” Mary Goldenweek called to no one. She was all alone in a dark, violet hallway, lined with many odd paintings. “Is anyone here? April?”

She walked forward, echoing the halls with the sound of her shoes against the solid floor. The corridor seemed to go on for infinity. She wondered where the exit was. It just seemed to grow darker and darker. Then, she reached the end. There was a painting hanging on the wall. It depicted a sleeping man, with lavender hair, a dark blue jacket, surrounded by blue roses, and holding one to his chest. “Who…Who’s that?”

“I have no idea.” Mary flinched. She turned around to see Mr. Dark. “I was hoping you did.”

Mary stepped backward, looking at him with fear. “You’re that… weird guy.”

“It took me a while to find your dreamscape.” Mr. Dark looked thoughtfully. “In fact, I couldn’t seem to find any trace of it. I had to persuade Darkrai to let me in during tonight’s round. I wanted to meet you again, Mary, because I want to know… how did you do it? How did your father figure it out?”

“You mean Alvin? My dad?”

Mr. Dark chuckled. “That’s not the one.”

“I don’t know who you’re talking about, then.”

“I’m sure your memory will kick in. Perhaps that gentleman behind you would know.” Mr. Dark pointed at the painting.

Mary stared at the lavender-haired portrait. No matter how long she looked, she couldn’t recognize him. She stared closer. The blue roses were pretty. …She felt a terrible pain in her head. She grabbed her head and shook, feeling agony.

She gasped and started awake in her bed. The guestroom bed she was given in April’s house at Water 7. “Good morning, Mary.” Her cousin greeted her with a smile in the doorway.

“April…”

“Dad made us breakfast. You always liked to sleep in a lot.” She made a light chuckle.

“April… I had that nightmare again.”

“Oh…” April frowned. “The one where you’re in the gallery?”

“Uh-huh. But this time, that weird guy was in it. He’s saying weird stuff.”

April noticed her solemn look. Her cousin had been having this dream a lot. Even before April moved, she had this dream, and it was always on her mind the next morning. “You know, I’ve been having that dream lately, too.” April admitted.

“You have?”

“Well, not as much. Most of the time, I dream I’m in an art city. Hmhm, it’s really fun.” She sported a smile. “Let’s go eat breakfast and go up to the treehouse. No one gets your mind off a bad dream better than W7.”

“Hehe… okay, April.” Mary grinned.

Hawaii; Tom’s Training Camp

Anthony and Shelly knelt over the ground and planted their hands to the hardened soil. With their Seismic Sense, they sensed and felt the earth around them. “Got a good grip?” Tom Taylor asked them. “Give me a sand pool, shrimplings.”

“Don’t call me a shrimpling, Redhead.” Shelly retorted.

“I’ve been told you were half-Minish, ‘shrimpling’ is a compliment.”

Shelly grabbed and twisted the ground, molding the black soft earth like a whirlpool that partly morphed into sand. Anthony struggled to twist his ground, then when he made a more forceful twist, he sent a sudden quake to hit Shelly. “Whoa!” She fell over.

“No fighting each other.” Tom stated.

“Her chi keeps gettin’ in the way o’ mine!” Anthony accused.

“That’s not even possible, is it?” Shelly argued.

Gonshiri was sitting a few feet away, reading a book. “According to this, if two same-type benders are bending in the same area, their chi will tend to mix one way or another. Mostly if you’re in a battle.”

“I don’t get why I need to learn sandbending if the Quartzites can do it.” Anthony responded.

“It’s not about whether you actually master it or not, it’s the experience.” Gedra replied, sitting on his own Minish-size pillar, which was three-fourths of Tom’s height. “The Four Families learn from each other to improve their own strengths. The Granites are masters in Seismic Sense, and the Quartzites are masters at breaking big areas of ground at once. (Which requires Seismic Sense.) And the Sovites, not that this guy is a good example, teach you all how to take heat.”

“What about the other family, where’re they in all the fun?” Shelly asked, lying on the ground for rest.

“The Hornfels tell you how to be smart. Unfortunately, we don’t have any clue who the current family is. But don’t worry, ‘soon as they turn up, we’re puttin’ their kid through this training, too. Now come on, back to work!” Gedra stomped his pillar into the ground, shaking the earth as all three earthbenders fell on their fronts.

“Hey Gonshiri, you wouldn’t happen to know whatever’s at the bottom of the Beginning Tree, would you?” Shelly inquired.

“They never actually let me down in that area, so I can’t be certain.” The princess replied. “But if the Hornfels ever turn up, perhaps we’ll have our answer.”

Dickson Household

“You told me not to treat him like an ant.” Chad spoke mockingly, folding his hands behind his head as he sat on the couch with an arrogant air. “You told me not to drop him in the woods. And what happened after all of that ‘bad’ treatment? He joined the Kids Next Door.”

“The Minish Kids Next Door.” Emily Dickson corrected, dusting off the ceiling in her ghost form. “Chad, how can you be okay with our ant-size son going on dangerous expeditions? You heard him, he almost got eaten twice.”

“And he told us that excitedly. Emily, this is exactly the kind of training Rupert needs, to fight monsters that are bigger than him, not shirk away in the face of dangers or hardships. If turning small doesn’t force a person to learn all those things, I’m not sure what will.”

“But Chad, didn’t you tell me the whole point of him becoming stronger was to catch up with the other kids? Especially with this Apocalypse thing coming up? Even if he’s the greatest Pikmin Master ever, he’s still sacrificing 36 inches of strength just to do this. He’s more vulnerable than ever.”

“Yeah, but it’s sounding to me like it works. It’s not just about being as strong as the other kids, it’s having a way to protect himself or help other kids out. Besides, he’s learning survivor skills in dangerous environments, physical endurance, he spent a couple days in an arctic tundra, and he’s learnin’ how to fight kids that’re 50 times his size. We might be able to sweep him up in one stroke, but every minute he spends with those Minish is making him stronger, Emily. I know it.”

Distant Spring

“Rupert, Timothy, Hikari,” Sappo began, his arms folded behind his head in relaxation, “it is of the greatest honor to have taught the first three human Minish operatives. You now have full permission to use our secret swimming pools.”

“This one is our absolute favoritest!” Gibli said.

The Minish twins, Timmy, and Hikari enjoyed the soul-soothing warmth of this spring. Minish were roaming everywhere in this region of pools and springs, playing games with Pikmin or simply relaxing. “Hey, where is Rupert?” Timothy asked.

“Up here, guys.” Rupert called from above a cliff. His friends looked up.

The Dickson boy was wearing orange swimtrunks as he lay on his front on the ground. He was near the cliff edge and staring dreamily. “You know what the best part about Small World is?”

Beyond this cliff was a regular-size human hot spring. Slim, tall, and beautiful Japanese girls were giggling and splashing each other, wearing the cutest bikinis Rupert’s ever seen. “Ho, boy.” Sappo rolled his eyes.

“Rupert, you know those girls are twice your age, right?” Timmy asked. “Some of them could even be Teen Ninjas.”

“That doesn’t mean I can’t admire how shiny they are.”

Sappo climbed up onto the cliff and approached Rupert, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Listen, Rupert, I just want you to know, you aren’t alone in this. Hundreds of Minish become curious about humans of the opposite gender, I myself once pondered the texture of their bodies. But the more Minish think about human girls, they draw away from Minish girls. And do ya know what happens then? The girls step on ‘em when the Minish try to go up and talk.”

“But I’m a human.” Rupert reminded. “And didn’t Queen Lánshelly marry a human? That’s why the princess is half-human?”

“She’s the queen, she can get whoever she wants! I’m just sayin’, it’s not a crime to stare at girls, but if there’s a size difference, it can become a bad habit, then you’ll get killed.”

“I guess you’re right. Although I kinda wanna bounce on those-”

“Get down.” Sappo grabbed the boy and pushed him back into the spring with Timmy and Hikari.

“Good thing I don’t like girls, yet.” Timmy mentioned. “And I’m even Japanese.”

“All Rupert really wants to be is someone who gets to see a giant—OW!” Hikari was kicked in the shin by Timmy before she could say more.

“Speaking of the princess, why did Shelly’s dad try to kidnap her, again?” Rupert asked.

“Because she’s a plantbender who can control living and dead plants!” Gibli splashed.

“And that’s a rare thing?”

“Yep.” Sappo replied casually, sipping a green juice from a martini glass. “Apparently, he wanted to use her to find some ‘God Fruit.’ ‘Course, even if the princess could bring it to life, they have no idea where the original fruit was grown. In fact, nobody does!” Sappo smiled proudly. “No one except Lenari and his closest friends.”

“That would be us!” Gibli beamed.

“SSSH!” Sappo clamped her mouth shut.

“Wait, you mean you guys know where it is?” Timothy asked.

Sappo stared with annoyance and removed his hand from Gibli’s mouth. “Fine, we know where it is. But no one else can ever know, especially the princess, otherwise she’ll be more of a target.”

“It’s okay, Sappo!” Gibli spoke positively. “The place it’s hidden is totally chi-blocked for non-Pikmin, and it has a bunch of monsters and traps protecting it!”

“Yeah, but any explorer that was gutsy enough would brave it.” Sappo smirked. “Not just for a lousy dead fruit. You humans probly don’t know the story of Malarko, but the short version is, he’s a Minish who built up an Army of a Thousand Pikmin. And all of their Onions are in the same hiding place.”

“Wait, for real?!” Rupert spoke excitedly. “The Malarko that started the Minish KND?”

“Wait, you know about him? Man, you really HAVE been training.” Sappo chuckled. “Look, Ruppy, don’t get your hopes up, only members or friends of Malarko’s family can wake up those Pikmin. You’d be exhausting yourself for nothing.”

“I know that, but…” Rupert smiled in deepest thought, “but what if we ended up making a BIGGER army? We already have close to 500 Pikmin, don’t we?”

“Rupert, are we really gonna try and get one thousand Pikmin?” Timmy asked.

“Come on, it isn’t really THAT hard. On average, we make more Pikmin than we lose. I don’t know math, so I don’t know, but, come on, don’t you guys wanna try it?”

“I wonder if Jessie would think my colorful Pikmin army is pretty?” Hikari spoke dreamily. “Do you think he would make me a general?”

“Y’know, I’ve been seeing a lot of you guys with those Brown Pikmin.” Rupert mentioned. “Where can we find those?”

“Usually in marshlands.” Sappo sipped his juice. “Especially in the Zingers’ Hive. ‘Fact, Lenari said we’re running short on Premium Honey, if you guys were desperate enough…”

“Zingers’ Hive? Is that like a beehive or something?”

“You called it.”

Rupert looked down contemplatively. He really didn’t like bees, always stinging him when he went camping, getting his arms and face swollen all over. A sting at this size would make him explode. “Maybe we shouldn’t…”

“There’s the Rupert I know and love.” Timmy sighed in relief.

“It isn’t that bad.” Sappo said. “I mean, bees usually don’t sting anyone that’s smaller than them.”

“If you guys did it, we would tell you where the Pikmin Army is-!”

“GIBLI!” Sappo shut his sister’s mouth again. “Ehhhh… all right. If you got outta that place with enough honey, we’ll let you in on the secret.”

Rupert bore a new thoughtful look on his face. Timmy and Hikari noticed it, silently pleading him not to take it. “Okay, we’ll do it!” His friends sank in the steaming tub. (“I-I-I wa-a-ant sixty-y bu-u-u-ucks.” Timmy gurgled.)

“On'nanoko, rukkusu, kōzan ga fuyū shite imasu!”

Rupert’s ears perked at the Japanese girls’ voices. “Right after I try to decipher what that one girl said!” He climbed up the cliff to once again overview the humans’ spring.

Uno Household

Cheren and MaKayla gazed longingly at the former’s dresser mirror. “This is really your only way of talking to him?” Kayla asked.

“It’s the most obvious way. But I think we can also get Mr. Facilier to open a portal.” Cheren held his left hand out to lightly tap the glass with his fingernail. It made quiet, brief ding sounds with each tap. …The kids gasped: the mirror spun into a vortex. “Oh, I guess he’s home! Let’s go in, Kayla!” They locked hands and jumped up onto the desk, through the portal.

After exiting the sub-dimension, the two carefully stepped off the dresser onto the floor. “Nerehc!” Cheren beamed. His Negative was passed out on his front on the bed, head rolled away from them. His red jacket was off, exposing his black T-shirt.

Nerehc turned his head to look at them with one eye. “I, have had, the worst, week.”

“I had a bad week, too, so one of ours must be better.” Cheren replied as they grinned blushingly. “What’ve you been through?”

“Well, it started when I just wanted to walk over to your world to meet you. So now that we’re finally meeting, please tell me you’ve been making progress with this whole thing.”

“Well, taking Kayla, Sheila, Fybi, and Jessie’s stories into account, we now have four Lights.” Cheren counted up fingers. “What about you guys, Nerehc? Any word on the Thirteen Darknesses?”

“Actually, yes. We found two Darknesses.” The two kids exchanged smiles. “But we had some ‘help.’” Nerehc kicked himself out of bed. “Some bitch possessed my body and got us to work with her. She’s also looking for the Demon Saints.”

“The Demon Saints?” Cheren questioned.

“A title given to powerful and threatening demons.” Kayla confirmed. “I came across the term a few times. Although I don’t think the Demon Kings ever had it.”

“So, what else is going on with you?” asked Nerehc.

“Aside from getting my butt kicked by Aunt Morgan and turning into a Rainbow Monkey, nothing much’s happened.” Cheren informed.

“Speaking of the Demon Kings,” MaKayla mentioned, “I wanted to talk with you about your Demon State, Cheren.”

“That’s out of nowhere.”

“I wanted to bring it up for a while. I know you lose control because of it.”

“How much does your timebending tell you?”

“A hell of a lot.” She smiled proudly. “I clearly have to know a lot of things about you. Having 20 girlfriends gives you a lot to think about, clearly.”

Cheren turned a hot pink. “You better fuckin’-”

“I’m kidding, but it’s written all over your face. Cheren, let me ask you something: how often do you go into Demon State?”

Cheren returned to normal peach color and looked down. “It happens when I’m really angry, or when I’m in danger. Of course, I get really angry when I’m in danger, so that’s… And when I go in Demon State, I can never remember what I did during that, and I still feel really angry after it’s done…”

“Can you name a few times?”

“Well, you probably know that thing with Doflamingo, but I remember back in Termina—why are we even talking about this?!” Cheren shouted all of a sudden. “We completely changed the subject! Nerehc was saying some person is looking for the Demon Saints!”

“And by extension, the Demon Kings, then by extension, you two.” Kayla reminded. “Cheren, the truth is, I saw an event like this coming back when Clockwork was inside me. I didn’t know when it would happen, but this sounds like it. Cheren, you’re upset and ashamed about your Demon State because you can’t control it. But you need to learn how to control it if you wanna protect it from being stolen.”

“And how am I supposed to learn to control it?”

“Termina.” Nerehc said out of nowhere. “A while ago, these little black alien things told me to take you to Termina. Find something called the ‘Ocarina of Time’?”

Fi leapt out of Cheren’s sword in an excited fashion. “Master Cheren, I could not help but overhear, but I have important information regarding this topic.”

“I’ll scold you for eavesdropping, but let it loose.”

“The Ocarina of Time is a very sacred and important relic that Link possessed in one of his eras. It granted the hero the ability to control time. Its mystic songs could perform miracles, ranging from manipulating times of days or turning back time itself.”

“Holy cow, Link had that??”

“Affirmative. But after the passing of that incarnation, the ocarina was taken by the gods into the Spirit World. I am unsure of the location, but Master, be mindful that this form of Link passed away in Termina Earth.”

“And I have an idea where.” MaKayla said. “Clockwork pointed it out to me when I had this vision about you. It’s an ancient temple that existed in the DunBroch Ruins—”

“DUNBROCH?!” Cheren jumped with joy. “Halright, we can visit Merida while we’re there!”

“Who’s Merida?” Nerehc asked.

“Another girl he thinks about in his sleep-” Cheren stomped MaKayla’s foot, blushing hotly.

“Uh, hehe…” Cheren chuckled. “Not even just her, actually, I can visit Termina Sector V and everything. I wonder if the Apocalypse would affect them, too…” His look turned solemn.

“I’ll go with you guys.” Nerehc stated. “There’s something we need the ocarina for.”

“You can tell us the details on the way.” Cheren appointed. “Let’s see if the Dimension Transportifier in Father’s mansion still works.” With that, the three of them jumped through the mirror back to the Posiverse.

Sector W7 Treehouse

“You use the Stylus to move him around.” Apis explained, moving the tip of said Stylus around the bottom DS screen. Link was following its movements.

“Is that a magic wand?” Mary asked, sitting on the couch and watching her. Aeincha was standing on Mary’s blonde hair and combing it.

“Not really.” Apis laughed. “It’s just a technology that they have. I don’t know how it works, I just love going around killing demons.”

“Does that little guy know you’re controlling him?”

“If Wreck-It Ralph is true to its word, then maybe. Don’t your parents let you play videogames?”

“Not really. My parents are rich!” Mary grinned. “They buy me classy stuff and make me do ‘fine arts’ stuff. They let me have lots of fun, though! Maybe they would buy me a game if I asked…”

“You’re rich, Mary?” Aeincha asked. “April, doesn’t that make you rich?”

“If our grandpa didn’t favor Uncle Alvin more over my dad, I would be.” April replied, painting a canvas of Mary and Toon Link. The two were staring curiously at each other, noting their strikingly similar appearance. April then got the idea to make Mary Cheren’s long-lost cousin.

Aeincha saw Chimney walk in from the hallways, carrying a bulletin board. “Hey, Chimney, Mary’s parents are rich! If you asked her, she could buy you stuff for your train!”

“Yeah-yeah, I don’t believe it and neither should you.” Chimney set the board on its legs and unrolled it. “ALL EYES UP HERE, on’nanokos!” The six girls and rabbit faced her. “We got an important update regarding our ultimate quest!” Using a stick, she pointed at the pictures on the board. “According to Cheren-san’s info’mation, we now got FOUR of the Seven Lights. Their names are,” she pointed at Sheila’s image at the top, “Sheila-chan from Sector V, Suki-chan from Sector IC, Fybi-chan from Sector W, and Jessie-kun from Gallagher School. The rest of them, we still dunno.” She pointed at three shadows. “But judging by the information, it’s obvious: the Seven Lights are IN THE KND!”

“Suki and Jessie are not operatives.” (“Yom-yom.”) The friends except Mary chorused.

“That’s not important! There’s a jillion sectors in the KND, so I got this to narrow it down:” Chimney flipped the page, “Behold, the current Top 10 sectors.”

10. Sector RZ
9. Sector KB
8. Sector JP
7. Sector L
6. KND Bike Hub
5. Sector Q
4. Sector IC
3. Sector W
2. Sector W7
2. Sector DR (defected)
1. Sector V

“Thus far, some of these sectors has had either a Light or a Firstborn Guardian. Maybe both. We can assume that the other sectors will have one or the other. Even Sector DR had Sugar, Melody-chan will probly be Manaphy’s Guardian, that Garley chick will have Uxie, so let’s pretend she works for Bike Hub. AND WE’RE NUMBER 2 ON THE LIST!” she cheered. “WE TOTALLY HAVE A FIRSTBORN GUARDIAN IN OUR SECTOR!”

“You got a little off track.” Aisa sweatdropped. “None of our parents are Firstborn, so one of us must be a Light.”

“You do make a lot of sense though, Chimney.” Mocha complimented. “I didn’t think you were that smart!”

“Now:” Chimney spoke authoritatively, “which one of you girls is hiding a crazy superpower?!” She ran up to Mary and glared at Aeincha atop her head, “I’m lookin’ at you, Aeinchan.”

The Lilliputian blushed. “It would be pretty cool if I was. But then I would have a big responsibility, so…”

“Mary, I don’t remember,” Aisa spoke up, “did you come to Water 7 by yourself or are your parents in town?”

“I came myself.” Mary smiled. “They wanted to come, but I promised I was a big girl now and I could do it! Besides, Uncle Galdino was waiting at the airport for me.”

“Sounds like an awful long way to travel.” Apis said. (“Oi, what about my thing??” Chimney shouted.) “What do your parents look like, anyway?”

“I have a picture of them!” Mary excitedly reached into her briefcase. “Here you go!”

Mary showed them a photo: it depicted herself, facing the camera and smiling with her parents. Her mother and father both had brown hair; the mother’s was short and in a ponytail. Father had black eyes and Mother had red eyes, and both wore fancy attire. “That’s them, huh?” Aisa said.

“Yep!” Mary beamed. “Father is April’s father’s brother! We’re cousins, but we’re like sisters!”

Apis made a frown. “That’s weird.”

“What?”

“Your parents don’t look a thing like you. I mean, most kids you see have something that resembles their parents, but you don’t look like them at all except for skin color.”

“April doesn’t look like her dad, either.” Aeincha spoke with a bubbly face. “Maybe it’s a family thing!” (“Gyom-gyom!”)

“If you ask me, she was adopted.” Chimney commented. “All annoying kids were adopted.”

“Like you, Chimney?” Mocha asked.

“NO WAY! Kokoro’s mermaid veins run within me!”

“I read an article online that said 57% of orphans have blonde hair.” Apis mentioned. “It also said that 80% of blondes are rich. Coincidence, maybe?”

“Really?” Chimney rubbed her chin. “Well, I need to ask Granny Kokoro if we have a few hundred—YOU’RE MISSING THE POINT!” She shook back to focus. “We just established that one o’ you girls is a Seven Lights. Now which one o’ you is it?!”

“How could we even tell?” April asked, painting a new picture of Chimney with a big brain. “Do we have to wait for a spirit guide to come into our… yaaaaawn, mind?”

“Maybe I’m a Light.” Apis spoke with a smile. “I am a girl of God, after all.”

“If anyone, it’s Chimney.” Mocha said. “She’s got the most personality of all of us. And she really loves us.”

“Yaaaaawn, that was my vote, too.” April’s eyes were getting heavy.

“Nnnn? What if I am?” Chimney spoke thoughtfully. “I already got a big responsibility raisin’ YOU girls. And I got the best train in the universe!” Her eyes were sparkly.

“That’s gotta be it, Chimney’s the Light!” Aeincha agreed.

“I guess you can rule me out, since there’s already a Nimbi.” Aisa sighed, upside-down on the couch with her legs against the backrest.

“Yaaaaawn-”

“APRIIIIIL!” Chimney screamed. “Why you keep yawning? You’re ruining my proud moment!”

April rested her paint on a stool and rubbed her eyes. “Sorry, Chimney. I guess I didn’t get much sleep last night. I’m gonna lay down, maybe then I’ll feel more awake.”

“Bleh, you teenagers.” Chimney mocked. “Always wantin’ ta sleep.”

Mary sat up and watched her cousin trek down the hallway slowly. She got up off the couch and fast-walked after her. “April?” The girl in question entered her art gallery-style room, took off her shoes, hat, and cloud-pattern jacket, and climbed into bed. “April, you aren’t sick, are you?”

“No, Mary, I’m just a little drowsy today.” she replied with a smile, feeling both humored and grateful at her cousin’s concern. “I’ll take a short nap, then we’ll play some games.”

April rolled onto her side with one arm beside her. Mary stared at her cousin with worry. She wondered if she would have the same nightmare about the art gallery again, or if that weird guy would be in her dream. “Wake up soon…” she told April before walking back to the living room.

Hall of Doors

“I am sleeping way too much for my own health.” Sheila stated as she progressed alongside the river. “Me poor legs are growin’ stiff as a newborn. Man, why’d I get stuck with all this Dream World hoo-ha? Why can’t I go on pirate adventures with me mates like we were already doing? Darn blokes know they need me.”

Sheila stared at the next portal, labeled Picture City. It was represented by a bright wall of splatted colors. “Sigh… goin’ without Murfy or Globo’s gonna be boring. I still like havin’ mates to travel with, even if some of them ruin the surprises. Well, I guess I’ve got me a brain to paint up for ol’ Rayman. Blimey, I’m not good at art.” With that, she dove into the portal. (Play “Picture City” from Rayman.)


Stage 50: Picture City

Mission: Create a brain for Rayman.

Sheila was dropped on a giant pink eraser that seemed to be suspended hundreds of meters in the air. A giant pen stuck out from the bottom, and the eraser felt slippery with ink. The sky was wavy with rainbow colors of a tint hue, and the buildings that towered in the distance were designed like pencils, pens, paintbrushes, whatever particular form of art they were made for. To get across this chasm, Sheila had to bounce across a series of blue, sparkly erasers, which were as bouncy as trampolines. Pan Pirates – alien pirates that were riding flying frying pans – appeared out of thin air and chased Sheila from behind. More appeared as she progressed, but she saw a lower eraser and dropped to it, letting the aliens fly over. With that, she could bounce back up and punch Light Spheres at them from behind.

Sheila bounced in place on the last blue eraser as she faced a garden of giant pencils, whose tips were sharp and deadly. Sheila fired rounds of Light Spheres to wittle the pencils down, so she could safely jump across their round tips. Sheila made it to and took land on a field of canvases, surrounded by puddles of colorful paint. The canvases had a variety of miscellaneous paintings, but Sheila paid them no mind as she maneuvered around the maze of canvases. After she made it out on the other side, Sheila discovered the artist responsible:

April Goldenweek was standing before a canvas and painting a swirly ink road. “Hmmm… I don’t remember painting those cages of pink things.” April observed. “A great addition, however. It implies sadness in fun.”

“Blimey, April!” Sheila perked in surprise. “This is YOUR dream?”

“Chimney?” April turned around. “Oh, Sheila, it’s you. This is a surprise.”

“Yeh, ‘cause you and I are such close pals. April, Ah need you to make me a brain.”

“I already had an order for Chimney, but I’ll make time for you.”

“Not me, some bloke with rabbit ears!”

“Panini?”

“Not HER, some bloke with- sigh…” Sheila face-palmed. “I dunno, just make a brain.”

“I’ll need some special material to make a quality brain. Come with me to the city and I’ll show you.” April resumed painting her swirly ink road. Sheila gaped when the empty chasm before them spawned a real, life-size fortress made of dark ink. “After you?” April inquired.

“YAAAHOOOOOO!” Sheila surfed across the slippery ink, down a steep hill, up a ramp, and she flew high into the air, across the chasm, and onto a straight path leading into the fortress. Sheila drifted leftward and flew up a ramp along the wall, letting some Pan Pirates fly underneath her before landing back on, sliding right, and up another ramp, seeing April Goldenweek slide along a higher road. After Sheila landed, she followed a wildly snaky road, which would then bring her to an outside road with the bottomless chasm on either side. Sheila jumped each Pan Pirate that poofed out of nowhere, swung a Purple Lum over a ledge, then landed on an ink slide that slid down rightward, then curved up with a sudden turn back left.

The world spun above Sheila as she slid around a sideways spiral of the slide, the same time April was sliding on a parallel segment in the opposite direction. During her dizziness, Sheila was able to spot and punch an Electoon cage, then the two roads met up as she and April locked hands and leaped off of the edge while spinning like a wheel. “Hit the targets, Sheila!” April passed her some yellow paint, she herself used blue paint, hitting the respective same-color targets suspended along their midair path. They set foot on the edge to Picture City, able to claim another Electoon cage that was free from a Colors Trap (a forcefield of color).

The buildings of Picture City looked even taller up close. The sirens of police rang throughout the air, and cars that were shaped like 3-D protractors drove everywhere. Sheila and April stood on a ledge and overlooked a street of speeding cars, so they knew it’d be dangerous to fall down. April indicated the blank white path along the right side of a building, then she showed Sheila a roll of blue painter’s tape on a building that was across the street from the previous. April and Sheila ventured rightward along their current ledge, which had yellow and orange splotches of paint along the ground. A Hoodstormer (a small Hoodlum with a cannon and propeller) was flying over the end of the path, shooting these splotches onto the ground.

Splatoon Squids surfed along these splotches and tried to knock Sheila and April off their feet. Sheila punched Light Spheres at the squids while April hurriedly dipped white-out over the puddles, until the girls made it to the Hoodstormer. There was a canvas stationed on a platform to the left, which April jumped to to paint a barrier blocking the Hoodstormer. It could no longer shoot at them, but Sheila could send Light Spheres around to attack it. The Hoodlum was destroyed, and it dropped a Swing Suit Power Can. The girls rushed back to the painter’s tape as Sheila punched a grappable fist, allowing her to pull and unravel the tape into a bridge.

April could cross the tape and enter a small room where a window could view the white path along the next building. April painted a platform course on the window, and a real course appeared alongside the building. April held onto Sheila as she swung a Purple Lum with the still-active Swing Suit, landing on the path. Doomtoons dropped down from above and lunged at the girls with big teeth, which Sheila gladly punched. April took interest in how their bodies flew away, leaving only their eyes bouncing around. The girls Wall Jumped between two vertical platforms to reach a higher point. The girls bounced the buttons of some giant pens to cross the street, then they touched a Shrink Fairy over the last pen as Sheila floated herself and April to land on a standable ledge of a windowsill.

The building they were on was black and white in a lot of misc. areas, namely the windows, which had inverted colors. The miniaturized girls crossed the top sills of two windows, then dropped to the bottom sill of the third one as the top sill was flat. Sheila had to punch Light Spheres to determine if the sides of windows were solid, or if the floors were standable. For some windows, they could climb onto the middle strip to the top strip, or jump to the middle of the next window—it became a baffling 2-D maze. The route ended at a window that was sealed on all other ends, but the girls could enter the blank white space inside.

There was a (giant to them) paintbrush dipped into a can of black paint, which April jumped up to grab the end of. The girls were navigating another maze, but with everything completely white, April had to paint the ground and walls with black paint as they progressed. April walked ahead and revealed holes they had to jump and a Wall Jump area in one part. There was an Electoon cage in the up-left direction from a ledge, and April revealed a secret staircase that Sheila could climb to break the cage. The Blank Route was steadily leading downward, and they could see an exit below. April dropped the paintbrush as they entered the tiny hole, and a Shrink Fairy poofed them to normal on the other side.

They were in a sewer area in which the walls and ceiling were wooden with ink splotches, and the river below was pitch-black ink. The flat tops of colorful pencils were rising up and down, and since Sheila had no intention of getting her feet inky, she jumped the pencils when they were risen. They rested on a small, steady eraser platform, where a one-eyed ball was suspended above it, with colors of a Yin-yang symbol. Sheila hit the Yin-yang and caught it when it fell. She noticed a walkway along the wall above the entrance they just came from, so Sheila carried the ball across the bobbing pencils, and once under the path, she released the ball to bounce in place.

Sheila used the Yin-yang as a foothold to jump up onto the walkway, then cross it to a set of parallel walls with an Electoon cage on top. Since they were too far to Wall Jump, Sheila sent a Light Sphere to bounce up between and hit the cage. She turned back—Deathtoons appeared along the path, Sheila jumped the insta-kill creatures hastily. She made it back to April, seeing the Yin-yang respawned above the safe platform, so the two carried it across the next set of pencils. April used it to jump up to a floating platform with a canvas, which she used to paint more pencils across the barren area of ink between them and an eraser course. The duo crossed to the erasers, and saw the next route crossed over giant pencils that bobbed up-and-down under a short ceiling with giant pushpins.

The girls had to crouch to avoid the pins, but their awkward position made it difficult to jump. April’s hat got stuck to a pin, so she quickly pulled it off before the pencil sank. The girls made it to a floating pencil-sharpener, which carried them up a shaft. They had to dodge left and right to avoid pushpins in either wall, then they could step off at the top. Deathtoons were helicopter-flying over a field of blue Bouncerasers, so the girls took care to maneuver around or under the monsters. They stopped on a safe eraser, which had no other route to follow, only two cups of red and blue paint. “These should help your tail out.” April said as she dipped two brushes in and colored Sheila’s tail with both paints. “Now you’ll be able to fly.”

Sheila rapidly spun her tail propeller and hovered in the air, not feeling the need to come down at all. “Strewth! Ay’ve been really mad since me tail got hurt during that Minish Door jumbo, I can’t actually do much besides glide anymore!”

“Was that the excuse the writers put?”

“Yep.” Sheila grabbed April by the hands and flew them over the sea of ink. “That spinning’s gonna shake the paint off, though, grab some Paintballs on the way.” April cautioned. Sheila flew a little off course when she saw an Electoon cage in the distance. She whirled and punched a large Light Sphere to break it from afar, then grabbed April’s other hand again and quickly redirected toward the sewer tunnel.

She grabbed a Paintball just before her flight wore off. April kept her legs bent as they flew in the tunnel, close to the inky river that threatened to discolor her shoes. Walls of floating trays with needles blocked their path, but Sheila could punch through the spiked Yin-yangs within the gaps to fly through. Sheila kept hitting the Paintballs, narrowly avoiding the falling giant pencils as the tunnel shifted right. They exited into sunlight as the artistic buildings towered over them again. The flight was about to wear off, so Sheila quickly floated them onto a sidewalk on the left.

The roads around here were closed, as there were big splotches of colorful paint around the streets and buildings. “Splatoons.” April informed. “They like to engage in Color Wars and mess up the town.”

“Why, what’re they trying to do?”

“Nothing. They have no real objective at all. Just pointless gang wars.”

The two explored the streets as Splat Squids jumped in and out of their respective colors, either in place or along paths of puddles. Sheila punched and destroyed the squids on their way to a cliffside, which had a white background and made of very intricate black textures. The girls were able to climb textures that looked like combs, while the textures that were big splotches were flat and would cause them to slip and fall. There were hidden numbers blended in with the textures, like 9, 14, 19, 5, and 3. Sheila and April stepped off on a safe foothold and viewed a blank white area of the cliff. Colorful flowers grew on this ledge, and there was a table with black paint and a canvas. April picked up one of the flowers, dipped it in the paint, and began stamping the texture of the petals around the canvas.

Those petal textures appeared along the blankness, and the girls could keep climbing along. There were other numbers and some letters; in order, Sheila saw they were 20, 15, 18, 23, G, 15, 14, 12, 25, B, 1, 18, 5, 16, 21, 18, 5, 12, 25, 8, 21, 13, 1, 14. A Hoodboom was chucking paint bombs at them from his vantage point, and with those areas of texture unusable, the girls had to either maneuver around or climb fast. The duo finally made it onto the Hoodboom’s cliff, and Sheila seized the chance to punch and destroy the creature. This area had green and yellow paint Splatoon splotches lain around, and appeared to be the rooftop of a building with drums and a short water tower. The Hoodboom dropped a Crazy Shoe, so Sheila and April touched it to shrink down and drive one of their shoes like bumper cars.

When the girls drove over the different paint puddles, the color absorbed into their shoes, and they could push a button to sink into the puddles and maneuver within their dimension. Sheila absorbed enough yellow paint to surf her way up a stairway of tall drums, in which the top parts were yellow, then got inside a water tower to break an Electoon cage inside. Sheila and April then absorbed green paint as they slid down a slope of the color, having to submerge every so often when Hoodmongers stood in their way. At the bottom of the slope, they had to submerge and go up the painted wall, then the girls began their drive over the rooftops.

They absorbed some magenta paint and submerged in the color to drive over the edge and down the building’s side, and from there jump to an eraser platform with same-color paint, then to the next building. They absorbed blue paint next and drove over some midair erasers with pushpins sticking out. Since the pins were covered with paint, they could submerge and swim within the spikes, having to surface and absorb more before the power wore off. They then drove and bounced across Bouncerasers, which bounced them to blue paint on the ceiling, so they could submerge inside and go over the spikes.

They dropped off on a street and drove their Crazy Shoes to a backstreet area. The place was totally drenched in paint: Splatoons were running amuck, children wearing average clothes and glasses. They were mindlessly blasting paint guns, throwing paint bombs, and swinging giant paintbrushes to paint up the place. “Blimey, you weren’t jokin’ about these drunks. How d’ya propose we beat them, April?” Sheila asked.

The girl in question noticed hers and Sheila’s other shoes driving around, covered in neon paint as they changed colors every few seconds. April boosted her shoe and sped up to her crazy one when it was close to a magenta Splatoon. She rammed the shoe and exploded some yellow paint over the Splatoon, causing the kid to tremble and explode. “Like that.”

Sheila drove into an alleyway to find a Splatoon wielding two brushes of blue paint to whip his color across the walls. Sheila bypassed the kid and found her Crazy Sandal was taking cover in the alley corner, and the sandal drove back the opposite way when she appeared. She chased it to the kid, and when her shoe lit magenta, she rammed and exploded the paint on him. April was still in the main square, aiming to take down a green Splatoon with a big paintbrush. She rammed her Crazy Shoe to explode blue paint and destroy her. The last two kids were up on the roofs, so Sheila absorbed some blue paint, while April absorbed yellow paint to surf up those colored walls. A yellow Splatoon was throwing grenades below from his roof, and Sheila needed some expert maneuvering to trick her Crazy Sandal into jumping to his platform. Once it finally did, she surfed over to join it and exploded orange paint on the Splatoon.

April chased her Crazy Shoe across a long orange path, where Splat Squids surfed over from the opposite end. The last, orange Splatoon was there, but now it was time for him to disappear, because after April was there and done, she and Sheila- “Ugh, I can’t get that trailer out of my head!” April huffed with anger. “Just die, you stupid excuse for a multiplayer!”

April hit her shoe, which exploded into blue paint and killed the Splatoon. With the enemies defeated, both girls grew back to normal size. Sheila made sure to hit the Electoon cage while on the roofs, then the girls dropped down and followed the road past this wharf. They were approaching some kind of theater, which was advertising Space Mama’s Fanfare: Starring Ib as the Caged Stage Objective. (End song.)

“Is this where we’re gonna make Rayman’s brain?” Sheila asked as they wandered the dark theater. “Or watch some crummy interpretation of One Piece on Ice?”

“This theater wasn’t supposed to be here. There’s something strange going on and I want to see what’s up.” April replied.

“You’re very in control of your dream, aren’t you?” Sheila said with disbelief. “Aren’t dreams supposed to be more free, not so ‘organized’?”

“If it’s too free, then we have Splatoons. I’ll be free where it matters.”

They stopped before a pair of huge red curtains. “’Twas THREE eras und 74 weeks ago,” a high opera voice sang throughout the room, the curtains lifting as spotlights appeared, “a most loveliest of woman wanted naught more than to be among the STARS, but alas, was shrouded by the streetlights of the meager.” The scrolling background depicted the moon’s landscape and outer space.

“But soft, what light through yonder alley br-r-r-r-REAKS?” Space Mama floated down from the barracks above, wielding her bazooka. A cage dropped and dangled beside her; it contained a young girl with brown hair, red eyes, a white shirt, red skirt, and black socks with red shoes. “’Tis no ordinary light: Meester Dark hath holden the Protoon, and dost giveth me new beauty!”

“Wait a sec!” April exclaimed. “You’re that woman we fought on the train!”

“Und yo-o-o-o-ou are that annoyeeng girl, whom doth defend the yellow-haired maiden Mr. Dark so fancies.”

“You mean Chimney, ‘cause she’s one of the Lights?”

“NnnnnOOOOOO! The one that doth wear green!”

“Oh, Mary. Wait,” April shook, “why is your boss after Mary? And; who’s that girl? HEY, are you okay?”

“I’m fine!” The girl in the cage yelled.

“Do not speak!” Space Mama hit the cage and had it reel back up. “I will have my revenge! I will get the secret Meester Dark desires from you, and he will reward me soooo! Eet’s time for your final act!” (Play Space Mama’s Theme from Rayman.)


Boss fight: Space Mama

Sheila and April felt the gravity falter in the theater, and could make slow, terrific leaps into the air. Space Mama gracefully leapt around the room, blasting slow lasers from her bazooka that bounced around the floor and walls. Sheila maneuvered toward the woman, spinning her fist slowly to ready a punch. Space Mama glared and swung her bazooka at the raccoon, which Sheila countered with a kick, then punched Mama in her helmeted head. Space Mama spun around and flew away, gliding above the girls to drop missiles down on them. Thinking fast, April jumped up to the stage and painted blue barriers on the scrolling landscape, protecting herself and Sheila from the descending missiles (even though no 3-D barrier appeared over the field).

Space Mama kept floating so high, they couldn’t reach her, and Sheila’s Light Spheres were too slow to hit her. On April’s cue, the two of them jumped, the former painted a standable line on the scrolling background, the girls could land on it, and they kept jumping as April painted more. Space Mama tried to move away, but April hurriedly painted a stairway toward her so Sheila could run up and punch her in the helmet. All of them descended to the ground as Space Mama leapt and Ground Pounded, propelling the duo up with her force. She spun below them and sent up more missiles, and still midair, April painted a barrier to block the missiles. Sheila landed and jumped at Mama, who smirked and leaped backward away. The woman flipped with her cannon outstretched, Sheila simply grabbed onto its roof when she came back around, socking Mama in the face again.

Mama kicked away from Sheila and blasted lasers down at April, who was forced to dive away from the stage. Mama spun at a low point around the air to release missiles, and before they could fire, April hurriedly dashed up onstage. She and Sheila ducked, for she could barely draw a low shield in time before the missiles dropped. Space Mama flew up beside the left wall, and when April tried to paint a path up for Sheila, Space Mama flew to the right. April had an idea, so she had Sheila make her way to Mama again, dodging her attacks before the woman leapt back to the left. Then, April painted spikes at Space Mama’s level in the background, so when they scrolled over to her, the woman took several hits.

Angered, Space Mama plummeted down and Ground Pounded, propelling Sheila and April into the air again. She made missiles appear along the left wall, they were easy to block as April’s barrier scrolled their direction. However, some missiles still made it past, they did a U-turn to come at the girls again, so April quickly blocked. In the air, the remaining missiles directed down, April blocked with haste. Space Mama landed on the ground and skipped toward Sheila, leaping above for a Ground Pound, but the raccoon dodged and was propelled into the air. Sheila thought fast and Ground Pounded onto Space Mama, striking her helmet.

“I will not let you ruin my show!” the actress declared. “I will wash away the two of you!” She leaped above the stage, and April ran away before a washing machine could fall and crush her. Mama used the machine as a shield and blasted her bazooka from her point on the stage. Sheila nimbly dodged her blasts and shot a Light Sphere at the washer’s dial, turning it up one notch. They noticed the washer shake faster, so Sheila smirked and dodged closer to her opponent, punching another sphere to turn another notch. Mama began to shoot bouncing lasers across the ground, Sheila quickly hit Light Spheres at them as she rolled closer. “The only thing we’re washing away is your act!” Sheila made it up to the washer and turned it up full blast.

“Nooooo!” Space Mama clutched her washing machine tight as it propelled into the air. “I will not lose! Not so long as Meester Dark is depending on meeeee!”

“If I were him, I would be thankful not to hear that voice again.” April remarked as she painted some platforms up to the woman. “So annoying.” As Space Mama was swaying in midair on her washer, April jumped to the device and painted an extra notch on it, turning it up higher. The washing machine shook beyond control and propelled to the ceiling. “NOOOOOOOHHHHH!”

The washer exploded, the upper barracks came down and brought the background down along with it. The girls felt their bodies heavy with gravity again, and watched as Space Mama fell down helmet-first. The glass smashed against the floor, and Mama was knocked out. The cage containing the imprisoned girl dangled close to them. (End song.)

Sheila punched the cage and let the girl drop on her knees. She went over to help the child stand. “You okay?”

“Yeah.” The red-eyed child looked up and smiled. “Thanks for saving me.”

“Eeeesh.” Sheila shuddered. “Those eyes ain’t natural.”

“Neither is raccoon ears.”

“April, I don’t really wanna stay here long.” Sheila told the artist as she approached them. “Can you just promise to make me a brain by the time I get back?”

“I’ll try to make time for it.” April said. “Depends on how long I feel like dreaming. …It was fun hanging out with you, Sheila.”

“You too, mate.” Sheila stretched her arms in a bored fashion. “See ya later.” She and the red-eyed girl approached the portal pedestal behind the fallen background. The two of them performed the silly kick-your-legs dance before Sheila was sucked into the portal.

With that, the girl turned around to face April. “Is that really you, April?”

“Um… yes? Who are you?” April asked with confusion.

“My name is Ib.” The girl smiled. “You sure look a lot different than before.”

“Before?… I don’t understand. Where do I know you from, and why’re you in my dream?”

“I don’t remember how I got here…” Ib frowned and touched her head. “That weird guy with the blue coat appeared and captured me… I heard him talk about April, and then I…I remembered Mary, so I asked him, and he… uuuooh…” She fell to her knees.

“Ib? What’s wrong?” April asked with concern.

Ib looked up at her with groggy red eyes. “April… do you still remember… the gallery?”

April gave a light gasp. “Gallery? What gallery?”

“The…The one with… Guertena…” She was becoming more sick. “April, please… I don’t wanna stay here anymore… Please come… back… Mary… please…”

April stepped back in fear when the dreamscape began to turn dark. Ib’s begging body morphed into reddish-pink, before the dimension inside swallowed April. The pink hallway of paintings zoomed past April as she stood agape, drawing further into the darkness. An empty portrait of yellow roses was coming closer before the world flashed.

April’s Room

April jumped awake. She was back in her art studio room. She sat up and touched her head. “What a weird dream… It’s too weird to even paint a picture of it. Suddenly I’m friends with Sheila… then we’re… hmmm… Guertena… Gallery…!” April gasped, her mind sparking with remembrance. “The Guertena Gallery!” She formed a big smile.

In the living room, Apis was looking over Mary’s shoulder as the yellow-haired girl was playing Zelda: Spirit Tracks on the DS. She was controlling the Spirit Train and blasting enemies with the cannons. “Apis, if I’m the little guy in the train, aren’t those monsters people, too?”

“Relax, Mary, they’re just mindless programs, they’re going to respawn no matter how much you kill them.”

Mary frowned with concern. “If you really say so…”

“April-chan, there you are!” Chimney proclaimed after the older girl came back. “We’re tryin’ to figure out what my secret power is. If you ain’t tired anymore, get to helpin’ me tap into my hidden strength!”

“Please, Chimney, my eyes hurt.” Mocha moaned, having just endured a series of brutal kicks to her eyes in her battle with Chimney.

“Mochan, if YOU can’t force me to use my hidden superpower, who will??”

“Hey, Mary, guess what!” April began brightly. “I think I finally figured out the answer to our gallery nightmare.”

“You…You did?” Mary asked.

“You’ve been having nightmares, April?” Aisa followed.

“Um, I didn’t mention it to you guys, but… Mary, do you remember the Guertena Art Gallery? The one our parents took us to before I joined KND?”

Mary gasped. “Oh! Yeah, I do remember!” She smiled happily. “That was the last thing we ever did together.”

“So why don’t we revisit memory lane?” April suggested. “In fact, all of you guys can come with us! You can meet Mary’s parents and we can see the gallery that inspired us!”

“Don’t be silly, April!” Chimney shouted. “We don’t got time for crummy art, we’re tryin’ to discover my ultimate and emotionally-tolling destiny!”

“I wouldn’t mind going to a gallery!” Aisa grinned, now lain on the floor with her feet up against the couch. “It’s better than just lying around here and doing nothing.”

“Yeah, um…” April spoke embarrassedly, “about that, Aisa, the Guertena Gallery’s a pretty classy place, and if not that, Mary’s parents certainly are, so you may need to… dress up?”

“WUUUUUUHT?” Aisa totally freaked out.

“And you, too, Mocha.” April was still embarrassed. “They wouldn’t let a giant in and shake up the place.”

“Well, that’s okay.” Mocha complied. “I’ll just eat one of Aisa’s apples, no harm done.”

“For what it’s worth, I like ALL of you guys the same!” Mary beamed.

“April, this is turnin’ into total bull.” Chimney huffed. “Does this mean I gotta shut my mouth the whole time we’re with Mary’s parents?”

“You know, Chimney, your secret power might arise for having your mouth shut for a day.” Aeincha kidded.

“April,” Mary spoke with a concerned look, “I still don’t think we should go. Maybe the reason we keep having nightmares is ‘cause… it’s scary. Some artists like to make scary stuff, don’t they?”

“I don’t remember it being scary, and you weren’t scared, either.” April reasoned. “Also, have you ever heard of the Nightmare Spirit, Darkrai? I read somewhere that his nightmares can foretell someone’s future. …” April was silent for a minute, thinking back on her dream just now. “Whatever- or whoever’s at the Guertena Gallery… it might be something important. Come on, Mary, it’ll be fun!”

“Sigh… okay.” She sighed solemnly.

“Chimney, get the R.O.C.K.E.T.-T.R.A.I.N. prepped.” April commanded, walking away. “I’ll see if Dad wants to come, too.”

“WAT?! I gotta let a stinking adult on my baby, too?!”

“’Guess I’ll go break in the sandals.” Aisa figured, leaving with April. “I can probably wash them in the ocean.”

“Haa… I don’t get a say in this, do I?” Chimney slumped.

“That’s the emotionally-tolling price, Chimney.” Aeincha shrugged.

North Carolina; 1123 Wilson Way

Sunni Chariton calmly walked up the street under the partly-cloudy sky. She was about to pass the tall, black fence protecting the giant, orange and brown-roofed building behind it. A black flag with the signature blue “F” flapped on top. Sunni looked at the note that read the address her father gave her.

“Hey, uuuuummm… Dad?” Sunni spoke, balancing on her heels like a sheepish little girl. “I know I’m not tryin’ to be like Mom and all, but I just wanna know, how does she make Imaginary Friends like she does? ‘Cause like, if I could do that too, it would like, help I guess? But like, isn’t making Imaginary Friends super hard?”

“Heh heh, unless you’re Morgan.” Rainier chuckled. “To tell the truth, your mom wasn’t good at making anything that didn’t come from dreams.”

“So I just gotta dream a lot?”

“I wouldn’t, that’s bad for your legs. But listen, I’ll tell you about the house your mom liked to come to.” He wrote something down on a piece of paper and gave it to Sunni. “If you want a few Imaginary Friends, this is the place for you.”

If this house didn’t stand out, Sunni didn’t know what did. She passed through the front gates and approached the purplish-red double-doors. However, it seemed that two Anti Guys (dark-gray Shy Guys) were guarding the entrance, yelling at Sunni with sing-song voices, “No no, dear! No one’s allowed! You don’t wanna mess with us!”

Sunni stared disbelieved. “Get out of my way.”

“No no! You can’t go in! Our Lady’s in, and she-”

“It’s okay, guys, she can come in.” A British voice yelled from inside.

The Anti Guys perked with surprise, then shrugged. They pushed open the doors together to let Sunni inside. “You know, except for the blue aura, your psychic really is similar to Mika’s.” The woman in the white labcoat commented.

Sunni gasped. The woman turned around as her emerald eyes stared at Sunni from behind her blue glasses. “Aunt Morgan?”


To be honest, I really wanted Picture City to be the 50th stage. XD Anyway, plenty of stuff I want to happen this saga, I’m not actually sure when we’ll get to the Guertena Gallery. Next time, we’ll have some Sunni progression, we haven’t really gotten much of-

“Reality’s still an illusion,” Bill Cipher shouted, “none of you are real, all humans and all creatures are just tiny fragments-”

Bill, go back to sleep. Funny thing about Rupert’s story, I originally had planned that he kept the Pikmin business a secret from his parents, then Chad finds out and-

“Remember to watch Spongebob, that’s always been one of my hits!”

Okay, I gotta settle this guy down. See you next time, peoples.

“Later, jackasses!”